Winifred thought that if she knew magic still existed in her world, she would be able to do many things. Things could be different for her. She felt angry knowing someone had been ruling over her, and she hadn't even realized it.
"Things could be different if I could use magic in my world too," Winifred said with a hint of sadness.
"Yeah! I know it's hard to imagine how people can live without magic," Elise said, lost in thought.
"Let's go, Winifred. The sun will go down soon, and it's very dangerous at night!" Elise said with a big smile.
"Oh, okay, let's go," Winifred replied, feeling a bit of fear.
"Don't worry! I'm here. Grab my hand," Elise said.
"Grab your hand?!" Winifred asked with confusion.
"Oh! You've never seen magic before. Well, tell me, do people fly in your world?" Elise said with a smile.
"People fly? I mean, they can fly in planes, but people don't fly," Winifred replied with a smile and some awkwardness.
"Plane? What's a plane?" Elise asked, a bit confused.
"Oh… planes are… Oh! They're a kind of tool people use to travel through the air," Winifred explained.
"Oh, well, that's interesting. Now grab my hand, Winifred," Elise said, offering her hand.
"Yes… come on, grab my hand. Otherwise, a monster might come from the forest," Elise said playfully, with a smile.
"But you'll save me, right?" Winifred said, grabbing Elise's hand.
"Yes! Let's go," Elise said.
Winifred stood close to Elise while holding her hand.
"Don't be scared. Enjoy the view!" Elise said, looking at Winifred.
"Huh… what?" Winifred asked, confused.
"Oh… we're going up," Winifred yelled.
"Yes! We're flying home," Elise replied as they began to ascend.
"You can move, but don't let go of my hand! Otherwise, you'll fall and die," Elise said with a smile.
"Oh…" Winifred tightened her grip on Elise's hand.
"Don't be scared! I'll protect you. You're going to be my student after all," Elise said, smiling at Winifred.
"Oh… it's just my first time, so…" Winifred replied, looking at Elise.
"This height is good for your first flight!" Elise said, stopping at a certain altitude.
"I'm not sure!" Winifred replied, looking down with fear.
"But you'd still die if you fell from this height, so don't let go of my hand, okay?" Elise said.
"Yeah, I won't let go…!" Winifred replied, trying to control her fear.
"Hey, Winifred, look in front of you," Elise said, pointing ahead.
"Oh… it's beautiful…" Winifred said, staring at the sunset, where the sun was halfway behind the mountains and a flock of birds was flying in front of it.
"It's really beautiful…!" Winifred repeated.
"Yeah, I know!" Elise replied, smiling at Winifred.
"Let's go, Winifred! Or do you want to see more?" Elise asked.
"Ah… no, let's go," Winifred said, coming back to her senses.
"Haha, okay," Elise replied, laughing a little.
Elise and Winifred flew straight toward the mountains where the sun was setting.
"I'm really enjoying this, Elise. I'm happy!" Winifred said, smiling as she overcame her fear.
"Oh… really? I knew you'd enjoy it," Elise replied as they headed toward the mountains.
On their way, Winifred kept looking at the setting sun and occasionally glanced down, sideways, and back, trying to enjoy every moment.
Winifred forgot all the bad things that had happened to her as she flew toward their destination.
"This isn't a bad day. It's actually one of the most beautiful days of my life," Winifred said.
"Oh… so before this, you thought today was bad, huh?" Elise asked, looking at Winifred.
"Yeah, earlier today, some bad things happened—not just here but in my world too. I really thought today was a bad day, but not now. Not after this," Winifred said, smiling at Elise.
"Actually, if I think about it more carefully, today has been a good day. In school, I got lost in my mother's beautiful memories. Then my friend treated me to ramen. After that, I ended up in this world, and now I know no one is controlling me from the shadows. I don't have to go to that boring school where I'm forced to learn things I don't want to. Now, I'm in a world where I'm free. I might die here, but at least I can live freely and try to achieve my dreams. And the best thing is, I have a very kind and beautiful teacher who saved me and is letting me stay in her house," Winifred said, looking at Elise with tears in her eyes.
"Really! Thank you, Miss Elise!" Winifred said.
"I told you, just Elise, not Miss Elise," Elise said, smiling at Winifred.
"Yeah, I know. It's just… I feel like adding 'Miss,' so…" Winifred replied, wiping her tears.
"Okay…!" Elise said with a smile.
As they continued flying, Elise and Winifred approached the mountains.
"Look, that's home," Elise said.
Winifred looked where Elise was pointing. Near the mountain, she saw a wooden house—not too big or too small.
"We're landing, Winifred!" Elise said.
"Oh, okay," Winifred replied.
Elise and Winifred landed in front of the house.
The wooden house had a single door on the right side and a window on the left. It was a single-story house with no upper floors. To the left of the house, a medium-sized tree stood at a distance. Behind the house, a large mountain loomed, with the sun nearly set.
"Let's go inside. You must be tired," Elise said, looking at Winifred.
"Oh… not that much," Winifred said before her stomach growled. "Ohhh… I'm actually hungry. I forgot while flying," she added, embarrassed.
"Ohhh… don't worry. I'll make something. It's because of the fate circle. Let's go, Winifred," Elise said.
"Oh… yes…" Winifred replied.
Elise and Winifred walked toward the door, which opened automatically.
Winifred wasn't surprised this time. She and Elise entered the house.
"Oh… is this a new guest?!" someone said.
Winifred tried to look around to find where the sound was coming from, but no one was there. The place looked cozy. There was a bonfire too. It was a hall with a wooden desk, a medium-sized bed, and three sofas near the bonfire. There was also a door leading further inside. On the desk, near the bonfire, opposite the bed, there was a doll.
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