[User] "Never mind, it’s nothing. I’m okay now.”

[Assistant] “Really? If you say so…”

[User] I was living the dream. To think a day would come when Claire would be genuinely concerned for my well-being! Now all that was left was for her to open those cherry-pink lips of hers and scold me!

[Assistant] “Rae?”

[User] “Yes, yes, yes?”

[Assistant] If I had a tail, it definitely would have been wagging. However—

[User] “Are you really…okay? You sure you’re not just stressed because I was asked to go to the empire?”

[Assistant] Oh. That was right… The second act of my life in another world was looking bright—or at least, it had been. In truth, the months of peace we’d enjoyed were about to come to an end.


[User] It had been a little over a year since the revolution. “Miss Claire, do you have everything?” I called out to Claire as she put her shoes on at the entrance to our house, about to head to work.

[Assistant] “Rae, just how old do you think I am?” She shot me a glare.

[User] Even that glare of yours is wonderful, Miss Claire! “I believe you’re turning seventeen soon.” It would be unthinkable for me to forget her age. In fact, I’d long been fantasizing about all the things I would do for her approaching birthday.

[Assistant] “That’s right, seventeen. The two of us are already adults raising children, are we not?”

[User] “I’m well aware. Regardless, do you have your handkerchief?” I asked, also well aware of how overbearing I was being.

[Assistant] “Of course,” Claire curtly replied.

[User] “And some tissues?”

[Assistant] “Of course.”

[User] “And your lunch box?”

[Assistant] “Of course.”

[User] “I spiked it with something special this time.”

[Assistant] “Of cour—you did what? !”

[User] “Relax, I’m obviously joking!”

[Assistant] “It doesn’t sound like a joke when you say it.” Claire sighed, seeming exhausted all of a sudden. “What’s with the long face, Miss Claire? You can’t go in looking like that.”

[User] “And whose fault do you think it is? !”

[Assistant] It was mine, of course. All intentional, too. Tee hee.

[User] “Mama Claire, you still haven’t gone to work?”

[Assistant] “Won’t you be late?”

[User] Teasing Claire had run longer than I realized. May and Aleah approached, finished with their breakfast.

[Assistant] “Did you two clean up?” Claire asked.

[User] “Uh-huh!”

[Assistant] “Yes, Mother.”

[User] “Very good. I’ll be off, then. I leave them to you, Rae.”

[Assistant] “Of course. Have a nice day.”

[User] “Have a nice day!” the twins called together.

[Assistant] We all waved goodbye to Claire’s bouncing curls. This was our routine. Claire and I now taught at the Royal Academy, meaning we usually both left for work together, but occasionally, one of us could stay home. Today was such a day. “Shall we brush our teeth, then?” I asked the girls.

[User] “Yeah!”

[Assistant] “Yes, Mother!” May and Aleah generally obeyed directions, but they had grown more willful of late.


[User] I found myself smiling as I watched them brush their teeth. "Mother Rae, check me, please!"

[Assistant] "Me too! Me too!"

[User] "All right, one at a time now." Aleah climbed onto me right after I sat on the carpet.

[Assistant] She opened her mouth wide, allowing me to brush her cute, neat little rows of baby teeth. "All done. Next up, May."

[User] "Thank you very much, Mother."

[Assistant] "Move, Aleah! It’s my turn!" May—the rowdier of the two—practically pushed Aleah aside as she climbed into my lap.

[User] I gave her teeth a thorough brushing, like I’d done with Aleah’s. "All done! Make sure you gargle now."

[Assistant] "Okay!" May ran off to the washroom, her feet making adorable pitter-patter sounds as she went.


[User] "Ah! Mother Rae, May spilled water!"

[Assistant] "Aleah! Why’d you tattle? I was going to wipe it! Meanie!"

[User] I picked up a couple of cleaning cloths and headed to the washroom, where May sheepishly met my eyes as she tried to wipe up the spill with a small towel. "May, thank you for cleaning up your mistake."

[Assistant] "He he!"

[User] "But let’s make sure we use a cleaning cloth, not the towels."

[Assistant] "Sorry…"

[User] "It’s okay, you didn’t know. Now then, shall we clean up together?" I handed one of the cloths to May and watched as she furiously got to wiping.

[Assistant] "That’s not fair! Only May got praised!"

[User] "Do you want to help too, Aleah? I have another cloth here."

[Assistant] "Yes, please! May, it’s a contest! Let’s see who can wipe more!"

[User] "I won’t lose!"

[Assistant] I stroked the top of their soft heads. "We’re finished, Mother!"

[User] "Done!"

[Assistant] "Spick-and-span. Good job, you two."

[User] The girls smiled happily back at me, and we all lived happily ever after. The end. Well, that was what I’d like to say.


[User] “Who did better, Mother?”

[Assistant] “Yeah, who?”

[User] “Umm…” They inched closer to me. I thought they might be joking for a moment, but their serious eyes said otherwise.

[Assistant] “Can’t we just say you both did well?”

[User] “Unacceptable! Please choose one of us!”

[Assistant] “Who won? !”

[User] “U-umm…” Children tended to get hung up on the strangest things. I couldn’t just play it off for now either; just a year of being a parent had taught me I’d regret that down the line.

[Assistant] “Do you know how we tell good cleaning from bad?” I tried changing the focus a bit.

[User] “I don’t know.”

[Assistant] “How?”

[User] “The first factor is thoroughness. We can say Aleah is a winner because she wiped the most vigorously.”

[Assistant] “So I’m the winner!” Aleah proudly declared.

[User] “Aww…” May furrowed her lips and began to pout.

[Assistant] “But cleaning a wide area is also important. In that sense, May is a winner.”

[User] “Yay!”

[Assistant] “Huh?” This time, Aleah pouted as May celebrated.

[User] “So it’s a tie.”

[Assistant] “Huh? !” And now they both looked displeased. Good grief.

[User] “Is something wrong?”

[Assistant] “Yes, something’s wrong!”

[User] “I don’t like it!”

[Assistant] “Would you prefer it if I chose one of you randomly?”

[User] “I wouldn’t like that…”

[Assistant] “Yeah…”

[User] “That’s why it’s a draw. You both did your best.” I stroked their heads again, but they still looked grumpy. “Why don’t you go play in the yard? I still have some cleaning to do. Ralaire, can you come here?” A semi-transparent, amorphous creature came creeping forth at my call. This was Ralaire, my water slime familiar. These days, she was the size of a large dog, which was normal for adult water slimes. I missed the days when I could carry her in my school bag and feed her treats.

[Assistant] “Ralaire, can I have a piggyback ride?”

[User] Ralaire extended her arms—or whatever you’d call her amorphous tendrils—and heaved Aleah onto her back.

[Assistant] “May, you too!” It seemed the competition was over. Perhaps Aleah wanted to make amends by inviting May to join her?

[User] “Yeah! Ralaire, me too, please!”

[Assistant] Ralaire easily scooped May up as well before heading out the front door to the yard.

[User] “Faster, Ralaire, faster!”

[Assistant] “Right! Go right!”

[User] I didn’t know how to feel about that. I had to discuss it with Claire later. “Well… I’m sure it’ll turn out all right.” Parenting was about trial and error. Sometimes, that meant you had to let go and allow nature to take its course. No parent was omniscient, after all. I never once regretted coming to this world. But after raising my own children, I wished I’d had a chance to thank my real parents for raising me. There were just some things you couldn’t appreciate until you had children of your own.


[Assistant] “Waaah!”

[User] “Mama Rae! Aleah fell down!”

[Assistant] “Coming!” Goodness.


[User] "Um, Mother Rae?"

[Assistant] "There’s something we want to ask.” Just past noon on a holiday, May and Aleah approached Mother Rae while she was reading a book at the table out on their terrace. "Um, what does—”

[User] "What does Mama Rae like about Mama Claire?"

[Assistant] “Aleah! I was asking first!” May frowned.

[User] “No fighting, you two. Hmm… That’s a tough question. I can only say I love everything about her.”

[Assistant] They squealed in unison, placing their hands on their cheeks.

[User] “Oh, but Miss Claire was pretty different when I first met her.

[Assistant] "How so?" "Tell us, tell us!” The two of them looked at her expectantly.

[User] “Well, she was a lot more high-strung when we first met. Of course, Claire’s great as she is now, but I’ll never forget how wonderful she was when her pride was stacked high as the ceiling.”


[Assistant] “High…strung?”

[User] "Stacked…pride?” They seemed confused as to what she meant.

[Assistant] “Yes. If I had to put it simply…she was the very embodiment of those confident aristocrats who put their hand over their mouth and laugh ‘Oh ho ho!’ She always bullied me directly rather than use her underlings to do her dirty work for her. She’d insult me to my face, telling me how she couldn’t stand the sight of me, but being the kind of person who acted first and thought second, she never anticipated that her insults would only make me happier—backfiring on her to the point where she’d break down in tears. Her voice is also just perfect: it’s energetic like a young puppy’s, but cute and high-pitched like a cat’s, so you’re covered irrespective of which you prefer, and—”

[User] "M-Mother Rae, please stop!”

[Assistant] “Please, calm down!”

[User] Oops—I’d gotten carried away. My daughters began to pat me, saying “there, there". “Do you understand now?”

[Assistant] “Not one bit!”

[User] “Oh. Well, the main thing is that Miss Claire is cute.”

[Assistant] “I can understand that!”

[User] "Mother Claire is always cute!”

[Assistant] “Very good!”


[User] “All together now, ready? Oh ho ho ho!”

[Assistant] “Oh ho ho ho!” we chorused together.

[User] That was the end of that conversation. I was so happy May and Aleah had come to talk to me—so happy, in fact, that I never noticed Claire listening in. For some reason, Claire stepped on my foot.

[Assistant] “O-oh, pardon me!” she stammered. “I-I-I…thought you were an insect!”

[User] “Is something the matter, Miss Claire?”

[Assistant] “Huh? Umm…a-ah! You’ve been cheeky, Rae!”

[User] “Hmm?” I’ve been cheeky? Huh… “I apologize if I offended you in any way, but I don’t recall doing anything.”

[Assistant] “Th-that’s not what I meant!”

[User] “It’s not?”

[Assistant] “F-forget about it!” Claire stormed off. What was that all about?


[User] A while later, Claire hid one of my books.

[Assistant] “What’s wrong? Is your measly salary not enough to buy books?”

[User] “Our salaries are the same, though.”

[Assistant] “O-oh, right…”

[User] “Actually, I’m pretty sure I have more savings than you.” I frowned. Why is she bringing up salary? Unless…

[Assistant] “I’ll try my best to make more money!”

[User] “N-no, you’re fine as you are! That’s not what I’m getting at!”

[Assistant] “It’s not?”

[User] “N-ngh! Rae, you meanie!” Claire stormed off once again. Huh? What in the world’s going on?

[Assistant] And now, I was being left out.

[User] “He he. May and Aleah only want to play with me now! How’s that?”

[Assistant] “Oh…” A tear welled up in my eye.

[User] “Y-you’re actually crying? !"

[Assistant] “It’s fine. I’m happy as long as you three are happy. I’ll just settle for watching from a distance…”

[User] “Go comfort Rae, you two.”

[Assistant] “Okay!”

[User] “There, there, Mother Rae.” I was consoled by my daughters. Ahhh, bliss.


[Assistant] Later that night, Claire doused me with hot water—which didn’t feel out of place at all, since we were both in the bath.

