Tears streamed down Iris’s face like a leaky faucet.
Her crimson eyes were blurred and unfocused.
Evrys, momentarily stunned, reached out to comfort her.
“…Huh?”
Her arm felt heavy.
It fell back onto the bed, failing to reach Iris.
‘…What?’
Evrys had never been particularly strong.
But she had never been this weak either.
‘Did I turn into a frail maiden while I was unconscious?’
“Ah…”
Seeing Evrys struggling, Iris seemed to snap out of it.
She pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes, turning away from Evrys.
A moment later, she turned back, her face composed, though her eyes were still slightly red.
She cleared her throat.
Then hesitated, as if unsure what to say.
“G-good morning?”
Iris glanced at the window.
It was dark.
Moonlight streamed through the glass.
“Ahem… Good evening.”
“Are you hungry?”
“…A little.”
“I was worried… because you didn’t wake up in between.”
“In between?”
‘Well, I did push myself…’
‘I honestly thought I might die.’
‘If I hadn’t been holding my sword, I probably would have panicked.’
‘My body is surprisingly resilient…’
‘I had a hole in my stomach, and I’m still alive…’
Something about Iris’s behavior seemed off.
She kept avoiding Evrys’s gaze.
As if she were hiding something.
‘She’s trying to act normal, but she’s clearly distracted…’
“Iris?”
“…Yes?”
“Is something wrong?”
“No. You were asleep for a while.”
“How long?”
“…Two weeks.”
“Two weeks!?”
“Yes.”
Evrys had assumed she was out for a few days at most.
‘Should I be grateful I’m even alive?’
Evrys’s stomach growled loudly.
“…I’ll have some food brought up.”
“Okay…”
She hadn’t felt this hungry in a long time.
Or perhaps, it was the lack of whatever reserves she usually had.
‘…Good thing I usually eat a lot.’
While Iris was gone.
Evrys tried to contact the sword spirit.
‘I didn’t even get her name…’
‘What should I call her?’
“Hey, sword?”
No response.
“Spirit?”
Just as the spirit had said, there was no reaction.
Or maybe it had all been a dream.
“…Is someone there?”
Iris had returned without Evrys noticing.
She was carrying a tray in one hand and her sword in the other.
Her expression was… intense.
As if she were ready to strike down anyone who dared to answer in the affirmative.
“Oh, um, I was just talking to myself…”
“I see.”
Her expression softened instantly.
She sheathed her sword and approached the bed.
Adjusted Evrys’s blankets and propped her up against the headboard.
Evrys felt like a patient.
“I brought you some soup for now.”
Evrys reached for the tray on her lap.
Her hand trembled as she lifted the spoon.
“…What’s wrong with me?”
She had meant it as a joke.
But she really did feel weak.
She used to wield a sword as tall as herself with ease.
And now she couldn’t even hold a spoon.
It wasn’t her strength to begin with.
But the loss was palpable.
As Evrys struggled with the spoon.
Iris gently took her hand.
The warmth of Iris’s calloused hand against her own cold, trembling one was strangely comforting.
“Would you like me to feed you?”
“Uh… sure. But why?”
Iris carefully took the spoon from Evrys’s hand.
Scooped up some soup.
And held it out to Evrys.
“Allow me.”
“Huh?”
Evrys knew this was coming.
She couldn’t even hold a spoon.
Of course, Iris would offer to feed her.
…But it was embarrassing.
There was no reason to be embarrassed.
But she couldn’t help it.
She couldn’t look Iris in the eye.
Iris was holding the spoon to Evrys’s lips, her other hand supporting Evrys’s chin.
‘Why am I acting like this?’
“Do you… not trust me?”
‘Why would you think that? Just because you’re feeding me soup?’
Iris’s expression was genuinely pained.
Evrys shook her head vehemently, trying to reassure her.
…Even that simple action felt difficult.
“No, it’s not that. It’s just…”
“Just…?”
“I’m… not used to this…”
“I see.”
