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---
The third day began without mistakes.
At four twelve in the morning, Link opened his eyes before Luci could wake him.
He did not sit up immediately.
He remained lying down, staring at the dark ceiling of his room while waiting for his mind to finish understanding where he was.
The mansion.
Third day.
Ram was still recovering.
Rem was still officially resting.
Reception in the afternoon.
Pantry inventory.
Changing the bedding.
Cleaning the west wing.
Exterior maintenance.
Feeding the Wolgarms.
He had not dreamed.
Or perhaps he had and simply did not remember.
He closed his eyes.
He attempted to calculate how long he had slept.
Two hours.
Perhaps two and a half.
Enough for his body to stop trembling. Not enough for his mind to stop listing tasks.
Luci floated dimly above the bedside table, barely visible like a suspended ember. When Link sat up, the small sphere regained its brightness.
"Not yet," he murmured.
Luci flickered.
"I do not need you watching me."
The light intensified.
Link rubbed his face.
His skin felt normal. His muscles did not ache. The portion of Wolgarm meat he had eaten before going to bed had removed the accumulated fatigue with an efficiency that still seemed unnatural.
Even his mind felt clear.
Too clear.
There was no fog or heavy sleepiness. Only a dry tension behind his eyes and the unpleasant certainty that, the instant he stopped moving, everything pending would begin shouting at him simultaneously.
He stood.
The list for the third day remained upon the table.
He did not need to read it.
He had memorized it.
Rem had kept her promise.
In the kitchen, he found the oats prepared, covered, and placed beside the extinguished stove. There was also a brief note written in neat handwriting:
The water has been measured.
You only need to heat it.
Rem returned to sleep.
Link read the final line twice.
Then he folded the paper and placed it inside his pocket.
He lit the stove with a small spark of Goa.
The flame appeared immediately.
Red.
Stable.
Exactly the size required.
Link did not watch it.
He placed the pot down, calculated the time, and began preparing the rest of breakfast.
By four forty, he had sliced the fruit.
At five, he had inspected the provisions.
At five ten, he discovered the flour still missing from the previous day and adjusted the reception menu.
At five thirty, he opened the hallways.
At five forty-five, he left hot water outside each room.
At six, he began changing the bedding in the west wing.
Four kagunes emerged beneath his work shirt.
Each wore a clean sleeve.
One removed sheets.
Another transported baskets.
The third opened windows.
The fourth held the list and charcoal while Link worked with his hands.
They did not strike walls.
They did not bend frames.
They did not squeeze the fabric too tightly.
Everything moved with slow and constant precision.
Luci followed him through the hallways.
Whenever Link changed direction, she had to accelerate to catch up.
At six twenty, Rem appeared at the end of the corridor.
She was not wearing her uniform.
She wore the same simple robe from the previous night over a pale nightgown. Her hair remained slightly disordered.
Link did not stop.
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Link."
One kagune removed a sheet. Another spread the replacement without leaving a single wrinkle.
Rem observed the bed.
"You started early."
"Yes."
"Did you sleep?"
"Yes."
The answer came too quickly.
Rem waited for more.
Link gave her nothing.
"How long?"
"Enough."
One of the kagunes made a mark beside the room number.
Rem looked at the list.
Then at him.
"That is not an amount."
"I know."
Link moved into the next room.
Rem walked behind him.
"Rem prepared the oats."
"I saw them. Thank you."
"Are you upset?"
"No."
"Your voice sounds different."
"I am concentrating."
He opened the door, aired the room, and began removing the bedding.
Rem remained at the threshold.
Link made no joke about her watching him.
He did not ask whether this was another romantic-administrative inspection.
He did not even appear uncomfortable beneath her gaze.
He simply worked.
The bed was prepared with the same precision Rem would have achieved.
"It is good," she said.
"Thank you."
Nothing else.
Rem lowered her gaze slightly.
During the previous two days, every compliment had produced a smile from Link, a clever response, or at minimum a glow of excessive satisfaction.
Now he received it as though she had confirmed the water temperature.
"Link."
"Yes?"
"You still have several hours before breakfast."
"I need them."
"You can take a break."
"It is not necessary."
"Rem did not ask whether it was necessary."
Link finished smoothing the cover.
His right hand remained upon the fabric for one second.
Then moved away.
