Interlude 25
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By the time she graduates from the academy, Angelica’s strong crimson almond-shaped eyes often become noticeably clouded.
Angelica continues to push herself recklessly, training and studying without taking care of her body, her expression deeply preoccupied.
Unable to bear watching this, Purume gently admonishes her, 「Don’t push yourself too hard,」 to which Angelica replies, 「I’m fine…」
Purume sighs and says, 「No, you’re not fine. Come on, go to sleep,」 as she drags Angelica to bed. This exchange has become a routine between them.
Purume senses an ominous aura around Angelica. At the same time, she feels a sense of urgency, as if Angelica’s mind might snap like an overstretched string.
Looking back, Purume has been spending each day in anguish, caring for Angelica as if half of herself is being torn apart.
This is no exaggeration.
While it may be difficult for outsiders to perceive beneath Angelica’s cool exterior, Purume has poured unconditional love into her over their many years together, treating her like her own daughter and a blood-related sister at the same time.
That’s why Purume’s reliance on Yamada, a person from another world, is like a prayer to the gods—a last-ditch effort to save Angelica.
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The Elder Elves, whose existence is often romanticized in fairy tales, are said to be one of the gods who descended from the celestial realm—and this is indeed true.
It’s said that these Elder Elves, the progenitors of all elves, successfully obtained almost all the magic formulas used in this world by accessing the Akashic Records, and then spread this knowledge to the world.
Therefore, the people of this world naturally believe that one’s ability to accurately understand and execute the wisdom bestowed by the gods is paramount, leaving no room for doubt in this mindset.
As a result, the idea of creating new, non-existent magic formulas through combinations of activation procedures, formulas, activation speed, compression, diffusion, and other mana manipulations during casting is utterly inconceivable to the people of this world.
At the root of this new concept lies the rudimentary yet foreign scientific knowledge brought by Yamada, coupled with his beloved Earth-based fantasy knowledge—these two elements working in tandem.
When his knowledge and ideas meet Angelica’s mana manipulation techniques and vast mana reserves, a kind of chemical reaction occurs, elevating the very concept of magic in this world to a higher level.
In any case, Purume’s intuition proves correct, and her attempt turns out to be a resounding success.
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「I’m home!」
「Welcome back.」
「What, were you waiting for me again? I’ve told you to eat without worrying about me.」
Purume is often described as having a wise expression. In fact, there are many who deify her to the point where even mentioning her—or even having her in their field of vision—is considered presumptuous, as she’s said to be beautiful even among elves.
Purume’s image of wisdom stems from the 「untouchable」 impression that such people have of her.
But look at her now.
Her young housemate scolds her, using a nickname:
「There you go again! If I don’t cook, Puru would just munch on some weird grass and call it a meal!」
Purume sheepishly rubs her cheek with her finger, proving to be quite down-to-earth.
To give Purume some credit, she has never actually finished a meal by munching on mysterious grass.
Seated at the dinner table, Purume listens to Angelica’s daily account. Today, it’s about the new experiments she conducted with Yamada. This has been their routine ever since Purume introduced Angelica to Yamada.
Angelica speaks excitedly, her cheeks flushed, 「And then! And then!」 She’s so full of life, a stark contrast to her previous gloomy self.
「Hey! Puru! What are you smiling about?」
Me? Smiling?
「Hey, why are you touching your face like that?」
Finally, Angelica has been freed.
From a path of endless hardship.
Angelica—no, my daughter—has been released from her bound fate and can finally walk her own path.
As this thought crosses her mind, large tears naturally fall from Purume’s eyes.
「Puru?! What’s wrong?! Are you laughing and crying at the same time?!」
Well, of course I’m crying and laughing.
These emotions aren’t mutually exclusive, you know.
This time, amused by her daughter’s flustered concern, she buries her face in a cloth, her shoulders shaking as she hides her smile.
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A week has passed since Yamada and Angelica began working together at Greeneyes.
During this time, Purume often fretted, thinking things like 「Aren’t they getting a bit too close?」 or 「Maybe I should investigate if he’s really suitable for my daughter.」 However, according to a certain source, Yamada is genuinely a good young man and an unquestionably excellent catch. The only major drawback as a potential boyfriend for her daughter is the high possibility of him returning to his original world.
Moreover, based on Angelica’s daily stories, it’s clear that he has accumulated a fair amount of knowledge in his original world and is quite an accomplished individual—and then she catches herself mid-thought.
What’s this?
I’m acting like a mother who can’t let go of her child.
Well, I suppose it’s not so bad.
Alone in the guild’s office, she lets out a small chuckle.
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Looking back, perhaps this was the happiest time.
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On that day, it’s decided that Angelica will head to the town where the Light Dungeon is located, along with the Hero’s party.
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