Episode 54. glass (4)

Lien, the maid in the novel, woke me up.

“Professor, are you very tired? You don’t look good.”

“… no. wake up.”

dream. For the first time since coming here, I had a real dream.

The sight was so vivid that I thought for a moment that I was back in reality.

When I opened my eyes and saw the ceiling I had become accustomed to by now, I realized that this world was an illusion created by Ah-young, and I felt strange.

When I got out of here, I had a lot to talk about with her. How much would you like it if I told you I had a long dream and talked about what I’ve been through?

‘Anyway, I have to keep going.’

I got up from the bed with my troubled mind in check.

Today is the day I have a consultation with Yuri.

* * *

10 am. Yuri has been sitting in my office nervously since early morning.

I tried offering warm tea, but Yuri did not lift the cup any more after sipping it once. As if ready to answer any questions I might ask.

I was still uncomfortable. Well, the departments are different, and I haven’t had a proper conversation yet, so I was just unfamiliar.

While thinking about how to solve this atmosphere, I took a dagger out of my pocket and placed it on the desk.

“Hee!”

“… I’m sorry. I should have said it first. This is a gift from you.”

“Yeah?”

The sword in a luxurious scabbard has a strange black string wrapped around the handle, creating a unique atmosphere.

“I have been sent to you by Saint Stica. It’s usually used for worship, but it’s also used for blocking the flow of magic. It will come in handy when dispelling barriers or spirit-type magic.”

“Five… .”

“They say you can sell it if you don’t see much value in it. Even if I can’t do it, I should be able to get about a year’s worth of Paideia’s dormitory fees.”

Ding Kang-

It must have been quite a shocking amount, but Yuri lost the sword he was looking around while holding in both hands.

After a moment of silence, Yuri, who regained consciousness, hurriedly picked it up and checked to see if it was broken.

“It’s not something that can be damaged that much. It’s called the ‘Mijeri Code’.”

“Why did you do this to me… .”

“It must mean that I will take good care of the saintess from now on.”

In order to narrow the distance with Yuri, I started talking about Karin, a material that can connect me and her.

These days, at the request of the church, I have been consulting with Karin on a regular basis, and contrary to my first impression, she seemed happy throughout the consultation and showed interest in her studies.

When asked about a recent concern, a simple answer such as how to decorate a theological student’s robe more beautifully, a truly ordinary life. Karin was enjoying her happy school life.

It seemed that Yuri and Jun were still friends, but Karin was happy to be with good friends.

… There were a few times when I was teased for being dumb, but it must have been purely thanks to Yuri that Karin said she liked this place.

“I heard a lot of compliments from you. I’ve heard that you mainly help bullied kids, and that you have a great passion for your studies… . Since you are suddenly absent, it is only natural that the saintess and I are worried about you.”

“worry… .”

“I heard that there was a conflict with a senior student. is that a concern? If you have concerns that are difficult to resolve on your own, you can share them.”

Yuri pondered for a long time, and I silently waited for her to organize her thoughts.

Around the time the steam in the teacup was slowly dissipating, Yuri cleared her throat with a sip of tea and opened her mouth.

“I’m here to tell everyone about free magic.”

* * *

After hearing Yuri’s story, I could understand why she was so depressed these days.

“Master said it was something only I could do… .”

I came to the school to spread free magic at the last request of my respected master, but I am already spreading it to everyone.

On top of that, I couldn’t help but be stunned to face a unique magic user, the pinnacle of free magic.

“… sorry.”

“Yeah? It’s not the professor’s fault.”

“Well… .”

“And in fact, that wasn’t all… .”

Emptying the cooled teacup, Yuri spoke as if confessing.

“I was a slave.”

“… .”

“I lost my parents, and until I was 10 years old, I worked while being beaten and abandoned by various owners.”

It was a fact that I already knew, but it felt bitter to hear directly from the person himself about the painful past that passed briefly in the novel.

“I didn’t do my job well, so I kept getting scolded and sold here and there… . In an unknown mountain, a wagon carrying kids like me crashed into something. I was the only one who was thrown into a strange place by the shock.”

Fallout. It was, after all, a snowy day.

Surrounded by fear that he would surely freeze to death if he continued, Yuri desperately searched for a carriage.

It doesn’t matter if you are sold into slavery again. Yuri couldn’t die like this.

Life as a slave was obviously difficult, but even if I was a little hungry, I didn’t starve to death, and even if I was hit, I didn’t beat myself to the point of death.

There was also an expectation that if you met a good owner and could work well, you could build your own life.

‘Oh, no… .’

The bare feet standing on the white snow turned red, then blue.

Yuri eventually found the place where the slavers who were trying to sell him were located, but they had already disappeared leaving only the horseshoes behind.

He seemed to think that it would be difficult to find her with white hair in the forest where everything was white and it was difficult to navigate.

To Yuri, whose body was wrapped in a thin cloth, the mercilessly falling snow seemed like a slow approaching death. In the bright sunlight hidden by the clouds, the white color was so clear that I was even more afraid.

