Epilogue

It was June, some time after we’d come back from the cave, when I went to visit Rosalind’s mansion again. I rang the bell at the front door of the huge house, but I didn’t have to wait long before I was greeted by a silver-haired maid.

“Sir Namidare, we’ve been waiting for you.”

“...”

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

“No,” I said.

I couldn’t tell her that I was trembling in awe at the sight of her. Not to her face. Especially not to someone I knew.

“Silver Slayer... Wait, I guess you’re Suzuran now, right? Have you gotten used to being a maid?”

“Yes, thank you for asking.” The silver-haired maid a.k.a Silver Slayer a.k.a Suzuran bowed as she answered.

She’d gone from being a homunculus to being human, but she still had no paperwork and no place to stay. Harissa was still living with me, so I wasn’t sure what to do about it myself... but surprisingly, it was Rosalind who had volunteered to take her in. She’d scoffed and said something to the effect of, “Hmph. Well, we have known each other a long time.”

And so now Silver Slayer was taking care of Rosalind as her maid. It gave her a place to live, but there was one other thing she wanted. It was to be rid of her homunculus name, “Silver Slayer the Vampire Hunter,” and gain a new name as a human. So we all came together to pick a new one for her.

“...Are you sure Suzuran was the right name for you, though?” I asked as I walked down the hallway behind her.

She turned to me and tilted her head to the side. “I’m sorry?”

“I mean, it’s a really simple name.”

Suzuran was the Japanese name of the flower she’d been staring at in the waiting area, lily of the valley. When we were deciding on a name, I’d remembered it and gotten out an encyclopedia to figure out what it was called. I added it to the list of candidates, but I didn’t think she’d actually pick it...

“I am very fond of the name that you gave me.”

But her gentle answer dissolved my worries.

“It’s the name that you, the person who granted my wish, tried your hardest to come up with. When I whisper the word ‘Suzuran’ within my heart, I feel warm here.” She held both hands up to her chest. “Just like the flower that shares my name, I want to meet lots of other people so we can all experience that warmth from now on.”

“I see. I guess it was a silly question.” I chuckled and scratched my head.

Suzuran looked at me and laughed softly.

We talked a little more as we headed for the third floor. We arrived just in time to see the door to Rosalind’s room fly open and a tiny girl pop out.