episode_0076

The story is just that, a story.

As the last modern human of this era, equipped with reason and logic, I strive not to be swayed by such superstitions.

But it’s a bit ambiguous here because this is a fantasy world.

There’s magic, there are holy maidens, and there’s even an emperor who can roam the snowy plains for three days and nights without succumbing to the cold.

If you look closely, you might even find ghosts or monsters.

However, what’s important is not these facts, but whether such beings are in front of my door.

When there was no response, a softer voice came through after a moment.

“…Are you still asleep?”

This time, with a clearer mind than before, I could fully hear the voice.

The voice, more like a whisper than speech, was slightly trembling. It seems that people put emotions into their voices like this.

As far as I know, there was only one person in this house who could convey such emotions.

Usually lively, but suddenly becoming timid in strange corners.

Knowing how to think of others and show consideration, yet worrying if it might be disrespectful.

I knew well the kind of personality Lycia had. And based on that personality, I could also predict what expression she would make and what actions she would take.

“I’ll come back later. Sleep well.”

As it reached the end, I couldn’t help but imagine Lycia walking back and forth behind the door, her hair swaying.

Even if she were a ghost, with this level of sincerity, it would be proper to be deceived. But I don’t believe I mistook the girl for something else.

I grabbed the cold doorknob and slowly opened the door.

Creak, the sound of the rusty latch made the girl on the other side turn her head.

*****

Honestly, Lycia had considered such a situation.

What would a person do at night? She would study, but usually at that time, being in dreamland was the norm.

In the morning, there could be an unexpected accident where she would pop out of thin air while Laven was with someone else.

So, she chose the night. And if she saw his face today, she planned to inform him that they could meet like this later.

But plans often don’t go as expected.

Maybe he was staying up all night doing something. She hoped for that possibility.

“Laven, are you awake?”

As expected, there was no response.

Since there was no light coming from the room in the first place, it was a futile hope.

Despite that, she couldn’t shake off the lingering regret and called out once more, but the other side of the door remained silent.

Since she had come all this way, why not try waking him up.

She thought about it, but there was something that held back her selfishness.

“…Laven must be tired.”

When she jumped over the window, she found a letter on the table she bumped into.

Picking it up to tidy it up, she could confirm that it was a thank-you letter for the recent extermination of savages.

The date written there indicated a week ago.

Considering the travel time, it hadn’t been long since Laven had returned home.

The first thought that came to mind was worry. What if he had been seriously injured? How surprised he must have been when he came with so many wounds last time.

It could be roughly estimated by the state of his armor and sword, but his most precious belongings were always kept in the room, making it impossible to confirm. It was not something she could see through with her astral projection.

But one thing was certain, he must be exhausted from the battle.

In her heart, she wanted to check if he was sleeping well.

After using difficult magic and returning empty-handed, it felt a bit empty, so she wanted to see his face once and, um.

‘No, even if that’s the case, not here.’

A few thoughts came to mind at that moment.

When there was nothing to do at university, he would think of Lavender, a solitary imagination. Such futile imaginations were usually verbose and sometimes even lurid, but he pushed them aside for now.

Even the sound of the door opening could wake Lavender.

Having opened and closed the door several times, he knew how noisy it could be.

But the opportunity was not just for today.

Although not yet proficient, the magic he could use occasionally was not something he could use often, but he could always come back later.

“I’ll come back later. Sleep well.”

Indeed, that would be the best way to think of him.

The girl eventually had to turn around, expressing her regret and saying only this before she had to leave.

The hand that had reached for the door handle just before going up fell back weakly.

There was no need to go outside to go back. He just had to release the magic.

And as he closed his eyes tightly to break the magic…

-Creak

“If you came, you should have said something.”

The voice of someone who had given up on the meeting was heard from behind.

And as the girl turned her head sharply, she could smell the scent that wafted in as the door opened.

It wasn’t just Lavender’s scent, but something else she had smelled many times before.

The pungent smell of blood that lingered around when healing people on the battlefield was mixed in there.

The girl’s gaze sharpened.

It couldn’t be someone else’s blood. She had no reason to be walking around with someone else’s blood in the village.

“Were you awake? No, I must have woken you up. I’m sorry…”

“Why make such a big deal out of it? If you’re going to be late again, just wake me up comfortably. It’s better than hesitating outside and going back. Why did you come all the way here?”

“I just wanted to see Lavender. Oh, this is just a projection, my actual body is at the university.”

“Oh, I see.”

Except for Amelie, Lavender was the only one who would understand and listen even if she said the same thing about making a projection.

But there were many eyes watching in the church. In that sense, the only place where he could be comfortable was actually here.