[User] “Oh, dear,” she started. “You were just so dirty, I th—”

[Assistant] “Oh, thank you very much. I was just about to wash my hair.”

[User] “H-huh?” I grabbed the soap bottle and began to wash Claire’s hair. “Your hair is beautiful, Miss Claire.”

[Assistant] “Th-thank you very much… Wait, that’s not it!”

[User] “Is this too rough?”

[Assistant] “No, it feels wonderful.” My talents had been recognized. I could die happy now.


[User] After the bath, there were flowers waiting for me on the table.

[Assistant] “How about that? !”

[User] “Oh, what lovely flowers. They’ve been arranged wonderfully, too.”

[Assistant] Claire was silent. “Miss Claire?” Surprised, I looked over at her. She looked put out for some reason. “What’s the matter?”

[User] “I’m fed up with this…”

[Assistant] “You’ve been acting odd today.”

[User] “And whose fault do you think that is? !” Claire howled. Even her angry face was lovely.

[Assistant] “Miss Claire.”

[User] “What do you want?”

[Assistant] “Thank you for showing me your villainess side again.”

[User] “So you did notice? !” Of course. It was obvious she’d been trying to replicate what she first did to me at the Academy.

[Assistant] “I loved watching you try to play the villainess.”

[User] “Of course you did. You were teasing me the whole time!”

[Assistant] “Yep! Thank you very much!”

[User] “Oh!”


[User] "Well, you’re so very welcome! I’m going to bed!” Claire rushed to the bedroom.

[Assistant] I stopped her by grabbing her arm. “Miss Claire, won’t you try saying you hate me?”

[User] “Huh? What for?”

[Assistant] “To put the finishing touch on your villainess routine.”

[User] “Honestly…” Claire sighed. While she sounded like she dreaded the idea, she still turned around and faced me with a determined look on her face. “Very well then. I—”

[Assistant] “Yes?”

[User] “L-L-Lo—no, I mean—h-h-haa…h-h-haa—”

[Assistant] “You’re almost there, Miss Claire! Don’t give up!” I cheered her on as her face turned red as a beet.

[User] “—aaate you!”

[Assistant] “It’s over, Miss Claire! You did it! You really did it!” I praised Miss Claire as if she were a hero who’d just won an epic battle.

[User] “It was difficult…so unbelievably difficult…”

[Assistant] “You’ve done well.”

[User] “It seems I can no longer curse you as I once could.”

[Assistant] “He he. You must love me lots, then.”

[User] “I do. You better take responsibility.”

[Assistant] “Of course.”

[User] Claire smiled. She linked her arm with mine and rested her head on my shoulder. Together, we disappeared into the bedroom.

[Assistant] “What was Mama Claire doing today?” May asked.

[User] “I know! Sister Lene told me! It’s something called ‘S and M play.’” Of course, Claire and I were oblivious to their conversation.


[Assistant] We stood on the Royal Academy’s athletic field as a tender sun befitting of early spring shone down on us, the chill of winter almost entirely gone. “Good morning, everyone!”

[User] “Good morning!” Twenty or so students cheerfully returned my greeting, all wearing Academy uniforms and radiating motivation.

[Assistant] Today was the start of the spring semester, making this our first meeting. My first year of teaching had taught me the importance of making a good first impression. If your students thought you weak, they’d walk all over you. It wasn’t as bad as when the student body had been mostly nobles, but even commoners could be ruthless if they smelled blood in the water. That said, you didn’t want to come across as too strict either. You had to strike a balance. “Nice to meet you, everyone. I’m Rae Taylor, and I’ll be teaching you practical magic. Let’s have a good semester. Oh, please also be kind to Miss François, who’ll be teaching you magic theory.” Practical magic and magic theory were new subjects established last year. As their names suggested, they covered practical implementation of magic and academic approaches to the same, respectively, and had previously been lumped together with general magic classes. I was better at practical magic, while Claire had a better grasp of theory. Combined with our high magic aptitude, this made us the best candidates to teach the new classes. “Seeing as it’s only the first day and no one’s measured their magic aptitude yet, let’s start off by introducing ourselves and then going over what the class will cover.” But first— “As I explained earlier, my name is Rae Taylor.


[User] "Please call me Miss Taylor." Personally, I had no problem being called Miss Rae, but as a teacher, I had to set some boundaries. "Some of you are older than me, but please understand that I ask this not as a matter of age, but one of respect." The Academy differed from modern-day Japanese schools in that students of different ages could be put in the same class. It had been the same way back when I was a student.

[Assistant] "But of course! Miss Taylor, you’re the legend who achieved the highest test score in the history of the academy, all while in your first year!"

[User] Oh, no… Not this again.

[Assistant] "Aren’t you also a hero of the revolution, Miss Taylor?!"

[User] "It’s an honor to be taught by you!"

[Assistant] "Please show us your ultra-high aptitude magic!" The students all began speaking at once.

[User] Jeez. For better or worse, I had made a bit of a name for myself in the Bauer Kingdom. I hadn’t done much—a bit of this, a bit of that—and somehow, I still wound up being considered one of the key figures of the revolution. But I mean, really? The entire time, I’d had nothing on my mind but stopping Claire’s execution. At any rate, I had to do something about this situation. Maybe I could try that thing I did last year again? "Is anyone here afraid of heights?"

[Assistant] "Nope!"

[User] "Not a problem!"

[Assistant] "More importantly, show us your ultra-high apt-"

[User] No one? Up they go, then! "Uplift!" The earth rose from underneath my students’ feet, lifting them thirty feet or so into the air. It was the opposite version of the pitfall magic I used to toy with Claire.

[Assistant] "Wh-whoa!"

[User] "S-so high!"

[Assistant] "Eek!"

[User] Psychologically speaking, thirty feet felt higher than it actually was. Furthermore, I lifted them each individually instead of as one big group, giving them frighteningly little space to stand on. Naturally, I was ready to catch any student who fell—but they didn’t know that. "Please don’t interrupt me while I’m talking. If you do, I might have to punish you like this. Are we clear?"

[Assistant] The students furiously nodded.

[User] "Very good. I’ll lower you all down now." The students breathed a sigh of relief as they returned to level ground. "Let’s have you introduce yourselves, then. Starting from the right." The students gave me no further problems. Sometimes you had to show you meant business to make them listen to you. Of course, as I mentioned earlier, that didn’t mean you should be a tyrant. You needed to earn their attention by proving you had something real to teach them—hence the earth magic. While students of the Academy tended to be gifted or privileged, they still hadn’t received any training in the practical application of magic. Many students hadn’t so much as seen magic before. But just showing off wouldn’t earn me their respect.


[User] That’s why I lifted them into the air—to show I was serious while also driving home how terrifying magic could be when handled correctly. I listened to the students introduce themselves while observing their expressions. Most of them were still reeling from the shock of being lifted. Occasionally, a student would introduce themself with a shout, but that wasn’t anything more than false bravado. Charming in its own way, though, I had to say.

[Assistant] “Hey, guys! Nice to meetcha! I’m Lana Lahna and I come from Euclid, just like Miss Rae!” This girl seemed a bit of an oddball. Her brown eyes sparkled with life, apparently undeterred by my earlier demonstration, and a white headband adorned her red hair. She was about the same height as me, if not slightly taller. Her carefree smile, combined with the way she talked, reminded me of the gyaru girls I used to see in Japan. “I’m, like, suuuper bad at studying, but magic looks so fun! I hope to be like Miss Rae one day!” Lana finished her self-introduction in one breath and started to wave at me. It seemed I had another fan. Well, given how weird I was, she should be disillusioned in no time. My condolences.

[User] “My name’s Eve Nuhn… Same hometown as Lana. Nice to meet you.” An incredibly gloomy-looking girl introduced herself after Lana. She didn’t seem perturbed by my display of magic either, but her personality was the polar opposite of Lana’s. She had long, black hair shaped into a braid and wore glasses—a rarity in this world that hinted she came from a reasonably affluent family.

[Assistant] None of that bothered me. Everyone had their quirks; her gloomy demeanor didn’t faze me a bit. But those eyes… She had a death glare trained on me, like I had personally killed her parents. I racked my brain but couldn’t summon any memory of her.

[User] “I’m Joel. Joel Santana. I’m from the kingdom.” The next to introduce themselves was a tall boy with blue hair and brown eyes. The image of a lean wolf came to mind when I looked at him. Not a shred of excess fat on his body. Possibly from training? “I come from a family of soldiers, so I can fight,” Joel finished up, keeping his introduction short, to the point, and almost mechanical. “I like studying but am not very good at it. Nice to meet you.”

[Assistant] The rest of the introductions were nothing to write home about. I finished the class by going over the warm-up exercises we would do daily at the start of each session. “That’ll be all for today.”

[User] “Thank you very much!” Class ended and everyone dispersed. I started to make for the staff room when Lana called out to me.

[Assistant] “Miss Rae! There was a part I didn’t understand!”

[User] “But I haven’t taught you anything yet.”

[Assistant] “The warm-up exercises! I need help on this one—look!” Or so Lana claimed, but I couldn’t see any problems in her form.


[User] I guess she simply wanted to talk to me. I didn’t mind having a fan, but I already had Claire. I needed to come up with a way to let her down easy. Then I felt a sharp, sudden gaze pierce my back and turned to see Eve glaring at me. I didn’t know her deal, but if I could help it, I didn’t want to start the year on bad terms with a student. I smiled and waved to her, trying to invite her to approach me, but she just scowled before spinning on her heel and walking away.

[Assistant] “Yikes. What’s up with Eve today?”

[User] “I recall you and Eve both came from Euclid?”

[Assistant] “Ah! Miss Rae, you remembered!”

[User] “I’m also from Euclid. Have we met each other before?”

[Assistant] “Nope! But we totes know about you! If anything, we’re fans!” Her enthusiasm gave me an intense feeling of déjà vu… Just my imagination, right? Right.

[User] “Oh, but Eve has, like, a bone to pick with you or somethin’.”

[Assistant] “Huh? Why’s that.”

[User] “Something about you snatchin’ her lover or whatever.”

[Assistant] “I’m sorry, what? I’m pretty sure I’ve never done something like that.” My heart belonged solely to Miss Claire, after all.

[User] “That’s enough about Eve."

[Assistant] “Why don’t you ask about me now?”

[User] “I’m sorry, but I have to leave for my next class.”

[Assistant] “Aww! Meanie! But I like that part of you, too!” I somehow managed to give Lana the slip and made my way to the staff room. I couldn’t help but think about Eve along the way. I snatched her lover? It was certainly a misunderstanding; the problem would be figuring out why such a misunderstanding happened in the first place. I need to make sure I talk to Eve later.

[User] “Looks like this year’s students will be a handful.” I sighed. I watched as the vapor faded into the spring haze of the sky.


[Assistant] “We’re all ready, Miss Claire.”

[User] “Good. Let us be off, then.” At eight in the morning, the sun still hung low in the sky. It was hard to believe it could be so cold at this time when it was already the fourth month.

[Assistant] “We’re going on an outing!”

[User] “Yay! Outing! Outing!” May and Aleah wore warm jackets hand-sewn by Claire. A testament to her skill, the jackets were so high-quality that one could mistake them for products of the tailors’ guild. May held Claire’s hand and Aleah held mine as we walked along the path to the Bauer Cathedral.

[Assistant] “I can’t wait to use magic!” Aleah grinned from ear to ear.

