Chapter 2

***

“And?”

Slowly pushing the empty basket away, Gray wiped his hands. A lot of cookies and madeleine crumbs fell and soiled the carpet, but neither the guest nor the owner cared. After all, there was no need to remove it because it was a space that no one would use in the future.

“I want to give you this.”

Gray slipped his hand into his pockets and pulled it out. Something caught in the empty hand was placed on the mahogany table. It was a neatly folded note. Vivian did not know what it was, so she did not touch it. The master, who acted younger than his age, was a person full of playfulness, and Vivian was not the only one who had trouble with him.

As if reading Vivian’s wary eyes, Gray had a stern voice. When asked to open it quickly, Vivian hesitated and picked it up.

[Natura 32-42]

“What’s this? Natura…. Isn’t it the empire known as the land of the desert?”

“Right. After you leave, I’ll have to go back to my main job soon. There are a lot of requests that have been pushed back and accumulated over the years.”

Unlike the wizard in each country centering on the association, or knights who belonged to an empire and conferred titles, the elementalist did not have a license to prove his or her identity. In order to have a license, there must be a proper group or association, but the number of elementalists was not enough to form a single group. There were very few spritists all over the world and they were rare.

This did not mean that their skills were not verified. Skills are often known just by showing them. Perhaps the true value of a spirit magician, which may have existed even longer than a wizard, has already been recognised and passed down from generation to generation. It was the ability to handle nature without hesitation like the Creator, so no one dared to oppose it.

Therefore, the elementalists usually received personal requests from those in need of their help. Gray, Vivian’s master, was the same.

Gray is a spirit magician recognised in the world for his ability, unlike his ignorant personality. It was purely for Vivian’s education that he made a pair with the wizard Camilia and stopped receiving commissions from various countries. Now that the disciple has grown up and the time has come for her to return, he is also trying to find his place as a teacher.

Vivian narrowed her eyes while fiddling with the note.

“Who wrote this for you? Master, you are not very good at writing.”

Seeing that his handwriting was so neat, he didn’t write it himself. Gray Willaim was a bad handwriter recognised in Hiddenca. Vivian recommended practice several times to her master, who often wrote, but Gray threw the invitation away, stating that ‘ Bad hand writers are geniuses.’

“What’s wrong with my writing here?”

Gray asked with a stern expression. Vivian sighed, fiddling with the note.   

“After this, even if,master sends a letter later, I feel like I won’t be able to read any of them… There are a lot of tools these days for correcting handwriting.”

Even if there were no worries when we were together, it would be a problem when we send letters later. Everytime, like today, Camilia, a close friend, can’t write for him. It may have been teasing at first, but now it was a genuine concern. But again, Gray blew away Vivian’s heartfelt advice very lightly.

“I’m done talking about my writing. Aren’t you going to stop talking about that now? So, what I’m saying is that there’s one big thing coming this time and I’m going to be in Natura for a while.”

Desert land Natura. A hot and passionate empire that cannot be compared with Hidenca. Gray, who was weak in the heat, took a deep breath as he pretended to be wiping off sweat as if it was hot just imagining it.

Not only Vivian, who stayed for 4 years, but also her master was leaving Hiddenca. At the news, Vivian forgot to raise her voice as much as she could, and only her lips twitched while the note was still in her hand. It was Vivian who used to joke that she was leaving, but unfortunately, she realized that the time had come to say goodbye.

“Why do you look like that?”

Gray took a sip of the fragrant tea and grinned. Whether he really didn’t know what Vivian was upset about, or whether he was pretending not to know, the aloof teacher felt savage. Vivian struggled to suppress her feelings and raised her head.

“It’s nothing, but why are you giving it to me?”

“I’m the only one who you can ask about your abilities.”

Vivian was furious at the words that stabbed her sore spot. For her, the only person who could solve the question of spirit art was her master, Gray. Gray tapped the mahogany table with his finger.

“So, if you have any questions, please contact me. The number on the back is the street number of the place where I will be staying for a while.”

Considering that the street number had been decided, it seems that his leaving for Natura can be confirmed. Vivian replied that she would know, and folded the note with disappointment. I couldn’t even do it in a sad manner, it was a farewell that was already planned.

“By the way, what are you going to do when you return to your home country?”

Gray asked abruptly. In response to the unexpected question, Vivian made a confused expression as if she had been attacked. In response to that reaction, a curve was engraved on Gray’s forehead.

“You still haven’t thought about it?! Are you planning on wasting time? You have to work hard when you are young.”

Gray always sounded like an old-fashioned man. In fact, the age difference between him and Vivian was only four years. Vivian, remembering the age difference between her and her master, rolled her eyes and shook her head. 

“It’s not that I didn’t think about it.”

