12—Brooding Echoes

"Marice, wakey-wakey!"

"Ughh..."

"Rise and shine! You ladies have a long day ahead of you!"

Marice buried her face into her bolster pillow. "I know..."

"And you might wanna make yourself a bit more presentable first before you go out. Miss Vivianne's already here."

"Yeah, I don't really-" Her eyes shot open as she checked her phone beside her pillow. "Vivianne?! What's she doing here this early?"

"Your mom invited her for breakfast."

"Why?"

Cocoa sat down, putting a hoof over mouth. "No special reason. She's just really happy that everyone praised her lumpiang shanghai and menudo last night that she wanted to cook some more before you leave."

"Yeah, I can see that. I still can't get over how creamy the menudo's broth was."

"And she's also very intrigued with her cuz Kath was the only friend you ever introduced to her."

"Well, if you put it that way..."

The familiar tilted her head. "It sounds like you don't like her, Marice."

"No, it's not that I don't like her. I just find her... annoying..."

"Annoying?"

"You know, she always reminds me of our relatives back in Estrellia. I just don't wanna bother with those kind of people."

"I can't tell. You've always been an aloof person even if someone's being friendly to you. Our neighbors used to call you Miss Maldita for a reason."

"Oh, don't start on me with that..."

"Just saying."

"Wait, do they still use that name whenever they refer to me?

Cocoa beamed. "Not since you arrived here at least."

"Figures."

"So, ready to get up? Your mom's just started cooking breakfast too."

Marice raised an eyebrow. "We still have plenty of leftovers from last night though."

"She's cooking one extra dish I'm sure you'll love."

Intrigued with whatever that dish was, Marice slipped out of her blanket and started brushing her hair in front of the dresser. And once she was done dressing up, she made her way to the living room where Vivianne, Teodore, and Laetitia were seated.

As their eyes met, Marice bowed her head. "Morning, Sir Teodore. You too, Tea."

"Good morning, Lady Marice," the butler replied with a warm smile.

On the other hand, Laetitia returned the gesture with a modest smile before setting her gaze back at the Christmas-themed box sitting on her lap.

"Are you going to accompany us, Sir Teodore?" Marice asked.

Teodore smiled again. "Only for breakfast. I had no intentions of imposing, but Lady Mariella absolutely insisted I should come along."

Mariella, who was grilling eggplants in the kitchen, wagged the tongs she was holding. "Have you forgotten, Marice? He was the one who healed you the other night."

Marice widened her eyes as her face heated up almost instantly. "Ah...! Ahh! I forgot! I'm terribly sorry, Sir Teodore! I'm so sorry! It never even crossed my mind to thank you properly after that incident!"

"You don't need to thank me," Teodore replied, closing his eyes. "I only did what was necessary."

"But still... I was so caught up with everything else that I completely forgot about it..." She then faced her mom again. "Y-You should've told me you were inviting him today!"

She pouted, snapping her tongs. "Why are you getting angry at me? And for the record, I also invited him for last night's dinner, so I'm really glad he came this time."

He nodded. "And seeing that I have some business to attend to here anyway, I have no good reason to turn down her generosity once more."

"Business?" Vivianne said, squinting her eyes at him. "Here?"

He smiled again. "I'll let you know about it once you get back from your trip."

"Hmm, very well. I've read that there are plenty of interesting places you can visit in Binondo alone, so you should also take the opportunity to explore while I'm away."

"Thank you, milady. I shall send you a message if I ever come across a souvenir worth purchasing."

"You don't need to. Once this case is over, we'll have all the time in the world to do some shopping and sightseeing together."

"So you plan to stay here in the long term?"

"Yes, I want some space for myself."

"But will you be returning to England for your birthday next month?"

"No, and I wish you'd stop entertaining my ex-fiance's attempts to reconcile with me. You're only giving him false hopes at this point."

"If I didn't, I'm afraid he'd only grow desperate and take a more drastic course of action."

"And if that happens, I'll make sure to knock some sense into him." She looked to the side with a glum expression on her face. "I'm actually doing him a favor here, and yet he still refuses to yield. He wasn't even like this when we first met."

As the room fell silent, Marice approached Vivianne and snatched her hand. "Come with me."

"Huh? Wait, what are you-"

"Just humor me a bit, will you?"

