Once in the labyrinth, things were blessedly uneventful; they followed the shortest route to their workshop. Nanao, Pete, and Chela were already there; Oliver and Katie had lingered in that seminar far too long. As they stepped in, Chela gave them a warm smile.
“Welcome home! We’re all here at last.”
Oliver knew she’d stopped herself from adding except for Guy. She turned and started prepping tea, appearing for all the world as if she cared only about easing their fatigue.
“You’ve had a lot on your plates,” she told Oliver and Katie. “Once you’re ready for tomorrow, sit down and relax a moment. Of course, if you wish to go straight to bed, don’t let me stop you. Your beds are made and ready for you.”
“Oh, thanks, Chela. We’ll take you up on that.” Oliver smiled back, then glanced at Katie.
She’d babbled the whole time they were in the labyrinth, not letting him get a word in edgewise, but she’d clammed up the moment they’d stepped into the base. Something was clearly off. She was standing perfectly still just inside the door, eyes unfocused and aimed at empty space.
“Hrm—”
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
Nanao and Pete soon spotted it and put down their work. Chela broke away from her tea prep, swiftly running to Katie’s side.
“Katie? Are you okay? You don’t seem…”
“…Huh? N-no, I’m fine…”
She shook her head slowly, clearly unaware of her own condition.
Chela grabbed her hand. “I find that hard to believe. Let me have a look at you. This way.”
She pulled her into the back room. Katie didn’t resist, and the others watched them go with concern.
✦ ✦ ✦
Chela sat Katie down on a bed and made to give her a thorough exam. The curly-haired girl’s answer a moment ago had felt off, so Chela started there.
“You have a cut inside your mouth? Open wide—let me see.”
Katie dithered a moment but soon opened her mouth. Chela was not surprised to see a lengthy cut on the right cheek. Natural mage healing had stopped the bleeding, but the cause of the wound was all too obvious.
“You…bit yourself?” Chela asked, frowning. “And rather forcefully. Why would you…?”
As she spoke, she drew her wand, healing the wound. This took no time at all, but Katie’s gaze remained unfocused, her condition unimproved. Surmising the root cause lay elsewhere, Chela looked the rest of her over.
“…Hmm. Your mana circulation’s a tad rapid and uneven. Your heart’s beating fast, your eyes dilated. But why, I wonder? These seem less like symptoms and more like a state of excitement that refuses to go away.”
Voicing her best diagnosis, Chela crooked her head. Katie appeared to be only half listening.
“Any clue why?” Chela asked. “Did you drink any potions?”
“…Potions? Oh… We downed a lot of focus potions at the seminar… Maybe that’s why…”
“At your seminar? Oh, I see. Upperclassmen likely brew them strong, reformulating them for extra effectiveness. If you went through a lot, I’d see why that would unsettle your physique. Still…”
That seemed a likely cause but did not fully explain her condition. Chela’s friends had suffered adverse effects from standard-issue potions before, but she had no memories of symptoms presenting like this. It was always possible an upperclassman had simply provided really potent potions, but in that case, Oliver should be suffering similarly. Leaving antidotes and bloodletting off the table for now, Chela probed further.
“…You seem to be suffering more than that. Your physical symptoms aren’t that strong, so I have to assume your mentality is a factor. Was there some strong stimulus? Something that rocked your emotions one way or the other?”
She had a hunch this was primarily emotional—and Katie visibly flinched. It took her a long time to speak.
“…Well…I’ve been with Oliver all this time…and…near the end…we hugged…”
“…Oh.”
Chela closed her eyes, nodding as the last piece fell into place.
Excessive focus potion intake had been merely the foundation. Close contact with Oliver in that condition had proved a trigger, putting her nervous system in a state of excitement that refused to subside. All spurred on by her recent mental instability and the brakes coming off her self-control. In other words, excitement and exhaustion had left her dazed and confused. With that diagnosis reached, Chela gave her a hug.
“Understood. I’m sorry for prying,” Chela offered. “But if we don’t do anything, you won’t be able to sleep tonight. And you’ve got an early morning tomorrow, right? If we use spells or potions to force you asleep, that’ll take its toll on you…”
Knowing the cause led to other concerns. Katie’s nerves were already so wound up. Antidotes or bloodletting would not have much effect. Knocking her out with a spell—she might as well just faint, meaning that was out of the question. So what would be effective against the symptoms?
Chela ran through her options and latched on to one.
“…Hmm…”
Not bad on the face of it. Arguably the ideal solution. It would help Katie recover and help Chela advance things toward her own goal—two birds with one stone. Convinced of that, Chela moved to put it into action. She let go of Katie, stood up, and spoke, keeping her voice ever so pleasant.
“I have an idea. Can you wait here a minute, Katie?”
“……?”
Katie managed a vague nod and watched Chela leave. Clueless as to what her friend’s idea might be or what it would involve.