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The streets were bathed in the orange light of the evening, and the tantalizing aroma of food wafted from various places in the city.

“…Now that I’m relieved, I’m starting to feel hungry.”

As we walked back from the Black Dragon Lantern Clinic, my mother, who had been considerate and engaged in conversation, shifted the topic to tonight’s dinner.

“Yes, indeed. We should have stopped by the harbor diner.”

I nodded along with my mother. At the harbor diner, Mrs. Judy, Alfe’s mother, was renowned for her cooking, and lately, they even started offering assortments of prepared dishes.

“Mrs. Clifford’s cooking is exceptional. Alfe is so lucky,” Mother answered.

I brought it up to lessen the burden on her, but did I say something unnecessary?

“…For me, Mother’s homemade dishes are the best treat of all.”
Maybe that was too obvious of an attempt at reassurance…

“Leafa…”
My mother uttered my name softly and then fell silent.

“…”
In the silence, I could hear the joyful voices of families from nearby homes.

Why can’t I handle these situations better…

Walking through my second life with retained memories, it was frustrating how my experiences as Glass were utterly useless in interpersonal relationships. It felt like the world was thrusting before me how “misfortunate” the life I had lived the only way I could was.

“…Thank you, Leafa.”

Despite my worries, my mother reached out and gently took my hand in hers, squeezing it tenderly.

“Mother…”
“Me too… the dishes my mom made were a feast in themselves, better than any… Remembering that made me suddenly happy…”

With those words, my mother’s voice choked up. Her smile, on the verge of tears, seemed happy now unlike before.

“Surely, everyone feels the same way. Even Father…”
“I hope Rudra thinks my cooking is the best, though.”

My mother replied with a touch of humor to my profound musings. I couldn’t help but smile along with her. My cheeks felt warm, but it must be because of the setting sun.

“What do you feel like eating tonight? Mom will pull out all the stops for you.”
“Thank you. Anything Mother makes is—”
“Leafa!!”

Our conversation was abruptly interrupted by Alfe’s voice echoing out of nowhere.

“Alfe, what’s wrong?”

Alfe rushed towards me with a face on the verge of tears, her pale complexion showing her anxiety as tears welled up in her eyes.

“You went to the hospital… Are you okay? Shouldn’t you be sleeping?”
“Yeah. It’s fine, really. I wasn’t hurting or anything. Looks like I have worried you, Alfe.”

Probably because the hospital and the diner were nearby, Mrs. Clifford must have spotted me somewhere.

“…Was there anything wrong?”

It was difficult to judge whether it was good or bad news, but there was certainly something abnormal. Rather than keeping it a secret and upsetting Alfe, it seemed better to be honest.

“…It’s complicated to explain. But it’s nothing life-threatening. You can rest assured, Alfe.”

Since I had already started talking about it, I felt I should disclose everything. My mother quietly nodded in agreement as I looked up at her seeking confirmation.

“…I’ll head home first.”
“Thank you, Mother.”

As I watched my mother’s figure recede into the distance, I waited for Alfe to calm down a bit before broaching the subject.

“…Actually, it’s diagnosed as Aether Overproduction Syndrome.”
“Aether Overproduction… Syndrome…?”

Alfe repeated the diagnosis name she heard for the first time while rubbing her eyes.

“Yeah. It seems like my body is producing so much aether that it can’t be measured by the magical instrument.”
“…!”

When I explained it briefly, Alfe’s eyes widened in shock.

“I’m sorry, Leafa… I’m so sorry…”
Alfe murmured in a trembling voice as she clung to me.

“Alfe? Why are you apologizing? Why are you crying—”
As I spoke, I noticed that Alfe’s hand was trembling.

“Alfe…”
Her grip on my clothes tightened so much that her knuckles turned white. As I hugged her back, I realized that Alfe’s body was shaking slightly.

“I’m sorry, Leafa. I-I could see it, but… I failed to realize it.”
“See—?”

I stopped mid-sentence as I realized what Alfe was trying to say.

“…Oh, you could see it with your Pure Eye, Alfe.”
“…Yeah…”

Through tears, Alfe nodded in response to my question. There was no way Alfe hadn’t noticed the aether amount that couldn’t be measured by the magic instrument. But why hadn’t she pointed it out until now?

