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

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(P.S.: I can't finish writing, so I'll stop here for today...)

The Burial of Frilian: The Official Start of the Journey: Chapter Twenty-Five - Frilian's Shield - The Beginning of the Exam - Friends and Family "Turn Against Each Other"?

Ash's overly open gaze, despite being fixed on his soaking wet self, didn't carry any strange intent; in fact... it seemed to be sharing his feelings with him. This reassured Connie somewhat, yet also filled him with displeasure.

"—Is this the time to talk about this?!"

"Which is more serious, physical coldness or emotional coldness?"

"Who cares how you feel, you old man!"

Faced with Ash's eloquent defense, Connie clutched her chest with both hands, her cheeks flushed, her eyes filled with both shame and resentment. If it weren't for the vast difference in strength, she probably would have already been unable to suppress her impulse and wanted to compete with him.

Ash, though not one to argue with a child, couldn't help but chuckle at her appearance. He lightly flicked her wet belly with his finger and laughed, "You really have no manners at all, kid. But luckily I'm a kind and gentle old man, or you'd be in trouble right now! You should thank me!"

"Ah~!? -- Phyllis, Phyllis~~~!!" Overwhelmed with shame and indignation, Connie shrank back and simply squatted on the ground, shouting loudly.

This startled him, and he reflexively took a step back, looking flustered.

"Wait a minute! Are you a primary school student?! You call your parents when something happens? Oh, wait! ...You call other people! Show some spirit as a mage! At least have a one-on-one duel or something! After all, I just wanted to get a little revenge, I didn't actually do anything to you!"

"If you really do something to me, it will be too late!"

"I'm not that kind of person! In the end, I..." Before he could finish speaking, the familiar purple-haired girl suddenly rushed out of the room.

"—What happened...? Huh?" Looking at her friend, who was soaking wet and huddled pitifully in a crouching position, and then at Ash beside her, Philon's expression froze instantly, turning into a cold scrutiny of Ash:

"...Lord Ash, is there anything you wish to explain?"

"It's not my fault, it's all the child's fault!" Ash quickly organized his thoughts, trying to shirk responsibility: "—I didn't spill the water, and she kept calling me an old man. As a small 'revenge' for her calling me an old man, I just lightly flicked her stomach. That's not too much, is it!?"

"...If what you said is true, then that kind of behavior should generally be called sexual harassment."

"But this guy called me 'uncle' several times! I only flicked his stomach, which is definitely self-defense, and within the legal limits."

"...But it's true that he's an older man, isn't it?" Philon stared at him expressionlessly and coldly gave his objective answer.

"Philan... I never expected that your 37-degree mouth could utter such cold and heartless words!"

He clutched his chest as if stabbed by an invisible sword, overwhelmed with heart-wrenching grief and self-reproach, while turning to look at Frillie, who had just come out and was sitting on the swing, intending to watch the commotion: "...Can I borrow your breasts for a bit? I want to cry for a while."

"Of course not, don't drag me into this." Frillie looked annoyed, as if she really wanted to distance herself from him on the spot, while she was still peeling sunflower seeds.

"...Why are you so cold to me?"

"I just don't want to get dragged into this."

"Speaking of which, what do you think of my family?"

"Hmm? Your house? It's smaller than I imagined, isn't it? But you look so ordinary, you don't look like yourself at all."

What is my home like in your memory?

"A strange fortress?"

......

Under Ash's deliberate guidance, the conversation between the two quickly veered away from the original topic.

Without making a sound, he casually put his arm around Frillie's shoulder and pulled her up, and they walked happily together inside. However...

Just as the two were about to pass by Philon, Philon silently raised his hand to block their way, saying expressionlessly:

"Lord Ash, do you think this is the first time I've met you? Or... do you think I'm some kind of idiot who's easy to fool?"

"...So it really won't work?"

Under the girl's cold gaze, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh before casually pulling Frilian in front of him and using her as a front-mounted armor.

He even went so far as to place his hands on Frillie's shoulders to hold her in place, rested his chin on her head, and said seriously:

"—If that's what you're going to say about me, then you might as well say Frilian too!"

