Distant and Ephemeral
...Phew.
...This isn't even the real Ms. Carnelia, so why am I so nervous?
Calm down, Claire. Stay composed. All of you have to do is—
Hyaaah?!
I heard you outside and came to open the door. ...I didn't mean to frighten you.
N-No, I'm fine! ...I suppose I've been unusually jumpy today.
Fufu, we all have days like that.
Shall we go inside? I've prepared some warm tea.
...Yes, Ms. Carnelia.
I believe this is the first time we've sat down together like this.
Until now, we've only ever spoken briefly whenever we happened to meet around Candle Square.
(It's just like that day. The same words, the same circumstances...)
...Claire?
Oh, my apologies. I seem to have gotten a little tense...
Fufu, no need to be so tense. I'm not here to scold or lecture you.
Think of this as... hmm, a friendly conversation.
I've made time for this with the other maids, but somehow our schedules never aligned.
We've both been busy until now. I'm glad we finally have the chance.
It's alright. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hoping for it, but it never troubled me.
With Voidborns have been active nearby, you must have been working closely with the Polaris Observation Council.
On top of that, we've had an unusually high number of wounded or sick Saviors visiting lately.
So of course I knew you had little time to spare.
...Goodness. I had no idea you'd noticed all of that.
Those matters were mainly entrusted to senior maids. I'm surprised you picked up on them.
N-No, I was... just watching, that's all.
I wasn't listening in or anything. I simply... noticed.
Fufu, is that so?
To think you're so aware how Candle Square has been operating...
You may become an even finer Master Maid than I am someday.
...That's far too generous, Ms. Carnelia.
Fufu, if you say so.
How was your time off? Your complexion has improved quite a bit.
I was able to get plenty of rest thanks to your consideration.
I did feel somewhat... guilty taking time off ahead of the senior maids.
Did anyone bring it up with you regarding the matter?
...No, thankfully there weren't.
(I only learned later that several complaints had actually been brought to Ms. Carnelia.)
(They questioned why a new maid like me was permitted leave ahead of the senior maids.)
(...Though the fact that it ended there suggests something must have settled the matter quickly.)
What a shame. I was actually hoping you'd extend your vacation a bit longer.
Even so, I didn't want to be away for too long.
Besides... I believe about a week was enough rest for me.
...Hm? I thought your vacation was only four days long. Was I mistaken?
In fact, I believe I was the one who suggested extending it to a full week—
I-It's not that...!
What I meant was... I rested so well it felt like a whole week.
...You seem rather unusual today, Claire.
Somehow... you seem a little adorable.
Adorable...?!
I-I shall interpret that as humor...
Hehe, perhaps.
(How could a person this gentle end up changing so completely...?)
I know I should have asked sooner, but...
How has life at Candle Square been? Have you settled in?
Very much so. I owe much of that to you, Ms. Carnelia.
Fufu, is that so?
I suppose I've paid extra attention to you because I still remember the day you first came to Candle Square.
Your words were as forceful as one would expect from the Thorn Vine of the Blue Rose.
M-Ms. Carnelia... About what happened back then...!
That day became the reason I started reflecting on many things.
...Many things?
The day you first came to Candle Square.
You looked worn down and tattered, as though you'd endured an exhausting journey...
But I could never forget the look in your eyes when you looked at me.
Your eyes held something deeper than mere desperation.
...Was that the reason you took me in?
Because I looked desperate...?
...Many people come to Candle Square with desperate eyes and their own reasons for doing so...
But I saw something else in your eyes.
The will to keep living, and the desire for a future.
Your eyes shined so bright, like stars in the night sky.
For some reason, those eyes...
...They filled me with a bit of envy.
You... envied me...?
Yes. I may even have been a little jealous.
H-How could that be...? You of all people...
...
I'm not nearly as remarkable as you imagine me to be.
...
(...This happened before. She said the same thing back then.)
(At the time, I assumed she was simply being humble.)
...I worried you would eventually be disappointed by the image you created of me.
Of course, it isn't that I cared any less for the other maids of Candle Square.
Perhaps I envied you a little, but more than that, I couldn't stop worrying about you.
Even after hearing you say you admired me, I didn't wanted you to become someone like me.
...Why.
Why would you speak of yourself that way...?
...Fufu, goodness me. I intended to hear your thoughts, but I ended up speaking only about myself.
I don't mind. I'd rather hear more from you.
Please, tell me more about yourself.
...
...Very well.
But...
...The clock chime...
It's getting very late.
Next time, I'm sure we can talk more then. I promise.
But there was never a next time!
Claire...?
...Er, uh...
...My apologies.