"I am fine."
Rem knew that phrase.
She had spoken it far too many times.
"Rem did not say that you were not."
"Then there is no problem."
Link picked up the basket.
The four kagunes arranged themselves behind him.
He walked past Rem.
The scent of soap, fire, and Mabeast meat remained suspended for an instant.
Beneath it was something different.
Not illness.
Not fear.
Tension.
A rope stretched so tightly that it had ceased vibrating.
Rem watched him until he disappeared around the corner.
Breakfast was perfect.
The oats contained the correct amount of salt.
Roswaal's tea was exactly the temperature he had requested.
Beatrice's contained the appropriate measure of leaves.
Emilia received ripe fruit.
Puck obtained a portion before requesting one.
Ram was served in her room.
Subaru found eggs, meat, toasted bread, and a cup of tea before him.
Link served without stopping.
He did not appear tired.
That was what worried them.
"Third day," Subaru announced. "The legendary final boss of domestic cleaning."
Link placed a pitcher upon the table.
"Eat."
Subaru smiled.
"Yes, Mom."
Link turned his head toward him.
The look lasted barely one second.
"Eat, Subaru."
There was no insult.
Nor humor.
Subaru slowly lowered his spoon.
Emilia observed both of them.
"Is something wrong?"
"No," Link answered.
"Our domestic manager is discovering that running a mansion does not include holidays," Subaru said.
"Subaru."
"Yes?"
"Please."
One word.
Correct.
Respectful.
Completely devoid of patience.
Subaru closed his mouth.
Roswaal drank his tea.
His visible eye remained upon Link longer than necessary.
Beatrice was also watching him.
Link noticed both gazes.
He did not ask why.
He merely continued serving.
When he finished, he did not sit down.
"Are you not going to eat?" Emilia asked.
"Later."
"You said that yesterday as well," Subaru pointed out.
"And I ate."
"Because your own kagune put meat in your mouth."
Link removed an empty tray.
"That will not be necessary today."
"That sounds exactly like something someone says before—"
The tray stopped.
It did not strike the table.
It did not tremble.
It simply ceased moving.
Link kept his head lowered.
"Subaru."
His voice remained quiet.
"What?"
"Finish breakfast."
Subaru opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
For the first time since the day began, Link appeared to have won something.
It did not feel like victory.
Ram received breakfast in bed.
Rem carried the tray because Link had accepted that transporting food to an ill person did not count as domestic work as long as she immediately returned to resting.
Ram inspected each plate.
"The oats are good."
"Yes."
"The fruit is evenly sliced."
"Yes."
"The tea is the correct temperature."
"Yes."
Ram looked up.
"Rem appears disappointed."
"She is not."
"Then she is worried."
Rem sat in the chair beside the bed.
"Link is different."
"Ram noticed yesterday."
"Yesterday, he was tired."
"He is tired today as well."
"Today he does not appear to be."
Ram picked up the cup.
She drank.
"That is the problem."
Rem observed the liquid.
"He has not made any mistakes."
"Ram rarely makes mistakes when she is about to collapse either."
The answer produced a brief silence.
"Link ate Wolgarm meat," Rem said. "His body recovered."
"His body."
Ram set down the cup.
"The meat did not sleep for him."
"Link said he rested enough."
"Rem says that as well."
Rem slightly tightened her fingers against her skirt.
Ram watched her.
"Now it is irritating, is it not?"
"What?"
"Watching someone work correctly while knowing that they should not be doing it."
Rem did not answer.
Ram took another sip.
"For Ram as well."
The morning advanced without a single failure.
Link completed the west wing before nine.
He inspected the main bath.
Unblocked a pipe.
Counted the reserves.
Separated ingredients for the reception.
Prepared the main room.
Polished the dishes.
Aired the bedrooms.
Repaired a hinge.
Replaced two lamps.
Inspected the outer enclosure.
Fed the Wolgarms.
One attempted to push the bucket of meat before receiving permission.
Link placed a hand upon its head and forced it backward.
"Wait."
The creature obeyed.
There was no caress.
Nor praise.
Link distributed the portions and returned to the mansion.
At ten thirty, he drank a small bowl of broth prepared from Mabeast meat.
The pressure behind his eyes decreased.
His hands stopped feeling cold.
His breathing stabilized.
