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#159. Frozen Things (3)
What on earth is it?
I thought about it, but there wasn’t much information I could infer.
‘One thing is clear….’
The fact that Binjin is a creature that has been exploiting and raising his disciples for a very long time.
… I didn’t feel particularly uncomfortable.
Not only did he not know the emotion that belonged to the unpleasantness, but the deaths of those he did not care about had no meaning to the boy.
Rather, the emotion I am feeling right now is.
‘It was huge.’
It was an intense curiosity and interest.
A gigantic creature with high-quality mana flowing throughout its body.
Did Binjin keep such a strange thing hidden with a locking spell and secretly watch it all by himself?
‘It’s full of questions.’
That’s what the mansion was to the boy.
Ayla’s blue mana.
Binjin’s innocent trap.
A fairy tale about a rainbow.
And that one in the basement.
All of them were extremely interesting.
But at the same time, none of the questions were properly resolved.
‘… I’m curious.’
Very, very, extremely.
Maybe the outline of the situation will become just a little bit clearer, just a little bit clearer.
The moment when you feel confident that you have complete control of the board.
The boy might have taken a more aggressive approach, such as holding a knife to his opponent’s neck.
Just a peculiar sense of caution at present.
And the fact that I am not alone and that there are people to protect me only makes me take cautious steps.
Then Ayla’s voice woke me from my thoughts.
“I think I should get to the 3rd circle quickly. That way I can be of some help to the Master. If I, a useless person, want to become useful….”
Black lumps of negative emotions were once again forming in the sky above Ayla’s bowl.
The dripping water creates dark blue stains on the blue ice.
Ray answered quickly.
“You are not useless.”
“There’s no need to try to comfort me. I know myself best.”
I don’t think you know.
“Why do you think you are useless?”
“Well… I don’t know how to do anything properly. If I knew how to do something, I could help other people…”
The black lumps showed no signs of disappearing.
Ray is getting a little impatient.
“You know how to do magic.”
“That’s not a high standard either.”
Circle 2 was of a high level.
Especially considering my current age.
Also, in terms of potential for development, Aila was superior to her master, Binjin.
‘You don’t know much about your own abilities. Are you not interested at all?’
For some reason, it felt like the conversation we had last time was going back and forth.
Ray said firmly.
“You are better than Binjin.”
“No, that can’t be.”
“You are useful.”
“No, it’s not of any use.”
A moment of silence.
“there is.”
“doesn’t exist.”
“there is.”
“doesn’t exist.”
“doesn’t exist.”
“No…?”
Ayla, whose eyes had widened for a moment, came to her senses and spoke.
“First, you have to become a 3rd circle… then you can become a somewhat useful person.”
Ray suddenly noticed something happening in Ayla’s bowl.
“You want to become a 3rd circle quickly, right?”
“Yeah? Yeah. Right. If I can.”
… was a lie.
The words and feelings were different.
“Is this really what you want to do?”
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“Yeah, I want to. But why are you asking me back…?”
I want to become a 3rd circle.
Every time she said those words, Ayla’s fear grew stronger.
It was a strange thing.
As Ray was trying to deduce the cause from various angles, a guess suddenly popped into his head.
‘… Do you know that the higher the circle, the more likely you are to become a target of Binjin?’
Just as Ray was about to pull his lips apart to confirm his assumption.
“The food and drinks you ordered have arrived.”
An employee appeared through the distortion field.
A neat uniform and hat with the restaurant logo on it.
A white sanitary mask and hair rolled up and tied into a net.
He was a relatively young employee with an overall neat appearance.
Knock, knock, knock
Ray stared at the waiter while the plates were being placed.
“veronica?”
Asked.
The startled employee answered politely in a low voice.
“Sir, my name is Veron, not Veronica.”
The name tag that the employee pointed to with a wink indeed had the name Veron written on it.
Ray nodded and said.
“Yes, Veronica. Why are you here?”
“… … .”
“Did you start working here? I don’t think I heard anything during the meeting.”
“… … ”
“How long will you work? Your contract must end before you leave Sector 37.”
Veronica cried out in confusion, taking off her mask and hat.
