"Since her 'Spirit' has already been activated, she has lost the ability to serve as my 'resurrection' vessel and can now only function as an ordinary avatar…
"But because of an error during the memory transfer, her mind only contains information about you… She's lacking a lot of common knowledge, so even as an avatar, she's quite unqualified…
"After thinking it over, I figured I might as well just give her to you. She knows you better than she knows me anyway!
"Besides, I think you could use a reliable subordinate to help manage your businesses."
Judy narrowed her eyes and pushed the plant lady toward Ebner, then grinned mischievously.
"Oh, and don't even think about using her for anything weird."
Weird things…? Honestly, I wouldn't have thought of that if you hadn't brought it up… Are you reminding me? Ebner silently retorted in his mind, but outwardly, he maintained a calm demeanor. He was fairly certain Judy was just teasing him. After glancing at the plant lady, who had lowered her head in embarrassment, he sighed helplessly.
"Judy, don't joke like that."
"That easy to see through? I wanted to see if you'd happily accept her… As expected of a great detective!" Judy blinked, looking slightly disappointed.
Sorry, but I can simulate 'Mind Reading'… Also, that mischievous smile of yours is almost identical to Miss Sloth when she's pranking someone! Should I say it runs in the family?
To think I used to believe you were a bit 'simple'… but being simple-minded doesn't mean you aren't a troublemaker!
After all, this is the same lady who once poisoned her father's beer… She even recorded over a dozen uses of 'Faceless' abilities on her mystical item just so she could shift the blame whenever she got into trouble…
Guess the only reason I haven't been pranked before was that we weren't familiar enough. Now that I'm being treated as 'one of her own,' this is what happens…
Internally, Ebner shook his head, uncertain whether he should feel honored or annoyed.
Judy quickly put aside her brief disappointment, her signature silly grin returning. Twirling a strand of her hair, she looked at Ebner and said,
"Actually, I want you to take her to my mother… Since I can't transfer memories to her again, teaching her common sense would be too much trouble. It'd be better to let my mother handle it at the subconscious level.
"As for your actual reward, my mother will pay for that…
"Of course, if you decide to just keep her as your reward, I won't mind either."
You won't mind? Shouldn't you be asking the plant lady herself? Even if her original form was a plant, now that she has gained sentience, she shouldn't be treated as a mere object… Though she probably doesn't have that awareness yet.
Rubbing his temples, Ebner didn't voice his thoughts. After all, even if he did ask the plant lady, her mind—filled only with memories of him—would likely make her incapable of refusing.
As for how Judy knew about his connection with her mother, it wasn't surprising. He had used the Alchemical Lifeform Cloak before, which Miss Sloth had told him was one of her husband's prized creations. Judy would surely recognize it.
Besides, it was entirely possible that the mother and daughter had their own special means of communication.
After considering it for a moment, Ebner remembered that his deal with Closfia wasn't complete yet—he still needed her assistance for his Sequence 5 advancement ritual. Since taking the plant lady there aligned with his plans, he nodded and said,
"Alright, I'll take her to Miss Closfia."
Seeing Ebner agree, Judy beamed and pulled a flower pot from her bag.
Inside was a peculiar-looking miniature tree, its vines coiled around its branches, though its leaves were rather sparse—perhaps due to the winter season.
"This is her true form. As long as you have this tree, she'll follow your orders… But she's still young and can't stray too far from it." Judy handed the pot to Ebner as she spoke.
"This… How do I take care of it?" Ebner examined it closely but found it unfamiliar.
Which made sense—this tree had been left behind by Lamia, who was suspected to be an incarnation of Lilith. Even Miss Sloth had described it as an unusual plant. It was certainly no ordinary species.
If not for Judy and Cullen being present, Ebner would have already activated his Pure White Eye to analyze it.
"She'll take care of it herself, so you don't need to worry." Judy pointed at the plant lady beside her, who looked almost identical to her, and chuckled.
After that, Cullen took out the gift from Captain Asenoff—a box of orange-red glowing holy balm.
"This is a sacred balm the captain crafted using a 'relic.' Applying it to a mystical item can effectively reduce its negative effects when used… Of course, depending on the severity of the backlash, the effect lasts anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes per application.
"Also, its potency will gradually fade over time. After a year, it'll completely lose its effects and become nothing more than ordinary weapon maintenance oil."
After giving a brief explanation, Cullen handed the balm to Ebner.
Now this is what I call a proper gift… Though that gold card from Cullen wasn't bad either…
Ebner grumbled internally before stowing away the holy balm, gold card, and flower pot together.
Afterward, he invited Cullen and the two ladies to join him for dinner. However, since their Desolate Ones squad had another mission and was short on time, they had to leave—leaving only the plant lady behind to enjoy Fragrant Manor's exquisite cuisine in their place.
...
Emmat Harbor, a manor on the southern outskirts.
The beautiful and youthful Madame Pannis personally carried a plate of charcoal-grilled veal, along with a serving of red wine foie gras and a fresh vegetable salad, before making her way back to her bedroom with satisfaction.
Her servants didn't find this unusual—after all, their lady had a habit of enjoying late-night snacks. The kitchen's best dishes were always prepared for her.
Once back in her room, Madame Pannis carefully locked the door before setting the food down on a small table. But instead of eating, she walked over to a wardrobe on the other side of the room and knocked on it in a distinct pattern.
Very soon, the wardrobe door swung open from the inside, revealing a handsome man with a haggard expression standing before Lady Panis.
He anxiously scanned the bedroom, checking for any unwanted company. Only when he confirmed there was no one else did he let out a sigh of relief.