[User] “I want the same, umm…aptitude as Mama Claire!” May smiled at Claire. The four of us were on our way to get May and Aleah’s aptitude measured. In the years post-revolution, the Bauer Kingdom had come to value magic even more highly than before. This led to compulsory magic aptitude evaluations for all citizens when they turned six. Magic aptitude could fluctuate in early childhood.


[User] Some people were born with low aptitude that increased as they aged, but even then, generally speaking, aptitude stabilized around the age of six. May and Aleah’s birthday was the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, meaning they had just turned six about four months ago. The two of them often watched as Claire and I used magic and were eager to try it for themselves. We could have started teaching them without first measuring their aptitudes, but that came with its own risks, so we’d decided to hold off until their evaluation.

[Assistant] "Mother Claire can use fire, right?"

[User] "That’s correct. I have high aptitude in fire."

[Assistant] "What magic do you think I’ll have?"

[User] "Hmm, I have a feeling you’ll have the wind attribute, because you’re so clever." Claire answered without needing to think about it. It was true—Aleah was very clever. Perhaps it was because of her young age, but she was always a fast learner. Lilly had mentioned she learned reading and mathematics faster than May.

[Assistant] "What about me?" May asked, shaking Claire’s hand. "What magic do you think I’ll have?"

[User] I couldn’t help but notice they both asked Claire. Which was fine. I wasn’t hurt at all. Sniffle.

[Assistant] "I think May will have the fire attribute. Because you’re always so lively."

[User] "Yay! I’m the same as Mother Claire!" May began hopping about like a rabbit, even though Claire’s prediction was no guarantee. While Aleah couldn’t be called by any means shy, May was undeniably the livelier twin. Aleah often tried to imitate adults by doing things such as standing on tiptoe to look taller, while May embraced her childish impulses.

[Assistant] "Aww, I wanted the same as Mother Claire…"

[User] "Well, we still don’t know your aptitudes, Aleah. But even if your attribute is wind, you’ll still match Lady Manaria, whom Lady Claire respects."

[Assistant] "I can be the same as Sister Manaria?!" Aleah’s dejected face lit up as she looked at me.

[User] "Then can I be a quad-caster, too?"

[Assistant] "Well, I don’t know about that one. The only known quad-caster in the world is Lady Manaria, after all."

[User] "But there’s a chance?"

[Assistant] "That’s… I suppose." I didn’t want to get her expectations up too high, but I just couldn’t say no to that face. Children really were my weakness.

[User] "We’re here."


[Assistant] Sure enough, a majestic cathedral came into view. Many families were already lined up, all with high hopes glimmering in their eyes. "Let’s get in line."

[User] "Okay!"

[Assistant] "Yeah!"

[User] We joined the end of the line, which moved at a decent rate. Perhaps we wouldn’t have to wait long at all.

[Assistant] "May, let’s play the word chain game!"

[User] "Okay! You lose if you end a word with N! I’ll start: ‘dress.’"

[Assistant] "Squirrel!"

[User] "Mmm, lizard."

[Assistant] "D… D… Donkey!"

[User] "Yard."

[Assistant] "D… D… Dragon!"

[User] "You lose!"

[Assistant] "Ah! Wait, that didn’t count!" We had only just lined up and they were already playing games—but that was children for you, I guess.


[User] This word chain game helped with their vocabulary, so Claire and I often played it with them. "Okay, May, one more time! Starting from D."

[Assistant] "D… Umm, doom!"

[User] "M? Hmm. How about mini?"

[Assistant] "Umm, intimate!"

[User] "That’s not a word!"

[Assistant] "Yeah, it is! Mama Claire and Mama Rae are always intimate with each other in their bedroom!"

[User] Wait just a moment—did I hear that right? I broke out in a cold sweat. “M-May? What do you think that word means?”

[Assistant] "Huh? It means you’re super nice to each other!"

[User] "Oh… R-right…" In my previous life, intimate could also have that kind of meaning. I looked over at Claire and saw a bead of sweat drip down her brow. Children could be frightening at times. The line progressed quickly. Before we knew it, it was May and Aleah’s turn. A familiar face conducted the assessment. "It’s good to see you, Miss Claire, Miss Rae.”

[Assistant] “Oh! It’s been a while,” I said. This was the priest who’d taught us to perform the ceremonial dance alongside Lilly a while before the revolution. She was strict—I still bitterly remembered her training—but a trustworthy woman. "Good morning, Miss Priest!"

[User] "Good morning!"

[Assistant] "Ah. Yes… Yes, good morning, children.” The priest stumbled over her words for a moment, taken by surprise as she recognized the twins. “I’m shocked. You’ve both become so expressive." Oh, that was right. No wonder she was shocked—May and Aleah had still been so closed off to the world when the priest last saw them. After losing their family in the events surrounding the revolution, the girls had wound up living in the slums, selling magic stones to survive. You see, their blood was cursed. Anything their blood touched would turn into a magic stone. Thankfully, people with strong magic of their own could resist the curse. This had led Claire and I to adopt them—but I won’t get into that now. Suffice to say that before we met them, May and Aleah had been under the church’s care.

[User] "I’m so glad you both found a home.” The strict priest gave us a rare smile. She must have been worried about the girls. Lilly often criticized the church for its many real problems, but people like this priest gave it meaning. "Now then, shall we begin measuring you two? Please put your hands on these crystals."

[Assistant] "Okay."

[User] "Like this?" The twins each put their hand on a spherical magic tool made of crystal. Dazzling light began to shine—but only from May’s crystal.

[Assistant] "Oh, dear.” The priest seemed troubled. She replaced the crystal under Aleah’s hand in case the tool was faulty, but the second one didn’t shine either. "Hmm…"

[User] "Is there a problem?" Claire worriedly asked.

[Assistant] "No. At least, not from what I can currently tell. We will confirm the results and send them to you soon." It seemed the results arrived by mail at a later date. "That concludes the assessment.


[User] "Thank you for coming." Claire and I both had a bad feeling about this. Still, we decided the best we could do was to go home for now. As we headed back, May and Aleah began talking.

[Assistant] "I wonder what I’ll get."

[User] "Well, I just know I’ll get the wind attribute. Mother Claire said so!" Aleah proudly declared. They were so innocent and excited. My heart sank as I imagined those smiles fading.


[Assistant] "Picnic, picnic!"

[User] "We’re going on a picnic!" May and Aleah held hands as they skipped before us. The trees rustled in the wind, their leaves just beginning to grow in anticipation of the coming summer.

[Assistant] "May, Aleah, you can skip, but you’ll fall if you don’t watch your step." Claire warned the twins, her casual picnic dress fluttering.

[User] "We’ll be fine!"

[Assistant] "Yeah! We’ll be—ah!" May fell, despite Claire’s warning, bringing Aleah down with her because of their linked hands. Ralaire, oozing along by their side, tried to catch them but didn’t make it in time.

[User] "Ah… I told you so. Are you two all right?" Claire and I ran to them at once, checking them for injuries. As I mentioned earlier, the girls had a curse in their blood. We were safe for now; Ralaire used one of her abilities to nullify the curse. Still, that didn’t mean I could just go and let them sustain so much as a scratch. No girl would have her skin marred on my watch!

[Assistant] "Aleah, you seem all right. Good job stopping your fall. May, I see you’ve got a little scrape. I’m so proud of you for not crying." I praised the twins and began healing them with my water magic.

[User] "Thank you, Mama Rae."

[Assistant] "Thank you, Mother." They immediately returned to skipping while holding hands despite their fall moments before.

[User] "Oh, those two…"

[Assistant] "You’ve really grown accustomed to motherhood, Rae." Claire smiled at me, basket swinging in her grasp.

[User] "Not at all. Those two still run circles around me. More importantly, Miss Claire…"

[Assistant] "Yes?"

[User] "Allow me to hold that basket!" We’d brought a picnic blanket, boxed lunches, and drinks—quite the load. Ralaire held the heaviest basket, but Claire carried the rest.

[Assistant] "Absolutely not. You woke up early to make this lunch for us. I can’t make you carry it as well." Claire grinned. My wife was so adorable, it hurt.

[User] "Mama Rae, what’s for lunch?"

[Assistant] "I bet it’s rice balls!" They must have overheard the word lunch because they both curiously approached us now.

[User] "We’ll be having sandwiches today."

[Assistant] "Yay! Sandwiches! Did you make ham ones?" May adored ham sandwiches.

[User] "Of course."

[Assistant] "I trust you made sure to leave the green pepper out, right, Mother Rae?" Aleah primly asked.

[User] "Of course not."

[Assistant] "Bleh…" Aleah had acquired her distaste for green pepper from Claire. While it was cute how she mimicked Claire’s speech and mannerisms, I really wished she wouldn’t take after her to the extent of picky eating.


[User] “Why’d you put green pepper in?” she asked.

[Assistant] “Because it’s very nutritious.”

[User] “But aren’t there other nutritious things?”

[Assistant] “Well, yes…”

[User] “Then why do I have to eat green pepper?”

[Assistant] “Because one day there might not be any other foods.”

[User] “I’ll be a good girl and eat green pepper if that’s all that’s left! But is there a good reason why I have to eat it now?”

[Assistant] “Well…” Oh, no. Was I seriously losing an argument to a six-year-old?

[User] “That’s not the issue, Aleah,” Claire began. “You mustn’t be picky with your food.”

[Assistant] “But why?”

[User] “All food is a blessing from our God, the Great Spirit. Thus, it is rude to play favorites on your plate.”

[Assistant] “I don’t get it…”

[User] “We must show gratitude to all the food we receive. Green peppers are living things, too.”

[Assistant] “Really? Then green peppers are the same as me?”

[User] “That’s right.” Aleah thought for a bit. I was sure Claire’s explanation had won her over, but—

[Assistant] “Then I won’t eat them, because I’d feel bad for them.”

[User] “I see…” We could take the easy way out and say, “That’s just how things are,” or “Them’s the breaks,” but Claire and I always did our best to explain our reasoning to the girls. A difficult task, as the current situation proved. A child’s mind worked very differently from an adult’s. Sometimes, when an adult explained something to a child, the adult ended up with way more to think about. But we enjoyed it. Kids gave you a new perspective on ordinary things.

[Assistant] “Will you stop eating meat, then?” Claire said.

[User] “Huh? No! I want to eat meat!”

[Assistant] “But meat comes from chicken, pigs, cows, and many other animals. Everything we eat comes from something living.”

[User] “Hmm…”

[Assistant] “All the animals and even the green peppers gave their precious lives for you, Aleah. That’s why you need to show them proper gratitude.”

[User] “Hmm…” Aleah appeared deep in thought again. Surely, she was convinced this time, I thought. But:

[Assistant] “Then why do you make a funny face whenever you eat green pepper?” Children were formidable opponents. We continued to talk back and forth until we arrived at a hill some ways from the house. It lay only a quick walk past the woods and was lush with short grass.


[User] “Watch your step, you two!”

[Assistant] “Okay!”

[User] “Yes, Mother!” We had a bird’s-eye view of the Bauer Kingdom from atop the hill—everything from the towering palace and cathedral to the bustling markets and residences below.

[Assistant] “Where’s home?” May asked.

[User] “I know! It’s that one!”

[Assistant] “Ah, you’re right. Whoa… It’s so small!”

[User] “Around here seems good.” Claire placed her basket down. “Thank you for carrying that, Ralaire. Go ahead and set it down here.”

