"I'm not sure what you mean."
"You know everything."
"If you don't tell me, I won't know. I don't have the ability to read minds."
The basics of negotiation.
The one who cracks first loses.
"Karamir, the world is cold. It's not so easy that a bit of aegyo will solve everything."
"You're... not going to hug me...?"
"Really?"
"Euh?"
When I came to my senses, I was already hugging Mirabelle tightly.
When did this happen?
Is this a mental attack?
Did she unfairly use magic?
Those thoughts crossed my mind, but it just meant Mirabelle's aegyo was that lethal.
She had learned how to use her face.
Ah, I wanna play a tycoon.
If I put Mirabelle at the reception desk, she'd attract all the customers. It's a shame I can't do that in reality. Maybe I should try it once before going home.
While I was lost in thought, Mirabelle conjured some water. It tasted cool and sweet.
"The water Miss Mirabelle makes is always delicious."
"Hehe."
Mirabelle smiled happily.
I patted her head.
"Let's get going again."
Having rested enough, it was time to move on.
We were almost there.
I stood up and dusted off the dirt and leaves from my behind.
Rustle.
Huh?
I thought I just saw some indigo light particles just now.
Exactly like when Mirabelle used magic.
It was probably because she made water, but...
Did this happen before when she made water?
I didn't think this showed up when using simple everyday magic.
Well, it was probably nothing.
***
"Master, why are we climbing this mountain anyway?"
Mirabelle asked such a question.
That reminded me, her questions always seemed to come with a delay. When told to do something, she'd act without question, only asking why afterwards.
You might think that was how master-slave relationships normally worked, but ours was special. I guess it meant Mirabelle trusted me completely.
"I promised, did I not? That I'd send you to be with your mother."
Mirabelle's True Ending: Reunion.
There was no one who didn't know what this reunion was about. It was a tale as old as time.
Naredi, Mirabelle's witch mother who was thought to have died that day.
Just before being caught by the Knight Order, she used magic to switch places with a doll that looked exactly like her and escaped. The original story said she was alive somewhere in the world.
To discover this route, you would have to attempt multiple times. If you just sought revenge and then freed her, it wouldn't count as a complete liberation.
There was even a hint.
Harold's parting words.
- Dad will always be watching over Mirabelle.
It might seem insignificant, but there was a tiny hint hidden there.
'Dad' will always be watching over Mirabelle.
Why only Dad?
Naredi died before Harold, which he knew, so why not Mom and Dad?
As if Naredi was still alive.
It wasn't even a prediction, more like a cliché if anything. The father you thought was alive is dead, and the mother you thought was dead is alive.
The only problem was not knowing where she was.
To find Naredi's location, you would need to progress through the game to a certain point, but of course, I already knew.
At first, I thought, 'Couldn't we just find Naredi from the start and end it easily?' In the game, you would have to follow a set route, but now I could just go meet her if I wanted.
But there were risks.
I couldn't predict what would happen if we had a reunion without increasing affection or seeking revenge.
So I followed the regular route and gathered all the pieces. I had solved all the problems that needed solving, so now we just needed to put the pieces together.
We were climbing the mountain now to put those pieces together, and Naredi was somewhere around here.
"Huff, huff... L-Let's take a short break."
In a nameless village slightly removed from Fracture.
Mirabelle's hometown.
There was a small mountain behind it, which we were currently climbing.
For someone like me who found even going to the convenience store a chore, let alone a mountain, this was nothing short of torture. Though comparing it to Harold's pain... well, even I admit that would be a bit much.
Objectively speaking, it was a bit less than that.
"We're resting again?"
"Again you say. I am merely being considerate in case Miss Mirabelle gets tired. Wow, what a kind master I am, even thinking about my slave's well-being."
"I'm fine though? There wasn't much to do in the village except run around, so this much doesn't tire me out. Shall we keep going?"
You're going to play dirty like that, huh?
Well, this Karamir can't go on anymore.
Mirabelle can carry me if she wishes.
I sat down and spread out on the ground. Mirabelle had no choice but to stop too. She looked down at me with contemptuous eyes.
"...Sigh."
"Huh?"
Did she just sigh at me?
Mirabelle? At me?
To think the day would come when Mirabelle would sigh at me.
Wow, I was hurt beyond belief.
Mirabelle, who had just dealt me the greatest blow of my life, naturally sat down between my legs. She no longer hesitated to act as if this was her designated seat.
She turned to glance at me. She seemed to be expecting something. Having spent time together, I knew what she wanted, but I pretended not to notice. An adult's revenge, you could say.
When I didn't do anything, Mirabelle puffed up her cheeks and locked eyes with me, unblinking. She glared at me as if about to shoot lasers, then abruptly grabbed my arms and wrapped them around her waist.
Finally satisfied, she leaned back comfortably, but that was it. I didn't tighten my hold or hug her. My arms just hung loosely around her.
Mirabelle turned her head once more.
I continued to feign ignorance.
"Do you... have something you want to say?"
"You're being mean..."
