Chapter 99: Mother-Daughter Reunion?

With each blink, the flames within her eyes seemed to grow even more vivid.

And…

‘Huh!?’

‘Why is she naked!?’

The small child was running towards us, completely naked.

Her innocent, uninhibited dash seemed utterly pure.

‘Who is she…?’

‘This feeling, this scent…’

‘It’s somehow familiar…?’

As the child ran, the air around her seemed to grow cozier.

A comfortable warmth spread, like the gentle rays of a spring sun.

Every time her feet touched the ground, tiny sparks would flare up and vanish.

But the moment the child spotted me, her eyes sparkled even brighter, and she broke into a radiant smile.

Then, she suddenly picked up speed and rushed towards me, shouting.

“Mommy!”

‘…?’

‘Mommy…?’

‘Me…?’

‘I’m only six years old…?’

‘Ah… could it be…’

[ ☆☆☆☆☆☆ 【Cecilia】 Eternal Blaze Lumiere LV814 ]

“What!!”

A loud shout escaped my lips before I could stop it.

‘Ce… Cecilia!?’

‘No, is it really Cecilia!?’

‘She polymorphed!?’

‘And she’s a ☆☆☆☆☆☆ 6-star!?’

‘Level 814!?’

‘She even evolved!?’

‘How could this happen…?’

‘Does becoming a ruler make you this strong!?’

‘Her level jumped by almost 600, and even her star rating went up?’

“Uh, uh…?”

While I stood there, utterly dumbfounded, Cecilia had already reached me.

Her cheeks were flushed a rosy pink, and the flames in her red pupils danced more vividly than ever.

She raised one hand and smiled brightly.

Whoooosh!

Suddenly, a warm breeze swirled around Cecilia.

It wasn’t a scorching heat, but a gentle wind that instantly melted and swallowed my Master’s ice barrier.

“Hah!”

As the ice barrier vanished, a wave of hot air washed over me.

But it wasn’t uncomfortable at all.

If anything, it felt like a warm spring breeze.

And then Cecilia leaped straight at me.

“Mommy!”

Poof!

I reflexively caught Cecilia as she flew towards me.

Her small, warm body nestled into my embrace.

A cozy warmth spread through my entire body.

“Uh, uh, uh…?”

My mind went blank, and I stared with my mouth agape.

My heart pounded, and reality seemed to fade away.

Looking closely, she was a truly beautiful child.

Cecilia’s red hair was soft and warm to the touch.

The flames in her pupils felt even clearer, and their warm light seemed to melt my own heart.

“Mommy! Mommy! I mished you!”

Cecilia wriggled in my arms, wrapping her little arms around my neck.

Along with her warm body came a sweet fragrance.

It was different from the flower scent from before, a sweet smell like a mixture of caramel and honey.

“Ce… Cecilia? Is it really you, Cecilia?”

“Yeth! It’s Thethilia!”

The child looked up at me, beaming.

Gentle flames danced in her red eyes.

It was truly marvelous.

Not a frightening flame, but a warm and lovely one.

But with her being naked like this, it felt a bit awkward.

Even if she was just a child…

I quickly took off my jet-black cloak and wrapped it around Cecilia.

“Wear this.”

“Heehee! Mommy’s cape!”

Cecilia snuggled into the cloak, delighted.

Her small body wrapped in the plush cloak was a much better sight.

“How… How did you become human?”

“I got stwong! I twansformed like Mommy!”

Cecilia said proudly.

The clear voice coming from her small mouth was as pure as a bell.

‘Phew…’

‘”Transform” almost became a bad word…’

Cecilia’s explanation wasn’t helpful, but…

‘The polymorph was probably made possible thanks to the Great Labyrinth’s core.’

Just then, Cecilia noticed Miel on my shoulder.

“Ah! Miel unni!”

Cecilia grinned and waved at Miel.

Flap, flap!

