The sky was overcast.
It took more than an hour for Philip to calm the mad dogs down with kind words.
But in the end, Alice finally managed to settle from her fury.
She judged from something else that Philip, "Allen," and the others might really be telling the truth.
'Rudeus's' voice was clearly a girl's, and 'he' was even wearing the same skirt as her. Although she had seen little boys wearing skirts in the capital before, the confused look the other party had after falling to the ground really resembled those weak girls she had fought at the noble school before.
But those were only secondary reasons.
The main reason was:
She was simply tired of hitting.
The mad dog was still just a cute tiger for now. Though the core of her personality had tyrannical tendencies, her physical strength couldn't compare to what it would become in the future as the Mad Sword King.
Even more absurd was Rudy's reaction. After realizing the young lady's attacks had no effect on him, and that she genuinely couldn't break through his defenses, he actually lay on the ground and began swinging around leisurely.
From Allen's perspective, Rudy even seemed kind of happy.
It was... a little ridiculous.
——
At that moment, inside the Greyrat home, the sky outside had darkened suddenly, and heavy clouds gathered as the wind picked up.
Several candles were lit inside to provide extra light.
The flames swayed, and the mood at the dining table was anything but calm.
Alice sat on a stool, legs swinging unladylike, arms still crossed over her chest as she looked down at the person across from her.
"What are you looking at! Don't use magic if you dare!"
"I said you're the one who got the wrong person, okay?! And why'd you hit him?"
Rudy, now completely healed by healing magic, had no visible injuries. Once he realized she really couldn't hurt him, he started talking back.
"Are you trying to discipline me?!"
Rudy curled his lips. By now, he had fully understood this young lady's temperament. She probably didn't even know that Allen was her brother. And even if she did, she'd probably still act the same.
This was a real "young lady."
"I don't know who spoiled her like this… Mom, maybe? Judging by what I've seen, Philip clearly can't control her."
Seeing Rudy no longer arguing, Alice snorted in satisfaction, then blinked. Her bright red pupils hesitated slightly. She didn't turn her head—her upper body remained facing forward with her arms still crossed—but her eyes shifted sideways.
Beside her, Sylphy sat obediently, staring blankly at the teacup in front of her.
Her white dress was dirty.
Alice's mouth twitched slightly. Then she turned her eyes back to the air in front of her and suddenly spoke loudly.
"Ru—your name's Xilu, right?"
Sylphy blinked blankly, then looked at Alice's profile.
"My name is Sylphiette."
Alice blinked again.
"Sylphiette! I allow you to be Alice's…"
She glanced quickly at the cat-eared maid beside her, who was smiling helplessly. The word seemed stuck on the tip of her tongue, and she couldn't say it.
The cat-eared maid sighed and said softly, ears drooping.
"Miss Alice, do you mean 'maid'? No, it should be 'friend.'"
Alice raised her eyebrows.
"Friend??"
She had certainly heard this word at the nobles' boxing school, but she couldn't quite grasp the meaning in the current context. She subconsciously turned her gaze toward the cat-eared maid—someone she shared a pseudo-intimate relationship with.
Then she blinked, crossed her arms again, and repeated with great seriousness and volume:
"Then I allow you to be Alice's friend!"
Still speaking to the air.
Only the flicker in her pupils indicated that she was speaking to Sylphiette.
The cat-eared maid quickly corrected her:
"You can't say it like that, Miss Alice! Friends are equals. You should say: I want to be friends with you. That would be better."
Alice opened her mouth. "Huh?"
She had been spoiled by Sauros since she was young and was used to copying the behavior of close adults. As a result, she was always the dominant one in any relationship.
Which is also why she had no friends at noble school.
After all, no child could handle this strange, condescending kindness.
But Sylphy noticed something.
Because she had endured enough malice in life, she was incredibly sensitive to kindness.
To her, malice was like ink dripping into clear water—impossible to miss.
And by contrast, kindness was like spring sunlight melting winter snow—easy to "absorb."
Unlike Alice, who was surrounded by maids in her castle like a burning flame, Sylphy was just a blade of grass growing in the cracks of Buena Village's rough dirt roads.
Sylphy glanced at Allen, who couldn't help staring at the cat-eared maid's ears due to his "XP" instincts, then looked back at Alice, forced herself to stay composed, and softly replied with patience:
"It's okay… Sylphy is willing to be your friend."
Alice's eyes lit up with joy. She turned her head so fast it looked like her neck would break, her face full of an excited smile.
"Okay!"
Pah!
Everyone turned their heads to look at Allen, who had just slapped something.
He quickly averted his eyes from the cat maid's ears, and forced a smile toward the startled Paul and Zenith.
"Sorry, what were we talking about again? Don't mind me—just a mosquito."
Then he turned his gaze toward Philip.
The other man's eyes were burning with excitement, wearing an expression that clearly read "just as expected."
"There's another variable!! You're using this to test future cadre?! You're not human!!"
Philip, noticing Allen's twitching face, smiled as Allen awkwardly tried to ignore the cat-eared maid sitting directly across from him.
"There are many maids like this in the Boreas mansion—if you like them."
"I don't like them. Thank you."
"Okay."
Philip turned to Paul with a smile.
"Back to the earlier discussion—you have no objections to Rudy coming to Roa as a tutor, right?"
Paul looked at Zenith and Lilia beside him, then at Allen.
"I don't object to Rudy going. Boys should get more experience. And with Allen there, we're reassured. Honestly, I was planning for them to become adventurers in two or three years anyway. This is a good transition and totally acceptable."
"And as long as you mean it—that they're tutors, not servants, and you won't restrict their freedom in the future—then I agree."
Philip clapped his hands and laughed.
"Then it's simple."
"But."
Paul looked at Philip seriously.
"Rudy is Rudy, and Allen is Allen. We can't decide for him. You need to ask for his agreement. If he doesn't consent, I won't let you take him from Buena Village."
Rudy: ?? Wait, don't you need my consent too?
"Of course."
Just as Philip finished speaking, he surprised Paul by standing up and walking to the front door.
He opened it.
The strong wind before the spring rainstorm blew in, rustling his clothes.
He tilted his head slightly and, still wearing that easygoing smile, looked at Allen who stood up and locked eyes with him.
"Want to talk outside?"