The academy, back after so long, was just the same.
The streets were vibrant with youth, the students sweating, and grand buildings and familiar shops painted a picturesque scene.
It was a place that felt like another hometown to me.
Wasn’t it the first place I lived away from my original hometown?
The term “alma mater” always carried a special resonance that couldn’t be captured in just two syllables.
But I didn’t even have the luxury to enjoy the familiar air of my school.
I had something urgent to do.
I headed straight to the building where my close friend resided.
The academy’s grand library.
It was a place where all knowledge from the Empire, Holy Kingdom, and Southern Kingdoms gathered.
It might have been an exaggerated assessment, but the number of books stored in the grand library was indeed vast.
I heard that the estimated quantity alone reached millions.
There were probably tens of thousands of books that couldn’t even be counted.
It was the culmination of knowledge gathered from across the continent over hundreds of years.
And in a place where knowledge congregated, those who seek truth would inevitably gather.
The grand library was always bustling with scholars, and my friend, who was walking the path of magic, was no exception.
Reto Einsten, my most trusted advisor and friend.
It didn’t take long for me to find him.
It was because he was an unusual handsome man.
Even in the sea of books and people, Reto’s appearance stood out.
I more or less dragged him out of the library. Reto was startled and tried to resist, but it was impossible for him, just a mage, to overcome my strength.
In the first place, he had only one option given to him.
To converse with me, just the two of us.
In the end, Reto had to sit before me with a look full of dissatisfaction.
I felt no remorse. I didn’t even have the time to care about his mood.
I got straight to the point.
“Reto, have you heard? There’s news that Selin has gone missing.”
“I’ve heard.”
Reto’s demeanor toward me was downright indifferent.
He wore an expression that said he couldn’t understand why he had to deal with me when he was busy.
At the very least, he didn’t appear welcoming towards me.
Still, I rapped the desk emphatically and reiterated my argument.
“No, Reto… Selin has disappeared! Why are you so nonchalant?!”
“Did Liya say something?”
Reto’s gaze, as he asked this, was utterly indifferent.
It was a response thrown out as if by accident.
But I couldn’t respond as casually as Reto did.
Something was off.
Looking back, I even questioned why Liya had come to find me. Normally, it would have been Reto contacting me first.
Reto cherished Selin like a little sister.
In other words, Reto would be the first person to be alarmed if anything happened to Selin. He shouldn’t have been maintaining his composure like this.
When I fell silent in confusion, Reto clicked his tongue.
“Ian, haven’t you been overly indifferent to Selin lately?”
“…Me?”
As I replied that way, I swallowed hard, lost in thought.
Had I really not paid any attention to Selin recently?
It was a matter that needed no contemplation.
I ended up biting my awkward smile.
“Was that so?”
“Was that so? No, are you crazy? You haven’t looked for Selin at all lately!”
At Reto’s pointed remark, I cleared my throat and looked away.
He was right.
I hadn’t sought Selin even once over the last few months.
If anything, it was Selin who’d come to find me.
That realization had been something I hadn’t even acknowledged up until now. Having been close friends for so long, I felt it was just natural for Selin and Reto to be by my side.
Their presence was like air to me.
They were people essential to my life, always there without me having to worry about it.
I might have been taking advantage of their goodwill.
Even though Selin and Reto must have their own lives.
While I took time to reflect on this, Reto let out a long sigh.
His gaze deepened. In those eyes retracing the past, there was even a hint of hesitation.
He seemed to be contemplating what to say.
“Are you struggling these days?”
Reto finally spoke up after a while, with that question being just a clichéd greeting.
But I knew. Beneath that voice, there was a thick layer of fatigue.
I hesitated for a moment, but ultimately, my head nodded a few times.
No matter how much I thought about it, I wouldn’t come up with a brilliant response.
It was best not to hide my true feelings in front of Reto.
“To be honest, it’s tough… I can hardly remember the last time I had a break in the past few months. Every time I think I can catch my breath, another incident pops up…”
“Those who are following you are struggling too.”
Reto asserted in a heavy voice.
That assertion was also very reasonable.
“Especially for some, it’s even harder. You might push through somehow in your struggle, but those lacking talent can’t even grow at their own pace. There exists a gap they can’t bridge no matter how hard they try.”
“Does that mean Selin?”
“Selin has been troubled a lot over the past few months.”
Just then, the beverages I ordered at the tea shop arrived.
The young waitress, appearing to be in her twenties, placed the drinks down while glancing at me. Her expression was akin to having discovered a rare spectacle.
No, it wasn’t just that.
Everyone surrounding me was sending me glances.
There were quite a few conversations going on, and I was the subject of those whispers.
This starkly demonstrated how my stature had changed over the past few months.
Ian Fercurus, the second son of a rural nobleman, was no more.
Only Ian Fercurus, a rising hero of humanity and the divine of the Empire, remained.
A lot of blood had been shed for this, but it was not something anyone could replicate.
I was simply lucky.
Conversely, it could mean someone wasn’t so fortunate.
I silently took a sip from the drink placed in front of me.
The cool liquid traveled down my throat. I could feel the beads of sweat stuck to my skin even more.
“It must have been hard. As you know, the people surrounding you are exceptionally talented, right? So much that they wield their swords until their hands blister… but even so, getting strong instantly is impossible, and recently, it seems they’re seeing hallucinations and hear voices.”