She was expecting that she would have to drag her back to her bedroom, but Vivianne didn't make an effort to resist in the slightest, which left her conscious of how tight she was gripping her hand. As the two of them reached her bedroom's door, Marice finally released her hand and faced her.

With a faint blush on her cheeks, Vivianne crossed her arms. "So, what is this all about?" she asked in a soft voice.

Marice glanced to the side. "I want to give Sir Teodore a gift."

She cocked her head. "Then you should've just asked him what he wants."

"I only have fragrances to offer him right now."

"Then ask him what his preferences are. I don't know why you're making this needlessly difficult."

Marice let out a sigh, walking past her. "Fine, I'll ask him. Sorry for bothering you."

"Eh? Wait!" Vivianne reached out for her arm and yanked her back. "I didn't say I wouldn't help!"

"So what is it about making things needlessly difficult again?"

Vivianne leered at her. "Hurry up before I change my mind."

Marice pushed the half-open door and entered her room, heading straight to the bedside drawer. But as she squatted down, she noticed that Vivianne was still standing outside with her mouth slightly open, marveling at the room's interior.

"Why are you just standing there?" Marice asked as a pleasant garlicky aroma wafted from the kitchen.

Vivianne blinked. "You didn't give me permission to enter."

She grumbled, pulling out the bottom drawer. "Get your arse here already."

With a huff, she took her first step into the room, only for her foot to get caught on the ledge. Marice winced a little as Vivianne crashed face first on the floor.

"Marice, what was that?" Mariella called out.

"The sodding ledge, Mom!"

"Oh, okay! We still have to cook the leftover lumpia, so take your time!"

Marice brought out a couple of scented bead bottles from the drawer, lining them up beside her. "Hey, if you're done making out with the floor, can you start looking at these for me?"

Balling her hands, Vivianne slowly got up. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"The ledge? Uh, no. That's been there since we moved here."

"Then why didn't you-ugh, forget it." Vivianne crawled closer to her, straightened her back, and began examining the labels on the bottles. "I'm not exactly what you'd call a connoisseur when it comes to fragrances and perfumes, so can you start me off with your own recommendation?"

Marice picked up the rightmost bottle named Seaside Breeze and handed it to her. "Just so you know, I'm no savant. I just make what I think smells nice."

She removed its seal, taking a whiff of the beads. "I'm aware that this is simply a hobby of yours, but have you considered selling your own personal line of fragrances? I personally think these are comparable to the ones I've seen on the shelves."

"Maybe once? Honestly, they take a lot of time to make."

"Only because you designed them to virtually last forever."

"As long as you don't forget to feed them custard." She shrugged, offering a bottle labeled Cobalt Splash. "It'd be a pain if I change the formula I'm using now. And it's not like we're in desperate need of money."

"Hmph. Your call."

"Why the sudden interest?"

Vivianne paused, taking off the bottle's seal. "I'm looking to diversify my business."

"And out of everything you could've thought of, you chose to make fragrances."

Her eyes widened as she looked at the beads. "But the synergy's there, wouldn't you say? My farm raises a diverse variety of plants, herbs and flowers included. You'd be able to expand your lineup with such resources at your disposal. In fact, we've already started this initiative by making our own soap brand!"

"What exactly are you getting at, Vivianne?"

Her face became flushed once more. "I-Isn't it already obvious? I want your talent in making fragrances."

"Then ask someone else. Like you already said, I'm just doing this for fun. An alchemy exercise, if you will."

She gave her a sullen look. "What a shame. But if you ever change your mind, let me know."

Marice raised an eyebrow, suspicious that Vivianne had given up so easily and gracefully. And then it hit her. "Wait... did you save Laetitia yesterday just so you could guilt trip me into taking up your offer?"

"Huh? What?! No, of course not! How dare you even suggest such a preposterous claim!"

"Then why ask me? You have the connections to find someone who's more experienced in the craft."

She averted her gaze and clasped her hands around the bottle, fiddling with the jeweled rings on her hands. "W-Well, because... because I..."

"Because of what? Spit it out already."

Vivianne shut her eyes, her whole body trembling. And after a few seconds of dead air, she let out a frustrated cry, yanking her pigtail with her free hand. "On second thought, forget it! Forget I even asked, you hear?!"

Baffled, Marice slid another bottle towards her. "Okay...? Get to sniffing then. That dish Mom's making isn't exactly time-consuming to cook."

