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Chapter 6
When Selli quickly pulled the compass from her pocket and placed it in the boy’s hand, his eyes widened.
“Where did you get a relic like this?”
“A relic?”
“It’s an object nobody uses anymore.”
Apparently that was why it appeared in history books instead of science books.
“This is my first time seeing a real one…”
“Do you know how to use it?”
“I’ve never used one before, but I learned the principles.”
The boy immediately checked the directions and turned the ship accordingly.
At this point, it seemed safe to leave things to him.
“Then I’ll go retrieve my luggage.”
At that moment, the boy—who had been confidently holding the controls—turned around with a suddenly anxious expression.
Earlier, when she said she absolutely needed to recover her bag because it contained medicine she had to take today, he had calmly nodded.
Now, though—
“Why? You said you could pilot it alone.”
“You’d be by yourself.”
“Oh. You were worried about me?”
People said manners and consideration were signs of intelligence.
If that was true, then this boy was far smarter than many of the boys Selli had known in her previous life.
“Just wait a little. After we land, I’ll help you look for it.”
“No, it’s okay.”
Selli proudly pulled out her secret weapon from her arms.
“Because I have self-defense potatoes.”
Thankfully, she never had to use the self-defense potatoes.
Everyone was still unconscious.
‘They must’ve thought there was some rare treasure inside my bag.’
Her luggage had been stored in the captain’s cabin.
After safely retrieving it, she returned to the control room, where the boy visibly relaxed before asking:
“Your medicine?”
“It was still inside the bag.”
“That’s good.”
“And my sandwiches too.”
Selli pulled out the paper-wrapped sandwich, split it into two triangles, and offered him one.
The boy’s eyes widened briefly, but then he shook his head.
“I’m not hungry.”
He clearly looked hungry, so why pretend otherwise?
Was this one of those annoying social customs where people refused once out of politeness?
“If your blood sugar drops, you’ll collapse. Low blood sugar is more dangerous than high blood sugar.”
Even after she kindly gave him an excuse, the boy only stared at her incredulously.
“You sound exactly like a doctor. Are you really ten years old?”
No, mentally I’m always sixteen.
Startled, Selli hurriedly improvised another excuse.
“If the pilot collapses, then I’m doomed too.”
“If that’s the reason… then I’ll gratefully accept.”
The boy finally accepted the sandwich as if reluctantly giving in.
Still, why did he act like someone constantly worried about offending others?
Only then did Selli take a huge bite of her own sandwich.
Outside the window, fog drifted past in thick clouds.
“Huh? If you think about it, this is basically airplane food. No wonder it tastes so good. They say even ramen tastes better in the sky.”
The boy simply stared at her silently.
Then, as though afraid someone might steal it from him, he devoured the sandwich almost instantly before sharply turning back toward the controls and muttering:
“It’s just that your sandwich tastes good.”
“Wow… I’ve never met a boy who talks as nicely as you.”
At those words, the boy suddenly froze.
But of course, Selli had no idea why.
“What’s wrong?”
The boy quietly looked at her before asking instead:
“What’s your name?”
“Oh, right!”
Ever since being reborn, she’d never really needed to introduce herself to anyone, so she had completely forgotten basic introductions.
“My name is Selli.”
“Selli…”
“What’s yours?”
Naturally, she expected him to answer too.
Instead, the boy looked so startled that even his crimson eyes trembled.
“…You don’t know my name?”
“Huh? Are you a celebrity?”
The boy didn’t answer, only stared at her in shock.
“I’m from the mountains, so I don’t really know how the world works.”
Only then did he let out a quiet sigh.
He didn’t seem offended that she didn’t recognize him.
If anything, he seemed relieved.
Then he finally told her his name.
“Nox.”
“…Nox?”
When Selli tilted her head in confusion, the boy’s face suddenly turned pale.
“You actually do know—”
“Doesn’t it mean ‘night’? But I think ‘daytime’ suits you better.”
The crimson eyes of the golden-haired boy trembled once again.
He looked genuinely shaken.
‘Did I say something wrong?’
Selli hurriedly tried to fix things.
“I don’t mean Nox doesn’t suit you! It’s a cool name. And it’s cool that you can pilot an airship too. How’d you learn?”
“I just… wanted to learn.”
As the boy answered stiffly, a faint blush returned to his cheeks.
‘Whoa, he smiled.’
It disappeared almost instantly, but it was a smile as warm as sunlight.
Far prettier than his expressionless face.
