Chapter 366: Giving Flamme a Break
Upon hearing Serie's words, Solis took two quiet steps forward.
She did not answer immediately. Instead, her gaze first shifted toward Flamme, lingering on her face for a brief moment as though contemplating something. Only then did she turn back toward Kurtz and Serie.
"I hope to change my upcoming course of action," she said slowly. "Recently, Flamme's daily movements have been too monotonous. There are no suitable conditions for observation."
Serie looked at Kurtz in confusion, unable to understand what the demon was talking about.
Previously, Solis had been following Kurtz around, but for some reason, she had suddenly begun following Flamme instead. Serie had not bothered paying much attention to it. If anything, it meant there was one less third wheel interrupting her time alone with Kurtz.
But now, it seemed the other party had been following Flamme specifically for observation.
Kurtz briefly explained the situation to her, including Solis's desire to understand human emotions and how he had lifted certain restrictions so she could follow Flamme.
"Hmm..."
Serie turned toward Flamme. "Has she caused you any trouble?"
"No. Aside from following me everywhere, she hasn't really done anything." Flamme hesitated slightly. "It's just..."
"Just what?" Serie pressed.
Flamme paused for a moment before ultimately shaking her head. "No, it's nothing."
In the end, she chose not to mention just how much Frieren disliked having Solis around.
"Solis, give me a more specific reason," Kurtz said calmly.
"Based on my observations over the past two months, Flamme's life has mostly consisted of grading documents and assessing Magicians. I cannot sense nuanced human emotions from such activities."
What Solis truly wanted to observe was the interaction between people. Only through that could she better understand the subtle emotional fluctuations unique to humans.
Recently, however, Flamme's life had been almost entirely consumed by work. Even when she occasionally interacted with others, the person she spoke with most frequently was the elf named Frieren.
But Frieren strongly disliked her.
Solis had once requested permission to observe them together, only to be directly rejected, making it impossible for her to continue watching from nearby.
So, taking advantage of this opportunity, she made her request to Kurtz instead.
"Flamme, you should rest occasionally too, shouldn't you?" Kurtz looked at Flamme somewhat helplessly.
Only after Solis mentioned it did he properly notice the exhaustion lingering beneath Flamme's eyes. Clearly, she had been overworking herself recently.
"Teacher Kurtz, I'm fine," Flamme insisted quickly.
"No-No, I'm giving you a break, no more work," Kurtz said firmly. "For the next few days, Serie and I will temporarily handle the Association's affairs. You should get some proper rest."
Hearing herself suddenly dragged into the matter, Serie widened her eyes in surprise. However, after noticing the unmistakable fatigue in Flamme's expression, her heart softened immediately.
"Leave it to me!" Serie straightened proudly. "Isn't Ayla around, too? It's about time that girl learned how to manage the Association properly. That should stop her from running around everywhere all day."
Serie still held considerable dissatisfaction toward Ayla.
Once before, she had entrusted part of the Association's administrative work to her, only for Ayla to make a complete mess of it. She had even mixed up the badges for the Magician assessments.
A newly certified Third-Class Mage had somehow received a First-Class Mage badge directly, skipping two entire ranks.
Worse still, those buffoons had shamelessly marched right up to Serie, carrying their First-Class Mage badges and demanding advanced magic from her. Furious, Serie had personally thrown them all out of the Magic Association and confiscated every single one of their badges.
"Alright." Seeing the unyielding expression on Teacher Kurtz's face, Flamme ultimately chose not to argue further.
"Solis will stay with me for now," Kurtz added.
To properly give Flamme a genuine break, Kurtz abandoned the idea of allowing Solis to continue following her around.
After all, nobody wanted an observer trailing behind them during their rest period.
Although Kurtz had already cast a Perception-Hindering Spell on Solis to conceal her presence from ordinary Magicians and prevent her identity as a demon from being exposed, he still did not dare allow her unrestricted freedom inside the Association.
With both his and Serie's restrictions placed upon her, the possibility of Solis suddenly attacking someone was extremely low. Even so, Kurtz had no intention of gambling on that possibility.
"I understand," Solis replied quietly.
Seeing this, Flamme understood that it was time for her to leave. She bowed respectfully toward Kurtz and Serie. "Teacher, if there are no further instructions, I'll go deal with Frieren's situation first."
"Go ahead and get some steak for her, she likes that," Kurtz said with a nod.
"Hmm." Flamme turned and walked toward the door. As she passed by Solis, she gave her a small nod as well.
Unlike Frieren, Flamme did not feel any particularly strong hostility toward Solis. Of course, she did not feel affection toward her either.
Still, out of trust in Teacher Kurtz, Flamme genuinely hoped the uniqueness within Solis might someday create a new possibility for demonkind.
Even though she knew she likely would not live long enough to witness such a future, she still hoped for it. She hoped there would never again be another existence forced to walk the same path she and Frieren once had.
Solis blinked slightly in response.
Soon, only Kurtz, Serie, and Solis remained inside the room.
Serie glanced at Solis, who stood silently like a pillar nearby, then let out a quiet sigh.
"Tell me honestly... how long are you planning to keep her around?"
They had finally been enjoying some peaceful alone time together, and now there was suddenly another constant tagalong again. It was genuinely irritating.
Kurtz looked toward Solis thoughtfully.
"That depends on her. Only once she begins to properly understand emotions will I feel comfortable allowing her to move freely."
Solis's gaze met Kurtz's directly.
Deep within her dark eyes, something faint seemed to flicker for a brief instant before quickly returning to stillness.
"You'd really let her move around freely?" Serie asked while glancing toward Solis again.
At present, Solis's strength was not especially high. She was only slightly stronger than an ordinary Magic Apprentice. Any qualified Magician could subdue her without much difficulty.
After all, since the day Solis had been born, she had never received any formal magical education. Everything she currently possessed came purely from the innate abilities demons were born with.
But that did not mean she posed no threat at all.
Even with the Mental Magic Kurtz had cast upon her, nobody could truly know what a demon might secretly be thinking.
"It's fine."
Kurtz sounded unconcerned. "Last time, Ayla sent over a magical tool capable of sealing a Magician's internal mana. I modified it slightly. When the time comes, I'll use it on her."
"That's good." Serie relaxed slightly after hearing that.
"I won't attack humans," Solis said quietly as well.
Kurtz did not respond to her statement. Instead, he walked over and sat down beside Serie, naturally taking her hand into his own.
"We're about to eat. You should go eat too."
Unlike ordinary demons, Solis had never shown any craving for human flesh or blood.
At least, Kurtz had never once seen such desire reflected in her eyes.
She ate and slept normally, just like any ordinary person. Without the horns characteristic of demons, most people would mistake her for a completely normal human girl.
In fact, because of the unusual holy aura within her, some people might even assume she was a Magician specializing in Holy Magic.
"Understood," Solis replied before quietly leaving the room.
[End of Chapter]