[Assistant] Ralaire obediently plopped her basket down, and Claire and I got to work laying out the picnic sheet.

[User] “May, Aleah, come sit down. It’s time for lunch.” Claire gestured to the twins to sit with us.


[User] "Yay!" Rae exclaims.

[Assistant] "Lunchtime!"

[User] The girls, who’d been enthralled by the view, snapped to attention upon hearing the word lunch and took off their shoes before hopping onto the picnic sheet, staring expectantly at the picnic basket.

[Assistant] "Open it, Mother Rae!" May urged.

[User] "Quickly!"

[Assistant] "Okay, I’m opening it. Ready? Ta-da!" Rae paused to build up their anticipation before dramatically flipping off the cloth covering the basket.

[User] "Whoa! It’s so pretty!"

[Assistant] "Indeed!"

[User] Today’s lunch consisted of three types of sandwiches: egg and scallion with mayonnaise, ham and lettuce with basil sauce, and chicken and green pepper with sweet and sour sauce, as well as fried chicken and different vegetable and fruit smoothies. Rae’d put a lot of thought into the menu, adding lots of vegetables to balance out the fried chicken and provide contrasting colors and textures.

[Assistant] "I’m hungry! Can we eat?"

[User] "Hurry! Let’s eat!"

[Assistant] "All right, all right. Ready? Hands together—"

[User] "Bon appétit!"

[Assistant] No sooner had we said grace than May and Aleah were reaching for the food. May went for the ham and lettuce sandwiches, while Aleah opted for the fried chicken.

[User] "Yummy!"

[Assistant] "Mmm! It’s delicious!"

[User] "Glad to hear it." Rae says, knowing it was worth waking up early if it meant I could see these satisfied faces.

[Assistant] Claire reached out and took a chicken and green pepper sandwich.

[User] "Oh? I thought you used green peppers in this?"

[Assistant] "I did."

[User] "But I can’t taste it at all—it’s usually so bitter."

[Assistant] "Ah. That’s because I chopped them up finely and made the sweet and sour sauce a bit stronger than usual."

[User] "Very clever. Aleah, why don’t you try some of this?" Noticing Aleah hadn’t eaten anything but fried chicken, Claire offered her a sandwich.

[Assistant] "But isn’t there green pepper in that?" Aleah grimaced.

[User] "Trust me. It’s delicious."

[Assistant] "Really?" Reluctantly, Aleah put the sandwich into her mouth, gingerly chewing it. Her expression slowly brightened.

[User] "Ooh. It’s delicious!"

[Assistant] Those few words sent me over the moon.

[User] "There’s no icky green pepper taste, and the sauce is yummy."

[Assistant] "Ha ha, thank you, dear. Make sure you eat lots, then."

[User] "Ah! Me too!" May said. Walking must have made them hungry, as the sandwiches were gone in no time.

[Assistant] "That was yummy!"

[User] "Yeah!"

[Assistant] "Truly. Thank you for another wonderful meal, Rae."

[User] "Anything for you three." Just seeing them eat so happily made all my efforts worthwhile.

[Assistant] I chatted with the other ladies in the neighborhood every so often, and apparently their husbands didn’t so much as say a word of thanks after eating—even when they made croquettes! And making croquettes was far from easy. Incidentally, the one who distributed the recipe for croquettes after Mt. Sassal’s eruption was yours truly.

[User] "Should we relax a little before heading back?"

[Assistant] "Sounds good."

[User] "Can we go play?"

[Assistant] "I want to pick flowers!"

[User] "Go ahead. But don’t go too far, okay? And take Ralaire with you."

[Assistant] "Okay!" They dashed off to a flowery area with Ralaire in tow.


[User] "It’s been a while since we’ve been able to relax as a family like this." I spoke to no one in particular as the gentle breeze brushed my cheeks.

[Assistant] "Indeed. It’s not often we both have a day off that isn’t spent on shopping or housework."

[User] "Taking care of them doesn’t leave much time for rest either."

[Assistant] "I’m glad we came today. Thank you, Rae." Claire kissed me softly.

[User] "I know we’re both worried about the aptitude assessment, so I thought we could go out for a change of pace."

[Assistant] "And it was a good idea. Just look how happy May and Aleah are."

[User] There was a decent chance the aptitude assessment result wouldn’t be great. That was why I’d suggested we go out. Perhaps for our sakes more than the children’s… "I’m hoping for the best, but reality can be harsh."

[Assistant] Claire frowned. "There’s no point worrying about it now. The results should arrive soon. Until then, let’s enjoy ourselves as much as we can."

[User] "Yes. Yes, you’re right."

[Assistant] Claire shook her head in an attempt to dispel her negative thoughts and then smiled. "We overcame that mess of a revolution together. I’m sure we can both overcome whatever lies ahead as well."

[User] "No, Claire. That’s wrong."

[Assistant] "Hmm?" Claire tilted her head in confusion.

[User] I couldn’t help but grin at her. "It’s the four of us from here on out."

[Assistant] "Ah. He he, that’s right." Her face seemed to say you got me there.

[User] I couldn’t resist her cuteness. This time, it was my turn to give her a kiss. I held Claire in my arms as we enjoyed the quiet spring afternoon.


[Assistant] "How were they?" Claire asked.

[User] "I managed to get them to sleep, but Aleah was acting strange."

[Assistant] "I see…" Claire furrowed her brows with worry.

[User] It was 8:00 p.m., and she was already in her pajamas. but instead of moving to the bedroom like usual, we sat down across from each other at the living room table to talk. I’d brewed some tea, as I had a feeling it would be a long discussion. "I still can’t believe Aleah has no aptitude." The assessment results had arrived, and it was just as we feared.

[Assistant] "She was looking forward to using magic so much." Claire looked pained.

[User] Both girls had been excited about using magic, but it was clear Aleah longed for it more than her sister. Aleah adored Claire and wanted to be like her in every regard, to the point where she mimicked her speech patterns. Naturally, this meant she wanted to use magic like Claire as well. Fire magic had to look astounding to a child’s eyes, even more so when Claire so elegantly controlled it. "How should we tell them?" Claire asked. We hadn’t broken the news to them yet. The children, possibly sensing our unease, hadn’t asked us either.


[User] “I almost wish they both had no aptitude—as cruel as it is to say.” The problem was the disparity. If May had no aptitude as well, then we wouldn’t have been so worried. They’d both be disappointed, of course, but they’d bounce back quickly and find new goals to pursue.

[Assistant] “Indeed. But May is a quad-caster. It’s practically her duty to learn to use magic.” Indeed—May was now the second confirmed quad-caster in the world. As Claire said, this left her no choice but to pursue a magical path. Aptitude was immutable and inherent; neither hard work nor genetics could affect what elemental affinity you were born with. If they could, the twins wouldn’t have such drastically differing abilities.

[User] “We can’t hide it from them forever. They didn’t say anything today on our account, but it’s only a matter of time before they ask.”

[Assistant] Claire let out a deep sigh. Smart as she was, she clearly had no idea what to do. “Maybe it’s best we tell them straight?”

[User] “Get it over with, rather than beat around the bush.” I suggested.

[Assistant] “Only someone who’s never had to worry about their capacity could say such a thing.” Claire frowned at me. “Never had to worry about their capacity… That’d be you, wouldn’t it?”

[User] From my perspective, Claire was nothing if not gifted. Outside of her inability to cook, she was perfect in every regard. “Don’t forget, Rae. You’re a dual-caster, with ultra-high aptitude at that. I still haven’t forgotten the humiliation I suffered when we competed over the first test results.”

[Assistant] “You’re not wrong.”

[User] But I was pretty sure that was as far as my notable talents went.

[Assistant] Claire sighed. “I’m aware I’m more gifted than most. Yet sometimes, I can’t help feeling I can never compare to those who’ve truly mastered their craft. You know what they call people like me? Jack of all trades, master of none.”

[User] “Such a phrase doesn’t do you justice, Miss Claire. I think your many talents are wonderful.” I pointed at the embroidery on the wall as I spoke. “Even so, being forced to face your own shortcomings can hurt.”

[Assistant] “I’m made aware of that every day I spend with you.”

[User] “Don’t tease me.” Claire gently flicked me on the forehead. I rubbed my temple as an idea surfaced. “Hey, Miss Claire.”

[Assistant] “Hmph. What is it?”

[User] “There’s something bothering me about the aptitude results.”

[Assistant] Claire straightened and positioned herself for listening. “Go on.”

[User] “Even if we chalk up Aleah’s results to bad luck, aren’t May’s results still astronomically rare? This feels rather improbable.”

[Assistant] “Improbable? How so?”

[User] “Well, to start, Aleah having no aptitude at all can’t be right!”

[Assistant] Claire wore a sad smile. “Rae… I think your bias as a parent is affecting your judgment.”

[User] “No, think about it. Their blood is cursed.”

[Assistant] “Ah.” My implication finally dawned on her. Both girls bore a curse that made everything their blood touched turn into magical stones. Not just May—both girls.


[User] "We don’t understand how curses and magic aptitude might be connected, but isn’t it deeply unlikely that there’s no connection?"

[Assistant] "That’s true. But then, why does Aleah have no aptitude?"

[User] "Well, I have an idea, but it’s nothing more than a theory."

[Assistant] "I’m listening." Claire urged me to continue. A glimmer of hope had returned to her eyes, as I’d been sure it would. The thought of only Aleah being deprived of magic had really been eating away at her.

[User] "I think they were touched by something while they were in the womb. Something that determines magical aptitude. And I think that it affected them on opposite ends of some spectrum."

[Assistant] "Is such a thing possible?"

[User] "We can’t say it isn’t." I’d seen an American movie about twins in my previous life, starring that super macho guy, Schwarz-something or the other. It was a story about two brothers, one incredibly gifted and the other incredibly inept, who were trying to find their mother. It was pure fiction, of course, but part of the plot centered on how all of the talent had been concentrated in one twin at birth. In this strange world where magic was real, I couldn’t entirely rule out the possibility of something similar happening.

[Assistant] "Supposing you’re right. It still doesn’t help Aleah."

[User] "I wouldn’t be so sure."

[Assistant] "And why’s that?"

[User] "I have another theory, although it is reliant on the previous one being true. If we suppose Aleah isn’t naturally without aptitude but somehow became this way, then something must be causing it!"

[Assistant] "Even so, it doesn’t change the fact she’s currently stuck with no aptitude."

[User] "Yes, but that’s only within the scope of our current understanding of magic." There was a chance—however slim—that whatever was affecting Aleah went beyond what we knew.

[Assistant] "You’re grasping at straws."

[User] "Perhaps."

[Assistant] "We shouldn’t tell Aleah this. Nothing good can come from getting her hopes up over a fleeting possibility."

[User] "But—" I tried to argue, but Claire raised her hand to stop me.

[Assistant] "Calm down, Rae. We’re both too worked up right now."

[User] "You’re right… I’m sorry. I got a little heated." I couldn’t help but worry about my daughters. If I were in their stead, I’d probably be thinking more calmly.

[Assistant] "There’s nothing to gain from arguing between ourselves."

[User] "You’re right. We need to come up with a solution together." That being said, I couldn’t think of any solutions at all. Did a solution even exist?


[Assistant] "Let’s consider the inevitable. We need to tell them the assessment results."

[User] "Yeah. Either we tell them together or we tell them separately."

