Chapter 42
“Yes, I made it! No matter what, since you’re going to learn magic, you at least need to have a bag!”
Unable to bear it any longer as April kept glancing between the bag and her, Helene confessed.
“If… if it’s a bag, I have one….”
April showed her an old square-shaped leather bag.
It was the one Count Raoul had once used.
Though it was said to have been crafted by a famous artisan, time had taken its toll—the surface was moldy, and above all, it was heavy for April to carry.
April packed her clothes and belongings into this leather bag.
“That’s too heavy. I’ve been squashed under old tomes before—those things are heavier than bricks! For a little kid like you, this one’s perfect!”
As April declared she would go to the Magic Tower, Helene suddenly recalled her previous life.
When she was little, before she even started school, she had desperately wanted a new bag.
For the first time, she had begged her foster mother for one.
One day, the woman brought her a bag.
It was a pink bag decorated with a cute character.
Her joy was short-lived—for on the back of the bag, another girl’s name was written.
She couldn’t even remember what the name was now.
Because she had erased it with a marker and written her own name, Han Yena, over it.
She had no idea how many markers she had gone through trying to erase that girl’s name completely and make it hers.
Well, that wasn’t even really a sad story compared to the rest.
It just reminded Helene how much she had longed for a bag of her own when she was April’s age.
This new bag was made from one of the leather skirts Helene used to wear back in her delinquent days.
Han Yena of her previous life couldn’t afford new clothes often, so she had grown skilled at mending them.
Of course, making a bag was far more difficult than simple patchwork, but after a sleepless night, she had barely managed to finish it.
“…It’s ugly.”
April grumbled, flashing teeth as white as pebbles.
Yet, contrary to her words, she slung the brown bag over her shoulder.
“…But it’s kind of cute.”
If not for that last part, Helene might have snatched the bag back from her.
An odd bag, both “ugly” and “cute,” but it suited April perfectly.
Helene picked up the old bag that contained April’s clothes.
“I’ll carry this one.”
April’s green eyes widened.
“…No, since Riri isn’t here anymore, you don’t have to act like my guardian. I can go to the Magic Tower just fine on my own!”
April had only agreed to Helene being her guardian to reassure Liriana.
Sure, she had warmed up to Helene recently, but still—Helene as her guardian?
April didn’t want to owe her even the smallest debt.
Liriana had become her guardian at fourteen, which was essentially adulthood.
So April, though a bit young, believed it was time she started doing everything on her own.
“…You’ve never even stepped outside the estate by yourself, and yet you’re putting on such a strong front.”
With a snort, Helene hugged the bag tightly to her chest so the smaller April couldn’t take it back.
April reached out to snatch it, but it was impossible.
“G-give me the bag!!”
“You’re ten years old. The time when you can be protected only comes once. At ten, no matter what anyone says, you still need a guardian.”
Huffing, Helene marched up the stairs with the bag in her arms.
April fumed, but she had to admit Helene was right.
She had never truly been outside, and now the place she had to go was the Magic Tower—a place ordinary people had never set foot in.
A mysterious destination, completely unknown.
Fear welled up inside her. Her breath grew short, and her hands began to tremble.
Noticing her tension, Helene asked,
“April, once you get to the Magic Tower, what kind of magic do you most want to learn?”
Helene’s question froze her.
‘Well, I…’
April opened her mouth but fell silent, lost in thought.
The question had caught her off guard, and it was a hard one.
She had often dreamed of becoming a magician when she was sad or lonely.
But now that it was real, she didn’t know what magic to learn first.
At one point, she had thought of magic to revive her mother and father, but that was a forbidden art.
Magic to earn money?
Offensive magic to take revenge on those who had bullied her?
No… realistically, the most necessary would be teleportation magic.
She needed it first to visit her sisters.
Just as April settled on her answer, Helene spoke first.
“I always thought that, if I became a magician, I’d want to fly in the sky.”
April blinked at her.
She had never imagined Helene would give such an innocent, childlike answer.
“More than magic that could turn everything into gold, or enslave everyone around you?”
That sounded more like Helene’s kind of wish.
“Well…, those would be nice too! But if I could fly, I’d feel so free that nothing else would matter….”
Helene meant it.
From her past life, Han Yena had always longed to fly.
Never once had she been on a plane. Sometimes she would climb tall buildings just to look at the sky.
She had felt a taste of freedom gazing up at that vast, open sky—but it had never been enough.
She had always wanted to go far, far away.
When her foster mother texted her asking why she hadn’t sent this month’s living expenses, she would eat a cheap triangle kimbap, look up at the sky, and think, How could it be so blue?
She had truly wanted to fly then.
And a week after that thought, Han Yena had died.
April, watching Helene drift into thought, turned to look at the sky outside the window.
Flying magic….
It wouldn’t make her money, but it would let her escape anyone who tried to hurt her, help her visit her sisters faster, and give her something to boast about to Helene.
Learning to fly really did seem like a good idea.
Just then, in the blue sky April gazed at, a silver eagle soared past—followed by a great-eyed eagle.
They flew through the window.
And as they landed, they transformed into people.
“…Are you ready?”
Lucael looked straight at April as he spoke.
This time, April met his gaze properly.
When she had first seen him, she had been overwhelmed by the raw force of his mana and couldn’t even look him in the eye.
But now she saw him clearly—he was truly beautiful.
Like a statue carved from silver by the hand of a god.
Long silver hair, skin pale as silver, and clear ash-gray eyes.
A face beautiful like a woman’s, but taller than most men.
He hardly seemed like a person of this world.
“…Yes!”
April answered firmly.
“Then let’s depart!”
As Helene nodded and stepped forward to lead the way, Lucael felt a headache coming on.
He had no desire to waste even a second more.
Even with endless time at his disposal, this was exhausting.
He glanced at Helene, who was clutching the heavy square bag, and for once, blinked in disbelief.
It was hard enough to bring along a human with no magician’s blood, but to escort someone with no mana whatsoever into the Magic Tower?
Still oblivious, Chiwa addressed Helene.
“Please, allow me to carry the luggage.”
“Would you? I’m busy enough looking after April.”
Realizing Helene’s intention, Chiwa’s already big eyes widened even further.
“Y-you don’t mean… you’re actually planning to go all the way to the Magic Tower, do you?”
Ciwa had spoken aloud the very thing Lucael wanted to say.