“How did you know…? Ray is not good at recognizing people…!”
“… … .”
That’s because the white sun is shining brightly in your bowl.
“I think that while working, there may be times when you have to eat alone with a woman. But at least tell me in advance…!”
“I can recognize you no matter where you are in the world or what you look like.”
Veronica, who had been expressing her disappointment, melted away on the spot.
Ain, who had come running from another table, shook Veronica, who had fallen and was turning into liquid.
“Sister-in-law! Come to your senses! This wolf cub…! No, brother, wolf cub… Brother! Brother wolf cub! What were you talking about with our sister Ayla!”
We weren’t talking much.
Something like why is your sister being beaten by Binjin?
At that moment, Ayla spoke with her lips slightly moving beside me.
─Don’t tell Ain.
“… … .”
After that, the four of them naturally sat down together and had a meal.
“How did you get in? I sold the Master’s name. Your face was so pale that you let me in.”
“Ain, you…!”
“Don’t worry, Sister. I’ve made sure to cook it so that it won’t reach the Master’s ears. I’m an expert at this kind of thing.”
Ain kept a close eye on Ray while talking.
“Hi, I’m Veronica.”
“Ah… I’m Ayla.”
Veronica, who had returned to her solid form, greeted Ayla with a much more generous look in her eyes.
‘I can recognize you no matter where you are or what you look like in the world.’
That’s because I thought the outcome was decided at the moment I received that confession right before my eyes.
Veronica, who was dazed for a moment, added the words she had forgotten.
“Oh, and I am the sun of Haley.”
“sun…?”
“We are classmates in the same building at the top.”
Ayla asked cautiously.
“If we’re in the same class, we’re the same age…?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Then I’m your older sister.”
“… … ?”
“Hayler is 16, Veronica is 16, and I’m 17.”
Ayla pointed at herself with her finger and stared at Veronica.
“Sister, me.”
Veronica nodded and reached for Ray’s bag.
Ayla flinched at the sight.
widely.
Luckily, Ray caught his hand.
“You can’t use that anymore.”
“no?”
“No. And age-based titles are a very important issue.”
“But Hayler… doesn’t call Ayla ‘sister’.”
“There’s nothing we can do about it, it’s already in the past.”
Veronica looked like she had a lot to say, but soon agreed.
“Hello, Sister Ayla. Please take care of me.”
That’s how the titles were organized.
The conversation, which was a bit awkward at first, gradually became more relaxed and less tense.
“At first, I thought he was flirting with my older sister. It turned out to be a misunderstanding. It doesn’t make sense for him to look at another woman when he has a partner who would openly say those things to you.”
Ain turned his gaze to Ray and continued speaking.
“Unless you’re a world-class womanizer, a trash, a waste product, a swindler of unrecyclable contaminants. Right, big brother?”
“… … .”
“Right, brother?”
“… … .”
“Right…?”
“… … .”
“older brother…?”
“Re, no, Hayler…?”
“Oh, I was just thinking about it for a moment. What do you mean by that?”
Misunderstandings are either resolved or created.
“You’re a rainbow turtle existentialist too, sis! I knew you were a good person from the moment I first saw you!”
“You believe it too…!”
An unexpected friendship was formed.
“Let’s go to the self-bar! I saw a while ago that there was a mint chocolate banana dressing cactus thorn salad!”
“Sister-in-law, are you human?”
“I like that too…!”
“Sister, are you human?”
This was a meeting that was not in the boy’s plans at all.
It was also a completely unintentional and chaotic atmosphere.
But the boy felt that this atmosphere… was somehow familiar and not bad at the same time.
‘… Where have I been in a similar situation?’
The boy soon realized.
“As expected! It’s Ray!”
“Your pants were torn, right? I repaired them. Wear them right away.”
“Everyone gather together! Those who come late will miss dinner!”
… that was a memory from the bridge.
That evening, we gathered at the tent on the bridge with our daily wages and food.
It felt just like this, with the children’s voices and body heat mixing chaotically inside the tent.
… At that time, I didn’t know the right vocabulary to express that feeling.
Now I knew.
‘A warm and cozy feeling.’
