Bonus Short Stories
How the Quiet Communicate
Aside from classroom, countless laboratories for studies existed on the vast campus grounds. The teachers of the institute were not just in a position to share knowledge, but also pursue their own research. The institute facilities were very impressive, to the point of there being several teachers taking up employment just to get their hands on them. The same held true for the newly made research building, as many of the teachers with a room in the building were newly employed.
Alus, who had a whole floor to himself, was also one such researcher.
Right now Alus was in the middle of his research. He was devoted to said research as he sat at his desk, and the most he’d move was to grab a new document.
Loki had stared at her watch countless times these past three days. The more times she took a look at the time, the worse her anxiety became. It wasn’t like she was bored or anything. He was doing research because he wanted to, and he’d stepped down from the frontlines so that he could devote himself to it.
But... it’s been a full 3 days.
Loki was in charge of managing meals, but she hesitated to tell him to get some sleep. Alus had spent so much of his time fighting, so this free time of his was rare. He was wholeheartedly working on his research as if possessed and trying to get back the time he’d lost, and because of that Loki couldn’t raise her concerns about him.
Lines of complicated characters spanned the multiple virtual screens, but Loki didn’t know how important they were.
When she’d brought in some tea for a short break, she’d wanted to tell him to get some rest... but in the end the words never left her lips.
She feared that she’d be overstepping her boundaries. And that she’d be disturbing his focus.
That process repeated itself numerous times these past few days, and a dark gloom gradually came over Loki’s face. When she first heard about Alus’ retirement, she was relieved to hear it and thought to herself that he could finally be free now. That was why she was agonizing over having him use his precious free time for her sake.
He was already using so much on watching over Tesfia and Alice. And he must surely not want to waste a single second of what remained of it.
Even dinner was eaten at the table, Alus’ gaze remaining fixed on the screens.
When Loki declared her intent to take a bath first, all she got in return was a halfhearted reply.
I should be celebrating this... so why?
Once she came out of the bathroom, Alus was still in the same position as before, and their eyes never met.
If she opened up about her feelings to him, she would surely blame herself for it, as stopping his research went against her own wishes. She couldn’t stand in the way of the path he desired to go. She wanted to let him do as he pleased... Yet...
Despite Loki’s state of mind, Alus was too devoted to his research to show any sign of reacting. Not when she came to his side, or when she poured tea.
So with her still-wet hair, she stepped up behind him, disheartened. Even then her lips wouldn’t move.
She raised a finger and timidly touched his back. A faint reaction was conveyed through her finger as she touched him, but nothing else. Eventually she began moving her finger, writing out words.
‘Please Rest’ she wrote, and weakly pulled her finger away. The idea had never been to go this far. Her head had chosen to keep her mouth closed, but her heart had moved her hand, and those contradicting sides puzzled her. However, having been able to ‘speak’ her mind, she felt a weight drop off her shoulders.
With downcast eyes, Loki remained motionless. She knew in her mind that she was doing something unnecessary...
Hearing the chair creak in front of her, Loki closed her eyes.
“Sorry for making you worry.”
Alus had undergone training to be able to work on a lack of sleep, and if needed he could push away any drowsiness through force of will. He could go on for a couple of days without sleep without struggling. That said, it wasn’t like there weren’t any problems with that. His body would be worn out and put strain on him.
Alus used the towel on Loki’s shoulders to gently wipe her hair with a tired smile.
“Then please get some rest.”
“Ah, wait... just give me some more time...”
“No.”
Loki firmly said with a bright smile on her face.
Mundane Good Will Starts From Souvenirs
“Tadaa!”
Inside Alus’ laboratory. The redhead girl with a worry-less smile, Tesfia Fable, was in the process of proudly showing off the souvenirs she’d bought during summer vacation. The first thing she was showing off was a jacket for men. That inflated backpack of hers was probably full of souvenirs. Just how much did she buy? Even after she pulled out that large jacket, the backpack didn’t seem to shrink even a little.
