“Are you awake?”
The room wasn’t lit. The twilight glow slanted across the wooden floor, light scattering slightly onto Ophelia’s face.
“How did you know?”
Ophelia raised an eyebrow and placed her book gently on the small oak table beside her with a dull thud.
She shifted her posture, folding her hands in front of her and leaning slightly forward.
“With such a fuss today, do you think I wouldn’t know? I started looking for you after I heard what caused it. It seems you’re not that devastated, though, considering you were sleeping while Lucia held you.”
“It’s not like that… She was the one holding me forcefully.”
“You seemed to be enjoying yourself quite a bit to me.”
Merlin was like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on; her voice rose several pitches. She pointed a finger at Ophelia, but then realizing the gesture was improper, her finger curled awkwardly in mid-air.
“You! You were peeking at me sleeping with her!”
“What do you mean, peeking? It’s not like you haven’t slept with your mother before. I was just checking on your condition at the time.”
Merlin’s momentum instantly deflated. She lowered her head and muttered in a small voice.
Of course, sleeping together had almost always started after she became Merlinlia.
“I suppose…”
Seeing her daughter in that state, Ophelia’s heart turned into a complete mush.
Ophelia opened her arms, signaling Merlin to come to her.
“Come here.”
Her voice was so gentle it seemed capable of brushing away all anxiety.
Ophelia waved her hands back and forth, signaling Merlin to hurry over.
Thinking about what happened today, even though she didn’t believe the fault was hers, Merlin’s nose still felt a bit itchy with tears.
Merlin still obediently climbed onto the bed like a child admitting a mistake. She crawled across the soft bedding like a kitten seeking shelter, dutifully coming before Ophelia.
However, it wasn’t a face-to-face hug this time. Merlin sat in front of Ophelia with her back turned, hugging her knees.
Ophelia didn’t mind. She reached out with both arms from behind, gently pulling Merlin into her embrace.
“It seems you’re not as devastated as I imagined.”
Merlin shifted in Ophelia’s arms, her voice coming out muffled from between her knees.
“After all, I knew from the start that I didn’t have mana.”
Ophelia sighed, her breath fluttering Merlin’s hair.
“It’s not that you don’t have it. Like I said, it will take two hundred years at most for you to return to how you were.”
“Two hundred years… that’s too long. I’m only fifteen, and I’ll have graduated by then.”
“Graduated? Isn’t that for the best? No matter how they look at you, they’ll all be dust in two hundred years, while you’ll just be starting to use magic. Why care about such fleeting noise?”
“But it’s really such a long time. Even if you tell me that, I have no concept of it.”
“Merlin, do you really think it’s shameful to not know magic? Even if you weren’t an elf?”
“A little, I guess.”
After hearing Lucia’s praise today, Merlin realized she wasn’t entirely useless; she could soothe Lucia’s pain and ensure she slept well.
But what one cannot have is always a source of restless longing.
Even if Merlin liked alchemy, choosing it because she lacked magical talent felt like a choice made out of necessity.
If only she could be like Lucia, possessing immense mana yet choosing the swordsmanship department.
Perhaps then she could walk through the academy with her head held higher.
Merlin’s silence was like a needle pricking Ophelia’s heart.
Ophelia gently stroked Merlin’s head and finally spoke.
Her voice was as soft as a stream under the moonlight. Her fingertips moved through Merlin’s snow-white blue hair with a reassuring touch, soothing Merlin’s heart.
“Originally, I wanted to wait until I took you back to the Forest of Spirits to do this with Philia, but I changed my mind today.”
Merlin tilted her head in confusion, her small head leaning to one side. Strands of hair slid down with her movement like a small blue waterfall.
Even though she could only see the back of her daughter’s head, Ophelia found Merlin’s movements incredibly amusing and cute.
“Philia?”
“The Queen of the Elves. And, of course, my younger sister.”
“Ah…”
Merlin remembered the past Ophelia had told her about, and her blue eyes, clear as a pristine lake, widened slightly.
Was that the person who abandoned Ophelia?
But it didn’t sound like their relationship was that strained?
Ophelia’s hand, which was stroking Merlin, paused.
“Let’s not talk about my matters for now. She is indeed a good Queen. Going back might even solve your problem faster.”
“Do what?”
“Your past. At least regarding the point about you having no mana, I have a clue even without looking into your memories.”
“Really?”
“Of course it’s true. I’m almost certain; I’m just not sure what your thoughts were at the time.”
“My thoughts?”
Merlin repeated, deeper confusion creeping onto her small face.
This almost sounded like saying Merlin had proactively given up her own mana.
“Seeing you look so clueless, I really don’t know if you’re truly dull or just pretending. You can recount your story with Mashina so fluently. Let me give you a hint—though I’m not entirely sure—did you give her anything when Mashina was in critical condition?”
“I remember…”
Merlin lowered her eyelids, her long eyelashes casting fragile shadows on her cheeks as she sank into painful memories.
“She had an epidemic then. Her fever wouldn’t go down…”
“It seems you do have an idea.”
Merlin’s voice grew even fainter, filled with uncertainty.
“But I don’t think I did anything special. I just took care of her while she was sick and gave her medicine.”
Ophelia’s hand, which had paused in mid-air, fell again. Her fingertips moved with a nearly pitying strength, gently combing through the stray hairs on Merlin’s forehead.
“Are you sure? Did you ever give her some kind of ice-blue crystal?”
“Hmm… I feel like there was, but if you mean ‘giving’ it to her, I don’t seem to recall.”
“Since you’re clueless, let’s do this. Just like we did before, turn around?”
“Huh? Why?”
Merlin was clearly a bit flustered. Like a startled cat, she tried to pull away from the warm embrace.
Ophelia clearly felt the small blue figure in her arms shrink back.
“Because I always thought I was born without mana. If I’m suddenly told that’s not the case, it’s a bit…”
Ophelia exerted a slight force, turning Merlin—who had been facing away from her—to face her. She brought the girl’s small body fully into her line of sight, making eye contact.
In Merlin’s clear yet fragile blue eyes, Ophelia saw the inferiority that had been carefully hidden away.
“Let’s give it a try.”