Yuric held a meeting with the mages at the Mage Tower branch early in the morning and headed back to the Baron’s Estate before noon.
He met with Lady Rani, who had just woken up from a nap. This time, however, it was the real Lady Rani herself, not the Great Witch Estella.
“Greetings, Miss. I am Mage Yuric,” he said.
She had already been told by her father that a distinguished guest would be arriving and was waiting for him.
“Yes, nice to meet you, Mr. Yuric.”
From what Yuric could see, Lady Rani was a very composed woman. Despite having gone through tough physical and mental trials, she didn’t show any signs of it. This indicated that she was both mentally and physically strong.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m not uncomfortable anywhere.”
“That’s good to hear.”
After briefly asking about her well-being, Yuric got straight to the point.
“I met Great Witch Estella yesterday.”
Lady Rani’s eyes lit up. She hadn’t thought that her ancestor would reveal her name to anyone else besides herself.
From her reaction, Yuric realized that she probably didn’t remember much about the previous day.
“How did you recognize her?”
Until now, everyone had dismissed Lady Rani as someone suffering from a split personality disorder due to excessive mana circulation.
Initially, she too had doubted whether she wasn’t truly insane. However, after some time, she fully realized that she wasn’t when she completely merged with Estella.
However, even the renowned healers and famous mages from the Holy Magic Association couldn’t perceive the presence within her mind.
Frankly, it was rare for a human to have the third eye, or the ability to see through both the body and soul, like the Great Mage Viola or the Matriarch of Arphenheim.
“In fact, I experienced something similar to you. This is not a common occurrence.”
“Oh…”
“Therefore, I also know how to resolve your current situation in a much better way.”
Those were only a few words, but they brought great comfort to Lady Rani.
“However, I would like to hear your story first.”
“What kind of story do you mean?”
“How did you come to accept her will, and what is her story… I want to know these things first.”
Listening to Yuric’s words, Lady Rani closed her eyes quietly, slightly calming her excitement, and then organized her thoughts.
Opening her eyes again, she got up from the bed and went to the drawer to retrieve something. It was a book.
“I found this in the storeroom where Mother kept her things. It’s Estella’s diary.”
Yuric took the book from Lady Rani and glanced through its contents.
“It might be that my ancestor’s aura transferred to me through this.”
“I see.”
“I didn’t read this with any special reason. I often visited the storeroom to study magic and read books. There were many books that Mother brought.”
But reading Estella’s diary did not result in the same experience as Lady Rani’s.
Yuric believed that the will of Estella, which was imbued in the diary, had specifically chosen Lady Rani. Just as Titon’s will had specifically chosen Yuric among the exploration team.
“I discovered this a year ago. At first, I didn’t feel anything special. But then, at some point, I started having dreams about her.”
“What kind of dreams?”
“They were very intense and sad dreams…”
“Can you describe them in detail?”
Yuric and Lady Rani sat across from each other with a table in between. Her hands, unusually white and smooth, were neatly placed on her knees. Her gaze reached out to the beautiful horizon visible through the open terrace.
“At first, it was just a short scene. Honestly, I couldn’t even tell what it was. But as time passed, the dream became longer and clearer.”
Lady Rani began to recount her story calmly.
“It was a battlefield. A hellish battlefield where the demons’ terrifying magic rained down like rain. Humans fought bravely against them.”
Her gaze drifted toward the distant horizon in her dream.
“Everything was burning and being destroyed. Although the demons’ attack was powerful, humans managed to hold their ground. And Great Witch Estella was there on that battlefield. She fought fiercely too. But the battlefield was too dangerous.”
She felt the war from the perspective of the Great Witch.
“At that moment, someone appeared and took her somewhere to hide. Telling her she must survive. But my ancestor didn’t want to leave alone. She wanted to stay with him until the end.”
It seemed Lady Rani had felt those emotions vividly, placing her hand over her heart, where her heart was. Deep sorrow was evident in her expression.
“For the sake of future generations, she said she had to live. My ancestor left, crying and screaming, ‘Please come back alive.’ And…”
Lady Rani’s body trembled. Ah— and suddenly she stood up, knelt down, and stretched her arms towards the sky, shouting.
“Why, why! Why did you give me such a trial?!”
