"..." Rin blinked. "What?"

Maria sighed.

"I could tell you placed an Illusion spell on her, and I saw through it. So, tell me."

"I don't..." Rin tried to deflect, as futile as her efforts were. Maria was having none of that.

"Rin, just tell me," she responded slowly, emphasizing every word. As Rin understood that she wasn't getting out of this situation, she wondered if she should just run out of the room, grab Xhez and leave the entire Academy.

Of course, because she knew that Maria was fast enough to stop her before she even managed to take one step outside, she looked down.

"She's my friend," Rin said, feeling her heart ache.

"... Alright," Maria nodded. "But, what is she?"

Taking a deep breath, Rin spoke quietly.

"She's a water sprite," Rin stated, hoping she hadn't just given Xhez a death sentence. Maria heard her and narrowed her eyes a little.

"No, seriously, what is she?" Maria asked again. 

"I-I'm not lying, she's a water sprite."

"... Alright," Maria replied. "And, how exactly did you become friends with a water sprite?"

"Well," Rin said, moving closer to Maria in the hopes that her words would reach her better. "She's intelligent, she's not a monster, or whatever!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"S-She can talk!" Rin said. "And, she's smart, and, she's really nice, and, s-she's just a normal water sprite!"

"Rin," Maria held a hand up, signaling for her to pause. "I don't know what she is, but I can tell you she's no water sprite, that's for sure."

"What?" Rin's brows shot up to the ceiling. "W-What do you mean?"

"For one," Maria continued, "she wasn't trying to bite your face off. I'd say that disqualifies her from that."

"I don't know what..." Rin looked down. "I'm not lying to you, Maria, I swear. I promise I'm telling you the truth." 

As Rin stated that, a moment of silence settled between them.

"... Fine," Maria said, closing her eyes. "Bring her up here then."

Rin's eyes widened.

"I, what?"

"You said she can talk. Prove it. Bring her to me."

As Maria said this, Rin gulped. Feeling her nervousness rising, she put her hands up.

"M-Maria, please, Xhez, uh, the sprite, she's a really good person, don't..."

"Rin, if you're telling me the truth, I am not going to hurt her," Maria told her. "Before I make any decisions, I would like to verify what you've said. So, bring her up here."

Although her heart was pounding against her chest, Rin tried to believe that, and she nodded.

"O-Okay, okay, uh, I'll be back in a second."

With that, Rin basically sprinted out into the hall.

She ran down the stairs, all the way back to her room, where she quickly walked up to Xhez's bag. Elisa was in her bed, and she sat up, looking at Rin with questions in her eyes.

"Rin?" Elisa asked, but Rin didn't answer. Instead, ignoring the blonde, she grabbed Xhez's bag and jogged back out of the room. She tried not to shake Xhez too badly as she went back to the Meditation Center.

Once she was standing outside the door, she stopped and crouched. Looking around, she made sure they were alone. Opening the bag up, she saw that Xhez was awake and confused.

"Uh, Rin?" Xhez asked, looking up at her. "What is happening?"

[Okay, calm down, calm down,] she told herself, trying not to appear too shaken. She forced a smile and said:

"... Listen, so..." She started, "remember Maria?"

"Yes," Xhez replied.

"Well... She knows," Rin explained, and even as small as Xhez currently was, she could see her shocked expression appear. "B-But don't worry! She... She wants to talk to you."

"But... I..." Xhez replied. "I am not ready to meet another human... So soon..."

"Sorry," Rin told her, "we, we don't really have a choice here."

With that, she opened the door and walked inside. Maria looked up as Rin locked the door behind her.

"Hm? Where is she?" Maria asked.

"She's... in here," Rin said, lifting her bag up. She only noticed then, as she held her hands in front of her, that her arms were trembling. Feeling a coldness spreading in her chest, she set the bag down. "Okay," she looked inside, "Xhez... You should come out now."

The way Xhez was looking at her from inside was nothing short of heartbreaking, but considering what was happening, all Rin could do was hope for the best.

