Yuna and I conducted a preliminary examination of Bennett's sister. However, without proper facilities and equipment, it was difficult to scan the situation, and there might even be issues with her soul.
"We should go to the Academy. There, we can conduct a more precise examination."
"......"
"Don’t worry too much. From what I’ve seen, her soul is intact."
I tried to reassure Bennett, who looked troubled, as I announced our return.
Selvia seemed ready to follow without needing to be asked, and the elves only needed to retrieve the artifact that had fallen to the ground and return it. However, one person’s stance remained uncertain.
"......Sister."
"Ah, yes. Sissel."
It was Sissel, the younger sister.
Sissel Yurensto awkwardly addressed her sister, unsure of how to interact after such a long time apart.
"It's been 15 years. Have you been well?"
"I think I've been doing well overall. How about you, Sissel?"
"Me too... Yes, overall."
"That's good to hear. Yes..."
Yuna also seemed just as awkward. Even though they had seen each other in the Holy City, it was still strange.
That's right, Sissel didn't recognize the 'mysterious masked young lady magician X,' who had concealed her identity. So for her, this really was their first reunion in over a decade.
"How’s Jewel doing?"
"According to the last letter I received, she’s looking for a suitor."
"I see... I see..."
"Mm..."
The awkward, stifling conversation made it hard for anyone to breathe, let alone watch. I couldn’t just stand by any longer, so I subtly intervened.
Of course, I wasn’t trying to rudely intrude on a family conversation. My intention was simply to arrange a more comfortable and safe place for them to talk.
"Shall we move? You can catch up in our comfortable and safe home."
"Oh, yes. Let's do that...?"
"Yes, let’s."
The following journey was straightforward. We went to the nearest major city, took a teleportation spell to a location near the Academy, and used illusion magic to tame a passing wyvern as a mount.
And after a few hours of flying, we arrived at the Academy.
The long journey of Mima had finally come to an end.
I’m back.
Back at the Academy.
After being shattered into dozens of pieces, scattered across the continent, activating Selvia’s powers, crushing the plans of a notorious dark mage, and half-saving Bennett’s sister, I had finally returned to my familiar home.
I left Bennett, Sissel, and her sister in the parlor for the time being.
When I opened the door to my lab with a fluttering heart, Pingvalese, dressed in a suit and apron, greeted me with an indifferent expression.
"You've returned. Would you like to eat first, bathe together, or perhaps..."
"Yuri, it’s great to see you!"
I immediately hugged her.
The sensation was different from hugging the petite Yuna. Hugging Yuri, I could feel an emotional force from her chest. Yuri smiled faintly and patted my back.
"Did you miss me?"
"Of course I did."
"Words aren’t very convincing, especially considering you’ve brought another woman with you. Can you prove it, Mima?"
"......"
Yuri’s piercing words left me at a loss for a response.
She was my childhood friend and a girl who liked me, but considering my loyalty to both Yuna and Yuri, perhaps I should have firmly drawn the line earlier.
Yuri stood on tiptoe, resting her chin on my shoulder as she spoke.
"It’s alright. Even if you are that kind of person. As a woman, I can’t say it doesn’t bother me that you keep bringing more women into the picture, but..."
She smiled lazily.
"No matter how many wolves circle around, it won’t matter if I’m the first to devour you."
"......?!"
She tripped me, pinned me down, and held my collar in place while pressing her lips to my neck. I could feel her hot breath and a chill ran down my spine.
Smooch.
I felt the soft touch of her lips on my carotid artery.
And then... it intensified.
It started with a light kiss, but then something thick and sticky followed. It felt like she was trying to devour my neck. I was being eaten alive!
Afterward, a variety of kisses, sounds, and sensations followed that I never would have imagined could come from a person’s neck and lips.
"Y-Y-Yuri, what are you doing?!"
"I... Ugh... Mmm..."
Not just me, but Yuna and Selvia, who were standing behind me, were stunned by the intensity.
What just happened to me? If that had been on the lips instead of the neck, what would have happened? Could I have maintained my sanity and survived?
