#70
“I understand, but what’s the difference?”
“I don’t know. This is my first time seeing something like this.”
“You might have seen it wrong.”
“Then shall we try simultaneously?”
Rikin put his magical power into another Clum. He wanted to make a direct comparison. I once again channeled magical power into the Clum I was holding. I couldn’t even count how many times I had done this today. As Rikin’s magical power, which had shone brightly, disappeared, my Clum, into which I had belatedly inserted magical power, also swallowed the light. Unlike with Rikin, it truly felt like the Clum was devouring my magical power.
“It’s different, right?”
“Yes. It’s different.”
I answered, trying not to reveal my complicated feelings.
My magical power that entered the Clum was somehow different. In the end, both the incident at the seminar and the Duke’s future attempt to sacrifice me were because I wasn’t an ordinary person.
I thought my relationship with Persis had been restored, but now I might have to return to square one. Knowing I was dangerous, I couldn’t stay near Persis or Iria like this. It seems that even Yutis being around me was probably the Duke’s way of monitoring me.
A small difference instantly changed so many things. The complex feelings in my heart showed no signs of calming down. For a moment, everything before my eyes went dark.
“Why do you think they’re different?”
“If I knew, I’d be researching Clum instead of my mother. Would I be sitting quietly at school?”
He had a point. But I couldn’t ask Rikin to consult his mother either. Rikin and his mother were different. Rikin wouldn’t tell others about my condition, but I couldn’t know when or how his mother might spread the word about me. This fact needed to be known by as few people as possible.
“I may not know everything else, but there’s one thing I do know.”
At Rikin’s words suggesting he knew something, my head perked up. Perhaps his words could be a small clue to navigate the current situation. With a trembling heart, I waited for him to speak.
“Because you’re going to tell me now.”
“Me?”
“Yes. You.”
Rikin pointed directly at me, making sure I understood. A completely different tension began to bloom within me.
Surely he wouldn’t report today’s events to Persis. I thought it would be fine since Persis wouldn’t have ordered him to report about me, but if he had heard from Persis to monitor me, the situation would be entirely different.
“When I told you that you were different, you weren’t surprised at all. Why is that?”
“I was surprised. I just didn’t show it.”
“You brought Clum onto campus because you wanted to confirm something, didn’t you?”
“No. It was just for academic reasons…”
“If you wanted to experiment for academic reasons, you wouldn’t have secretly obtained Clum and even cast magic to hide your experiment. You would have sought help from professors. Or perhaps obtained Clum using the power of the Duke’s family? But you didn’t do that.”
I couldn’t say anything in response to Rikin’s point-by-point refutation. He was right. Obtaining a Clum wouldn’t have been difficult if I had wanted to. I just needed to use my position as the Young Master. However, the moment I used the name of Young Master, my every move would reach the Duke’s ears. That absolutely could not happen.
“You felt that you were different from others, didn’t you?”
Just as I knew Rikin well, Rikin also knew me well. It was because of this bond that I trusted Rikin. I never expected the foundation of my trust to become a double-edged sword aimed at me. Rikin didn’t take his eyes off me, as if he was seeing through everything.
“That’s why you did this, isn’t it?”
I couldn’t give any answer. If he had figured out this much, Rikin would have also noticed why I suddenly became interested in Clum. After all, a major accident related to Clum had occurred recently.
I could see Rikin’s eyes gradually widening. I wasn’t sure how far he had reasoned. He might have thought I was related to that incident, or he might have come up with another reason for this experiment. I didn’t know exactly what he was thinking, but it didn’t matter.
I reached out and grabbed Rikin’s arm. Then I silently shook my head.
“Ana. Do you really think I’m going to let this slide too? Really?”
I didn’t completely trust him on this matter. I just hoped he would let it pass without knowing everything.
Rikin stared at my face until the end. His gaze remained unwavering, as if he wouldn’t back down at all. I didn’t say please or ask for help again. I shouldn’t try to persuade him any further. Both he and I knew how significant this matter was.
I was different from ordinary people. It might just be the way magical power mixed into the Clum, but it was different in form from magical power that shone brightly and then disappeared. Though neither of us could bring ourselves to say it aloud, this phenomenon kept raising absurd suspicions.
Could my magical power be somehow different? There was only one kind of being in this world with power different from humans. We knew all too well what that was.
“Andelion.”
It had been a very long time since Rikin had properly pronounced my name. He usually called me by the nickname Persis used.
“I’m not going to back down like this. This is clearly not something to be taken lightly. Depending on the circumstances, I might have to inform others.”
Rikin was a child of the Parten family. He wouldn’t stand by and watch if others could potentially be in danger. Just as he had in the original story, the Rikin standing before me now would do the same.
“However.”
The strongly uttered word pierced my ears.
“When you’re mentally prepared, tell me then. I’ll wait until then.”
Rikin really knew me well. If I judged myself to be truly dangerous, I would immediately reveal everything to Rikin. I would ask him to keep Persis away from me. Or to properly check me if I made a wrong choice.
He was a man who could prioritize principles over me and choose the majority over the minority.
“What if I never get ready?”
“Don’t make me wait too long. If it comes to that, I’ll find out myself.”
That would make things spiral out of control. I nodded to indicate I understood. Rikin was being considerate. Despite feeling something strange now and being able to warn others of danger, he didn’t do so.
“Thank you.”
“I don’t know what more you think I’m going to do for you to thank me.”
“Because I trust you.”
Hearing my words, Rikin had a dazed expression. His look seemed a bit comical, and I couldn’t help but burst into a small laugh.
* * *
I don’t know how today passed. I had just finished the experiment with Rikin. My head was dizzy from how much magical power I had poured into the Clum. Since our dormitory floors were different, I had just parted with Rikin at the stairs.
I wanted to ask Rikin to activate the Clum, but I restrained myself. If the activated Clum went haywire as soon as my magical power touched it, I would have had no choice but to reveal everything to Rikin right there.
Not yet. At least not until all of the Duke’s schemes had been thwarted. Revealing it now could lead to me being dragged to the Duke. I couldn’t make the Duke go berserk before Persis and Iria were ready, all in an attempt to stop him.
As soon as I reached the floor where my room was, I found myself scanning the surroundings. I had been cautious since leaving my room, fearing Yutis might follow me like yesterday. Normally I would have been caught quickly, but today he seemed busy with something, as I hadn’t encountered him once since leaving my room.
I couldn’t let my guard down thinking it would be fine, so I planned to keep an eye on my surroundings until I entered my room. That’s when I saw a familiar figure walking from the end of the corridor. I had no idea why that person was here on a weekend.
My steps involuntarily halted as soon as I recognized the figure draped in a dark robe approaching me. Soon after, Yaksi also spotted me entering the corridor. I swallowed as I watched her approach slowly.
“You’re late.”
Yaksi approached me gradually, speaking as if she had been waiting for me all this time.
“Is it acceptable for a student to be out this late?”
“It’s not yet curfew time.”
Though curfew had been established to protect students, it was rare to see students punished for violating it. Who would stop them, given that most were noble children? Despite knowing the school’s circumstances, Yaksi was lecturing me about a student’s duty.
“And you, teacher, what brings you here?”
I tried not to focus my gaze on my room behind Yaksi. Yaksi had shown interest in my sword before. After that incident, even though I had received the sword, I couldn’t carry it around. Who knows when it might catch Yaksi’s eye and cause problems?
I thought I just needed to keep the sword out of Yaksi’s sight, but I never expected her to come looking for me directly.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