“...”
There was only one man here, and Tesfia was drawing closer to him with a smile plastered on her face.
“Here, Al. Try it on”
It was a rather forceful method, but Alus wasn’t so ungrateful to quibble over something like that. With irritation on his face, he turned over to Loki for aid. However—
“I am sure it will look great on you, Sir Alus.”
What he saw was her breathing excitedly. The silver-haired girl then disappeared into Alus’ bedroom with pink cheeks. Shortly thereafter she appeared with a shirt in hand.
“I think this will work great with it.”
This was the first time Alus had seen this chic-looking shirt. He wondered where she’d even gotten it as she stood side-by-side with the redhead, showing it off. Tesfia responded with an OK sign. Alus had no interest in fashion, but both Tesfia and Loki wanted to coordinate his outfit.
Seeing how he’d lost the initiative despite it being his room, Alus sighed in resignation. Once he was finished changing, Tesfia excitedly exclaimed how much it suited him.
“Yes, it looks good on you Sir Alus,” Loki smiled with flush cheeks.
While they were playing dress up with Alus, Alice had changed into a dress she’d also gotten as a souvenir. She embarrassingly posed in front of a full-length mirror. With the one-man fashion show over, she was pulling at the cloth that pushing against her chest.
“Fia, this is a little tight around my chest.”
With a threatening growl, Tesfia directed a sharp stare at Alice. Overwhelmed by the pressure, she faltered and continued.
“... A-Actually, nevermind, it’s fine. Yeah. Thank you Fia,” she said, clearly going along with the atmosphere.
“You really have grown so fast...” Tesfia muttered quietly in an envious voice, and Loki was probably the only one that heard.
All Alus could do was to pray for this all to end as soon as possible.
In a complete change of mood, Tesfia called Alice over and whispered into her ear before looking away and grinning. She was definitely looking over at Loki.
Loki was unaware of that as she practically danced around Alus, taking in his clothing from every angle. She looked to be enjoying herself, like a little kitten finding something new.
Tesfia snuck up closer to Loki, and she only caught drift of Tesfia’s suspicious smile after spotting that traitorous light in the eyes of her comrade. Next, Tesfia’s gentle hands grabbed hold of Loki’s shoulders.
“Alright, then you’re next Loki!”
“Huh!? I’m just grateful for your consideration, you don’t...”
“Oh Loki dear, that’s no good. Fia went out of her way to buy it for you, so the least you can do is try it on,” Alice said in her best elderly sister tone, making it sound like it was only natural. Tesfia’s fingers wriggled indecently and grabbed hold of Loki’s clothes.
“Here you go, raise your arms!”
“Wait! Hyaah! I’m fine, okay?!”
“Oh come, you don’t have to be like that!”
“Hey, where do you think you’re touching!! Stop, you’ll see it if you pull any more! S-Sir Alus!!”
Perhaps knowing that this was due to good will, Loki’s resistance was weak. Bewildered, she turned her moist eyes to Alus, who’d she’d been treating like a dress-up doll just a moment ago, for help. However—
“... This is a good chance. Why not go along with them?”
“S-Sir Alus!?”
“Then we’re borrowing your room, Al.”
“Don’t make a mess there.”
“Got it!”
Tesfia held her still-full backpack in one hand and grabbed hold of Loki’s arm in the other. Alice grabbed hold of her other arm. Her body was raised up, with her toes just barely touching the floor, leaving her unable to resist. The girl was dragged into the bedroom, but her eyes pleaded for help from Alus until the end.
The next moment, he could hear the noisy voices of the girls making a ruckus in his room.
The Lady as a Woman
“To think they’d be sending this much...” Vizaist muttered to Felinella with a stunned expression as he rubbed his freshly shaved chin within an atmospheric old study.
“Is something the matter, Father?”
“It’s addressed to you again, Feli.”
