Shiro stepped out of Chive's room.
White hair ornaments and white hair that flowed down past her hips — not silver, but white. Slender, sharply angled brows above white eyes.
A beautiful girl with skin like fresh snow. Her outfit was a white Gothic Lolita dress.
From the crown of her head to the tips of her toes, everything was pure white.
Shiro — White — Weiss — Blanche — Album — Cephid.
A first-class delver. Known as "The Immortal White Rose Princess."
She looked only about a year or two older than me, but since she was the same kind of being as a witch, her true age was unknown.
"This should do it."
"Thank you. Sorry about this. I just couldn't manage it myself…"
Shiro had carried the unconscious and drenched Chive to the bath.
She washed her body, got her changed, and tucked her into bed in her room. I was grateful.
"It's nothing. This much is easy. So — what happened?"
"Actually…"
I told Shiro about the bracelet.
Shiro's expression soured.
"That token of gratitude. Shiro didn't get one, you know."
The air turned suddenly cold, laced with ice.
"S-sorry. I have one properly prepared for you."
"Oh? Well, if that's the case, then it's fine."
"Please hold out your hand."
"How about this?"
Shiro-san extended her arm with an effortless sort of grace.
Pure white, slender, and soft—I slid the bracelet on.
A white band with a white gem set into it. A white bracelet.
This was something befitting her.
"White."
"Yes. Because you're Shiro-san."
"Indeed, I am Shiro. Still, all-white is quite rare."
She was gazing at the bracelet with a buoyant lilt in her voice. Good. She liked it.
Then she looked at me.
"Shiro-san."
"I see. This is something that makes you want to say thank you."
"Makes me want to?"
"Wof. This bracelet is a Legacy."
"A Legacy… is it?"
"But. It's not a bad thing. No, not a bad thing at all."
Shiro-san suddenly kissed me.
A pleasant, cool softness pressed against my lips. And then, a bit of surprise—
A sweet-and-sour taste, like pressing strawberry ice cream against my tongue, spread through my mouth.
"...Mm... Shiro..."
"Phew... I just kissed you for the first time..."
She pulled back her lips, almost shyly. Thin, transparent strands trailed between them.
"S- Shiro."
"Yes?"
"W-why is your way of thanking me a kiss...?"
She must know the reason for that.
Shiro pressed a finger against my lips. She tapped lightly, tap tap tap.
"It's a secret."
She whispered that and pulled her finger away.
"Hey, Wof. Shiro's going to go a little far away."
"...You're leaving?"
"There's something Shiro has to deliver, no matter what. But don't get the wrong idea. This isn't goodbye. We'll meet again. We will."
"...Yeah. Let's meet again."
"When we do—I want to finish that kiss—okay?"
Shiro smiled faintly.
Near evening. Mineha told me to go buy ingredients for dinner.
"That's—"
It was Narcissus.
Deep purple hair in a side ponytail and vivid purple eyes. A headstrong beauty.
I headed down the alley with a handful of guys. Ah, yeah. Sure.
After waiting a bit before going down the alley, there was Narcissus standing on a mountain of corpses.
"Wof! Perfect timing. Help me out!"
"Cleaning up, I see."
"That's right!"
"Then let's get to it."
I used [Banish].
Once the cleanup was done, Narcissus had a refreshed look on her face.
"Just the right warm-up, wasn't it?"
"Do you always do stuff like this?"
"Once in a while. Can't really complain since I'm the one using them, but the security around here is terrible."
"The city should be back to normal soon. It was just something temporary, like a festival."
The flow of people was starting to return to normal, too.
"So that's how it works."
"Good timing, actually. There's something I wanted to ask you, Narcissus."
"What?"
"...Do you know anything about a [Legacy] sword?"
"A sword?"
"Apparently it's a sword of some god."
"Oh, that one. Yeah, I know about it."
"Really?"
"Yep, it's a goddess who became the form of a sword. It was the beloved sword of the Generous King."
"That's it! Huh? The Generous… King?"
"That's right. You didn't know? Generous is a species."
"A species…"
"So, Ura isn't technically a reincarnation but a descendant. A descendant of Generous. And a direct one at that."
"Then the juvenile deity…"
"That's the last king."
Ah, so something like Tutankhamun.
"So, about the sword, it broke."
"Huh, it broke?"
