"Mmn-nyaam...."
Lyriette made a sound like a kitten just waking from sleep, pushing herself up with bleary, half-conscious eyes.
She looked around, and something felt off. Empty.
In truth, this room had always been needlessly empty.
But today, that hollowness felt unspeakably deeper.
'Ah, Uncle!'
She barely managed to clear the fog from her mind, shaking her drowsy head until her thoughts came together.
Only then did Lyriette notice the difference and scramble out of bed.
Baal Argent's presence had vanished.
Though it had truly been the briefest of meetings, the merest sliver of time—
the half-day she'd spent with the uncle who'd suddenly come to see her had been immensely joyful.
Which was exactly why the emptiness now felt so much bigger.
Even a girl of only ten wasn't so naive as to miss that.
Clack!
"Young Lady, why do you come rushing out of your room with such a startled face?"
She flung the door open as if she meant to break it off its hinges, and there in the hallway stood a familiar, elderly-looking man.
The butler, Gilbert.
"G-Gilbert! Where did Uncle go?"
Lyriette asked in an urgent tone, not even noticing that her voice had risen far louder than usual.
Watching her, Gilbert nearly burst out laughing.
In just half a day, how had he managed to charm this timid young lady so thoroughly?
'Was he not out learning magic all this time, but learning how to woo women instead?'
It was, admittedly, a slightly improper thought for a servant to have.
But that was how astonishing Baal's behavior today—and the change in Lyriette—truly was.
"Calm yourself, Young Lady. The young master hurried back to his workshop."
"The workshop? Ah, that reminds me...!"
Only after hearing Gilbert's words did the half-forgotten memory come flooding back to Lyriette.
Just before she'd lost consciousness—
a familiar had popped out from within Baal's robes with a little chime,
and after learning that the familiar called Cyclora had been watching over him, she had picked up her wooden sword and—
'How embarrassing!'
Thinking back on it now, she had no idea what kind of disgraceful display that had been.
If it had truly been something she could defeat, he would have crushed it without lifting a finger.
Which meant there'd been no need for her to step in at all.
And yet she'd rushed forward on a whim, hands moving before her mind caught up.
'Surely Uncle doesn't think I'm an unruly child, does he?'
The thought that he might see her as some ruffian girl who went around swinging a wooden sword in front of her elders sent Lyriette spiraling into worry—before another shock jolted her back to her senses.
Unfortunately, it wasn't relief that returned her to her senses.
It was another wave of mortification crashing down.
'And then, on top of that, not even realizing it was a familiar sent by Uncle's teacher, I said such awful things to it....'
Kwaek.
A sound like a duck shot down by a thrown stone escaped Lyriette's mouth.
Just imagining it made her head spin.
"Gilbert, did Uncle say anything else?"
"Anything else, such as what, Young Lady?"
"Anything at all. Perhaps... some harsh words about me?"
"Ha ha, surely not. As if the young master would speak ill of you behind your back."
Seeing Gilbert's hearty laugh eased her mind a little.
It seemed that really hadn't happened.
In truth, she'd already suspected it was unlikely.
Though she didn't know Baal well,
somehow she was certain he wasn't the sort of person to gossip about others behind their backs.
"If not, then that's a relief. I was worried I might have fallen out of favor with Uncle...."
"Do not worry, Young Lady. The young master even made me a promise before he left—that he would come visit you again very soon."
"Really?"
"Really. Ah, and there is also something he asked me to give you...."
As Gilbert began fishing something out of his coat, Lyriette suddenly flinched, the memory of the familiar's earlier appearance flashing through her mind.
But once she realized what a fuss she'd made over nothing, she whistled awkwardly to cover her embarrassment.
"Here it is. Fortunately, it hasn't gotten wrinkled."
"Is this... a letter?"
"Yes, a letter."
"Wow! This is the first letter I've ever gotten."
"....."
Not realizing how sad a thing it was for a ten-year-old to say so casually, nor how Gilbert had to fight to keep his expression steady for a moment—
"Thank you, Gilbert. I'll go read it alone in my room."
"Yes, Young Lady."
Lyriette snatched the letter up quickly and hurried into her room.
The earlier shock seemed entirely forgotten,
as she waddled off with her hips swaying side to side like an excited little duckling, and Gilbert watched her go before finally letting out a laugh.
"What kind of letter would Uncle have left for me?"
Once in her room, Lyriette shut the door firmly and sat down at her desk.
She couldn't bring herself to lock it—not since the time she'd been switched on the calves for doing exactly that.
The perpetually dull surface of the lake shimmered with faint ripples, glowing as though sunlight had scattered across it.
