When I looked beyond the wall, I sometimes saw the uncle and a man with silver hair having a conversation.

“-… Continuing to use healing magic to restore him has nearly depleted his natural recovery ability. At this rate, no matter how strong his body is, he won’t be able to withstand it.”

“- Recently, I’ve changed my mind. I thought my ability had manifested, and this time it would be a success, but it’s ridiculously insufficient. So, I’ve decided to give up on the tenth attempt. Instead, I think it’s better to take this opportunity to gather as much data as possible for the next trial.”

The two men exchanged such conversations.

The words “tenth” and “give up” that came from the mouth of the man who was looking at me with a cold gaze.

I couldn’t understand what they meant.

All I could grasp was that the uncle’s face resembled one he made when he apologized to me.

Since that day, again and again, just like always.

Each time the silver-haired man gave an order, I endured the pain and let out flames whoosh.

I hated the pain, yet I obeyed his words.

The first thing I learned was to not refuse but to follow what was told.

Due to the escalating agony, even when the uncle healed me, there were times I couldn’t move my body well, and I spent increasingly long periods sprawled on the floor.

Laying on the cold ground, I felt like my body was cooling down just like the floor.

I instinctively knew that if this continued, my body would soon truly cool down completely.

If that happened, would I no longer feel pain?

I thought perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad as I lay on the cold floor and drifted off to sleep.

I woke up because of a sound I heard from somewhere.

Was it the uncle or the silver-haired man who had come?

I looked through the transparent wall, but no one was in sight.

Then where was the sound coming from?

[■■■.]

At first, it was a faint sound.

[■■burn.]

But the sound gradually grew louder, and I realized it was a voice.

[■burn.]

And it was ordering me to do something.

[Burn.]

So, I didn’t resist those words.

*

“Prosthetic, it’s finally complete! We’ve created an incredibly stylish one!”

During a meal, Jessie, sitting across from me, exclaimed in a voice filled with excitement.

She looked like she might collapse at any moment.

It seemed she had spent several nights working on the prosthetic.

To think she really finished it in just a few days like she said!

I was more worried than impressed by her speed.

It looked like she had exhausted herself completely.

“How has it already been completed after going to evaluate your abilities? Isn’t that a bit too fast?”

When I asked her that, Jessie chuckled and answered.

“I already told you! Everyone thought it looked interesting and helped me out. In fact, none of us have ever made a custom prosthetic specifically for a superpowered person with such a generous budget. Unlike me and my older brother, there were ten artisans with dwarven blood, whose main profession is crafting, who helped out. So, the length of time taken was actually longer due to inexperience. Honestly, without their help, it would’ve taken much longer.”

I guess I should thank them as well.

As I thought that, Mei, who had been listening to the conversation, curiously asked Jessie.

“By the way, didn’t you say you have siblings? Ten of them, right?”

“Oh, I’m the youngest out of five boys and seven girls. My mother inherited quite a bit of dwarven blood, which sometimes manifests in a unique affinity for creating things. That put my father, who came in as a son-in-law, through a lot of struggle. I remember him crying as he asked my mom to keep an eye on me when I was little. At least being the youngest has its perks.”

“…I see.”

Mei looked a bit taken aback by the overly detailed family story from Jessie.

It felt like we had stumbled upon something we shouldn’t have.

“In any case, since I’m not pureblood, the degree of manifestation varies, which is kind of fun. In my case, I’m not particularly skilled, but I’m relatively tall. My older brother, on the other hand, is tall and completely bald. Isn’t that funny? He’s got dwarven blood mixed in but not a single hair on his head!”

I could almost see the vision of Jessie’s older brother crying from that remark somewhere.

Anyway, Jessie’s laughter didn’t seem very genuine.

Perhaps she was still under the influence of the spirit; her eyes looked slightly glazed over.

For some reason, her neck also seemed a bit swollen.

Jessie scratched her neck lightly and then looked at Sylvia, who was sitting next to me.