The list remained exactly as long.
Luci floated beside the bowl.
"I do not have time to sit."
The sphere gently struck his forehead.
Link moved her aside with two fingers.
"I already ate."
Luci approached again.
"Do not start as well."
The small light remained before his face.
Link stared into her glow for several seconds.
Then he stood.
Subaru found him inside the storeroom.
Link was sorting bottles, writing down quantities, and holding three boxes with his kagunes.
"Do you need help?"
"No."
"I can count."
"I know."
"I can also transport small things without destroying them."
"I know."
"Then—"
"No."
Subaru leaned against the frame.
"You are using that word often."
"Because you keep asking the same thing."
"Perhaps I am waiting for another answer."
"There will not be one."
One of the kagunes placed a box upon the upper shelf.
It remained perfectly aligned.
"Rem and Ram should be resting," Link continued. "You are still recovering. Emilia does not need to perform service work. Beatrice will not. Neither will Roswaal."
"I can decide what I am capable of doing."
"Yes."
"Then let me help."
"No."
Subaru exhaled through his nose.
"Do you realize that this is beginning to resemble less of a test and more of a competition against imaginary people?"
Link set down the charcoal.
He looked at him.
"Subaru, I have things to do."
"So do I. One of them is preventing my friend from becoming a broom with emotional problems."
"That is not funny."
The answer came so quickly that Subaru blinked.
Link returned to the list.
"I know," Subaru said. "That is why—"
"No."
There was now something sharp within his voice.
Not loud.
Not hostile.
A carefully honed edge.
Subaru straightened.
"Link."
"Please leave the storeroom."
"I only want—"
"Subaru."
Link raised his head.
Both eyes had transformed.
The sclera was black.
The iris red.
A dark network spread around his eyelids.
Subaru became still.
Link did as well.
For one second, neither breathed.
Link closed his eyes.
"I am sorry."
The transformation did not disappear.
He opened them again.
Black and red.
He attempted to blink.
Nothing.
"Link…"
"I am fine."
"Your eyes."
"I know."
One kagune lowered its box.
The others tensed behind him.
"I cannot turn them off."
Subaru took one step.
Link moved backward.
"No."
"I am not going to touch you."
"Then leave."
"We need to call Beatrice."
"After the reception."
"I do not give a damn about the reception—"
"I do."
His tone did not rise.
That made it worse.
Link picked up the charcoal.
"Please."
Subaru observed him.
His friend was not out of control.
Not yet.
He continued placing bottles into exact rows.
Continued writing with legible handwriting.
Continued using "please."
But his eyes resembled those of a cornered animal, and his entire body was dedicated to pretending that it did not matter.
"I am going to tell Rem," Subaru said.
Link clenched his jaw.
"Do not disturb her."
"She is not working."
"Precisely."
"She is worried about you."
"That is not her responsibility."
"Perhaps she wants it to be."
The charcoal broke between Link's fingers.
The sound was small.
Subaru became silent.
Link placed both halves upon the table.
"Leave the storeroom."
Subaru obeyed.
Beatrice examined Link twenty minutes later.
Not because he had permitted it.
Because she opened a door in front of him as he left the storeroom and blocked his path.
"Crouch down, I suppose."
"I am busy."
"Betty did not ask."
Link attempted to walk around her.
The door disappeared.
Another appeared before him.
Beatrice remained at its center.
"The reception begins in one hour."
"And your eyes have spent fifteen minutes screaming that you are an idiot."
"They do not scream."
"Betty was not speaking literally."
Link set the basket upon the floor.
He knelt.
Beatrice raised one hand and brought it near one of his eyes without touching.
"There is no damage."
"Good."
"That does not mean you are well."
"Can I turn them off?"
"Probably."
"How?"
"By resting."
Link stood.
"Then after the reception."
Beatrice looked at him with open disbelief.
"Your body is maintaining combat functions without being ordered. The kagunes are continuously absorbing mana. Your horns attempt to manifest every time someone raises their voice near you."
"But they have not manifested."
"That is the part you consider important."
"Yes."
Link picked up the basket.
Beatrice grabbed his shirt sleeve.
"Betty can put you to sleep."
He looked down.
"No."
"That was not an offer."
The kagunes rose slightly.
They did not threaten.
But the basket creaked.
Beatrice released the sleeve.