Soon, the words he had left began to etch themselves into the lake's surface, one letter at a time.
—To my beloved niece.
"Puhit...."
The moment she saw the opening line, Lyriette burst out laughing.
Not out of joy.
Simply because Baal's handwriting was far worse than she'd expected.
It wasn't so bad that it was unreadable.
But it was clumsy enough that it was hard to believe he was the son of such a distinguished family.
Given how famous he was for being an enormous bookworm, this was a rather unexpected side of him.
—Forgive me for leaving without a proper goodbye.
Still, we'll see each other again soon, so don't hold it against me too much.
I'm glad I at least managed to leave you a gift.
Please take good care of that little one until we meet again.
Oh, and by the way—have you decided on a name for her yet?
Since she's a friend my dear niece chose for me, I put my whole heart into naming her.
Her name is Nosebig.
I named her that because her nose is quite large.
Honestly, there wasn't much sincerity behind it, but it was a rather adorable name, so Lyriette decided to let it slide and kept reading.
—I do hope the time we spent together today was enjoyable.
If it was, then that is this uncle's joy.
And if it wasn't, I'll try even harder to play with you next time.
Also, I believe you'll be meeting Sir Oden at the workshop.
If I'm able to arrange the meeting I mentioned earlier, I will.
Please join us then, if your schedule allows.
Ah, there's so much more I want to say, but this letter paper is far too small.
I suppose it wasn't enough to hold all my feelings for my dear niece after all.
I'll end my letter here. Stay well until we meet again.
P.S. When you decide on the name of the friend you made today, please follow along with what this uncle tells you.
And if your mother comes to visit you, read the back of this letter after she leaves.
"......?"
Lyriette tilted her head at the last line.
She didn't know what it meant, but she decided to try following his instructions anyway, rising from her seat and walking toward the doll.
The rabbit doll sat at the head of the bed where she had been lying just moments ago.
It carried a slightly dull gray hue, but Lyriette liked it very much.
'It's the same color as Uncle's hair.'
It was something she'd been too embarrassed to say in front of him.
But well, no matter.
In any case, Lyriette treated the letter like an instruction manual, scanning it over once more and carefully following his directions step by step.
"I grant you a name."
Jjiing.
"Eek!?"
The moment she uttered the words of power without meaning to, a gray aura rose from the doll's body, and startled, she toppled backward.
Fortunately, she was sitting on the bed, so she avoided any accident.
Calming her pounding heart, she carefully continued the process.
"Y-your name is Bel. Your owner is Lyriette Argent."
Jjiing.
Light flared out once more, but this time, thankfully, Lyriette didn't topple over.
"And then, you press your hand together like this...."
After that, she pressed her palm against the doll's palm,
and the gray aura flowing from the doll slowly faded away.
"...Done?"
Since there was nothing more written in the letter, Lyriette tilted her head in confusion.
Being utterly ignorant of magic, she had no idea what any of this meant.
"That should do it, right? Right, Bel?"
Naturally, the doll couldn't answer, but pure-hearted Lyriette busied herself nodding her head side to side in front of it, as if awaiting a reply.
"Heave-ho."
At the same time, letting out a small grunt, she tried to lift her newly made friend.
"Huh?"
But somehow, the doll refused to budge from the spot.
As though it had turned to stone, it stayed rooted firmly in place.
"Ah!"
Only then did Lyriette recall the puzzling instruction written in that letter-turned-manual, and she carefully opened her mouth.
It had said that before lifting the doll, she needed to call its name cheerfully, as though inviting a friend on an outing.
"Bel, come here."
The moment those words rang out, the stone-like doll grew light.
Just moments ago, she'd had to strain to lift the doll—which was as large as her own upper body—but now it felt as soft as a puff of down.
Thanks to that, Lyriette realized that Baal had cast some kind of magic on the doll before leaving.
'But why cast a spell like this on it?'
Still, a small question lingered.
Why would he go to such lengths for an ordinary doll?
Knock knock!
"......!"
Her wonder was short-lived.
A sudden, forceful pounding on her door sent every hair on her body standing on end.
That wasn't a knock at all anymore.
"Lyriette, what have you been doing?"
"M-Mother...."
The person who entered after that announcement—one that had thrown etiquette entirely to the dogs—was none other than Cassdia.
Her stepmother, and the person she feared most in the world.
The happy mood from just moments ago seemed to vanish into the depths of oblivion.
In an instant, Lyriette felt as though she'd become prey standing before a predator.
"This mother asked you a question, did she not? What have you been doing?"
