I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit

At a red light, watching the cars flash past in front of her, Melusine stood in silence for a long time before sighing helplessly.

"To think they would actually ask me about Her Majesty Morgan... Are they really mistaking her for the Origin Spirit?"

Though, she had deliberately planted that misunderstanding herself...

The more you say, the more mistakes you make. Only by keeping something sufficiently mysterious, leaving plenty of room for imagination, could you minimize the chance of your lies being exposed.

Thus, the ancients said: if you want a lie to go undetected, the best way is to speak only the truth.

Recalling her earlier conversation with Itsuka Kotori, Melusine couldn't help but sigh again.

I really am no good at deception... I should leave that kind of thing to the professionals. Like Red's boss.

Back in elementary school, I was the kid who won the "Model of Honesty" award five years in a row. Making someone like me lie—aren't you just making my life harder?

Still, Kotori had been far more difficult to deal with than Melusine had anticipated. She felt that if she revealed even a little more, she would inevitably give herself away.

So, what was she to do? Simple: just let the other side trip over themselves.

That was why she had directly asked Kotori at the time—

"Kotori, do you like Shidou?"

For a tsundere, a direct punch like that was even more devastating than the King of Knights' curry stick.

Truthfully, Melusine had another trump card hidden up her sleeve—the "black label" Kotori had used on Tanabata. If she played that bombshell, and Kotori still managed to keep her cool, Melusine swore she'd change her family name to Itsuka alongside Kotori!

But unfortunately, she couldn't reveal that card. There was no good way to explain how she knew such a thing.

Since the nuclear option was off the table, that single question obviously wasn't quite enough, so Melusine had thrown in a few more jabs—like encouraging Kotori to just push Shidou down and "make the rice cooked."

As for the result... whether the rice got cooked or not, she didn't know, but Kotori's brain was definitely steaming.

After escaping from Kotori, Melusine made her way outside.

She still had business to take care of.

For that purpose, she had even borrowed a map from Kotori, one that recorded all the islands across the Pacific.

"Let's see... twenty-seven minutes until my shift starts, huh?"

Glancing at the time, a serious look crossed Melusine's usually lazy features.

"Looks like I need to hurry..."

Casting a concealment spell over herself, Melusine transformed her formal dress into sky-blue armor and then took off into the air.

It wasn't until she left the city of Tenkū that she finally dispelled the concealment, instantly tearing through layer after layer of sonic barriers, soaring across the boundary between land and sea, up into the skies over the Pacific.

"Seriously, aside from 'a small island somewhere in the Pacific,' there's almost no intel at all. Now I have to search inch by inch... what a pain."

Though she grumbled, her expression remained calm and serene.

"But... if Himmel found out what she was going through, he'd never just sit back, right? Mm... with his style of always trying to act cool, he definitely wouldn't miss out on an 'operation to rescue a tortured, imprisoned girl' like this... Wait, can she even be called a 'girl' anymore?"

Muttering to herself, Melusine maintained speeds several times faster than sound, performing dazzling, high-difficulty aerial maneuvers without missing a beat.

The atmosphere around her compressed, scorched, and exploded, trailing behind her like the exhaust of a blue comet.

...

"Of course it won't be that easy to find, huh?"

An urge to sigh rose in Melusine's heart.

But then, she had a thought—

"Maybe... the island isn't even marked on any maps? If it's such an important research facility, the level of secrecy must be extremely high."

"Hmm... if that's the case, I'll have to adjust my search strategy... Looks like my workload just got even heavier."

What a pain...

...

"Lancelot, stop loitering behind the counter! Go serve the customers out front!"

"But, Manager, I'm only covering for Kayako-san because she took the day off. If I don't stay at the counter, where am I supposed to go?"

Melusine threw a glance at the manager, an older woman, and said indifferently, "Besides, Manager, there are so few customers here that the servers out front can easily handle it without me."

"Don't call me 'Manager.' Call me 'Yami-neesan'! Otherwise, it makes me sound old!"

Manager Yami crossed her arms, looking dissatisfied. "Besides, because we have so few customers, we need someone like you out front! I bet that even if you just stood by the entrance doing nothing, you'd still attract a flood of customers! Otherwise, why would I make you wear that outfit? Now, shoo, shoo, shoo!"

Thus, Melusine was forcibly evicted from behind the counter.

"We just got two new customers—go take care of them! And be sure to put on a friendly face!"

I highly suspect you're just trying to enjoy my embarrassment... but I have no proof.

When she saw the two customers sitting by the window, a flicker of surprise passed through Melusine's eyes—but she quickly composed herself and strode toward them.

"Good afternoon. May I take your order?"

At the sound of her voice, the two customers froze for a moment, then turned toward her in astonishment.

"Lancelot? What are you doing here?"

Having just been chatting with Yatogami Tohka, Itsuka Shidou turned to Melusine, his expression one of pure shock. "And... dressed like that..."

Before him stood Melusine, dressed in a pure black butler tailcoat, her refined features and commanding presence enough to enchant both men and women alike.

"I'm just filling in for the day. Kayako-san had an emergency and couldn't make it, so I was asked to cover her shift."

As she spoke, Melusine tugged at the tight-fitting outfit. "As for this getup—the theme of this café is 'maids,' but I refuse to wear a maid outfit for anyone other than my Master. Thankfully, the Manager agreed that a butler uniform suited me better than a maid dress, so here I am... Though I have to say, I didn't expect the uniform to be this tight."

"I see. The Manager has good taste—it really suits you, Lancelot."

