chapter 03
Asha truly left the village holding Trisha in her arms and carried her all the way to the city.
Fortunately, the village where Trisha had been wasn’t too far from the city.
“Wait here for a moment.”
As soon as they arrived at the large square, Asha gently put Trisha down.
“Where are you going?”
Wait here? Surely he’s not just going to take me to the city and leave me, is he? Trisha instinctively grabbed the edge of Asha’s coat. He looked down at her with a deliberately surprised expression.
“I have nowhere to go. Keep taking me with you!”
“Huh.”
Asha let out a faint chuckle at the child’s bold demand. Trisha knew that Asha wasn’t the kind of person to abandon a lost child.
“I’ll just step out for a moment, so wait here.”
“…Really? You’re not leaving me behind?”
“What kind of person do you take me for?”
Only after receiving repeated assurances did Trisha, reluctantly, let go of Asha’s coat.
As Asha walked away, Trisha perched herself on the fountain in the center of the square and waited.
The water droplets sparkled beautifully in the sunlight. Her reflection rippled across the fountain, and for the first time, Trisha could truly see herself.
Her black hair looked dry, and her eyes were red. Though her small, childlike figure matched her diminished size, it was unmistakably her face.
“No wonder he thought I was his daughter.”
She understood Asha’s reaction. Though the feeling in her heart was still bitter.
Staring blankly at her reflection, Trisha looked down at her hands.
“It really is different.”
Like a small wound that goes unnoticed until it stings, from the moment she realized the change, she continuously felt her magic.
The magic that always filled her surroundings with life had now become destructive.
“Is this a curse from an evil god?”
If it were a curse, it would explain both why she couldn’t speak and why her magic had changed.
Trisha gripped her robe tightly.
“Hey.”
“Huh? When did you get here?”
“Just now.”
He said he’d only be gone briefly—and it was true. Trisha widened her eyes as she saw Asha already close to her.
“Let’s go.”
Asha picked her up again.
“Where are we going?”
“For now, to the capital.”
Great. Trisha quietly rejoiced inwardly. Somehow, things seemed to be going smoothly.
“Ugh…”
“Hey, are you okay?”
Things going smoothly, my foot. Trisha, barely able to walk out of the teleportation tower, felt unbearable dizziness and nausea.
“You, you’re—okay…ugh.”
“Here we go.”
Asha hurriedly supported the staggering Trisha. She knew perfectly well what kind of affliction she was experiencing. She just didn’t want to believe it.
“Motion sickness from a teleportation tower?!”
Crazy, right?
Teleportation towers are specially enhanced with magic for people who can’t use normal teleportation due to low magical power.
In Trisha’s usual words, it was essentially “magic made for mediocre people.”
“And I’m getting motion sick from that mediocre magic?”
Magic had been with her since the very first moment she breathed in this world. Having reached the level of a grand mage, she could confidently say there was no one closer to magic than her.
If Trisha were a fish, magic was water. Magic let her breathe, and she let it flow.
Even if one hadn’t reached her level, most people had no discomfort around magic. Motion sickness in teleportation towers is extremely rare, barely a handful across the entire continent.
Better to be sick from magic itself than this.
“In my past life I was a grand mage, and in this one I get teleportation tower motion sickness…?”
Trying to deny reality in her dizzy mind, she eventually let go of her mental composure.
When she opened her eyes, she was lying in a sunlit room.
A familiar ceiling.
Trisha blinked repeatedly to clear her hazy vision.
“Wait, this…?”
Finally, as her sight cleared, she realized where she was.
“It’s our home?”
She jumped up. It wasn’t her room but probably the guest room. Still, this was definitely the house of Count Vins.
Had everything that happened been a dream?
Memories of the past events flashed briefly. Reflexively, Trisha checked her hands—and the magic within her body.
It was no dream. She had shrunk, and her magic had changed.
“Then how am I here?”
Asha had taken her into the teleportation tower, and then… ah, the motion sickness.
Thinking of it made her stomach churn again. Trisha furrowed her brow.
“Trisha…!”
Suddenly, she felt a warm embrace and a familiar scent brushed her nose. She instantly recognized that the people holding her were her mother and father.
The last images she had of them before leaving home to join the expedition naturally came to mind. Though only a few days ago, their appearances were strikingly different.
“Their faces… so worn…”
Both had clearly suffered a lot. Trisha’s heart ached.
“Mother!”
She wanted to press her face against theirs immediately. Yet, no words came out.
“Mother! Father!”
Still, she continued calling out to them, even if it didn’t reach them.
After a brief moment, Trisha’s father, Lato Vins, comforted his wife.
“Dear, let’s stop…”
Soothingly, Mrs. Vins examined Trisha’s face.
“Ah…”
With a sigh, she reluctantly let Trisha go but couldn’t take her eyes off her.
“I’m sorry, my child. You’re so much like the daughter we lost…”
Carefully, she reached out and stroked Trisha’s head. Trisha’s heart ached as she met the tearful gazes of both parents.
“It really feels like our daughter has returned.”
Trisha could not speak. She knew better than anyone how much they loved, cared for, and cherished her.
I am that daughter.
Seeing her parents’ sorrowful misunderstanding filled her with helpless sadness. She tried desperately to say something.
“My child, what about your parents?”
Her mother, Rense Vins, asked gently.
“…Uh…”
Trisha couldn’t say a word. Naturally—no words came out. Her hesitation made Rense’s face fall with pity.
“What could a child have gone through to have already lost her parents?”
It was a mistaken thought, but Rense wasn’t alone in thinking it. Lato felt the same.
“Sir Forest, where did you find this child?”
Asha, standing by the doorway, answered.
“I tracked Trisha’s traces and found her in a small village in the southern part of the empire.”
“Traces… you found traces?”
“Yes, faint ones.”
Pausing briefly, Asha continued.
“I hesitate to say this, but I believe what I thought were Trisha’s traces might actually belong to this child.”
“…”
Trisha saw the light of hope in the Count’s eyes fade. Her chest felt as if it were breaking.
“Then this child’s parents are…?”
Lato trailed off. All three looked solemnly at Trisha. Even though she appeared as a child, Trisha understood the implication perfectly.
“No!”
She shouted fiercely. This time, her voice came out.
I’m not Trisha’s daughter, I am Trisha! I am the grand mage, Trisha Vins!
Forgetting the pain in her chest, she almost jumped with frenzy.
“…Yes, yes.”
The Vins couple looked even sadder as they gazed down at her. Asha, though unreadable, showed a hint of sympathy.
“No, really, I’m not!”
The frustration was entirely Trisha’s. She felt an urge to pound her chest. Rense bent down kindly, meeting Trisha’s gaze at her level.
“My child, what’s your name? If you’re okay with it… would you like to stay here?”
“Huh?”
“It’s sudden, but I hope you’ll become our daughter.”
Trisha was speechless. She didn’t know how to begin resolving this deeply rooted misunderstanding.
“I’m already your daughter! Since birth!”
No matter how much she shouted internally, her voice remained trapped inside. Seeing her parents’ weakened state made her heart ache.
“…Alright then.”
Trisha had no choice but to nod.
