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Chapter 14
After finishing the meeting with the guardian, Hanta left the ducal estate in high spirits.
He laughed heartily as if the fact that he had been imprisoned for three days was nothing worth mentioning. It seemed that becoming Meydillian’s uncle had put him in an exceptionally good mood.
Meanwhile, Winter, who had been carried back to her room on Eustace’s back, was in an absolutely foul mood.
It was because she had been separated from Meydillian on the grounds that it was too dangerous.
“You wouldn’t be able to go there anyway. He’s staying in the detached residence.”
“That’s exactly why I’m asking why you put him so far away!”
“Honestly, the only reason it stopped at that was because he’s someone you’ve always treasured so much, Miss. Otherwise, he would’ve already been thrown out.”
When Aysel had pointed at Meydillian as the reason Winter had nearly died, the Duke’s expression had been terrifying beyond words.
Remembering that moment, Nayla quietly shook her head.
“You know it’s impossible. This time, you’ll have to give in, Miss.”
“Nayla!”
“If you get angry, your fever might come back. So hurry up and lie down again.”
“But…!”
Like secondary sexual characteristics, mana awakening began around adolescence and continued until adulthood.
Which meant that if the two of them parted now, they might never see each other again.
Because on the day Winter Vladimir became an adult, the very moment her mana awakening was complete…
She would die.
“Do you know how hard it was for me to meet Mey?!”
Winter shouted at the top of her lungs, but it was useless.
Over the past three days, she had nearly died dozens of times.
The Duke and the servants, who had witnessed it all firsthand, wanted to indulge her childish insistence, but they simply couldn’t.
Meeting Meydillian might make her happy for a little while, but the mana waves between the two children would inevitably clash.
Even if they had somehow survived this time, no one could guarantee there would be another chance.
One mistake, and she could die before even reaching adulthood.
“…Damn it!”
Bang! Bang!
Unable to contain her temper, Winter kicked the bedroom door.
But only her foot hurt. The firmly locked door didn’t budge in the slightest.
And just as Nayla had warned, her fever was slowly returning.
Her head spun, her ears became muffled, and her heart tightened painfully.
Winter froze.
She slowly took a deep breath, and thankfully, the underwater-like ringing in her ears gradually cleared.
Still fuming, she returned to the bed and plopped down.
Her anger still hadn’t subsided.
Why was she so furious?
Some time passed.
While Winter remained in her gloomy mood, Aysel came to visit.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. I could go outside and run around right now.”
“You can say that after you’ve actually gotten out of bed.”
Still buried beneath her blanket, Winter stared at Aysel before speaking.
“Mr. Mage.”
“What?”
“I heard that the Great Sage and his disciple can use magic of every element.”
The people of this world used their awakened mana by shaping it according to their own talents or by borrowing the power of the elements to cast magic.
Though it varied by region, fire mages were the most common throughout the Genius Empire.
But the Great Sage and his disciple were different.
They were people capable of mastering every elemental attribute.
Regardless of their innate mana capacity, they were said to have attained a fragment of the world’s enlightenment.
“So?”
“Then… could you use teleportation magic to…”
“No.”
Before she could even finish, Aysel cut her off without hesitation.
It was obvious she was about to ask him to let her see that little brat.
Aysel had spent the past three days barely sleeping while caring for Winter.
There was no way he would grant such an unreasonable request.
Pouting, Winter buried her head beneath the blanket again.
Watching her adorable behavior, Aysel let out a dry laugh.
“You little schemer.”
If he had been even slightly soft-hearted, he probably would have agreed to every one of her requests.
Unfortunately, Aysel was a mage with neither blood nor tears.
Clicking his tongue lightly, he reached into his pocket, took out a small magical device, and tossed it onto the bed.
“Take this instead.”
“…”
Feeling the faint weight, Winter’s golden eyes cautiously peeked out from beneath the blanket.
Watching those large eyes dart around, Aysel clicked his tongue again.
“What an immature child.”
“What is this…?”
“A communication stone I developed.”
Winter’s eyes widened.
“It’s still in the experimental stage, so you won’t be able to use it for very long. But it should be enough for a conversation.”
As Aysel continued explaining, Winter’s expression grew brighter and brighter.
To Aysel, this was rather unexpected.
He had only briefly explained the concept of the communication stone, yet this clever little brat understood everything he was saying.
It was simply a small misunderstanding born from the fact that Aysel had no idea about Winter’s previous life.
“The other one is in the detached residence.”
“Wow, Mr. Mage!”
Winter immediately leaped out of bed and threw her arms around Aysel.