"A-Ah, right!"

The two spent the next minute testing out the rest of the bottles. And after another minute of deliberation, Vivianne finally settled on Cobalt Splash, which was a refreshing medley of blueberries, grapes, and plum. However...

"I'd like to buy this one," Vivianne said, holding up the bottle named Citrus Swirl.

Marice snatched the bottle from her grasp. "It's not for sale."

"Then let me buy it from you so that I can have it."

"What? No, I only have one of these left."

Vivianne grabbed the top and bottom sides of the bottle, and the two of them started tugging at it. "You can just make more. After all, you were ready to give this one away too."

"No means no, okay?!" Marice cried as she attempted to knock her off with her foot, but Vivianne simply hovered with her magic and did the same trick to her.

Falling down, Marice grabbed hold of Vivianne's cape and yanked it as hard as she could. She immediately regretted it as their heads collided on impact, both of them wincing in pain.

Despite the position they were in though, the two laid there motionless for a moment before Vivianne decided to break the standstill.

"Aren't we supposed to be friends now?" she said, almost whispering in her ear. "Your mom and Kath already said as much last night."

Marice sighed. "This is exactly why people can't put up with your crap. You don't know how to respect other people's boundaries."

"Like you're one to talk. I can't even fathom how Kath is able to put up with someone as stiff and obstinate as you all the time."

"Don't bring Kath into this."

"She's my friend too, so don't hog her all for yourself."

"You've hung out with her more than I ever did, so I don't know what nonsense you're blabbering about..."

She finally pulled herself up, rubbing her forehead with her free hand. "Hmph. And that's why I feel bad for her."

"Why's that?"

"A friend like her doesn't come by often. Cherish her as much as you can, for there's no guarantee what the future holds for everyone."

Her heart raced. "Wait. Vivianne, did you also-"

A dull thud interrupted her as Katherine stood at the door, cheeks flushed and mouth agape. "Ma-Marice?! Vivianne?! Why are you-?!"

"W-Wait!" Vivianne uttered, immediately hovering away from Marice. "This isn't what it looks like!"

"Gyaaaah! Vivianne, you sly fox!" Katherine tried to flee out of embarrassment, only to slip on her own smartphone and crash face first on the floor. "Owie!"

"I know I'm a bit of a klutz," Mariella called out from the kitchen, "but you ladies are something else! Are you sure you're gonna be fine snooping around Estrellia?"

Sighing in resignation, Marice picked herself up and returned the bottles back to the drawer. "We'll continue this later."

Vivianne, who just pulled Katherine up with her free hand, turned to face her. "We'll have our chance. I'd like to ask you a few questions myself."

An awkward silence passed as Katherine glanced between the two of them, wearing a suspicious look on her face. "Continue...? What are you two up to?"

She froze as their eyes met. "W-We were just talking about fragrances! You know how impressed I was with her graduation gift that I simply wish to learn more about the craft!"

Katherine squinted her eyes even more. "I know you've always been curious about Marice, but I never anticipated that you were that interested. To think you two just became friends last night and you're already getting physical with her is just-"

"H-Hold it! That... compromising situation you just saw only happened because your best friend is so stubborn!"

"Wh-What?! You asked her to do that, Marice?"

Marice pushed the drawer back, took the Cobalt Splash bottle, and stood up. "Of course not," she replied. "She's just being Vivianne like always."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Vivianne asked.

Katherine wagged her fists repeatedly, steam forming over her head. "Anyway, you've skipped too many steps, Vivianne! You can't just do that! That's illegal!"

"Illegal in what context?! And why am I the only one being reprimanded here?"

"Can we just eat?" Marice chimed in. "Dealing with your nonsense only made me hungrier."

"Are you two even listening?!"

Ignoring Vivianne's protests, Marice walked back to the living room and handed the bottle of scented beads to Teodore. As he sheepishly gave his thanks, Laetitia followed up the gesture by offering the box she was holding. Marice placed the gift on the countertop, eyes widening as she lifted its lid.

"Ube cake, huh?"

"We were told you and your mother like ube," Teodore said.

"Not as much as my mother though. She can eat this entire cake on her own if she wants to."

"H-Hey now," Mariella set down a fresh plate of lumpiang shanghai on the dining table, "you're making me look like a glutton!"

"Calm down. I only said that as a matter of fact."

