Chapter 77 : The Catalyst (4)

Chapter 77: The Catalyst (4)

To be honest, I hadn’t thought much of it until I handed her the letter for the first time.

I was simply fulfilling a request from the Countess—my stepmother, that is.

To be more truthful, I had even felt a strange sense of familiarity and gladness.

That was only natural, since Amaruah had been one of the few people I exchanged greetings with during my time at the Academy.

I even found myself thinking, So this is how fate keeps things connected.

But by the time I came to my senses, the warm-looking middle-aged librarian had vanished, and standing in her place was someone claiming to be a dragon.

What made it more troubling was that, despite having no solid proof or evidence, a voice from deep within kept whispering that what she said was true.

That voice was clear, persistent.

“You look rather flustered.”

Amaruah Atillipel.

No, was it even right to still call her Amaruah Atillipel?

Anyway, her face now bore an aura completely different from the one I had known.

The gentle and reassuring smile that used to calm those who saw it—was gone.

In its place, her two eyes sparkled with a cold light, filled with a chilling aura.

As I met those eyes, I felt as if everything within me was being laid bare and picked apart by her gaze.

Someone once said this:

Being flustered means you at least have the time to recover from a sudden situation.

Being dumbfounded means you don’t even have that luxury.

Then was this situation one where I was flustered—or dumbfounded?

Or perhaps, it was something else altogether. A situation more fitting for a different name?

I couldn’t tell at all.

“……Hehe.”

Then I heard a small laugh.

For a moment, I wondered if I had misheard.

“Hehehe…….”

But it wasn’t a mistake. Amaruah was quietly laughing, her mouth covered lightly with the back of her hand.

After a moment, she stopped laughing and cleared her throat softly before looking at me.

“Ahem. My apologies. I couldn’t help myself—this is a moment I’ve been waiting for a long time.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Hehehe, but isn’t it curious? We don’t share a single drop of blood, yet we resemble each other in such ways, like parent and child. Perhaps fate is still fate, no matter how artificial.”

I had no choice but to remain silent—I couldn’t follow her story at all.

She looked me over as if reminiscing about someone she missed, someone she never expected to see in me. Only after a long pause did she nod, as if satisfied.

“I can fully understand your confusion.”

“If I were in your place, I would be just as confused.”

“So allow me to share…… a few things.”

Without waiting for my response, Amaruah began her story.

“It’s somewhat known, so you may already be aware—but we dragons occasionally transform and blend into the mortal world.”

“……What do you mean by ‘mortal world’?”

“To put it simply… yes, think of it as the world you humans and other races live in. It's a term we use, so I must’ve slipped up for a moment.”

Amaruah lightly waved her hand in apology and nodded.

“Come to think of it, you know well enough yourself, don’t you? Seems you met Airos a few days ago. Didn’t you?”

At that, I couldn’t help but lean more toward trusting her.

Noticing my flinch of surprise, she grinned and tapped her nose with a finger.

“Dragons, unlike lowly reptiles like lizards, crocodiles, or snakes, have senses far more sensitive than you’d imagine. Eyes, nose, ears… everything.”

“That’s how I smelled the scent of a fellow kin on your body. And, though I didn’t mean to, I clearly heard that you’ll soon be studying with Garusol’s child here.”

Then I noticed something strange—that from the moment she had begun staring at me, she hadn’t blinked even once.

As unease crept up my spine, she let out a small hum in her throat.

“Let’s get back on track. To continue—I, too, have blended into this world under many forms. Sometimes a mercenary, sometimes a merchant, sometimes a beggar…… Then I heard, by chance, that one of my kin was serving as a caretaker at the Academy graveyard, and out of curiosity, I enrolled here as a student.”

“That’s when I met Manoa—your stepmother.”

Amaruah’s eyes grew misty with longing once again.

“She used to follow me around everywhere, calling me ‘senior’ over and over…… Then, through a twist of fate, she discovered what I was. She begged me not to leave, swore to remain silent until I allowed otherwise. So I responded—I promised her I would stay at this Academy as Amaruah Atillipel as long as our vow remained unbroken.”

She gently spun the brooch in her hand with her fingers as she spoke.

“I swore that until this was returned to me, I would never reveal I was a dragon to anyone. ……And from peeking slightly into your memory, I saw there wasn’t a single phrase in that letter that broke our rules. That child kept her vow with excellence.”

“Ah.”

At that point, I could only blame my own foolishness for forgetting not to meet the eyes of a mage.

As if reading my thoughts perfectly, Amaruah spoke with a slightly exasperated tone.

“Did you seriously think you could hide your thoughts from a dragon? For us, we don’t even need to meet your eyes. Just hearing your breath is enough to read your mind.”

“Well, in any case……”

She carefully extended the brooch toward me.

“Just the fact that you brought something filled with her memory is reason enough for me to help you.”

“I understand your silence. As I said before, anyone would be confused if suddenly faced with all this.”

Her eyes, slit vertically unlike those of humans, sparkled.

“Just don’t forget this. When the time truly comes that you need my help, come find me anytime.”

I took the brooch from her hand.

And the moment I accepted it, she blinked—once, deeply and slowly.

“So……”

Her eyes, which hadn’t closed once since she began her story, were now back to looking entirely human.

“Is there anything else I can help you with, Lian?”