Feeling the warm little body nestled against him, Aysel instinctively frowned.
“You’re heavy. Get off me this instant, you little colt.”
“…If you’re telling me to move away, why are you smiling?”
“W-What?”
Winter grinned mischievously as she pointed out his expression.
His eyes were wide open, but his lips kept twitching as he struggled to suppress a smile.
It was far too amusing not to tease him.
“Hmm? So that’s how it is. You only act tough. You actually like me, don’t you, Mr. Mage?”
“S-Shut up! Stop talking nonsense and try using that communication stone already. That crybaby has been waiting ever since earlier.”
The moment he mentioned a crybaby, Winter’s expression immediately darkened.
“Mey cried?”
“Yeah.”
That was exactly the problem.
Even though the clever little brat knew she was going to die soon and had already accepted it…
For some reason, Aysel couldn’t stop worrying about her.
And that crybaby whom she carried around as though he were a chick she had hatched herself also seemed suspicious.
That was why Aysel, unlike his usual self, was sticking his nose into someone else’s business.
“Mr. Mage, how do I use this?”
“Pour your mana into it. But do it very carefully.”
Aysel warned her, worried that her barely stabilized mana might run wild again.
But it seemed his warning barely reached Winter’s ears.
She hurriedly nodded and focused on the communication stone.
Soon, the red mana crystal embedded in it lit up and began blinking.
“[M-Miss…?]”
At last…
The voice she had missed so dearly came from the other side of the stone.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Winter covered her mouth before hurriedly shouting,
“Mey! It’s me!”
“[Are you really alright now, Miss?]”
“Yeah! Of course! It doesn’t hurt at all!”
Even though he couldn’t see her, Winter nodded vigorously.
But after hearing her voice, Meydillian remained silent for a long time.
“…Mey?”
No matter how long she waited, no reply came.
Growing anxious, Winter called his name again.
Just in case, she poured a little more mana into the communication stone.
“Mey… are you crying?”
“[No. Of course not. I’m fine, Miss.]”
Aysel had definitely said Meydillian had cried.
But his voice sounded far too calm.
As Winter tilted her head in confusion, Meydillian spoke.
“[I’m sorry… It’s all because of me…]”
“Hm? Because of what?”
“[I heard what the mage said back then… He said you’re sick because of me…]”
Winter’s eyes flew wide open.
Across from her, Aysel quietly looked away.
Only now did Winter finally understand why she had been so desperate to see Meydillian ever since she woke up…
Why being kept from seeing him had made her feel so angry and anxious.
Because if it were Meydillian…
He would undoubtedly blame himself for her collapse.
Winter wanted to give Meydillian everything she possibly could.
That child was already covered in emotional scars.
She couldn’t allow herself to become another trauma for him.
“Mey… Mey?”
“[If I could… I’d get rid of mana altogether.]”
The heavy despair carried through the communication stone made Winter’s shoulders stiffen.
She had worked so hard after meeting Meydillian—feeding him well, dressing him warmly, showering him with affection—just to help him become brighter.
And now, in no time at all, he had become gloomy again.
“No, Mey. Don’t say that. This isn’t your fault at all. You didn’t do anything wrong. So please… just listen to me for a moment, okay?”
Quickly stopping him, Winter began explaining everything carefully.
“Mey, you’re going to become an incredibly great mage in the future.”
“[A… great mage…?]”
“That’s right. You’ll become someone unimaginably stronger than you are now… someone truly amazing.”
As she imagined Meydillian’s future, Winter smiled.
“Children who are destined to become powerful mages produce incredibly strong mana waves when they awaken. My staying with you only sped up your awakening. And your awakening affected me in return.”
“[Then I really did have a bad influence on you, Miss.]”
The smile Winter had barely managed to form disappeared.
Why did his thoughts always jump to that conclusion?
If Meydillian had been standing in front of her, she would have grabbed him by the collar and shaken him until he came to his senses.
Frustrated, Winter pounded her own chest before quickly shaking her head.
“Of course not. There’s no such thing as good or bad mana. And I already knew you were going to become a great mage. I knew your awakening was coming soon.”
The one who reacted to those words, unexpectedly, was Aysel.
The mage, who had been leisurely watching the pitiful little drama between the children, suddenly widened his eyes.
“So… this was all my choice.”
The mana throughout the world trembled in response.
At the very center of it stood a small child, clutching the crimson communication stone, her brilliant golden eyes shining brightly.
“Don’t worry, Mey. We’ll definitely meet again. I’ll get better soon… and then I’ll come to you.”
