I decided to go to the bar in the basement of the house to ask Anima for
advice, and to hang around and chat with her. On the way, Anima asked
me with a curious look on her face.
[…Master. I've been meaning to ask this for a while now… Why is there a
bar in the basement of the mansion?]
[…Eh?]
[If you want to drink alcohol, I don't think you would really need a
bar…]
I knew that someone would point it out at some point, but it seems like
the time has finally come huh. Why is there a bar in the basement of the
mansion… No, well, is there any other answer other than this being
Alice's joke?
[Ahh, no! Of course, I understand that Master has deep thoughts, but it's
just that this shallow me couldn't guess your intentions…]
I see, it seems that Anima thought that I had some grand idea in mind
when I built this bar, but as the Chief Retainer, she thought that she
should know about this, so she shamelessly asked this question.
…No, I don't know the reason either, you know!?
[…Errr, no, the bar was created by Alice on her own initiative, so it's not
like I have any idea why that bar was made either.]
[I see, so that's how it is huh… If Alice-dono made it, although I have no
idea why, it means that this bar is necessary!]
[...…]
I've been thinking about this from time to time for a while now, but I
feel like Anima has an absurdly high evaluation of Alice. I wonder why?
I thought she was a competent person who was hiding in the guise of an
idiot, but she really is more like a competent idiot…
[…It seems like Anima highly evaluates Alice a lot huh.]
[Of course! Becoming like Alice-dono is my goal!]
[…I- Is that so?]
[Yes! Her overwhelming combat power, her intelligence that makes it
seem like she's able to see the future, her charisma that can command a
large army, and her endless loyalty as she supports Master behind the
scenes! Alice definitely is the ideal for us retainers. She's a very high
peak we need to tread, but I hope that I could reach it one day.]
She has an extremely high evaluation of her… Speaking of which, Anima
hasn't been around when Alice was fooling around, has she?
She has seen her in the battle against Sigma and the decisive battle in
the God Realm, and if I recall, Anima seemed to feel inferior to Alice
back then, so perhaps, all these factors combined made her have a high
evaluation for her.
As I was thinking about this, Alice, still not showing herself, spoke to me
in a voice small enough that only I could hear.
[…This was also unexpected for Alice-chan… If she talks about me as if I
was some sort of idol she admires, it's going to be hard for me to fool
around in front of Anima-san in the future.]
[Don't you dare shatter Anima's dreams, okay…]
[…I'll do my best.]
After exchanging such conversation, I looked at Anima and she was
clenching her fists. The way she looked like she was trying to do her
best made her seem more childish than she looked, and she looked kind
of cute.
[…Anima, you don't have to mimic her personality, okay? Rather, please
don't mimic her personality.]
[Eh? Ah, yes?]
[Alright, let's go then.]
[Understood?]
Anima followed me while curiously tilting her head, but this is
something that I need to remind her. It's great if she wants to be
competent like Alice, but if her personality also becomes similar to
hers, I think I would have stomach aches like Lilia-san.
When we entered the bar, Iris-san, the owner of the bar, turned to me
from behind the counter. I guess, to put it more precisely, Iris-san could
be considered as someone who lives in my home.
[Unnn? Miyama Kaito and… if I remember correctly, you're his retainer,
Anima, right? Welcome, you can sit at the counter.]
[Sorry to disturb you, Iris-san.]
[Excuse us, Iris-san.]
Greeting Iris-san, who welcomed us with a small smile, I took a seat
with Anima.
[Errr, I've never really had cocktails before, so I was hoping for
something easy to drink.]
[I'd prefer something sweet…]
[Umu… Then, I'll start with Miyama Kaito's order… Are you fine with
something a little bitter?]
[Yes, it's alright.]
I don't like drinking that much, so I just left it to her, and Anima doesn't
seem to like dry alcohol, so she ordered something sweet. I think I
remember hearing that Caraway-san, when she drinks with Anima,
likes dry alcohol and doesn't like sweet ones.
In front of us, Iris-san prepared a container… and mixing the alcohol
and shaking it in that bottle that bartenders use, whose name I still
don't know of, and poured its contents into the glass in front of me.
It's a beautiful and clear alcohol that is as transparent as water.
(T/N: Dry taste refers to the lack of sweetness.)
[…Alice told me about a cocktail named after the local language where
you lived in… It's a cocktail named "Kamikaze", a mixture of vodka,
white curacao and lime juice. It's sharp and dry on the palate, but easy
to drink.]
[Heehhh… Thank you very much.]
[Umu, now for Anima…]
Muttering this, Iris-san quickly prepared some alcohols and shaking it…
She poured a beautiful pale red cocktail that seemed to draw people
eyes into the glass placed in front of Anima.
[…Here's a "Scarlet O'hara". The alcohol content itself is a bit high, but
the sweet and sour citrus flavor makes it easy to drink.]
[I thank you.]
[Umu, I'll go prepare some snacks.]
Hmmm, I hadn't been to this bar much before, but I think this place is
quite great. The dimly lit and quiet atmosphere of the bar is nice, and
just from the way she worked, I'm sure Iris-san is quite skilled.
It would be nice to come back next time when I want to have a relaxing
drink or something.
[Well then, Anima… A toast?]
[Ah, yes!]
Forgetting that we're supposed to be here for consultation, Anima and I
lightly bumped glasses in an atmosphere where we seemed to be
enjoying ourselves.