After Esmeria vanished from the place, Hugo looked at the girls with a smile that made Maria shudder.

'What is this crazy old man thinking?'

"Well, you heard your watchdog. I have to prepare everything for tomorrow's class, as every second counts," Hugo declared excitedly.

Aria turned her head towards Hugo to ask:

"And what are we supposed to do now?"

"I don't know, do whatever you want, but don't bother me."

Seeing that Aria didn't seem too convinced by his statement, he added:

"You can eat anything you want from the kitchen, no reservations."

Upon hearing those words, Aria immediately stood up and grabbed Maria's arm to drag her towards the exit.

"You don't need to pull me!" Maria shouted while avoiding hitting herself against the door.

Hugo let out a small chuckle as he watched Maria suffer, but this disappeared when he was finally left alone in the room.

...

Aria and Maria walked down the hallway, their footsteps softly echoing on the wooden floor. However, upon reaching the kitchen entrance, Aria's plans were interrupted.

Elizabeth was there, standing, staring out the window. Her figure was silhouetted against the incoming light, creating an unpleasant aura around her for Aria.

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Aria and Maria tried to pass by, but Elizabeth noticed their presence and stopped them with a cold voice.

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked without taking her eyes off the window.

"Shouldn't you be having a class with that wizard?"

Aria crossed her arms and looked at Elizabeth firmly.

"We're going to the kitchen to eat something. Leave us alone."

Elizabeth finally turned her gaze towards them, looking somewhat dejected, but this didn't generate any sympathy.

Maria, feeling uncomfortable, remained silent while Aria held Elizabeth's gaze.

"I hope you enjoy your meal," Elizabeth said with a sigh before turning back to look out the window.

Aria nodded and entered the kitchen along with Maria.

Since they had settled in the mansion, Elizabeth had distanced herself from them, but this didn't seem to bother Aria in the slightest.

Maria, for her part, found her questions increasing day by day as she spent time in this mansion, but remembering that she was under the protection of the fire spirit that Hugo had given her, she calmed down a bit.

While Aria eagerly awaited the food, Maria asked her:

"Aria, what do you think of your teacher?"

"He serves his purpose," Aria replied immediately.

"But I haven't seen him explain anything to you..."

"He reviews, corrects what I do, and gives me the material to keep advancing. What else does a teacher do?"

That was a question Maria couldn't answer, as she hadn't necessarily learned from a 'good' teacher.

Even so, before coming to work for Aria, Maria had been lucky enough to see with her own eyes how a teacher taught his students from outside the academy.

It was a rare event, but quite memorable for her, as it motivated her to learn more about magic...

But remembering that she didn't have much money after separating from her family, that inspiration died, and she decided to apply for this job.

"Aria, listen," Maria said while coughing several times to adjust her voice as she was about to give a grand speech, and Aria settled into her seat upon noticing this.

"A teacher is someone beautiful, handsome. Someone who with just their words is capable of captivating your heart and igniting that spark that..."

"Isn't that love?" Aria asked so suddenly that it made Maria lose her composure.

"Love!?" Maria repeated with a broken voice while becoming embarrassed.

"Accelerated heart rate... physical attraction, aren't those two of the key things that have to happen for..."

"Don't say it! I don't know what book you read that from, but please, forget it... just don't say it."