"What, what's this cute and strong familiar? Huh? Blue Dove... but it can't be, right?"
Deputy Leader Gideon looked at Zabiria, his voice trembling with shock.
"Wow, as expected of my sewing skills! You got it right away."
"Correct! It's a Blue Dove."
"No way!! A Blue Dove is supposed to be pigeon-shaped! Why does this one have such a long neck!"
"Huh? The neck? ...Ah, that's because it was a fierce battle. When making a contract with a familiar, there was a very intense struggle. To put it simply, we were pulling each other's necks, and this one's neck got stretched."
"No, your proof is so thin! The contract should have been over in an instant!!"
"Huh? Yes, you're right. The monster's neck stretched in an instant."
Deputy Leader Gideon kept tilting his head, looking at Zabiria, but with just a slightly longer neck, it was clearly a Blue Dove. He seemed to stop doubting it. Haha, a victory for my sewing skills.
"A weak master makes a weird familiar. Even though it's already the weakest monster, with such an unbalanced form, can it even fly properly? A useless familiar is nothing but a burden!"
"Well, what are you talking about? It's so cute, it must be strong and useful."
"Everything you're saying is wrong! Being cute has nothing to do with being strong and useful, and to begin with, it's not cute at all!!"
What is Deputy Leader Gideon talking about?
It can't be anything but cute, being so small and fluffy. Deputy Leader Gideon is just a layman who doesn't know the definition of cute.
I let out a small sigh.
Ah, do I have to teach him the definition of cute from scratch? What a hassle.
"Hey, you! You're spouting some incomprehensible theory and insulting me, aren't you? I can tell right away! Why are you so confident when you have the weakest monster as a familiar? I doubt your way of thinking!"
As usual, Deputy Leader Gideon ranted with enthusiasm.
Zabiria, who had been quiet until now, seemed to get bored with the conversation she couldn't participate in. She glanced at Deputy Leader Gideon and then came closer to me. When she opened her mouth, she started to chirp in a strange voice.
"Stupid, stupid."
"...What? What did your familiar just say?"
Deputy Leader Gideon frowned deeply and asked.
"Stupid, stupid, silly."
Zabiria continued to chirp in a cute voice.
Zabiria, really.
She's trying to avenge me, her superior in a hierarchical society, who can never defy her superior. What a good girl.
I put on a serious face and answered Deputy Leader Gideon's question.
"It seems that when her neck stretched, she damaged her vocal cords, so her chirping is a bit off. I apologize for the unpleasant sound."
"Silly, silly, very silly."
"No, that's not chirping!! It's clearly insulting me!"
"Hehe, what are you talking about? A Blue Dove, the weakest monster, can't speak human language."
"......"
Deputy Leader Gideon gritted his teeth and glared at Zabiria, but she continued to chirp as if nothing had happened.
"Stupid, stupid, very silly."
Haha, Zabiria. Enough now.
I patted Zabiria's head and looked directly at Deputy Leader Gideon.
"Then, I, Fia Rude, will be in charge of the monster recovery from today. Excuse me."
I turned around and started to walk back the way I came. Zabiria, who had nestled her head on my shoulder, continued to chirp at Deputy Leader Gideon.
"Silly, silly, a hundred times silly."
"Damn familiarโโโโ!!"
I heard Deputy Leader Gideon's shout from behind.
Haha, to be toyed with by a single chirp, you still have a lot to learn, Deputy Leader.
"Well... then."
Once I stepped out of the building and looked around, I started walking towards the castle.
Right, I need to get the recovery potion from the Holy Maiden first.
Most Holy Maidens, if unmarried, live in the church, and if married, in their homes. However, a certain number are stationed in the castle for emergencies. They actually live in a detached palace next to the royal palace, but it's quite a distance to walk.
After about 30 minutes of walking, I finally arrived at the detached palace.
Holding Zabiria in my arms, it was good exercise, I guess. Or rather, Zabiria stopped moving and fell asleep again.
At the entrance of the detached palace, I showed the recovery potion exchange voucher I received from Deputy Assistant Patty to the butler.
He glanced curiously at my collar badge and then led me to a guest reception room near the entrance.
Of course, it's rare for a knight from the First Knight Order to come to the Fourth Monster Knight Order to get a familiar's recovery potion.
Standing by the window in the reception room, I gazed outside absentmindedly and saw a few women.
They were wearing white robes, so I assumed they were Holy Maidens, but what were they doing?
They were sitting on benches set up in the garden, chatting. Next to them, a servant was drawing water from a well and pouring it into several bottles that had been prepared. Then, they mixed the well water with a green liquid from another container, capped the bottles, shook them, and handed them to the Holy Maidens.
The Holy Maidens, lying lazily on the benches, held the bottles on their stomachs, muttered something, and then started chatting again. After a while, their hands glowed slightly, and the servant collected the bottles.
...Ahโโโ, could this be...
After waiting for a while, the butler who greeted me at the entrance came in with a tray holding a bottle filled with a sparkling transparent liquid.
...Yes, this is indeed the bottle the Holy Maiden was holding earlier.
"Thank you."
I thanked him, took the bottle, bowed, and left the detached palace.
As I walked, I felt a nagging sense of unease.
To dispel this unease, I kept repeating to myself in my mind.
...Well, maybe it's not modern.
After 300 years, a lot has changed, and since there are few Holy Maidens, they must have a lot of other things to do. Efficiency is important.
This is the norm now, this is the norm now...
However, my self-reassurance didn't seem to work well, and scenes from my past life kept flashing before my eyes.
--- Nature has power.
The vibrant green trees, the blooming flowers. The roots that spread through the earth, standing up and growing again even when stepped on or buried in snow, the indomitable vitality. Nature is full of beauty and power.
What would happen if this overflowing power were taken into the body?
From this reverence for nature, the recovery potion was born.
Three hundred years ago, the Holy Maidens would visit springs whenever they had the time.
There were springs everywhere, and such places always had a few trees, flowers, and herbs growing.
They would pick the herbs with awe at the beauty and strength of nature.
They would draw the spring water, float the picked herbs in it, and pour their magic power into it, imagining the injured people recovering with the power of nature. As they did so, the herbs would dissolve into the water, creating the recovery potion. The color would be a deep green, inheriting the color of the herb leaves.
...So why is the current recovery potion transparent?
I tilted my head, looking at the bottle of recovery potion I had just received.
I can't understand it. By changing the process so much, some of the effects must have been lost. And the lost effect is definitely the pain-relieving part!
I shuddered at the memory of the pain when using the recovery potion.
Yes, even if I get injured, I won't use the recovery potion again.
I nodded to myself and started walking towards the familiar quarters.