“Yes…”
“Come to think of it, this is… my first time feeding someone like this as well.”
“…Really?”
It felt strange to think that this was Iris’s ‘first time.’
But Evrys pushed aside the thought.
She fidgeted with her hand on the bed.
She wanted to reach for her sword.
But she resisted the urge.
It was selfish, but she didn’t want this feeling to disappear.
She looked at Iris.
Who was patiently holding the spoon, her expression serene.
“…Be gentle.”
Evrys opened her mouth, like a baby bird waiting to be fed.
“I will.”
With an unnecessarily serious tone, Iris fed her a spoonful of soup.
It was savory and comforting.
Despite its mild flavor.
Evrys’s tongue clung to the spoon, like a traveler finding an oasis in the desert.
When the metallic taste of the spoon overpowered the flavor of the soup, Iris pulled it away.
A thin strand of silver liquid stretched between the spoon and Evrys’s lips.
“You must have been very hungry.”
“…”
Evrys blushed.
‘Why am I acting like this?’
Before she could dwell on it, Iris offered another spoonful of soup.
Hunger won out over embarrassment.
Evrys ate eagerly.
For someone who claimed it was her first time, Iris was surprisingly adept at feeding someone.
‘…She wouldn’t lie about something like this…’
‘I guess it’s a talent?’
The bowl was soon empty.
“I’ll have more food brought up shortly. Just a moment—”
“T-take your time!”
“There’s no need to be embarrassed.”
“I…”
The heat that had been spreading through her body seemed to concentrate in her face.
Evrys quickly changed the subject.
“By the way, you said this was your first time, but you’re really good at this. Are you sure?”
“…Of course.”
Iris tried to maintain a neutral expression.
But Evrys caught the slight hesitation.
“You hesitated just now.”
“I did not.”
“You did.”
“…”
Iris looked flustered.
But it wasn’t the usual kind of flustered.
After a moment of silence, she seemed to come to a decision.
“I was—”
“It seems there’s no point in hiding it any longer. It’s related to you, anyway, Evrys.”
“Me?”
“…Yes.”
What Iris revealed was shocking.
Apparently, after Evrys pushed herself too hard and lost consciousness.
She would revert to a childlike state.
Mentally, as well.
And she wouldn’t remember any of it.
‘…Well, that’s not surprising.’
‘I don’t have any memories of that.’
Normally, she would return to normal after consuming a large amount of food and sleeping.
But this time, despite her serious injuries.
She hadn’t woken up in between.
Which had worried Iris even more.
“…I didn’t say anything weird, did I?”
“Weird?”
Iris’s expression was… odd.
‘Did I say something I shouldn’t have?’
‘Did I reveal that I’m not the real Evrys?’
“Did I?”
“Well…”
Evrys felt a bead of sweat trickle down her back.
“…You were very cute.”
“Huh?”
Apparently, she had whined for food.
Poked and prodded Iris’s face.
And clung to her.
…It was a little embarrassing.
But after her initial panic, the actual details weren’t as bad as she had feared.
The lack of memories helped.
“…I didn’t do anything too strange, then.”
“…No.”
Evrys decided to drop the subject before she died of embarrassment.
‘So, my theory about storing and recovering energy through food seems to be correct…’
‘Though I still don’t understand the age regression…’
‘I’ll need to make sure I eat plenty from now on.’
‘Though it’s best to avoid situations where I need to use that power.’
‘Speaking of which…’
‘Amelia…
It had been two weeks.
Evrys had a lot to say to her.
‘I wonder if she even remembers…’
“Iris.”
“Yes?”
“What about Amelia?”
“…The princess?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t worry about her right now. Focus on recovering. We can talk about her later.”
Iris’s voice was sharp.
“Oh… okay.”
Evrys was taken aback by her tone.
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.
A servant announced that the food had arrived.
It seemed like a bad time to press the issue.
Evrys was hungry.
She decided to follow Iris’s advice.
She wanted to avoid another age regression incident.
So, she focused on eating the food Iris patiently fed her.
It was delicious.