"It's difficult in places with many people, you see."
"...I see. I suppose it would be hard with lots of people around."
Mirabelle had the Heavenly Covenant, but Naredi didn't. As a witch, she had no choice but to hide in a remote place like this.
"We're almost there now. We're getting closer to your mother."
"Yeah. The sky is getting closer and closer..."
Huh, why was she suddenly looking at the sky? More importantly, Mirabelle let out a sigh. We were going to see her mother, but for some reason, her mood seemed down.
"What's wrong? Don't you want to see your mother?"
"I do want to see her. As much as when Master first said he'd let me meet Mom. But..."
"But?"
"I've developed some lingering attachment... I want to delay my liberation a bit..."
What?
She doesn't want to be liberated?
Why?
Don't tell me she's had a change of heart at this point?
"What kind of attachment?"
"That's..."
Mirabelle didn't explain her reason.
She just stared at me silently.
What's this?
Is the cause related to me?
Has she grown too attached to me and doesn't want to part?
Given how she had been treating me lately, it almost made sense yet utterly ridiculous. I chuckled at my own narcissistic delusion.
Think about it logically.
Would she prefer her mother or a slave trader? It wasn't even a choice worth thinking over.
"Master, there's a house over there."
As I walked lost in thought, Mirabelle pointed to a spot. In the middle of the mountain where there should be no signs of human habitation, a lone cabin stood.
"Hmmm, how strange that someone lives deep in the mountain like this. Shall we stop by?"
"We should be careful. There might be strange people in such a remote place."
"With Miss Mirabelle here, I'm not worried."
"Hehe."
We slowly approached the cabin. Ready to respond to any situation, Mirabelle held the Heavenly Covenant with both hands as we moved.
As we got closer to the cabin, the smell of food wafted towards us. As if someone inside was cooking.
"...Huh?"
Mirabelle reacted.
"What's wrong?"
"Th-That... This smell... I-It can't be... Huh?"
Mirabelle muttered incomprehensibly. She lowered her staff and, as if entranced by the smell, started walking towards the cabin. Her small steps gradually widened until she was running.
I followed behind at a leisurely pace, hands clasped behind my back.
"Haa, ha... haah..."
She arrived at the cabin in one breath.
Mirabelle, who had claimed climbing the mountain was nothing, was now gasping for air in front of a single door. She stared blankly at it before grabbing the handle with trembling hands and pushing.
The door creaked open with a wooden scraping sound.
Beyond the door, someone jerked their head back in surprise.
An adult woman's figure.
Short hair in a lighter shade of indigo than Mirabelle's.
Her features resembled Mirabelle's, but she lacked Mirabelle's chubby cheeks and looked rather thin.
She had been in the middle of cooking, crouched in front of a pot.
Thud.
Clatter.
The Heavenly Covenant fell from Mirabelle's hand and rolled on the floor. Mirabelle, unable to take her eyes off the woman, stared blankly and then...
"...Mom?"
She called out to the woman.
"Mirabelle...?"
As if time was flowing in slow motion, the woman stood up. Her blue eyes widened in shock, as if she had seen something she shouldn't.
Mirabelle moved her legs towards the woman. The motion was quite different from walking. It was more like her body was being pulled towards the woman, like a law of nature.
Before she knew it, Mirabelle stood in front of the woman. The two look-alikes couldn't move first, just staring at each other.
The woman opened and closed her mouth several times, trying to say something, before finally managing to utter a word.
"Is it... really you, Mirabelle? Is it really my daughter Mirabelle? Mom's not seeing things, right?"
"Mom... It's Mom. Mommy is so beautiful."
Biting her lower lip and trembling, the woman suddenly stretched out her arms and hugged Mirabelle. She held her as if she might crush her, with all her might.
The woman's name was Naredi.
Mirabelle's mother.
The one waiting at the end of Mirabelle's True Ending, Reunion.
Mirabelle hugged Naredi back. She cried at the top of her lungs, as if releasing every emotion she had suppressed until now.
"Mommy! It's Mommy! It's really Mommy!"
"Yes, yes... It's Mom. My daughter. How did you get here?"
"Dad...! Because of me, Dad...!"
"...It's okay. It's okay because Mirabelle is safe. Dad will be happy too, knowing Mirabelle is safe and sound."
Naredi comforted Mirabelle while holding back her own tears.
But the tragedy experienced over several months wasn't something that could be easily suppressed. No matter how much of a great witch Mirabelle had become, inside she was still a fragile young girl.
Mirabelle choked back her sobs and poured out a torrent of pent-up emotions.
The raw feelings she released were enough to make your heart ache just by watching.
After Naredi comforted her for a while, Mirabelle's crying finally began to subside. She had reached a point where even if she wanted to shed more tears, there were no tears left to cry.
"But... who might that gentleman be?"
After calming Mirabelle down, Naredi stared at me over her shoulder.
When someone asks who you are, it's only polite to answer.
"Hello. I am Karamir, a slave trader. I am Mirabelle's master."