Tsukaishi ⑤ – Munieca.
We were shown to a guest room at the end of the second-floor hallway.
The room Munieca-san was borrowing.
Bookshelves, a closet, and a bed. Perhaps because it was a borrowed room?
There were no personal belongings in sight. Beside the bed sat a well-worn white trunk.
“There’s nowhere else to sit, so please use the bed.”
“O-Okay.”
At her suggestion, I sat on the bed. As I did, Munieca-san stood before me.
Then, she started to kneel on the floor, so I hastily stopped her.
“Wh-What are you doing!?”
“It is impolite for a maid to be positioned higher than her Master.”
“W-Well, ah, just do as you please.”
Munieca-san gave a small nod and sat formally in seiza.
“Now then, regarding our discussion. As Master must already be aware, I am currently not serving anyone. This includes the matter of being a bodyguard.”
“You quit being Reold’s bodyguard, right?”
“He is one of Forcut’s men to begin with. He doesn’t require one. I was merely a bodyguard for appearance’s sake.”
“Forcut?”
“A high-ranking executive of Koon Hunt. Alveld=Von=Rootbelt’s confidant.”
“Ah, like one of the Four Heavenly Kings.”
I knew he was strong, but I didn’t realize he was that high up.
“Appearance’s sake?”
“Despite appearances, he is the third prince of this country.”
“Th-That guy!?”
That worn-out old man is royalty?
“Although, he is a profligate prince who renounced his right to the throne.”
“…Still royalty, though?”
“Due to confidentiality obligations, I cannot elaborate, but he does his job properly in his own way. Now, returning to the topic. I submitted my resignation during the attack on the Koon Hunt headquarters.”
“I heard about that.”
“Even without that incident, I would have resigned. You likely understand the reason.”
Munieca-san removed her hair ornament and stared intently at me with her purple eyes.
They were bewitching purple eyes. Also, proof of the supreme race, the Edda.
She kept them hidden with her hair ornament because they drew attention.
I voiced my question.
“Why choose someone like me?”
“Because I felt it was fate.”
“That’s…”
“At first, it was curiosity. When I heard the rumor that The Witch had taken on an apprentice, I was shaken. Moreover, when I heard it was a man, I genuinely thought the end of the world had finally come.”
“T-To that extent…?”
“I doubt Master can imagine it. Among the Tier I Seekers, The Witch was the most profoundly solitary. She had always been that way. Everyone thought she always would be. But she wasn’t. How do you think those who had long believed in, admired, and worshipped her would feel?”
“Were you like that too, Munieca-san?”
“I did not worship her, but I did respect her. Just a little. There was a part of me that wanted to live strongly in solitude. I don’t know why. I simply could not conceive of living together with someone. I have agonized over this.”
“In that case, why become a maid?”
Serving someone seems like the complete opposite.
Wait, isn’t Munieca-san talking about something incredibly personal right now?
“Perhaps that is why. Because I realized I could not live alone. Yet, I still don’t think I can live together with someone.”
Maybe she truly wants to live with someone.
She wants to live with someone, but she cannot live with someone.
Only she can understand that anguish.
“The time I agonized the most was with Shardina. Four years ago. When I was twenty-one, I realized being a maid was my calling. I have been a maid ever since. Above all, I learned the joy of serving. However, I could never truly form a master-servant relationship.”
“Eh…”
Munieca-san looked up at me and stated clearly.
“Master is the first person I have ever called Goshujin-sama.”
I trembled. My body and soul shuddered.
“Wh-Why, how, why is it me…?”
I couldn’t believe it. Why me?
Why does this special treatment keep happening?
As I thought about it, a possibility occurred to me.
I didn’t want to think it. I really didn’t want to think it.
The reason I’m liked, the reason people are drawn to me, is because of [Generous].
“Master?”
“Munieca-san. I’m not the kind of person who deserves such special treatment!”
“—Master. Do you remember when we first met?”
“Yes. At the ‘Dragon Fang Wax’ headquarters.”
“At that time, Master found the hidden room and discovered the safe. I was impressed by your skillfulness. The Witch’s apprentice. I acknowledged that fact then.”
