Otter-Like Woman
Viola, returning to her quarters after finishing her work, felt a strange sensation. It seemed like the positions of various objects were slightly different from when she had left for her duties...
"Must be my imagination."
Unfortunately, Viola wasn't meticulous enough to prepare for any potential intruders.
Chloe was desperately trying to calm her pounding heart.
In truth, this was the only time Chloe had ever pushed Marian away first. Otherwise... well, aside from forcing her to brush her teeth properly after sweets and insisting on flossing every three days, nothing else came to mind.
"What if she hates me...?"
Just like Marian, Chloe was fretting over the possibility of being hated by her. To Chloe, Marian was more than a disciple she had raised herself, more than a little sister she had carried on her back, more than a child she had birthed in agony. If their bond were completely severed, if Rosetta's advice had been wrong after all... Chloe paced anxiously.
"No, it's fine. The miss likes me, right? If anything, she should be the one clinging to me. Puberty? Is it puberty that's the problem? I've made it clear I'm upset now? She'll definitely come to me. The Duchess said so too."
But...
"Why hasn't she come?"
Contrary to Rosetta's bold assurance, Marian showed no sign of rushing to Chloe's bedroom.
"D-Did it fail?"
Chloe bit her lower lip, a creeping fear taking hold. Marian was the first thing Chloe had ever truly created. In a life spent only killing and erasing, Marian was the first she'd nurtured and brought to bloom. If Marian now completely ignored her and declared she wanted nothing more to do with Chloe's teachings...
"N-No...!"
Chloe felt she would suffer a greater sense of loss than from any failed assassination mission. No, it would be even worse. Chloe had never failed an assassination, so the pain of her first failure, squared by the sorrow of Marian's rejection, would hit her like nothing before.
"Miss..."
In the end, unwilling to taste failure, Chloe decided to tuck her tail and go find Marian first. She hurriedly prepared and reached for the bedroom door handle to head out.
"Huh...?"
Before she could even pull, the door swung open, revealing a familiar face.
"Ch-Chloe..."
It was Marian. Forgetting all about her jealousy toward the bear doll just moments ago, she grabbed Chloe's hand and fought back tears. Then, in a low voice, she began confessing her sins.
"I-I'm such an idiot. I was secretly researching artifacts because I wanted a wish coupon from you, but it ended up cutting into our time together. I didn't even know what was important! I'm stupid, a total moron!"
"I-Is that what it was?"
"Y-Yeah... I wanted to make an artifact strong enough to satisfy you and challenge you again..."
Marian sniffled but held back her tears, gazing at Chloe with watery eyes brimming with sorrow, anticipation, excitement, fear, and terror all tangled together.
And Chloe...
"I'm sorry..."
"Huh? For what...?"
She pulled Marian's face to her chest, begging forgiveness.
"I thought you were borrowing naughty books..."
"Eh...?"
"That book was about artifacts, right? I thought you were borrowing dirty books and reading them. I figured puberty had hit and you were distancing yourself from me..."
"W-Why would I ever distance myself from you, Chloe?"
Marian looked utterly bewildered, as if she couldn't comprehend Chloe's words, but at the time, it had been a gravely serious worry for Chloe. It didn't matter now, of course.
"I-I would never distance myself from you. I won't ever leave you alone again, Chloe. We'll do everything together from now on. So please..."
Marian pleaded, burying her face in Chloe's chest.
"Don't ever say you'll leave me alone again. It was really, really scary..."
"Okay, I won't..."
Chloe accepted her plea, soothing Marian. Yes, there was no need to prepare for parting so soon. She could start bracing for their farewell three years from now, just before her tutoring term ended.
With that resolve, she held Marian close and didn't let go.
The night before, Chloe and Marian had fallen asleep locked in a tight embrace. After four days of cold distance, some compensatory instinct must have kicked in. Chloe woke at her usual time and gently stroked the still-sleeping Marian.
Having drifted off facing each other, Marian's face was right there, within arm's reach.
Is this what family feels like...?
Rosetta had told Chloe she was basically Marian's mother now. If she'd poured her heart into raising her, devoted herself fully, and now couldn't bear to part from the girl she'd nurtured...
That made her plenty of a 'mother' already, Rosetta had said, even passing on her own child-rearing wisdom.
Well, it had just been a little mishap born from a misunderstanding—Marian wanting to surprise her, nothing as serious as puberty...
Right?
Despite the hiccup, Chloe and Marian's bond remained as sticky as ever. They might not make it official on the family register as parent and child, but their connection rivaled any blood ties.
So...
I'll work even harder.
Chloe wanted to leave Marian with as much as possible. Their relationship couldn't evolve beyond the suspiciously close tutor-student dynamic, so she aimed to equip her to withstand any assassin's threat. Even after Chloe left the Grand Duke's castle one day, she wanted to smile—even if just a little—upon reading a newspaper headline about Evergreen's lady repelling an assassin targeting her.
Chloe intended to give her best.
"Miss, care to wake up for a bit?"
"Mm...? Why?"
As Marian's eyelids fluttered open, Chloe held up five fingers.
"Okay, I'll grab it..."
Marian took it as an invitation to hold hands and linked pinkies with Chloe. Chloe chuckled awkwardly and continued, pinkies linked.
"I'll give you five days, miss."
"Five days?"
"You were working hard on improving that artifact, right?"
"Yeah."
"How about a mid-check and another wish coupon bet in five days?"
"Sounds good...?"
Marian's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. It wasn't odd for her to get excited about anything with Chloe, but this fervent energy was rare lately. More sincere than usual, perhaps?
"You'd better brace yourself, Chloe."
"Oh dear, how scary."
Marian giggled, her gaze drifting to Chloe's lips. She was confident she could claim those lips legally. The past few days of research—nearly costing her Chloe's affection and facing rejection in turn—hadn't been in vain.
She'd prove it in five days.
Five days later, Chloe visited Rosetta to announce the cold war was over. Thinking back, following her advice had indeed restored their old dynamic.
"We've made up!"
"I knew that much... Do you think I'm blind?"
"Eek...!"
"Did you really think I wouldn't notice? Your face has been glowing for days."
"Ah, haha..."
Was it that obvious? Chloe laughed sheepishly and gauged Rosetta's mood. She couldn't very well be the ill-mannered woman who took help without so much as a thank-you.
"I'm giving the miss combat training today. Interested in watching?"
"Why would I? What meaning is there in an alchemist watching a mage like me?"
"There's meaning, sure. You're the miss's mana initiation teacher, right? You've exchanged Q&A on basics like barriers too."
"Only because you begged me..."
"Still. In a way, you're like a collateral disciple of yours. Wouldn't it be nice to witness her growth at least once?"
Thus, she smoothly shifted the topic, framing it as an invitation to Marian's combat drill while adjusting schedules—and slipping in her belated thanks.
And Rosetta...
"You know, you remind me of an otter."
"Pardon?"
"The kind that carries its pups around, showing them off everywhere."
Well...
"Otters or you..."
"Me? How?"
...they were pretty cute critters, after all.
"Fine, I'll humor you. But it's for you, not that little one."
"Yes!"
Chloe couldn't read Rosetta's exact intentions, but... the plan had succeeded anyway.
She grinned boldly.
The more I see her...
...the more Rosetta thought Chloe resembled an otter. Just like one dying to parade its pup around.
A perfect match.