Ranni was blue and had four arms, yet despite that, she still looked rather cute.
"Um... speaking of which, do all Witches look like you?" Asuna was curious about what race Ranni actually was.
"Oh. You're curious about my appearance." Ranni understood. "But that isn't the case. This isn't my body. My body has already died; this is a doll's body."
"Died... Huh? Just like Melina!"
Asuna thought of Melina.
Asuna had originally wanted Ranni to say more, especially about Melina.
But Ranni did not speak.
Though they were AI, AI also possessed independent thinking abilities.
Compared to humans, clever AI were actually harder to steer through "thought induction."
Of course, Asuna did not mind. If it did not work now, it could still work later.
The greatest advantage of AI was that increases in favorability could be tracked. And if she wanted to open their hearts, raising their favorability was the best method.
"Alright, go get ready. Once you enter the academy, just use the items I gave you," Ranni said.
"Alright, Miss Ranni. Thank you very much for your help. We'll be taking our leave."
Asuna and Kiriko left the tower together.
"Let's head back to Stormveil first. We need to tell everyone this information." After descending the tower, Asuna spoke to Kiriko.
"Mm." Kiriko nodded gloomily.
Kiriko seemed to be thinking about something.
"Asuna."
Kiriko suddenly called out to Asuna.
"Mm?" Asuna turned around.
"Um... can I... become Asuna's knight?" Kiriko looked away.
Asuna smiled. "Sure. My dear little knight, Princess Asuna awaits your protection~"
"I'm not a child..."
Kiriko blushed.
She was a year younger than Asuna, and at times like this, Kiriko was at a slight disadvantage.
It was so frustrating.
"Well~ of course I know that. Kiriko is very dependable."
"...Mm."
The two continued