One Year After

Myriad-colored eyes directly captivated my eyes. As if turning away from it were impossible. She had a clear voice and a lively smile on her face.

"Want to be my protégé?"

“Pretty……”

Why am I dreaming about this now?. I felt ashamed and embarrassed at that time; until today, that moment remains in my mind. However, despite that, the surroundings start to slowly dissipate with bright light, a sign that I'm about to wake up.

“…………….”

I peel my eyelids apart, only to be rudely greeted by strong light, causing me to squeeze my eyes for a moment. Sensing a gentle pressure on my left cheek, I noticed a familiar bluish orb of light that seemed to contain a portion of space. The one that interrupted my dream...

“Morning Cilestia..." Seeing Cilestia's light flicker in return, I pull my upper body up, stretching my arms over my head.

As Cilestia moved next to me, I once again felt how enormous this room was for me. Due to my desire, it has simple decoration and some stuff for daily needs. In my past life, I dreamed of having a gaming setup in my room. However...

I guess it’s something to expect since I’m in another world.

Just turning to my right side, there's a computer, though , beside it, it can't be called a gaming setup. The right side of my room was occupied with glass cabinets and containers. A bunch of guns and swords line up on display, with maintenance equipment accompanying them. Variations in bullets based on their type and size were also present.

As per my left, they were filled with some books. There are two bookshelves, one for magic and the latter for my hobbies, such as novels.

It's a far cry from my dream room in my past life, though it’s the best room in this life.

In front of me was the gigantic window where the light that had been blinding me came from. Gazing outside through it, there was a bright morning waiting for me.

Manipulating my mana, I shut the curtain.

"........"

“I want to stay in bed.” As my real feeling leaks out from my lips, I look for my pocket watch on top of my drawer beside my bed. Grabbing it, I click the button on its side to open its canopy.

Intricate mechanical structures were revealed, and soon a small screen that tells time digitally emerged. Before I realized it, it had this kind of function; I don’t know if it was an upgrade on its own or an old function that had been fixed without my knowledge.

Though something like that is not my concern right now,.

“……9”

Was I dreaming for that long? Thinking that, I turn to Cilestia, who tilts her head back at me.

Placing back my watch, I garb Cilestia, dropping back on my bed. Hugging Cilestia curled my body to the side.

“If it’s already this late, there’s no problem with pursuing my dream, right?"

Smiling lightly at Cilestia, I tightly shut my eyes. I am preparing myself to embark on a new dream.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Tud!!!!!!

A loud sound of crashing forced my eyes open.

"...hmmmm, wha..? What? "

"You fucking brat, you have been stacked in this room for one year. Touch some grass!!! "

Seeing that it's just Alaric with a scowl on his face, I grab my watch.

9:03

“……….”

I lightly wave my hand.

"You brat! You had the audacity to be rude...." Arabic words were cut short as the door plunged at him with great force due to my mana.

“!#$$*^%$%##”

I could hear a muffled voice, though, thanks to the thick wall and door, I couldn't understand anything he was saying. I also added a layer of my mana to completely block it.

This should buy me some time to fix my appearance.

“I need to get ready, Cliestia. You can rest here for a while.”

Without a choice, I freed myself from my bed. I leave Cilestia, rolling back and forth on my bed. Since this place has plenty of space, I have a place to wash my face. Drying up my wet face, I drag a new piece of clothing on, swiftly changing into it.

It didn’t take a while before the sound of shattering glass from my mana reached my ears.

A loud explosion shook the surrounding area, with my door being slammed forcefully against the wall.

Soon followed by Alaric's roar. "Carus!!!!! "

Oh my, he used my name.

While I’m having stupid thoughts, Alaric, with a frown on his face and visible veins, walks toward me with heavy steps.

"You damn brat! How dare you lock me out of my own home?"

“Well, you suddenly barge in while I’m sleeping.”

Hearing my nonchalant response caused Alaric’s eyes turned bloodshot. “I’ll let you off the hook in this one, but you need to get out of this room and train with me.”

Tilting my head, I gave him a sleepy look. “Why? ”

“Ain’t it obvious?! The world was at stake, but you did nothing but laze in this room for a whole year!!! ”

That's right; since coming to this place, a year has passed. Nothing notable happened, so this geezer's words were justified. However, I've had my own reason for not moving for the past year. Moreover, I didn't just spend a year in leisure...

