"Betty, do you know? Last night you were talking in your sleep, saying I could call you 'little girl' for a hundred years."
"Betty would never say such a thing, even if she died!"
Satou Kazuma and Beatrice were bickering.
"Everyone, you're back. What were you doing out so late?"
Emilia walked up to them, asking with a puzzled look.
Emilia knew nothing about the Witch Cult.
"Is that the half-elf?"
Elsa narrowed her eyes slightly, fixing her gaze on Emilia.
She was one of her original targets.
"Hey, hey, Elsa, don't suddenly do anything weird, okay?"
Satou Kazuma looked at Elsa with some nervousness.
"Don't worry, Kazuma-sama. That was my previous job. After all, I failed in the end. She successfully participated in the royal selection, so I won't be continuing."
"Really?"
Satou Kazuma looked at Elsa next to him with some disbelief.
"As expected of Kazuma-sama, you really know me. After all, I haven't cut open a half-elf's insides before~"
"When we get back to the royal capital, I'll let you sell grilled sausages as much as you want."
"I don't quite understand, but it sounds amazing! Kazuma-sama, you're the best."
Meanwhile, Natsuki Subaru had brought Geuse to Emilia.
"Ram said there was something strange happening in the forest. We were a little worried tonight, so we went to take a look with Kazuma, Aqua, and the others."
Natsuki Subaru explained with a smile.
"Thank you for your hard work! And this is... Subaru, is this your friend?"
Emilia's gaze fell on Geuse next to Natsuki Subaru.
Looking at Emilia in front of him, tears streamed down Geuse's face.
He didn't know how long it had been, he didn't know how long, he didn't know how long it had really been.
He had finally seen Emilia again.
Even though it had been a long time, and she looked very different from his memory, Geuse recognized her at first glance.
In his memory, Emilia was just a little kid, only up to his thigh.
But now, she was a beautiful young woman.
Emilia must have suffered a lot over the years.
If only, if only he could have stayed with Emilia as she grew up.
But there were no "ifs"...
His emotions were like a dam breaking, gushing out from Geuse's heart, and the tears flowing from his eyes became more and more.
"Ah, if there's anything I can help with, please tell me!"
Emilia said to Geuse immediately.
"I, I don't need anything, Emilia. It's been so long! Just being able to see you again is enough."
Geuse wiped the tears from his cheeks, a happy smile on his face.
"Eh? Do you know me? I'm terribly sorry, but I don't remember..."
Emilia said apologetically, bowing to him.
"It's okay, my appearance is very different from before - I'm Geuse, Emilia!"
Geuse said his name with a smile.
He didn't know what Emilia's reaction would be when she heard his name.
Excitement? Joy? Sadness?
Geuse wasn't sure.
But when Emilia heard Geuse's words, the corner of her mouth twitched slightly—
But soon, it turned into a polite smile.
"I'm terribly sorry, I don't think I've ever heard that name before."
?
Geuse froze on the spot as if he had been turned to stone.
He desperately hoped that Emilia was just teasing him.
But Geuse could tell that Emilia's expression was serious.
She didn't know he existed.
Why?
Why had it become like this?
Had Emilia forgotten him?
It shouldn't be like this...
Wait...
A terrifying thought arose in Geuse's mind.
"Emilia, do you remember your aunt Fortuna?"
"Fortuna?"
The moment she spoke that name, Emilia's expression changed slightly.
"I... Aunt... Fortuna... I... I... I haven't heard that name... But why, why do I feel such sadness?"
Two lines of tears streamed from Emilia's eyes, and she didn't know what was happening.
It was as if something very important had been forgotten.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I lost my composure!"
Emilia quickly wiped away her tears and said to Geuse,
"I can't remember a lot of my memories from the past. Sir Geuse, you may have been a very important person to me, but... I'm sorry... I can't remember anything now..."
"No, it's okay, it's not your fault."
Geuse looked at Emilia kindly, simply saying with a smile.
Emilia had forgotten him, and even forgotten Fortuna.
Then there was only one possibility—
Emilia's memories had been tampered with.
"Useless goddess, why don't you go take a look at Emilia's situation."
Satou Kazuma said to Aqua quietly.
"Okay."
Aqua nodded, then slowly walked up to Emilia, reaching out and gently touching her.
"Aqua-sama!"
Geuse looked at Aqua with a hint of anticipation.
Aqua had recovered his memories that he had lost.
Perhaps, Aqua could also recover Emilia's memories.
"Eh?"
But Aqua frowned slightly, looking at Emilia with a puzzled expression, then looking down at the crystal necklace she was wearing.
"What's wrong?"
Satou Kazuma asked.
"It's strange, Emilia's memories seem to have two seals on them."
"Two?"
"That's right. The first seal on Emilia's memory is something like a curse, similar to Geuse's, but this seal has loosened, and it would be easy to remove. But this second seal is a bit special. It doesn't seem like a curse, but more like a contract."
"Contract?"
A series of events had left Satou Kazuma feeling confused.
"That's right, like the contract between you and Betty. It's not impossible for me to forcefully break this seal, but I don't know if it will damage the contract's content."
Aqua said.
"What are the consequences of damaging the contract's content?"
