Chapter 1- The Demon Sister's Memory Snow Part 1

“― That is all, sister. I have finished changing your clothes.”

Saying this, the blue-haired girl― Rem tapped her sister’s shoulders from behind as she sat before the dresser and then inclined her body to bring her face next to her sister’s.

The pink-haired elder sister― Ram, bore an extreme resemblance to her save for their hair and eye colors. However, Ram was much more wonderful, her beautiful countenance was dignified and unshakeable..

Rem was always telling herself that she too had to follow Ram’s example as she admired her elder sister’s elegance.

However, even Ram’s dignified elegance was shaken this morning―

“… Thank you, Rem. But even this amount of clothes will not suffice, not nearly.”

“Sister…”

Ram’s voice trembled as she muttered this, the reason being the temperature which was so cold the room’s windows were turning white as they froze.

The Roswaal Manor was suffering an out of season cold wave at the moment, and there was even a little snow falling outside the frozen windows. The exterior of the mansion was turning white as snow enveloped it, one look at this would be enough to understand the extent of the cold this abnormal weather produced.

On especially cold mornings such as this one, merely getting Ram out of bed was quite the struggle in itself. With Rem’s desperate persuasion and cooperation from Ram who loved her little sister, they were at long last able to finish changing her clothes.

Perhaps one might think of it as exaggerated, but Ram’s condition as she shivered from the cold was truly pitiful to look at.

Even Rem who wasn’t particularly bad at dealing with the cold was unable to stay in her usual maid outfit which exposed her back and shoulders, instead opting for a thicker maid outfit which was intended for colder seasons ― The ice season. And Ram, who was even weaker against the cold than Rem, had gone beyond that as she donned earmuffs and covered herself with a blanket in order to endure the cold.

“Are you alright, sister? It wounds Rem’s heart to watch you suffer like this.”

“Yes, I suppose it would. With only this much warmth, it would be impossible for Ram to work like she usually does. Rem, please embrace me from behind. I would like to receive some warmth.”

“Yes! If you’re okay with Rem!”

Obeying Ram’s request, Rem firmly embraced her elder sister from behind. Stretching her arms to the limit, it was as if she was trying to completely wrap up Ram’s body.

Ram rested her head against Rem’s chest as she heaved a long, deep sigh in her younger sister’s embrace.

“Haa, I can feel your love, Rem… Perhaps we should just stay like this until the sunshine starts pouring in.”

“Umm, Rem is glad to be of use to you, sister, but judging by these weather conditions I am unsure if there will be any sunshine at all today.”

“Well then, I suppose we have an excuse to cling to each other all day long.”

“Fufu, we cannot do that, sister.  No matter how cold it gets, we are still the maids of this mansion.”

Smiling at Ram’s somewhat spoiled words, Rem nuzzled her cheek against her sister’s head which was in her chest. Ram sighed again as the sensation ruffled her pink hair.

“I have heard that sighing means you’re letting your happiness escape. Subaru-kun taught me this.”

“Is that right? But unlike Barusu who is freezing to death alone, Ram is currently wrapped up in your kindness and warmth. Thinking of the difference in our level of happiness brings about a sense of superiority, doesn’t it.”

There was no problem at all even if she lost a bit of happiness by sighing, Rem couldn’t help but admire her sister as she boldly declared this.

Regardless, considering the situation, the idea of Subaru freezing to death wasn’t one she could laugh off even as a joke.

“It seems Subaru-kun has been feeling quite cold as well these past few days…”

“Calling him weak would not even begin to describe him, after all. His ability as a servant is completely lacking, and he is utterly unable to adapt to his surroundings. I do wonder what exactly his strong point is supposed to be.”

“You and Subaru-kun, the two of you are the source of Rem’s strength.”

“I would have been happy about that if I weren’t placed on the same level as Barusu.”

With her lips relaxing, Ram donned a faint, wry smile as she cast her eyes in the window’s direction. The freezing window was covered in white fog, and the mansion’s front yard on the other side was barely even visible, but―

“― Does Emilia-sama intend to feign ignorance even with this much snowfall?”

