Chapter 31 : Butterfly, maybe moth.

I can’t sleep.

They say that when you’re extremely tired, sleep becomes even more elusive.

Of course, I’ve experienced that too.

There was a time I stayed up late, only to be startled when I realized it was morning.

Strangely, that morning I was more active than usual, but by the afternoon, I thought I was going to die from exhaustion.

So, is that why I can’t sleep today either?

Even when I close my eyes and toss and turn, sleep just won’t come.

The mountain air at night was quite chilly, even though it was spring, but perhaps because I was next to the campfire, I didn’t feel cold.

Even when I listened closely, I couldn’t hear any insects chirping.

It was definitely a good thing that bugs weren’t swarming around the campfire.

I turned my head to look at the entrance of the campsite.

The place we entered had a small cave-like structure.

An mossy, arched rock served as a ceiling, hiding the sky.

It felt like rain was about to fall in the forest beyond that massive ceiling.

Even if it did, we wouldn’t even know it was raining here.

I felt the lethargy one feels when staying home on a rainy day.

It was inexplicable.

Amiterre was lying down with her back turned to me.

Was she asleep, judging by the regular rise and fall of her body?

From my side, I could only see her back and her lush tail.

Come to think of it, I still hadn’t touched it even once.

It was within arm’s reach, but there was no need to ask for trouble, so I restrained myself.

Still, I can’t sleep.

Who knew I was the type to get lost in such early morning sentimentality?

Should I try counting sheep with my eyes closed? Nah, better not.

It was obvious that while counting sheep, a wolf would pop out mid-count and devour them all.

The name of that wolf was even more obvious.

“Hold on.”

The person bearing the name of the wolf I was just thinking about sat up, raising her upper body.

Amiterre spoke, her voice husky as ever.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

The person she addressed wasn’t me, but Teperi, who was standing watch.

Staring blankly at the campfire, Teperi snapped back to attention, startled.

[Uh, huh? Weren’t you sleeping?]

Instead of speaking immediately, Amiterre glanced towards me.

What, why is she coming this way? I hadn’t done anything wrong, but I pretended to be asleep.

“She’s asleep.”

[Are you sure she’s asleep?]

“There’s a classic way to check in times like these.”

What is it, something I shouldn’t hear? With my eyes closed, I couldn’t tell what she was doing.

-Thwack!

Suddenly, my forehead flared hot and started to throb.

“If she doesn’t wake up even after this, she must be sleeping.”

Th-this damn mutt b*tch.

Who flicks a sleeping person’s forehead so hard? Even someone sound asleep would wake up from that.

Tears almost welled up, but I managed to avoid making a sound.

Instead, I turned my body from lying straight on my back, shifting into a better position for eavesdropping.

I was confident I wouldn’t get caught even if I peeked through slitted eyes now.

Amiterre seemed uncertain for a moment, but she scratched her head once and refocused on Teperi, continuing the conversation.

“Teperi. What do you think of this one?”

[Huh, me?]

What, what is this? Listening to this right in front of the person involved is uncomfortable?

If they were planning to talk behind my back, my plan was to arrest them on the spot, but now it’s hard to find the right timing to reveal

myself, isn’t it?

[What do I think of Treya, well…]

She paused mid-sentence and glanced towards me again.

As her gaze fell on me, I made a show of smacking my lips and pretending to sleep soundly.

Realistic acting is important.

Acting relaxed and breathing softly is more natural than overreacting because I’m conscious of her gaze.

[She’s… a friend.]

Thankfully, Teperi considered me a friend.

Well, given how much time we’ve spent together, it would be disappointing if she just called me an acquaintance.

With this, I’ve made two friends since coming to the academy.

“Is that so? I think she’s a total b*tch.”

Correction.

Come to think of it, having even just one friend might be fine.

Teperi hiccuped at Amiterre’s blunt words and started hiccuping.

“Always selfish, speaks crudely, and has a twisted personality somewhere.”

[that’s…]

“But she’s not a bad person.”

Whoosh, the flames of the campfire, fed with twigs, flared up, momentarily concealing the two figures.

Sparks flew nearby, making crackling sounds.

The flickering flames illuminated Amiterre’s face.

Her expression as she gazed at the fire was serious yet blank.

