Volume 5 Chapter 11 Assistant
'Alright. But, there are no signs in the sky, and even if I tell you the coordinates, you probably won't understand. It seems your assistant is ready to talk now, so I will tell her your location. You should listen while flying.'
"Okay, please do."
After a moment, a young girl's voice, speaking slowly, echoed in my ears.
'Ally...?'
This childish voice... this way of calling me?
'Hey, Ally...?'
A young girl's image appeared in Al's mind. A little girl with blonde hair... holding hands... going out to the forest during a break in the rain, with a gentle smile... Wait a minute, could it be? Al's eyes widened in surprise.
"Glee?"
The assistant's voice was exactly the same as that of his twin sister, Ingrid, who he lost when they were young. Al was confused. Why does she sound like his sister?
'You must have held that assistant device tightly and shared your feelings with it. The assistant said it has been wrapped in warmth all this time. I�ve never heard of this happening before, but it seems a new assistant was created from that device after a long time. Usually, assistants like me are born with full personalities right away. I think the long period of low mana may have caused it to have limited functions...'
Malachi, who usually explains things in detail, gave a strangely unclear explanation this time.
"Could it be that Ingrid's soul is here?"
Al had heard that when a person dies with strong resentment, their spirit can linger in a place or object. If they cause harm, they become undead and are destroyed, but sometimes they protect their home.
'That device seems to have been made in a later time than mine, so there are many parts I don't understand. However, it was able to receive knowledge from me (download). So, it should be an assistant.'
"Glee? Is it Glee?"
Al took out a pendant from around his neck, holding it with both hands and staring at it as if praying.
"I... don�t really know. The only clear memory I have is from 13 days ago. Someone held me tightly and used magic. It felt like I was reborn, and the mist around me cleared. My memories before that are unclear. I remember dark times and bright times, but they are jumbled. The one thing I know for sure is that Ally was always there, holding me, and I felt warm."
The voice was just like the one in his memory, but the way of speaking didn't seem like a 3-year-old. Still, he couldn't clearly remember how Ingrid spoke back then, so he couldn't point out how it was different from now.
Al pressed his lips together tightly and thought deeply. He closed his eyes and looked up lightly at the sky. After a while, he opened his mouth.
"...I'm really confused. I have doubts that I might be tricked, and a faint, no, foolish? hope that maybe Glee isn't dead, but more than that, I'm just happy to hear Glee's voice."
Al took a moment to pause and took a deep breath. The light in the crystal pendant flickered gently.
"I really value this pendant. My grandpa gave it to me, and I keep it close. When I'm feeling down, I hold it tightly. Maybe that's why Glee talks to me this way. I�m not sure if it�s just an assistant or my sister�s spirit. But right now, I want to accept you, Glee. Thank you, nice to meet you."
The light in the crystal pendant grew even brighter.
'Nice to meet you too, Ally.'
When Al asked Ingrid about the Tempest research tower he heard Malachi mention, she told him it was two days of flying away and floating high in the sky. Al worried he might not be able to use the 'Fly' spell, but he also learned there were ancient ruins at that location.
"Well then, Malachi, I'll take the princess, who is a descendant of the Tempest, to her aunt. After that, I'll do my best to help her survive."
After saying that, Al remembered he had to convince Orson. Knowing him, he would probably say to do whatever he wanted, but...
'Alright, I'll leave it to you. I hope Ingrid finds happiness too.'
Al returned Malachi back into the coffin of the Tempest.
* * *
The next day, Al and the others had a quick breakfast with leftover deer meat, wild plants, and some beans before heading to the village of Clarence at the mountain�s foot. Orson had lost a lot of weight in the past month, so without his gear, he could sit on the 'Carrier' spell disk with Patricia, which made traveling easier. In the village, they got food supplies, old clothes for Patricia and Joanna, and blankets for sleeping.
Patricia's face remained dark when she had her hair re-braided by Joanna. But, after their visit to the hot spring last night, Patricia felt refreshed, and her dull golden hair had turned a stunning platinum blonde. With her striking features, she knew she was drawing attention, so she decided to cover her face with a scarf. Joanna, the female knight, also stood out. They placed her damaged armor in a basket with their collected clothes. Dressed in a male farmer's outfit and carrying a ragged sword wrapped in cloth, she looked strangely attractive, especially with her short hair. As they walked through town, Joanna was sure to catch the attention of many women.
"It's still early afternoon... Should we head to Outis while it's still light?"
Orson looked up at the sky and murmured to himself. At first, he was surprised by the two girls and felt unsure about talking to them. However, when he thought about possibly getting thanks from Viscount Lester, he decided to join them. He was still a bit wobbly but was slowly getting better, and his mind was clearer now.
"Yeah, Ms. Joanna is really fast, so if we go to Outis's town, there are inns there. If we get there, we should reach Milton city by tomorrow night and the border city Lester by the night after."
The journey to Clarence village took a week from Outis's town, mainly because they had to ask for directions since they didn't know the village's name. If they had gone straight there, it wouldn't have taken long. Joanna realized this when they were leaving the hot spring area for the village. As a knight with the 'Physical Boost' spell, she could move faster than Al. Because of that, she could move faster than Al using the 'Physical Boost' spell. Well, Al used the relatively rare 'Carrier' spell, so he would try to avoid being seen by others while moving, but it seemed like they could still travel at a pretty good speed.
"Ah, for me with my bad legs, it could take about a week to cover that distance. The 'Carrier' spell and the 'Physical Boost' spell, huh? Magicians aren't just showing off after all. Or maybe Al is just really amazing."
"Yeah, even though it's a rough mountain area, since I started using the 'Physical Boost' spell, this is the first time I've felt like I might not be able to catch up with Mr Al. I think it's something to be proud of."
Even if he was praised for running away, Al thought a bit about it... but he decided to take it as a sincere compliment.
"Well, Sir Al..."
Saying this, Patricia stared intently at Al with her deep, clear green eyes. Her serious expression made Al feel unsure about what to do.
"So, what are we going to do when we get to Lester? I heard it's better to keep Lady Patricia's identity a secret, right? But there's no way to contact Lady Tara directly."
Patricia's aunt, Tara, is the official wife of Viscount Lester, and a regular person can't just contact her. However, Patricia revealing her identity could reach the ears of the new king who caused a political change in the neighboring country of Tempest, which they want to avoid at all costs.
"Yeah, I think Sir Naresh should be finishing his classes and coming back soon. So, I plan to contact Sir Naresh through Kane. If that doesn't work, then we can try to reach Lady Tara directly through Sir Levy."
Naresh and Al were classmates in middle school. Now, Naresh is in a higher school. This school also has 2 terms, with long breaks in spring and autumn that last about a month. These breaks help students who live far away to go home, as many stay in dorms. In middle school, there was a break after exams in late August, so Al wondered if Naresh had already gone home.
"I see. Then, I'll leave it to you. I'll just relax on Al's 'Carrier' chair and enjoy the view for a while."
At Orson's words, both Patricia and I smiled.
'I'm watching too.'
Glee whispered in a voice only Al could hear, as the pendant swayed at his chest.
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