As I still have respect for the elderly, I calmly point toward the right side of the room.

“Can you take a good look at this place? As you can see, I have been preparing myself.”

As Alaric takes a look around, I continue. "Don't you think it's also dumb to train with you? when we're worlds apart? Your abilities were magic base and dungeon creation, which doesn't have anything I can learn from." Pausing for a bit, I look upward. "Also, aren't Lhina and the others with you? They said, 'to let me walk at my own pace’.”

As I hit the mark, Alaric's face contorted. I know he feels impatient with my actions, but right now is not the time yet. I received a letter from Lhina a few days ago that stated

a few things.

One is that I'm being watched by a few people, but she never mentions anything about their names. Also, she said to just take everything at my own pace, which I take into my heart. Along with the letter were things I lost in the orphanage. It was my pocket watch and storage ring. And the last part of her letter makes me glad again that I met her.

I got word that you’re not being adopted. I’m well aware that you’re not interested in having a family. But if you ever need a surname in the future, feel free to use mine.

Take care, Caru, and make sure to visit me from time to time.

P.S. If Alaric ever does something to you, just tell me. I’d give him a light smack.

Loving Lhifhina.

There are certainly some cases where I might need a surname, so I'm grateful to Lhina. She's been away from this world for a while and just got back recently. I guess she also knew that we should be away from each other.

As Lhina rarely uses electronics, I doubt we wouldn’t use this letter often. It’s a magical letter that has a special place that delivers it to the recipient, even in another world.

She does reveal I’m being watched, but I’m more curious about how she’s going to smack Alaric. After all—

I look at Alaric, who is still processing my words.

After all, I can see this guy’s mana entirely. There’s only one person with whom I couldn’t gaze at the depths of mana.

Lhina…

If they go against each other, I'm certain Alaric won't win.

I guess I’m really lucky that it’s Lhina who found me.

“What? ”Alaric, notice my gaze. "Anyway, it’s not about that. You never go out! Touch some grass!! ”

"What the hell are we talking about? I do go outside; didn't I visit Lhina when she got back?"

"That only happened twice this year!"

“What do you mean? I go outside from time to time; who would procure these things? "I point at each side of my room.

Even so, Alaric nags almost instantly. “Times you are out of this house can be counted by hand! Moreover, most of your items were ordered, and some of them were from this house armory!!! ”

“……”

Hehe, now that I think about it. That’s all true. I guess that thing might be nearing; maybe I should finish preparing. Maybe I should go out and train again so this geezer can be content.

"Bite your tongue, ain't you? You need to train even if I drag you out." Seeing silent Alaric gains a confident look. You can't survive in this world if all you do is laze around."

His confident expression put a frown on my face. "I do train myself, you know. What are you even saying when a large layer of my mana blocks you?"

That’s...Alaric's eyes flinch. “But that doesn’t mean you can survive with just that.”

“Are you really serious about that? ”At that moment, Alaric's complexion turned serious.

Without even hearing the rest of his words, I already know what he’s trying to say. Months ago, when he delivered Lhina’s letter himself in this very room, we had a discussion.

"Yeah, I’ll never learn magic.” With those words leaving my mouth, Cilestia, who's lying in my bed, flies beside me. An image of me full of confidence is reflected in Alaric's eyes.

Witnessing my determination. Alaric heaved a sigh but didn’t give up. “Can you consider? Even now, you can still learn magic. I'm fine investing anything in you.”

It’s an expression of conviction, but something longing. That I even sensed from his mana.

"In the past, there were two people who lacked an affinity for magic like you. One is me; despite that, I'm able to learn magic."

“Yeah, five thousand years ago. Doing that will take a hundred to a thousand years. We don’t have that kind of time.

Closing my eyes for a bit, I open them while releasing my power. "Don't worry, Gramps; I've got my own way to get stronger."

Alaric widens his eyes before smiling. “You’re really different from me. You're more like him.”

I already know who he's talking about.

Dispelling my power, I cross my arms and grin. "Also, you don't need to bother teaching me. I already have one to teach me."

“Who?”

“You’ll never know.”

Yeah, I already have someone...