As I stared up at the ceiling in a daze.
"You belong to me. Answer, Mima."
"Yes, ma'am..."
Yuri extracted a response from my mentally weakened state and then...
She flashed a smile at Selvia, as if to say, "Try to intervene if you can. There’s nothing you can do now."
"Just wait! You just wait and see!"
Selvia, her face bright red and on the verge of exploding, ran off with a third-rate villain’s line. It was essentially a declaration of surrender.
The succubus’s eyes then turned to Yuna.
"Do you want some too, Tower Master? I can do it for you."
"No, no, no! No!"
"But you were watching so intently. Yuna, there’s nothing faster than learning through the body. Someday, you’ll want Mima to—"
"I’m off to set up the magic circles! I need to prepare for Bennett’s sister’s examination! I’m busy!"
With a flurry, Yuna turned into a butterfly and fled.
Having dominated the battlefield of love with a single strike, Yuri Lanster gently patted my thigh and declared her victory.
"I was worried when I heard you’d been shattered into pieces, but you seem quite healthy. I’m relieved."
"...I apologize. Can you get off now?"
"Go ahead and try to bring more women. See what happens."
"......"
It sounded to me like she was saying, "I don’t mind if you bring more women because that just gives me an excuse to devour you."
I decided that the fact a group of elves had developed feelings for me thanks to a certain crazy raven would be a secret I’d take to my grave.
"Yuna, can you adjust that magic circle?"
"Ah, sure. Should I increase the sensitivity a bit?"
"Sounds good. Selvia, can you take care of circle number 32? Just inject magic into each point and rotate it clockwise to align it. There’s a manual there, so you should be able to manage."
"W-What is this magic circle? I’ve never seen anything like this even in the Red Tower... No, no, Selvia, you can do this."
I laid Bennett’s sister on the bed and, along with the other mages, adjusted and checked the health assessment magic circles. Yuna and I were relaxed, while Selvia, overwhelmed by the vast knowledge, wore a puzzled expression.
Her struggle with a relatively simple magic circle was somewhat endearing. This is why you take on graduate students.
Bennett watched anxiously from his chair, while Sissel tilted her head back and forth, as if something felt familiar.
And it made sense—these were the same spells we used to examine Sissel’s soul.
"Alright, let’s take a closer look. Let’s find out why Bennett’s sister hasn’t woken up yet."
Bzzz—
Dozens of magic circles spun, emitting magical lights of various properties. The colored lights scanned over the sister’s body, feeding data into a holographic monitor.
This body had been in the clutches of a notorious dark mage. I was expecting severe injuries, perhaps even a shattered soul, but things looked better than I thought.
"Her soul is intact... It seems like it was under a lot of pressure, but it looks fine, right?"
"Yes. In fact, Sissel’s soul was in worse shape."
"Then it must be a physical issue. Let’s see. Selvia? Magic circle number 57."
"Number 57... What’s number 57? This one? What is this...?"
Thirty minutes later, the examination was complete.
I tried to ease Bennett’s worries with a direct explanation.
"It’s nothing serious. It’s just that she doesn’t have much time left."
"How can it be nothing serious if she doesn’t have much time left, you crazy mage-!!"
"Hey, in a fantasy world, what’s easier to extend than a lifespan? You should be thankful her soul isn’t shattered!"
As I tried to calm down Bennett, who was shaking me by the collar more than usual, I continued to explain.
"You know, Bennett. Did you ever wonder why the ‘Corpse Flower’ chose your sister’s body, or why she kept her alive and used her for so long even after you escaped?"
"...I was told her body was well-suited for the Corpse Flower."
"It’s more than just a good match. It seems your sister had a talent similar to yours, but in a different direction. Her soul has a self-repair function."
This was the body of a dark mage who had been scheming and growing her power for 300 years. If it hadn’t been useful, she would have cut it up and used it to shatter Bennett’s psyche long ago. It’s no surprise that she had an extraordinary talent.
But even considering that, there’s something strange. Why would a dark mage leave the soul of the body she seized?
