"My... name?"
"Mm-hmm!"
The newly reborn Artificial Lifeform looked at Astolfo, who had asked his name, and folded his arms, giving the question serious thought.
Unlike his special companions made to serve as attendants or fighters, those mass-produced as Magic Power batteries had never been given so much as a designation by their makers, let alone a name.
But things would be different from now on. He could hardly spend the rest of his life with "Magic Power-supplying Artificial Lifeform" as his name.
As his brain stirred into activity, air flowed smoothly into his lungs, without any of the strange pain or tearing sensation he had felt before.
He tried gathering Magic Power in his palm, pressed it against a tree trunk, and began analyzing its structure and composition.
The next instant, the sturdy, resilient trunk snapped like a dead branch, yet the Artificial Lifeform's body did not budge. He remained standing firmly in place.
Seeing that an impact once tantamount to self-destruction had now become so insignificant, the Artificial Lifeform suddenly pressed a hand to his chest.
Beneath his skin, muscles, and breastbone, a heart beat powerfully within his chest-the heart that hero had given him.
In that case-
"How about Sieg?"
"Huh? Not Siegfried?"
The Artificial Lifeform... or rather, Sieg, shook his head and said:
"Taking his name outright feels far too presumptuous, but forgetting him would be too heartless. So I think I can use the name 'Sieg.'"
Astolfo nodded in agreement with a series of enthusiastic hums.
"That's true. Come to think of it, 'victory'-sieg-is a pretty good name, too. After all, staying alive is your victory."
Staying alive... is my victory?
Sieg pondered Rider's offhand remark. Perhaps because everything he had experienced was still so brief, he could not yet understand it, but he remained