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Alfe was where I last saw her before losing consciousness on top of a rock.

“…Alfe. Alfe.” I gently called out while lifting Alfe up. I noticed her eyelids twitching in response to my voice.

“…Uh, Leafa…” Alfe faintly moaned, calling out my name.

“It’s me. I’m here, Alfe.” I spoke softly, trying to be gentle, as I brushed aside the hair covering Alfe’s face, and suddenly, her eyelids fluttered open.

“Leafa!” Alfe, awakening, shouted my name and immediately hugged me.

“Whoa!” I stumbled backward from Alfe’s sudden embrace.

“Leafa, Leafa, Leafa!” Alfe tightly held onto me, pressing her cheek against mine and repeatedly calling out my name.

“Hey… i-it’s hard to breathe, Alfe.”
“I’m relieved… that you’re safe… I… I…”
“I won’t die so easily. I know you’d be sad otherwise.”

When Aurora gave me a death sentence, the first thing that came to mind was Alfe’s grieving face. Even if I were to accept what Aurora said about my parents, I didn’t want Alfe to be sad because of me. She didn’t know anything, and she probably never even considered that I could die. So seeing that Auro Rabbit must have been such a shock that she lost consciousness.

“…Where did that rabbit go…?”
“It’s already gone. Seems like it has run off somewhere. It had also shrunk in size.”
“I see…”

Despite that, there seemed to be some lingering unease as Alfe glanced around. Perhaps she was searching for something I couldn’t see.

“Do you see anything?”
“Nope. can’t spot that big aether anywhere.”
“That’s good.”

If Alfe said so, it must have been true. Just as I suspected, the goddess had her aether absorbed by the crystallized dark matter, Darklight, rendering ‘Divine Possession’ itself unsustainable.

“What are we going to do then?”
“Since Arkecius was broken too, let’s just head back for the time being.”

Finally calming down, I prompted Alfe as I pulled her up by the hand.

“Oh, wait a moment.”

Alfe said this, then placed her hand on my shoulder and leaned in, planting a kiss on my cheek.

“Huh…?”
“You have a little cut here. It’s a magic kiss to make the pain go away.”

As she withdrew her lips, Alfe pointed to her own cheek, indicating where I was injured.

“Ah, th-thank you…”

My hand injury was actually worse, but I discreetly hid it on my back; I was sure she’d be shocked if she saw it.

“You’re welcome.”

Alfe, oblivious, smiled proudly. Nevertheless, turning a kiss into a magic spell was amusing. When the goddess appeared, I certainly felt my life was in danger, but as I interacted with Alfe like this, the fear dissipated.

I really did like Alfe, it seemed.

◇◇◇

I apparently lost consciousness as I entered the harbor area of Torch Town, with Alfe on Arkecius. When I came to, I found myself being transported to a hospital where I underwent what seemed like health examinations I’d had as an infant.

Outside was already pitch black, with neither my father nor my mother around. However, there was a letter left behind as evidence of their visit, with words like, “Get well soon.” The lines forming the letters seemed distorted, indicating they must have been quite worried. Given the strain I had caused to Mother right after my Father, it would be best to behave well for the time being.

From the hospital room where my bed was situated, I could see the tranquil lake at night. It was a stark contrast to the stormy weather from before, now resembling a quiet and beautiful painting. Presumably, treatments and examinations for my injuries were already completed. Cotton gauze and bandages were wrapped around the bruises and cuts on various parts of my body, and some sort of medicine was applied to the grazes. With the condition of my injuries, it seemed likely I could return home from the hospital tomorrow.

“Even so…”

It felt like I was experiencing my first night alone since birth. The gentle breeze entering through the open window was comforting. While being alone was natural during my time as Glass, I never thought much of it. Yet here I was, feeling vulnerable being alone in an unfamiliar room, completely accustomed to life as Leafa.

Over the moonlit lake, golden butterflies had begun to flutter about unnoticed. Glittering scales scattered as they danced on the wind, gradually drifting closer.

“…No way, right?”

A butterfly gracefully flapped its wings and landed on the windowsill, almost as if in response to my murmurs.

“Yes way. I’m Chronos, here on Fortuna’s behalf.”

The butterfly spoke—or so I would describe it, though it was the voice of a girl. The name Chronos belonged to a goddess just like Aurora and Fortuna.

“The execution was Aurora’s decision alone. Fortuna and I didn’t agree. Let me make it clear that it wasn’t the unanimous decision of the goddesses.”
“…Good to hear that.”

I really wasn’t good at handling these goddesses. But that didn’t change the fact that my life had been in danger.

“Aurora was excessively wary of Glass. That’s the reason she tried to execute you on her own. I was also coerced into preparing Auro Rabbit, but thanks to your resourcefulness, you drove her away.”
“So, what happened to Aurora?”
“Right now, she’s having a big fight with Fortuna. That’s why I’ve come in her place.”

I see. I feel like I’m starting to understand the power dynamics a bit better.