Link also relaxed the limbs.
"I am sorry."
"Stop apologizing and do something less irritating."
"I will finish the reception."
"Then Betty will remain nearby."
"It is not necessary."
"Betty does not need your permission to monitor a possible explosion, I suppose."
Link closed his eyes.
Black and red still waited for him when he reopened them.
"Do whatever you want."
Beatrice narrowed her eyes.
Link continued walking.
The reception proceeded perfectly.
Two domain administrators and one merchant arrived after noon to speak with Roswaal about supplies and repairs following the Wolgarm incident.
Link prepared the main dining room.
Served tea.
Presented food.
Removed the dishes.
Answered only when necessary.
He kept his head slightly lowered so the visitors would not observe his eyes for too long.
Roswaal explained nothing.
The administrators did not ask.
There were enough races and oddities throughout Lugunica that staring at a margrave's servant was an extremely poor social decision.
Link did not spill a drop.
He did not break a cup.
He did not forget a request.
When one guest asked for more water while Link was carrying six plates, a sleeved kagune held the pitcher and filled the glass without interrupting service.
The man was impressed.
Link did not react.
Subaru watched from the opposite side of the room.
Rem remained near the door.
Ram had left her room despite her orders, but limited herself to watching from a chair positioned in the hallway.
Everything worked.
That was the worst part.
Rem had waited for Link to make a mistake.
Not from cruelty.
Because a mistake would have allowed them to stop him.
A broken cup.
Burned food.
A forgotten task.
Any visible proof that the third day was too much for him.
None came.
Link was faster than on the first day.
More precise than on the second.
He did not waste time making jokes.
He did not argue.
He did not become distracted while looking at Rem.
He did not stop to admire a flame.
He did not transform the plants into characters.
He did not speak to Luci.
He did not complain.
He performed every task.
And when he completed one, he was already thinking about the next.
Rem recognized Ram's expression on the opposite side of the hallway.
It was not pride.
Nor disapproval.
It was the face her sister wore whenever Rem said that she could continue.
The reception ended before four.
Roswaal dismissed the guests.
Link closed the main door, collected the cups, and began dismantling the dining room.
"Good work," Emilia said.
"Thank you."
"Everything looked very beautiful."
"Thank you."
"Link," she added, "you could rest now."
"Not yet."
Subaru picked up a napkin.
"The world will not end because someone else washes a cup."
Link took the napkin from his hand.
"You do not need to do that."
"I want to."
"No."
"Again."
Link placed the napkin into the basket.
"Subaru."
"What?"
"I do not want to argue."
"Neither do I. I want to help you."
"Then stop insisting."
Subaru pressed his lips together.
"You do not have to speak to me that way."
Link became still.
The dining room fell silent.
The statement had not been aggressive.
It was true.
Link lowered his gaze.
"You are right."
Subaru had not expected such an immediate surrender.
"Link…"
"I apologize."
He picked up the basket.
"I will not do it again."
He walked away.
Subaru watched him cross the doorway.
"That was worse," he murmured.
Ram, from her chair, answered:
"Yes."
At five, only small tasks remained.
Store the reception dishes.
Complete the inventory.
Hang the final laundry.
Inspect the rooms.
Feed the Wolgarms again.
Prepare dinner.
Close the windows before the temperature dropped.
Check the lamps.
Record the requested supplies.
Clean the kitchen.
Nothing difficult.
Nothing Link could not do.
The courtyard was tinted by the reddish light of sunset.
Clothing waved upon the lines. Shirts, sheets, and tablecloths formed white walls moving in the wind.
Link held a basket beneath one arm.
One kagune lifted garments.
Another spread them.
The remaining two secured clothespins.
His eyes were still black.
He had stopped attempting to turn them off.
Luci floated above the basket.
Quieter than usual.
Link hung one sheet.
Then another.
Inventory.
Dinner.
Lamps.
Wolgarms.
Windows.
Kitchen.
He could begin the broth before finishing the inventory.
Leave the meat over low heat.
While it boiled, he would close the windows.
Then feed the animals.
No.
The animals first. If darkness fell, they would become more restless.
Then dinner.
The inventory could be finished while the food cooked.
Lamps afterward.
The dishes were already stored.
Had he stored all of them?
Yes.
No.