“Hallucinations? Voices?”
At Reto’s following words, my brow furrowed instantly.
Hallucinations and voices were typically symptoms accompanying severe mental disorders. I could hardly imagine that Selin had felt that much pressure.
If I had known, I would have done whatever it took to stop her.
There would have been no need to force herself to keep up with me.
Reto clicked his tongue, as if he expected my reaction.
“Arthur, Arthur. This could only worsen if you keep this up… and for now, it’s still mild. If she meditates for a bit, the symptoms will disappear again.”
My body, which was about to rush off to find Selin right away, hesitated.
Now that I thought about it, Reto wasn’t worried about Selin going missing at all.
It didn’t take long for the reason behind that to unfold.
“She’s been like this for a month or two. When the pressure mounts, she takes a short breather… Liya probably didn’t notice since she saw Selin after a long time.”
“But…!”
“And you probably didn’t notice since you weren’t interested.”
In the end, I could only suppress a groan and surrender.
I had nothing left to say.
It was entirely my fault that Selin had ended up like that without me even realizing.
Seeing me gloomy, Reto sneered.
“Don’t be too down. It’s beyond your control.”
Instead of answering, I sighed.
I felt an urge to smash my head against something out of frustration.
Reto’s composed advice continued.
“Right now, you have something you need to do. Think just about that for now.”
“And what if it’s too late?”
“No one is late.”
Reto’s voice was unwavering as he answered my vague question.
He even leaned slightly forward.
His emerald eyes bore a serious light. It was a sight I rarely saw from him.
“Everyone is desperately trying to avoid being late… You do what you have to do. We’ll handle the rest somehow.”
Do what I have to do.
It was a reasonable statement.
There was a burden resting on my shoulders that only I could bear.
To read the letter from the future and save a world rushing towards doom.
It was undoubtedly a mission that took precedence over all else.
Nonetheless, I couldn’t shake off my bittersweet feelings, and just as I was about to speak.
Suddenly, my gaze landed on the title of the book Reto was reading.
“The Hypothesis and Review of Time Travel Theory Based on the Relativity of Space and Time.”
Reto, oblivious to my gaze, continued to boast and urged me.
“And you heard about the Alphenhausen heiress, right? Selin doesn’t seem to remember, but she came looking for you. As you know, her older sister is notoriously known for looking down on others…”
“Reto.”
Come to think of it, I still had time before exams.
There was no reason for Reto to look so fatigued.
Funny enough, I had just realized that fact now.
“Are you also struggling?”
At that one sentence, the mouth of my non-stop chatting friend closed.
The silence didn’t last long.
Reto soon let out a hollow laugh and said.
“Don’t worry about it, kid.”
That was a quintessentially Reto answer.
While wearing a bitter smile, I inwardly mumbled.
The Alphenhausen heiress came looking for me.
In that case, it would be courteous to go out to greet her.
As a junior should.
I could also ask her about my last conversation with Selin.
Reto said it was fine, but my instincts were sending me a strange warning.
The hallucinations and voices Selin was experiencing.
It wouldn’t be a bad idea to inquire about them.
Emma pinched her cheeks each morning when she woke up.
“…Ouch.”
With a hazy voice, Emma’s eyes seemed to be still wanders in a dream.
However, not long after, vitality surged in her eyes.
A smile beamed across her face, proving her delight.
It hurts.
In other words, it wasn’t a dream.
The confession shared on the snowy field at night.
The kiss exchanged with Ian and the warmth of his embrace.
There were no lies anywhere.
All those memories became warmth, heating Emma’s cheeks.
Covering her flushed face with both palms, the woman beamed in joy.
It was a rare sight.
Emma was a diligent and hardworking person. She seldom woke up in a haze of sleep.
Yet here she was, suddenly so overwhelmed with happiness that she was dawdling in bed.
Even her roommate tilted her head in confusion at the sight.
But what could she do?
Love could turn someone’s world into ruins, but it could also turn it into a blooming garden.
The world of a woman whose first love came to fruition was undoubtedly closer to the latter.
Of course, the innately earnest Emma didn’t linger in bed for long.
Though she couldn’t help her non-stop smile, she had plenty of time to get up and wash her face.
Just as she was about to leave the room, it all began.
The friend who opened the door in front of her flinched and took a step back.
Only then did Emma realize something was off and widened her eyes. A familiar hooded hat appeared before her.
The identity of the unexpected guest was a small girl.
At first glance, she looked as adorable as a doll, but she was a celebrity at the academy, and there was no one who was unaware of her infamous reputation.
Elsi Rainelle.
As Emma hesitated and began to step back, Elsi took a step forward.
Then she firmly grabbed Emma by the collar and pulled her in.
Ultimately, Emma had to bend at the waist awkwardly.
Right before her stood blazing blue eyes.
Without realizing it, Emma swallowed hard.
This was dangerous.
As much as she wanted to shake off her hands, the other party was a noble.
There was no way the commoner could resist.
Elsi wasn’t the type of woman to dawdle.
“Hey, let’s talk.”
Her face was stiff, and her voice was cold.
As soon as Emma heard Elsi’s words, she thought.
This was a demand disguised as a suggestion.
