"Marice, over here! Over here!"

Relax, Marice. It's been a decade after all. Don't be such a sourpuss and greet them with a smile.

Wading through the sea of people, Marice found her way out of the airport's arrival hall and went straight to the two women waiting behind the railings. One of them began bouncing like a little kid, much to the annoyance of the people around her.

"Ah, there she is!" She waved the chalkboard sign she was holding. "Mariiice! Welcome home! I missed you so muuuch!"

Ah, bollocks. Forget it.

Upon meeting up with them in front of a nearby coffee shop, the woman handed the sign to her companion and suddenly pounced on Marice. The two of them lost their balance, but an invisible force yanked them back upright just before they could cause a scene in the crowd.

"Oh, Marice! You're just as adorable as you were ten years ago!"

She pulled down her cap's visor. "Uh, Mom. Quit it."

Her mother broke off from the hug, rubbing the tears off her deep purple eyes. "Oh, I'll be honest. There were times where I thought you wouldn't make it back home like this!"

"What? You actually thought I'd fail?"

"I think she's referring to how you've kept your humanity after passing the program," her mother's companion chimed in, "I've heard that fledgling necromancers often rush to get as much power as possible, sacrificing their bodies in the process."

"Oh, I'm too good for that. Anyway, what's with that sign? Is that supposed to be me?"

Her mother presented the sign's crude chalk drawing. "It took me, like, all day yesterday to get it right too! What do you think? Cute, isn't it?"

She sighed. "It's fine, I guess..."

"Ah, that's good to hear! I've made a lot of progress thanks to Yukina's daughter!"

Marice turned her attention to the other woman and made a quick bow. "Thanks as always for looking after my mom, Miss Yukina."

Yukina shook her head. "On the contrary, Mariella has helped our business a lot ever since we moved here. I can never thank her enough."

A smile tugged her lips. "Don't praise her too much though. It'll get into her head."

"How come you're so polite to her?" Mariella asked, looking dejected.

Marice blinked. "Because compared to her, you behave like an eleven year old twat?"

"Nuh-uh! You're just so uptight, especially for someone your age!"

"I don't wanna hear that from someone who's been twenty-seven for the last fifteen years."

She covered her ears, wincing as if she was in pain. "Gah! Don't remind me! I could've started earlier if it weren't for—wait. Where's Kath?"

Marice looked over her shoulder. "Yeah, been wondering about that too. She's taking way too long ordering her food."

"Wh-What? She's gonna eat already? Didn't I tell you we have a feast waiting for you at home?"

"It's Kath. She can scarf down everything you made if she wants to."

"Then fetch her already! Our neighbors are waiting for us!"

With a heavy sigh, Marice went back into the arrival hall and walked along the aisle of restaurants to find her friend. Fortunately for her, she immediately spotted her in front of a fast food joint together with two familiar faces.

The pink-haired lady noticed her and grinned. "Oh, it's about time you showed up."

Marice held the urge to roll her eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you think?" she asked, flicking her fluffy pigtail to her back. "I thought your country prides itself for its rich culture, natural beauty, and countless mythos?"

The middle-aged man in the suit dabbed his chin with a napkin. "Now, now. Don't be rude, Lady Vivianne." He looked at Marice with a smile. "Lady Marice, we've come here for business."

Marice raised an eyebrow. "Demons? Why hunt here of all places?"

"Because this particular demon seems to be very powerful. At least on the level of a destroyer or a wraith. Possibly even an archdemon according to certain rumors."

"An archdemon? Do you guys have a death wish or something?"

Vivianne wagged a fork at her. "Psh. Don't play dumb, Marice. You knew about those rumors, so you flew back home to claim all the glory for yourself."

"I'm sorry. What the hell are you talking about?"

She picked up a slice of hotdog from her plate of spaghetti. "Didn't you mention in class that you wanted to master the ultimate healing spell?"

"So?"

"Subjugating an archdemon might just be your ticket to get what you want."

"Uh, no."

She froze, fork hovering in front of her mouth. "Oh, I see what you're trying to do here."

"Do you honestly think I stand a chance against it?"

Another pause as she popped the hotdog slice into her mouth. "Hm. I suppose you don't. Maybe if your abilities were anywhere close to mine, you might at least have a fighting chance."

"Yeah, sure."

Her eyebrows twitched. "How unlike you to concede defeat so early."

"Only because I'm not a dumbass and like living?"

She grumbled, taking her orange soda. "Hmph, whatever. Just know that the demon's head will be mine. Stand in my way and I'll spare you no quarter."

"Well, it's a good thing I won't have anything to do with that nonsense. Come on, Kath. Let's go."

"Um, can't we just be friends?" Katherine uttered between them, unwrapping a chili dog.

She put a fist on her hip. "Mom's waiting, you know?"

"O-Oh! Right! Sorry! Hold on, I'll—"

Before Katherine could take a bite out of the hotdog, Marice snatched her wrist. "Eat it on the way there!"

She began to tear up. "B-But if she finds out I'm already snacking, she might get angry at me!"

"And yet you still can't help yourself, huh?"

"But it's the best part of visiting another country! New frontiers, new flavors!"

"And from all the food you could eat here, you chose a fast food chain you can also find in London."

Katherine wagged her forefinger. "Tsk, tsk. Not quite." She presented the steamy chili dog to Marice. "Some chains make slight adjustments to their recipes to cater to a country's palette. So it may look the same on the outside, but the subtle changes in flavor can often bring a whole world of difference!"

"You're being ridiculous." Marice grabbed her wrist again and took a bite out of the chili dog, causing Katherine to whimper. "Mmm... I'll never get tired of eating this."

She sniffled. "I-I know..."

"But seriously, it doesn't taste any different from the branch we always—"

"No! Wrongwrongwrong!" she cried, banging the table for emphasis. "This chili dog is slightly sweeter! The people here like sweet stuff!"

"How can you even tell? You haven't—" Her eyes fell on several crumpled paper wrappers in front of Katherine. "Why do I even bother?"

"D-Don't judge! It's not like you're any better during chow time!"

Vivianne scowled at them, her hand radiating an icy blue glow. "Please leave."

Marice glanced at Vivianne's now frozen soda. "Hey, you heard her. You don't wanna piss off the grumpy old witch, do you?"

"Oh, fine," Katherine replied as the massive shield carrying their souvenirs started to hover behind her. "I can't wait to finally meet your mum!"

Vivianne shooed them away. "Yeah, that's right. You two are ruining my—wait, what did you just say?!"