[No Title]
What hatched from the egg was a yellow chick. As if to prove it was a phoenix chick, a flame the size of a candle flickered at its tail.
Peeeeeep!
Its downy fluff looked surprisingly fluffy for a newborn.
'What is this... It's a chick.'
Disappointment naturally set in. I'd heard that some exceptional spirit beasts could even take human form. I'd imagined a beautiful woman with wings on her back. But with a chick like this, the polymorph I'd secretly hoped for seemed unlikely.
Flash. The moment the egg hatched, the world shook as if collapsing. After that, when I came to, we were back at the auction house.
"Princess..?!" Helena's guard was staring with a shocked expression. A sense of déjà vu hit me. It was the same expression as right before we were teleported to the snowy mountain.
"Ah..? What did I just... Princess. I apologize." The guard, who had been flustered for a moment, returned to a blank expression. As if nothing had happened.
When I looked down, the fur coat I had been wearing was gone without a trace. The scenery around me was exactly the same as just before the teleportation to the snowy mountain.
'What the...?'
Peeep? I met eyes with the chick in my arms. It wasn't a dream or an illusion.
The auction house, which had been silent as if a mute button had been pressed, became noisy again. I could hear people talking.
"What was that silence just now..? Didn't it feel a bit ominous?"
"Ah..! I know this. A ghost passed by."
"What..? Don't joke around."
The staff managing the magic circle were frowning and hurriedly replacing the mana stones.
"What the hell! Why is the mana already depleted?"
Helena narrowed her brows and looked at her wrist. The jewel that had been pulled from her bracelet had returned.
I observed Michael, who was following a few steps behind. The guy was picking up the phoenix feather that had fallen to the floor with a bewildered expression. I stared at him, and our eyes met.
"What is it?"
"A moment ago... No, do you remember when it snowed?"
"Sn, snow..? About half a year ago... I'm not sure."
Lie detection result: truth. Michael seemed to remember nothing.
Helena looked at him and then spoke.
"Could I see that feather for a moment?"
"Yes..?! Why, why..?"
"Hey. What are you doing, Michael. Give it to her quickly."
"Ugh.. Yes.. Hic."
At his father's command, Michael held out the feather with trembling hands. His face crumpled like a child whose candy had been taken away. Seeing that, and seeing that, Si-woo narrowed his eyes. His attitude was subtly different from at the snowy mountain.
'Something's strange..?'
As I was pondering what was bothering me, I heard Helena's telepathy.
"I don't feel anything from the feather."
"Really..? I took it and examined it, and it felt like an empty shell. It seemed incapable of amplifying even flames, let alone space. It's useless like this."
"I'll need to investigate. I have something to check, so let's return the feather for now. Could you give it back to me?"
A faint mana wriggled from Helena as she took the feather. It was at a level that was hard to sense even while watching right next to her.
'Oh..?'
But only for a moment. Her mana, which had seeped into the feather, disappeared without a trace. I didn't know what spell it was, but even when I focused my senses, I couldn't feel it.
Helena returned the feather to Michael.
"Ahh..! Thank you so much." Michael grinned happily.
Watching that, Helena whispered something to the guard behind her. The guard, who had been nodding with a serious face, broke her expressionless mask upon hearing the final instruction. She stared at Si-woo with shocked eyes. But only for a moment. Closing her eyes tightly, she whispered quietly.
"...Yes. I'll make a reservation."
Taking a small breath, Helena spoke to Si-woo.
"Si-woo. You've worked hard, so let's go res, rest for now. Us."
This was a restaurant where Si-woo had eaten a few times with Kang Hyun-ah. This time, he came with Helena.
'Well. This place is delicious.' It seemed to be a famously good restaurant.
While waiting for the food, we reviewed the CCTV footage that Helena's guard had obtained. The moment the feather in Michael's hand shook slightly, the screen went out. When the screen, which had been static for a few seconds, came back on, the same scene as before continued.
"Hmm... It's impressive. To the point where I'm curious how it was done."
"Indeed."
I was curious about what the phoenix had done and how, but there was no one to ask.
Helena handed the yellow chick to her guard, Tasha.
Peeep! The yellow chick flapped its tiny, fist-sized wings. Cradled in Tasha's arms, it sent a pitiful look. Since it might be dangerous, we decided to decide whether to keep it after a thorough examination.
"Then... I'll bring this child back after the examination."
"Thank you, Tasha. And that... did you do it?"
Tasha closed her eyes tightly and whispered.
"Yes.. I did."
"Ahem...! Th, thank you."
Tasha, having received Helena's instructions, left, and the two of them were alone. We decided to deal with the remaining matters regarding the snowy mountain after resting a bit. Because Helena had already given instructions for the urgent matters.
* I had been to this restaurant several times. But as if it were my first time, I asked Helena questions while eating the appetizers. Sure enough, a satisfied smile hung on one side of her face.
"Really.. it's been a long day."
"Right. It was incredibly long. But it was also good."
Especially that brief hug I felt on my back was the best. Whether she understood or not, Helena's face flushed a little.
Knock knock.
"Excuse me. I'll serve the next dish."
The chef carefully placed a thin, finger-sized fried item on the plate.
"This is fried Sunflower Lion whiskers."
"...Yes?"
I looked at him, wondering why we would eat something like this when there was plenty of other food, and the chef cleared his throat. He alternated glances between Helena and me, speaking with a hint of envy.
"Sunflower Lion whiskers are very good for the body. They're where yang energy is stored until an inner core forms. Especially... well..."
There was a subtle nuance in the chef's words. Helena, whose face had reddened slightly, cut off the chef.
"Ahem..! That's enough explanation. Si-woo. Please try it. You worked so hard today. That's why I ordered it as a nourishing dish."
And with that, she even picked it up with chopsticks and fed it to me.
"Here, ah.."
I could feel the chef, who was leaving, staring wide-eyed with envy.
"Is it to your liking?"
"Hmm.. It's not bad. A bit like seaweed tempura."
A slightly salty and crispy taste. Especially since it was said to be good for that, it felt even more delicious.
That's when it started. Helena began picking up various things and feeding me.
"Eat this too. It's good for you."
Every single one was famously nourishing.
"Helena, let's eat together. You were tired too, weren't you?"
"Should I..?"
Her eyes looked at me with expectation. I deboned the steamed Sunflower Lion meat. I picked up a large piece of meat and put it into Helena's slightly open mouth. She trembled slightly and smiled.
"Mmm..! It's delicious!"
It felt like the fatigue accumulated in my body and mind was melting away. Plus, it tasted great. I couldn't tell if the chef was skilled or if the Sunflower Lion itself was delicious. Probably both.
The happy meal continued. A meal that relieved the fatigue of the ordeal.
"By the way, where was that place?"
"Ah.. You mean that snowy mountain?"
Helena, who had been pondering for a moment, spoke.
"Honestly, I'm not sure exactly. I think it was a mix of the phoenix's mental image and its seal."
"Mental image, huh."
I had felt mental images a few times before. I recalled the stormy sea that raged in my mind when I took the elixir. A moment of curiosity arose. What would have happened if I had died or been injured there? But there was no need to check.
* As the meal was nearing its end, Helena's condition became strange. She fidgeted with a slightly flushed face.
"Ju, just a moment. Excuse me."
Then she went out for about a minute and came back in.
'Hmm..?'
I could tell because I had been observing her closely since earlier. The fine dust that had been on Helena's clothes. All of that had disappeared. As if she had used a Clean artifact.
'It's the vibe.'
I immediately pretended to go to the bathroom and used a Clean artifact. Clean enough to