That was not Lady Rani’s cry.
It was the frustrated cry of Great Witch Estella, who had lost someone dear. She collapsed, sobbing.
Seeing the knight open the door in response to the commotion, Yuric gestured that everything was fine. The door was gently closed again.
He approached her to help, but she struggled nervously.
“Leave me! Leave me! I don’t have the strength to live… I’d rather be buried with you…”
Lady Rani rolled over to the side, weeping uncontrollably, and several times tried to act out.
With great effort, she regained her composure and returned to her normal state.
“I’m sorry. I must have made a spectacle of myself.”
“No, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have brought up painful memories.”
“No, it’s okay.”
Yuric realized how deep Estella’s pain was.
“…But why does her will still linger here?”
“I saw and felt what she went through. I can understand her feelings.”
Yuric nodded slowly. He didn’t want to treat Estella merely as a ghost.
She was a tragic hero who had lost even her loved ones for the freedom and peace of humanity.
“So why did she choose Lady Rani?”
Lady Rani pondered for a moment before answering.
“She wanted to see how her sacrifice changed future generations. And she hoped that the grand intentions of her ancestors would continue. I can feel her heart.”
Yuric nodded heavily.
“I see.”
Estella’s intention was undoubtedly clear.
But Lady Rani, though steadfast, was still a fragile human compared to the Great Witch, who had endured countless hardships and trials over hundreds of years.
Yet, Lady Rani was clearly making progress. She faced it head-on, without avoidance, steadily.
Perhaps that’s why Estella’s will chose Lady Rani.
However, no matter what the purpose of the will, the ultimate decision lay with the individual.
“The decision lies with Lady Rani. Whether to accept her will or reject it.”
She thought for a while and asked him.
“What did you do, Mr. Yuric?”
“I accepted it as part of myself. It was the will of an ancient mage, but now it’s also mine.”
Yuric said.
“That’s the first step. Don’t fear any choice you make. Great Witch Estella will respect your choice. Accepting someone else’s will requires your own will.”
He reassured her.
“You don’t need to feel ashamed. If you don’t want it, just let it go. It’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
She fell into deep thought. He thought this was natural.
Embracing another’s will was never easy. It might even change the direction of one’s path forward.
‘I understand why Senior Estella was drawn to you.’
Yuric thought as he looked at Lady Rani.
Though they had only met once, Yuric felt that Lady Rani and Estella shared a lot in their inner worlds.
“I’ll leave now, Miss. I’ll visit again in the evening.”
“Thank you. Truly, I feel much more relaxed.”
“Thank you. Your efforts to hold onto her will until the end.”
As Yuric bowed respectfully, Lady Rani looked at him with a slightly flushed face.
“See you this evening.”
And Yuric visited Lady Rani’s room again in the evening.
This time, it was the Great Witch Estella who greeted him.
But unlike yesterday, she didn’t pressure or glare at him. Instead, she examined him with a curious look.
“…The child’s mindset has changed. How did you manage that?”
Yuric smiled faintly and replied.
“Just reminded her of her thoughts. That’s all.”
An inscrutable creature—Estella thought as she looked at Yuric.
…Oddly enough, she felt a familiar figure overlapping with him.
“Aren’t you afraid of me?”
“On the contrary, I feel a sense of familiarity. In fact, I’m from Arphenheim too.”
“What?! You are?”
Yuric revealed that he had become the apprentice of Great Witch Hene when he was young and settled in Arphenheim.
“To think you took a male apprentice! Back in my days, such a thing was unimaginable!”
Hearing this, Yuric couldn’t help but smile.
“Mistress said there’s no rule against accepting female apprentices… Isn’t it a good era now? The one you created.”
Estella’s expression turned somewhat awkward, but not displeased.
“Hmph!… Since you’ve met such a senior, greet her properly!”
Ah—
Yuric immediately prostrated himself.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Senior.”
“Indeed… It’s nice to meet a fellow townsman.”
“I can’t express how happy I am to meet a senior from my hometown.”
They talked about Arphenheim.
Despite the gap of hundreds of years, there were still many things they could relate to.
“Oh, that atelier is still there.”
“It’s still there!”
Especially, Yuric knew well how much a connection with people from the same neighborhood could help form relationships.
—
