Klein suddenly felt a kind of heartfelt exhaustion. He looked at Alice, who was serious in attitude, and revealed a kindly smile, giving a concise and to-the-point evaluation:
"...Lunatic."
Alright then, it seemed this direction was also not what Klein intended to express.
Alice sighed, lowered her head, and seriously reflected on her own problem.
Klein wisely chose not to comment on this. After finishing the remaining chicken leg, he asked Alice:
"Is there any drink?"
Bilt opened his mouth wide in astonishment.
Alice did not express any opinion on this. After disappearing for a few seconds, she reappeared, holding a bottle of grape juice in her hand, proudly lifting her chin as she said:
"Look, I searched for a long time before finding this fruit juice!
"Why do adults all like drinking alcohol so much…"
Bilt began to hesitate whether he should even be standing here.
After reluctantly padding his stomach a bit, Klein turned his head to look at Alice beside him. After they stared at each other for a few seconds, Alice's figure once again vanished from where she stood.
Then, while handing off the issue of dealing with trash to the attendant, Klein turned his head to ask Bilt:
"Where are we going to meet General Admiral Amyrius?"
Good question.
Bilt's thoughts returned to the proper track. He realized they had delayed too much time, but didn't dare comment on this. After a moment of panic, he led Gehrman Sparrow into the garden.
After they walked for a minute on a secluded path, Bilt stopped, reached out his hand and pointed at Klein's face, saying:
"You can become His Excellency the General now.
"Just pretend you're that vagrant who really resembles him."
Now Alice and Klein both understood why he didn't report Alice's situation.
But neither of them exposed the other. Klein looked around, confirming he truly couldn't find Alice's current location, then reached out both hands to completely cover his face.
When changing appearance, things like flesh buds or tumorous pustules that might appear on the face—Klein remembered Alice had shown clear disgust toward such scenes.
Of course, if she weren't disgusted by that, it would be even scarier... Recalling the excited expression Alice showed upon hearing about the red-haired Elaine, Klein hissed quietly in his heart.
He completed the transformation amid his wild thoughts. When he lowered his palms, Bilt saw a middle-aged man who bore about eighty to ninety percent resemblance to Admiral Amyrius Levit.
Bilt felt satisfied with Gehrman Sparrow's professional skill level. He took a few steps forward, came to the utility room's door, and reached out to push open the slightly ajar door.
Admiral Amyrius Levit, dressed in admiral's uniform, was standing sideways to the entrance, by the window, appreciating the scenery in the garden.
At this time, he turned his head halfway, casting his gaze toward the visitor who looked much like himself.
A kind of indescribable sense of majesty and oppression surged forth. Before Klein could properly experience it, that oppressive feeling vanished again. His Excellency the General's attitude became cautious and vigilant. He looked toward the doorway and asked in a deep voice:
"Strange guest, do you not intend to reveal yourself?"
Bilt felt his sweat glands had never been as active as these past few days.
Amid the sound of three people's breathing, Alice's dissatisfied voice appeared before her figure did:
"You should call me Your Grace.
"Also, I don't like the tone you use when speaking to me. It's very disrespectful."
She didn't enter the room, but appeared at the doorway. After saying those two sentences, she paused, stepped back half a step, then reached out and lightly knocked on the door twice, asking with a tone that carried a hint of seeking permission:
"May I come in?"
This behavior was rather bizarre. Even as a demigod, Admiral Amyrius had never encountered such a being. He looked at Alice and cautiously responded:
"Of course, please come in.
"Do you have some matter, Your Grace?"
Alice tilted her head, moved behind Klein, then reached out and grabbed Klein's sleeve, speaking as if no one else was around:
"His expression is too serious… I don't want to talk to him. You talk, okay?"
As a shield, Klein did his duty responsibly. Not only did he not move his body, he also added a voice broadcast function:
"As you can see, she came with me."
At the same time, before Alice could pull off the cufflink, he silently pulled his sleeve out of Alice's claws.
Alice, having her intent discovered, silently withdrew her hand.
This scene made Admiral Amyrius's attitude even more serious. He turned his gaze to Bilt and asked in a rather heavy tone:
"The vagrant you mentioned earlier?"
Cold sweat dripped from Bilt's forehead. Under that majesty, he dropped to one knee with a pa sound. Alice looked at this scene in surprise and blurted out:
"Why didn't you kneel when you saw me?"
Bilt's brain briefly crashed. Admiral Amyrius also hesitated. Only Klein, long used to this, reacted quickly and turned his head to say to Alice:
"Shut up."
These words were short and powerful. Alice skillfully reached out to cover her mouth, took a few steps back, stood against the wall, obedient like a student being punished to stand.
Especially since she was still wearing a school uniform.
Klein silently shifted his gaze away, nodded toward General Admiral Amyrius, and said indifferently:
"Apologies. You may continue."
Admiral Amyrius Levit grew even more hesitant.
In the eerie silence, Bilt instead calmed down after the oppressive aura faded. He began explaining the background of the matter:
"Your Excellency the General, the vagrant from earlier suddenly died of illness. I had to find a new adventurer who could change appearance.
"As a result, this Your Grace suddenly appeared. I had no way to…"
Admiral Amyrius looked at Bilt, did not pursue his fault for the time being, nor did he let him get up. Instead, he turned cautiously to Alice, who was still covering her mouth, and said:
"Your Grace, could you introduce yourself?"
He bit hard on the word "Your Grace."
Alice blinked twice, looked at Klein while covering her mouth.
Forced to become the center of attention, Klein suddenly felt a strong sense of immersion as Mister Fool. He responded to Alice's gaze in an unchanging tone:
"You didn't ask my opinion when you caused trouble."
Alice lowered her head and reflected for a full second, then raised her head, put down her hand, looked at General Admiral Amyrius and opened her mouth, then closed it again. After repeating several times, she finally said weakly:
"Can't you really change your expression…
"Otherwise, you really look like a homeroom teacher…"
That completely unfeigned weary expression made Admiral Amyrius, after a few seconds of silence, pull the corners of his mouth into a smile.
Alice instead gasped, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately gave up. She closed her eyes and said:
"You can call me Miss Destiny.
"I don't represent anyone's will. I only represent destiny itself." (End of this chapter)