What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?

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But before that, she planned to buy some cleaning supplies.

After all these years, everything there should be broken. Frilian was forcibly dragged there, with the plan to bring Yubel along later for a thorough cleaning.

To avoid being discovered that he had returned several times, Ash had no choice but to make an excuse to temporarily leave the group and quietly go home ahead of everyone else.

However, this return was unusual—he was surprised to find a lovely "uninvited guest" quietly waiting at the door.

Zanze, who had just left the Magic Association, was a lazy, emotionless loli standing blankly in front of his house, gazing intently at the clouds in the distance. It was as if the whole world had frozen in her eyes, and even the occasional bird landing on her head did not disturb her tranquility.

Seeing this, Ash couldn't help but feel puzzled. He stepped forward lightly, inadvertently startling the little bird into flight. Then, he bent down slightly, rested his hands on his knees, and asked, "Zanze... what are you doing?"

"What am I doing?" Zanze snapped out of his daze, slowly blinking his eyes, causing his long eyelashes to flutter.

"No... why do you seem to have no idea what I'm talking about?"

"I'll treat you to dinner later—didn't Lord Ash just say that?" The girl tilted her head slightly in confusion, like a cute little bird: "...Did I remember wrong?"

"...It was indeed me who said that, but...uh, never mind." Ash rubbed his throbbing temples and said helplessly, "Let me check first, has anyone ever said they wanted to treat you to dinner before?"

"Yes, I have," Zanze answered crisply.

"So you went to all of them?"

"No."

“…I see.”

Ash muttered to himself, secretly wondering: Are all geniuses really a bit clueless in some area? Or are they too focused on one thing, so they neglect others?

As a powerful first-level mage, Zanze is also the youngest first-level mage in history. Because of his outstanding magical talent, he is a bit too straightforward in his dealings with people.

While this shouldn't really be considered a drawback—after all, being powerful enough as a mage is the greatest advantage—but...

"Didn't you bring any money?" Noticing that Ash seemed troubled about something, Zanze quietly handed over his purse: "I did bring some, use mine?"

"...In your words, it wasn't me who paid, was it?"

"I don't care."

There was no affectation or hypocrisy in her tone; she was clearly indifferent to these material possessions.

Before becoming a first-class mage, she came from a very wealthy family and did not value money.

This made Ash realize something – she was a complete winner in life, a standard enhanced rich and beautiful woman, no, she should be called a rich and powerful loli!

Although she's not the first choice for a mature, sophisticated woman, she's definitely the best option to cling to when you don't want to work hard.

.......

.....

...

(PS: There will be another update tonight, and today is the last day of the month! So I just wanted to remind you that it's already the last day of the month, so to avoid wasting it! Please send some monthly tickets and swords, so they won't go to waste in a few hours~!)

By the way... I'll do a bounty settlement tomorrow morning.

The Burial of Frilian: The Officially Beginning Journey: Chapter Twenty-Three - The Old Friend of the Short-Statured Zanze Philen

Zanze didn't quite understand the wild thoughts in Ash's mind, so he simply took out the book he had been reading earlier and gently pushed it towards him:

"Lord Ash, if possible... could you explain the basic formula of that spell to me during dinner?"

"...So that's the purpose?"

"Not entirely, but I'm also looking forward to having dinner with Lord Ash."

Although that's what she said... Ash couldn't really see any anticipation on her face; he could only sense that she seemed quite serious.

But he still observed this emotionless little girl carefully for quite a while, until Zanze was almost uncomfortable with her staring, before he finally gave up and said:

"From their expressions, you really couldn't tell they were expecting anything."

"Huh?" The sudden bluntness made Zanze's eyes widen slightly. He lowered his head and looked troubled for a while before apologizing softly with a helpless little distress: "I feel... a little sorry."

"No, no, no, there's no need to apologize. After all, I wasn't angry and nothing happened."

"Is that right?"

"...Anyway, let's put this topic aside for now." The difficult girl made him sigh and push open the courtyard gate, which hadn't been used for at least several years: "I need to sort out the situation inside first."

"Want to clean? I can help too."

"No... just wait outside the door for a moment."