Just as Satou Kazuma asked, Beatrice next to him explained:
"The contract is bound to the souls of both parties. The specific price varies depending on the contract's content - but in any case, forcibly breaking or canceling the contract will have very serious consequences."
"That's terrifying. Emilia, do you remember who you made a contract with?"
"I..."
Emilia lowered her head, clutching the crystal necklace around her neck tightly.
This was the medium for her contract with Puck.
"It's Puck."
"Puck? Did Puck do it? But you and Emilia usually have a very good relationship, don't you? Do you remember the contract's content?"
"I remember... but it shouldn't be anything very important, like not being picky with food every day, and staying active..."
"'Forgetting the contract's contents' may also be part of the contract."
Beatrice said, her expression becoming somewhat complicated.
"But at this time, Puck is already resting. Even if we want to ask, it will have to wait until tomorrow..."
"In that case, let's rest tonight, and leave everything for tomorrow."
Satou Kazuma said with a smile,
"Rem, could you prepare a room for Geuse as well?"
..........
Late at night.
Satou Kazuma lay in bed, tossing and turning.
"BaKazuma, can't you sleep?"
Satou Kazuma turned around and saw Beatrice staring at him intently.
"Yeah, this series of weird things happening has made my brain a little overloaded."
Satou Kazuma sighed.
He thought they were simply dealing with the Witch Cult, but it had inexplicably turned into this.
It could be said that the amount of information he had received last night was more than he received in a week.
This world was far more complex than he had imagined.
Even though it originally had little to do with him.
If possible, Satou Kazuma still wanted to be a carefree rich man.
"By the way, Betty, if you call Puck 'brother,' does that mean he's a great spirit like you?"
"That's right. Betty has known brother for a long time, but he left later - only recently did he come back with Emilia, this little girl."
"That means you have the same mother, right?"
Satou Kazuma asked, as if he had thought of something.
"Yes."
"In that case, wouldn't your mother know something? And even though it's a bootleg, the Witch Cult's Gospel should also be related to your mother, right?"
"Mother is... gone a long time ago. She also had the name of a witch, and was called the Witch of Greed, Echidna."
"Another witch, huh? Not one who devours the world, right?"
"No, only the Witch of Envy does that kind of thing."
"I see. But it's strange. If it's Puck, why would he do this? He doesn't seem like a bad guy. Is it to protect Emilia? Or is there another reason?"
"Betty only knows that there is also a contract between Puck and mother. Maybe it's related to that."
"Oh?"
"Betty doesn't know the specific content of the contract, but there might be something fishy about it. There might be a place where we can find the answer."
"Where?"
"Sanctuary."
"Never heard of it."
"It's a place unknown to others, and where mother, Betty, and others used to live together. It's in the forest, but it's impossible to find without special means."
"That's troublesome. I hate troublesome things the most."
Satou Kazuma stretched and said to Beatrice.
"While saying you hate trouble, aren't you the first to help when the people around you have problems?"
"Ah, it's forced by life."
Satou Kazuma sighed helplessly,
"You go to sleep first, I'm going to the bathroom."
After saying that, Satou Kazuma yawned and left the room.
But he hadn't walked far when he saw someone standing in the hallway, spacing out.
"Why aren't you sleeping at this late hour, Geuse! It's a good thing you changed bodies. If it was the previous one, I might have been scared to death!"
"I'm sorry... I have some worries, so I can't sleep."
Geuse nodded slightly, apologizing to Satou Kazuma.
"Thank you for coming out to keep me company at night, Kazuma-sama..."
"I'm just going to the bathroom!"
Satou Kazuma said as he passed Geuse.
Just then, Geuse suddenly spoke.
"Um, Kazuma-sama, I'm willing to join your group."
"Huh? Aren't you going to stay with Emilia?"
"Emilia has grown up now, and I'm sure she doesn't need me anymore. Moreover, I can never forget the kindness you and Aqua-sama have shown me. If it weren't for you, I might have done something unforgivable. Please forgive my selfishness, but I can guarantee that I will do anything as long as it doesn't hurt Emilia."
Geuse's gaze became extremely firm, as if he had made some kind of decision,
"Also, I must find Fortuna... She is an incredibly important person to me. I must find her."
"Oh, in that case, good luck."
Satou Kazuma patted Geuse on the shoulder, simply answering.
"That application form—"
"Don't give it to me! Give it to Aqua!"
"Okay, okay. Thank you for saving my life, and thank you for trusting me!"
After parting ways with Geuse, Satou Kazuma continued walking:
"Ah, it's not good that the mansion is too big. It's such a long walk to the bathroom... There's another person up ahead. It can't be... Yep..."
Standing in front of Satou Kazuma was Rem.
"Good evening, Kazuma-sama."
"Rem, why are you here so late?"
Although Satou Kazuma asked that, he already had a good idea of the answer.
"Because there is one more person with a bad smell, Rem needs to prevent anything from happening in the mansion."
Geuse was giving off the scent of a witch, so he naturally became an eyesore for Rem.
"So, the morning star in your hand is also to prevent anything unexpected from happening?"
"This is the weapon Rem carries for self-defense."
"Carries for self-defense?"
"Carries for self-defense."
Satou Kazuma was too lazy to ask Rem where she carried the morning star.
It seems there was no need to go to the bathroom.
----
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