"...Why did you drag me into this...?" Frillian didn't struggle, but her face fell, and she wore a helpless expression.

Philon was even more frustrated: "...Why are you resisting to this extent this time?"

"Because you don't think you're wrong, ultimately it's Philon who called me an old man who should apologize to me."

"Why do you act like a child?"

"I just wanted to say no to unfair treatment, and I also managed to get an ally along with me!" As he spoke, he grabbed Frilian's hand and lifted it up for her.

This made Frillie's lips twitch slightly; for a moment, she didn't know how to condemn this forceful behavior that was determined to drag her down completely.

"...And now you're making it sound like I'm in the wrong? I haven't even said anything to you yet, and we were even working, while you were secretly going out to meet someone else...!" Philon puffed up her cheeks like an angry pufferfish, and pouted angrily, "—Enough! I will absolutely not interfere in Ash-sama's affairs anymore~!"

With that, she angrily grabbed Connie and strode away, leaving the two of them alone in the courtyard.

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The courtyard suddenly became quiet.

After a long while, Frilian, whom he had used as a forward-deployed armor, sighed softly and looked up sharply at the culprit behind her, saying:

"...Why are you pulling me along?"

"I'm too lonely being alone. I hope you can keep me company during this tough time."

"Honestly, Ash, this isn't the first time I've felt that you're terribly selfish."

I'll accompany you next time.

"...Never mind, we're friends, so we shouldn't be too fussy."

.......

Unable to guarantee that she wouldn't anger Philon, Frillie was easily persuaded by Ash, without even realizing she had contradicted herself.

The two sat side by side in silence on the swing in the courtyard, staring blankly at the sky.

After a long while, Frillie seemed to remember something, and casually asked while looking at the sky:

"Speaking of which, I suddenly remembered... that kid named Connie said that the first-level mage you were dating seemed to respect you a lot. According to the description, he seems to be the same person we met at the Magic Association?"

"Yes, it's Zanze."

"Tell me the truth!" Frillie abruptly turned to look at him, her expression more serious than ever before. "Do you hold a high position in the Continental Magic Association? Could you just get us all a Level 1 Magician certificate?"

"...Let me be frank, Celie is the founder of the Magic Association, so you tell me, is my status high or not?"

"A lie? Celie??" Remembering Celie, who tore up her master's will a thousand years ago and scoffed at her master's ideals, Frillie couldn't help but frown.

"You're kidding me, right? She's going to come out and teach humans?? You were so against it before?"

"...If you think I'm lying to you, you can go find her yourself."

"...Fine, I believe you."

Unable to come up with a reason for deception, Frillie weighed her options and decided against verifying it... After all, she and Celie didn't get along, otherwise they wouldn't have been apart for a thousand years.

But after thinking about it carefully, she couldn't help but ask, "Since it's Celia, you should ask her for a favor, shouldn't you...?"

"—Could you please think about me? If I really wanted to become a Level 1 Mage, would she happily agree?"

"How will you know if you don't try?"

"Why don't you go?"

"...To be honest, when you said Celia was the founder, I didn't even want to participate anymore." Frillian looked reluctant and frustrated: "Because she definitely wouldn't let me pass."

"What did you just tell me? How will you know if you don't try?"

"Hmm, I guess I should just pretend I didn't say anything..."

Although they were not exactly the same, they shared some similar stances, which made Frilian quickly give up on saying anything more to him and was forced to accept the status quo.

The two of them just looked at the sky and chatted.

After a long while, when Connie, who had changed into Philon's clothes, made a face and left, the two were finally able to return indoors.

Although Philen was angry and wouldn't speak to him at all, she still carefully tidied up his bedding and belongings in his room, allowing him to lie on the bed with a touch of emotion—training his magic as usual.

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

The next day, Philon still wouldn't speak to him, but Connie came to visit again, bringing along a new companion, another friend of Philon's from the past.

But no exception, another person, like Connie, harbored considerable prejudice against him and had no intention of speaking to him at all.

Philon was angry for several days and didn't speak to him for several days, but slowly resumed their usual communication... Although at first it still felt like they were arguing, he was busy leaving the magic city from time to time.