TWRM 10

<Chapter 10>

“I’m back.”
“You’re back, nyaang!”

As soon as Selina opened the door and stepped inside, Luna came running toward her as if waiting all along.
With his tail raised high, he rubbed affectionately against the hem of her skirt.

“Did you buy my jerky, nya?”
“Ah! I forgot….”
“W–what did you say?”

Luna’s face instantly turned to one of pure despair.

“I’m sorry. I guess I forgot since there was just so much to buy.”
“So… out of all those things, none of them are for me, nya?”

His yellow eyes filled with tears, looking as though a single touch might make them fall.
Selina glanced at him, then rummaged through her basket of shopping bags.
Finally, she pulled something out and held it in front of him.

Luna, who had been staring blankly, twitched his nose at the faint scent rising to him.

“J–jerky! It’s jerky, nya!”

Luna’s confusion melted into joy as he opened his mouth wide and bit into the jerky Selina held out.

“As if I could really forget. I bought a lot, so take some whenever you want—but don’t eat too much, okay?”

She took out the rest of the jerky and stored it in a glass jar. Luna, jerky still in his mouth, hopped up onto the table.

“You even bought my favorite cheese jerky! What’s gotten into you, nya? You’ve never bought it before because it’s too expensive.”
“Well, we won’t be together for the next six months, so we’d better make the most of the two weeks we have left.”

“Nya…?”

Thud.

Luna froze mid-chew and dropped his jerky.

“N–nyaaang… You mean I really can’t go with you?”
“It’s part of the Academy’s regulations. What can I do?”

Of course, she could bring him by other means, but his reactions were always too funny to resist teasing him.
Feigning distress, she covered her face with one hand and secretly peeked through her fingers.
Would he tear up again this time?

Luna was staring down at the fallen jerky.
His head drooped low, hiding his expression. Curious, Selina leaned closer to see—

—and immediately stepped back with her mouth agape.
A white divine aura was rippling around Luna’s body.

Her mind went blank, and a primal fear seized her.
The air grew so heavy she could hardly breathe or even stand.

[No matter what it takes… I’ll enter that Academy. How should I do it?]

An overwhelming, godlike presence emanated from him.

[Ah, right. Should I start by brainwashing the headmaster?]

This was a sight that appeared only when Luna—no, Lunios—was angry or acting in earnest.
If this continued, the innocent Academy faculty might really end up brainwashed by a god.

That would be disastrous. Selina yelled out in a hurry—

“It—it was a lie!”
[What?]

His eyes, now dark navy, turned toward her.

“Animals aren’t allowed inside, but familiars are! You can even stay with me all day long!”

[……]

A brief silence fell.
The distorted air slowly returned to normal, and Selina gasped for breath as the suffocating pressure lifted.

Without another word, Lunios quietly set his raised foot down.

“You should’ve just said that earlier, nya~!”

In the blink of an eye, he was back to his usual cheerful, catlike self.
The divine figure from moments ago had vanished as if it were never there.

Luna plopped down on the table, grasping his jerky with small black paws and munching happily.
Relieved to see his good mood return, Selina silently let out a breath of relief.

Reminding herself that Luna was, in fact, a god, Selina made a firm vow:

“I must never tease him again.”

If she did, she was certain she wouldn’t live to see another day.

A week after receiving her admission notice.

Late one afternoon, a delivery arrived.
It was the clothing she had bought while shopping with Mie a few days ago.
Now that the alterations were finished, everything had been shipped together, filling the parcel to the brim.

“That was faster than I expected.”

Selina separated Mie’s clothes from her own and began folding them neatly.

“Nyaang! What’s this?”

Luna, pacing beside her, nudged something that had fallen on the floor.
Picking it up, Selina found a letter without any sender’s name.

“What’s this about?”

After examining both sides, she unfolded it.

“What does it say, nya?”
“…It’s from that clerk I gave advice to at the clothing store. Looks like that thing really happened.”
“Advice? You saw the future, nya?”
“Yeah. Thankfully, nothing bad happened. She’s just thanking me.”

The letter contained a long story about what the clerk had experienced and a note of gratitude to Selina.

At the end, it read:

If you ever need new clothes, please visit our atelier anytime. For Miss Selina, our doors will always be open. — From Emma.