[Assistant] "As for Aleah’s potential unknown factor, I don’t think we should tell her."

[User] I hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.

[Assistant] "You’re right. It’d be too cruel if nothing came of it."

[User] "All that remains is how to break it to them. But…I really can’t think of any method other than giving it to them straight." Claire brooded, deep in thought.


[User] “We could fib about the exact aptitude level.”

[Assistant] “What would that achieve? Aptitude level aside, May still has four attributes. That fact alone makes her one of two unique quad-casters in the world.”

[User] “Then, what if we just told Aleah she had low aptitude?”

[Assistant] “I don’t think that’s a good idea either. She can’t ever use magic, Rae. Would you really be so cruel to give her false hope?”

[User] “Yeah, no.” We were at a dead end. No matter how much we brainstormed, no solution presented itself.

[Assistant] “If only I could give Aleah some of my magic.” Claire said defeatedly, her words barely audible as they slipped out of her mouth.

[User] I would share my magic in a heartbeat too, if I could. I wondered, did all parents harbor these kinds of worries? A heavy silence formed between us. "I guess there’s nothing to do but tell them.”

[Assistant] “Oh, Rae…”

[User] “I’m afraid no matter how we go about it, Aleah will be hurt.”

[Assistant] “Mmm…”

[User] “All we can do is let them know we will always equally love them both.”

[Assistant] “That’s really all we can do, isn’t?” Claire hung her head. I felt like I was giving up, but what else could we do? Some problems couldn’t be solved through love alone, no matter how much you tried. And while it pained me to admit it, this was one such problem.

[User] “I can’t do a thing for her. And they called me the hero of the revolution. Some hero I am…”

[Assistant] “Miss Claire…” It hurt to see Claire talk about herself like that. Claire was just as important to me as May and Aleah. For her sake, I had to be strong. Just then—


[User] “Mothers, are you fighting?”

[Assistant] “Please don’t fight.” May and Aleah appeared, walking into the living room while drowsily rubbing their eyes.

[User] “Are you fighting because of me?” Aleah gingerly asked.

[Assistant] “Or is it because of me?” They looked as if they could cry at any moment.

[User] We burst into a fretful mess. “We’re not fighting, dears! We just wanted to talk a bit, that’s all.”

[Assistant] “That’s right! We would never fight! We’re always lovey-dovey—super-duper lovey-dovey even!” Claire went for a serious approach while I went for a sillier one. But neither seemed to work.

[User] “But you two were making super scary faces…”

[Assistant] “And were using big voices…” The twins sniffled, a sign the floodgates were about to break. Wait—how much had they heard?

[User] “I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to scare you. Come here, you two.” Claire hugged them to her as she apologized from the bottom of her heart. They wept in her arms as she whispered words of comfort in their ears and kissed their hair repeatedly.


[User] Claire waited for the crying to die down and then looked them squarely in the eyes as she spoke in the gentlest voice she could muster. “May, Aleah, there’s something we need to tell you.”

[Assistant] They nodded before moving to their chairs.

[User] “Before I begin, I want you two to remember that no matter what happens, Rae and I will never come to hate or abandon either of you. Okay?”

[Assistant] May and Aleah looked puzzled, but nodded.

[User] “Remember when we went to the cathedral to measure your magic aptitude the other day? Well, the results have come in.”

[Assistant] “Really? !”

[User] “Tell us, tell us!” Their faces lit up. My heart ached as I thought of how those bright smiles would soon cloud.

[Assistant] “First, May. You have aptitude with all four attributes. Congratulations.”

[User] “Like Sister Manaria?”

[Assistant] “That’s right.”

[User] “Yay!” May jumped off her chair in joy.

[Assistant] Aleah eyed her enviously. “And Aleah. I’m sorry, but you have no aptitude.”

[User] “Huh…?” Aleah looked confused, like she didn’t understand the words.

[Assistant] May abruptly stopped celebrating. “No aptitude? What does that mean?”

[User] “You can do many things, Aleah. But magic can’t be one of those things.”

[Assistant] Aleah went silent. Claire’s phrasing was measured and careful, but the shock was still great.

[User] “Mama Claire, Aleah can’t use magic?”

[Assistant] “Sadly, yes.”

[User] “Because she has no aptitude?”

[Assistant] “That’s right.”

[User] “But why? Why do I have four then?”

[Assistant] “Only the Great Spirit knows.”

[User] May pondered a bit before breaking out into a grin. “Then I’ll give Aleah half of mine!” she innocently declared.

[Assistant] Aleah’s eyes widened in hope at the idea.

[User] “That’s very kind of you, May. But I’m sorry, magic aptitude can’t be shared.”

[Assistant] “It can’t?” May said sadly.

[User] “I’m sorry.”

[Assistant] Aleah looked even more dejected than before. “Mother, will I really never be able to use magic?”

[User] “No. I’m sorry.”

[Assistant] “No matter what? Even if I’m a really good girl?”

[User] “No… But being a good girl is a wonderful thing, so please continue to be one.”

[Assistant] Aleah went silent again. The mood weighed down on us all.

[User] “Aleah, it’s okay even if you can’t use magic,” I began. “You’re good at so, so many other things.”

[Assistant] Aleah didn’t respond.

[User] “Magic is just one thing in the end, and everyone has at least one thing they can’t do.”

[Assistant] “Mother Rae, please be quiet for a bit.”

[User] “Okay…” I’d been shot down by a child. Sniffle. Aleah appeared deep in thought. I could see her mind race as she desperately searched for a way to fight the reality that had been thrust upon her.

[Assistant] “Mothers, will you be sad if I can’t use magic?”

[User] “No,” said Claire definitively. “Even if you can’t use magic, we’ll be happy as long as you are.”

[Assistant] “You won’t hate me?”

[User] “Never.”

[Assistant] “You won’t play favorites with May?”

[User] “Of course not.”

[Assistant] “Oh.” Aleah looked relieved. “Then it’s okay. I don’t need magic as long as my mothers love me.” She gave us an undaunted smile.


[User] "Oh, Aleah…"

[Assistant] "So, Mother Rae?"

[User] "Yes, Aleah?"

[Assistant] "Can you teach me how to cook?"

[User] "Cook? Of course, I can, but why?"

[Assistant] "If I can do something Mother Claire can’t do, then I’ll have her beat even more so than if I learned magic!" Aleah giggled impishly.

[User] "Ah! No fair! I wanna learn how to cook, too!"

[Assistant] "Nope! You’ll be busy with magic instead!"

[User] "Aww." May puffed up her cheeks.

[Assistant] "Sounds good, then. May will learn magic with Miss Claire, and Aleah will learn cooking with me."

[User] "That sounds wonderful. Are you two okay with that?"

[Assistant] "Yeah!"

[User] "Yes."

[Assistant] Things had finally calmed down to the point where we could take a moment to breathe. I’d been so worried, but it looked like everything would be all right. Our daughters chattered excitedly about what food they would cook and what magic they would use, looking more eager than anything. Had our fears been unwarranted?

[User] "You’re a very strong girl, Aleah. And May, thank you for not saying anything mean."

[Assistant] "He he!"

[User] "Eheh!"

[Assistant] The girls clung to Claire, allowing themselves to be fussed over.   The tension left my shoulders as I finally allowed myself to relax. That was to say, I let my guard down.

[User] "Have I been a good girl?"

[Assistant] "Hm? Y-yes?"

[User] "I really tried my best to be strong, so…"

[Assistant] "Aleah?"

[User] "So just for today…please forgive me…" Tears welled up in Aleah’s eyes.

[Assistant] "Waaah!" She sobbed at a volume you wouldn’t expect from her small frame.

[User] May followed suit, sobbing with an intensity that matched her sister’s. Tears streamed down their faces as they bared their sadness to the world.

[Assistant] I hugged the twins, unable to help myself. Claire joined me, and we cried together as we held them tight. I was sure the neighbors would complain, but regardless, the four of us cried our hearts out. May and Aleah would cry themselves to sleep that night.


[User] "Thirty-two! Thirty-three!" Early in the afternoon on a holiday, Aleah’s motivated voice rang out from the yard as she took practice swings with a wooden sword.

[Assistant] "Forty-nine…fifty!"

[User] "Nice work. Go ahead and take a break now."

[Assistant] "Yes!" Aleah gave a spirited reply, prompting the man clad in light armor to roughly pat her head with his one arm.

[User] "Good job, Aleah. Thank you for coming today, Master Rod," I called out to the twins as I brought tea and refreshments to the table on the terrace.

[Assistant] "Nah, don’t worry about it." This easygoing man was Rod Bauer, an ex-member of the royal family. A while ago, he’d abdicated his claim to the throne and instead became the commander of the army. Every now and then, he took advantage of his new status as an ordinary citizen to come visit us.

[User] "Mother Rae, did you see me?"

[Assistant] "I did. You did amazing, dear."

[User] "I swung it fifty times today!" Aleah enthusiastically announced as she tried to catch her breath.


[User] I wiped the sweat off her face, which seemed to tickle her, but she made no effort to stop me, instead basking in the glory of her accomplishment.

[Assistant] "She’s your daughter, all right. She’s got talent.”

[User] Rod dexterously scooped Aleah into the air with his one arm and began lifting her up and down, causing her to squeal in delight. “We’re not related by blood, though.”

[Assistant] “Sure, but I still sense an innate talent for combat in her.” His words gave Aleah reason to smile, and me as well. Rod was teaching Aleah swordplay, since she couldn’t use magic but still needed a way to defend herself in a world with monsters and all. Incidentally, demons were also a problem in this world—not that I was likely to ever see one here in the Bauer Kingdom. We’d consulted Rod about teaching Aleah self-defense a while ago, and he’d offered to train her himself. It seemed that, though he relied on magic to fight in the past, he’d begun studying the sword in earnest once he became a commander. This, combined with the basics of hand-to-hand combat that had been drilled into him back when he was in line for the throne, made him a wonderful teacher. But demons, huh? They’d only been referenced in passing in the game, but I supposed that if I continued to live in this world, I might someday happen across one. It wouldn’t hurt to have a plan in place.

[User] “Am I good at swordplay?”

[Assistant] “Oh, yeah. You’ll definitely get better than me one of these days. You keep practicing and you might even reach the level of the Sword God.”

[User] “Sword God?” Aleah asked quizzically upon hearing the unknown term.

[Assistant] “That’s what they call the strongest swordsman. The empress of the Nur Empire.”

[User] “Is she strong?”

[Assistant] “Legend has it that she annihilated an entire Sousse battalion single-handedly using just a sword, though I couldn’t tell you if that’s true.” A battalion was a military unit denoting a troop of three hundred to a thousand soldiers. Someone single-handedly taking down that many foes armed with just a sword might seem far-fetched, but I knew it had actually happened. As for why I knew that, you’ll just have to wait.

[User] “How strong does that make the empress?” Aleah asked again.

[Assistant] “Hmm, I guess the strongest in the world?”

[User] “Stronger than you?”

[Assistant] “Hate to say it, but yeah.”

[User] “Stronger than Mother Claire and Mother Rae?”

[Assistant] “If you don’t count magic, then yeah.”

[User] “Stronger than Sister Manaria? !”

[Assistant] “Huh… Dunno. I did hear Manaria is also pretty good with a sword.” Aleah’s eyes sparkled. She yearned to be like her idol Manaria, as well.

[User] “Can I become a Sword God, too?”

[Assistant] “Sure, you can. But you’re gonna need to work hard at it.”