"I-I was playing with the doll Uncle gave me as a gift."
"A doll? Don't tell me you've forgotten what this mother told you."
"...I remember it clearly. That the daughter of House Argent has no need for such things."
Lyriette bowed her head like a criminal, hands folding neatly together.
Instinctively, she sensed that the moment to part with her new friend was drawing near.
"As long as you remember. Then this mother will take that doll. Hand it over."
"....."
"Lyriette? Surely you're not ignoring your mother's words."
"N-no, but...."
But even so, her hands wouldn't move.
It had only been a day—no, half a day.
But it was the first gift ever given to her by someone who had treated her so warmly.
And more than that, she'd even given it a name, meant to make it a cherished friend.
No matter that it was her mother's order, Lyriette's heart wasn't hard enough to simply hand it over at once.
"Ha! Fine. Then this mother will take it herself."
"......!"
When Cassdia had finally lost patience and stepped closer, Lyriette's body seemed to float ten centimeters off the ground where she stood.
As if mocking her helpless fretting,
Cassdia approached the bed and reached her hand toward the doll.
But—
"Wh-what is this? What...!? Th-the doll won't budge... argh!"
"Ah!"
Bound by both Baal's magic and Lyriette's words of power, the doll didn't so much as twitch.
Even Cassdia, who always tried to maintain her composure as the dignified lady of a noble house, lost all sense of decorum, rolling up her sleeves and yanking with all her strength—to no avail.
"Lyriette! What in the world is this? What kind of trick have you played on this doll...!"
"T-that's....."
"Ugh, forget it! I'll just cut it apart with scissors!"
Assuming the doll's body couldn't have actually hardened, Cassdia pulled a pair of scissors from Lyriette's desk drawer, intending to cut it to pieces.
The instant the cold, sharp blades drew close, as if to gouge out the eyes of Lyriette's precious first friend—
"Kyaaaaaaah!?"
"M-Mother!? What's wrong?"
A sharp scream suddenly tore from Cassdia's throat.
Startled in turn, Lyriette tried to check on her, but Cassdia only scrambled backward, putting distance between them.
"B-b-bugs! Co-co-cockroaches!"
"M-Mother. Cockroaches?"
Cockroaches, of all things?
For a moment, Lyriette wondered if her mother had had too much to drink.
No matter how she looked around, the room was spotless.
Not a cockroach in sight—not even the usual stray fly buzzing about.
"My lady! What's wrong!"
"Gilbert! Get rid of those cockroaches at once! Call someone, do something, anything!"
"Cockroaches, my lady?"
Even Gilbert, who had come rushing at the sound of her scream, reacted the exact same way.
Of course, none of the three people present knew the truth of it—
one of the spells Baal had left on the doll had simply activated.
The principle was simple.
If anyone other than Lyriette tried to damage the doll, that person would be shown an illusion of whatever they found most repulsive.
Naturally, it only affected that one person, and since it was merely an illusion, no one else in the vicinity was actually harmed.
"My apologies, Young Lady. It seems the lady of the house was quite exhausted and saw things that weren't there. Please don't worry over it, and get a good rest tonight."
"Y-yes. I will."
After offering a polite bow, Gilbert hurried after Cassdia, who had already fled down the far end of the hallway.
Still dazed, Lyriette turned the doll—her new friend Bel—over in her hands, examining her from every angle, before letting out a small gasp.
"That's right! In Uncle's letter...!"
There had indeed been a message telling her that once her mother visited and then left, she should read the back of the letter.
Determined not to let even this be taken from her, even if the doll itself had been, Lyriette pulled the letter out from where she'd hidden it tucked into her waistband.
"Uhet...!"
And the moment she checked the back, a cute little laugh bubbled up from Lyriette once more.
—How was it? Didn't this uncle tell you?
That this friend would protect our dear niece.
That day, Lyriette realized something.
That Baal was a far greater mage than any she had ever seen before.
Dropping stars from the sky, bending wind and rain to his will,
crossing in an instant a distance that would take a full day to travel by any ordinary means.
But even more astonishing than any of those dazzling, magnificent feats of magic—
even a ten-year-old girl could tell that the spell he'd cast for her today was greater still.
And at the same time, she felt grateful.
She had been about to abandon her very first friend, made just today, simply because her mother had ordered it.
But he had foreseen even that weakness in her, and tried to shield her from it all along.
"Uncle...."
When would he come back to see her again?
With a small flicker of anticipation warming her chest, Lyriette let the wave of sleepiness carry her away.
A tiny wish rose within her, hoping that day wouldn't be so far off after all.