~Chapter 31~
Sunlight streamed through the window and landed on Peril’s skin.
The way he looked in that moment—so radiant—almost felt holy.
I found myself staring at him, dazed for a second.
Peril noticed and smirked.
“Looks like you have good taste after all.”
Ugh. How annoying.
Sure, I was a little caught off guard—but he was so arrogant, I didn’t want to admit it.
“Anyone would react like me if someone suddenly looked that different.”
“Hmm. That’s funny. Your gaze was really intense, though.”
W-When did I look at him like that?!
He was totally exaggerating.
“Jokes like that aren’t funny. Don’t say things like that again.”
“Don’t want to.”
Ugh.
As if the high and mighty Tower Master would ever listen to me.
I took out a pouch from inside my clothes to change the subject.
“Here’s the root of the World Tree, like you asked.”
It had been wriggling inside the pouch—honestly, it looked alive.
Peril casually took the pouch and asked,
“So, how did it feel to visit the world where the heavens once lived?”
To be honest, the whole “heavens lived here” thing felt more like a fairy tale.
Sure, no people had lived there for a long time, but still…
The forest was much smaller than I imagined.
Could the heavens really have lived there?
“It wasn’t an easy place.”
Everything in the forest felt strange.
But what bothered me the most was Ailins.
I didn’t remember every detail of the original story perfectly, but I was sure Ailins wasn’t someone who did anything to gain power.
It was the opposite—she wanted to share her power with others.
The priest said her name was erased from history.
But in the story I remembered, Ailins had been honored throughout the empire.
She had helped build the foundation for imperial magic.
Then one day, she suddenly disappeared.
But the Empire continued to remember her and hoped her descendant would appear and bring back the glory of magic.
That descendant was supposed to be Idette.
In the story, when the World Tree failed to grow again at the temple, Idette was the one who helped it bloom again.
Thanks to that, she became the hero of magic’s revival in the Empire and earned the love of the three male leads.
That’s how I remembered the original story.
Idette was able to wake Peril from his long sleep because she had inherited Ailins’s power.
Did I change the original story by trying to save Grandpa?
No… Ailins’s name had already been erased before I got here.
Which meant—the story had already changed before I entered this world…
“Saying things like that carelessly will get you in trouble.”
Peril muttered as if talking to himself.
“Can’t tell if you’re fearless or just thoughtless.”
Ugh. Just say you think I’m dumb.
“You’re still mad I called you an idiot, aren’t you?”
“Revenge? Me? Don’t be ridiculous.”
Peril clicked his tongue.
I sighed softly, then finally brought up something that had been bothering me for a while.
“Um… is there a way to erase or alter someone’s memories with magic?”
“It’s faster to ask what can’t be done with magic.”
“Then… can you bring back lost memories too?”
When I asked, Peril narrowed his eyes at me.
It was hard to tell what he was thinking as he stared directly at me.
I swallowed nervously, and then he finally answered, a bit vaguely:
“It depends on the situation.”
“What kind of situation?”
“If someone else intentionally meddled with your memory, then yes, it’s possible.”
He lightly tapped my forehead with his fingers.
“But if you erased your own memories to protect yourself, then it’s harder.”
“But I thought magic could do anything?”
“I never said it was impossible.”
He quickly replied, looking slightly offended.
“It can be done. But if we try to forcefully bring back the memories, your mind might not be able to handle it.”
Yeah… magic that messes with the mind probably isn’t easy.
“So… is it possible to tell if someone else erased my memory or if I did it myself?”
He was slow to respond this time.
“Is that your wish?”
He was referring to the “wish” I earned as a reward for saving Idette before.
Hearing that, all the strength left my body.
“Wow, seriously? That’s so petty.”
“See? You’re just way too fearless sometimes.”
“What else am I supposed to call petty behavior? I’m calling it what it is!”
Ugh. Using a wish for something like this?
So stingy!
“Forget it. I’m saving my wish for something even bigger.”
“Just don’t go asking someone else, okay? Memory magic is complicated and dangerous.”
But… Ailins had said something strange.
“You must not forget what happened with that child. You promised me.”
That meant there was someone else involved in this forgotten memory.
If I really erased my own memory, why didn’t that person do anything?
It must’ve been important if I made a promise to Ailins.
And the worst part was—I couldn’t even guess who “that child” might be.
We must’ve been close if we went somewhere together with Ailins…
…Or maybe they lost their memory too?
I quietly asked Peril:
“When you said not to go to another mage… does that mean my memory is one of the harder cases?”
Basically, I was asking if I had erased it myself.
Peril gave a short laugh, like he could see right through me.
But he also seemed to realize he had been acting a bit unfair.
So, this time, he answered honestly:
“…It’s not that hard.”
Okay. That means someone else erased my memory.
“I take back what I said about you being petty, then.”
“Oh, please.”
Still… someone messed with my memory?
I hadn’t even imagined that.
Peril reached out and lightly flicked my forehead, almost like a warning.
“If you go asking weirdos for help and end up messed up, don’t say I didn’t warn you. Just come to me, got it?”
“I promise.”
(Though, honestly… who knows if I’ll keep that promise.)
***
And just as expected, my promise didn’t last very long.
Should I go look for another mage…?
Sure, if I used my wish with Peril, everything would be solved.
But I was saving that wish as a last resort—
If I couldn’t find a way to return home, then I’d beg Peril for help as my final hope.
I felt a little guilty toward Ailins, but honestly, going back home was more important than getting my memories back.
As I thought that, I checked the time—it was already 5 p.m.
Why is Rayla so late?
She was the one who invited me to go to the village festival!
The air was hot and sticky, making it hard to breathe.
But judging by the sky, it didn’t look like it would rain.
I moved to a shady spot.
Soon after, I spotted Rayla running toward me, waving her arms.
“Bianca!”
“…Wow, you’re so early.”
“Sorry, sorry! There were so many people. It took forever to get through!”
She gave me an awkward smile and hooked her arm through mine.
“There are lots of events going on already.”
“So you had time to watch them?”
“I was checking things out so I could show you, of course!”
Always full of excuses.
“But seriously… why this sudden interest in a festival?”
Rayla was never the type to enjoy crowded, noisy events like this.
Looking around carefully, she leaned close and whispered in my ear:
“I heard there’s something strange happening tonight at Whale Beach.”
Whale Beach was near Dians Village, where the festival was being held.
Her words caught my attention.
“…Something strange?”
“Yeah. My nanny used to live in Dians Village.”
I tried asking what the strange thing was, but she refused to tell me.
“You’ll find out later! It’ll ruin the surprise if I tell you now!”
Well, she wasn’t wrong…
“Anyway, let’s eat first!”
She grabbed my hand and pulled me along in a hurry.
I sighed quietly as I let her drag me away.
To be honest… I didn’t really care what we did.
I just hoped I wouldn’t run into Idette… or any of her annoying admirers.
