As she headed to her routine special training, Alice wore an expression of concern that was uncharacteristically dark for her. The source of her worry was the person currently accompanying her to see Machina: Iris.
To Alice, both Iris and Machina were irreplaceable best friends, but since they had never actually met face-to-face, she had decided it was time for a proper introduction. However, she had no idea how Machina would react.
Logic suggested that since Iris wasn't one of her "children," Machina might be dismissive or cold. On the other hand, Alice found it hard to believe that Machina would treat her own best friend poorly.
Just how friendly would she be? Without any precedent to follow, even Alice’s sharp intuition failed to provide a clear answer.
"..."
"..."
When she finally brought them together, Machina and Iris simply stared at one another in a long, heavy silence. After a moment, Machina was the first to speak.
"Um... would it be all right if I called you Iris? You can just call me Machina in return. There's no need for formal titles or polite speech between us."
"I have no objection, but... are you truly comfortable with such a casual dynamic? I am not one of your 'children,' after all."
"I don't really have the heart to call someone from an era before I was even born 'my child.' Besides, I’ve heard plenty about you from Alice. I’m genuinely glad to finally meet you."
It seemed Alice’s anxieties had been for naught; Machina was being extremely welcoming. She was responding with her natural, unguarded personality, allowing Alice to breathe a sigh of relief—though her true ordeal was only just beginning.
Their conversation started tentatively, but as they spoke, the ice quickly melted. Before long, Machina and Iris were chatting away with surprising enthusiasm.
"Exactly! That’s just like her. Alice is incredibly pushy—she’s dragged me through the wringer more times than I can count."
"Ah, I understand. This one has a habit of acting on impulse and only figuring things out afterward. She is brilliant enough to ensure the results are acceptable in the end, but those of us caught in her wake have a terrible time of it."
"I totally get it! She really does the most outrageous things, doesn't she?"
Watching her two best friends bond so happily, Alice looked on with a complicated, indescribable expression. In a sense, this was an inevitable outcome. When Machina and Iris looked for common ground, the first topic that came to mind was Alice. Naturally, the discussion began to revolve entirely around her.
"What is this? I introduce two friends, they bond over the fact that they're both my friends, and suddenly I’m the odd one out while they dig up every ancient story I’ve ever wanted to forget."
Since she was the one who had facilitated the meeting, it was difficult to complain, and she hesitated to ruin the mood when they were having such a good time. Faced with this dilemma, Alice could only watch them with a conflicted gaze.
"And then, Alice did—"
"Indeed. This one has displayed idiocy in the strangest ways since long ago. This reminds me of a story from when we were traveling together..."
"..."
Being the subject of a lively discussion regarding her own past was incredibly unsettling. Alice tried to distract herself by performing maintenance on her knives and tools, but her shoulders were trembling as she desperately tried to endure the situation.
"...And so, she ended up in a full-scale battle against nothing but a common medicinal herb."
"Ahaha! That certainly sounds like something Alice would do. It’s hard to tell where the jokes end with her."
"............"
Alice told herself it would surely end soon, but even after thirty minutes, the conversation between Iris and Machina only grew more animated. One after another, they traded anecdotes of Alice's past that only they were privy to.
In situations like this, the stories shared were almost exclusively tales of failure. Alice was rapidly reaching the absolute limit of her patience.
"...She had such a dignified look on her face back then, too. It would have been quite cool if she hadn't had seaweed stuck on her head."
"She does have a certain airheadedness about her. Even during our travels..."
"Will you two give it a rest already!!"
"Hmm?"
"How long do you plan to keep enjoying yourselves at the expense of my dignity?! It’s been an hour! Think about what it’s like for me, having to sit here and listen to this the whole time!!"
Alice had endured as much as she could, but finally, unable to withstand another second of this public humiliation, she snapped at the two of them. Of course, even if she managed to stop them now, it would likely only end with them promising to finish the stories later.
"...Um, Alice?"
"What is it?"
"Why are you in such a bad mood?"
"I’m not. I’m just reflecting on the mistakes of my past and the current carelessness of my present self."
"You seem to experience those moments of regret quite frequently. Well, I understand that much, but where exactly are you dragging me?"
As Alice pulled him along by the hand with a grumpy face, Kaito wore a look of mild bewilderment.
"Alice-chan is heartbroken! Your cute lover is suffering, so Kaito-san, you'll help me with some emotional care, right?"
"Well, I’ll help, but... what exactly does 'emotional care' entail?"
"Accompany me for some binge eating!!"
"Is that all it takes? Well, I suppose if it makes you feel better, I don't mind."
Kaito muttered with a hint of exasperation at her demand, but he gave a wry smile as if to say there was no helping it.
Incidentally, by getting Kaito to agree to "help," Alice ensured that he would be the one stuck with the bill for the entire feast. In the end, Kaito was perhaps the person who suffered the most damage from this encounter.
Q: What happens when Alice-chan, who already eats a massive amount, goes on a stress-induced binge?
A: Several Platinum Coins—worth ten million credits each—vanished from Kaito's wallet.