At those words, Melusine shot Shidou a peculiar look.

"You're not my Master. Flattering me won't make me happy, you know."

"I'm not flattering you. I really do think you look great."

And he wasn't lying. Melusine's every gesture and bearing exuded the essence of a true knight: humility, honor, sacrifice, bravery, mercy, justice, spirit, and honesty—all virtues that naturally emanated from her. Dressed in this butler uniform, she radiated an irresistible charm that transcended gender.

"Hmm... It doesn't seem like you're lying."

Melusine touched her chin thoughtfully. "Could it be... that I really do suit this look better? If only Master could see me like this and be happy."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Melusine's brow twitched.

Because once again, when she spoke of "Master," she had unconsciously used "she" as the pronoun.

Master was originally a boy... Is it because I chose Gudako as my form in Chaldea...?

Hearing Melusine once again bring up her Master, Shidou—who now knew the "truth"—felt a stiff smile form on his lips, a trace of sadness flashing in his eyes.

"...Yeah. If your Master saw you like this, they'd definitely be happy."

At that, Melusine turned her gaze toward him. After a moment of silence, a faint, gentle smile bloomed on her face.

"Is that so... If only I could see Master's happy smile with my own eyes."

It was a simple statement—but in Shidou's ears, it was steeped in deep regret and sorrow.

"Shidou! Shidou! I'm hungry!"

Though Tohka had been listening to their conversation, it was simply too much for her to comprehend. It wasn't until her stomach growled in protest that she remembered the most important thing at hand.

That's right—the most important thing was eating! Or more precisely, eating until full!

"If you're hungry, you should be telling me, not Shidou."

Melusine pulled out a notepad and pen. "I'm the one taking orders. Tell me what you'd like."

"Anything at all?!"

"Except kinako bread."

"Ugh～～～!"

You're seriously thinking about ordering kinako bread? Even though if you just turned right out of the shop and walked a bit, you'd reach a bakery that sells it?

Melusine still couldn't figure out why Yatogami Tohka loved kinako bread so much... Back when she'd first watched Date A Live, she had seen how blissful Tohka looked eating kinako bread and had gone out of her way to try it herself.

Honestly, she had found it pretty average — not particularly delicious, but not terrible either.

Pineapple bread, on the other hand, was quite good. After watching Shakugan no Shana, she'd tried pineapple bread because of Shana's love for it, and ended up really liking it herself... Now that she thought about it, it had been a long time since she'd had any. If she got the chance, she should definitely pick some up.

Just like Shana's way of eating it — first a bite of the crispy part, then a bite of the soft part, then another bite of the crispy part — repeating back and forth.

Still, after eating pineapple bread for years, someone suddenly told her that what Shana actually liked wasn't pineapple bread but melonpan, and that the translators had made a mistake — even showing a bunch of convincing evidence...

Whatever. I like pineapple bread, and that's that.

Although, hmm... if she ever did run into Shana someday, should she give her pineapple bread, or melonpan?

After taking Itsuka Shidou and Yatogami Tohka's orders, Melusine made her way toward the kitchen.

On the way, she glanced down at the order slip.

"Hope everything's going smoothly in the kitchen..."

It had to go smoothly — if something happened to the kitchen staff, chances were she'd have to cover for them too.

As the saying goes, "Better them than me..." — and besides, it wasn't like anyone was really dying.

I'm just helping them build character! It's for their own good! They'll thank me later!

"Lancelot! Take these dishes to Table 7!"

Manager Yami handed her a tray full of food and added, "The guests at Table 7 are all girls. Remember what I taught you earlier—today's success hinges on you, Lancelot!"

"...Shouldn't a restaurant's success depend on the quality and presentation of the food?"

"Lancelot, you're still too young."

Yami raised a finger and gave her a meaningful smile. "These days, who goes to a café just to eat? Food is secondary. If you want a restaurant to thrive, it needs something eye-catching. Otherwise, why do you think maid cafés are so popular?"

Seeing Melusine still looking puzzled, Yami gave up on explaining further.

"Anyway, just do as I said! Quick, quick! A good server doesn't keep their customers waiting! And don't forget to smile!"

By any common rational standard, I am not a proper server. I am a substitute. A forced substitute at that...

Balancing the tray, Melusine made her way toward Table 7. Along the way, she gave a glance at the three customers waiting there.

Just as the Manager said, all three were young women — bright, fresh-faced students.

Each wore light makeup, carefully applied, their youthful prettiness shining through. One of them had a small handbag decorated with a badge of some anime character she didn't recognize.

Yeah... this is probably what normal girls in the real world should look like.

Because honestly, Melusine realized, most of the girls she usually saw were the kind who, even without makeup, were stunningly cute or beautiful... Well, it's an anime world, after all. There just aren't many plain-looking people, no matter their gender.

Of course — none of them are as good-looking as me! Hmph!

"Sorry to keep you waiting, ojou-sama-tachi."

The moment Melusine's voice — as clear and smooth as a mountain spring — rang out, the three girls stopped chatting and turned toward her in unison.

Then, all of them simultaneously lit up, their eyes sparkling and cheeks flushing at the sight of Melusine in her butler uniform.

After placing all the dishes on the table, Melusine tucked the empty tray behind her back with her left hand, placed her right hand elegantly over her chest, and smiled — a faint curve of her lips that carried a dangerously enchanting charm.

"If you require anything else, please do not hesitate to call for me. I will always have time reserved for all you ojou-sama-tachi."