A few days passed, and Kasa's birthday arrived. I woke up in the morning with a smile on my face. I pounded my fists together and jumped out of my bed. Today was going to be a good day, I could feel it. 'After all, Kasa will leave to the academy, and I won't have to deal with her anymore.' Although it might seem heartless, Kasa going to the academy was the best-case scenario for both of us. I could further my plans with no constraints, and Kasa would be able to learn advanced magic to her heart's content. Furthermore, she might even make friends, which could fix the problems in her personality. I got off my bed with a jump and went to my cabinet. I opened the third shelf and took out a small wooden box from inside. Inside the box was the pendant I bought the other day. When I bought the pendant, the employee wished me luck and gave me this box for free. I was certain he misunderstood my situation and I think I might've been overcharged for the pendant, but I accepted the box nonetheless. There was nothing special about the box, it was a bare wooden box, and it could barely hold the pendant. Once I verified the pendant was still there, I put the box away and began my morning routine. I've recently reincorporated studying Tracking again into my routine. Although I mastered Tracking (I should change this name since there's also Tracking magic), I thought it was a good idea to keep practice it in order to keep it in memory. In my practice, I focused on efficiency over all else. Once I finished my practice with Tracking, I began relearning Az. It was frustrating how little progress I was making with Az. I was extremely close to forming the first soul vein yet kept missing the final connection. I hoped it was more of an experience issue than an understanding issue, but the only thing I could do was keep practicing and hoping it clicks one day. Perhaps the gods of luck took pity on me, or my different attitude had an effect, but on my first attempt, I managed to form my soul vein. Having a soul vein, was an indescribable feeling, however, it didn't really feel good or bad. Either way, with the first soul vein formed, I could start practicing the reinforcement part of Az. I finally understood what Lucan was referring to when he said Az was incredibly uncomfortable. The moment I tried the reinforcement part of Az, it felt like a worm was moving around inside my skin. I couldn't even practice it for a few seconds without stopping in disgust. Instead of forcing the issue, I decided to finish my practice early. I still had some time before I went to Kasa's house, so I decided to read a book about the geography of Alvaine. Although I did buy a map, I wanted to cross-reference as many resources as possible to avoid future problems. Furthermore, while borders and monster habitats could change frequently, geography only changes in once-in-a-lifetime events, so the book would generally still be accurate. I lost track of time, and by the time I finished reading a couple of chapters, it was time to leave. I went to my cabinet and took the pendant out of the box. I was debating whether to bring it in the box, but I felt storing it in my pocket would be the safer option. I didn't want Kasa to misunderstand anything. I stopped by the kitchen and brought some fruits before I went to Kasa's house. Before I could even knock on the door, Kasa opened it and greeted me. "Hey Rorik, you seem happier than usual." I thought I was hiding it well, but Kasa noticed it immediately. I wondered if it was because my expression was obvious or she had gotten better at reading me. In any case, this was a rare occasion where I could express my true thoughts without lying. "Of course I'm happy, it's your birthday." "That's true, but today is also the day I leave." "You're looking at it the wrong way, you aren't leaving, you're finding new opportunities. It's not like you can never come back. You should focus on your opportunity to learn more magic." "But... " "Don't worry about it, it's just a few years, plus if you have time you can always write a letter." "Will you write back if I send you a letter?" "Of course I'll write back. Now let me inside, these fruits are heavy." I put the basket of fruits down and passed Kasa a Rinde Fruit. While she was eating I took a look around the room. It was still as messy as before. I was curious about what would happen to all of the books when she leaves. When she finished eating, I asked her about it. "What's going to happen to all these books when you leave?" "These books? I'm not taking them with me so I don't know. Maybe Duke Pendle will put them back into storage. These were specifically bought for me so there's not much he wants to do with them. But if you want to take a book I'm sure no one would notice. I think An Introduction to Magic for Beginners would be a good choice." "No, you misunderstood. I didn't want to take a book, there's no point since I can't use mana. I was just curious." "Still, even if you can't learn magic, you should take a book. What if you forget our promise? What if you forget about me?" "Hahaha, trust me Kasa I'll never forget about you. Even when you're at the academy, you'll always be in the back of my mind. Talking to you was the most impactful decision of my life." "Rorik..." I took out the pendant from my pocket. "As thanks for all these years of interesting moments, I brought you a gift. I tried to find a magic item, but I couldn't find any so I got this pendant instead. I-" The look in Kasa's eyes stopped me in my tracks. I didn't know how to describe it but her eyes weren't normal. They were dilated wider than I ever thought possible. But it didn't matter too much to me now, she was leaving. Kasa held the pendant in her hand like it was a bar of gold. "Rorik, I don't- I don't know how to thank you." "No need to thank me Kasa, we're brother and sister after all. I don't think we'll see each other too often anymore, so consider this a farewell gift." "We, We're more than just brother and sister. I'll come back for you Rorik, I'll definitely come back for you." "Focus on your magic training first Kasa, thoughts like that can come later." We spend the rest of the day talking and eating fruits. When nightfall came, a butler came to take Kasa to a carriage. I walked her to the carriage and waved her farewell. She waved back and mouthed the words 'I'll come back.' I laughed and waved until she left my view. Once I was sure she was gone, I let out a sigh and a silly grin came on my face. I was free. I really did feel bad for Kasa, she didn't have a great childhood, and I wished that the academy and her future gave her happiness. I just hoped her happiness didn't involve me.