[User] “I will!” Aleah said as she began her practice swings again. Rod and I looked on with smiles.

[Assistant] “It’s not fair… Only Aleah gets to have fun!” May puffed up her cheeks.


[User] She was sitting in the yard with her eyes closed. “Isn’t what you’re doing training, too?”

[Assistant] “But it’s so boring!”

[User] Claire smiled wryly as May complained. May was working on the first and hardest step in training to use magic—learning to be able to sense magic itself. To misquote a manga that I read a long time ago, “Only once you feel can you begin.” Even if May was a quad-caster, she couldn’t do a thing without first clearing this initial hurdle. “Hey, focus.”

[Assistant] “Hmph.” May huffed before returning to meditation. Sitting still felt like torture to her, as she loved to do nothing more than move her body. “Can you feel something warm inside you?”

[User] “Mmm… I don’t know…”

[Assistant] “There’s no need to rush. Let’s do this slowly, at your own pace.”

[User] “Okay…” Sensing magic was an abstract concept. If May were better able to describe what she felt, then we could guide her better, but a six-year-old didn’t have the vocabulary to do that. If anything, we were already asking too much of her. “Magic feels…like what you feel inside when you’re happy.”

[Assistant] “When I’m happy?”

[User] “Yes. When your body feels light, or when your heart is afloat.”

[Assistant] “Hmm?” May didn’t seem to understand. But Claire didn’t give up. Her teaching methods had improved since she became an instructor at the Academy, and she’d had a lot of practice explaining difficult concepts in the easiest ways for her pupils to digest. I had no doubt May would learn to call on her magic any day now under Claire’s direction. But it seemed that day would not be today.

[User] “Mmm… I don’t get it!” May let out one big shout before sprawling on the ground.

[Assistant] “That’s all right. This isn’t something you can learn in a single day.” Claire scooped up May, now sulking, and came to join us on the terrace.

[User] "You tried your best, May."

[Assistant] “You too, Claire.”

[User] “But I can’t use magic…” May pouted.

[Assistant] “Not right away. We can take our time and learn, all right?”

[User] “Ha ha ha! I guess the world’s second quad-caster also has some way to go!”

[Assistant] “I’ll figure it out soon!” May pouted.

[User] “Oh? Will you?”

[Assistant] “Master Rod’s a meanie! You always play favorites with Aleah!”

[User] “May,” Claire warned. “We’re the ones who asked him to train Aleah, remember?”

[Assistant] “Hmph!” May fumed.

[User] “Ha ha ha! It seems you dislike me! Very well, then. You can come fight me first thing once you learn magic!”

[Assistant] “I don’t wanna!” Rod took May’s ill temper in stride, simply laughing her hurtful words away.

[User] “How are things with you lately, Master Rod?”

[Assistant] “I’ve been busy testing that one large-scale technique I told you about.” He was referring to what was supposedly a new kind of magic he’d invented. Not even Manaria could beat him anymore, or so he claimed.


[User] "I’ve also been working on countermeasures for those earthquakes we’ve had of late. The citizens still haven’t gotten over that big one a while back.”

[Assistant] “Ah, yes. There have been quite a few of those lately…”

[User] “Other than that, we gotta deal with a bunch of diplomatic issues." Rod grumbled.

[Assistant] "The army does? Oh, dear. I hope it’s nothing serious.” Claire looked genuinely worried.

[User] “It’s not going so well, if I’m being honest. We might need to ask you two for help again, although we’re trying our best not to let it get to that point.”

[Assistant] “You better. Don’t get in the way of my lovey-dovey time with Claire!” I complained as I made a face at Rod.

[User] “Rae,” Claire rebuked me.

[Assistant] “You two seem to be doing well. Good. But if things ever turn sour, Rae, I’m still free.” Rod grinned.

[User] “No one likes an overly persistent man.”

[Assistant] Rod casually laughed my comment off.

[User] “Well, all jokes aside—things have changed since the revolution. We must work harder than ever to protect the happiness of the people.” Rod wore a complicated expression as he took a sip of tea.

[Assistant] Claire and I worriedly looked at each other.


[User] That said, some questions about ancient history had been replaced with ones about more recent events—kind of similar to what had happened in modern Japan. Meanwhile, the magic test had been split into two parts: the basic magic power test and the magic tool wielding test. To be fair, the magic test Claire and I had taken so long ago had been similarly divided. The sections hadn’t changed; they were just administered as their own separate tests now.

[Assistant] “You have sixty minutes to complete the test. Please begin.”

[User] The students simultaneously flipped their sheets over. Following that, the only audible sound was the scratching of pencils on paper. While the Academy only accepted exemplary students who were unlikely to need to cheat, I still had to fulfill my duties as a proctor. I double-checked the magic-hampering magic tool to ensure it was indeed working as intended. The tool mainly blocked the usage of telepathy via wind magic, an ability I’d directly experienced via Manaria in the past. There might still be ways of cheating via magic that the Academy couldn’t anticipate, so we prohibited all usage of magic during the culture test. I walked around the room, taking care not to make a sound. I recognized many familiar faces from my classes. Among them was Lana Lahna, the girl who always tried to talk to me after each class. It hadn’t been that long since the start of the test, yet her answer sheet was already more than halfway filled out. She’d claimed to be bad at studying, but maybe that had just been humility? Or so I thought, until I saw her roll her pencil. On the sides of her pencil were numbers. She continued to roll her pencil, filling out her answer sheet with the number she rolled—just like the roll of a die. I’d expected too much from her. The next familiar face I found was Eve Nuhn, the girl from the same hometown as Lana and me. She had filled out a third of her sheet and, from what I could see, all her answers were correct. Truly brilliant. Suddenly, Eve turned to face me with her usual look of hatred.

[Assistant] "Tsk…"

[User] Lana had said something about Eve hating me because I stole her lover, which had to be a misunderstanding. I wanted to talk it out with her, but I hadn’t yet found a good opportunity. The last person to catch my eye was Joel Santana. He scratched his head as he looked at his answer sheet, clearly perplexed by the questions. I snuck a peek at his answer sheet to find it mostly unanswered. The ones he had filled in were mostly incorrect, too. He’d also claimed to be bad at studying. I guess he wasn’t being modest. The test finished without a hitch. I collected the answer sheets and returned to the staff room. Claire was already there, holding a matching stack of sheets.


[Assistant] "Oh, Miss Claire."

[User] "Hello, Rae."


[User] "I see you’ve finished proctoring."

[Assistant] "I see you’re done, too."

[User] "Yes. It seems we have many outstanding students this year. You’d never imagine they were commoners with scores like these."

[Assistant] "No more commoners, Miss Claire. Just citizens."

[User] "Oops. That’s right. You must forgive me." She said as she laughed off her mistake with an oh ho ho. Even her slip-ups were so adorable.

[Assistant] "It’s probably because your assigned class has so many advanced students. My class was about average, overall."

[User] "Is that so?"

[Assistant] I handed the answer sheets to the teacher in charge of grading. "Next up is the basic magic test."

[User] "Indeed. I look forward to seeing what diamonds in the rough we find this year!" Claire looked genuinely thrilled.

[Assistant] "Hmph. You look like you’re having fun." I said with a hint of irritation.

[User] "Hmm? Is there something wrong with that?" Claire looked puzzled.

[Assistant] "No, nothing’s wrong with it."

[User] "Then what?"

[Assistant] "Oh, nothing."

[User] "C’mon, spit it out." Claire urged.

[Assistant] Hmm… Should I say it? "Can you promise not to be taken aback?"

[User] "Is it something I’d be taken aback by?"

[Assistant] "You can’t answer a question with another question!"

[User] "So you say, but I’m the one who asked a question first! Just say what’s on your mind already."

[Assistant] Hmm… Oh well. Guess I’ll just say it. "I’m sad."

[User] "What?"

[Assistant] "I’m happy to see you live a fulfilling life as a teacher, but I can’t help feeling sad over having less you-and-me time."

[User] "Wh-wh-what—" Claire covered my mouth in a panic. "What do you think you’re saying, Rae?! We’re at the Academy, and the staff room at that!"

[Assistant] "Mmghh!"

[User] "Ah, sorry." Claire removed her hands. "What’s the problem?"


[User] "Our relationship isn’t exactly a secret."

[Assistant] "That’s not the issue!" As I said, our relationship wasn’t a secret. We didn’t flaunt it, exactly, but I was pretty confident almost all of our colleagues knew. Many of the teachers had been around when we were students and had witnessed my passionate pursuit of Claire. "You need to draw a line between our private and public lives. As marginalized individuals, we must project an upstanding image of not being obsessed with the physical side of relationships. Or would you rather reinforce those stereotypes, Rae?"

[User] "No, but…" What Claire said was correct in every regard. But I was seriously at my limit. My body was on the verge of a critical Claire-cium deficiency.

[Assistant] Claire sighed. "Bear with it for today, and I’ll pamper you all you want once we’re home."

[User] "Really?!"

[Assistant] "Aren’t you happy… You know, I can’t help but feel your mental age is younger than May and Aleah sometimes."

[User] "And I can’t help but feel mommy vibes from you."

[Assistant] "Sorry, mommy vibes…? !"

[User] "Ah, nothing. Don’t worry about it." Oops. Watch yourself, Rae. "It’s a promise then, Miss Claire?"

[Assistant] "Yes, yes. Just make sure you do your work properly, okay?"

[User] "Of course!" I went on to magnificently proctor the remaining magic tests. That night, I dosed up on Claire-cium to my heart’s content for the first time in a long while.


[Assistant] The doorbell rang. I was currently home, cooking dinner while I waited for Claire to return from work. The vegetable pork soup simmering in the pot still needed more time. I couldn’t extinguish the flame like I could with a gas stove, so instead, I left it to simmer as I prioritized answering the door.

[User] "Yes, who is—oh, Matt."

[Assistant] "It’s been a while, Rae." I opened the door to find Matt Monte waiting for me. I suspect most readers have forgotten him, so to refresh your memory: Matt was a former student of the Academy, the one who was severely injured during the Commoner Movement in what came to be known as the courtyard incident. Claire and I had gone to ask him for his version of events as he recuperated in the Spiritual Church’s clinic. He had graduated after the revolution and become a bureaucrat in the new government.

[User] "Something up? Actually, why don’t you come inside? I have to keep an eye on the stove."

[Assistant] "Ah, thanks. Pardon the intrusion."

[User] I showed Matt to the living room and returned to the stove. Good, nothing’s burnt. "You mind if I cook and talk?"

[Assistant] "Not at all. It might be a long talk, though. Where’s Miss Claire?" Matt had resented nobility ever since the courtyard incident, but he always addressed Claire respectfully. I thought it a little strange.

[User] "She’s still at the Academy. Did you know she became a teacher?"

[Assistant] "I’ve heard. She’s amazing, you know? She was the hero of the revolution but chose not to take a position in the new government."


[User] "She’s nothing like the other nobles, the ones who only act in their own best interests!”

[Assistant] “So what brings you here today?”

[User] “Well…to tell the truth…” Matt hesitated.

[Assistant] I turned my eyes from the stove, looking over my shoulder at him. “We want Miss Claire to go to the empire.”

[User] “So what’s the meaning of this?” Claire sternly asked Matt.


