Good Morning

When the morning sunlight of the next day streamed through the window into the room, Alicia opened her eyes in a daze.

The fire before her was nearly out, leaving only rose-colored charcoal and white ash. Then she noticed the black coat draped over her.

Alicia immediately woke up. She tried to rise quickly from her seat, but the crisp crack of her bones made her freeze in place.

Pain spread through her body from the bottom up. She let out a low groan and sat back down. Only then did she remember that she was no longer the person she had been in her twenties.

She raised her knobby hands and touched her face, feeling the sagging skin and wrinkles. Her mood could not have been worse.

She looked toward the fire, then hurriedly added more firewood from a basket at the side and raked away some of the ash.

It had to be said that the owner of this castle was far too lazy. There was enough ash piled up in the hearth to fertilize several acres of land.

As fresh wood was added, orange-red flames began to burn among the logs, small and curling. Then, a face sprang out from the gaps.

"Good morning!" Cassifa said warmly. "Did you sleep well last night? You could have slept on the sofa beside you. It would have been more comfortable."

"Thank you for the thought, but I wish you'd said that sooner," Alicia said. "My body hurts so much I can't even stand."

Then she looked at the black coat on her. "Whose coat is this, and who put it over me?"

Though she asked, Alicia already knew the answer. Her sense of smell was still sharp, and she had danced with the owner of that scent the night before last.

"Did he come back?" Alicia asked with concern.

"Two hours after you fell asleep," Cassifa said.

Alicia instinctively turned to look at the staircase behind her. Once she saw that no one was coming down, she lowered her voice and asked Cassifa.

"Did he say anything about me showing up uninvited?"

"Don't worry, I'm a fire demon! Even if it's only for the sake of Lord Cassifa here, he'll let you stay for one night!" Cassifa blazed fiercely as he spoke with confidence.

"That wasn't what you said last night," Alicia teased.

"Cough, cough." Cassifa coughed twice. "No matter what, a contract goes both ways."

"So exactly how much did he give you to make you work for him like this?" Alicia asked curiously.

"You know I can't say."

Alicia sighed helplessly. "What an annoying kind of magic."

She forced herself up from her seat, her entire body creaking. Then she hobbled toward the window she had paid no attention to the night before.

To her surprise, the view outside was not Romir Town but a port city. She saw a sloping, unpaved street, rather shabby houses on both sides, and tall ship masts rising behind them.

Farther away, she could see the glittering sea, where many fishing boats were sailing.

"Where are we?" Alicia turned back toward Cassifa in surprise.

"A southern town called Eagle's Horn. It's also where the castle's internal structure, as well as my true body, is actually located."

"Fine."

After everything that had happened the previous day, she had become numb to such things. She began to inspect the place seriously.

It was somewhat smaller than she had imagined. Black beams hung low from the ceiling, though that might have been because the floor above had more space.

It had been too dark to examine it carefully when she arrived last night, but now that she looked, it was shockingly filthy. Besides the ash piled in the hearth, the wooden floorboards were covered in grease and slick to the touch, while dusty cobwebs hung from the rafters.

Alicia casually wiped a table beside her, and her fingers were immediately coated in dust. She glanced at the sink to the left of the stove, stared at the pink-and-gray slime inside it and the slime dripping from the pump above, and could not help shuddering.

To be honest, her former impression of Shaya had been that he was mysterious, elegant, and a perfect gentleman. Judging by how the Wilderness Witch had come to curse her over him, he must have been quite charming as well.

But now, that image had been shaken a little. She recalled Cassifa saying that Shaya was a very easygoing person.

It seemed that this easygoing nature was somewhat connected to laziness.

Alicia looked at the stairs once more. He still had not come down, and she had no intention of going upstairs to find him. She walked toward the door, wanting to take a look outside.

She had never seen the sea in her life. Standing by the door, she carefully opened it, but she clearly was not familiar with how it worked. She turned the handle, and with a ding, the four-colored dial on the door turned green.

The door slowly opened. Alicia stared blankly at the mountain scenery moving past before her, watched heather sweep beneath the door as the castle moved, felt the mountain breeze brush through her hair, and listened to the castle's rumbling and creaking.

She shut the door again, tried turning the handle once more, and opened it. The port town appeared before her.

A woman came out of the house opposite, trying to sweep dust into the street. Behind the house, a huge sail was being raised up a mast, startling a flock of seagulls that soared over the glittering sea.

Then what was yellow?

Curious, Alicia repeated her earlier actions. A faint smell of kerosene mixed with dampness. Elegant carriages traveled through the streets, wealthy people walked about, and the buildings lining the road were taller and more splendid than those in Eagle's Horn Town.

Although Alicia spent most of her time within the palace, she was very familiar with the smell of the Imperial Capital's streets. She recognized the place almost instantly.

"This is a Sorcerer's castle," Alicia muttered to herself.

Tap, tap~

Slow footsteps sounded behind her, feet stepping down the wooden stairs. Alicia instinctively turned around.

Someone came down the stairs.

He was tall and slender, with messy black hair that fell to the middle of his neck and sleepy black eyes that carried a quiet, languid air. He saw her as well. Casually leaning against the stair railing, he spoke with a faint smile on his lips.

"Good morning, uninvited guest."

Alicia was silent for a moment before replying.

"Good morning."