Chapter 8: I Showed You My Secret, But…

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Sugar had no intention of teaching him all the characters, the script was for keeping secrets.

So, after throwing out a few words, she planned to go meditate and train.

“I have something to do now, so practice writing those words on your own.”

As she climbed the tree, her thoughts were racing.

Why had she been so disappointed earlier?

The sadness of realizing that a friend she had been hanging out with for days didn’t actually know her name. She had genuinely felt it.

‘There’s no reason to be disappointed even if he didn’t know. I could’ve just told him.’

It was natural that he didn’t know, since she had never properly told him in the first place.

She had asked the question expecting that if he said he knew, she could tease him with, “How do you know when I never told you?”.

Then if he said he didn’t know, she could use the opportunity to tell him her name, but instead, she ended up feeling disappointed.

Then when he immediately corrected himself and said he did know her name, she had smiled without even realizing it.

‘I guess I’ve grown more attached than I thought.’

She must have grown fond of him after spending so much time together.

Maybe it was because he was smaller than her, making him feel like a younger sibling or maybe it was because her way of thinking had become more childlike to match her 11-year-old body.

Whatever it was, she was deep in thought.

Although there was something important to remember. When climbing something as high as a tree, you need to focus. You can’t let your mind wander.

And then she slipped.

Even someone as skilled at climbing trees as Sugar could fall if she wasn’t paying attention. It was the result of overthinking.

‘Ah… this is pretty high.’

Would she break an arm or a leg? It was going to hurt a lot, wasn’t it?

Bracing for the impact, she closed her eyes tightly and prepared herself.

A few seconds passed like that, but no matter how long she waited, the pain didn’t come. In fact, she didn’t even feel like she was falling.

Could it be? A sudden awakening of power in a crisis!?

With that optimistic thought, she opened her eyes and saw Tommy, his face full of shock, reaching out toward her.

Looking down, she realized she wasn’t on the ground but floating in mid-air, held up by some kind of force.

“Whoa.”

She didn’t understand much else.

But it seemed like she had found her magic teacher.

 

“Teach me. That thing.”

Sugar stuck close to him, following him around like a shadow.

“Teach me that thing. That thing.”

“…”

It had been like this all the way until dinner, and Tommy was starting to regret his mistake.

“I taught you something, right? So you should teach me too.”

Seeing her pester him like this, the other kids grew curious and asked,

“What’s that thing? You’ve been going on about it all day.”

“That thing is… well… that thing…”

Her vague answer made everyone tilt their heads in confusion.

“Is it something weird?”

“Sugar’s just been acting weird lately.”

“Yeah, she’s been acting strange.”

The cold responses made Sugar put on a deeply troubled expression, adding weight to the atmosphere as she continued,

“It’s just… I showed him my secret… but he won’t show me his…”

“…What did you say?”

“What? That kind of thing? That kind of thing?”

“Gasp, no way. You two have been sticking together so much.”

The atmosphere instantly heated up. Among kids, and even among people in general, this kind of topic was the best conversation starter.

Watching silently, Tommy found the whole thing ridiculous. To put an end to the situation, he approached Sugar, but she had one last line to add.

“Sniff sniff. He just took the sweet part and left me behind.”

-Whisper whisper.

All eyes were on them. He had no idea what they were imagining, but kids these days seemed to know everything.

“What nonsense are you spouting! No! It’s not like that!”

Denying it vehemently, Tommy dragged Sugar to the attic, pushed her inside, and closed the door. The force behind the push carried a lot of emotion.

“Crack.”

With a snap of his fingers, a faint light source, bright enough to make out faces, appeared between them.

“Hey! Let’s talk straight. What exactly did you show me?”

“A glimpse of ancient, secret knowledge…”

“In exchange for teaching you the script! …I never asked you to teach me magic.”

He raised his voice but lowered it again when it came to the topic of magic.

“Then I’ll ask now. In exchange, teach me magic, Teacher.”

Thank you for earlier—she bowed her head in gratitude, also lowering her voice.

Tommy covered his eyes with his palm. He had no idea how things had gotten so tangled.

‘…I wanted to keep the magic a secret.’

Everyone has mana in their body. The amount and nature of it vary from person to person, but its existence is a constant.

Using that mana as energy to perform certain actions is what magic is, but ordinary people can’t even feel the mana in their bodies, let alone use magic. Some say it’s like trying to feel the blood flowing through your veins.

Even if you can feel it, turning it into magic is a whole other problem.

In this world, orphans who can sense mana and use magic—those with magical talent—are prioritized for adoption.

If they’re lucky, they get adopted into noble or wealthy families. If they’re unlucky, they become test subjects or human shields against powerful magic. Either way, orphans have no right to refuse.

