Younger Sister

"Ah-choo!"

In the temple plaza, Elvily was walking with Iris when she suddenly sneezed. She quickly covered her mouth to preserve her image, then muttered, "That's weird. Why can I still sneeze in Void Arts Space...?"

Iris teased, "Maybe someone in Void Arts Space is thinking about you?"

Elvily rolled her eyes and couldn't be bothered to respond.

Iris smiled and brought up the real reason she'd come. "Have you ever thought about what you'd call Lord Black if he really is still alive?"

Elvily gave a quiet snort. "I'm not calling him brother-in-law, that's for sure."

In truth, she and Karl Black had no real grudge against each other. All her dislike stemmed from her own personal grievances.

There were three things she'd never been able to let go of.

The first was her sister, Delilah.

Her sister had always been a very aloof person, with an exceptional talent for the occult. Their mother had raised her as her successor from a young age, and Delilah herself had been deeply committed to her career. She'd liked conducting her research alone and had never shown men the slightest bit of warmth. She had little patience for women, too—except for her little sister, whom she doted on. But ever since she'd met Black, her sister had "fallen from grace"—at least, that was how Elvily saw it.

Elvily's memories hadn't fully returned, but she remembered that after her sister fell in love with Black, she spent far less time with her. That was especially true when Elvily was fourteen. Her sister was supposed to arrive on time for her coming-of-age ceremony, but after spending the previous night doing scandalous things with Black, she'd worn herself out and missed half the banquet.

Elvily had been so jealous!

The second was the Holy See's Saintess, Oliya.

That man already had her sister, yet he'd gone and courted the Saintess, too. Elvily didn't know which of them came first, but there was hardly any difference. Either way, he was rotten to the core. And her sister had even indulged him. She knew he had someone else on the side, but chose to turn a blind eye. How could that be the same aloof, proud sister she'd once known, the one who couldn't stand even the tiniest flaw?

Elvily had been deeply indignant on her sister's behalf.

The third was Black's "death."

Judging by the statue blinking its eyes the last time, Black might not be dead at all. But that only made Elvily even more dissatisfied. If he was still alive, why hadn't he contacted her sister all this time?

In the memories she had now, Black's death had been "confirmed." Not just her—even everyone else believed it.

Back then, Black had been obsessed with the Divine Path. Then one day, he was simply gone, without even saying goodbye. They hadn't known how he died; all they'd had was the notion that he was "dead."

Her sister had been so distraught that she could barely eat or sleep. She'd started conducting research day and night, like one of those mad occultists, trying to distract herself. It had nearly broken Elvily's heart to see her like that.

But now it seemed Black might never have died. He'd merely used a mind-altering forbidden spell to change everyone's perception.

He was capable of doing that. The statues were proof.

Many people believed the statues' faces were indistinct because the passage of time had worn them away. But they'd forgotten one thing: Void Arts Space was a spiritual domain. How could the weathering of time affect it? The truth was that Karl Black had added an effect that interfered with people's perceptions, for reasons unknown, so they couldn't make out the statues' faces.

The same was true of their memories.

Every wizard here knew of Karl Black, but no one remembered what he looked like. Even Kate, who worshiped Black fanatically, could only draw a faceless figure when asked to paint a portrait of him.

In short, Elvily didn't like her brother-in-law.

She still couldn't understand what was so great about that man. Did her sister really have to love him so much?

If it were her, she'd never fall for such a two-timing bastard.

But in the end, these were all family matters, and they'd happened long ago. She wouldn't let those feelings carry over too much into this life.

Void Arts Space needed Black, and so did the wizards being hunted. Besides, if Black was still alive, he'd be the only family member she currently knew of in this life. So, despite disliking him, Elvily hoped he really hadn't died.

"Glad you can see it that way," Iris joked. "Now I don't have to worry about being on the opposite side of you and Kate if we ever end up fighting."

If Black really appeared before everyone one day and Elvily got into an argument with him, Kate and the others would surely take Black's side. Iris admired the legendary figure who had ushered in the Scholar Era, too, but she'd have to stand by Elvily despite the pressure. After all, she and Miss Flame Crow were good friends.

As far as she was concerned, personal ties came before duty.

"Don't worry. I know better than to lose sight of what matters," Elvily said.

Besides, she didn't look the way she used to. There was no guarantee Black would recognize her.

The two women chatted as they headed toward North Street. As they reached the entrance, they suddenly heard a murmur:

"Elvily..."

It was a man's voice, and it sounded a little familiar.

Elvily instinctively turned toward the voice and saw that the person calling her name was Sean...?!

And the guy had his eyes closed.

Elvily: "?"

Iris couldn't hold back her laughter and gave the girl a knowing look. "Well? I told you someone in Void Arts Space was thinking about you."

Elvily: "..."

Wait, wasn't this guy meditating?

Why was he calling her name?

Was his meditation vision somehow connected to her??

Some of the wizards nearby were already glancing over with odd looks. They were wondering if the young man had spotted Miss Elvily and was deliberately calling out her name.

Otherwise, how could anyone see another wizard while meditating—and just happen to see someone who'd only just walked up beside him?

"I'd say there's a good chance this guy's trying to get Miss Elvily's attention!"

Listening to the murmured speculation, even Elvily, who was used to being the center of attention, felt embarrassed.

