familiar with the term. Unfortunately, though, Kaito couldn't think of any other way to describe it. After all, the entity before them was clad from head to toe in silver. It was even holding some sort of copper tublike implement in its hands. It was bizarre, even by space-alien standards. Communicating with it probably wouldn't be possible. Kaito was at a loss for what to do. Then all of a sudden, it popped its head off. Beautiful silver hair flowed out and landed atop the entity's shoulders. "Whaâ€”?!" "Oh?" Kaito and Elisabeth's eyes went wide. Then they cried out in unison. ""Hina!"" "Phew, that should finally be all of them... Oh? Why, if it isn't my beloved Master Kaito and my dearest Lady Elisabeth! Whatever brings you down here?" *** The two of them were relieved, but that wasn't going to stop them from shouting. Hina blinked her emerald eyes in puzzlement. Still dressed like an extraterrestrial, she cocked her head to the side. At that point, Kaito elaborated: "You went missing, so Elisabeth and I have been looking everywhere for you." "For me? Oh goodness, I'm ever so sorry. It was all part of my work for the day, and I figured I would be done in no time, so I didn't think I needed to tell you, but...could it be that it's much later than I think it is? Eek, oh no! I got so wrapped up in mixing that I lost track of the time! However can I possibly apologize?" Hina gave a hurried bow. However, Elisabeth told her that all was well. "A-as long as you're safe, then there's no harm done. Come now, raise your head." Kaito felt he should say something as well, but his attention kept getting drawn to what Hina was holding. Inside her copper tub, there was some sort of dark-green liquid sloshing about with a number of half-dissolved plants in it. He tried to peer inside. The moment he did, though, Hina quickly hid the tub behind her back and shook her head. "There isn't much left, but it's still emitting vapor! It's dangerous to stick your head in!" "Hina...what exactly is that?" "A secret mixture for exterminating rats, passed down since time immemorial, that I had stored in my Self-Recording Device! Or to be more precise, a special Murder Supreme Version of it that I came up with!" "'Murder Supreme Version,' huh...?" That certainly had a scary ring to it. By the sound of it, the rats didn't stand a chance. And given that that's what she was holding, it was easy to surmise the rest of the story. Hina must have gone back for a rematch with the rats. More than a little embarrassed, she bashfully told them the details. "You see, I ran into one of their survivors when I was making my evening rounds. After that, I was able to discover that their main diet wasn't actually the grain, but the plant growing here, and that their nest was tucked away behind it. From there, I went into the basement storage area and retrieved my ingredients and an outfit to safely handle them with..." "Goodness, I had no idea we even had such things stored in the castle." "Wasn't I just telling you to keep a better eye on your stuff?" "Then once I was done mixing the treatment chemicals, I evaded the swarm, put the tub in their nest, and finished them off by adding an herb in to release poison smoke! If the unthinkable happened and a rat that large were to bite one of you, why, I wouldn't have been able to rest until I killed every last rat in the world!" Hina clenched her fist tight, and the other two nodded in understanding. With that, all the mysteries were finally solvedâ€”why Hina had vanished, why they hadn't been able to find her, and why there hadn't been any traces of her. Everything was clear now. In short, there hadn't been any reason to worry in the first place. The fact that they were currently embroiled in a series of battles against the demons notwithstanding, it was certainly possible that they had let their imaginations run a little too wild. It would probably have been smarter to at least wait until the next day before sounding the alarm. But right as Kaito and Elisabeth were about to start reflecting on their actions, Hina gave them a big, bright smile like a flower coming into full bloom. "I really am sorry about the inconvenience, but thank you both so much. Knowing that my beloved Master Kaito and my dearest Lady Elisabeth were worried for my sake, why...it makes me feel more blessed than I could possibly dream of!" Overcome with emotion, she blinked happy tears from her emerald eyes. Kaito and Elisabeth couldn't help but scratch their cheeks. Then they puffed up their chests like what they'd done was the most natural thing in the world. A Message from Someone (6) That's rightâ€”why was it me? Why wasn't it you? Why me? Why was I the only one who had to endure this? If I think back, there was no real reason why I should have had to do all the things I did. All the stories they tell about "me" are far removed from the truth, so really, it should have just been someone who fit that idealized mold from the start. So why the hell did it have to be me? Why not you? You still live free of care in this fragile world I reconstructed, don't you? Yet you know nothing of the truth. Nothing of the facts. You just guzzled down the faith they laid in front of you like a pig at a trough, didn't you? That's rightâ€”flocks of sheep are fundamentally stupid. And that is the way things ought to be. Honestly, you probably don't think I have any right to blame you. But that self-indulgence of yours is a sin unto itself, and because of it, you never even tried to notice. Surely, the grace period I gave you was long enough. Yet even so, you were unable to