The images of the memory began to flow. Fíliya saw the legendary great mage, Flamme, proudly showing her creation to Frieren.
Before the two of them, a Golem of the same model, though much smaller than a combat type at just over two meters tall, was setting a pot over a fire. It then swiftly chopped a pile of vegetables and meat, tossing everything into the pot to cook. Its extra pair of feet simultaneously handled the seasoning and stirred the ingredients.
"Flamme always invents such strange things, doesn't she?"
Frieren said this with a blank expression, her eyes betraying a complete lack of interest in anything and everything.
A cold gust of wind blew past, lifting the hem of Frieren's dress, but she neither brushed back the hair dancing in the wind nor held down her skirt. She just stood there on the grass, like a wooden doll.
"It's Teacher Flamme. Really, Frieren, since you agreed to be my disciple, why can't you remember how to address me?"
Flamme turned to look at Frieren, a hint of helplessness in her eyes, but it was overshadowed by fondness.
She knew her Elven disciple was going through a low point in her life, so she was willing to show Frieren more patience.
"I'll remember it someday."
Frieren's tone was completely devoid of warmth.
But Flamme didn't mind. She just sighed with a touch of emotion.
"Someday, huh... I wonder if I'll ever get to hear you call me 'Teacher' before I'm on my deathbed."
As Flamme spoke, she pulled Frieren down to sit by the fire. Watching her own Golem's cooking motions, which would look slightly comical to a human, a bit of a smile returned to Flamme's face.
...After hearing Flamme's words, Frieren fell silent again.
It was unclear what she was thinking, but she soon lifted her head.
"Teacher Flamme."
She said.
Flamme was slightly taken aback, then, as if unable to hold back her laughter, she patted Frieren's head.
"That makes me happy, Frieren. But it feels like something is missing if you only say it after being reminded. I want you to remember this title as a 'habit,' just like the Mana Concealment I had you practice. Only then will your teacher be truly happy."
"I... will try."
Frieren said with some hesitation.
In response, Flamme just quietly ruffled her disciple's hair again.
Frieren really is an honest child, Flamme thought.
To say 'I will try' at a time like this instead of 'I understand'... in terms of emotional intelligence, this child isn't very clever. But, that's also part of Frieren's charm.
The scene fell into a brief silence as the two quietly waited for the Golem to finish preparing dinner.
Frieren rested her chin on her knees, her eyes fixed on the flame before her.
The occasional crackle of the dancing flames always sparked infinite imagination in the quiet night.
Finally, a flicker of curiosity ignited in the heart of the Elf named Frieren.
She looked up at her master and asked.
"Flamme... Teacher, why did you create a Golem with no combat ability?"
Flamme looked at Frieren with some surprise. After all, ever since she had rescued her, this Elf had been as quiet as a clam, rarely asking questions on her own initiative.
So, her tone was noticeably more joyful than before as she replied.
"Hmm, I did consider making combat-capable Golems, but we can talk about those later. For now, this cooking model is my first batch of creations. As for why..."
As Flamme spoke, her expression became profound.
"Do you want to take a guess, Frieren?"
Flamme asked in a coaxing tone.
...
In response, Frieren just quietly lowered her head again, rested her chin on her knees, and even closed her eyes.
"Alright, alright..."
Flamme shook her head helplessly. Asking this girl Frieren to guess a human's thoughts was a bit too much for her. So, Flamme cleared her throat and said slowly.
"Because, in the world of the future, it would be very inconvenient for humanity if things like this didn't exist, right?"
Flamme said softly, her eyes filled with boundless dreams for humanity's future.
"The world of the future?"
The moment Flamme uttered the first syllable, Frieren had already opened her eyes again and was looking at her master.
But she couldn't quite comprehend the 'future' her master spoke of.
Was that future in a few years, a few decades, or a few centuries?
For an Elf, who has no concept of time, 'future' was an overly ambiguous word.
"Yes, an era when the world is at peace. Although I don't know if it will be in decades or centuries, humanity will surely see such a day."
Flamme said with a confident tone.
But unlike Flamme's positive and resolute tone, Frieren's attitude was far more pessimistic.
"Peace... I cannot imagine a future that I don't even know when will arrive."
Frieren's heart was truly lacking in something like 'hope,' so her view on many things tended to be negative.
Flamme, of course, knew this. But she didn't rush to comfort Frieren, merely looking at her disciple quietly, her eyes filled with a gentle light.
"Even if you can't imagine it, you will definitely reach it, Frieren."
"You will surely meet such an era."
Since it was only a residual thought from the Golem, this image of the past soon finished playing.
Fíliya felt a wave of emotion.
Although this memory from a thousand years ago didn't contain any powerful magic that she could greatly benefit from, it was a treasure in itself. At least, it was for Fíliya.
"Mmm... I never expected the great human mage—Flamme—to have this kind of personality. Such a wonderful big sister figure. It's a shame she's separated from my era by a thousand years... Ah, I really want to talk to her while she was alive."
Through this memory, Flamme's image grew even grander in Fíliya's mind.
That adorable little thing from her childhood had grown up to become such a dependable and reliable mentor.
This is the beauty of humanity... she thought.
At the same time, there was something else in the vision that caught her attention.
The relationship between Frieren and Flamme.
There are no records stating that 'Flamme' and 'Frieren' had a master-disciple relationship. This was a completely new historical discovery.
And... Fíliya suddenly realized something.
Flamme was Serie's disciple, and Frieren was Flamme's disciple... If she had just nodded her head back then when Serie offered to take her as a disciple...
She would be of the same lineage as Flamme.
Wouldn't that... make her Frieren's senior?
Then when I meet Frieren in the future, I can totally pull rank on her. Maybe I could even playfully tug her twintails?
Ah, I should have agreed. What a pity.
Miss Fíliya shook her head with a look of regret.
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