“That was a Relic. I myself am nothing special.”
“Relics are power too. What are you worried about? What attracted me was Master himself.”
Those were kind words, but I frowned. Was that really true?
“………Munieca-san, do you know about [Generous]?”
“Yes. Of course. The god of the Edda. I am also, nominally, from one of the six Edda houses. The Eldorado family, so I have more involvement than others. What about it?”
I used [Generous]. My hair and eyes turned purple.
I looked at Munieca-san. Expecting her to be surprised, I was the one taken aback instead.
She was completely unfazed.
“Y-You’re not surprised!?”
“Actually, I have seen it before. I was surprised then.”
“Before…?”
“Meaning, I already knew.”
Munieca-san spoke calmly.
If that’s the case, then maybe it’s okay. I voiced the thoughts weighing on my mind.
“I started thinking… maybe it’s not me who’s liked, but [Generous]. Maybe I myself am actually nothing.”
“I see. So that’s what this is about.”
“If that’s true, then I—”
“That is not the case in the slightest. [Generous] does not govern such effects or Relics. Of course. Being a god, there are worshippers. There are also those like Narcissus. But [Generous] is not like that. Furthermore, a Pseudo-Deification Relic only allows one to pseudo-imitate a god; it cannot make one become the real thing.”
“Is… that so…”
Relief washed over me, and my strength drained away. But I couldn’t feel purely happy.
Sensing this, perhaps, Munieca-san asked gently.
“Master. Why did you become [Generous]?”
“…I don’t really know myself. But if this thing is the cause, since you’re an Edda, Munieca-san, I thought if I told you that you were drawn to it and not me, surely you would—“
Suddenly, abruptly, Munieca-san hugged me.
As if by reflex, instinctively, unconsciously—with that kind of suddenness, she pulled me to her chest.
“…This is a secret from everyone. I’ll tell you the real truth…”
Her voice was different from her usual whispery tone. Her way of speaking. She whispered into my ear.
Then, Munieca-san pressed me tightly against her chest, despite the difference in our builds.
It was incredibly soft and warm, carrying a faint floral scent.
“R-Really?”
“…If I said it was love at first sight… would you believe me…?”
“I believe you.”
I answered immediately.
Even though she said it jokingly in this situation, it didn’t sound like a joke at all.
Rather, I felt like I had touched the depths of Munieca-san’s heart, and I understood.
Munieca-san slowly pulled away and smiled charmingly.
“That part of you is what’s amazing, Master.”
Wh-What part?
Um, that wasn’t it.
I had laid everything bare. Ugly, pathetic, yet Munieca-san had responded.
Munieca-san had also shown me the depths of her own heart.
I wanted to respond to her like that. I wanted to face Munieca-san properly.
“U-Um, Munieca-san. Are you sure someone like me is okay?”
“It is because it is you that it is okay.”
“In that case, um, please take care of me. I’ll do my best too.”
“Yes. Master.”
“Please spare me the ‘Goshujin-sama’…”
And so, Munieca-san and I formed a master-servant relationship.
Before lunch.
Munieca-san was preparing the meal.
Chive-san had uncharacteristically gone to work. Shiro-san was in the nap room.
I was using my water bottle, the Crescent Vessel, to Compound some tea for the first time in a while.
And then, The Witch returned, but…
“Ms. Pachira!? Hayyarn…?”
“Hoh. So this is The Witch’s dwelling.”
“It has been a while, Wof.”
For some reason, Ms. Pachira and Hayyarn were together.
Ignoring my surprise, Ms. Pachira looked around and muttered.
“Quite a lot of women here.”
“Is this not paradise!”
“You be quiet.”
“Why are you here, Ms. Pachira?”
“It has been some time, Wof. I heard you went through quite a lot. I visited while you were asleep, but I am glad you are well.”
“Thank you very much.”
“What about me?”
“Ah, yeah. You were here.”
“Hey!?”
It couldn’t be helped that I gave him the cold shoulder.
It was Hayyarn, after all.
“Actually, I wish to borrow your strength. We are struggling with the investigation of a Chimera subspecies.”
“…Struggling?”
What happened?
Also, why did Hayyarn come along?