Zanze nodded blankly, then saw him open the door to the room, and a gust of wind blew up, making the room a mess.

They created the impression that the house had been burgled and that the interior had been left wide open before leaving, satisfied with the girl's bewildered gaze.

There's no other way. Although it hasn't been used for several years, it's still different from being used for more than ten years. Since that's the case, it's better to completely mess it up so that its original appearance can't be seen.

..............................

On their way to find a restaurant, the two walked one in front of the other without exchanging much words.

There was nothing he could do; Zanze was naturally taciturn, but Ash was quite used to this type of person and didn't feel uncomfortable at all.

Therefore, neither of them spoke, but the atmosphere remained relatively harmonious.

But halfway there, Zanze seemed to remember something and suddenly asked, "Speaking of which... Lord Ash, who were that child and the elf just now?"

“Philan and Frilian?” He thought for a moment, then asked, “I think I asked you a long time ago if you wanted to have children?”

"Yes, but you didn't ask me. When Lady Celie was acting recklessly, you protected me, and all you said was that you had pets at home, and that you hadn't even fed them yet?"

"You were still young then, how could I ask?"

"I remember you weren't married...?"

"It's my friend's child."

"...Have you raised them for so many years?"

"You've grown up without me even noticing, but... time really flies. You were only this tall back then... um, and you're still this tall now?" He gestured with his chest, but his hand unconsciously moved to the top of the girl's head in front of him.

Seeing that she hadn't grown at all, Ash couldn't help but chuckle and unconsciously patted her head: "You haven't grown at all all these years?"

“When I became a first-level mage, I was already an adult. Normally, even if I could grow, I wouldn’t have grown much more.” His strange exclamation made Zanze look somewhat depressed.

"I remember the legal age of adulthood in the kingdom was 13, no, it was changed to 15 half a century ago? By the way, how old are you now?"

"...That's a secret."

"Oh~ I didn't know you had such a girlish side! That's surprising~"

Zanze turned her face away with considerable resistance, but to his surprise, he continued to rub her head and pinch her cheeks, playfully teasing this emotionless loli who rarely showed such vivid emotions.

"Please don't do this... It's bothering me..."

"It's okay, I'll treat you to something delicious later!"

Even so, I still....

.........

Ash's lines to comfort Zanze were hardly those of a gentleman, leaving Zanze both amused and exasperated, unsure of what to say to him.

To outsiders, this scene could easily be misunderstood as a teenager bullying a little girl who refused to cooperate.

Sure enough, a girl dressed in eye-catching clothes rushed into the "scene" like a gust of wind.

Image: "Connie", Location: "Images/1725130748-100409035-112074064.jpg"

She has long, orange hair, tied into cute pigtails, short and neat.

A pristine white crop top paired with emerald green hot pants and a white belt, along with a pair of over-the-knee white boots—every step she takes exudes a dashing and heroic air.

Her face was pretty and charming, and her eyes revealed an undeniable sense of justice.

"What are you doing?!" The girl's voice was clear and strong, tinged with anger and disbelief: "How dare you bully a child in broad daylight! Come with me to the police station right now!"

As she spoke, she grabbed without hesitation the hand that was teasing Zanze, ready to take him away on the spot.

This unexpected situation surprised Zanze quite a bit, while Ash seemed even more innocent:

"Wait a minute! Even if you're going to arrest me, shouldn't you at least hear my explanation?"

"You should go and explain to the security forces!"

"...That's as if I actually did something strange..."

Ash was shocked that something like this could happen to him. He shook his head and looked at Zanze, who was still in a daze, and said helplessly, "Stop spacing out and tell me what's going on."

“…Wouldn’t it be normal to let the victim explain?” Zanze muttered under his breath, but still sighed and stepped forward: “I remember, you are…a third-level Connie mage, right? Let him go quickly.”

"...The child who was molested is actually someone I know??" The girl called Connecticut turned around in surprise.

However, after looking Zanze up and down, and being bewildered for a while... she seemed to realize something, and then revealed an exaggerated expression: "—You, you! Could it be... Zanze, a first-level mage?!"

"...You know me? That makes things simple."