To the Amaruah who had returned from being a dragon to the librarian I knew, I replied:

“……No, there isn’t.”

“In that case, how about heading off now? Seems the one you promised to meet has just arrived.”

“I’ll do that.”

As I carefully pinned the brooch to my collar, a sudden question popped into my head and escaped my lips without thinking.

“Is there a particular reason why you chose to stay at the Academy, and as a librarian no less?”

“Hmm?”

Amaruah responded as if I had asked something utterly trivial.

“Food, shelter, clothes, taxes… it all costs money to live, right? Am I wrong?”

“No, you’re right.”

“Well, it’s the same for dragons. If we live in human form, we need money too.”

She pouted slightly and tilted her head.

“Academy staff get paid well, you see.”

“Ah……”

The answer I got was completely different from what I had expected.

To be honest, it was a bit disappointing.

A dragon pays taxes too, huh.

With an inexplicable sense of melancholy, I bid farewell, saying I’d really be going now. As I turned away, her quiet whisper followed behind me.

“…It’s also where I first met that child.”

I didn’t respond to her words.

It was because I didn’t want to disturb her while she was lost in her memories.

I simply walked away, thinking to myself:

No, but is this really right?

The Seven Heroes, including Cecilia and Allen.

The other heroes like Gardener Anisida.

And even Amaruah, who was a dragon.

And surely, there must be many others I don’t remember or don’t know about.

Isn’t it a bit too much how many people here at the Academy are hiding their power or true identity or whatever?

At this rate, it wouldn’t be strange if even the maids or the cooks—supposedly ordinary staff—turned out to be once-famous mercenaries or assassins in hiding.

“You seem to be thinking of many things.”

At the sound of the voice, I looked up and stared ahead.

Across from me, Yuran was gazing at me intently.

She must have noticed that I wasn’t paying attention at all.

“Is your learning burdensome?”

“No, it’s not that……”

I glanced down at the notebook in front of me.

It was filled with strange symbols densely packed across the pages.

Unlike other languages I had studied, the Ancient Garusol Language, where each word carried meaning by itself, was incredibly difficult to learn.

But that wasn’t the reason I couldn’t concentrate.

“I just have a lot on my mind.”

“Is that so.”

Today’s meeting—our so-called study session—had been arranged when Yuran and I decided to teach each other the Imperial Language and Ancient Garusol Language.

My original plan was to finish studying first and then ask her for some advice about the Sky Guide……

But it seemed the worries on my mind had surfaced plain as day on my face.

“Let us take a brief rest.”

Saying that, Yuran closed her notebook filled with Imperial characters, unlike mine, and carefully put it away.

Then she stood up and walked over to the tea utensils arranged in one corner of the room.

Normally, eating or drinking in the library was strictly prohibited.

But in this reserved room, which anyone could book, there were simple tea tables and tea sets prepared for light rest.

“Tea replenishes a weary body and mind. That is why I also enjoy it.”

“I like it too.”

“That is good to hear.”

Saying that, Yuran brought the tea utensils over to my side.

Following her lead, I also cleared the notebooks to make space on the desk.

“Tea from my homeland. Will you join me?”

“I’ll gladly drink it.”

“Good.”

Yuran took out a small box from her sleeve and began placing various tea tools on the table.

Some items had obvious purposes, but others were puzzling—I couldn’t even guess what they were for.

“It’s medicinal tea.”

“Medicinal tea? Do you boil herbs together?”

“Yes. Most of what we usually enjoy are herbs too, broadly speaking.”

Yuran chuckled softly.

“Do not worry. Medicine is good for the body but tastes awful the more bitter it is. But what I am making now tastes quite good.”

She laid out various ingredients that looked like herbs or tea leaves.

Some I recognized, others I didn’t.

“First, I’ll brew some Forogoji.”

“Forogoji?”

“Well… hmm.”

Yuran twitched her lips.

“I do not know the Imperial word for it. Anyway, it’s an herb. It’s edible, but since it’s bitter, it’s better mixed with others.”

“Ah, I know this. It’s licorice.”

“Correct. And now I’ll add some dried Rikuku leaves and a bit of Ring. Then, if I kapa……”

“Kapa?”

“Mm, that means to strain. Using paper or cloth.”

“Aha.”

As it was a scene I had never seen before, I found myself mesmerized, watching her grind, mix, and brew the tea.

Yuran explained everything in a pleasant voice, moving her hands slowly.

“Since it’s your first time, blending the aromas is best. So I’ll add more tea leaves here.”

“I see.”

“Then I’ll kapa once more, and add Yeonbuho.”

“Yeonbuho.”

“And then Ragi-reum. If I Yuniragi the mani and wait a little……”

At some point, Yuran had started mixing in her native language as she spoke.

It seemed to be unintentional.

Not wanting to disturb her focus, I quietly listened to her voice and watched her brew the tea.

“Now yul, yulyul. That is, mixing it all together……”

At last, having completed the entire process, Yuran smiled faintly and opened her hands.

“Poke! It's great for relieving tension and boosting vitality……!”

As she spoke proudly, Yuran’s face suddenly flushed bright red.

She must have realized that she had been mixing Ancient Garusol Language with the Imperial Language.

“A dreadful mistake……”

Covering her eyes with a hand in embarrassment, Yuran muttered in a small voice that barely rose above a whisper.

“……Please forget it ever happened.”