Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/2912051601476634937
The carriage rocked gently.
Outside the window, the evening view of the capital spread out before us.
“Come to think of it…”
I spoke up as if suddenly remembering something.
“What?”
“How did you know I was still at Serena’s guild?”
Lilia’s hand paused.
Just for a moment.
“…Well.”
“It was a hunch.”
“A hunch?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s a pretty accurate hunch.”
“I’m good at guessing things.”
Her answer was immediate.
There was no hesitation.
But.
Her gaze alone remained fixed outside the window.
“…I see.”
I nodded honestly.
Just then.
I saw Lilia slip something into her pocket.
“What were you holding?”
“Nothing.”
“It’s nothing.”
“‘Nothing’ again?”
“That’s right.”
“It’s nothing.”
Lilia answered without taking her eyes off the window.
She didn’t say anything else.
I didn’t press her further either.
But.
For just a moment, I thought I saw it.
A small crystal.
It was glowing faintly.
“Anyway,”
Lilia changed the subject.
“I heard you went all the way to the Moonlight Forest.”
“Yeah.”
“Isn’t that reckless? And you made the round trip in just one day, right?”
“Given the circumstances.”
Lilia let out a small sigh.
“You’re still the same.”
“What?”
“The way you can’t just leave someone in trouble behind.”
“I’ve always been like that.”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
Lilia turned her gaze out the window.
“…Was the girl saved?”
“Yeah.”
“I see.”
It was a brief reply.
But.
I didn’t miss the fact that Lilia’s expression softened just a little.
“That’s good, then.”
“Yeah.”
The carriage came to a stop.
I looked out the window.
Right before my eyes was
a massive tower towering over the center of the capital.
“So this is Lilia’s guild?”
“That’s right.”
Lilia answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“The Royal Mage Guild.”
“It’s the place I spent five years building.”
She sounded somewhat proud.
I looked up at the tower.
“It’s huge.”
“Of course it is.”
“You need a lot of space for research.”
“Research, huh?”
“Yes.”
Lilia started walking toward the tower’s entrance.
“Come on in.”
“Okay.”
I followed her inside.
◇
The moment we stepped inside the tower.
“Guild Master!”
“Welcome back!”
The researchers all turned around at once.
“I’m back.”
Lilia replied curtly.
“This is Alt Rain.”
“Starting today, he’ll be working here for a month and a half.”
“Make sure to treat him well.”
The researchers looked at me.
“Um…”
One young researcher spoke up timidly.
“Alt Rain… could you be—”
“From the Wings of Dawn?”
“That’s right.”
Lilia answered immediately.
“The real one.”
The researchers begin to murmur among themselves.
“It’s the real one…”
“He’s still alive…”
“The legendary…”
“Do you guys really know that much about me?”
“Of course we do.”
Lilia says with an air of exasperation.
“There isn’t a single person in the kingdom who doesn’t know you.”
“That’s a bit of an exaggeration, don’t you think?”
“It’s not an exaggeration.”
Lilia crosses her arms.
“Now then…”
“Let’s talk about work.”
“What am I supposed to do here?”
“First, you’ll be my research assistant.”
“Research assistant?”
“Yes.”
Lilia answers as she walks.
“Organizing documents.”
“Recording experiments.”
“Managing chemicals.”
“And I’d also like you to help me decipher ancient manuscripts.”
“Ancient manuscripts?”
“That’s right.”
Lilia stopped in her tracks.
“It’s not difficult.”
“Since you can’t read them, you’ll just have to copy down my translations.”
“I see.”
“In that case, I think I can do it.”
“It’s not a matter of ‘if you can do it’—you’re doing it.”
“Okay, okay.”
I gave a wry smile.
Lilia let out a small sigh.
“You’re still as carefree as ever.”
“It’s just that I’m not afraid of you.”
Lilia’s eyebrow twitched.
“You say you’re not afraid?”
“Yeah.”
“……I’ll make you regret that.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Lilia laughed in exasperation.
◇
I was led to Lilia’s lab.
The top floor.
A spacious room.
Bookshelves covering an entire wall.
Piles of documents stacked high.
A research paper left open on the desk.
“Wow…”
I muttered without thinking.
“What is?”
“Did you read all of this?”
“Of course.”
Lilia replied nonchalantly.
“And this is actually the carefully selected portion.”
“So this is the result of your careful selection…”
“Do you have a problem with it?”
“No, not at all.”
I gave a wry smile.
Lilia sat down at her desk and pulled out a volume of reference material.
“I’d like you to work on this today.”
“A manuscript?”
“Yes.”
Lilia handed the volume to me.
“It’s a translation of a text written in ancient script.”
“I’ll translate the content, and you’ll neatly transcribe it for me.”
“Got it.”
I took it.
I flip through the pages.
It was quite a lot.
“All of this?”
“I’d like it done by the end of the day.”
“…You sure have a lot of faith in me.”
“Because your handwriting is so neat.”
“Is that why you chose me?”
“Do I need another reason?”
I sat down at my desk, laughing.
I picked up a pen.
“Well, let’s get started, then.”
“Yes.”
Lilia turned her gaze back to the documents.
For a while.
A quiet moment passed between us.
The sound of the pen.
The sound of pages turning.
Those were the only sounds echoing through the quiet lab.
“Lilia.”
“What?”
“What kind of research are these documents about?”
“Spatial magic.”
“Spatial magic?”
“Yes.”
Lilia paused for a moment.
“Like teleportation magic?”
“Or time manipulation?”
“That sort of research.”
“Why are you doing that kind of research, anyway?”
Lilia’s hand stopped moving.
Just for an instant.
“…Because I’m interested in it.”
“I see.”
I nodded honestly.
But.
I didn’t notice that Lilia’s expression had clouded over just a little.
I didn’t notice it.
◇
Night.
Only the two of us remained in the lab.
Having finished transcribing the manuscript, I stretched widely.
“We’re done.”
“Good work.”
Lilia also looked up from her materials.
“Your handwriting was beautiful.”
“You were the one who said that first, weren’t you?”
“That’s true.”
Lilia gave a small laugh.
I looked around the lab.
“Still,”
“You’ve really come a long way in five years.”
“Because I needed to.”
Lilia replied quietly.
“You need the right environment to do research.”
“That’s true.”
A brief silence fell.
“Lilia.”
“What?”
“That research on spatial magic from earlier.”
“Why did you keep working on it for five whole years?”
Lilia’s hand paused.
This time, the silence was long.
“…There’s a reason.”
“But—”
“I’m not going to tell you now.”
“I see.”
“You’ll find out someday.”
Lilia closed her files.
“It’s getting late today, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
“Let’s call it a day.”
“Sounds good.”
I stand up.
But.
Before leaving the room, I look back.
“Lilia.”
“What?”
“You’ve really been researching all kinds of things these past five years, haven’t you?”
Lilia narrowed her eyes slightly.
“…Yes.”
“All sorts of things.”
In her voice,
there was a tone as if she were gazing into the distance.
There’s a reason.
But she won’t tell me now.
The meaning behind those words—
I didn’t know it yet at that moment.
–
–
If you enjoy our content, feel free to donate, Thank you in advance !