At this moment, Alice felt incredibly at ease.
Ever since arriving in this world, Alice had carried a weight in her heart—a lingering unease.
Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going?
It's a classic philosophical dilemma, but for Alice, it was a painfully real and serious question.
Alice had no past.
Though her mind held a [Knowledge Repository], it contained no memories of her own.
The Alice of Gensokyo wasn't the person she was now.
She was Alice, but not that Alice from Gensokyo.
It was only because she looked exactly like that Alice that she ended up calling herself Alice, too.
Alice didn't know who she was.
She didn't know where she came from.
She didn't know where she was going or what she was meant to do.
Heck, she didn't even know how old she really was.
Outwardly, she resembled that dollmaker from Gensokyo, but what about her spirit? Her true self?
The only memories that truly felt like her own were from these past three months in Orario. The memories of Gensokyo—what she called the [Knowledge Repository]—didn't feel like hers at all.
Likewise, she had no lived experience of Gensokyo. The knowledge left behind in that vault by the dollmaker also named Alice consisted only of magical theories, techniques for crafting dolls, and methods of controlling them.
Whenever she accessed those memories of Gensokyo, it always felt like she was watching from the outside—like a mere spectator.
If she had to guess whose memories these really were, she'd say they felt less like the dollmaker's and more like they belonged to that youkai named Yukari Yakumo.
Of course, Alice didn't want to dwell too deeply on all that.
But even though she'd decided that in her heart, she still couldn't completely let it go.
Now, however, Alice felt her mind finally relaxing.
Beautiful music echoed softly in her thoughts, played by three fairies circling above her head.
A white fairy blew a trumpet, a red one played a keyboard, and a black one drew a bow across a violin.
The melody was so enchanting that Alice felt like finding a bed and just drifting off to sleep right then and there.
'Now that I think about it… what was I doing again?' Her vision was hazy; she didn't even notice the pretty elf waitress setting a fresh mug of malt beer in front of her.
"Alice, Alice. Come on, let's get going."
'A familiar voice.' Alice turned her dazed eyes toward the speaker and murmured vaguely, "Oh, it's you, Asfi. Long time no see."
She gave Asfi a radiant smile. "Your advice was really good, you know. I'm learning Divine Script now. I've heard that although Falna is activated by a god's blood, it still needs the characters to make it work."
"Which means… if you have a god's blood, someone skilled in Divine Script should be able to inscribe a Falna, too."
Hearing Alice's words, Asfi and Hermes both went pale. Hermes quickly glanced around at the nearby patrons.
Luckily, Alice was drunk—her words were slurred and quiet, and the tavern was noisy enough that no one else seemed to have heard what she said.
"Even without a god's blood, someone with magic inside them should be able to engrave something similar to a Falna. It might not do much for a regular person, I guess."
"But for my dolls? It could probably enhance them really well. Once I figure it out, I can teach you, Asfi… but only if you teach me how to make magic items too, okay?"
Alice tilted her head, her eyes wide and pleading as she gazed at Asfi.
Seeing how utterly adorable she looked, Asfi couldn't help but swallow hard. She quickly covered her mouth and nose, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
When she opened them again, her expression was calm.
"Alright. It's a deal. But for now, Alice, shouldn't we head back? It's getting late—let me take you home to sleep. Do you remember where you live?"
Even though Asfi considered her own preferences perfectly normal—and she already had someone she liked—seeing Alice like this, all soft and silly, was undeniably captivating.
"Hm? Go home?" Alice swayed unsteadily.
A single mug of malt beer couldn't even get a child drunk, and yet here Alice was, wobbling like a loose doll.
"Now that you mention it, it really is dark out. I haven't eaten yet… I wonder if Hestia left any food for me." Alice pouted slightly.
When Hermes heard her mention Hestia, his eyes lit up, and he shot a look at Asfi.
Asfi nodded slightly, then gently asked Alice, "Alice, do you live with Lady Hestia?"
"Mhm, Hestia lives right across from me." Alice's head bobbed drowsily; her eyelids were so heavy it seemed like she might fall asleep any second.
"Alright, Asfi, now that we know where little Alice lives, let's take her back. I know where Hestia's staying since Hephaestus kicked her out. Come on, carry her on your back—let's go."
Hermes stood up, adjusted the green cap on his head, tossed some valis onto the table, and called toward the counter:
"Mia! We're leaving the money here—don't forget to collect it!"
Asfi turned around and crouched down, letting the unsteady Alice clamber onto her back before hoisting her up.
She's so light.
Asfi was genuinely surprised. Alice felt almost weightless—as light as one of the dolls she sold.
Even though she was registered at the Guild as Level 2, Asfi's true strength was that of a Level 4 adventurer. No matter how heavy Alice was, she would've felt light.
But Alice's weight was far lighter than Asfi had expected.
'This isn't the weight of a normal human,' Asfi thought to herself, glancing at Alice, who was on the verge of falling asleep.
Normally, a girl Alice's age—around 160 centimeters tall—would weigh at least 50 kilograms, even if she were quite slim.
But in Asfi's estimation, Alice didn't even feel like she weighed half of that. It was strange. But that was likely one of Alice's secrets—better not to pry.
Right now, getting Alice home safe was what mattered most.
Just as Hermes and Asfi were about to leave the tavern, a god who strutted like a peacock walked in, followed by members of his familia.
"Well, well, if it isn't Hermes! Here for a drink as well?"
"Ugh…" Hermes made a pained face at the sight of the newcomer. "Apollo? What are you doing in a place like this?"
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