"Lady Alice, Lady Loki sent me to find you."
Daphne approached just then.
Noticing the freshly activated magic circle on the ground, she asked curiously, "Lady Alice, what is this magic circle?"
Daphne wasn't close to Alice, but she'd still learned a great deal about her from Hestia.
For instance, that Alice was an incredibly powerful mage.
This thing on the ground was clearly magic-related. As someone who couldn't use magic, Daphne was intensely curious about it.
"Ah, Daphne. This is a gravity magic circle. Think of it as adding a heavy load to anyone who steps inside," Alice explained simply.
Loki was looking for her? Why didn't she just come herself? Loki had to know Alice was setting up the gravity magic.
"What does Loki need?" Alice asked, puzzled.
Hearing Alice's explanation made Daphne even more curious about the magic circle, but she attended to her message first.
"A waitress from the Hostess of Fertility came to collect the payment for the Loki Familia's expenses from yesterday. She also asked if you were here, Lady Alice."
"Uh... was it a girl named Syr?"
"Yes."
Alice immediately felt a headache coming on.
The Loki Familia's return from the expedition meant Alice had returned too.
Knowing she was back, Syr had actually come looking for her directly. And from the sound of Daphne's words, since Syr was here asking if she was around... it was highly likely she had already been to Alice's home?
"I see... I'll head over now."
"Lefiya, study the magic circle a bit more. Its future maintenance will be in your hands. If you truly hit a wall, you can always come find me again."
Alice sighed inwardly. She had no intention of returning the grimoire. Since Freya was operating under the guise of a human girl, she probably wanted to keep her identity secret.
In that case, the best solution was to just come clean and owe the Freya Familia a favor. What she feared was that 'Syr' wouldn't say anything about it, and just wanted to see her. That would be truly troublesome.
Alice left the backyard.
Lefiya felt a pang of sadness. Alice could casually develop magic of this level. Even though Lefiya had helped set it up herself, she still couldn't understand the circle's composition at all.
She patted her cheeks, psyching herself up, and stared intently at the magic circle on the ground, recalling the guidance Alice had given her.
Even if the gap in their innate talent was vast, Lefiya was determined to learn this magic.
At the very least, she needed to be able to deploy it independently, just like she had today.
If she could set up the circle under Alice's instruction, that meant anyone should theoretically be able to do it.
Alice had given her the greatest treasure this world could offer. She absolutely could not let it go to waste.
She would learn it, no matter what.
Her spirit renewed, Lefiya plunged into serious study and research.
Daphne stood off to the side, feeling somewhat awkward. Lefiya didn't pause her examination of the magic circle just because Daphne was there.
And with Lefiya looking so intensely focused, Daphne found it hard to strike up a conversation.
Daphne, who had stayed behind out of curiosity for the magic circle, suddenly felt she'd have been better off following Alice.
Sneaking away now would feel far too awkward.
So, Daphne simply stood near Lefiya, deciding to act as a guard. After all, Loki had said the main force of their familia would be back soon.
The Sword Princess and the Nine Hell, among others, were bound to come here.
When that happened, Daphne could just say her goodbyes to everyone and leave.
--+--
Alice returned to Loki's study.
She immediately saw a human girl and an elf girl there.
The elf girl was verifying the amount with Loki.
Yesterday, Loki had bragged that she would treat everyone to food and drink. She hadn't expected that upon hearing 'free meal,' all those adventurers would completely let loose, eating and drinking like there was no tomorrow.
As a result, the money Loki had brought wasn't nearly enough.
Finn and the others didn't have much on them either, so Loki had told Mama Mia to have an employee from the Hostess of Fertility come to the Loki Familia for the money the next day.
And now, Syr and Ryuu were here to collect.
In Alice's eyes, Syr's true identity was the goddess Freya. But judging by the attitudes of Loki and Hestia, they didn't seem to be aware of Syr's true identity.
Walking into the study, Alice saw Syr's eyes instantly light up. She sighed inwardly.
The goddess Freya was elegant and noble. But her human guise, Syr, seemed downright playful.
It seemed that maintaining the goddess persona all the time grew tedious. Freya probably wanted a change of pace to relax.
"Syr, it's been a while," Alice said with a slight smile.
Since Freya seemed intent on keeping her alter ego a secret, so be it. Alice wasn't planning to return the grimoire anyway. If Syr brought it up, she'd just play dumb.
Ahem.
This being her first time doing something like this, Alice couldn't help but feel a bit nervous, a faint blush rising to her cheeks.
Seeing Alice's flushed face and her evasive, somewhat dazed eyes, Syr was overjoyed. She seized the opportunity and launched herself at Alice, latching onto her like an octopus.
"Alice-chan! Long time no see! I missed you so much!" Syr cried, wrapping her limbs tightly around Alice.
Feeling Syr's soft body pressed against her, Alice's own frame stiffened instantly.
"What in the world?!!"
The sight of Syr and Alice like this even shocked Loki.
"Alice-chan! Why do you always dodge when I try to hug you?! Who is this woman?! What's your relationship with her?!"
Loki demanded, nearly frantic.
Nearby, Hestia, who had been brainstorming manga plotlines, dropped her pen, her jaw hanging open as she stared dumbfounded at Alice.
For a moment, Alice felt a profound headache coming on.
"Syr... get down, please. I'd like to have a proper talk with you. Just the two of us," Alice said wearily.
"Huh? What does Alice-chan want to talk to little old me about?" Syr asked, feigning innocence, her arms still tightly wrapped around Alice's arm.
Alice glanced at Syr. Her bright eyes seemed capable of seeing right through a person.
Syr felt a ridiculous notion forming in her heart—that this human identity, known to no one, had been seen through by Alice.
Under Alice's gaze, the delight on Syr's face faded slightly. Finally, a smile still on her lips, she looked at Alice and said.
"Understood."
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
20+ advanced chaps on my patreon.
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.