Grandmaster

Early in the morning, Li Yan woke from his sleep. Flamme was already sitting at the table, combing her long, silky hair. When she saw him wake, a smile appeared on her lips.

"A Yan, we still have ten days of travel ahead. It'll be a good chance to hone your and Frieren's control over mana."

Li Yan listened to Flamme's instruction and nodded silently. As he watched her comb her hair stroke after stroke, concern for his godmother drew him closer.

"Godmother, let me comb it for you."

"Hm? Sure."

Flamme looked up at Li Yan, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly, and handed him the comb. Having received this imperial sword of a comb, Li Yan swallowed, gently gathered her long, silky orange hair, and slowly combed it.

From the overhead view, a white T-shirt and a tantalizing glimpse of emptiness revealed a grand vista, a vast vista. His heart lingered, tethered only to hers.

Filial Li Yan merely stole a few casual glances to show his respect as a boy.

"Your junior sister should be waking up too. If no one goes to wake her, she can sleep until noon."

Once her hair was combed, Flamme got up and went to Frieren's room. Li Yan nodded in response, washed up in the bathroom, and followed her.

In Frieren's room, Flamme pulled Frieren up with an expressionless face. Seeing Frieren squinting sleepily, Li Yan covered his mouth and laughed.

Flamme caught him snickering and swept a death glare over him before solemnly placing the comb in his hand.

"Since you know how to comb hair, do your junior sister's too."

Flamme went into the bathroom to prepare Frieren's face towel. Li Yan's mouth twitched. He was already used to being pressed into service.

Gently gathering Frieren's long white hair, Li Yan combed it softly. Frieren nodded off from time to time, her little head bobbing, making her look especially adorably dazed.

Her long, flowing hair was beautiful, but with a hairstyle, she should look more like the Frieren from the anime. Li Yan gently gathered her hair and deftly tied it into twin tails.

Li Yan gazed tenderly at Frieren with her twin tails. This Frieren overlapped perfectly with the one in his memories. Apart from looking a little younger and lacking that world-weary air, she looked exactly the same.

"A Yan, have you finished doing your junior sister's hair?"

Flamme came out of the bathroom carrying hot water. Seeing Frieren still nodding off with her hair in twin tails, she expressionlessly picked up the washcloth and ruthlessly scrubbed her face.

"Hey, hey, hey, be gentler, Master."

Frieren woke from her sleep and hurriedly begged for mercy. She wanted to pull the washcloth off her face, but she couldn't bring herself to act and could only leave her hands hanging there.

Once her face had been washed, Frieren opened her eyes with an aggrieved look. She had just been having a wonderful dream, but she had already somewhat forgotten what it was about.

"It's time to get up and go. You big lazybones, you've thrown your magic tomes all over the place again."

Flamme scolded her as she packed their things. Like a humble little servant, Frieren silently nodded and helped pick up the magic tomes scattered on the floor.

After packing and leaving the inn, Li Yan drove the carriage while eating bread. Flamme sat in the carriage, teaching Frieren about magic.

The morning set the course for the day, and studying magic early helped one master it better. Frieren studied with a pitiful look, with plenty of Flamme's loving little fists and cheek pinches along the way.

It had to be said, the journey went very smoothly. Any monsters they encountered could be dealt with using a casual spell. They ran into no troublesome greater monsters, nor did they have to deal with winding roads and the like.

Inside a magnificent castle, a blonde elf girl with pointed ears sat on a throne marked by the passage of history, looking down at her disciple Flamme, who had come to visit her.

"You haven't come to see me in so long. Did you suddenly come looking for me because you needed something, little Flamme?"

Looking at the exceptionally unruly elf girl on the throne, a thought surfaced in Li Yan's mind. Who on earth could spank the butt of someone this arrogant?

"Little one, your thoughts are a little dangerous. You've piqued my interest too."

The elf girl tilted her head and stepped down from the throne with great interest. Her bare, jade-like feet stepped lightly on the floor, and a deep smile played on her face as she stared directly at Li Yan.

"Huh?!"

Shock appeared on Li Yan's face. How could anyone possibly hear his thoughts, unless the other person possessed magic that could hear what others were thinking?

Flamme looked on in confusion, while Frieren tilted her head and looked at Li Yan and her grandmaster, who was also an elf girl.

"A Yan, don't harbor any malicious thoughts about Grandmaster. She has a spell specifically for detecting malicious thoughts."

Flamme spoke with a wry smile. She had forgotten to warn him about this most important matter.