The glasses from the side cabinet remained.
He would return.
First the clothing.
A clothespin fell to the ground.
Link picked it up.
Subaru and Emilia's voices reached him from inside the mansion.
He could not distinguish the words.
The sound irritated him.
Not because they were speaking loudly.
Because it existed.
One of the Wolgarms scratched the enclosure fence.
Link continued hanging clothing.
The creature scratched again.
"Stay."
The sound stopped.
Link hung a shirt.
Dinner.
Inventory.
Lamps.
Windows.
Wolgarms.
Glasses.
Close the kitchen.
Prepare breakfast.
No.
The challenge ended that night.
He did not need to prepare breakfast.
But Rem had prepared the oats for him.
He could return the gesture.
Then he needed to leave them ready.
Missing flour.
There was not enough for bread.
He could prepare something else.
The Wolgarms began moving inside the enclosure.
One pushed another.
The second responded with a whimper.
Link squeezed a clothespin.
"Stay."
The creatures lowered their heads.
A sheet came loose from the line and fell across the fence.
One of the Wolgarms bit the edge.
Link saw it.
"Release it."
The animal obeyed.
The fabric was stained with saliva and dirt.
Link contemplated the mark.
He would have to wash it again.
Water.
Soap.
Wring it.
Dry it.
It would not dry before nightfall.
He would need to place it near the stove.
Another task.
Another thing he had decided to keep.
The Wolgarms paced restlessly.
Link's mana filled the courtyard like a storm that had not yet broken. The beasts perceived it. They did not understand what was happening to their master. They only knew his scent had changed and the pressure was crushing their instincts.
One of them released a low growl.
Link turned his head.
The Wolgarm retreated.
It growled again.
Something broke.
Not the clothespin.
Not a line.
Both horns erupted from Link's forehead with a burst of pressure that lifted the hanging clothing.
The courtyard's mana changed direction.
The leaves of the trees bent toward him.
The air was dragged inward.
All four kagunes abandoned the garments and drove themselves into the ground around his body. Their crimson surfaces opened along pulsating lines, absorbing mana alongside the horns.
Luci retreated with a frightened flash.
The Wolgarms cowered.
Link dropped the basket.
"Of course."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
He extended one hand toward the enclosure.
A flame appeared above his palm.
Small at first.
Red.
Then orange.
Then white at the center.
Fire was simple.
It demanded no schedules.
It required no soap.
It did not become ill.
It did not growl.
It left no unfinished tasks.
Fire ended things.
For one instant, he remembered red ink across a school assignment, the edge of the paper shrinking, and the childish satisfaction of making a poor grade disappear before anyone could ever see it again.
The flame grew.
The mansion's windows vibrated.
Inside, Beatrice raised her head.
Roswaal stopped writing.
Ram pushed away her blanket.
Rem was already running.
When they reached the courtyard, Link remained standing before the enclosure.
The clothing whipped around him.
The four kagunes formed arches behind his body. His horns glowed like red-hot metal. The flame above his hand had grown into a compressed sphere whose light transformed the ground into a white surface.
The Wolgarms remained huddled at the farthest end of the fence.
None attempted to flee.
They could not.
Emilia stopped at the doorway.
"Link."
He did not turn.
Subaru arrived behind her.
"Friend…"
"They were right," Link said.
Roswaal appeared in the outer corridor.
Beatrice materialized beside Emilia.
Ram arrived more slowly, leaning against the wall.
Rem was the only one who continued advancing.
"I should not have kept them," Link continued. "They are dangerous. They consume food. They need space. They must be watched. Fed. Cleaned. Checked for illness. Monitored so they do not attack anyone."
The sphere of fire expanded.
The earth beneath his boots blackened.
"Link," Subaru said. "Lower your hand."
"They are another obligation."
One kagune struck the ground.
The stone cracked.
"A problem I brought here because I thought I could handle it."
His voice remained controlled.
Every word emerged carefully pronounced.
"So I will solve it."
Rem crossed the first line of clothing.
"Stop."
Link barely turned his head.
His kakugan fixed upon her.
"Rem, move back."
"No."
"I am not going to fail."
"Rem did not say you were failing."
"Everyone said keeping them was dangerous."
"Yes."
Link frowned.
Perhaps he had expected her to deny it.
Rem continued approaching.