“Then?”

“I don’t know… I didn’t think about it.”

Perhaps the most stable and easy way to earn money is to receive a quest like Gray and get paid accordingly.

However, a request is not an easy thing to come by for someone whose name is not known. There has to be a worthy achievement, and people have to be recognised for their abilities. That’s why Gray often told me to build as many achievements as possible at a young age.

“Above all, in my home country….”

Vivian recalled her hometown of Mosbana. A lot has happened since Vivian awakened as a spirit magician. Maybe when I go back to Mosbana, there will be a lot to resolve. Father’s face, the Emperor’s message, her powers. The moment her thoughts got tangled up, Vivian’s mouth closed.

Gray shrugged his shoulders as if it was understandable to Vivian’s face, which was shaded.

“You said that you were the only spiritist in Mosbana.”

Originally, rare properties stimulate the greed of the people. Like beautiful jewels, fancy dresses, strong swords and hard shields. In that sense, her existence and ability are so rare that Vivian, a native of Mosbana, will never be let go easily. She can be used as a valuable resource for the country, or she can be hidden from other empires like a greenhouse plant.

“It’s your life, so I can’t make up my mind for you.”

Slurp.

Gray, who had had a full cup of tea, put down the teacup roughly.

“Don’t go anywhere and live being used. Don’t look down on the people who make fun of you.”

“……”

“No matter how the world changes in the future, the fact that an elementalist is precious will never change. Because we are few in this world. So wherever you go, there’s gonna be a need for your strength and a need for you. Especially since you’re good at the spirit of the earth, it’s okay to build up the land.”

Listening to her master’s lecture after a long time, Vivian burst into laughter without realizing it. Gray, whose eyebrows flared at the untimely laugh, slowly lifted himself up.

“You should head to the port. Camilla told me she’d be back soon, so I have to go now.”

“Yes.”

The two came out of the gate of the mansion. Gray was about to get on the carriage, but turned around to see if he had anything to say.

“Vivian, you.”

Vivian rolled her eyes wide. Gray, who was staring at Vivian, immediately reached out as if it wasn’t okay.

“No, it’s fine.”

“What is it?”

“Well…if there was, I would have said it first.”

Gray cut off the conversation in a proper way and got on the carriage. Vivian was a little emotional at her teacher’s obstinate attitude as usual, but seeing her master sitting in the carriage made her feel sad again.

“Thank you very much, Master.”

Gray, who was knocking on the driver’s door, hardened his body at Vivian’s appreciation. For a moment, he seemed to have turned into a stone. It was unnatural enough to make a squeaking noise when he turned to Vivian. Even though the reaction was expected, Vivian’s face was somehow pale. Their relationship was usually dry, so he couldn’t stand the embarrassing sounds.

“Oh, that’s why I said I didn’t want to see you off. It tickles my heart. Really.”

Gray murmured for some reason, his ears red. However, he seemed to be ashamed to see that he did not seem to hate it.

“Hey, Vivian. It’s not like we won’t see each other forever.”

Gray, who came to his senses, met her eyes firmly with gray pupils. Vivian nodded her head, because it was true.

“If you don’t have work, you can come to Natura. Because I have the water spirit and you have the earth spirit, they match well. Camilla doesn’t hate you either.”

Vivian gently smiled at the affection of her master who pretended not to be affectionate.

“Yes, I’ll send you a letter if I have to go visit you.”

“Yes, don’t lose the note and keep it safe.”

Gray’s hand approached and tapped Vivian’s shoulder. It was a non curvy, slender hand with rough calluses that indicated that his life was not easy. Vivian only looked at the evidence of her teacher’s hard work.

“Go back safely.”

“Yes, you too, take care of your journey to Mosvana.”

After one last good goodbye to each other, the carriage door closed, and the wheels began to roll slowly. So Vivian left an incomprehensible conversation, and the Master left.

Vivian, who was standing there until his carriage became a small dot, turned her feet while snooping her head. I was going to stop paying attention to my Master because he had never opened such an unexpected conversation before.

“Shall we go now?”

Hamel approached Vivian, who came into the mansion after seeing off her master. Thanks to Hamel, who was rushing, preparations for her return to her hometown were quickly completed. Vivian looked around the mansion where she had been for four years, just before stepping completely  out the door. The horseman climbed onto the carriage that had the maids’ bags which were  loaded one by one.

“Congratulations, lady. You’re finally going back.”

The coachman greeted me with good grace. Vivian responded with a smile and climbed onto the carriage. On the way to the port, Vivian looked out of the window. The capital of Hiddenca, a different atmosphere from Mosbana, quickly passed through her eyes, but did not reach inside Vivian’s mind.

Vivian was thinking of the man in her dreams.