Chapter 31.
Felicia and Fogos had decided to occasionally meet before or after classes, or whenever they had time, to talk about spirits.
They were curious about how I had managed to summon a mid-level spirit so easily and what I thought about the element of water.
Even though I told them there was no special secret, the questions never stopped.
In the end, they only looked satisfied and left after I promised to occasionally help out with their practice.
After attending my remaining classes and eating dinner, I headed to the First Library.
There were still quite a few people there—especially upper-year students—reading and studying.
I quietly sat at a desk in the back.
The library closes at ten. After that time, the entrances to all lecture halls and buildings are securely locked.
As I passed the time flipping through a few books, I couldn’t help but laugh at myself for wasting time here because of their absurd suggestion.
Still, a quiet voice inside me whispered: isn’t it worth trying just once? A chance to drastically enhance my spirit-handling abilities?
That was enough to keep me here.
As night deepened, students gradually began to leave.
I got up from my seat and quietly made my way to a far corner of the library.
It was a section of shelves filled with ancient literature from before the Empire—an area rarely visited unless someone got lost between the tall and complex stacks.
I crouched down between the bookshelves. Dust floated lazily in the dim corridor where barely any light reached.
‘What’s this?’
While absentmindedly following the dust with my eyes, I noticed something stuffed above the books on the bottom shelf.
‘A blanket?’
“It’s closing time. Please finish up and exit.”
When I pulled it out, it turned out to be a red blanket. As I blinked in confusion at the random object, the librarian shouted loudly.
The dozen or so students who remained quietly packed up and left one by one.
I hugged my knees close and sharpened my senses. I could hear the librarian organizing something and walking around.
Soon, she began checking if anyone was still left in the library.
Her footsteps slowly approached the section where the ancient literature was shelved.
“Undine.”
I whispered softly. Pop! A sparkling water spirit appeared in midair.
I leaned in and whispered instructions to her.
“Go over there and…”
A moment later, the irritated voice of the librarian echoed through the quiet library.
“Ah, how many times have I said not to drink in the library! Who spilled water here? Honestly, students these days!”
Her footsteps quickly retreated. She continued grumbling about students not appreciating books as she cleaned the floor.
I could hear the soft swish of a mop.
Undine returned and winked with one of her tiny eyes.
“Good job.”
I smiled and praised her. She beamed happily before returning to the spirit realm.
The librarian didn’t come back to this side. I heard her putting away the mop and then thud—the library door closed.
If I listened carefully, I could hear the faint sound of a lock turning. There were a few tugs on the door to make sure it was securely locked, and then everything went quiet.
“Phew.”
I finally exhaled deeply. The wall clock showed it was well past 10:30.
Now all that was left was to wait.
“It’s cold…”
The air was chilly. Shivering, I pulled the unknown blanket over myself.
As the night deepened, I couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of anticipation.
Even though I told myself it was nonsense, tried to suppress the excitement, my heart pounded louder and louder.
I sat there for a long time.
When only ten minutes remained until midnight—
Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.
‘What the—?!’
Startled, I clutched the blanket tightly.
‘Do ghosts have footsteps?’
No way. But what I heard outside the door was clearly the sound of footsteps.
‘A student? A librarian? At this hour? Who?’
Whoever it was, the fact that someone was coming here at this time was strange enough.
I heard the lock rattle and then the door opened.
Creak.
The sound of the door opening echoed unusually loud in the quiet library.
A mysterious midnight visitor stepped inside and closed the door behind them.
For some reason, the footsteps seemed to be coming closer—toward me.
“Undine.”
I stood and quietly summoned the spirit again. With her calmly guarding my back, I felt slightly reassured, though still tense.
I gripped the blanket tightly. The approaching footsteps and my own heartbeat mixed into an indistinguishable roar.
I was ready to attack if necessary. Every hair on my body stood on end. The footsteps came straight in my direction.
When the mysterious figure finally appeared from beyond the bookshelf, I gasped and blurted the name out without thinking.
“Claude?”
His eyes also widened in surprise.