learn. Stupid sheep. Fattened swine. I keep sending you these messages, but you never reply. Is my voice even reaching you? ...Because if it is, if you can hear me, then surely, you're putting in a commensurate amount of effort trying to respond, aren't you? Don't tell me you didn't try at all, did you? Surely, surely, surely that isn't the case. Fine, then. Fine. If no one will listen to my message, then so be it. But if that's the case, then...I curse you. A curse on you. A curse on you. A curse on everythingâ€” â€”and a curse on you. Hina's Daily Routine (Back Side) "I understand, I really doâ€”you all have your peace, just as we have ours." An earnest voice could be heard in the dim light. It echoed against the walls, gradually growing deeper and heavier before eventually fading into nothing. The speakerâ€”Hinaâ€”fixed her emerald eyes straight ahead of her. She was squaring off against a foe. "However, your peace is in danger of encroaching on the lives of my beloved and my dearest." It was rare for Hina to take such a tone with her adversaries. Normally, she made no efforts to conceal her hostility and scorn. However, her current conduct was an exception to that, and for good reason. Chance encounter though it was, it wasn't her first rodeo with this particular foe. It was a rematch. Hina had defeated them once before. In fact, she thought she had stamped them out. After all, there was a marked gap between her capabilities and theirs. She was powerful; they were weak. And yet even so, they had escaped annihilation and concealed a fair number of survivors from her. Given her overwhelming advantage over them, that in itself was a form of defeat for her. The mere fact that a rematch was necessary had earned them a fair bit of her respect. "Prepare yourselvesâ€”for it is my duty to end your lives until none of you remain." With that declaration, Hina made her intentions known to the enemy forces once more. The darkness before her wriggled and squirmed, and cries that were filled with a mixture of bloodlust and primitive animal fear cut through the air. Hina nodded in satisfaction. It looked like their second bout was going to be just as heated as the first. Hina adjusted her grip on the instrument of death she was holding. This time, though, it wasn't her usual halberd. It was a copper tub filled to the brim with rat poison. "Now then, have at you!" And with that, Hina charged alone into the massive swarm of rats. As an aside, she wasn't wearing her standard maid outfit, either. Instead, she had on a silver outfit that was cylindrical at the torso and wide at the arms and legs. It somewhat defied comprehension, although to put it in terms from Kaito's world, it looked sort of like a space suit. Her stout legs went thump, thump, thump as she raced down the corridor. It was a sight that begged the question: How did things even get to that point? Answering that, though, would require going back a few hours before the final showdown began. "Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho, oh-ho-ho-ho-ho!" After serving dinner, Hina happily sang a little song. And why wouldn't she be happy? The day had been lovely in so many ways. Kaito had helped her clean the stairs, and Elisabeth had complimented her cooking. She was filled with the kind of joy that could only be expressed through song. "Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho, my meats are the finest meats around! Filled with love and bravery, they'll never let you down! Eat them and your courage will increase a millionfold! As always, I'm your friendly neighborhood Butcher! Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho! And I am Master Kaito's maid and lover! Eep!" Even though she was the one singing, she bashfully covered her face anyway. She had been able to spend yet another day working for the people she loved, and just thinking about that fact filled her with joy and pep. The group was smack-dab in the middle of their prolonged battle against the demons, but as far as Hina was concerned, these were the happiest days imaginable. For there was something she knew. She was, without a doubt, truly fortunate. The automatons Vlad built as presentsâ€”Hina's sistersâ€”couldn't feel strong emotions. Yet even so, if they saw how she was being treated, it wouldn't be odd for them to feel driven to tear her limb from limb. She was just that blessed. Carefully crafted automatons like her could sometimes develop emotions and rich minds of their own, depending on how they were used. It blurred the line between her and actual humans. However, this world had magic, so there was something of a surplus of entities with minds of their own. There were familiars, spirits, mythical beasts, and even summoned souls like Kaito, and all of them were frequently used as servants. In a world like this, the thought of automatons having human rights was absolutely laughable. As a general rule, things created using magic were viewed as nothing but tools for their users. That was just a commonly accepted fact. However, Hina's two masters treasured her like she was an actual human girl. For starters, both of them were kind people. Also, in Kaito's case, he was from another world, and for Elisabeth, she probably just didn't pay the matter much thought. Neither of them realized what they were doing, but from Hina's perspective, the way they treated her was a blessing she could never have even dreamed of. To her, being able to work for their benefit was the ultimate form of bliss. The only way it could possibly be better was if her eternal lover, Kaito, would let her dote on him