“Hey, Sylvia. I heard that Astras only marry each other to preserve their bloodline, right?”

“…Implicitly, that’s the case, yes.”

Sylvia’s expression hardened slightly, perhaps because it was a sensitive subject.

When we got to that point, I should have shut Jessie up, seeing Sylvia’s condition, but I let things spiral out of control.

“Well then, that’s incest.”

I was slightly taken aback, thinking that sounded pretty harsh, but judging by Mei’s expression, it seemed that wasn’t the case.

I looked at Sylvia, shocked.

Before I could intervene, a glimmer of light began to shine in Sylvia’s hand.

There was no time to stop it.

As the light flew from Sylvia’s hand and struck Jessie on the head, she let out a strangled ugh noise, tilting her head back.

Is she dead?!

I was momentarily startled, but I soon saw Jessie twist her head back normally.

She looked dazed.

“…Huh? What just happened? Something shone, and for some reason, my head feels a bit clearer…”

“I cast a mental stabilization spell on you because you looked unwell. Are you feeling a bit better?”

“Eh? Ah, yes. Thank you.”

Sylvia’s explanation let out a sigh of relief from me.

I thought she had hit her in anger.

Jessie, whose eyes had regained focus, appeared much better than before.

Of course, she did go pale for a moment, clearly stunned.

She must have realized who she was talking to and what she had said.

Jessie shook and bowed her head apologetically to Sylvia.

“Eek! I… I’m so sorry! What on earth did I just say?!”

“It’s alright. It wasn’t entirely incorrect. But please be more careful next time.”

“I’m really sorry! I wasn’t in my right mind!”

Sylvia smiled, saying it was fine, but I could sense something.

She was slightly annoyed.

Well, it’s hard to stay calm when someone says you’re an inbred family member right in front of you.

“That just means you worked really hard on Scarlet’s prosthetic. I can expect great things, right?”

“Of course! It’s a masterpiece created with everyone’s passion! You’ll see Scarlet using her left arm tomorrow!”

“That would be nice.”

Was I the only one who thought that sounded like a threat to ensure the prosthetic was functioning well?

Jessie also seemed to sense the danger behind Sylvia’s smile and nodded vigorously, trembling like a mouse before a cat.

*

After school, I followed Jessie to fit the prosthetic at the building of Ruthenia Corporation.

From the explanation, it seems there’s a simple operating room inside the building where they can attach the prosthetic.

I was amazed at how versatile the building was as I entered and found the guardian uncle waiting.

“You’re here, Scarlet.”

Now that I think about it, the uncle had said he would handle the prosthetic fitting.

I guess he was informed in advance.

Nodding at the uncle as I greeted him, he replied with a nod of his own.

“Please wait a moment. My brother will bring in the completed prosthetic shortly.”

As Jessie spoke, her older brother, who looked even balder than last time, entered, holding a box.

I had heard on the way here that despite his appearance, he was in his early thirties.

Being a researcher must be a tough job.

He gave me a slight nod as he saw me and smiled warmly at the uncle.

“It’s been a while, Vice Director. I was surprised to hear that you would be handling the surgery today. It’s been a while since the lab burned; I’ve hardly heard anything.”

“…Well, there were circumstances. I’ve been rather busy.”

They seemed to know each other.

What a small world.

As I was thinking that, Jessie’s older brother addressed the uncle.

“They mentioned that the director would be coming in today as well.”

Upon hearing that, the uncle looked extremely shocked.

“…Sator is coming? Why?”

“He offered some assistance with the prosthetic, so he asked to be contacted when it was completed. He said he would come soon.”

And at that moment, I heard another voice from behind.

“What a coincidence. I didn’t expect to meet you here.”

The uncle’s expression stiffened up.

He murmured quietly to himself.

“…Sator.”

“It’s been a while, Luke.”

When I turned around, I saw the silver-haired elf, whom I had recently bumped into on the street, smiling brightly.