“This is a gift from Professor Deculein to you.”
Primienne handed Ganesha the hand mirror.
“…?”
Ganesha had several questions as she accepted it with wide eyes. Deculein’s present? Out of the blue like this? Lia was the one to inquire.
“… A gift? From Deculein, that professor?”
Primienne nodded.
“Yeah. Is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s not that…”
Lia didn’t give it much thought; she only wiggled her fingers and then started thinking again about what physique she would choose. A thought flashed in Ganesha’s mind as she looked between Lia and Primienne.
“…No way?”
Snap! She snapped her fingers. An electric current ran through her body as goosebumps prickled her flesh.
“I think I know.”
“What?”
“…”
Ganesha looked at Lia for a moment.
“…What?”
The child, who resembled Deculein’s old love, tilted her head innocently. He must feel complicated whenever he sees this child. Of course, he didn’t have evil intentions. The Professor wasn’t that much of an evil idiot. However, the thoughts and feelings of that time would vaguely mumble in his heart. Maybe one day, he would painfully recall the person with him who filled his heart.
“Lia. Did the Professor say something?”
Lia shook her head as if she didn’t know Ganesha, but she quickly recalled something that had happened earlier.
“…Oh.”
“What?”
Just before she passed out, Deculein had said something. His voice shimmered like morning mist.
“Um… he did say something like this.”
Lia coughed, then she mimicked Deculein’s voice.
“—Is her personality the same too?”
“…”
At that moment, everyone’s attention turned to her. Of course, not only Ihelm but Julie, Louina, Gwen, Syrio, Raphael, who suddenly appeared… there were many of Deculein’s colleagues now watching her.
“Pffft.”
Ganesha burst into laughter.
“That’s it then. Lia~?”
“Yes?”
“This is our Lia’s~.”
She handed Lia the mirror.
“Eh? Why?”
“You used your body to protect the Professor. So it’s right for you to take this~.”
“…Oh.”
“Come on and take it.”
Ganesha had a slightly disappointed expression, but Lia took it. She secretly checked the item’s value first using the adventurer’s job characteristic – the adventurer’s intuition.
[Deculein’s Handmade Mirror]
◆Value: Treasure
Treasure?! A treasure?! It was a handmade hand mirror, but a treasure?! When Lia’s eyes widened-
“Knight Julie. Why don’t you come and sit down now~?”
Ganesha motioned at Julie.
“…”
Julie approached. Ganesha teasingly jabbed her shoulder with her elbow.
“Are we talking too much about the Professor~?”
“No. It’s fine.”
Julie calmly shook her head. Ganesha raised her eyebrows slyly.
“I guess you got over your anger now?”
Lia glanced at Julie. The relationship between Deculein and Julie was a pretty important element of their independent quests.
“It’s not that.”
She spoke through gritted teeth and stared at the bonfire. The flames froze.
“I don’t… nothing.”
The knight went silent, cooling the mood. A thick silence enveloped them as Ihelm looked uncomfortable and quickly left, then Gwen and Syrio went to fight each other. At that moment, a soft and warm voice flowed through to banish the chill.
“I think you are a very kind person.”
Julie looked at Lia. The child regarded her with not-so childish eyes.
“…Thank you.”
Then Lia laughed bashfully.
“And, you’re so cool! That armor! I want to wear tiger armor like that someday!”
She became a child again. Julie was taken aback for a moment, but soon shook it off.
“Yes. I was like that too when I was young. Ms. Lia?”
“Eh? Oh, yes-“
“You don’t have to be anxious.”
“Eh? I’m not-“
“Just being an adventurer at that age is a great achievement. So in the future…”
Julie’s lectured her and offered advice for the next 13 minutes.
* * *
I tried moving my arms.
[Quest Completed: Great Tiger Hunt]
◆Defeat the Demon Tiger of the Altar [Besillita]
◆Acquire rare constitution catalog
─────────
Up, down, left, right, east, west, north, south. The sutures were fine but not as natural as before. It would probably take about a month of recovery and training.
“…Constitution.”
Next, I looked at the constitution catalog. I have already decided which one to choose.
──「A Body Suited for Meditation」──
◆ Rating
: Rare
◆ Description
: The less you’re surprised, the more you maintain your composure.
: Depending on the period and degree of calm, the quality of the body, characteristics, and mana becomes clearer.
──────
In other words, it was a stack-type that benefited from a calm mind. However, if you were surprised even once, the entire stack was blown away, so the penalty was huge, and its versatility was narrow. If it were for a normal NPC, it would probably be useless.
─Do you want to acquire A Body Suited for Meditation? ─
Of course, I wasn’t normal. My mind was close to a crystal-clear mirror as it didn’t experience big emotional fluctuations, and I was invincible in the case of mental interference. I acquired it without hesitation.
「Physical acquisition: A Body Suited for Meditation」
◆ Calm Stack ─ [0]
Knock, knock— I have the mission report-
I opened the door. Today’s visitor was, after all, Julie. She stomped over and officially submitted her paperwork.
“The third mission went smoothly. There were 0 casualties and three injured. The total number of monsters killed was 1,305.”
