Tria approached Alto to discuss a certain matter.
With their respective Lord Spirits currently logged out, the two girls were free to act as they pleased. Tria had something she wanted to consult her comrade about during this window of time.
"Alto. I heard from Penpen-sama that in the world of the Spirits, there is a custom known as Valentine's."
"Valentine's...? What kind of monster is that?"
"No, it is not a monster. Apparently, it is a day where you give a present of some kind to the person you love."
"...Which means it is a day to give a present to Lord Spirit!"
"Yes, a present. I want to give something to my Lord Spirit."
"That is a wonderful idea," Alto said, nodding in agreement. "But if that is the case, shouldn't we consult Miti? And Nika, as well?"
"No. I want just us to give the Spirits a present. It is a chance to get a head start on 'The Second Characters'."
"Heh. Fine. I like that answer. Let us prepare a gift for the Spirits by ourselves."
Alto gave a wicked grin, and Tria nodded, having expected exactly that response.
As the 'First' ones, they should be the ones the Spirits favored most. It wasn't that they disliked 'The Second Characters'—if anything, they were comrades-in-arms who adored the Spirits and had offered up their bodies, hearts, and souls to them just as they had.
But.
Because they were comrades, they wanted to be loved by the Spirits even more. It was no exaggeration to say that this competitive devotion was simply the nature of the Spirit-possessed.
To these girls, the Spirits were quite literally their 'everything.'
They loved and revered them with every fiber of their being, giving their all in every possible sense. 'The Second Characters' served as a convenient yardstick to measure their own devotion.
Setting that aside, Tria pulled out a ribbon. It was an item she had received from Penpen’s Spirit when she first heard the story.
"I heard that saying 'T-H-E G-I-F-T I-S M-E' while wearing this is a good way to do it. So I received this ribbon."
"Wait, Tria. We already belong to the Spirits. We cannot be given as gifts if we are already their property, can we?"
"! You are right. I forgot...!"
Long before any such holiday, they had already surrendered everything. They had nothing left of themselves to give. At the very least, they couldn't give 'themselves' as a gift now.
"I went to the trouble of getting this ribbon from Penpen-sama, but it is useless... Hmmm."
"In the first place," Alto added, "it will be difficult to choose a present if we do not consider what the Spirits actually like."
"......Logbo!" Tria exclaimed.
"Hm?"
"I heard that the Spirits love something called 'Logbo'! Apparently, they end up collecting them without even thinking about it."
"Logbo... I do not recognize that item. However, I do recall hearing the Spirits talking about it amongst themselves."
If they collected them, then they must exist in vast quantities. If that were the case, Tria and Alto might be able to find a way to obtain them.
Logbo... something that existed in large quantities... something delightful that they couldn't help but collect...
"So, what exactly is a 'Logbo'?"
"I see it now. I believe it is a long stick."
"A long stick? Why?"
"Long Stick—or 'Logbo' for short. Besides, sticks are useful for many things."
"That makes some sense."
However, Tria had never seen the Spirits collecting ordinary sticks. ...No, wait.
"Alto. That guess is very close. What the Spirits like are likely wooden sticks. 'Logbo' must refer to tree branches. Specifically, 'Nice-looking Tree Branches' that have fallen on the ground. They collect those."
"Fumu. Come to think of it, I heard that a house made of wood is called a 'Log House.' 'Log' must certainly refer to wood. Your deduction might not be entirely wrong, Tria..."
"Yes, that must be it. Therefore, we shall gather 'Nice-looking Tree Branches'!"
Tria exhaled a sharp, determined breath through her nose. However, Alto suddenly remembered something.
"In the first place, why did Penpen-sama give you that ribbon, Tria?"
"For 'the gift is me'?"
"Exactly. That's it. Although I was the one who just dismissed it, the truth is that we could technically be considered Valentine's presents."
"......Which means?"
"Was 'Logbo' actually us all along...!?"
In reality, the topic of Logbo had nothing to do with Valentine's Day—it had simply been a separate conversation about things the Spirits liked—but somewhere along the way, the two girls had completely conflated the two.
"Don't you think the true meaning of the gift is to offer up our lives? Our hearts?"
"I see. But we cannot offer our own hearts. Those already belong to the Spirits."
"Then let's go hunting. If it is monster hearts, we can get plenty of them. We can get Magic Stones as well. I am sure the Spirits will be pleased."
"Oh... that must be the 'Logbo' the Spirits love. Surely."
And so, the two girls set out to hunt monsters to obtain 'Logbo.'
Earning Experience Points was one of the tasks the Spirits had asked them to handle while in 'Auto Mode,' so this plan served a dual purpose.
Eventually, a mountain of monster hearts and Magic Stones was piled high upon the table. It was a horrific sight—one that was quite literally bad for the heart.
"Good. Now, all that's left is... Alto, write the words. 'Valentine's Logbo'."
"Leave it to me."
"Hey, Alto. I got a Valentine's Logbo."
"Uchi got one too, uo. It's a mountain of monster hearts, dao."
Valentine's Day. It was a legendary event centered around giving heart-shaped chocolates.
A 'heart' meant a cardiac organ.
The way the blood had dried into a dark brown... if one squinted hard enough, the pile didn't not look like chocolate... maybe?
"......I see. So this is a Valentine's Logbo."
"Exactly, dao. Haa—this doesn't remind me of my student days at all, uo—"
"Actually, if a pile of raw hearts reminded you of your student days, you'd be a complete psychopath, you know?"
Alto agreed that he had a point, but for the time being, they both gratefully accepted their Valentine's Logbo.
"......By the way, wasn't Valentine's yesterday, uo?"
"If my memory is correct, today is February 15th."