“Let’s start by making a potion to stop the petrification. We need to get some tail hair from the Pegasus right away!”

Following Zeke’s lead, we headed to the stable, where the Pegasus stood quietly.

I asked Ermine to interpret and see if we could get a bit of its tail hair.

“What did it say, Ermine?”

Ermine turned around after finishing the conversation with the Pegasus.

“It said no.”

“What? But we need it to stop the petrification. Please!”

I bowed my head, but the Pegasus still refused to even look in my direction.

“The Pegasus is a magical creature, after all. It only agreed to come because Koko asked, but it has no intention of helping humans.”

“Oh no…”

Without the Pegasus’s tail hair, we couldn’t make the potion. What should I do…?

It’s such a beautiful and divine-looking creature, but since it’s a magical being, I suppose it can’t be helped. Still…

I started thinking of ways to persuade the Pegasus to change its mind and made several suggestions.

“Um, how about we prepare a lot of delicious fruit?”

The Pegasus kept looking away.

“Then how about I give you more golden fruit?”

The Pegasus glanced at me briefly but quickly turned its head again.

Really? It seemed to like the golden fruit, so I thought that might work.

As I looked around for another idea, my eyes landed on a store sign right in front of me.

The sign had a Pegasus with its wings spread and a glass.

“Is that a Pegasus?”

Why a Pegasus and a glass? I tilted my head in confusion, and Zeke explained.

“That’s a wine shop.”

“Wine…?”

“For some reason, wine shops often use the image of a Pegasus,” Zeke said, though he wasn’t sure why.

Hmm.

What’s the connection between Pegasus and wine? Could this be some sort of hint?

“Oh, right! Wine is red,” Ermine said, hitting his paw on his hand and twitching his whiskers as he explained.

“Pegasus is said to be born from the severed neck of the Lamia Queen, so the flowing blood might’ve turned into wine.”

The sign said ‘Persio.’ So, it’s Persio’s wine shop.

“Persio is a cool name.”

As I nodded in understanding, I glanced at the Pegasus again, thinking I’d try asking one more time, and just then, it started to glow.

“It’s glowing!?”

What? What’s happening!?

A blinding light spread out, and once it subsided, the Pegasus came over and pressed its muzzle against me.

“Pegasus!?”

What’s going on?

It’s suddenly acting all affectionate! It was so aloof just a moment ago—why the change?

“You’ve successfully named it,” Ermine said lazily.

“Named it?”

“Yeah, from now on, that Pegasus’s name is Persio.”

At that, Zeke and Alex tensed up and immediately drew their weapons.

“Is it a Named Creature!?”

“A named creature?” I asked, still not fully understanding, while Zeke Arnold, still wary of the Pegasus, explained.

“Typically, magical creatures don’t have names. If a creature has a name, it means it’s a powerful one. …I can’t believe you managed to name it…”

While Zeke and the others looked at the Pegasus with disbelief, Ermine remained completely relaxed.

“Normally, naming a creature would drain your magic and life force, so it’s impossible. But Mei is special,” he said casually.

“So, if you have enough magic and life force, you can create a Named Creature?” Zeke asked.

“Magical creatures wouldn’t bother naming another creature to make it stronger. Only humans would do something that foolish. But humans don’t have enough power for that. Magical creatures gather power on their own and name themselves. If they fail, they die.”

Die? If they fail… they die!?

When I asked in shock, Ermine replied calmly, “Of course. Without magic and life force, you’d die, right?”

Well, that’s true…

“So was I in danger, too?”

“No, Mei. You’re special, remember? You even named me.”

“Now that you mention it…”

That’s right. I named Ermine because he resembled an ermine.

“Why am I special?”

“Because you’re Mei.”

“I’m special just because I’m me?”

“Yup.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re the successor to the Witch of the World’s Passage.”

…Even if you say that, I still don’t feel like I have any special abilities. Sure, I do alchemy, but that’s thanks to my alchemy pot.

Oh!

Now isn’t the time for this. Since the Pegasus has warmed up to me, I need to get its tail hair and make that potion quickly!