"Hey, Amelia."
"Hmm?"
The promised day had arrived—the day we set off for the sea.
On the way to Arte’s house.
While Dorothy had succumbed to boredom and fallen asleep, I took the chance to speak to Amelia, who was resting.
There was no shortage of things I wanted to ask her.
That absurd amount of luggage, for one. And the fact that she was so happy made me uneasy.
Whenever Amelia got this excited, something bizarre always happened.
But more than that, a sudden question had popped into my head, and I wanted an answer.
"Why is Arte coming with us?"
"…What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
Amelia narrowed her eyes at me, as if I’d just spouted nonsense.
…Was that too out of the blue? Well, it was on my mind.
"I mean, wasn’t Arte’s goal to leak the artifact from the secret room?"
"Ah… was it? I think it was… maybe?"
You forgot?
This was getting ridiculous. Now it was my turn to stare at Amelia.
She must’ve realized how absurd it was too, because she tried to laugh it off and change the subject.
"W-Well, yeah! So what? Why does that matter?"
"…Sigh."
Maybe I’d let it slide this time.
She seemed to be remembering now, at least.
There was a more important question I needed to ask.
"No, I mean, hasn’t she already accomplished her goal? Couldn’t she just drop out now?"
"Huh?"
"Didn’t you say last time that the secret room was exposed, and they decided to rebuild the entire Academy?"
"Huh? Wait… what?"
"Then doesn’t that mean the artifact’s already been leaked? Have you ever heard anything about what was in the secret room?"
"…No."
Right. That was the case.
So didn’t that mean Arte had no reason to stay at the Academy anymore?
The thought had struck me the night before, the day before our trip.
Arte was a member of Arachne. Her purpose for infiltrating the school had been the artifact inside the secret room.
Whether she’d wanted it for herself or just wanted to expose it, I wasn’t sure… but one thing was certain.
The thing Arte had been after was already outside the Academy.
"The thing Arte was targeting is already out there. Whether she succeeded or failed in what she wanted to do…"
There was no reason for her to stay with us anymore.
I almost said it out loud, but swallowed the words along with my saliva.
…What if saying that actually made Arte disappear?
At first, I’d been afraid of her. Even now, I still had no idea what she was thinking.
But Arte was a friend, wasn’t she?
Even if she’d come to the Academy with a purpose, the fact that we’d become friends hadn’t changed.
She helped when things got tough, and she set me straight when I was going off course.
But if Arte stopped coming to the Academy…
"You’re talking so seriously, I thought something was up. Of course she has a reason to stay."
"…She does?"
"Duh. You’re at the Academy, aren’t you?"
"I wasn’t—this isn’t a joke!"
"Listen to me, Yu Siwoo."
This was different from before.
All traces of playful humor gone, Amelia spoke.
"I know what you’re worried about. You’re worried about Arte, right?"
"…Yeah."
Siwoo was worried about Arte.
I don’t know why, but Arte’s mind is unstable.
Siwoo had caught a brief glimpse of Arte’s true thoughts. Inside that Ferris wheel.
The image of her—like a puppet, a marionette—muttering incomprehensible things flashed through his mind.
She had looked so unstable then.
That fleeting moment when her composure had cracked—*that* was probably the real her.
No matter how composed she always seemed, no matter what secret organization she belonged to, she was still human.
No one could be strong all the time.
When things got hard, someone had to help.
"I don’t get what you saw or why you’re worried about Arte. And I doubt you’ll tell me."
"That… sorry."
"Forget it. There’s nothing uglier than hearing someone else’s secrets from a third party."
If he told Amelia about Arte’s vulnerable side, maybe she’d have better advice.
But he didn’t say anything.
Because that was between Arte and him.
"But it’s a waste of energy worrying. If Arte wants a reason to stay with us, we can give her one."
"We? You again…"
"It doesn’t have to be love. Just being friends is enough. If she doesn’t want to leave us, if she feels that way, then that’s fine."
Here we go again with the love talk. I’m being serious right now.
He was about to say that—
But Amelia’s words left him momentarily speechless.
Her response was far more earnest than he’d expected.
"…I see."
"Yeah. So stop overthinking and get ready. We’re here. As for Dorothy… well, we can just let her sleep."
Amelia cut off the conversation and looked out the window.
A large country house.
Not as grand as Amelia’s place, but still quite sizable.
