"I will leave you girls to it." Gronir said. "I will also take care of informing the staff about your newest creation. We would not want an accident. And do not send him alone into town. Hatsumi looks normal enough but a headless goblin is going to cause problems."

Hatsumi watched him leave. "You know, I think he is quite fond of your creations, Koyuki. You might cause him regular headaches but you allow him to further his understanding of some rarer undead."

"Really?" I asked.

Hatsumi nodded. "I have worked with him a bit, since he is interested in figuring out more about vampiric powers. Most research is conducted at the Arcane Institute, or the Academy of Neth. Our academy is obviously more focused on combat. Who, besides your group, has really tried to experiment?"

"Hm. Most people are not interested in alchemy. I am one of the few even taking the subject." Cassie mused.

"Indeed. A lot of students are here to either fight, or due to politics. Having a family member in the military can be beneficial and the nobles don't want the royals to be too powerful. They want officers who are loyal to their families. That means Gronir does not have many opportunities to further his curiosity. He is also looked down upon by some researchers. They see him as a brute." Hatsumi summarised.

"I never really thought about that." I replied. "Magic is awesome! Why would you not want to see what you can do?"

"An admirable stance, Koyuki." The goblin replied, while he was gently lifting Nyx, who kept pawing the flames emerging from his neck. Then he put his head on top of the flames. It started floating just above the neck.

"Does your head stay in place like that?" Helena asked.

It seemed she was not the only one curious about that. Yoru jumped on the goblin's shoulder and poked the head. It wobbled but did not fall off.

"I think I can keep it there with my magic, if I concentrate. However, a strong blow would likely detach it. I will have to work on it." He pondered that, then added: "I might also have to work on retrieving it, if it gets knocked off."

"Are you not getting dizzy if your head keeps wobbling?" Skadi asked.

"Interestingly, the movement or position of my head does not seem to cause discomfort." He used his hands to rotate his head, it was now looking backwards. "I feel like there might be some useful applications for a severed head."

Stolen story; please report.

"Can you see from your body, to find your head?" I wondered. Undead did not have normal eyes, after all. Nyx had eyes made from some form of energy.

"I can use the flames from my neck for perception, to some extent, although it is not like normal sight. I can also feel where the head is. It shall take some time to figure out what this body is capable of." He replied.

"The headless burning reaper! That would be a great name!" Cassie said, suddenly.

The goblin frowned. "Apologies, but that sounds more like a title than a name."

"It also needs something more ice-oriented, he has frostfire." Helena pointed out.

"How about a normal name? Something like, Alfred?" Hatsumi suggested, with a pained smile.

"Sounds boring." Cassie commented.

By now, Yoru had given up on poking the head, instead he tried to get his paws between the head and the neck. The gap was just wide enough for a paw. Being a goblin, the undead was not particularly big. He was the size of a dwarf but not as muscular. Yoru was moving quite a bit during his antics, and managed to fall off the shoulder. The goblin caught him mid-air and started to pet him.

Ivy sat on the floor, watching Yoru, and shook her head disapprovingly. Kasai sat next to her, ignoring everything and licking her paw.

"What sort of name do you want?" I asked the goblin.

"I shall gladly accept any name you wish to bestow upon me. I am your humble servant." He replied.

"Why are you so eager to serve?" I wondered.

"Because you are my mistress and I deem you worthy." He replied.

I scratched my head. All my undead were weird. I had cats who only meowed, Hatsumi who insisted on being a maid and now a headless goblin who wanted to become my butler.

"Thank you." I replied, not sure how else to respond.

"Maybe we should look for a name from Kitara? He would fit in nicely that way." Hatsumi suggested.

"I don't really know any names, nor do I know the language." I pointed out.

"Um, um… Kaito!" Hatsumi suggested.

"What does it mean?" Helena asked.

"I don't know." Hatsumi admitted. "But I am sure it's a name I have read somewhere."

"Sounds rather normal, not really like a powerful undead." Skadi said.

The goblin grabbed his head and rotated it so it faced forward again. "I would not be opposed to a normal name."

Helena frowned. "You seem so nice and polite, you… you have no problem with combat, right?"

"Of course not! I shall happily dispatch any threat to my mistr… to Koyuki. Or to her loyal friends. Her enemies shall be swiftly eradicated with cleansing frost!" His blue flame grew brighter as he spoke.

Helena grinned. "Good! You will fit right in!"

"So, shall I be known as Kaito then?" He asked.

"If you like it." I replied.

"Very well, I am Kaito. It is a pleasure meeting you all." He bowed. His head fell off again but he expertly caught it. Then he placed it back on his neck. "I shall have to work on that. I think if I do not concentrate my head will become loose."

"Meow."

"Meow."

"Meow."

"Meow."

All four cats seemed to greet him, one after the other. He smiled at them and… tipped his head.

"Splendid! We need to visit a tailor and get a suit for Kaito. And probably a book about the duties of a butler!" Hatsumi said, sounding excited.

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