Wanting to briefly immerse himself in that comfort, the girl hugged Lavender tightly. Since they had been apart for a while, she often expressed her joy like this, and Lavender didn’t seem to mind either.

But regardless of those feelings, he worked hard on his nose. Getting close, he found that the source of the blood smell was indeed around Lavender’s shoulder.

Although it was covered with clothes, the faintly stained bandages could be seen.

Still, he didn’t want to spend the time worrying while they were together, so he decided to ignore it for now.

Filled with pleasant things, there was still a shortage. The girl spent time talking about recent events and chatting.

“I, I learned how to properly give blessings this time. I’ll do it for you when you come to the university next time.”

“I was thinking of visiting you soon anyway. Yes, you seem to be studying hard. You’ve worked hard all this time.”

“Hehe…”

It seemed like he needed to learn more about how to give blessings to Amelie.

It was an easy entry but a difficult field to excel in, so there was still a long way to go.

*****

Once again, reason and logic prevailed.

Sure enough, on the other side of the door was Lysia.

He was curious why the girl who was supposed to be at the university was here alone, but he understood that it was a projection.

Magic was truly amazing. Even if I were to learn it, I wouldn’t be able to achieve such a feat, but seeing the girl grow day by day made me feel proud.

“Oh, and if there’s anything else that happened- oh!”

“Are you okay?”

As they exchanged various stories, the girl suddenly stumbled.

He caught her before she fell, and after taking a deep breath, the girl opened her mouth.

“We haven’t known each other for long, but it seems that the magic can only last this long. Still, I’ll come back later.”

“Sure, it’s late, so go back and get some rest.”

“Yes. Oh, and when using magic, the light shines brightly, so please close your eyes for a moment.”

“Huh?”

“It’s not usually like that, but I’m still inexperienced, so that’s why. It’s dazzling, so quickly, please.”

She seemed anxious, but if that’s how the girl is, then so be it.

I obediently closed my eyes as she said.

Sure enough, a moment later, a bright flash burst through my closed eyelids.

And with a sensation as if something brushed against my cheek, it disappeared in an instant.

When I slowly opened my eyes, wondering if it was over, I was alone in the room. The silence that had settled heavily was different from a while ago.

It felt like I had dreamed or seen something unreal, with a silence that made me doubt if it had really happened.

With the door still open and the inexplicable sensation on my cheek, I couldn’t be sure if it had really happened.

*****

Licia, who had been sitting comfortably with her eyes closed, jolted and trembled.

Amelie, who had been watching her from the side, brought over a bowl of stew, thinking the girl might be hungry late at night.

“Are you back? It seems like you used magic for a long time, was there any problem?”

When there was no response after a while, Amelie, thinking that the magic might have gone wrong, set down the bowl and stared at the girl.

Seeing her sitting still in the chair, she wondered if she had lost consciousness. It was possible for this to happen when using difficult magic for the first time.

As she approached a little closer, things that were hard to see in the darkness began to come into view one by one.

Her mouth seemed to be struggling to say something, and her gaze was looking down, but her eyes were shaking violently, indicating that consciousness had returned.

“Licia?”

“Ugh….”

Even though she could hear someone speaking beside her, her focus continued to be elsewhere.

Her face was flushed red, and she seemed unable to move, as if she was, indeed.

‘…I see.’

The situation could be roughly guessed.

The advantage of the magic that creates a doppelganger is that you can touch and see things at a distance, but that’s about it.

In the doppelganger state, you cannot use magic, and the caster is left vulnerable. Moreover, the durability of the doppelganger is not very good, and it can disappear with a small shock.

In other words, considering the difficulty, it was a magic spell that was not very cost-effective.

Even though she was studying at university and couldn’t go out, she didn’t think the girl would be interested in learning.

So, she had asked the girl why she wanted to create a doppelganger before.

From her answer at that time, it was easy to guess where she was headed. She must have gone to see Raven.

She didn’t know exactly what had happened, but she decided not to pry into it.

Licia must have her own private life too. Amelie stepped back and waited for the girl to calm down.

It was only after a long time had passed that Licia came to her senses, the stew she had just boiled had cooled down.

Then, she slightly staggered to her feet, bowed her head, and said, “I’ll go back now, as it’s late. Thank you for today.”

“Sure. Rest well, the classes start a bit later tomorrow, so get plenty of sleep.”

For a moment, she felt mischievous, but at times like this, she shouldn’t pretend to know.

Amelie casually bid farewell to the girl, who seemed to be distracted, and as she turned her back and walked away, she smiled softly.

Indeed, that time was the best. Each reaction was so cute.