Tommy, who didn’t want to leave the slums yet, hated the idea. The slums were the perfect place to secretly study the grimoire, which would get him branded a heretic if discovered, and to search for offerings to give.

People disappearing here didn’t cause much of a stir.

As a young orphan, he was unlikely to be suspected.

His plan was to finish deciphering the grimoire here, where he had these two advantages, and then use the magic skills he’d been steadily building to go wherever he wanted—whether it was the capital or the floating islands.

Even if the path was drenched in blood, it didn’t matter. He was willing to abandon his humanity, hurt people, and drink their blood. No matter what it took, he would achieve his dream of being recognized by everyone.

But what was this?

He hadn’t even managed to produce a single sacrifice yet.

The first human sacrifice he had been eagerly anticipating was supposed to be that mischievous girl with the smile worth sparing.

He had planned to crush her thoroughly and use her to fill the pages of the grimoire, but nothing had gone as planned.

Now, she was even demanding that he teach her magic. The risk of his magical talent being exposed was growing by the day.

He had saved her when she fell from the tree.

Why did he even save her if he was going to kill her anyway?

‘…Because sacrifices are better when they’re intact.’

Tommy often found himself caught in this cycle of self-questioning.

Today, too, he sighed, unable to make a clear decision.

“Hey. Listen. I’m self-taught in magic, so I don’t know much. I’m not at a level where I can teach anyone. Besides, why do you even want to learn it?”

“To get stronger? Hmm… to escape? I’m not sure how to put it.”

It was an unexpected answer. He had assumed she’d say something like, “Because it’s cool.”

“I just… want to break free from this hopeless future. That’s all. I’m not asking you to teach me anything complicated. Even something small would be enough. I just want to have some power.”

Her gaze drifted to a distant place.

She was such a strange kid. Sometimes she seemed like a child, other times like an adult.

“If it’s too much, just teach me how to awaken my mana. Even a small tip would be enough. Can’t you do that?”

It wasn’t difficult.

The only problem was the risk of exposing his talent at the orphanage and the question, “Why should I spend my time teaching her magic?”

But something about Sugar’s words struck a chord with him. Tommy, too, had once been that desperate.

He also felt it was pointless. No matter how much she struggled, she was destined to be a sacrifice for his grimoire.

Yet, he couldn’t shake the thought of indulging her a little.

After all, she had taught him some ancient script.

He let out a deep sigh, almost mocking himself for ending up in this situation.

Thinking it was a sign of refusal, Sugar was about to resort to her ultimate move—throwing herself flat on the ground—when…

“First of all, neither of us has a wand. I can only handle basic magic, so keep that in mind… But why are you lying on the ground?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Thank you. Really, thank you. You’re the best.”

As if nothing had happened, Sugar got up, dusted off her knees, and grabbed Tommy’s hand, shaking it vigorously.

“Let go, let go. First, there are three conditions. You have to swear to follow them if you want me to teach you.”

“Fine. Whatever. What are they?”

“First, absolute secrecy. No one can know that I can use magic or that you’re learning it. Not a word until we both leave the orphanage.”

“Got it.”

“Second, you’ll pay me back when you succeed.”

Though she’ll probably die by my hand before that happens—it’s just a condition I added because three sounds better than two. Sugar nodded eagerly, of course, of course.

“And finally.”

Tommy paused, creating a moment of tension.

“Stop stealing my food.”

A hint of disappointment flashed across Sugar’s face as she nodded.

 

A sword for a swordsman, a wand for a mage.

Without their tools, they’re only half as effective, but even a swordsman with a stick can mimic swordsmanship, and a mage with bare hands can mimic magic.

So even without a wand, Tommy could teach Sugar the very basics of magic.

Of course, with the grimoire, he could do much more, but that was his deepest secret.

If Sugar ever found out about his grimoire, he’d have to silence her immediately to keep it hidden—

“…”

“Tommy? Is this the right way to set it up?”

As she set up a cloth to use as a makeshift blackboard, her eyes wide with excitement, her face was plastered with joy.

In this moment, Sugar was genuinely grateful. A friend she made at the orphanage had magical talent, and she could learn magic from him!

She could see a way to escape the clutches of the cult.

She could run away from those crazy kidnappers, and maybe even create a future as “Sugar the Mage.”

She didn’t ask why he wanted to keep magic a secret. Sugar knew all too well how orphans with magical talent were treated—either extremely well or extremely poorly.

She simply wished for this kind boy to leave the orphanage safely and succeed through magic.

Though it was a shame she couldn’t steal his soup anymore, it was a small price to pay for the greater good. She smiled at Tommy, fully convinced.

Tommy, however, just lowered his gaze and began the lesson.