Bongisto, the City of Adventurers.

A full month had passed since the S-Rank Demon Karimar was vanquished.

Thanks to the combined efforts of the Adventurers’ Guild and the brave souls who called themselves adventurers, the shattered city had been fully restored to its former state.

All the labyrinths that had been sealed off across the region were open once more, and adventurers had returned to their daily lives.

Everything was finally back to normal.

At that moment, in a quiet corner of Bongisto, a fourteen-year-old girl was practicing her magical arts in the courtyard of a small standalone house with a yard.

Her eyes were tightly shut, and layers of magical energy of varying attributes swirled around her form. This energy emanated from her body, followed paths reminiscent of planetary orbits, and then returned to her through another point.

The cycle repeated endlessly, flowing smoothly and unceasingly.

A single leaf drifted down from a nearby tree, floating gently toward the girl. As it neared her, it began to move along the trails of her magical energy, like a small boat navigating invisible currents.

Before long, the girl was surrounded by a fluttering cloud of leaves. Yet she remained completely unaware, her eyes staying closed as her consciousness delved deep into an inner realm.

Jingle~!

The courtyard gate creaked open, and the wind chime hanging above it swayed, letting out clear, melodious sounds.

The girl in the courtyard opened her eyes.

In an instant, all the magical energy surrounding her was drawn back into her body. The floating leaves lost their support and drifted down to the ground like a light rain.

“Irus, you’re back.”

Hulim stood up and addressed the figure entering the courtyard.

“Hulim, have you been practicing this entire time?”

Seeing the circle of fallen leaves around Hulim, Irus could easily picture the girl practicing with unwavering focus, completely tuning out the world around her.

“That won’t do, Hulim~.”

Irus shook her head gently.

“Dedication to your training is commendable, but you must keep some awareness of your surroundings. Otherwise, you might be caught off guard by an ambush—that would be disastrous.”

“It’s fine.”

Hulim replied calmly.

“If anyone approaches, I’ll sense them immediately.”

“Hehe~, so that’s why you noticed my arrival right away.”

Irus smiled and held out a small box to Hulim.

“What is this?”

Hulim asked curiously as she took the box.

“It’s the newest cake from the pastry shop~!”

Irus answered with a grin.

“I happened to see it today and bought one. I know how much you love these kinds of treats.”

“Really? Thank you so much.”

Hulim moved to open the box at once.

“Wait a moment! Such a special cake deserves to be enjoyed slowly with a cup of tea as an afternoon snack.”

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Irus chided gently.

“Hmm… I suppose you’re right.”

Hulim reluctantly pulled her hands back.

More than ten minutes later.

On a table in the courtyard, a pot of Irus’s specially blended floral tea had been brewed. In front of both Hulim and Irus were teacups and a slice of the exquisitely cut cake.

“Mmm——This is absolutely delicious!”

Hulim’s eyes lit up with delight as she savored the sweet flavor.

“Hehe, I told you it would be! I heard it’s a masterpiece from a traveling pastry master who’s only passing through town.”

Irus said proudly.

“Oh? Do you know who this master is?”

“Who can say? I didn’t bother asking.”

Irus shrugged indifferently.

“That’s a shame. If I knew who they were, I might have asked them to teach me their recipe.”

Hulim sighed, already thinking about how to recreate the cake’s taste.

“You really do have quite the sweet tooth, Hulim…… By the way, how’s your training progressing lately?”

Hulim nodded, a look of contentment on her face.

“It’s going very well. With your guidance, Irus, I feel like I’m making remarkable progress.”

Jingle jingle~!

The wind chime at the gate suddenly rang again.

“Hulim, are you home?”

“I’m here.”

Hulim walked to the gate and opened it, finding Eileen standing there dressed in casual attire.

“Eileen, what brings you here?”

“It’s nothing too important, really,” Eileen said with a warm smile. “I was just wondering if you had some free time this afternoon. Would you like to go shopping with me?”

“This afternoon……”

Hulim hesitated, glancing back at Irus.

“Of course she’ll go~!”