After the Great Tiger was killed, the thinning operations resumed smoothly. I nodded.
“I received the report. Let the knights know that you have dismantled the dead Great Tiger. Half of the leather will be given to Her Majesty, and the other half will be mine. The participating adventure team and knights will receive useful parts such as teeth and nails.”
“Yes.”
Julie agreed without any complaints and left immediately.
“Hmm…”
However, though it was very short, I was quite satisfied. It was only 30 seconds a day, but I could still see that face. Of course, it wasn’t to the extent that it would affect the constitution.
“…Leather.”
The leather of the Great Tiger was the real reward of the quest. I could make a robe out of it with Midas’s Hand. The skin pattern stood out too much, though, so it would need to be dyed black.
“…”
While I was thinking of pleasant things, I suddenly grew curious. A piece of a robe was placed on the desk. Allen, no, Ellie’s last item that Ihelm preserved and handed over. Seeing this made me want to know where she was now and what she was doing.
* * *
…Ellie was in the desert.
“It’s hot.”
Now out of the North, she reached the depths of the desert. There, facing the bedrock near the oasis, was a small town. It was a shelter where the Demon Blood people lived, in and out of narrow passages winding through the earth.
“I’m here.”
Ellie went down into the deepest part of the cave to a conference room with operation boards and magical items scattered around.
“…”
There, a woman with short hair resembling Ellie but wearing a sharper impression was glaring at her. The next captain of the Demon Blood— Elesol. Elesol clenched her teeth and moved her hands.
-You’re late.
She signed the words. Ellie nodded.
“Yeah. Sorry.”
-Why. Didn’t you. Kill Deculein?
Swish- Swish-
Her hands blurred.
“There was no need to.”
─A large-scale sweeping of the Demon Blood Village. It will be done. We can’t just watch. Deculein is. Demon Blood’s enemy.
“Killing the Professor won’t stop that.”
—The Empire intends to eradicate the Demon Blood. War is inevitable to survive. Mutual. Confirmation. Destruction. It is the last way left for us.
Elesol presented the documents to Ellie and busily moved her fingers.
—A plan to kidnap him. It is already being implemented.
Ellie glanced over the contents and responded firmly.
“We can’t catch him.”
-You. Are you thinking of revealing us?
“No.”
Elesol signed with a sullen face. Her gestures grew in intensity.
-You. You. You. You don’t obey me now. You weren’t like that before. You fool. Have you been brainwashed? You. You.
“It’s not that I don’t obey. I was just saying that we can’t.”
-How can you be so sure?
“The Professor is smart. Much more than you.”
“…”
For a moment, Elesol’s face hardened. She gritted her teeth and sprinted out of the conference room.
Slam-!
The door closed, and Ellie, scratching the back of her neck, wondered why Elesol was upset. Ellie lacked when it came to emotions, so it was sometimes difficult to grasp these types of situations.
“I don’t know.”
It was true that Deculein was smarter than Elesol. It was a fact that she had sent through her reports so far, but if she was angry with those words…
“…The Professor doesn’t get angry about this.”
Ellie pouted and looked at the closed door, then glanced around the conference room. It was a completely different landscape from the tower. A basement where no light entered, hidden in a barren desert. In the tower, she could meet the Professor by opening just one door.
“…”
Letting out a light sigh, Ellie suddenly thought:
“Can we meet again… someday?”
* * *
…Epherene was in the North, in Reccordak. She felt worn and shabby but was studying while looking at Deculein’s high-quality test papers.
“Sigh…”
It had been two weeks since Allen left them, and Epherene was still unable to adapt to that reality. It still seemed that if she looked around, Assistant Professor Allen would appear, asking, ‘Are you okay, Epherene?’
“Ah.”
Suddenly, tears flowed down her cheeks. Epherene wiped them away with the hem of her robe. She cried so much, but there were still tears left.
“…Why don’t my eyes dry out?
“Whoa, you scared me.”
Drent, who was studying for the exam beside her, trembled.
“Now, shake it off, Leaf. The Assistant Professor wouldn’t like you doing that either. Did you know that the new year is over?”
“…Of course.”
So far, a total of 13 screenings and two advances. Epherene took part in it all and grew stronger day by day. Now, Epherene’s opponents were knights. Last night, she had a match with Holan, the last of her age, and won.
“I’m not a fool. Do you think I don’t know the time… haaaam.”
Seeing Epherene yawning, Drent smiled.
“You’re going to rip your mouth. Get some sleep. You must be tired because of the fight from yesterday, so rest. I’ll wake you up.”
“Huh? Um, then… okay! I’ll sleep for 5 minutes. No, 15 minutes.”
“Okay.”
“Wake me up. Oh, and don’t steal what I studied.”
“…I won’t.”
Haaaam-
Epherene yawned again and collapsed on the desk. Perhaps she was too tired, as she fell asleep without even dreaming…
…Epherene.
A deep, dreamless sleep…
…Epherene? Wake up.
Epherene opened her eyes to the voice calling her. She murmured as she tried to come to her senses.
