Chapter 3
Something very serious had happened.
If I had to judge the danger level, it was the kind of grave problem that could decide whether the world lived or died.
The problem was that I hadn't been sleeping properly for days.
No matter how much I tossed and turned in bed, I just couldn't calm down.
"Uoooh..."
I groaned into my pillow, then finally kicked the blanket a few times in frustration.
But no matter how much I kicked the blanket and tore at my hair, I couldn't undo what had already happened.
"I was insane. Completely insane."
I went too far.
Way too far.
Even if I'd used a fairly ordinary intermediate spell, it probably would've come out with power on par with a high-tier spell.
But after getting a little heated seeing Lia get hurt, I ended up unleashing advanced magic at full power.
I really went off the rails in spectacular fashion.
And far too many people had seen it.
The lady at the grocery store, the woodcutter, and even the rookie guard who'd only recently been posted to the village all saw it. That said it all.
Not to mention the lord and the knights who came to the village also saw my magic.
If they were going to come, they should've come early so I wouldn't have had to use magic, or else not come at all.
Trouble was already guaranteed.
The lord had already said he was coming to thank me in person.
I could already predict his reaction.
"Wow, at your age, you're already an advanced mage? That's amazing."
"So, say, could you casually blow away that back hill for me?"
...And then they'd try to use me as some sort of human staff, or human siege weapon, or something equally absurd.
I should've stuck to my first, second, and third principles: never take a single step out of bed.
Once I started going out, I was doomed to keep getting dragged out.
Just as I was sighing and wallowing in gloom...
I heard an annoying laugh from beside me.
"Don't be like that~ Thanks to you, the villagers are safe, aren't they?"
Lia, leaning on her crutch, was looking at me with the corners of her mouth lifted.
"And me too... if it hadn't been for Luna unnie, I don't know what would've happened."
Lia's leg, wrapped tightly in bandages, caught my eye.
The leg that had been badly crushed when a collapsed pillar fell on it during the wyvern attack.
I'd done all the first aid I could in the countryside—crushed herbs, splints, the works—but I couldn't say when it'd heal.
Sensing my discomfort, Lia smiled again for no reason at all and said,
"I'm really fine, I tell you. Don't worry so much, unnie."
I wordlessly stretched out my hand and stroked Lia's red hair.
Right. Lia was safe. That was enough.
If I hadn't saved her, I probably would've been haunted by bad dreams for the rest of my life.
"By the way, with your leg like that, what are you going to do about the academy?"
A shadow fell over Lia's face.
She bit her lip and stared at the floor for a brief moment, then forced a bright smile and said,
"By the time next year's entrance exam rolls around, won't it have healed some? Honestly, I'm confident about the test, but the money is..."
Lia's voice trailed off, and her expression darkened.
"Does academy tuition cost that much?"
"Yeah. That's why I was aiming for a scholarship..."
She said it would be hard with her leg injured.
Even if it healed, rehabilitation time and lack of practice would still hold her back.
Swallowing the regret-laden grumbling, Lia forced a smile.
"Still, staying in the village and living with you and everyone else would be nice too."
"...How about just staying in the village and not going to the academy?"
Lia's eyes went round at my offhand remark.
"Huh?"
"If you think about it, you could live just fine in the village, so I was wondering if there was really any reason to go."
I trailed off and watched Lia's face.
After seeming to think for a moment, Lia soon shook her head.
"Still, I want to try it at least once. It's the place I've dreamed of since I was little."
Seeing Lia's determined eyes, I couldn't help but smile softly.
Right, how could I stop this stubborn girl?
Come to think of it, going to the academy didn't necessarily mean she'd get caught up in incidents and accidents.
The original story's events might already all be over while I was holed up in the forest.
Maybe I was worrying too much.
Then I heard the clatter of a carriage outside the window.
"Huh? It's the lord."
Finally, it was here.
"He must be coming to thank us for saving the village."
"If it ends with just that, it would be a relief..."
*
"It's an honor to meet you. I am Carlos Avril, head of the Avril barony, which administers the territory in this area."
"My name is Lunaris Evermoon."
I received the lord's polite greeting while perched on the bed.
I was in recovery after overexerting myself with magic to save the village and collapsing from exhaustion. That was the cover story.
Just sitting up instead of lying down while talking was my own small show of sincerity.
An old knight frowned as if he were about to say something, but the lord raised a hand and stopped him before he could.
"You are someone who will one day rise to a higher position than I. Your current status is unimportant."
The lord's overly polite attitude made my stomach churn.
Did he think I didn't know this was all just buildup to shove me into a life of overworked office drudgery?
"So, what brings you here?"
When I met his eyes squarely and asked, the lord coughed briefly into his fist.
At that moment, a fragrant scent drifted in from the kitchen.
It seemed Lia had gone so far as to brew tea and bake cookies.
I told her she didn't have to, honestly. And if she was going to bake anything, I'd prefer egg tarts over cookies.
"I'll bring it."
One quick-witted knight said this, apparently intending to take action after seeing Lia's injured leg.
But before he could even move, my fingers moved first. Click. Magic—might as well use it.
The teapot filled with tea, the teacups, and a plate of cookies floated through the air and were neatly set on the table between the lord and me.
The moment I moved my fingers again, casually picking up a cookie and popping it into my mouth, cries of admiration burst out.
'...Ah.'
In my distraction over Lia's cookies, I'd used telekinesis without even realizing it.
