The Princess Handling Manual
Hiassen, having finished straightening even the hem of her clothes, spoke to Nami in a deeply serious tone.
"Estasha... Honestly, I hope you never come to see us again."
It was incomprehensible to Nami. First, let's hear the reason, she thought.
"...Why?"
"You always, always only show up here when you're backed into a corner... You said you'd finished everything you wanted to do. What more are you planning?"
What else? It was the same old worry Hiassen would chant like a cuckoo clock. But his eyes looked so sad that she swallowed the casual brush-off she'd prepared.
"That's not why I came today."
"Then?"
Nami glanced up the hill at her friends munching on Kaizen Empire desserts handed out by Niobe.
"Nothing's really hard. I eat well, sleep well. Sure, they take a lot of effort, but I've got a bunch of cute friends. Lately, I've just... really missed you guys for real."
"We're not real. Don't tie yourself to the past anymore."
"I know... I get it... But what can I do when I keep thinking about you?"
Nami knew it too. Alchemist was nothing but an illusion from start to finish. At first, you could dip into memories and feel that happiness for a moment, but the emptiness hit when you realized you had to return to reality. And as the manifested people became aware of their own situations, the manifestation rate dropped, sealing their fate to never meet again.
Thirteen-year-old Hiassen understood, but ten-year-old Niobe didn't. In this fragile false world, Hiassen was genuinely worried for his half-sister.
"Anyway, I came today to cheer up our friends, so don't worry."
"You mean it? I can really believe you?"
"The kids must've overheard me muttering the Raoul-Sis spell in my sleep. I felt bad for worrying them, so I showed them something fun."
Nami couldn't tolerate a pajama party she'd hosted turning into a flop because of her own slip-up. Since the conversation had veered this way, she decided to share a bit about her new life.
"By the way, in the world I live in now, magic costs money?"
"...? What do you mean, magic costs money?"
"They tax mana there. Pretty wild, right? That's why I probably won't visit often."
Nami slapped Hiassen's back a couple times hard to shake off the gloomy mood.
"I'm struggling just to pay off debts, but I came to see you without a second thought, so be grateful."
With the Akashic Record debt still looming and now Alchemist on top, but with Professor Cheon who could pay any amount instantly, capital's constraints on Nami were practically nonexistent.
"Esha, you still haven't fixed that habit of throwing money around!"
"Never will in this lifetime. Better to think about earning more than saving what you have."
Having learned through multiple lives that scrimping never left you with anything anyway, Nami's spendthrift ways were incorrigible.
Back at the picnic spot, Yuna and Haru were huddled with Niobe, whispering and giggling so hard Niobe's shoulders shook. That was usually a sign of some mischievous prank brewing.
Curious what they were plotting, Nami tiptoed closer on her toes.
"Hehe. Should I really tell you? What's Esha's favorite panty color?"
"Niobe, you wanna get hit? What've you been telling the kids while I was gone?"
"Eeeeek! E... E-E-Esha? When did you get here...?"
* * *
Niobe, having taken a knuckle rap on the head from Nami, made scissoring sounds in the air. She kept rubbing the sore spot on her scalp.
"Doogoo-doogoo-doogoo! Alright, let's begin!"
As an apology, Niobe offered to trim Nami's messy hair. Nami's vehement protests were irrelevant.
"Esha hates anyone touching her hair without permission. There are steps to follow. You all better memorize them!"
Nami stifled a silly laugh at Niobe showboating in front of the kids and half-closed her eyes. Yuna's gaze especially turned solemn. Nami had always despised anyone touching her hair, no matter what. Apparently, she never went to salons and cut it herself.
Niobe had her ways. She sat Nami in an improvised chair and draped a white silk cloth around her neck.
"First, hug her from behind like this!"
"Hug her?"
"Yeah, squeeze tight! Esha's not ticklish on her neck, so it's fine."
Hooking the scissors on her pinky, Niobe wrapped both arms around Nami. The tension in her shoulders seemed to ease a bit.
"How's that, Esha?"
"A little hard to breathe..."
"Everyone hear that? Hug her this tight."
She'd held on so long it felt like two minutes before her arms finally slipped away. Next, Niobe threaded her fingers through Nami's hair, grabbed her shoulders, and kneaded them.
"Gotta give her a good shoulder massage too, or she'll get startled later!"
Her tiny, reed-thin hands kneading away—did it even work? But her face was the picture of earnest effort.
"That's it?" Haru asked.
"Nope! One more left. Wanna try making claw hands like this?"
Niobe demonstrated first, then pinched Nami's exposed earlobes between her fingers and rubbed.
"Tickle-tickle~ Now you try. Tickle-tickle~"
Hesitant if it was really okay, they barely brushed their fingers against it, and Nami's ears twitched nonstop.
"So soft..."
"Yeah."
"Be careful not to let wind in her ears! They're super sensitive."
Her earlobes flushed pink and warm from the girls' teasing. But the girl with closed eyes remained calmly serene.
"Once that's done, ask permission. Esha, can I cut your hair now?"
"Yeah..."
"Success! Bro, come help!"
"Why am I always the one cutting?"
"'Cause I'm bad at it, hehe."
Hiassen took the scissors from Niobe. Snip-snip. He trimmed slowly so as not to startle her. With each crossing of the blades, her haphazardly uneven locks fell back into place. Strands of jet-black hair rained down onto the grass like ink.
"You girls wanna brush it?"
Yuna and Haru combed from both sides, clearing out the stray hairs.
"All done. You can open your eyes now."
At the gentle voice, Nami fluttered her eyes open. Yuna and Haru stared at her with sparkling eyes.
"How is it? Okay?"
No mirror, so she couldn't check. Nami asked the girls uncertainly.
"Yeah! Nami looks super pretty!"
"Not cutting more? Still seems long."
"Nah. Cut too much, and I won't be able to come back next time."
Hoping there's a next time. Nami fiddled with her hair for a good while, seemingly pleased.
* * *
Nami bid them farewell. Alchemist had time left, but she wanted to give Yuna and Haru their turns too.
"Your turn now. Yuna first?"
"Me? Uh... What do I do?"
"Just think of your happiest moment ever. We'll move there now."
"Wha? I don't know...!"
Recursive Casting: Alchemist
A familiar scene unfolded before her eyes. Seferon Academy, Class 2-A. Yuna panicked at the unexpected sight. The blackboard's top right read March 28th—the date from earlier that week, easy to recognize.
"Hurry up and play air badminton already!"
Kids from the back of the classroom yelled. At the three girls.
Yuna buried her face in Nami's back, mumbling shyly.
"I don't need to see more... Give it to Haru."
"Ooh, air badminton was fun, huh? Worth sharing."
"Yeah... 'Cause we could all play together..."
Maybe Yuna kept updating her happiest moments day by day. Nami ruffled her hair thoroughly; she was blushing so hard she couldn't recover.
"Haru, you ready?"
"Huh? Yeah..."
Last was Haru's turn. Alchemist showed whatever the subconscious deemed happiest—no predicting it. It might differ from what she thought.
Haru squeezed her eyes shut, praying desperately. Please be a moment when Mom was still alive. So many words left unsaid, like "I love you."