In a situation where she couldn’t stand still because her feet kept stinging, eventually, Yuri crouched down and hit her eyes.

It didn’t take long for her hands and toes to feel numb even when she put her hands in her armpits, and then gradually harden like a piece of wood.

It seemed that it was only a matter of time before she could feel the warmth of the eyes gradually accumulating on her body, and even if she tried to open them, her heart would lose its heat.

But then. A lot of bright red hair fell on her head, and the pulsating, warm color spread with warmth.

“You saved me that day… . Since you are Master, I thought I should live my life repaying Him.”

When the nameless master hugged her dry and cold, saying, “Please don’t die.”

Yuri still cannot forget the beating of his heart that he heard through his skin.

“For once, I wanted to be hugged like that too. I wanted to be loved. There was a time when I was holding a scarecrow by myself when everyone else went to watch the fireworks, because I was envious of the kids being held by their mom and dad on the day of the Saint Presen Festival.”

It was the first unconditional love Yuri had ever received, a stinky slave with no parents. So it was only natural that Yuri wanted to serve her teacher for the rest of her life, just as a sunflower chases the sun. but… .

The five years that had been dreamy like that flew by like an arrow, and the teacher told Yuri that she had to leave for something unspeakable.

Yuri, who had already received too much, couldn’t bear to hold on to her with her own greed.

However, Master gave Yuri a chance to repay the favor for her sake, and that was the purpose and guide for her life in Kiruna.

‘Yuri, can you go first and teach everyone about free magic?’

… The last request he left behind was already fulfilled by someone.

“How do I repay that favor now?”

“… .”

“No, I’m just repaying the favor, maybe it’s just my greed… . I shouldn’t be a disciple who would be ashamed of Master.”

Yuri started crying like yesterday.

“I am ashamed, Professor. Every time the kids who are good at studying laugh at who did you learn from so you fall behind, I apologize to my teacher… . I haven’t studied the magic ceremony in advance, so I have no choice but to fall behind the other kids… ”

In the original novel, Yuri had won the battle with her senior, Darby, so no one could ignore her.

Eventually, Yuri in the original work would gain more confidence fighting against Pier, the leader of the Holy Knights, and would eventually defeat Eugene.

However, because of me, Yuri’s goal to protect at the risk of her life disappeared, and all the events that would raise her self-esteem disappeared, so she became depressed like this.

“There is nothing I can do at this school, and going to school is only going to damage Master’s name. For me, it might be better for me to drop out… .”

“Not like that.”

* * *

“Do you remember the first time you were saved by Master?”

“of course… . That’s right.”

“When you first reached out to the saintess, she had a similar experience to you. In an unknown space where even the location of the bathroom is unknown, didn’t you rescue him who was lost and unable to speak?”

“Isn’t that something anyone can do… .”

“Anyone can give the hug you received from Master. However, do you think that one trivial act of giving to others without conditions is really common?”

It is not common for students to step forward for the weak, and it is even rarer for students to reach out without prejudice to a child who is treated as an angular stone.

How hard it is to meet in real life… . Ah-young hadn’t even seen such an angelic student throughout her school life.

“You persuaded a cathedral ruled by solemnism, and you saved hope in it. You didn’t do it alone, but your good intentions certainly played a big role. Your master will be very happy to hear it.”

“still… .”

“Your friend, Jun, was also in a similar situation to the saintess, and I heard that you approached her first and became close with her.”

Ah-young is not a naturally angular character, so if a student like Yuri had approached her first, she would have been able to lead a happier school life.

I couldn’t save her because I couldn’t fill the role of a friend as a teacher. That reality always remained a thorn in my heart.

There was nothing more stupid than forcibly sticking someone by such a child’s side, and asking Ah-yeong to open her heart first was difficult no matter how much I thought about it. She was too tired for that… .

‘Yuri, how nice it would be if we had a kid like you in our school.’

Even if it’s awkward, I knew all too well how futile it was to stay close to each other, so I said to Yuri.

“You are by no means a common and small being. You have already saved two people, and many more children will be affected by you in the future.”

Even in a situation where she lost her goals and confidence, Yuri first embraced Jun from Yujin, who was the first in the school.

‘How many students like this are there in the school, both in reality and in novels?’

Unlike the cold reality, it is the main character because it is ideal as it is expressed.

Perhaps the character Yuri was born with Ah-young’s wishes reflected.

I spoke with sincerity to her, who could have been Ah-young’s friend if I had seen her in real life.

“If one day comes the day when you will be reunited with your master, proudly tell me. I never forgot the love you gave me, and I lived giving that warmth to others.”

“With that… .”

“of course. That’s enough. You are already the pride of your master. Because raising someone with a lot of scars is the hardest thing. And… .”

For the first time since Mint, I put my left hand on her head, repeating my tinnitus in my head.

“Don’t worry too much. You definitely have talent.”

“Yeah… ?”

“Trust me. You can definitely change a lot.”