That’s where the soul’s self-repair function comes in.
"You can see traces where the Corpse Flower used your sister’s soul to cast dark magic. But her soul is relatively intact. Curious, I checked, and it turns out she was healing her soul’s wounds by using up her body’s lifespan."
In short, Bennett’s sister has a passive ability that sacrifices her maximum HP to recover MP. Whether this is innate or something created by the Corpse Flower is unknown.
But it’s an interesting trait. If she could replenish her lifespan, she could spam dark magic to her heart’s content.
If Bennett had been the younger sibling and his sister the elder, and their roles had been reversed... A dark mage of immense power might have been born.
"So, the reason Berda hasn’t woken up is..."
"Yes. She used up almost all her body’s lifespan to heal the wounds in her soul. Physically, she’s equivalent to an elderly woman."
"I’ll go to the Holy City. I’ll ask Tara to heal Berda."
"Not a great idea. The goddess’s power is primarily about maintaining the status quo. It might restore her energy, but it would take a lot of effort to extend her shortened lifespan."
In other words, HP recovery is possible, but increasing the maximum HP would be difficult.
So, how can we wake this sleeping princess? A few methods come to mind.
The first is training.
Lifespan generally correlates with strength, so if Bennett’s sister were to awaken and become a powerful being, she might open her eyes. But training is impossible for a body in a coma.
"So, we could try the session..."
"You’re suggesting we throw my sister into that hellscape, you crazy mage!"
Bennett, remembering the trauma of Cthulhu, shook me by the collar again. If this method doesn’t appeal to him, there’s another option.
If the soul is fine and the body is the problem, why not just discard the body?
I’ve turned a body into an information lifeform before. I’m confident I could transfer her soul into a fully armored golem or something else. A cyborg body capable of rocket punches has its own charm, doesn’t it?
"Let’s change her body. I can transfer her soul into a machine—"
Just as I was about to explain the soul transplant process.
Thump!
"Ouch!"
Yuna struck the back of my head with her staff, silencing me physically. After the crisp sound of the hit, I slumped down as Yuna suggested a third option.
"Have you heard of the Alchemist’s Guild? There’s someone named Artere who leads it. She can create an elixir that extends lifespan. It only lasts about a year, but..."
"......"
"Let’s get the elixir and wake Berda up first. Once her condition is stable, holy magic will be more effective. After that, we can take our time finding a solution and training her! What do you think?"
"...Alright. I’ll go find the Alchemist’s Guild leader."
Yuna’s ‘Let’s extend our lifespans together and live happily ever after’ plan shines through here. She’s been diligently researching ways to extend lifespans.
As I staggered to my feet, I spoke.
"No, Bennett. Let’s go together. The guild leader is currently residing at the Northern Duke’s estate, and one of my fragments just so happened to fall there."
You might say I just got back home, only to head out again.
But think about the origin of this journey. Bennett got involved in this not to save his sister but simply to defeat the dark mage.
He acted out of pure goodwill.
Goodwill that ultimately led to saving his sister, so why not cap it off with a clean, happy ending?
I covered Bennett’s sister with layers of protective magic as I said.
"Let’s treat this as a light vacation. You don’t need to thank me."
"...Thank you."
"I said you don’t need to. And by the way, I’m actually friends with the Northern Duke? I’ll probably be able to get that elixir without much trouble."
Our next destination is the North. Let’s do this in a day trip.
I prepared to take on the form of Hart.
The Northern Duke’s estate.
The second wife, Neriel, peeked in and said.
"Hart, there are guests from the Violet Tower..."
"...Haha. Thanks for letting me know, Neriel. They’re definitely here for me. Hmm, honestly, I thought I had a bit more time. It looks like it’s time for me to leave—"
"But, one of the guests is Hart...?"
"What?"
Hart jumped up and pulled back the curtain, looking out at the entrance of the mansion. The sight was spectacular.
The Violet Tower Master, Yuri Lanster, Bennett, a woman who looked like a sleeping Bennett, and... the fantasy woman Hart (the original).
"........."
They overlapped...!!