"I can never tell with that constant frown on your face." She faced Vivianne. "Anyway, let's eat!"

As she said that, Cassava used his telekinesis to serve a steaming bowl of menudo on the table, drawing everyone to the dining table.

Vivianne smiled as she took a seat alongside her butler and familiar. "Ah, I've been wanting to eat more of your cooking, Miss Mariella."

Mariella blushed. "Oh, most of these are leftovers though."

"What about this omelet-like dish then?"

"Tortang talong. My daughter's breakfast favorite."

"Really?" Katherine said, sitting next to Mariella. "Marice cooked omelets and eggplants all the time, but she never made this one for some reason."

"What? You don't like it anymore, Marice?"

Marice finished up filling her plate with garlic fried rice and nabbed her share of the omelet. "No, I just don't feel like making it myself."

"Then why didn't you-oh, I see! So you deliberately held off cooking it since that dish was special, right? You thought it wouldn't be the same if I didn't cook it myself, right?"

Marice's cheeks turned pink. "U-Uh, no! It's just that-!"

"Kyaa! That's so precious!" She embraced her daughter. "Hug!"

"No, get off me!"

Eyes glowing blue, Katherine tilted her head. "The dish isn't that complicated to make, so what's so special about it? Is it really that good?"

She pulled herself away from Marice. "Well, this is a bit embarrassing, but it's the first dish I made that she actually liked."

"A picky eater, huh?" Vivianne said, taking an omelet.

Marice felt her eyebrows twitch as she poured ketchup beside her omelet. "You should've seen how she cooked her sunny-side up eggs back then. They were really... something..."

"Argh!" Mariella cried as she held her own head. "Stop bringing that up! I still couldn't get over that to this day!"

She set down the ketchup bottle and gripped it tightly. "Can't blame you though. They never taught you anything but magic and politics."

"B-But it's still embarrassing, you know?"

"On the contrary," Vivianne said, plopping a mountain of garlic rice onto her plate, "you should be proud of your progress. Everybody needs to eat, but there's a surprising amount of people out there who forgo the basics of cooking."

"Yeah, you're right." Mariella nodded and smiled, receiving a bottle of spiced vinegar from Cocoa. "Thanks, Vivianne. I feel much better now."

She returned the smile before setting her eyes back on her omelet serving. "Speaking of which, the subtle smoky aroma of this dish is just lovely. Her love for eggplants aside, I can certainly see why she likes it."

"I considered stuffing it with the giniling I used for these lumpia, but I think we'll save that once you ladies get back. Maybe I'll be able to make it as fancy as Grandpa Eugene used to make."

"Ah yeah, about that," Marice said, "Karina and I already arranged to meet at her university later."

"But you're still gonna drop by their place, right?"

"Yeah. I just don't want them to fuss over us after coming there on short notice. We're not going there to play after all."

Mariella squinted. "Ugh, why do you always have to be such a party pooper?"

"I'm just being considerate."

"No, you're just overthinking things. They've always treated us as family too, you know?"

"I know..."

Catching on the shift in tone, Mariella sat down. "What's wrong?"

Marice shook her head to dispel the doubts forming in her head. "Nothing important... but I'll tell you about it after we get back."

Once they wrapped up their breakfast, Marice returned to her room and made her final preparations for their trip. She first turned her attention to the luggage lined up along the wall and used her spatial magic to store them in a single homunculus bottle. And after all of that was taken care of, she got to her workbench and double-checked the various concoctions she had started brewing last night.

She wasn't expecting they would get in a big scuffle that would exhaust her supply of potions and other alchemy-related items, but building a surplus now that she had made up her mind would be most prudent. And besides, she had mastered these recipes to the point where she could automate them anyway with little supervision.

But as soon as she wrapped up her inspection, her mother appeared in her room with a somber expression on her face.

"What's wrong?" she asked, installing an earpiece on her right ear.

She presented her smartphone's screen, which displayed a picture of a bedridden girl. "So, remember those kids who tried to protect Richelle? I just heard that their finals are coming up, and I was wondering if you could spare them a few of your potions to make them heal quicker."

"Why are they asking us for help?"

"The government's already helping them, but they obviously won't be able to heal in time for their exams."

"And?"

"Come on. I've seen how effective your potions are."