"My dear, it's time for dinner," Lady Panis said softly in her clear, melodious voice.
"Lizette, I never imagined that in the end, you'd be the only one willing to shelter me… All my so-called friends now avoid me like the plague, and some have even chosen to sell me out! Even my own family can't be trusted…
"Thankfully… I still have you!"
As he spoke, his emotions surged. He pulled Lady Panis into an embrace, kissing her passionately.
At first, Lady Panis's body stiffened slightly, but she quickly concealed her hesitation and began to respond to his advances.
The kiss was eventually interrupted by the loud growl of the man's stomach. His eyes instinctively darted toward the plate of fragrant food on the table, and he swallowed with difficulty.
Lady Panis chuckled at the sight and personally carried the plate into the secret chamber behind the wardrobe.
Yet, the man did not immediately dig into the tempting veal steak. Instead, he found an excuse to send Lady Panis away and discreetly used a mystical item to test the food for poison.
"So, Lizette really hasn't betrayed me… She still loves me, just like before…
"I must strengthen her devotion to me, use her to shield my whereabouts… Once I recover, I must return to Backlund and personally appeal my innocence to His Majesty!
"I must expose Prince Montbatten's crimes!"
Muttering to himself, the handsome man—none other than Baron Larry, who had been hunted by MI9 for days—could no longer resist the hunger gnawing at his stomach. He speared a piece of steak with his fork and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing hungrily.
—The relentless pursuit had left him physically and mentally drained, forcing him to go days without a full meal. If not for his plan to "strengthen" his love with Lady Panis after dinner, he would have likely collapsed into sleep the moment he finished eating.
Meanwhile, inside the en-suite bathroom of the bedroom, Lady Panis, who had followed Baron Larry's instructions to bathe first, slowly peeled off a thin mask after slipping into the bathtub.
In the mirror hanging in the bathroom, a face different from Lady Panis's delicate features was reflected.
It was the face of Bianca, the "Sorcerer" and military attaché of the Intis embassy in Loen.
After receiving a mission from the envoy to get close to Baron Larry and extract classified information, she had taken on the identity prepared for her by the envoy, replacing the real Lady Panis and residing in her manor in Emmat Harbor.
These past days had been extraordinarily comfortable—so much so that she had fantasized about living the rest of her life as Lady Panis. But the sudden arrival of Baron Larry shattered that illusion and forced her back into "work mode."
"Ugh, and now I'll have to… with him… Good thing this mask is incredibly advanced—it transforms my body inside and out into Lady Panis's exact likeness…
"Sigh, I just hope that after this mission, I'll finally get what I want…
"And even if I don't, I need to at least clear my reputation of being 'cursed' and 'disastrous to my masters'… There shouldn't be any more mishaps this time, right? The envoy didn't seem to accept my attempted defection…"
As these thoughts ran through her mind, she stood up from the bathtub. After drying herself off, she placed the mask back onto her face.
...
Backlund, Intis Embassy.
Envoy Owen listened to his secretary's report before chuckling. "So, Baron Larry has arrived in Emmat Harbor and is now staying with Bianca?"
"Yes, Envoy. The 'Cursed Sorcerer' just sent word through a messenger," the secretary confirmed with a nod.
"Very good… Inform Bianca that she should do everything possible to persuade Baron Larry to return to Backlund. Our people will fully cooperate with her." The envoy pondered for a moment before giving his instructions.
"Understood, sir." The secretary acknowledged the order but hesitated briefly before asking, "Sir, I don't quite understand…"
"You don't understand why I'm not having Baron Larry captured immediately and interrogated for information?" The envoy shook his head with a smile before countering, "Do you truly believe Larry knows any real secrets?"
"You mean… he was thrown out as a decoy?" The secretary was momentarily stunned before quickly realizing the implication.
"I don't know what exactly the Loen royal family is trying to conceal, but I won't let them get away with it so easily… Once Baron Larry is in Backlund, we'll push him into the public eye and use him to fish out some real information…
"Heh, I want to see what Loen's true intentions are."
As he spoke, the envoy glanced at a dossier detailing the investigation into Prince Edessak, silently adding in his mind: Loen may be one of the key focal points that the president has set for this era's progression… But as an Intis official, it's my duty to disrupt their schemes as much as possible without derailing the era's trajectory and to weaken their influence…
...
Feysac, a hidden cave on the northern slopes of Indor Harbor.
A door formed of flickering sparks appeared out of thin air, and from it emerged Ebner and the Plant Girl.
As the frigid wind blew against them, the Plant Girl instinctively pulled her fur coat tighter around herself. Ebner had prepared it for her before their departure—after all, Feysac was located at a higher latitude, and its weather was far colder than Bayam's.
Not to mention, the Plant Girl had claimed that her true form was a tropical species that feared the cold.
—Though even after activating "Pure White Eye," Ebner still couldn't analyze what exactly her original tree species was.
After instructing the Plant Girl to remain hidden inside the cave, Ebner activated three layers of "invisibility" and flew toward the hot spring resort atop another mountain. He needed to confirm whether any unexpected developments had occurred.
After all, before leaving Feysac last Sunday night, he had encountered that red-haired girl, who was likely from the Einhorn family, and she had vaguely sensed his presence. There was no telling if she had called for reinforcements to set up an ambush here.
However, after thoroughly investigating the area, Ebner found no suspicious individuals. The only notable sight was in one of the hot spring pools—there, the same red-haired girl he had encountered before was leisurely soaking in the warm water, teasing a group of curly-haired baboons that were also enjoying the heat…