“I’ll hear you out. Talk.”
“…From now on, we have no intention of harming you anymore. In truth, we goddesses aren’t supposed to descend to the mortal realm indiscriminately. That’s the agreement.”
“Agreement with whom?”
“With the spirits. It’s the spirits who manage the mortal realm, and it’s forbidden for us goddesses to directly interfere. Since we can’t interfere directly, we create apostles called Kamut to represent the goddesses’ wishes instead.”

I see, so that’s why Cassius came for Glass’ execution.

“Moreover, this country is under the jurisdiction of the Black Dragon God, right? That one’s bad news. Really bad.”
“What’s so bad about it?”

At my question, the butterfly flutters its wings as if shivering.

“We goddesses are extremely disliked by the Black Dragon God. It still holds a grudge from when we tried to forcibly take it to the heavenly realm.”
“Anyone would react that way. Why did you do such a thing?”
“The Black Dragon God’s power is too much for this mortal realm… That’s why we wanted it to behave quietly in the heavenly realm. But it loves humans too much. It resisted with all its might.”

I could hear the weariness in Chronos’ voice. She was probably reminiscing about that time.

“…Honestly, I thought I was going to be killed. Ideally, I never want to have anything to do with the Black Dragon God again.”

I see. So, does that mean the goddesses fear the Black Dragon God as well? I’ll remember that.

“That’s why we goddesses will stop interfering with you. So, please, just make sure not to violate any taboos.”
“Wait, what do you mean by taboos—”

Before I could finish my sentence, the butterfly’s form changed into a crystalline golden light. It melted into the night breeze and disappeared from view.

Well, this is frustrating. With the whims of the goddesses, you never know what might constitute a taboo. Perhaps I should give up on retrieving the Ars Magna for now. It’s not something I urgently need, and there should still be fragments of the Darklight crystal remaining. So, I can always retrieve it when it’s truly necessary.

But, I’m tired. I’ve put Leafa’s body through quite a bit with all these unfamiliar activities. Rest seems to be the best way for both my mind and body to recover, so I’ll just let sleep take over.

When I wake up tomorrow, I’ll be able to see Alfe, Father, and Mother again.

◇◇◇

“…Leafa!”

When I stopped by Alfe’s house to greet her after being discharged from the hospital, Alfe, with swollen eyes, threw herself into my arms. It wasn’t her usual demeanor; it was a gentle gesture of concern.

“Leafa, Leafa, I’m sorry…”
“You don’t need to apologize for anything, Alfe. I’m just relieved that you’re okay.”

Reassuring myself of Alfe’s safety, a wave of relief washed over me. If something had happened to Alfe back then, I surely wouldn’t have been able to keep my sanity, and I would have lived the rest of my life burdened with regret.

I like Alfe. That’s why I’m afraid of losing her.

Acknowledging my fondness for Alfe, I realized the true nature of the fear that had taken root within me. Alfe was an irreplaceable friend to me. I harbored an affection for her that was different from the familial love I felt, to the extent that I wasn’t even sure if it was appropriate to express it in those terms.

It was a feeling that had sprouted for the first time in my life as Leafa, not Glass. That’s why it took me so long to recognize it as my own emotion.

“Leafa… I love you… so much…”

Alfe hugged me tightly and whispered into my ear.

“I love you too¹, Alfe…”

It felt like I was finally able to respond with genuine meaning to Alfe’s affection. It had taken nine years, but I was Leafa. Reborn, living a new life.

Perhaps the happiness Fortuna spoke of was, unexpectedly, found in moments like these, in everyday life. Or maybe there was something even greater.

After nine years since birth, there were still many things I didn’t know about life as Leafa. Happiness was surely one of them. So, I just had to keep searching for it from now on.

“Do you remember… our promise?”
“Of course.”

It was my first promise with Alfe. Now, I could understand a little better what Alfe must have felt when she made it.

As long as this promise existed— as long as Alfe wished it, she would always be by my side.

“I’ll always, always be by your side, Alfe.”

Perhaps, in this life, I can grasp it, the so-called ordinary happiness.

As I hugged Alfe back tightly, I sincerely wished to reach out and seize it.

Translator’s Note:

The first Arc, The Reincarnated Alchemist is done with this. The Next arc is called The Loyal Homunculus. It will focus on the middle school days of Leafa/Alfe. We’ll have a new girl on the cover in the next chapter.

1. TLN: The terms the two use for “like/love” here (and in previous chapters in general) are Suki/Daisuki (since some people seemed to be wondering), which are pretty vague even in Japanese so I reword them as it fits the context better each time, but in this context I don’t think they’re used romantically at all, in case anyone was wondering. Alfe’s throwing “I love you” in the same sense a child/girl would towards any person they cherish a lot (Like family/close friends). Glass, I believe, is also talking about similar “cherishing” kind of love for friends. He never had friends he held so dear so he found it hard to express that emotion until now. It took him time to even learn family affection, and more time to learn friend affection.