"The ingredients I use for them are hard to come by." She gestured at her workbench. "Not to mention, slow. With my current equipment and materials, I can only produce twenty-five milliliters of my regeneration potion every day. Approximately twenty of the accelerator agent, and another twenty for my-"

"Oh, come on. I'm sure you have plenty more of those potions tucked away in your mobile workshop."

"No, those are for emergency purposes only."

"For what, exactly?"

"I just told you. If I'm just going to give them away every time someone asks, then what would be the point of it all?"

"Okay, name your price then."

"What? No! Why are you going the extra mile for those girls anyway?"

Mariella looked to the side, pressing her fingertips together one after another. "Well... I feel like I'm responsible for what happened. I found out that those kids were from my fan club, you see..."

Marice balled her hands. "They're the ones who made the decision to help. They have no one to blame but themselves."

"I know that, but I just couldn't help feeling that way! And...! And! If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have been able to rescue Richelle! So we should return the favor at least!"

She folded her arms. "Is that the reason why you invited Sir Teodore over today?"

Mariella averted her eyes once again, clutching her smartphone. "Y-Yeah..."

She sighed. "I can't believe you..."

"Then what am I supposed to do? I can't just sit here all day while you and the others are doing everything for us!"

"What are you talking about? Didn't you rent a unit from Regina so that we could keep an eye on Adrian and Richelle?"

"Then it's not a problem if I bring them with me to the hospital, right?"

Marice gave her a bewildered look, unable to respond completely. And when she finally got her bearings back, she threw her hands up and sighed again. "Fine. You win."

"Eh? You mean that?"

"Yeah."

"Why? I mean, I was hoping you'd agree, but I didn't expect you'll let me off the hook this quickly..."

"I can change my mind if you want to. You're not the one who's gonna do the healing anyway."

"What? Nonono! I wanna see how they will react!"

She smiled, wearing her cap. "They'd be thrilled to bits, I imagine."

"So you really mean it? No take backs?"

"Yeah, it's not like you actually needed my permission in the first place, right?" When her mother pouted, she flashed a smile. "Oh, don't give me that face. I'm just kidding."

"You're mean. I'm serious, you know? I'll make sure nothing happens to those two."

"I know. After all, you are the Space-time Sweetheart."

"Thank you, but eww! You're giving me the shivers with that dumb name!"

She chuckled, tapping her earpiece. "I'm all set here. Ready to go?"

"Yep!" Katherine replied. "I can't wait! Mr. Celestino and Monica are looking forward to see us too!"

"Yeah, we'll take up their invitations later. We'll need every help we can get."

"Great! Let's go!"

After exchanging farewells with everyone, Marice and her party flew out from the balcony and set off to the skies.

Located approximately thirty nautical miles northeast from the city of Borongan, the autonomous island group of Estrellia comprised three main islands: Carina, Puppis, and Vela. As they had decided last night, they would head straight to the latter island and immediately search for clues on her great grandmother's whereabouts.

Considering that Estrellia was the most advanced arcane-centric region in the country, the powers that be would certainly sense their presence even before they could get close to their airspace. And so, Marice couldn't discount the possibility that they would get intercepted before they could make it to the island.

Would there be any legitimate reason why they would even bother to do that? Nothing she could think of actually. But if there was one thing she knew about her clan, it was they could be so insecure and petty over the slightest things. They could just come up with any arbitrary reason to bar them from stepping foot on Estrellian soil, and no one would care, much less raise a fuss over that.

But as it turned out, she didn't have to worry at all as they were able to reach the island of Vela without any incidents. Well, aside from the several instances where they got flagged and almost fired upon by the military's point-defense systems scattered along their flight path.

Feeling a bit more optimistic, the party went to the island's eastern seaboard where Maricar went to hiding after being exiled. The local government's urbanization project seemed to have left the entire area untouched, so the landmarks Cristina had provided quickly led them to their destination.

At the edge of a cliffside clearing stood a towering tree. And as they landed in front of it, the boulder-like object underneath the tree turned out to be a stone cauldron.

"A lemon eucalyptus, huh?" Marice said, looking up the branches.

Katherine followed her gaze. "I wonder why Miss Maricar chose to plant this tree. Is there anything special about it, Marice?"

"Nothing really. Though the essential oil from its leaves is typically used in alchemy and aromatherapy."