Yeah. The name “Night” definitely didn’t suit him.
Nox had spent all this time acting like a timid little animal hiding in darkness, constantly watching the reactions of people who weren’t even present.
But suddenly, he spoke confidently to Selli.
“Where do you need to go? I’ll take you there.”
“Then… could you maybe drop me off at Spellmore Academy?”
“…You’re enrolling at Spellmore?”
“Yep!”
“……”
Why did he suddenly look like the world had ended again?
“Is it really far away?”
“…No.”
“That’s a relief.”
It truly was.
Before long, the fog cleared, and civilization appeared below them.
‘Finding the way should be easier now.’
Selli relaxed.
For some reason, though, Nox turned pale again.
“You don’t happen to—”
Selli narrowed her eyes, about to ask if he was airsick.
But then—
“We’re here.”
Nox began lowering the altitude.
From that moment onward, Selli pressed herself eagerly against the window.
Then her eyes widened in awe.
Beneath the endless winding mountain ranges below, a city spread outward.
At the lake resting halfway up the mountains—the boundary between nature and civilization—a gigantic structure resembling the Tower of Babel pierced the heavens.
So that’s Spellmore.
The majestic ancient castle, surrounded by green hills and lakes, was blackened as though evenly roasted by dragon breath.
Selli stared endlessly at the stage where Act 2 of her second life would begin.
Then suddenly, Nox held out his hand.
“Here. Thanks to this, we arrived safely.”
He was returning the compass.
Instead of taking it, Selli pushed his hand back.
“You keep it.”
“Why?”
“You still need to find your way.”
If he was going to fly home in a ship with a broken navigation system, he’d need the compass far more than she would.
“…Thank you.”
Maybe it truly was rare and valuable.
Nox stared at the brass compass for a long time, turning it over in his hands before finally placing it into his pocket.
Meanwhile, the airship drew close enough to Spellmore for them to clearly see the golden dragon statue spreading its wings atop the tower.
But there was nowhere obvious to land.
Dense forests surrounded the academy, and the occasional open grasslands were all steep slopes.
Even so, Nox lowered the ship further.
‘Oh right. This thing’s technically a boat.’
Splash!
The airship crashed down onto the lake with a giant spray of water like a log flume ride.
Then it elegantly glided across the surface like a swan and docked perfectly at the island pier.
A flawless landing.
Standing before the towering ancient castle rising from the island, Selli’s heart overflowed with emotion.
“Wow… I really made it to magic school! Nox, it’s all thanks to you!”
“You defeating human traffickers was the bigger contri—”
Overcome with excitement, Selli bounced around happily before suddenly throwing her arms around Nox in a hug.
“Nox, you’re amazing! It’s all thanks to you! Thank you so much!”
“…I’m grateful too, Selli. N-not for the hug. For the potatoes.”
Despite looking like he’d grow into a cold, untouchable handsome man, Nox awkwardly stumbled over his words.
Maybe she was witnessing the baby-chick phase of a future dragon ruler of the skies.
‘I can’t let him go just like this.’
Selli suddenly grabbed both of Nox’s hands.
“Nox, I think I fell from the sky just to meet you.”
The dandelion seed had definitely dropped her onto that pirate ship specifically to save Nox.
‘Which means he must be an important character in this story.’
A ten-year-old boy with cheat-level piloting skills.
Golden hair. Crimson eyes. Beautiful face.
There was absolutely no way he was just some extra.
‘Could he be the protagonist of this novel?’
One iron rule of reincarnation stories was:
Avoid getting involved with the protagonist if you want to survive peacefully.
But another iron rule was:
Trying to avoid the plot only drags you straight into the center of it.
Selli felt this was exactly that moment.
She still didn’t even know what story this world belonged to, so she wasn’t sure if involving herself with the protagonist was truly wise.
But this encounter wasn’t something she chose herself.
It was fate.
Then this must be the correct path.
Without hesitation, Selli threw herself into the flow of the story.
“Nox, can we meet again? I want to be friends with you.”
Because if I become your enemy, my long and peaceful second life is doomed to become very short!
The boy—whose face had already turned as red as a ripe tomato—suddenly became pale again for some reason.
He looked miserable.
‘Wait… is he still airsick?’
Selli panicked briefly because there weren’t even any plastic bags here.
Then Nox made a solemn declaration.
“Selli, we will definitely meet again.”
“Really?”
“But we can’t be friends.”
“…Huh?”