So this was Arte’s home.
After ringing the bell and waiting a moment, someone answered quickly.
"Yes, who is it?"
"…Amelia!"
"Got it!"
"Kyaa?! W-what?! T-thief?! Master! Help me?!"
He’d assumed Arte would be the one to answer, but the unfamiliar voice made him pause at first.
…But the moment he saw who opened the door—
He and Amelia instantly subdued the villain who had come out of the house.
"…This woman—why is she at Arte’s house?! Don’t tell me—!"
"I heard some remnants escaped, but…!"
A woman with a snake’s tail instead of legs.
No doubt about it. A remnant of the Weaver Men.
Why was she here?
This was Arte’s home. They’d only just found out about it themselves.
Arte wouldn’t carelessly give out her address to strangers.
That left only one possibility: retaliation.
"Ugh, nngh. Cough."
"What did you do to Arte? Talk!"
"Cough, cough… My, my neck… You, you want me to talk but you’re choking me… I’ll talk, so my neck, my neck—!"
"…What’s all this commotion?"
"Arte?! You’re safe!"
What?
He looked up, still restraining the gasping villain.
Arte was standing there, completely unharmed—nothing like what he’d feared.
"Th-thank goodness! You’re okay!"
"Of course I’m okay. It’s *my* house."
Arte let out an exasperated sigh.
"Just what are you two *doing*?"
"She’s a remnant of the Weaver Men! Be careful, Arte. Your address—"
"...She’s my maid."
"Huh?"
"Keh, keok... L-let go, please. I was wrong, so..."
At Arte’s words, the hand pressing down on the snake Therianthrope’s neck loosened its grip.
I watched the villain, who kept coughing and steadying herself. Just as Arte said, she really was wearing a maid uniform.
...Wait, she’s actually a maid?
"A... a maid? But she’s a villain?"
"Ah. Well, you see... She left the villain organization, but she said she couldn’t survive like that, so she came to me for help. Right?"
Arte sought the maid’s agreement.
The maid, who had been rubbing her neck with a tearful expression, frantically nodded.
"Y-yes! Of course! Thanks to my mistress, I’m happy!"
"..."
This still feels suspicious.
It was the kind of suspicion that felt like it had been made up on the spot.
The maid’s reaction seemed overly panicked too.
"By the way, where’s Dorothy? Are we going to her place now?"
"No, you’re the last one. Dorothy’s asleep."
"Ah. ...Have you eaten? The timing seems a bit off."
"No, not yet."
"Then this works out perfectly. Would you like to bring Dorothy along? Since you’re here, you should at least have a meal before you go."
This was clearly an attempt to change the subject.
Why would Arte, who hated villains, spare a remnant of the Weaver Menace and employ her as a maid?
There were many questions, but I decided not to ask.
She wouldn’t answer anyway.
"...Alright, I’ll take you up on that."
For the first time, I stepped into Arte’s house—though it wasn’t quite what I had expected.
"...Hide on your own."
I whispered softly into the air.
It was quieter than the sounds of daily life, but Lyra would hear it.
She had four ears, after all.
Annoyance flared up.
Why the hell was the one who knew best that her lower half was a snake going out and causing trouble?
She could’ve just stayed put.
I’d only brought it up to change the subject, and now I had to serve them something.
Maybe I’d punish her later. I’d make her drink snake wine.
"Huaaam..."
"It’s smaller than I thought?"
"...Smaller? This?"
Amelia and Yu Siwoo were critiquing the house, while Dorothy, half-asleep, wobbled her way over.
[...Smaller?! Unacceptable! Reader-nim, let’s move!]
Move? What?
This place is plenty big.
If a countryside house with a pool is small, then what even counts as big?
Amelia’s the weird one. Of course a rich girl would think that.
"Do you like steak?"
"I love it!"
"...I don’t dislike it."
As for Dorothy... well, she was nodding off, so even if I asked, I probably wouldn’t get a proper answer.
Might as well show off my skills for the first time in a while.
"Then please wait. I’ll make you some delicious steak."
THUD!
The snake maid, Spira, who had been face-planting into the floor, slipped again and made a loud noise.
"..."
"Hii! S-sorry, Mistress!"
"Can you do it properly?"
"Y-yes, I can!"
I didn’t care if her snake tail made her slippery.
If she made a mistake, she deserved punishment.
Just don’t do it until after we eat.