[Assistant] "Allow me to start by updating you on recent changes to our international ties.” Matt reached into his bag and pulled out a world map. “As I’m sure you know, the Nur Empire has aggressively invaded a number of other countries over the years. Many have been reduced to vassal states.” He pointed to a large country bordering the eastern side of the Bauer Kingdom. “Even we weren’t safe from the empire’s machinations. We would have become their puppet if not for Miss Claire and Rae’s efforts, and the aid from Sousse and the Alpes.”

[User] “Yes, yes. But what of now?” Claire pressed Matt to continue.

[Assistant] “Sousse and the Alpes have also experienced acts of aggression from the Nur Empire. That’s why the three nations have decided to come together and form an allied force under the leadership of Queen Manaria of Sousse.”

[User] “An allied force… I had no idea things were so dire.” Claire frowned as she muttered.

[Assistant] “But the Nur Empire is canny,"

[User] "Before the alliance could be made official, they proposed a peace treaty to the Bauer Kingdom.”

[Assistant] “I see. So that’s what they’re aiming for.” Claire nodded, understanding the implications.

[User] “Um, can you explain?”

[Assistant] “They’re trying to buy time. Isn’t that right, Matt?”

[User] “It’s as you say.”

[Assistant] "The fact that they picked us to offer the treaty to is pretty telling with regard to our country’s circumstances as well. Let me guess.


[User] "The kingdom is tight on resources, and—despite just moving to establish an alliance with Sousse and the Alpes—wishes to avoid war if possible?"

[Assistant] "You saw through it all, Miss Claire." Matt said with admiration.

[User] "What’s that got to do with Miss Claire going to the empire?"

[Assistant] "The empire proposed an exchange student program as a sign of goodwill between the nations. Claire’s name came up as a candidate."

[User] "Me? Why?" Claire looked bewildered.

[Assistant] "She was nothing more than a mere citizen now, after all."

[User] "Purely political reasons. The Nur Empire sent their crown prince for the exchange. The Bauer Kingdom has to send someone of similar value in return."

[Assistant] "Still, why me? I’m no longer even a noble."

[User] "Yes, but you are the hero who changed the foundations of the kingdom and thwarted the plans of the empire."

[Assistant] "You want Miss Claire to be a hostage? !" Rae finally understood what was going on.

[User] "They intended to sacrifice Claire."

[Assistant] "That’s enough! We refuse!"

[User] "Please, hear me out!"

[Assistant] "No!" Blood rushed to Rae's head as she grew livid.

[User] "We’d finally found some peace and quiet after the revolution. Why should Claire have to suffer again?"

[Assistant] "Rae, calm down. Let’s hear him out." A calm voice called out to soothe her.

[User] "Miss Claire? !" Rae couldn’t believe what she was saying.

[Assistant] Claire's calm eyes—still as the surface of a deep lake—shut Rae up more effectively than her scolding ever did.

[User] "Please continue, Matt."

[Assistant] "Yes. Officially speaking, the kingdom will be sending Lady Yu, as she was formerly third in line for the throne. Miss Claire will be going as her attendant."

[User] "Of course. No one would accept a former noble in exchange for a crown prince."

[Assistant] "I’m sure you’ve already realized this, but we’re also choosing to send those whose absence wouldn’t greatly impact the kingdom’s ability to operate. We’d send government officials if we could, but the administration still lacks stability."

[User] "Naturally. Lady Yu has abandoned her right to the throne, and I’m nothing more than a citizen. It’s a splendid decision."

[Assistant] Rae felt like she didn’t know this Claire at all—like she had become a completely different person.

[User] But deep down, Rae knew that was wrong.

[Assistant] The Claire before her was the same noble Claire who had willingly walked to her own execution.

[User] "We’re aware this request is unreasonable. Of course, we will prepare whatever compensation we can, but it likely won’t match the risk you’ll be undertaking."

[Assistant] Claire said nothing.

[User] "The kingdom has no other choice. I ask of you: would you please accept this unreasonable request?" Matt bowed deeply.

[Assistant] Rae prayed for Claire’s next words to be ones of refusal.

[User] "Will you give me a week to decide?"


[Assistant] "Why didn’t you turn him down, Miss Claire? !" Rae hounded Claire the moment Matt left, clinging to her chest as she stood stock-still.

[User] "Quiet down, Rae."


[User] "You’ll scare the girls.” She was calm, a stark contrast to my frenzied state. I hated that calmness, but I didn’t want to scare the children either. I spoke in as collected a tone as I could muster. “I’m sorry, but you should have refused him on the spot! There’s no reason to accept such a request!”

[Assistant] “You’re right. As a citizen, I have no reason to accept.”

[User] “So you understand?” I was relieved. She could overcome her pride after all. “Then there’s no need to wait a week, let’s just—”

[Assistant] “But if I were to refuse, what do you think would happen?” Claire cut me off. I was stunned for a moment but gathered myself and thought about it.

[User] “Won’t they just send someone else to go?”

[Assistant] “Indeed. They’ll find someone else who’d satisfy the conditions.”

[User] “And what’s wrong with that?” I couldn’t understand what Claire was getting at, not one bit—and yet my heart drummed hard, warning me I wouldn’t like the outcome awaiting ahead.

[Assistant] “The empire is a dangerous place to be.”

[User] “Of course it is! That’s why—”

[Assistant] “If I were to refuse, someone else would be sent into danger in my stead.” Claire looked me square in the eyes as she spoke. Had she not changed? Had she not grown accustomed to civilian life since the revolution? Had she not wished to continue this ordinary yet happy life together with May, Aleah, and I? No—she hadn’t changed. At her core, she was the same person she’d been before the revolution. She was still proud and honest, and she never allowed others to suffer in her place—just like the virtuous nobles of the past. And, once again, that same Claire would sacrifice herself for someone else’s sake. “Miss Claire, you’re not a noble anymore… You can think about your own happiness now.”

[User] “That’s not it, Rae. I made this decision with my own happiness in mind.” Claire beckoned me to sit as she sat down herself. I was still unnerved but obeyed—partially to try to calm my nerves. “Nothing makes me happier than knowing you and my daughters are happy and well.”

[Assistant] “It’s the same for us. Your happiness is our happiness.”

[User] “Thank you, Rae. But this happiness can only last as long as we have peace.” Claire spoke softly, as if soothing a child throwing a tantrum. “The kingdom is still unstable; it’s only been a year since the revolution. Matt is right. We have no other choice.”

[Assistant] “But that doesn’t mean you have to be the one to sacrifice yourself!” I raised my voice.

[User] “Don’t misunderstand. I’m not sacrificing myself. I’m going so I can secure peace for the kingdom with my own two hands.” The girl making this bold declaration was unmistakably the same girl I had loved for all this time. “If I were to refuse Matt’s request,” Claire continued, “I would be entrusting our future to a stranger—and I will not stand for that.”

[Assistant] “Miss Claire…” This was Claire.


[User] "I’m not one to throw my life away in vain. Trust me. I’ll have the empire dancing in the palm of my hand soon enough." Just watch me, Claire seemed to say as she smiled. "I’m going for the sake of my family’s happiness."

[Assistant] I saw the light of determination in Claire’s eyes. Ah…I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t stop her again. I was going to lose her again. I had given up all hope—making Claire’s next words all the more a shock.

[User] "And you’re coming too, Rae."

[Assistant] "Huh?"

[User] "What do you mean, ‘huh’? Of course you’re coming. Where I go, you go. Did you think you had a choice in the matter?" Claire tried her best to sound haughty, but I could tell it was an act. She couldn’t hide the overflowing trust and love in her words. "Did you really think I was going alone?"

[Assistant] "I’m sorry…"

[User] "Actually, it’s my fault, isn’t it? I do have a prior offense." Claire smiled wryly as we both recalled what had happened during the revolution. "I thought that was best for everyone. But I was wrong. It finally hit me when you cried at my execution, showing me your true selfishness for the first time."

[Assistant] She stood from her chair and walked over to me, softly hugging my shoulders. "I’ll never leave you alone again. No matter the danger, we’ll face it together." She gently touched her forehead to mine, stared into my eyes, and asked, "Will you come with me?"

[User] "Of course I will. I’d come with you even if you begged me not to."

[Assistant] "He he. Good." We giggled before exchanging a quick peck on the lips. "But what about May and Aleah? You’re not thinking of bringing them, are you?" I asked.

[User] "While I feel bad for them, we’ll have to leave them in the care of someone we trust. Maybe the cathedral priest, or Master Rod—"

[Assistant] "No!" Our beloved daughters ran in suddenly. I’d been wondering why it was so quiet in their room… They must have been eavesdropping.

[User] "You can’t!"

[Assistant] "What are you two doing here?"

[User] "Oh, May, Aleah…"

[Assistant] "I’m going wherever you two go!" May insisted.

[User] "Me too!" Aleah insisted as well. The two rubbed their teary eyes.

[Assistant] "I’m sorry, but you can’t. The place we’re going is very dangero—"

[User] "Nooooo!"

[Assistant] "We’re coming, too!" They cut Claire off again.

[User] I didn’t think I’d ever seen them react to anything so strongly before. "May, Aleah…"

[Assistant] "You can’t abandon us!"

[User] "I don’t wanna be alone again!"

[Assistant] Claire looked like a deer caught in headlights. I probably wore a similar expression. How could we have forgotten? May and Aleah had been passed on to their relatives after their parents died and then became orphans when those relatives died in turn.


[User] “Are you going to abandon us, too? Are we going to be alone again?” They sob, their small frames trembling as they pleaded with us.

[Assistant] “I don’t wanna be alone… I wanna be with my mothers!”

[User] Claire froze up, unsure of what to do.

[Assistant] “Miss Claire… Let’s take them with us.”

[User] “Rae, do you know what you’re saying? !” Claire seemed appalled I would suggest such a thing.

[Assistant] “It’ll be fine. I’ve made up my mind. We’ll face the empire head-on.”

[User] “R-Rae?” Claire looked at me, nonplussed.

[Assistant] I smiled at her and approach May and Aleah. “I’m sorry we worried you two. We’re not going to leave you behind.”

[User] “Really…?”

[Assistant] “Really, really?”

[User] “Yeah. So in exchange, can you two promise to be good girls?”

[Assistant] “Uh-huh!”

[User] “Yes!” May and Aleah leapt into my arms.

[Assistant] “It’s not like me to try to play things safe. I can protect my family myself.” I’d made my decision. All that remained was to prepare and take action. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, I kicked my brain into top gear.


[User] “A spin-off?”

[Assistant] “That’s right.” The night after we decided to go to the empire as a family, Claire and I began discussing our plans.

[User] “As I explained to you during the revolution, I’m able to predict the events of this world to a degree.”

[Assistant] “Right. Something about a book of prophecies.”

[User] “Correct.” Although it wasn’t actually a book of prophecies but a dating sim.

[Assistant] “The name of the book of prophecies was Revolution, and it had a spin-off called Revolution: Lily Side.”

[User] “Revolution: Lily Side—that’s a bit long, let’s shorten it—Revo-Lily has information about the empire that we can use.”


[User] Of course, being a yuri game, all the relevant characters were women. I eventually came to play the original Revolution after falling for Claire, who made a guest appearance in Revo-Lily as an exiled noble.

[Assistant] "If we guide Princess Philine down a certain route, the entire empire will fall apart."

[User] "R-really?"

[Assistant] "Really." There was a revolution route in Revo-Lily, too. You could opt to romance no one and instead lead a revolution to overthrow the imperial government—just like in the original Revolution, which was, in fact, the very same route I had taken a year prior.