"They are Mabeasts. They are dangerous."
"Then—"
"And they obey Link."
"Until they cease doing so."
"They have not ceased."
One of the Wolgarms whimpered.
Link turned his hand toward it.
The flame stirred.
"It growled at me."
"Because it is frightened."
"It should not challenge me."
"It did not."
"You heard it."
"Rem can feel your mana as well."
She was already only several meters away.
The heat moved her hair and dried the damp earth beneath her shoes.
"It is not angry with Link," she said. "It is terrified."
"I do not care."
The statement surprised everyone.
Link as well.
His lips parted.
For a moment, he appeared not to recognize his own voice.
The flame grew slightly larger.
Rem did not stop.
"Then Rem will care for them now."
"You are resting."
"That is over."
"No."
"The third day is ending."
"I have not finished."
"The reception is over."
"Dinner remains."
"Rem can cook."
"No."
"Subaru can close the windows."
"No."
"Emilia-sama can inspect the lamps."
"No."
"Ram can complete the inventory while seated."
"No."
Each refusal emerged faster.
Quieter.
More desperate.
"I do not need help."
"Rem is not asking."
"They are my tasks."
"Not anymore."
"I agreed to do them."
"And Rem is ending the agreement."
"You do not have the authority."
"Roswaal-sama."
The margrave slightly raised his chin.
"She does."
Link looked toward him.
The sphere distorted.
For the first time, a crack appeared in his calm.
"No."
Roswaal did not answer.
Link looked back toward the Wolgarms.
"They are mine."
"Yes," Rem said.
"My responsibility."
"Yes."
"Then I can decide."
"Not while you are out of your mind."
The kagunes tensed.
"I am perfectly conscious."
"You have not turned off your eyes in hours."
"That does not matter."
"You have not slept."
"I ate."
"That is not sleep."
"My body is fine."
Rem stopped directly before him.
The sphere of fire rested between them, slightly above his extended hand.
The heat made her eyes water.
She did not retreat.
"Link said that resting did not make Rem unnecessary."
The flame trembled.
"This is different."
"No."
"I can continue."
"Rem could as well."
"You were destroying yourself."
The words emerged with greater force.
Rem accepted the blow without moving.
"Yes."
Link opened his mouth.
He found no response.
Rem stepped closer.
"And Ram saw it."
In the distance, Ram kept her eye upon them.
"Rem did not understand why nee-sama looked angry when Rem did everything correctly. She made no mistakes. Forgot no tasks. Asked for no help."
Link's hand trembled.
The sphere followed the movement.
"Do not come closer."
"Now Rem understands."
"Rem."
"You are not doing everything correctly because you are capable of it."
She raised one hand.
The fire roared.
Subaru stepped forward.
Beatrice extended an arm to stop him.
Rem continued:
"You are removing everything that does not help you work."
The jokes.
Rest.
Patience.
Food.
His voice.
Even the way he looked at her.
"That is not—"
"Today, Link did not smile once because he was happy."
The sphere of fire contracted.
Its light remained unbearable.
"They are not garbage," Rem said.
"They are dangerous."
"So is Link."
He looked at her.
"And Rem has not requested that he be reduced to ashes."
The flame lost part of its shape.
It did not disappear.
"Do not compare me to them."
"Rem did not."
She lowered her voice.
"Link is attempting to burn the only task that can disappear completely."
Her fingers reached his wrist.
The heat bit into her skin.
Rem did not withdraw them.
"Release the mana."
"I cannot."
It was the first time he admitted it.
He did not say, "I do not want to."
He said, "I cannot."
The horns absorbed more and more.
The kagunes pulsated.
The sphere was too compressed to dissipate carelessly.
Beatrice understood.
"Do not cut it off suddenly," she warned. "Return it slowly, I suppose."
Link closed his eyes.
Black and red still waited behind his eyelids.
"Too much remains."
"No."
"Dinner."
"Rem will prepare it."
"The clothing."
"Subaru will collect it."
Subaru looked toward the lines.
"Yes."
"The inventory."
"Ram will finish it," Ram said from the doorway.
"The lamps."
"I can inspect them," Emilia added.
"The Wolgarms."
"Roswaal will contain them."
The margrave smiled.
"With great administrative suffering."
Link breathed.
Air entered as though his lungs had forgotten how.