“Another letter of family introductions then?”
Due to the traditions amongst nobles, marriage talks were initiated through a letter written on parchment detailing a family tree and personal history. Vizaist was more fond of commoner ways, so he was getting sick of getting so many dust covers.
“If Father insists that I marry for the sake of the family, then I...”
“Stop your joking, Feli. I’d rather return the rank of nobility before that. They’ve only got one generation of history anyways. It’s nothing you have to be so careful with.”
Felinella giggled as she heard her father say that bluntly.
“I thought you would say that.”
“No teasing your parents.”
“I’m sorry, Father. But are you sure I can reject it?”
“They’re the ones who sent it over on their own accord, they can’t complain about it. Or are you perhaps interested? If that’s what you want, I won’t say anything... But it’s this you know,” he said and pulled out a photograph from the dust cover. On it was a boy who looked like he lived the exact kind of sheltered, wimpy lifestyle Vizaist detested. He was also considerably older than Felinella. He was ranked in the Triple Digits, marking him as an elite.
“I don’t know what kind of man he is, but no, I don’t have much interest.”
For starters, she never had any intention of picking a fiance out of the mountain of marriage proposals she had.
“I bet. I don’t like it either.”
Closing the dust cover, Vizaist carelessly tossed it back into the pile.
“You enrolled into the institute to serve in the military didn’t you? You’re a good girl who didn’t take much after me in that regard. I’m not going to insist on you looking for nobility, but if you’re going to be serving in the military, settling with someone worthy should improve your reputation and treatment.”
In the Magicmaster world, early marriage was recommended, but the Socalent family policy didn’t see this as compulsory. But there was even talks behind Vizaist’s back on how long he was taking to get her married; he’d even been told by his parents and relatives how inferior they felt in the noble society. He himself didn’t pay much attention to it, but that was largely due to his bold personality as he strode down his own path. However, things were different when it came to his teenage daughter.
“Even if you say so, you told me that there was no need for me to marry until I found someone I wanted to marry.”
“Of course. But even if it’s someone you find yourself, I’d be a little reluctant if they need you to protect them.”
“I’ll do my best there.”
Vizaist nodded, but he still continued to show concern for his daughter’s future.
“By the way, d-do you have someone in mind, Feli?” he timidly asked in a quiet voice. Even he didn’t really want to hear what his daughter had to say about that topic. Especially not as a father.
“Oh who knows.”
Just who did she get that smile from? But more importantly, she had a bewitching atmosphere to her that he didn’t want to touch.
He sighed. “Anyway, you can choose on your own, so I’m not going to say anything. Well, if it was someone like Alus I wouldn’t have any worries... but, he’s a hard nut to crack as well.”
Felinella reacted slightly when that name was brought up. Her gentle eyes peeked opened, and her composed expression fell apart for once.
“You mean Mr. Alus?”
“‘Mister’?”
“Ah...” Felinella pressed her mouth shut, prompting Vizaist to sink into thought with a serious expression.
“Hm, so that really was who... I see, so that’s how it is... isn’t it, Feli?”
“F-Father! Are you planning on making your daughter say all that!?”
“Sorry, sorry. Now that I think about it, Alus was enrolled in the Second Magical Institute now, wasn’t he. Well, you’re the one who told me that. Your behavior was a little strange at the time, so I was wondering, but now I see...”
“...”
Under the watchful eye of Vizaist, Felinella turned red up to her ears.
“Anyway, now I understand where you stand. I see... so it’s Alus. He can be a handful, and plenty headstrong. But perhaps that’s why he might be just fine for you.”
“Geez, I give up.”
Having seen Alus grow up, Vizaist felt all kinds of feelings over this revelation. If that future were to come, he would greatly welcome it.
But he won’t go down that easily. Let’s see if I can be of aid to my daughter, the courageous leader and father of a daughter thought to himself as he stroked his chin.
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