[User] "That said, bringing down the entire government of the empire would just open a whole new can of worms. It’s not completely off the table, but for now, let’s aim to bring down any elements agitating for conflict."

[Assistant] "Sounds good." It had to seem like I was pulling all this information out of thin air, but Claire agreed unhesitatingly regardless.

[User] "I love you."

[Assistant] "Wh-what are you saying so suddenly?"

[User] "Just thinking how nice it is that you trust me."

[Assistant] "Well, why wouldn’t I?"

[User] "He he." I proceeded, having basked for a moment in Claire’s love for me. "We need the support of many people to make this plan work, but the most important person will be Philine. She’s extremely shy and has trouble speaking her mind."

[Assistant] "Can such a person really start a revolution?"

[User] "Not now, but it’s her character growth that makes her so interesting."

[Assistant] "Growth? In that book of prophecies?"

[User] "Ah, sorry. Just thinking to myself." In my experience, the protagonists of dating sims tended to be devoid of personality. I understood that this was meant to allow players to project themselves onto the character, but I still didn’t love it. Revo-Lily’s protagonist, Philine, started out as one such husk. But as the story progressed, she grew stronger and more independent. This growth was most notable in the revolution route. Incidentally, Claire, as a guest character, always proved to be the greatest obstacle in Philine’s path. She played the role of villainess, just like in the first game, but had many more cool scenes than in the original. In one, Philine condemned Claire as a criminal and had her executed, but Claire just laughed defiantly in her high-pitched voice as they lopped off her head. I watched that scene countless times…and always fell into a three-day depression afterward.

[Assistant] "Anyway, our plan of action is to make contact with Philine and lead her down the right route."

[User] "Okay. What should I do then? I can’t let you do all the heavy lifting, after all." Claire said, filling me with reassurance. This time, I wasn’t working alone. With Claire by my side, I could do anything.

[Assistant] "First, let me cross-reference the events I remember against the events that have occurred. In the version of events I remember, Claire was an influential noble of the empire."

[User] "Of the empire?!"


[User] “How could such a thing be possible?”

[Assistant] “Meh, let’s skip over that for now.”

[User] “What?! Isn’t something like that important? !”

[Assistant] “We’re skipping it.”

[User] “I don’t get you sometimes…” I didn’t want to explain. It would take too long. “Anyway, the Claire from my book of prophecies supported the Nur Empire, which means you’re in the opposite situation now.”

[Assistant] “I see. In that case, your knowledge might not be too helpful here.”

[User] “Compared to the revolution, yes. But that doesn’t mean it’s completely useless.”

[Assistant] “I’m counting on you.” Her words made me so happy that I wanted to hug her tight right then and there. But we were talking about serious stuff, so I restrained myself.

[User] “Actually, your current position might make things easier.”

[Assistant] “What do you mean?” Claire tilted her head. She was just the cutest.

[User] “Philine is shy, but she’s also kind. She doesn’t approve of the aggressive actions taken by her government.”

[Assistant] “Which means?”

[User] “Which means she holds you in high regard as someone who achieved a nonviolent revolution while thwarting the empire.”

[Assistant] “Really?” Claire asked doubtfully.

[User] “Well, I’m sure it’s not actually that simple. But she should have some interest in you that we can take advantage of.”

[Assistant] As Claire sighed, "I feel like I’m a shameless adult trying to deceive an innocent child.”

[User] “Perhaps that’s not too far off. Don’t worry, I’ll be a shameless adult with you.”

[Assistant] “I guess we have no other choice.”

[User] I’d managed to get Claire on board so far. I continued as she sipped her tea. “There’s a good chance we’ll make contact with Philine during the exchange student program. Once we do that, things can begin.”

[Assistant] “So we’re leaving it up to luck?”

[User] “I prefer ‘playing it by ear.’ For the time being, could you try to memorize all this information about Revo-Lily I’ve written down here?”

[Assistant] “I can, but is that really all right? Didn’t you say sharing the future might change it to something you can’t predict?”

[User] I was surprised she remembered. That had been quite a while back. “I couldn’t tell you back then because the matter directly concerned you. This time is different. We can work together to woo Philine.”

[Assistant] “Could you not say ‘woo’? It sounds like we’re trying to court her.”

[User] “Perv.”

[Assistant] Claire asked as the François family crests floated above her head, “Oh, so you want me to burn you that badly?”

[User] “It was just a joke, Miss Claire! There’s no need for your Magic Ray! Please, you’ll burn the house down!” I cowered. “L-Let’s start by discussing Philine’s circumstances. There’s quite a bit to cover.”

[Assistant] “Sounds easy enough. Memorization is one of my strong suits.” From that day onward, we began designing our plan to manipulate the empire.


[User] “And that’s everything that happened until now.”

[Assistant] “Um, who are you talking to, Rae?”

[User] “Oh, sorry. Just myself.” And so, we returned to where our story started.


[User] The present day, right after Claire had given me an out-of-body experience by treating me to her wonderful home cooking. "We’ve done all the planning we could. All that’s left is to put it into action."

[Assistant] "Yes. There have been a number of surprises along the way, but I have a feeling it will all work out… No, we’ll make it work out."

[User] "That’s the spirit, Miss Claire! You’re marvelous!"

[Assistant] "Don’t make fun of me." Claire huffed, but Rae saw the smile on her face. She was so easy to please.


[User] "In the end, how many people are traveling to the empire, Rae?" Claire had left the information gathering to me while she studied my Revo-Lily notes.

[Assistant] "About fifty."

[User] "That’s fantastic news!" Claire’s face lit up upon hearing Lene’s name. She loved Lene as much as ever.

[Assistant] I made a sour face.

[User] "Oh, my. Are you jealous?"

[Assistant] "Whatever. Hmph!"

[User] "Don’t be like that. Lene may be a close friend of mine, but you’re my one and only lover."

[Assistant] "I know… But I still can’t help but feel a little needy."

[User] "He he, you’re adorable." Claire smiled angelically, then kissed me.

[Assistant] "Ah! It’s not fair Mama Rae is the only one! Me too! Me too!" May insisted.

[User] "Me too, please!" Aleah insisted as well.

[Assistant] "Yes, yes, one at a time." Smiling all the while, Claire gave May and Aleah a kiss on the forehead.


[User] The two girls looked ticklish but happily accepted their kisses regardless.

[Assistant] “Will we make friends?”

[User] “I’m worried…” Aleah said.

[Assistant] We headed out for the empire tomorrow and, as shy as they were, the girls were worried about moving to a new environment.

[User] “I’m sure you two will be fine. You’re so cute, after all.”

[Assistant] “I’m cute?”

[User] “That’s right.”

[Assistant] “Me too?”

[User] “Of course.”

[Assistant] “Yay!”

[User] “He he, Mother Claire said I’m cute!”

[Assistant] Claire:


[User] "How about we all sleep together tonight?"

[Assistant] "Yay!"

[User] "Can we?!"

[Assistant] "Why not? If that’s okay by you, Rae."

[User] "Of course. I’ll fetch the futons."

[Assistant] "Thank you." Claire carried the girls to the bedroom.

[User] I thought of the trials to come as I brought the lightweight goose-down futons over. I’ll make sure everyone comes back to this house alive. I was sure our life in Nur wouldn’t be as peaceful as our life here. Making contact with Philine and defeating the empire would likely involve difficult decisions, more difficult than the ones made for the revolution. Even so, I’ll find that happy future for my family. For their happiness. That night, we all slept side by side, with Claire and I sandwiching May and Aleah. The two girls argued over who would sleep on Claire’s side and played rock-paper-scissors, ending in May’s victory. My feelings weren’t hurt or anything…


[Assistant] The next morning, we packed our bags and left the house. A carriage waited outside, ready to take us to the empire. Claire locked the door behind us, and we were finally ready to make our journey. But before that, one last thing. We turned to the house and smiled.

[User] "Be back soon!"


[User] "The empire is…not quite what I expected." Claire gawked in surprise at the streets around her.

[Assistant] "The city’s so lively, and there’s hardly a soldier to be seen."

[User] "Well, this street runs through the central market. If the central market wasn’t doing this well, I doubt the empire would have the leeway to even think about waging war." I said.

[Assistant] The city teemed with life no matter where you looked. Citizens thronged around us, gleefully touting their wares or shopping for goods. The lines of stalls sold not only imports from abroad but also the local specialty goods of the many countries annexed by the empire.

[User] "Wow… I’ve never seen so many different people in one place. I’ve never even seen some of these hair colors and skin tones in Bauer. And as far as I can tell, not one person is enslaved. Everyone treats everyone else as free citizens," Claire said.

[Assistant] This was a new sight for me as well, who’d formerly lived in Japan, a largely homogeneous country. Of course, the European-style Bauer Kingdom had felt foreign to me when I first arrived, but the Nur Empire felt even more so with the diversity of its populace. This diversity was largely made possible by the Nur government’s policies.


[User] "Miss Claire, do you remember the underlying beliefs of the Nur Empire’s policies?"

[Assistant] "I believe it was meritocracy, the same ideology the late King l’Ausseil supported."

[User] As expected of an educated lady like Claire. She was well informed about neighboring countries, not just her own. But her answer lacked something. "The empire takes meritocracy to a much higher level than our kingdom does."

[Assistant] "Oh?"

[User] "You know how the empire is invading and annexing countries left and right?"

[Assistant] "But of course."

[User] "People from those annexed countries who show promise are given citizenship without question." The heads of the conquered vassal states despised this policy, but those in the lower echelons of society embraced it with open arms. For people whose talents might never otherwise see the light of day, being annexed by the empire could be a heaven-sent opportunity. Of course, not everyone saw it that way. "The empire’s minister of foreign affairs was originally from an annexed country to the north called Rasha."

[Assistant] "You’re telling me they let a non-native handle the country’s foreign affairs?!"

[User] "Indeed. It wasn’t always like this, though. It took decades after the current empress came to power for these policies to become so well established." The empire had always taken an aggressive approach to diplomacy, but it hadn’t been until the current empress, Dorothea, unified it under her brand of rationalism that it achieved its current form. Dorothea Nur had been born the second daughter of the prior emperor. For generations, the eldest son had inherited the throne, with women shut out of the line of succession. But Dorothea had overcome that with her resourcefulness, willingness to use violence, and harsh rationalism. She had usurped her own father. "This was simply the fastest way," she’d said apathetically as she killed her father. At the time, she had been a mere seven years old. Of course, she’d had adults backing her usurpation, but they hadn’t been able to make her their willing puppet after the impact she’d had on the empire.

[Assistant] "That’s quite the harrowing story."

[User] "I can tell you for a fact that her talent is the real deal. She’s not just a strong leader; she’s an unparalleled warrior known as the Sword God. Master Rod mentioned her, didn’t he?"

[Assistant] "Yes, he said the empress routed an entire battalion of Sousse soldiers single-handedly. But that had to be an exaggeration."

[User] "Not at all. It’s the truth." The empire was a dictatorship, but it was held together by its charismatic and competent leader, Dorothea. Maybe you’ve heard something like this before? Better to live in a dictatorship with a competent leader than in a democracy with an incompetent one. While I didn’t agree with the idea, there was some truth to it.

[Assistant] "Oh, Her Majesty isn’t that scary." The Nur man guiding us flashed us a wry smile. His tone wasn’t one of admonishment but rather of reassurance. He seemed used to correcting people about the empress.