Oops. Seeing his expression made me realize what I’d just said.
I quickly corrected myself.
“…Greetings to His Highness, Prince Valentin.”
After our confrontation in the forest, I had mentally abandoned all honorifics toward him—and sometimes even referred to him with curses.
Claude Valentin stood frozen in place, neither stepping forward nor retreating, looking just as flustered as I was.
Though his expression quickly settled, I could tell he was just as caught off guard.
‘What the hell is he doing here?’
He was two years ahead of me, and we didn’t share any classes. He was usually off-campus.
So it had been a while since we last met.
If you could call this unfortunate accident a reunion.
Being alone with Claude Valentin in the middle of the night brought back bad memories.
My nerves began to awaken, strand by strand. Even before I fully tensed up, Undine sensed it from behind and shifted.
Her gentle, swaying presence turned heavy. The spirit’s aura filled the air.
I swallowed hard.
“That blanket… it’s mine.”
“…What?”
He pointed to the red blanket I was clutching without realizing.
“I said, that’s mine.”
“Oh.”
Still dazed, I handed him the blanket, which he then casually wrapped around himself.
Without a word, he walked away from the shelves.
“Wait—”
He’s just leaving? To where?
I reached out in confusion, but Prince Claude didn’t even run. He calmly moved farther away.
I followed him through the shelves.
He went to the center of the library, pushed a few desks together, and climbed on top of them.
Once he had enough space, he lay down, covered himself with the blanket up to his toes, folded his arms behind his head, and closed his eyes.
[What a strange human.]
Undine murmured.
Even when I approached, the prince didn’t budge, eyes shut tight.
“What are you doing?”
The tension that had filled the narrow space between the bookshelves, the wariness that prickled at me—all of it was gone. Only disbelief lingered in my voice.
“…”
“Your Highness.”
“…”
“Won’t you at least say something? Isn’t this a strange situation, even to you?”
“Leave.”
“…What?”
The prince answered without even opening his eyes.
“Leave. I have nothing to say to you. I swore I’d never speak to you or even glance your way again. Don’t you remember?”
Right. Now that he mentioned it, I did remember.
Before we got into our second major argument, he had practically begged me to let him go and said something like that.
But—
“Didn’t that vow end the moment you let go of the restaurant door on purpose?”
Finally, he opened his eyes.
Only the fragmented moonlight spilling through the windows lit the room, and in that pale glow, his pale gray-blue eyes merged with the darkness, hard to distinguish.
For some reason, it reminded me of the eyes that had held me captive as I climbed the podium steps back then. Perhaps it was the moon’s fickle magic.
Claude Valentin at twenty-one.
The image of his older, tired face, the one that had never looked away from me, overlaid like a hallucination on his young features.
As soon as he blinked, the illusion shattered. I staggered slightly. Dizzy.
He glared at me, then closed his eyes again and turned his back.
His voice rumbled through the table.
“The longer I talk to you, the more likely we are to fight. Let’s spare ourselves that. It’s late and the night is deep. Can’t you leave me alone?”
I ignored him and pulled out a chair to sit. He let out a low, irritated groan.
“You really don’t listen to a word anyone says.”
“Isn’t that true for you as well, Your Highness?”
Our banter felt like a comedic skit, and yet something about it felt strange.
My heart felt lighter. Thinking of Claude before the regression, the weight lifted.
Maybe it was the moon’s mischief. I wanted to believe that.
Sensing my change in attitude—or realizing I wouldn’t back down—Claude turned his head and looked at me.
As I calmly met his gaze, he sighed deeply and tidied his messy hair, then sat up.
“At least dismiss that monstrous spirit if you want to talk.”
“Of course.”
I looked at her, and Undine gave a small nod before returning to the spirit realm.
The prince climbed down from his makeshift bed and sat in the chair across from me. He draped the red blanket over himself without much care.
Even with tired eyes, his tongue was sharp.
“So? What ruinous conversation and long-winded nonsense were you hoping for when you stayed and woke me up, Miss Estelle?”