"Yep, snapped clean in two during a battle among the gods. Then, from the shards of that broken blade, many other swords were made."
I didn't know that.
"Do you know where that sword is now?"
"I don't!" she declared.
"Right…"
Being told that with such confidence wasn't exactly reassuring.
"But why are you looking for something like that?"
Something like that… well, I guess I can tell her.
"The truth is, I can't hold swords."
"I can't hold swords?"
"Seems like I'm cursed by that sword goddess… because I'm cursed, I can't hold swords…"
"I see. That must be tough."
"I can hold a knife, though."
"That's true, come to think of it."
But it's broken.
And the blade fragments have become swords.
"Thank you for telling me."
"No problem. It's nothing."
"Right. Could you hold out your arm?"
"What is it? Sure."
Narcissus held out her arm straight. I slipped the bracelet on.
It was a bracelet of a deep purple band set with a light purple gem.
The bracelet that had been in the pouch was actually plain.
But when I held it and envisioned it, its color and gemstone would appear.
"Oh? A bracelet. Nice one."
"It's a bracelet."
"Mm. It's a nice bracelet. You're giving it to me?"
"Yes. It's a token of my gratitude."
"Gratitude… I see. Is that so?"
Well, a lot had happened, but the gratitude was genuine.
"Yes. I'm grateful."
"...I-I see. Hey, so I'd like to do something to thank you for the bracelet."
Here it comes. Narcissus was blushing and fidgeting.
"Narcissus?"
"What should I do?"
"Huh?"
"I want to thank you, but what should I do?"
"What do you mean..."
This was a new pattern.
Narcissus was looking at me with a troubled expression.
"I want to thank you. I got such a nice bracelet, so I want to do something Wof for you."
"It's a bracelet."
"But I don't know what I should do."
"I mean, you don't really have to thank me—"
"No way! Just accepting it goes against my pride!"
"Even so..."
The desire to thank me was probably the bracelet's effect.
But then why did Narcissus look so troubled? Why couldn't she figure it out?
"Oh, right. If it's a token of gratitude, that means other people got this bracelet too."
"It's a bracelet."
"What kind of thank-you have the people who received it been giving?"
"Um, well... a kiss."
"What? Don't mess around."
Narcissus looked annoyed.
"I'm not messing around. It really is a kiss. On the cheek, mostly."
"A-a-a-a-a... wait. To Wof?"
"Yes. As thanks."
Oh — Narcissus's face had gone red all the way to her ears.
"A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a kiss!?"
"I never said you had to do it."
"B-but, everyone's been doing it as thanks, right?"
"Well, yes, for some reason they have. But that doesn't mean you have to."
There was no need to force it.
"H-hey, who have you given the bracelet to so far?"
"The witch, and Munieka, and Shiro."
"Th-those people kissed you too...?"
"They did. But even so—"
"I'll do it."
"Wha— no, you really don't have to force yourself—"
"I'm gonna do it. As a thank-you, k-k-k-k-k-k-kiss!"
Miss Narcissus was on the verge of tears.
Her face was bright red, practically steaming. She was obviously forcing herself through this.
Really, really forcing herself.
"Miss Narcissus. Maybe you should just—"
"Shut your eyes!"
"Huh?"
"Just do it! Close your eyes!"
"O-okay."
I did as I was told and closed my eyes.
"You absolutely must not open them! Got it?!"
"Y-yes. Understood."
So this was the thanks, huh.
Then I felt something approaching, and both my cheeks were held in place by her hands.
"I-I'm going."
After that small voice, I felt something light, soft, and damp touch my lips.
I thought that was it, but then a tongue slipped into my mouth and I nearly jumped.
"Wha—!?"
It twisted around, licked, and sucked — then pulled back, and every sensation vanished abruptly from my mouth. She'd pulled away.
Her hands left my cheeks, and I was told I could open my eyes, so I did.
"Um, just now—"
"It was a thank-you."
"But, well—"
"It was a thank-you."
As she said this, Narcissus's entire body had turned bright red, and she was turning her face away from me.
Narcissus said "Thanks for the bracelet" as her last words, and we parted ways.
It's a bracelet.
Emerging from the alley, I casually made my way toward the main street.
The crowd was its usual self, though it felt like fewer people than before.
"Yo, kid."
"Oh, you're—"
I was startled at being addressed.
The turbaned street vendor — the one I'd bought the bracelet from.