“It’s a relief nothing bad happened, nya.”
“Yeah… it is.”

Selina stared down at the letter with mixed emotions.

It wasn’t the first time this had happened.
Sometimes she would suddenly see a glimpse of someone’s ominous future.
She was too soft-hearted to ignore it.

In the past, as a child, she would warn people to be careful—but it never ended well.
At first, they dismissed her as a witch. But when her warning came true, they began to fear her instead.
Some even believed she had caused those misfortunes.

People always feared what they didn’t understand and kept their distance.

After enduring this pattern several times, Selina had learned to stay silent.
But her meddlesome nature hadn’t changed—and luckily, this time, everything turned out fine.

Jingle jingle!

Late that night, the guests she’d been expecting finally arrived.

“Welcome.”
“I’m not too late, am I?”
“Not at all—you’re right on time.”
“Hi, Selina!”

It was Bigster and his daughter, Becky.
They had come to check on the magic tools Selina had asked them to prepare.

“So, did you bring everything?”
“Of course. I brought all the ones we had in the shop.”

Selina handed over a box full of pre-packed magic devices.

“Phew. There’s a lot, so we’d better get to work.”

Bigster took a seat at the empty table and began pulling out the tools one by one.
Becky didn’t sit beside him; instead, she ran over to Selina with a bright smile.

“I didn’t get a chance to talk last time. It’s been so long! How’ve you been?”
“Good, of course. I heard you’re entering the Academy too?”
“Yep! You too, right? Dad told me.”
“Yeah, it just sort of happened. Honestly, I thought you’d inherit your dad’s business—it’s a bit of a surprise.”
“I just wanted to see more of the world, so I applied!”

Becky placed her hands on her hips and laughed heartily.

“Becky! If you slack off, I’m docking your pay!”
“Hey! That’s not fair!”

Becky grumbled at her father’s scolding but returned to his side.
The two bickered as usual before focusing seriously on inspecting the magic tools.

“Jerry, bring me the screwdriver.”
Squeak squeak!

At Becky’s call, a brown rat popped out of her arms.
The rat—about the length of her forearm—scurried around the scattered items, found the screwdriver, and handed it to her.

Whenever Becky gave another command, Jerry obeyed without hesitation, moving skillfully from one task to another.

“Nyaang?”
Squeak!

Jerry flinched at Luna’s sudden appearance but quickly regained his composure and hid near Becky.

Selina had always passed Luna off as her familiar, but this was her first time seeing a real familiar.
Seeing one in person, they really did look like ordinary animals.

“All done.”

Just as she was watching Jerry’s twitching tail, the repairs were finished.
The refurbished magic tools lay neatly across the floor.

“Now, go ahead and test them.”

Following Bigster’s instruction, Selina tested each one: the voice-modulation device that mimicked Madam’s tone, the illusion tool that produced thick fog—all were working perfectly.

Everything the “Moonlight Veil” (her shop) needed was in order.

“Excellent. You’re the best, as always.”
“If they act up again, just call me. Oh, and here—”

Bigster took something out of his coat.

“It’s what you asked for last time. I even prepared a spare.”
“Ah, thank you so much.”

Inside the small accessory box were a necklace and earrings, both made of tiny red gemstones.
It was clever to disguise a magic device as jewelry—such a thoughtful touch.

“The necklace is the main device. The spell isn’t on the gem itself, but on its base. Be careful with that part. Same for the earrings.”
“Are the earrings magical too?”
“Yeah. Just in case you lose the necklace, the earrings act as backups.”

He continued explaining.

“Normally, wear both at the same time. If you happen to lose the necklace, the earrings alone will maintain the spell for about a week. But if that happens, you must tell me—or this one.”

He pointed at Becky.

“Thank you. Um, how much do I owe you?”
“Forget it. It’s a gift.”
“What? But—”

Bigster patted her shoulder with his large hand.

“Just take it. I’ll charge you next time when you bring something for repair.”
“Yeah, you should! Who knows when this stingy old man will ever give another present?”

Becky chimed in teasingly, and Bigster immediately hooked her by the neck with his arm.

Becky screamed and flailed as he held her in a headlock, and Selina burst into laughter at the sight of their usual comic banter.