Ms. Carnelia, please forgive me. I just... lost my composure for a moment.
...It's alright.
There will absolutely be a next time for us to speak like this again.
...
...Understood.
Oh, that reminds me. Do you still have the book I gave you?
Yes. Of course I do.
I also remember you telling me to read this book if I've thought things over through and through, but am still unsure of what to do.
Good. That alone is enough.
I can't say it will always give you the right answer, but I'm sure it will help you when you truly need it.
...If it's you, Claire, I'm sure you can manage.
Ms. Carnelia.
Before we finish, there's something I'd like to ask.
Have you ever, to me or anyone at Candle Square...
Had a secret you deliberately chose not to tell us?
...
And if... if I, or someone else, were to learn that secret...
Would anything have changed?
...Every person's heart carries a small drawer of their own.
Those drawers hold memories, feeling, and secrets too difficult to share.
Everyone uses their drawers differently.
Some keep it locked tight, some carefully organized... and some leave it in complete chaos.
Naturally, some people wish for others to reveal everything hidden inside their drawers.
Yet people who insist on hiding even a single secret... usually have their reasons.
...Perhaps they fear revealing their darker side to the people they cherish.
Or perhaps they don't want to be remembered in an ugly light... or leave behind resentment.
Ms. Carnelia, does that mean you also...
...Forgive me, Claire, but I can't respond to that question.
Shall we end today's meeting here?
Okay.
...Thank you for your time.
...Yes, Claire.
Until next time.
...Tch.
Your red eyes really make you look like a rabbit. A bunny suit would suit you perfectly.
...That's enough.
What good does it do to unload all of that on someone who isn't real?
This isn't how it happened in the real past, right?
...Back then, I never imagined Ms. Carnelia would be gone.
Talking with her was enough to make me happy.
But now... I already know how it ends.
That she would disappear, and everything that happened afterward.
...So I was shaken. Just a little.
...
...Are you okay?
Huh?
If you're worried about me, I must have looked worse than I thought.
...Ahem.
As for the other maids, make sure you don't—
Of course I'll keep it secret.
Provided you turn a blind eye to this month's increased garden expenses.
Bell...
...Hehe.
...Absolutely not!
Gah?!
How dare you try to use my weakness to blackmail me! I'll be correcting your attitude from the ground up!
Eek...! W-Wait... I didn't mean it like that! I only wanted to ease the tension, I...
Eeeek!!
...Ahem.
Anyway, this is the final day in the record.
Ms. Carnelia... should be leaving Candle Square soon.
We don't know for certain that reaching the end of the book will return us to reality, but...
If the spell is built around the book as its medium, it would likely follow a defined pattern.
It should either return to the beginning, or end and let us out.
..I'd rather not start over from the beginning.
Bell?
...Right. I was starting to think something was off.
The sun is setting, but nothing has happened yet.
Since the record is built around duties, it should be ending now that the day's work is done.
Then there must be more to what's written.
The last entry Ms. Carnelia left behind...
...
...Let's see it through to the end.
That concludes today's work. Well done, everyone.
Yes, Ms. Carnelia.
I'll be staying late in my office tonight, so we won't need anyone on night watch.
Please tell everyone to rest well until morning.
Huh? But Ms. Carnelia, we couldn't possibly leave that to you...
It's quite alright. I can take care of it while I'm working.
Besides, I know everyone has been exhausted from how busy we've been lately.
Just make sure no one goes out during the night.
...A-Are you sure that's alright?
Of course.
Certainly, Ms. Carnelia.
...You heard that?
...It sounds like she intended to stay by herself.
So she could prepare to leave...?
That may be the case. Or...
...Perhaps she intended to meet a specific someone.
Either way, it seems she chose to leave it behind as a record.
...Claire. Back when I left for Aganon...
Do you remember what you said to me back then?
"Should you encounter her in Aganon..."
Then what?
...
"Please follow the instructions as per the Manual".
As a maid of Candle Square.
...Those were the words I gave you.
No matter the situation... trust your fellow maid. Support them.
And if they stray from the right path, don't hate them.
Truth or not, our answer remains the same. We have to bring her back to the right path.
But if Carnelia already expected herself to fall down the wrong path when she wrote this book...
Then maybe she wanted whoever read this book to stop her.
To think she wanted the reader... to stop her.
I wish she'd simply said she wanted someone to pull her back.
That's one of her bad habits. She always talked in circles.
Keeping secrets and trying to shoulder everything on her own.
...
...Then we'll have to ask her ourselves.
So we can guide her back to the right path.
...Right.
Let's go bid farewell to that remnant of the past.