Miel also reacted, flying around Cecilia in fascination.

After circling the new Cecilia, Miel plucked a strand of my hair.

[Wha… What is this…?]

‘…?’
‘What’s with your tone…?’
‘Are you secretly using the internet by yourself…?’

“Hehe. Miel unni, you’re so cool.”

Cecilia watched Miel’s high-level skill with wide eyes, looking impressed.

Just then, my Master spoke, looking at Cecilia with fascination.

“So this child is that flame butterfly…”

“Yep! Gwamma!”

Cecilia said, beaming at my Master.

‘Gwamma…?’

‘Did she say Grandma…?’

My Master’s perfect beauty froze for a moment.

Her elegant eyebrows twitched minutely, and a flicker of bewilderment crossed her white eyes.

“Gra… Grandma…?”

My Master asked again in a flustered voice.

Nis saw this and chuckled.

“Puhuhu… It’s amusing to hear Lady Frostia called a grandmother.”

But then, Nis’s expression turned serious.

“But why is the aura of the evil god so strong?”

“Mommy’s fwiend helped me!”

Cecilia said proudly.

‘Huh?’

‘My friend…?’

“My friend? Who…?”

I asked, puzzled, and Cecilia smiled even more brightly.

“Yep! Abwaxas! He said he’s Mommy’s best fwiend!”

‘Abraxas…?’

‘What’s this about being best friends again!’

‘Why is he so clingy!’

Cecilia continued in an even more excited voice.

“And Abwaxas said I’m his apostul!”

‘An apostle!?’

‘So did she defeat the ruler of this place thanks to Abraxas…?’

‘But even for an apostle, does it make sense to beat a ruler?’

‘Abraxas is afraid of Nis, who is a ruler, right?’

‘Was the ruler here just a pushover…?’

‘Ah, I don’t know…’

‘What on earth is this situation…’

“Hmm~ A clever choice, Abraxas.”

Nis said, looking at Cecilia with an intrigued expression.

“By making Cecilia his apostle, he’s sending us a friendly signal and, at the same time… has created a safety net for himself.”

Then, Nis’s gaze turned cold.

“But that doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on him.”

Cecilia clenched her two tiny fists and puffed out her cheeks with an angry expression.

The flames in her pupils blazed fiercely, and her small nose crinkled.

“Auntie-Gwamma! Don’t bully Abwaxas!”

‘Auntie-Grandma…?’

Nis’s elegant expression completely crumbled for a moment.

“A… Auntie-Grandma… you say?”

Nis asked again in a bewildered voice.

Pfft…

Barely suppressing my laughter, I asked Cecilia the question I was most curious about.

“Cecilia, can you tell me what happened? How did you defeat the ruler of this place?”

“Yep, yep! About that!”

Cecilia suddenly got excited and began her explanation.

“Glecia unni went like, kaboom! And Rote unni went, whoosh! Like this!”

Cecilia waved her small arms and wiggled her whole body.

“And Leivi unni went, pow pow! Ryandel ahjussi went, flash flash! And then finally, me, the apostle, went KABOOM!”

‘…?’

Cecilia gestured more enthusiastically with her hands and feet as she explained, but I couldn’t understand a single thing.

‘What’s a “kaboom” and a “like this”…’

“Um… Miel, did you understand any of that?”

When I asked Miel on my head, she quickly wrote an answer.

[Nope. Cecilia was young and hard to talk to even as a butterfly. We just communicated through feelings.]

‘Ah…’

‘I see.’

‘I guess it was impossible to get an explanation from Cecilia in the first place.’

“Then where are the others now? Glecia, Rote, Ryandel, and Leivi?”

“Ah! They’re all westing at the vewy bottom!”

Cecilia smiled brightly and pointed downwards.

“Shall we go?”

“Okay! Follow me!”

Cecilia jumped out of my arms and bounced ahead.

Hopping along in the jet-black cloak, she looked absolutely adorable.