Irus suddenly popped her head around the doorframe, grinning from ear to ear.

“Ah——”

Eileen looked startled for a moment, then quickly bowed respectfully.

“Lady Irus.”

“Oh, please, no need for such formalities. Just treat me the same way you treat Hulim.”

“E-Er, but……”

“Is that a problem?”

Faced with Irus’s feigned look of disappointment, Eileen quickly surrendered.

“N-No! Of course not!”

“Excellent! Then it’s settled! By the way, may I come along this afternoon too?”

“E-Eh——”

“Is that not allowed?”

“……N-No! Of course you may!”

Eileen replied hastily, not wanting to upset the powerful mage.

“Oh, wonderful~! I’m so happy!”

Irus beamed with joy, then pulled Hulim into a gentle headlock.

“Don’t worry, Hulim will behave and come shopping with us this afternoon~.”

“Irus?”

“Don’t bury yourself in training all the time,” Irus said, poking Hulim’s cheek playfully. “It’s important to balance work and relaxation. Come on, give me a smile!”

“……”

Time passed quickly, and soon it was afternoon.

Hulim, Eileen, and Irus made their way to the entertainment district.

“Oh, this is lovely~! The entertainment district has fully recovered its vibrancy!”

Irus exclaimed happily, then skipped off toward a stall selling cloud cotton candy.

“……”

Hulim watched her retreating figure, silently musing to herself.

Sometimes it was hard to believe that this woman, an S-Rank powerhouse standing at the very peak of the world, could be more energetic and enthusiastic than anyone else……

“Eileen, still no word from Arthur and Alice?”

Hulim asked, turning to her friend.

At this question, Eileen shook her head, her expression growing somber with worry.

“Nothing. I’ve asked numerous adventurers, but no one has seen either of them.”

“I see……”

Arthur and Alice had disappeared without a trace.

Their vanishing had been sudden and unexpected. If they had disappeared during Karimar’s assault, they would have surely been counted among the casualties.

But the problem was that they had disappeared nearly a week after the crisis had ended.

There had been no warning signs whatsoever.

While it wasn’t uncommon for adventurers to vanish without a trace, Hulim and the others had made every effort to find their friends.

Yet to this day, none of the Adventurers’ Guild branches across the land had reported any sightings of the siblings.

“I’m afraid those two have gotten themselves mixed up in something dangerous……”

Eileen said, her voice heavy with concern.

Hulim nodded in agreement. “I hope they can overcome whatever troubles they’ve encountered……”

……

Meanwhile,

Somewhere in the southeastern region of the Himril Main Continent.

Jingle, jingle~!

“Prepare to depart!”

A large combined merchant caravan was making its final preparations to set off.

Several caravan members were checking and counting the goods loaded in the wagons.

WHOOSH!

A dark figure darted past nearby in the blink of an eye.

“Huh?”

One of the merchants, who had just finished inspecting a wagon, rubbed his eyes vigorously. He looked around but saw nothing out of the ordinary.

Turning to the others nearby, he asked,

“Hey, did any of you see something just now?”

“Something?” One man looked up and scanned the area, seeing nothing unusual. He scowled and snapped, “What are you talking about? Are you trying to shirk your duties? Hurry up and finish checking the last wagon so we can be done with this.”

“But I could have sworn I saw something move past……”

“Quit your nonsense and get back to work!”

“Alright, alright……”

As the merchants continued their conversation, none of them noticed a small figure cloaked in black slipping into one of the cargo-laden wagons.

“She” hid among the crates and boxes, strands of golden hair with a subtle iridescent glow peeking out from under her hood. Beneath the shadows, a beautiful face was visible, featuring one purple eye and one blue eye—a striking, unnatural combination.

This was none other than Alice, whose body had been taken over by Sethis, and who had been missing for a long time.

“……Damn it, how can this body be so weak? It’s not even strong enough to defeat a lowly Slime!”

“Alice” clutched her blue eye, muttering yet another complaint. This was far from the first time she had bemoaned the body’s frailty in recent days.

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