The sphere diminished.
White.
Orange.
Red.
His kagunes stopped absorbing.
One pulled free from the ground.
Then another.
"The oats," he murmured.
Rem tightened her grip upon his wrist.
"You will prepare nothing."
"I promised—"
"Rem prepared today's."
"I wanted to repay you—"
"You can do so tomorrow."
"Tomorrow does not count."
"Then another day."
Link opened his eyes.
They remained transformed.
But the flame now fit above his palm.
Rem brought her other hand closer and closed it around his fingers.
The fire went out.
The courtyard became dark.
The silence afterward felt enormous.
Link looked at his hands.
Then the Wolgarms.
The creatures remained cowering at the back of the enclosure.
One released a faint whimper.
"I am sorry," Link said.
It was unclear to whom.
The horns began retracting.
The kagunes lost their rigidity.
Rem slowly released his wrist.
"Now you must sleep."
"Yes."
Link remained standing.
"Link."
"I am…"
His voice faded.
His eyes closed.
He did not sway.
He did not fall immediately.
He simply stopped holding himself upright from within.
One kagune drove itself reflexively into the ground and kept his body standing. His head lowered until it rested upon Rem's shoulder.
She became still.
"Link?"
There was no answer.
His breathing was deep.
Regular.
Sleeping.
Link had just fallen asleep while standing.
Rem wrapped an arm around his back before the kagune finished retracting. His weight fell upon her, forcing her to brace herself, but she did not release him.
Subaru released his breath.
"Is he…?"
Beatrice approached.
She touched Link's forehead.
"Asleep."
"Only asleep?"
"So deeply that Betty could throw him through a window without waking him, I suppose."
"Do not," Emilia said.
"Betty was not planning to."
"You thought about it."
Beatrice withdrew her hand.
"A little."
Rem continued holding him.
Link's breathing warmed her neck.
His kakugan did not disappear immediately. The black slowly receded like ink dragged away by water until his eyes returned to normal beneath his closed lids.
Ram approached.
Rem looked at her.
"He did not make a single mistake."
"Ram knows."
"He did everything."
"Yes."
Rem looked down toward Link.
"Then why…?"
Ram observed her sister's arms around his sleeping body.
"Because he stopped being a person so he could."
Rem pressed her lips together.
Ram indicated the courtyard with her gaze.
The perfectly hung clothing.
The completed reception.
The clean house.
The fed animals.
The finished lists.
"That is what Ram sees when Rem says she can still continue."
The answer was not cruel.
That was why it hurt more.
Rem looked at her sister.
For the first time, she understood the irritation without sarcasm.
The constant vigilance.
The orders to sleep.
The anger provoked by a task performed correctly.
It was not contempt for her effort.
It was fear that one day Rem would complete everything pending and there would not be enough of her left to enjoy it.
Subaru carefully approached.
"I can carry him."
Rem shook her head.
"Rem will."
"He is heavy."
"Rem knows."
"I can at least take—"
"Collect the clothing."
Subaru contemplated the lines.
Then Link.
"That sounds suspiciously like work."
"Link said Subaru could do it."
Subaru snorted.
"Even asleep, he continues giving me orders."
Emilia began removing clothespins from the opposite end.
"I will inspect the lamps afterward."
"Emilia-sama should not—"
Rem stopped.
The sentence died on its own.
Emilia smiled.
"I can inspect lamps."
Rem inclined her head.
"Yes."
Ram picked up the fallen list.
"Ram will complete the inventory."
"Nee-sama still needs to rest."
"Ram will be seated."
"But—"
Ram raised one eyebrow.
Rem closed her mouth.
Roswaal extended one hand toward the enclosure. A barrier of light surrounded the Wolgarms, and the animals finally relaxed.
"The problem is temporarily under my care."
Beatrice opened a doorway into the mansion.
"Take him inside before he wakes and has more ideas, I suppose."
Rem arranged one of Link's arms around her shoulders.
He did not react.
Not even when she lifted him.
Luci descended and settled upon his dark hair, emitting a weak and exhausted light.
Rem carried him through the door.
Before following them, Ram looked across the courtyard one final time.
Nothing had burned.
Not one task had been ruined.
The mansion remained standing.
The third day had been a success.
And that was precisely why it had nearly ended in ashes.