After a brief pause, her lips parted.

“I also consider Treya a friend.”

I take back the correction.

Indeed, two friends are better than one.

Amiterre, who always called me ‘you’ or ‘that one’ instead of my name, called me by my name for the first time.

Thanks to you, I can go to you and become a flower.

It’s all good, but please, say things like that when I’m awake.

“However, Teperi.”

But it seemed Amiterre wasn’t finished speaking.

She paused a little longer than before, struggling to bring out the words.

“Why are you deceiving her?”

‘Deceiving?’

Deceiving? Who, me?

Nah, that’s ridiculous. Maybe someone else, but that girl who seems so careless and flighty is deceiving me?

“Tell me.”

Why are you doing this? It’s not true.

Say something.

Teperi’s face, bowed low, wasn’t clearly visible from my position.

After a short while, she lifted her head again, smiling brightly.

[Hey, deceiving? What are you talking about?]

Teperi’s forced smile crumbled.

Sitting before the campfire, she stood up, looked around, and checked once more if I was asleep.

My heart is pounding like crazy.

I hope she can’t hear the sound.

[When did you find out?]

Teperi’s voice now held a tone I had never heard before.

It was a cold voice, unbelievably so for someone who always laughed foolishly and acted shy like an idiot.

Amiterre tapped her own nose and spoke.

“Because I can smell the mana. It’s a mistake to think I just smell things.”

[Right, you always had a good nose.]

Teperi and Amiterre weren’t on bad terms, but frankly speaking, they weren’t particularly close either.

They rarely conversed usually, connected only through me as a medium.

Honestly, they were an unlikely pair.

“So, the answer to my question?”

Why did you deceive Treya?

Amiterre was asking for the answer to that.

[Deceiving? I’ve never done such a thing.]

“You’re surprisingly brazen, aren’t you?”

[It’s true. What I’m doing is just.]

Teperi’s flustered words stopped abruptly.

A faint grinding sound of teeth could be heard.

[…Protecting her.]

“Protecting her, huh? Even without you doing that, I think that one is perfectly capable of protecting her own body.”

Amiterre’s eyes narrowed at her excuse.

[That’s not what I meant.]

Teperi sighed, “Hoo,” then closed her eyes and gathered mana.

For anyone learning magic, there are three crucial elements when learning projectile spells.

Absorption, gathering mana; Design, constructing the formula with the gathered mana; and Invocation, using it as magic.

Her process of gathering mana was top-notch, almost as fast as mine.

When she opened her eyes again, motes of light were flying all around our campsite.

It resembled the swarm of butterflies I had shown her at the market.

Even Amiterre was staring blankly at the spectacle, captivated.

‘No way.’

Even considering her genius talent, this level far surpassed the original story.

This wasn’t magic that the protagonist, who had only been at the academy for about a month, should be able to use already.

If there was a variable… it was me.

I hadn’t held back using magic in front of her, and I even fought in front of her at the black market, where there originally wasn’t supposed to be a battle.

The source of her growth was none other than me.

The motes of light slowly drifted around before disappearing.

If what I had shown her were butterflies, the light motes I was seeing now resembled moths more closely.

[Amiterre, you know Treya’s personality, right?]

“…I know. Stubborn pride for what it’s worth, hates being ignored. Also.”

[She always has to be the best.]

Both slowly nodded their heads in unison.

[But if I catch up so closely like this…]

Probably.

The rest of the sentence remained unspoken.

[I like Treya. I want to protect her from the side.]

Teperi spoke amidst the silent atmosphere.

Amiterre looked at her with an expression that said, ‘That came out of nowhere.’

[Ah, no. I mean as a friend. As a close friend.]

Hastily waving her hands and correcting herself, she looked at me once more.

I realized what the emotion I had been sensing from Teperi earlier was.

It was pity and sorrow.

‘No.’

My hands trembled uncontrollably.

At this rate, it was obvious my feigned sleep would be discovered.

It might seem a bit unnatural, but I tucked both hands between my thighs.

My body, my body is shaking.

I need to calm my breathing.

[You’ll keep it a secret too, right?]

Please, don’t say yes.

If you really care about me,

“Hoo… If it’s for her sake.”

The consideration, warmed up, dug painfully into my flesh.