"Hey Marina, thanks for the potion the other day!" someone said as he bumped into Marina in the corridor.

"Oh, that wasn't from me," Marina replied.

"But you made it, right?" the guy asked.

"Yes, but..." Marina started to explain.

"Then thanks anyways," the guy said, cutting her off.

"I told you, that wasn't from me. I didn't pay for it," Marina clarified, but the person had already left.

Marina sighed.

It's been a few days since this kind of thing started happening to her. All she did was what Aurora asked her to do, but people kept misunderstanding it just because she was well-known as a genius potion maker.

She hated it. She didn't deserve the thanks and recognition she received. Even after Aurora's maid, Lyra, made sure that everyone knew that Aurora was the one paying for the potions they received, her name was still somehow attached to it.

"Thanks to Aurora and Marina," they said.

It was so frustrating.

It's not that she hated praise, but taking credit for other people's achievements was never okay for her. Especially because she was sometimes critical of Aurora's kindness.

Marina entered the empty classroom. She stared down at her own table, looking for the notebook she had forgotten to take.

"I need to apologize,"she murmured to herself, still thinking about Aurora.

"Apologize to whom?" someone asked, making her jump.

The room was empty, so she wasn't expecting anyone to have overheard what she said.

"Oh, sorry. Did I startle you?" the same person asked.

"Of course, you did--oh, Aurora?" Her anger immediately evaporated when she noticed who it was.

"Yes, it's me," Aurora grinned. "I hope you didn't forget about me already."

"There's no way I could forget about you," Marina snorted. It's the exact opposite; she was just thinking about her. "So... what are you doing here anyway?" Marina asked.

"Ah, I was wondering if you were going to go home," Aurora said. "You know, because class is temporarily paused at the moment."

"Nah, I won't," Marina said. "I have nothing to do at home anyway. So I'm either stuck here or going back to the Magic Association. But enough about me, were you looking for me because you need something, right?"

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"Yes, sorry," Aurora admitted. "Am I bothering you with my request?"

"No, it's fine," Marina replied. "I'm the one who should be apologizing to you."

Aurora blinked. "Why?"

"Nothing," Marina said. She didn't feel like explaining it. "So, what is it you need me for?"

"Can I ask you to make more of the invisibility potion?" Aurora said. "I already used the one from before and it worked great, but I need more."

"Ah, that potion? Alright, no problem," Marina said. "And I believe I can improve it now. Maybe increase its time limit a little bit? But I won't promise you it's going to be a big improvement though."

"It's fine," Aurora replied. "I will tell Lyra to bring the ingredients to you later. Oh, and did she already pay for the potions I bought from you last time?"

"Yes, there's no problem," Marina said.

"Great," Aurora looked relieved.

"How do you know that's going to happen anyway?" Marina asked, bothered by this the whole time. "Not only that, why are you doing that? It's not like it's your responsibility to fix what happened, right?"

"I just happen to know," Aurora said without explaining anything. "And, well, I just feel like doing it. You know? And I can do it, so why not?"

"No, I don't know what you mean," Marina said. "So, is that how you usually make your decisions?"

"Not always. But, did I disappoint you?" Aurora asked.

Marina smiled. "Forget it. So, is that all? Or do you have another weird request for me?"

"That's all for now," Aurora said, smiling too. "But if you're ready for another challenge, I still have something in mind."

"Really? Then bring it on!" Marina suddenly got pumped up.

"Alright, I will bring it next time," Aurora promised.

"Okay, I will be done with your request in a couple of days," Marina said, make a calculation on her mind. "Just come back to me then."

"Okay, thank you," Aurora said. "See you later then?"

Marina nodded.

Aurora was about to walk to the door when Marina decided to call her name.

"Aurora," she said.

"Yes?" Aurora stopped in her tracks, looking back at the white-haired girl.

"I'm sorry and thank you," Marina finally said. "I think you're a wonderful person."

Aurora blushed in embarrassment. "That... What are you even talking about?" she said. "Where did that come from?"

"I'm just saying," Marina said. "Just keep being yourself."

"Alright, you too," Aurora said. She smiled for the last time and then left the room.

"No, I'm not good," Marina murmured. "I need to improve myself."

Outside the room, Aurora walked in a daze. What was that about? she thought to herself.

She shook her head. No time to think about that, she reminded herself and walked quicker. She had already made a promise.

A few minutes later, she arrived at the promised place.

"You're late," a purple guy said, sitting on top of a broken wall. He didn't look at her but noticed her arrival anyway.

"Sorry," Aurora said. "I had to talk to my friend for a little bit."

"I'm busy, you know?" he jumped down and stood in front of Aurora. "Don't forget that I was a guild master. Just because I give you special treatment doesn't mean you can waste my time."

"Really?" Aurora said. "You looked free to me."

"Hey, you just don't know my schedule!" he replied.

"Fine," Aurora sighed. "Then I won't waste more of your time. As an information guild, you must have some eyes on other kingdoms, right?"

"Of course," he replied. "Why do you ask?"

Aurora picked up a folded paper from her pocket and passed it to him.

"I want you to keep an eye on these people," Aurora said. "I want to know where they are, what they are doing right now, and what they might do in the future."

"Huh? I recognize some of the names," Dante said, looking at the paper. "And they are not just ordinary people. What do you plan to do with them?"

"That depends on what they are doing," Aurora replied.

"Did you see the future again?" Dante asked. "And with so many people involved, and from different places, this will be big, I suppose?"

Aurora smiled. "It's nothing. Just some kind of nightmare where people died. A lot. You know, the usual. Doomsday thing, the end of the world kind of event."

"Sounds fun," Dante said.

"Exactly," Aurora said. "That's why I want to share this fun with as many people as possible. I'm not an egoist. I won't hog everything by myself."

"Such an admirable girl you are," Dante laughed. "But seriously though, is it going to be that bad?"

Aurora sighed. "I'm not sure either. But it seems like we will be attacked by some sort of creatures. And killed horribly."

"And these people are...?" Dante trailed off.

"They might be the key to stopping it," Aurora said.

"Interesting," Dante said. "Alright, I will send my people to monitor them. But about this girl, the elf Princess..."

"What about her?" Aurora asked.

"She was on her way here," Dante said. "It seems like the elves had a change of heart. They are offering to bring the second prince back to us. They even sent their princess to do that."

"Is that so?" Aurora said, with a happy look on her face. "That makes things easier for me."

"It's good that you're having fun, but don't bully the elf Princess too much," Dante said, grinned.

"Why would I do that? I'm nice," Aurora said, pouted.

"People who call themselves nice usually are not." Dante smirked.

Aurora stared angrily at him. "Want me to show you how nice I can be?"

"No thanks," Dante said, jumping back to the top of the broken wall. "Don't worry about this." He flapped the paper in his hand. "I will make sure my subordinates do a good job of monitoring them."

Aurora crossed her arms. "I expected as much."

"See you later," Dante said, followed by a strong gust of wind that obstructed Aurora's view. A moment later, the wind stopped and Dante had already disappeared.

"What a show off," Aurora muttered.

***