“What… has it been 15 minutes already…?”
Epherene swallowed her words.
“Here…”
There was a familiar and shabby house around her, a dwelling that was in danger of collapsing soon. Of course, she knew where this was. This was her old home.
“Epherene.”
And someone called out to her. Epherene turned around in surprise.
“…!”
For a moment, her brain stopped. It felt like the whole world was shrinking into this space right now.
“Epherene. You are finally awake.”
It was a face she missed so much and a voice that had already been forgotten. He was the person she loved the most. The person standing before her was Kagan Luna: her father.
“D… Dad?”
“Yes.”
No other words were needed. Epherene moved toward him. To him, to her father, whom she missed so much.
As if possessed.
“Epherene. Come on, hug me.”
As he smiled kindly, a cold wind blew through Epherene’s hair.
Whooosh-
The wood steel vibrated inside her robe.
“…!”
Epherene stopped.
“Wait.”
A cold doubt, analysis of the situation, and the reasoning befitting a wizard of her rank. She took the wood steel out. It glared at Kagan and vibrated.
“What are you doing? Epherene. Why aren’t you coming here?”
The smile on his lips was much darker than before.
“I wanted to meet you.”
The trembling wood steel suddenly stopped. Epherene stared at Kagan.
“…Are you my dad?”
“Of course.”
“August 13rd, ten years ago. Say the contents of the letter I sent you.”
“…Haha.”
Then Kagan, or someone wearing that mask, smiled as if she was cute. At the moment he opened his mouth and was about to say something-
Stomp-
She felt a movement behind her. Epherene turned.
“Whoa!”
Surprised, she fell on her butt.
“W-What, Professor?!”
In front of her was Deculein. He lifted her with Psychokinesis.
“Where did you suddenly come from, Professor?”
Deculein didn’t answer. He was more expressionless than usual.
“No, more importantly, Professor. Where the hell are we?”
“I am not the master Deculein.”
“What? No, what are you-“
“I’m your defense mechanism.”
“…?”
Blink, blink-
Blink, blink-
“What do you mean?”
“Just as I said. I am not the master. I’m an artificial intelligence designed with your mana based on a mutual understanding with the master.”
“…”
His words were ambiguous. But anyway, this meant that this Deculein wasn’t Deculein.
“Then, maybe…”
Epherene showed him the wood steel.
“Are you this?”
“Yes.”
Deculein, no, the wood steel nodded. Epherene’s jaw dropped.
“You don’t have to worry.”
The wood steel stepped forward and put Epherene behind him.
“As long as the master and I are here, they won’t be able to kill you in your dreams…”
Metal shards soared out of the wood steel’s, that was, Deculein’s inner pocket. The expression of the man imitating her father distorted as Deculein faced him.
“Now, you head back.”
“!”
With those words, Epherene woke up.
“Aaah!”
She took a deep breath and stood up, quickly checking her surroundings. Again, she was in Reccordak’s lab.
“Hmm? You woke up early.”
Drent looked at his watch.
“It hasn’t even been 15 minutes yet.”
“…”
Epherene searched for her wood steel without answering.
“Oh.”
It was lying flat on the table. Epherene quickly stretched out her arm and snatched it, letting out a sigh of relief.
“…Thanks.”
Then something a little strange happened. Mana flowed from within the bracelet she wore, seeping into the wooden steel.
“What is this now?”
Epherene frowned. But she got up without further thought. It must be a mana phenomenon.
“Where are you going?”
“Oh, I just had a dream. It’s so annoying. I’ll get some air and come back.”
“It’s snowing hard today, so don’t go too far. There are many beasts.”
“…Yeah.”
She opened the door and went outside. However, as soon as she walked out, she ran into someone.
“So, first, you be the chairman, Deculein. I…”
Deculein was in the hallway on the first floor. Next to him was Ihelm.
“Hmm?”
The two looked toward her.
“Oh, Leaf?”
“…”
Ihelm grinned, and Deculein remained silent.
“Oh… yes. Hi! Hello…”
“I see you’re not crying now. I heard you’ve been crying every day since.”
“…I didn’t cry every day.”
Epherene, embarrassed, glanced at Deculein over and over again as she recalled her dream. So, to say, in her dreams, Professor Deculein (or the wood steel that resembled him) was always on standby…?
Ihelm waved her off.
“Forget it. There’s going to be a monster wave soon. Be prepared. Also, the Red Garnet Adventurers were looking for you.”
“Yes? Okay…”
Epherene replied roughly, trying to pass by them, but she was caught by Deculein.
“Epherene.”
“…Gulp. Yes?”
“Did you have a dream?”
Epherene was surprised, putting her hands to her chest and groaning. How did he know?!
“H-How-“
Ihelm answered that question instead.
“What do you mean ‘how’? You have hair and saliva on your cheek.”
“…What?”
Epherene touched the corner of her cheek.
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
As she lowered her head, she glanced at Deculein. Even then, his blue eyes were fixed on her. Did he capture some kind of energy that was more bothersome than her impurity…?
Epherene asked stutteringly.
“What, why are you looking at me like that…?”