She stepped away from the bag and watched then as Xhez jumped out and grew into her regular size.

Maria flinched but didn't react beyond that. Instead, her eyes, like solid steel, remained fixed on Xhez, unblinking as the sprite appeared in front of her. The sprite was naked, wearing no disguise, as she stood in front of Maria and looked back.

Rin, instinctively, walked up to stand by her side, as Maria stood up.

"So-" she started, but Maria put a hand up and she stopped talking. Her teacher crossed her arms and said:

"What is your name?" Maria asked.

"... Xhez," the sprite replied, just as anxious and scared as Rin was.

But, just hearing that word alone, made Maria change expressions from one of careful skepticism to one of surprise.

"... Is that so?" Maria looked down. "And, where are you from?"

"T-The mountains, northwest of here," Xhez explained.

Maria walked up to her then, and Xhez took a step back.

"Open your mouth," Maria told her.

Xhez wordlessly did so, and Rin watched as it looked like Maria was analyzing her teeth. The entire time, Rin was so nervous she felt light-headed.

Then, Maria took one of Xhez's hands and lifted it up, looking at her nailless fingers. Last, but not least, she looked at the back of Xhez's head and took a strand of her hair. Xhez visibly shivered, but as Maria stared at the hair she'd grabbed, she finally stepped away.

"... You're a water sprite?" Maria asked, as though Rin hadn't told her that already.

"Y-Yes," Xhez replied. Maria just looked at her for a second, in disbelief.

"How is this possible?" Maria asked aloud.

"Maria, uh, Miss Camille, you can tell, right?" Rin asked. "That she's not a monster, I mean."

"Uhm... I can show you, if you-" Xhez said, taking a step closer to her, but she instantly stopped when Maria reacted by raising a fist.

It looked like something she'd done out of reflex, but it was enough for both Rin and Xhez to freeze.

"Do not..." Maria's voice sounded like it was trembling just as badly as Rin's hands were. "Do not come closer."

And so, everyone remained perfectly still. For a while, no one moved or said anything. All they could do was wait for Maria to say something again. Eventually, Rin's teacher spoke up, dropping her hands.

"Rin..." She muttered, sounding defeated. "What the hell did you get yourself into?"

"Miss Camille," Rin walked up to her, "I promise you, I literally spent an entire month with Xhez by my side, I can vouch for her, she's not a mindless creature or anything like that. You heard her yourself."

"Yes," Maria replied. "I did. I heard her, I see her, and yet I still can't believe it."

"I understand that this is a lot to take in, it was for me too, but... Xhez isn't wrong. She can show you, better than I could ever tell you, that she's not a monster."

At that, Maria sat down, crossing her legs. She slumped over, her eyes on the ground as though the floor held answers to her questions. Then, she looked up.

"... How?"

"She has this... thing," Rin explained, "it can show you her memories. Xhez, uh, show her. Uh, can she show it to you?" 

Maria paused. She looked deeply into Rin's eyes, before, after a while, nodding. 

Rin breathed a sigh of relief and gestured for Xhez to go ahead.

The sprite, seeing that, took a cautious step toward Maria. She looked back at Rin for confirmation and, when Rin nodded, she continued, until she was in front of the Rank S adventurer, sitting down as well.

Maria's eyes looked like they were daring Xhez to try something. As though she was promising that the instant Xhez made one wrong move, she would punch her head off. And, indeed, Rin knew the woman was capable of it.

"I-I am going to t-touch my forehead to yours," Xhez explained, "o-okay?"

"... Go ahead, sprite," Maria told her and Rin could downright feel the challenge in her tone.

Hearing that, Xhez put her hands on Maria's thighs. The teacher narrowed her eyes at Xhez, and Xhez leaned closer. Maria's fists clenched up and Rin felt like her heart was going to break through her chest, and finally, Xhez lightly pressed her forehead against Maria's.

And, as their bodies glowed white, Rin knew the ability had begun to work.