If Sean was doing it on purpose, that was one thing. But if he wasn't, and had actually seen her while meditating, who knew what they might do in there?

Elvily bit her lip slightly. She really wanted to wake the strange guy up and tell him not to let his imagination run wild, but she was afraid of disturbing his cultivation.

Meditation was a long process. Whether it increased one's magic power depended entirely on whether one could make it through the final step. It was like getting hungry one day and wanting a good meal, then going to all the trouble of making a grand feast. Until you actually ate it, you'd still feel hungry.

If Sean was at a critical moment right now and she woke him up, all his efforts would go to waste, and he'd lose several hours for nothing.

She didn't want to be a petty, mean woman.

But if she didn't do that, was she supposed to let him keep calling her name in front of everyone?

It felt really strange!

Elvily realized she was still too softhearted. In the end, she couldn't bring herself to do it.

But Sean woke up on his own.

As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Elvily and Iris standing on either side of him.

"Huh?"

"What are you two doing here?"

Sean dusted himself off and stood up. Thinking North Street wasn't a good place to talk, he asked, "Want to go outside?"

Iris said, "Sure."

Elvily stayed silent, glaring fiercely at Sean as if she wanted to gobble him up. She looked adorably ferocious.

Sean was completely baffled.

What was up with his little sister-in-law?

Iris snickered. "Looks like Mr. Sean doesn't know he was talking in his sleep just now?"

Sean: "?"

Talking in his sleep?

Could wizards talk in their sleep while meditating?

Remembering the intense scene that had just shaken the very foundations of the world, Sean couldn't help feeling nervous. "What did I say? Nothing indecent, I hope?"

"Not at all. On the contrary, Mr. Sean's sleep talk was quite elegant." Iris glanced at Elvily and said in a rather suggestive tone, "You were murmuring our Miss Flame Crow's name."

Sean: "Huh?"

He looked at the girl and was immediately met with her fierce glare.

Sean: "..."

No wonder she looked ready to eat him.

Iris, delighted to watch the drama unfold, blinked and asked, "I'm curious what Mr. Sean saw during his meditation this time. Would you share it with us?"

Elvily added indignantly, "No lying!"

Sean: "..."

If I don't lie, you might kill me.

So Sean put on a bewildered expression and said, utterly confused, "Did you hear wrong? I didn't even see Miss Elvily. How could I have called her name?"

"Is that so?" Iris smiled mysteriously. "Then something must have happened that had to do with her, right?"

"Nothing, I don't think?" Sean pretended to think it over, his gaze turning distant with recollection. "If I had to say, this meditation really was different from the last one. I'd taken a Spirit Potion, and when I was at my most helpless, on the verge of starving to death, a light appeared that shouldn't have been there..."

"A light?"

"Yeah." Sean nodded. "There was a goddess in the light. I couldn't make out what she looked like, but I could tell she was beautiful. She gave me food, so I didn't starve to death. There was no one else in the whole scene except her and me... Wait a second!"

As he spoke, Sean seemed to suddenly realize something. He looked at the girl in astonishment. "Could that goddess have been you?"

Elvily: "?"

Iris: "?"

So, under the effects of the Spirit Potion, this guy had seen an incredibly beautiful goddess. He hadn't known her, but subconsciously believed that Elvily was just as beautiful, so he'd called out her name without thinking and mistaken the goddess for her?

Elvily: "..."

What kind of nonsense was that?

And yet, for some reason, she didn't seem so angry anymore.

"It wasn't me." If it really had been her, she wouldn't have saved Sean. She'd have let him starve to death... Elvily huffed. "Don't call out my name like that again."

He didn't care about his reputation, but she did.

Sean said innocently, "I can't control that. I didn't even know people talked in their sleep while meditating."

Iris teased, "Maybe it's because you think about her too much?"

Elvily: "?"

"Be quiet, Iris."

"All right, Miss Flame Crow."

Iris agreed with a smile, then gave Sean a meaningful look. Her intuition told her this man's vision hadn't been as simple as seeing a goddess. There had to be more to the story.

Sean felt uncomfortable under her gaze and quickly changed the subject. "Did you two come here to meditate, too?"

"No. If we wanted to meditate, we wouldn't come to North Street. We'd go to the temple," Iris said.

During the Scholar Era, the Hall of Truth had itself been an "academy." Wizards who could enter the temple would naturally choose to meditate there. There were libraries on the first and second floors, too, and most questions that came up during meditation could be answered there.

Iris hadn't mentioned the temple just to show off to Sean... All right, maybe a little. People couldn't help emphasizing their own advantages from time to time. But more than anything, she wanted to encourage him.

Iris had always thought Sean was talented. If he worked hard, he should be able to enter the Hall of Truth. Then he could move into any vacant dorm room and talk in his sleep all he wanted, without anyone finding out.

She didn't know Sean could already enter the temple's second floor. Sean, too, had forgotten that he could go meditate in the temple. Iris's words made him realize he'd gotten too used to the lower ranks. He wouldn't come to North Street next time.

He continued, "Then what did you come here for?"

"To find you," Elvily replied.

She hadn't known whether Sean was here; she'd just come to see. If he wasn't, that would be that. If he was, she wanted to give him a warning: it'd be best not to come to Void Arts Space for the next few days, because Sean's situation might be dangerous.

"Old Sigel City's police station has already made a move. Be careful."