And of all times, it had to be in front of everybody.
Sure enough, the lord and knights were staring with their mouths agape.
"You don't look old enough, and yet you're already at the level of a great mage..."
"Luna unnie is only 16 years old."
Lia, who had somehow come into the room, smiled brightly and added politely,
Then, with a proud look on her face, she winked at me.
Did I do well?
I shot Lia a glare as her lips formed the words.
What you just did was an own goal and a team kill, Lia-ria... Just stay still, okay?
"As for a great mage... I'm not able to use top-tier magic yet."
"Still, aren't you already on the threshold of becoming a great mage? As far as I know, to use telekinesis freely, one has to be at least an advanced mage. Is that not so?"
I only gave an ambiguous smile in response.
The lord leaned in closer toward me.
His expression looked as if he'd just found a treasure, which was incredibly stressful.
"I dare say that even across the entire empire, mages like Miss Lunaris are rare."
"No way..."
"How would you like to display that talent on a bigger stage like the imperial capital, rather than in a small frontier village like this?"
Before I knew it, I swallowed hard.
It had finally come.
The very proposal I'd been trying so hard to avoid and turn away from.
"I'm not that impressive."
"Please don't say that. With your talent, Miss Lunaris, you will make a name for yourself not merely as the youngest great mage in the empire's history, but as the greatest mage."
"I'm still just a kid with a lot left to learn."
Feeling my throat go dry, I took a sip of tea, and the knights standing behind the lord began whispering among themselves.
"To humble herself despite having such skill..."
"As expected, the real deal is different."
"Even the way she drinks tea is elegant, isn't it?"
"There's probably some philosophy hidden in even her curt words."
"She must be imagining magic in her head that we couldn't even dream of."
S-stop... stop... stop the misunderstanding...
While I was still stunned by the knights' relentless overpraising, the lord began more aggressively trying to recruit me.
"In the imperial capital, there will be far more opportunities to learn. The Magic Tower, the academy, and so on. If Miss Lunaris wishes it, joining the Imperial Mage Corps would not be a problem."
Sorry, but that's exactly why I'm holed up in the forest.
The Magic Tower, the Imperial Mage Corps...
I refuse to walk willingly into a workplace where overwork is waiting for me.
"I'm sure the imperial family would also provide support. Financially, of course, and with honor as well..."
"Baron Avril."
I set down my teacup and cut off the lord's words.
"Do you know why I learned magic?"
The lord seemed at a loss for words at the unexpected question.
"I... don't really..."
"To protect myself and the people around me. This forest and this village are precious to me."
The lord's face made his embarrassment plain.
I went on, driving the point home.
"To me, magic is nothing more than a tool for protecting the place that sheltered me when I had nothing else to rely on."
"Uh, uhh...!"
The lord cleared his throat and straightened his posture.
He seemed quite flustered by my sincere answer.
The lord didn't give up easily.
He kept trying to persuade me until the tea in the cup had cooled by about half.
Watching him, I almost felt sorry for him, like watching someone stubbornly throw a tantrum in a game they had no chance of winning.
You're beaten! Beaten, I tell you! Just surrender already!
The lord was even more persistent than I'd expected.
I was a cruel witch with no blood or tears, after all. I let out one heavy sigh and thoroughly crushed him.
In the end, the lord stood up with a face overflowing with lingering regret.
"Very well. But... I will come by from time to time to greet you."
"There's no need to make such a long trip."
"And this is a token of my gratitude for saving the village."
"Oh, no, you really shouldn't have."
"Rather than a token of thanks, I would prefer you think of it as a small gift from me."
If you insist that much... ahem.
I can't exactly refuse it, then.
The lord left with the knights, leaving behind a heavy pouch packed with gold coins on the table.
Watching the lord's carriage recede beyond the window, I clenched my fist.
Good. One hurdle down, for now.
Anyone else who comes by from here on out, I'll just send them packing the same way as today.
After throwing a few victorious uppercuts at the air, I opened the pouch the lord had left behind.
Inside were gold coins, one by one...
...Wait, what? This old man is unexpectedly generous.
This should keep me covered for living expenses for a while.
On top of that, I can do research into a remedy that helps Lia's leg heal faster.
"Hmm, at this rate, even if it's a hassle, it'd be worth going out once every three years or so..."
Suddenly, I felt a gaze on me from the side.
Lia, who was standing on her crutch, was looking at me with a curious "hee~" expression.
"Why? Got something to say?"
"No, I just~ I've been seeing a lot of different sides of Luna unnie lately, so I was thinking how amazing you are~"
"...? What are you talking about?"
"Well~ the ice magic, and the way you spoke so confidently to the lord too, made me think, wow, this unnie is really something~"
"I'm always like this, you know?"
What I said is funny too, but treating an advanced mage—someone who'd be valued anywhere in the empire—this casually is what's actually weird.
Well, that's why I liked this village, though.
As I shrugged, Lia suddenly burst out laughing.
"Why are you laughing?"
"Because when you say you're always like this, all I can think of is how you usually lie on the bed with your belly sticking out~"
"...Lia, come here for a sec."
"Why, why...? My leg hurts..."
"Do you want to come over on your own? Or should I drag you over?"
With a sulky face, Lia approached me, propping herself up on her crutch.
"Closer."
I put a little mana into my finger.
Then I flicked her forehead.
"Ow! That's too much if you're putting mana into it!!"