章 26: Settling In
Celly had a large case of her belongings that she brought with her, as this was going to be a lengthy endeavor, so the young woman would be staying at the Dragonheart residence.
"Sorry again that you had to come all the way out here to a place like this," Julius laughed, helping Celly with her case.
Celly shook her head, taking off her wizard hat as she held a soft smile, "Please–I don't mind. I've always heard of Yullim's beautiful valley, anyway. It's a pleasure to finally see it for myself."
"Really? I'm sure it's not all that special compared to the cities you've been to," Treyna said with a smile, resting her cheek against her hand.
"It's certainly a change of pace from big cities like Pellio, but this reminds me of home…" Celly said, taking in the atmosphere.
His mother as always seemed delighted to have more company around, rubbing her palms together with a smile before she slapped, "You must be hungry from the long ride over. I'll whip something up!"
"Oh, you don't have–"
Before Celly could try to politely decline the offer, a growl came from the young woman's stomach, bringing a reddening to her cheeks.
"--"
"I'll get started on it," Treyna smiled.
"Yes, ma'am," Celly nodded shyly.
–
Julius intended to help Celly set herself up in the guest room, but it seemed he had lost track of time as he quickly got dressed, attaching his scabbard to his belt.
"--I've got to run to the Guild Center, Emilio. How about you help show Celly around and get her settled in?" Julius asked him.
He nodded, "Alright."
It was a bit confusing as to what the rush was with his father, but he didn't mind. Especially since less-than-noble intentions were on his mind.
…Alone time with a cutie like this? Don't mind if I do! I'll have a whole year with her, he thought.
They went up to the second floor as he offered to help Celly carry her heavy luggage, but the small mage declined.
"...I've got this…" Celly said.
Though she said that, the silver-haired girl was struggling as she hoisted the luggage up the stairs as if dragging a boulder up its height.
As he showed her to her room, which was empty, save for a medium-sized bed and a drawer by its side, he watched as the silver-haired mage began to unpack her belongings.
"Is there something on your mind, Emilio?" Celly said with a smile while placing her clothes into the drawer.
He was caught off-guard, not realizing she knew he was staring at her for so long as he chuckled a bit, scratching his cheek.
"...I was just wondering, where are you from, Celly? I've never seen somebody with hair like yours before," he asked.
"Oh…Does it bother you?" Celly asked with a melancholic smile, touching her own hair.
He shook his head vigorously, "Not at all! In fact, I think it's beautiful! It reminds me of the moonlight."
Celly's expression seemed surprised but she smiled gently again, patting his head, "You're an odd kid, Emilio. Thank you."
"--" He blushed a tad.
It felt somewhat strange to him to be treated like a child by the girl who looked younger than he was in his previous life, but it wasn't exactly a bad feeling.
A few moments passed of silence as he stood by the door, watching the mage tutor settle in, continuously taking glances at her.
By all means, she was beautiful; her features were fair and her skin was pale and smooth without a blemish to be seen. Beyond that, an aura of kindness naturally radiated from her.
"...I'm a half-elf," Celly finally told him while settling her clothes into the wooden drawer.
"An elf…?" He repeated with a sparkle in his eyes.
Though it seemed almost unbelievable to him at first since to him, elves were supposed to have long, pointy ears, but Celly's were pale and round, just like a normal humans.
Celly nodded, looking at him, "I'm sure my kind are quite rare around here. So, I don't blame you if I stick out as abnormal to you. I understand…"
"You're not–I promise," he told her.
Again, Celly seemed surprised for some reason. It seemed almost as if his acceptance of her differences were unexpected, but to him she hardly seemed any different besides her standout beauty.
"What a kind boy you are," Celly gave him a smile.
The way the young woman spoke was as if she was wise beyond her years, holding a calmness and lack of ego that made her seem much older than she looked.
"Are you excited to learn about the ways of magic? Your parents told me a lot about you in the letter," Celly asked, continuing, "I've heard it's impossible to get your head out of those grimoires."
It was a bit embarrassing to be called out for being a bookworm like that as he bashfully chuckled and nodded.
"Yeah…but, lately I haven't been able to make any progress," he replied.
Compared to how quickly he assimilated the knowledge at the start, the sluggish progress he had made in recent times was disheartening to him.
Celly seemed to notice as she smiled, sitting down on the neatly-made bed after having finished storing her belongings in the drawer.
"There's only so much you can teach yourself. Being able to even teach yourself magic at your age is a tremendous feat in itself–you should be proud," Celly told him.
"Really?"
He knew it was impressive to some degree, but there wasn't exactly something he could compare his own progress with, seeing as he was the only person he knew who actively used magic in Yullim besides his own mother.
Celly nodded, "It's incredibly rare, actually. Most people can't even use magic beyond simple, practical usages like a small flame to boil water or grant life to a bigger fire."
As the silver-haired half-elf explained this with a gentle smile, she manifested a tiny flame above her index finger as an example while she spoke.
"--"
"Honestly, I wasn't interested in tutoring anybody," Celly admitted.
"...Then why did you?" He asked.
Celly looked at him with her emerald irises, "When I heard about the boy who was self-taught and able to naturally weave spells without a whisper, I packed my bags immediately and set across the country."
Such kindly spoken words from the cute-and-beautiful half-elf made him blush from ear-to-ear as he did his best to hide his embarrassment.
"...It's nothing that impressive," he mumbled, "I mean…I was helpless to defend myself."
He remembered his encounter with the Chaos God Style swordsman, and just how helpless he was to the smiling man's overwhelming strength.
But, he looked up at the youthful girl with a resolved smile, "That's why I want to learn more and be able to explore this world without a worry."
Celly smiled, "I can show you the path to reach that, but you have to be willing to walk it yourself."
"I am."
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