Ray looked calmly at the other three people who were conversing.
… How many Guldari children were there at that time?
If we match the numbers similarly, can we perfectly recreate that feeling?
‘The Guldari children are Pale, Josephine, Croyle, Daylan, and… … .’
A total of 9 people including myself.
Ray first mobilized the people around him to try to get a similar number.
‘Me, Veronica, Ain, Ayla, Uncle Jang, Curiosa… Even if we add them all up, we’re still missing three people.’
Even if we include the animals Nero and Lato, the number was only eight.
‘One person is missing. It’s a shame.’
I felt like I was forgetting someone very important… but most likely it was just my imagination.
“Thank you….”
Then Ayla’s voice woke Ray from his thoughts.
Looking around, Veronica and Ain were left alone at the self-bar.
“Thank you, for what?”
“Thank you for telling me that I’m useful to someone like you. I know it’s annoying, but you have to keep repeating it over and over again.”
“You don’t have to be thankful. I did it for my own benefit.”
“… … ?”
Why does that happen?
Ayla was curious, but Ray’s attitude was so firm that she couldn’t ask again.
Instead, we moved on to another question.
“What did you mean by that thing you said yesterday? Mana waves to those who are honest with themselves….”
“that.”
Ray was silent.
Although I understood and accepted the words to some extent in my heart, I needed to organize them in order to convey their meaning to others.
“If it’s difficult to tell─”
“I’m telling you to take care of yourself.”
“huh…?”
“Don’t worry about others, worry about yourself. Especially your little brother. Judging from the way he acts, it seems like no one needs to worry about him.”
That was the highest compliment Ray could receive.
If it weren’t for my older sister, I might have lived my entire life without ever feeling the need to learn magic.
“I just─.”
“In the current situation, there is no need for you to worry about your younger brother.”
“I just─.”
“My sun… no, Veronica said that. You have to love yourself first before you can love others. Right now, you’re the one who’s bothering your little brother.”
Ayla, speechless, glared at Ray.
His eyes were as cold as ice, but there was hot anger inside.
But soon.
“… I don’t really understand what you mean.”
It died down.
Veronica and Ain returned shortly thereafter.
The meal ended in a noisy atmosphere again, and the four went out to the restaurant entrance and looked at each other.
“Thank you, we had a great meal. It’s not often we get to visit such nice places. Ain, how was it for you?”
“What can I say? It was the best. Thank you, brother. Thanks to you, I ate a lot.”
Ain gave a thumbs up.
Ayla patted her younger brother’s head affectionately, then looked back at Ray and said.
“My brother and I are going back to the mansion. Today is the B class day, so we have to get there on time.”
Ray met her gaze.
“… … .”
“Do you have anything left to say…?”
There’s more to say.
Do you know about Binjin’s exploitation magic and the underground?
It was a question that was left unasked due to Ain’s appearance.
‘… Well, it doesn’t really matter.’
There were going to be many opportunities to meet Ayla in the future anyway.
Binjin was advised to visit the tower every day for a check-up before undergoing the procedure.
It was obvious that he was trying to observe this side in order to prepare the trap more perfectly… but there was no reason to refuse.
It wasn’t just you who was observing to devour your opponent.
If Binjin hadn’t brought up the topic of the medical checkup, this would have been the one who created the opportunity to come in.
In other words.
‘Visits to the mansion and tower are daily.’
It was said that there would be ample opportunities to talk to Ayla in the future.
Of course, it was a bit disappointing that the question could not be resolved immediately and the clues were withheld.
“Well then, we’ll go.”
“See you later, bro!”
The siblings’ backs became smaller on the other side of the street.
Then at some point.
─Tak.
Ayla’s body suddenly stopped and turned towards me.
He seemed to hesitate for a while, as if he was going to say something.
────.
He moved his lips slightly.
Veronica looked at Ayla as she turned around and left, a question mark in her eyes.
“Huh? What did you just say with your lips…?”
It seemed like Ayla herself thought she wouldn’t be able to convey the meaning.
“… … .”
The boy understood clearly.
[Beware of Binjin.]
The question has been resolved.