“Umm…”

“Roswaal-sama is overlooking it, so Ram, noble as she is, has elected to remain silent as well, however this situation is definitely one brought about by Emilia-sama… Or rather, the Great Spirit-sama, is it not?”

“… Emilia-sama isn’t particularly suited to deception, after all.”

When she heard Ram’s deduction, Rem forced a smile as she murmured this.

The extreme chill that had been assailing the Roswaal Manor for the past few days ― The reality of the situation was that almost everyone in the mansion had seen through it, and knew what exactly was causing it.

The Great Spirit who accompanied Emilia, bearing the form of a cat, had entered his magical release period.

“I suppose his degree of freedom within this mansion is not quite what it was back in the forest. To think that he would cause this cold because of that… Ram feels she has gotten caught up in quite the troublesome situation.”

“That’s true, isn’t it. But it is definitely possible to learn from one’s mistakes. Even Rem was completely hopeless when she first came to the mansion, and would always trouble sister and Frederica-sama.”

As she thought back to how incompetent she was in the past, Rem looked like she was going to turn red to her ears.

She definitely didn’t think she was flawless even now, but she was even worse back then. Considering this, she thought it was only natural that a spirit arts user and her Great Spirit would mess up like this because of the sudden change in their surroundings.

“Furthermore, thanks to this cold, I can see Subaru-kun all wrapped up in fluffy clothes, it is very cute.”

“Mm, I can’t overlook what you just said. If it’s about being wrapped up in fluffy clothes, surely Ram is more than a match for him. And if it’s about cuteness, it is definitely an overwhelming victory for me.”

“My sister is wonderful. But Subaru-kun is important to me as well.”

“How stubborn.”

Ram’s response was short, but her expression was gentle and her voice was warm. This caused Rem to display a faint smile as well, after which she curtsied where she stood.

“At this rate, Emilia-sama and the Great Spirit-sama should be done with their little secret in a few more days. I am happy to be able to see you in your ice season clothing in the meantime, sister.”

“It seems you’ve developed a talent for sweet talking. Very well, I’ll play along.”

“Thank you very much, sister. Well then, it is about time we started working. Rem has to go see Subaru-kun too.”

“There’s no helping it. Thanks to you, I feel like I can move my body a bit. But I must request that you embrace me once every hour.”

“Yes, understood. Alright then, I shall see you later.”

With a last look at Ram who was bundling herself in her blanket from the cold, Rem headed towards Subaru’s room.

“… I ended up saying that to sister, but.”

She felt apologetic toward her shivering sister, in truth not even Rem knew how long Emilia and Puck would take to deal with this. She certainly pitied Subaru and her sister for having to deal with this cold, but she was also happy that she was able to see them wear things that they wouldn’t normally choose. Rem’s feelings were complicated.

“The sole point of anxiety was that the snow might end up crushing the plants and flower beds, but Beatrice-sama somehow managed to do something about that.”

As she said this, she took a look out of the corridor’s window, at the white snow that was falling in silence. The only thing Rem was worried about was the effect this would have on the plans and flower beds she dutifully trimmed every day, but thankfully they were secretly protected from harm by Beatrice’s valiant efforts,

It seemed as though Beatrice was helping Emilia and Puck from the shadows, it looked like she had erected a barrier that would prevent the cold from overflowing into the outside of the mansion.

In summary, the responses of each of the mansion’s inhabitants to this cold were as follows: Roswaal was simply waiting and watching, and Ram complied with her master’s intentions. Beatrice was supporting them in secret, and Subaru was just being toyed with.

“Subaru-kun, how cute…”

Now that it was this cold, Subaru would suddenly have his snot frozen before he even realized it so Rem definitely had to do something for him. Thanks to this cold, she had a justification to never take her eyes off him.

“But it might be troublesome to my sister if I said this, so I won’t.”

But even Ram had gone as far to say that she wanted to be embraced once every hour which was awfully cute of her. Rem was already satisfied with that much.

Even if this cold were to persist for a few more days, she wouldn’t mind in the slightest, that was how she felt.

―With a spring in her step, Rem was the one enjoying the mansion’s chilly weather the most.

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