“…Alfe, how does my aether look to you?”

As I reached out my hand behind me to stroke Alfe’s hair, she began to answer, sobbing softly.

“…You see, it’s… sparkling… golden aether. It swells and shrinks, moving like a living thing. It’s so beautiful…”

Ah, it’s definitely because of the influence of the goddess’ (Auro Rabbit’s) aether. It’s the same color as her aether.

“Has it always been like that?”
“No…”

As Alfe pressed her wet cheeks against mine, she shook her head.

“…Remember when you were attacked by that big rabbit and hospitalized?”
“Yeah, I remember.”

Alfe’s testimony led me to the heart of the matter.

“After you were discharged, the sparkle kept increasing¹. It was dazzling and really beautiful, but since you couldn’t see aether there was no way to confirm it, I thought it was just the beautiful part of you that only I could see, so I kept quiet…”

I see, Alfe still cared about Pure Eye like that.

“So, if I had told you a little about it, this wouldn’t have happened—”
“No, Alfe.”

As Alfe confessed, trembling with guilt, I gently stroked her back to soothe her, and I denied that thought as gently as possible.

“First of all, cases of Aether Overproduction Syndrome are rare. There’s no way a child like you would know that it’s abnormal. Besides, look at how healthy I am.”
“But, Leafa… I…”

Alfe still wasn’t convinced. She must be blaming herself many times more than I imagined. I needed to stop that right away.

“Alfe, lift your face up. Look at me properly.”
“……”

When I urged her, Alfe slowly raised her tear-stained eyes while rubbing them.

“Leafaa…”

Smiling at Alfe, who was sobbing, I gently extended my hand and took a half step back. So that Alfe could see me clearly.

“…See? Nothing to worry about, right? I’m perfectly fine. I’m just generating a bit more aether than usual, and apparently, that’s why I’m not growing as much…”

Honestly, I’m not pessimistic about this situation. I just hoped Alfe wouldn’t be either. I didn’t know how to convey that, but I kept smiling.

“…It’s not just a bit, Leafa.”
“It’s that much?”
“Yeah… I mean, with normal people it’s only vaguely visible around the stomach area and I have to actively concentrate to see it, but your aether looks as if there’s a sun inside your body.”

It was a poetic expression typical of Alfe. With that metaphor, it made sense why the aether organ didn’t show up on the X-ray device.

“I see… But isn’t comparing it to the sun a bit exaggerated?”
“No… Even if you’re on the other side of the wall, I can tell you’re there just by using Pure Eye². Earlier, I followed your aether and came outside.”

Alfe’s testimony was convincing. It was really convenient to see aether with Pure Eye, after all. Anyway, it was now clear that the conclusion the doctor surmised, that I was generating aether at dozens of times the rate of an ordinary person, was correct.

“…What’s going to happen to you from now on, Leafa?”
“Not much will change, really. Since I’m not growing, I’ll just stay like this. But, you know, it’s not so bad.”

I shrugged my shoulders in response to Alfe’s worried expression. I thought I had conveyed my true feelings, but Alfe blinked, clearly not satisfied.

“Why’s that?”
“Well, since you’re a half-elf, your growth will slow down a bit in the near future, right? I just stopped growing a bit earlier than you³. So, in a way, we’re the same.”
“The same…”

I felt like I had come up with a good analogy. Alfe’s face, once pale with worry, now flushed slightly.

“Oh… I see… We’re the same…”

Without questioning or denying my words, Alfe nodded repeatedly. I followed suit, nodding along with Alfe’s gestures as if affirming herself.

“Thank you, Leafa. I love you.”

Alfe wrapped her arms around me from behind, gently embracing me. The sensation of her cheek against my forehead conveyed her relief.

1. Silva: It’s growing huh? It keeps increasing eh? Does that mean she’ll stop aging and become a loli goddess? Why does this remind me of 2-as-1 princesses
2. Robinxen: So they gave the future stalker a massive beacon to follow…?
3. Robinxen: That’s actually an on point method for this socially clumsy alchemist.