"I see," Vivianne replied, putting away her velvet cushion. "So you're saying we need to invest in an orchard for such trees if we were to establish our own fragrance empire."

Marice turned around, fishing out a bottle of preserved mosquitoes from her cargo shorts. "You're still on about that?"

"What? I never said anything about giving up, did I?"

She gave Laetitia an exasperated look, to which the familiar responded with a small smile. "Whatever."

"But enough of that." Vivianne placed a hand on the snow-colored trunk. "I suppose this tree here is the entrance to her hideout? It's pulsing with ether."

"Yeah, we'll need to feed it with a special supplement to access the closed space in Mystifica."

"Her home is in a closed space? That seems redundant, unless your clan has connections with the denizens over there."

A magic circle formed under her feet as she reanimated exactly thirty-six mosquitoes. "Cristina told me that it was a precautionary measure on her master's part. The diwata and engkanto here dislikes outsiders, and her status as a necromancer surely didn't help either."

Vivianne laughed softly, watching the mosquitoes scatter away. "And to think you followed her footsteps despite all the infamy attached to necromancy. Why were you so eager to learn the ultimate healing spell that you had to leave your mother and study overseas?"

"The better question is, who wouldn't? You'd be lying through your teeth if you told me you weren't interested in the spell at all."

She paused for a moment before crossing her arms. "I am a geomancer."

"And?"

"We should let the natural order of death and rebirth run its course. Needless tampering may only bring about countless misfortunes."

Marice raised an eyebrow. "They said that when life-extending elixirs became widespread too, but it was clear that all the doom and gloom were overblown."

"Even still, nature has found a way to cull their numbers. Death is an inevitability we all have to face one day."

She shrugged. "I don't have any issues with death itself. My whole beef with it is its timing. Anyone can die at any time. I just want to make sure everyone I care about will be able to live out their lives to the fullest."

Vivianne glanced at Katherine and huffed. "And for that reason, you are willing to sacrifice the present just so you can gamble everything on an uncertain future. That's just ridiculous."

"This is the closest I'll ever get to learn the spell, and I'd be a fool if I let this chance slip past me. You know that it's a race against time, and I don't want that to come to pass."

She cast her gaze on her feet. "You have a point... but still..."

"I'll do something about it, I swear. You don't need to worry your pretty little head over it."

"H-Hmph, don't mistake that I actually care or anything. It's your choice at the end of the day."

"Yeah, like I'd sleep any better if you did." She then noticed Katherine beaming. "What's with that grin?"

Katherine winked and pointed at her. "See? What did I tell you?"

"What did you tell me?"

"That the two of you would get along if you just tried to talk with each other."

"We're not getting along!" Marice and Vivianne said in unison.

Katherine clasped her hands. "Ah, my prayers were finally answered! I made the right call to bring you along, Vivianne!"

"A-Anyway," Vivianne said, "now that's all cleared up. What needs to be done, Marice?"

Marice pulled out two bottles from her jacket, giving the translucent liquid inside them a light shake. "Cristina and I already made the catalyst last night. We're missing the ingredients for the base mixture, but we should be able to acquire everything we need in the nearby forest. And just in case, double the ingredients in case I mess up the supplement."

"Okay, time for some treasure hunting!" Katherine replied as she took off her trench coat. "We haven't done this in a while, huh?"

"Just watch out for crocodiles in the river. Particularly the larger ones. Those chunky critters will actually try to get a nibble out of you."

Vivianne started floating, but Marice simply sat beside the cauldron. "Wait, you aren't going with us?"

"It'd be much faster if I didn't tag along," Marice replied, watching Katherine store her coat in her shield's compartment unit.

"What do you mean?"

With her entire Suisei loadout equipping themselves all over her body, Katherine faced them and smiled. "I guess you could say she's not exactly popular around these parts..."

Vivianne gave her a look of disbelief. "E-Even to the earth spirits? What all sorts of tomfoolery did you do to earn the ire of the local deities here?"

Marice hugged her knees and leaned against the cauldron. "I...I don't even want to remember. Just go already."

"Fine. Laetitia, keep her company."

"I'll leave Core Phalanx to you too," Katherine said, giving her floating shield a light knock. "Back in a jiffy!"

As the pair flew off, Marice yawned and turned her attention to the fidgeting spider familiar. "So, how are you keeping up with your new master? She's treating you well, I hope?"

The familiar flashed a nervous smile as she brought out her smartphone and furiously tapped away on its screen. Once satisfied, she pressed the app's text-to-speech button. "She's really nice to me. Thank you for asking."

While she still bore the same timid look and disposition, the air around her had certainly changed. Her eyes looked brighter as well, brimming with hope and purpose.

She stretched out her legs, staring at the leaves rustling above them. "I guess it'll take a while before she can give you a voice, huh?"

"She doesn't have to go that far. We can already communicate through telepathy."

"Heh, you're gonna get an earful if she heard that."

Laetitia paused, her thumbs hesitating. "Why? I don't understand."

"There's no deep meaning behind it, I'm sure. You can't speak, so she wants you to be able to do so."

"Would it be of any benefit to her in the long run?"

"Of course. You'll be able to support her better as her familiar if you can talk normally."

"Then I'll look forward to it. Thank you, Master."

"Master?"

"Don't worry. I have Lady Vivianne's blessing to refer to you as such."

"I mean, I'm not your master."

"Yes, but please allow me to call you Master. Even if it's just in private."

She sighed. "Even my own familiar doesn't call me Master. But sure, I don't mind."

"Thank you, Master."

The two of them chatted some more while enjoying nature's sensory offerings, but their peaceful alone time didn't last long as Marice's mosquito scouts detected three presences lurking at the edge of the clearing. She got on her feet and looked at the direction where they were hiding, but they still didn't make a move.

The standstill lasted for a few minutes until Katherine and Vivianne returned with their completed shopping list. The latter had a satisfied look on her face as she plopped down two barrier orbs full of spring water next to the cauldron. "Done. Now it's your turn, Marice."

"Just watch our backs though. They're already here."

Katherine immediately turned around, scanning the forest. "My sensors aren't picking up anything though."

Marice frowned, examining the quality of the herbs she was given. "Oh, they're definitely there."

Vivianne flicked her pigtail. "So they went out of their way to send out envoys, but they still treat us like we're some shady trespassers. How rude of them."

"B-But we are trespassing," Katherine replied. "Kinda..."

"If they are content with observing us from afar, then so be it. The less distractions we have, the better."

Using Katherine's shield as a workbench, Marice spent the next few minutes preparing the ingredients for the supplement. Meanwhile, Vivianne filled up the cauldron with spring water, poured in the green-colored bottle, and brought the mixture to a boil using her staff.

Once everything was either minced or ground, Marice tossed the ingredients into the cauldron and let it simmer for a couple of minutes. As they waited, the ether-charged steam from the mixture grew thicker, slowly encasing them as if it had a mind of its own. When it reached the point where sunlight could barely seep through the steam, Vivianne took the liberty of illuminating their surroundings with an orb of light.

Marice then added in the orange-colored catalyst and continued stirring with the staff. The dark green mixture quickly cooled off, emanating a rich floral fragrance. Afterwards, she scooped up a small amount using one of the empty bottles and brought it to her lips.

"Mmm," she said, handing the staff back to Vivianne. "It's done. Make sure to drink a cup's worth of the supplement."

As Katherine received the other empty bottle from Marice, Vivianne squinted at the cauldron's contents. "This is just tea, isn't it?"

"Alchemy tea, to be more specific."

"And you're going to feed it to the tree?"

"That's alchemy for you."

Katherine nodded, taking another sip. "It's good even if it's already lukewarm. And I like that hint of vanilla too."

"Huh." Vivianne formed a teacup with ether, scooped up some of the supplement and gave it a taste. "Y-You're right. I bet this would taste ten times better if you added in milk and chilled it overnight."

"Pandan milk tea is a staple here in Estrellia," Marice said, securing a talisman on the trunk of the tree, "but enough getting sidetracked. Let's tip the cauldron over."

"Allow me."

Vivianne swung her hand forward, levitating the cauldron and pouring its contents over the tree's roots. A few seconds later, the tree released a wave of verdant ether, filling the air with a pleasant citrus scent. All of the surrounding steam swirled and congregated towards them, embracing them in a warm radiance. The light grew brighter and brighter until it overwhelmed their eyes, and in the next moment, they found themselves enveloped in a cold stagnant darkness.

But for some reason, Marice could barely move her limbs. When she opened her eyes, she immediately realized the situation they were in and let out a tired groan.

Ugh, not again...