Nely woke up later that day. Remembered what she did today, she pushed her red face to a pillow and let out a silent scream. Granted, she was swayed by the mood. But, showing her tears and snorts filled face, not to mention splashing it all over the place?

Gosh, she wished to hide in a hole, never to return to the surface. After all, she was a growing girl.

She spent minutes, which she thought was an eternity, agonizing her shameful display until she heard a knock.

“Nely, are you awake?”

Hearing noises coming from her room, Selv came knocking on her door.

Urg, she groaned. She was not ready for this. What kind of face should she make? She didn’t know, except the first thing she ought to do was cooling her burning face.

Selv entered, knowing no answer would come either way.

“Ah, you’re awake. How do you feel?”

Horrible. She might die out of shame.

Unable to convey any of those, she just covered half of her face with a pillow.

Sensing something was strange, he did not look straight at her.

“Err, you look fine.”

She nodded. And the talk stopped.

Unpleasant air of awkwardness filled the room. Not knowing what they should do, they fidgeting as if there were hot coal on where they sat.

Soon, unable to bear it, Selv addressed her.

“About the clothes you were wearing, where did you get that?

After he pointed it out, she realized that now she was wearing her sleeping wear. She didn’t remember changing into one. When and who did it?

“Don’t worry. Anny took care of you while you were asleep. I just carried you all the way here.”

Hearing that, one weight was off her chest. She then thought which was worse, him seeing her messy face or body? Hard to choose, but she didn’t want both.

She told him with gestures while still hiding her face behind a pillow.

“Astral, huh. Sounds like something she would do. I did tell her about those clothes. But…”

Nely watched as he entered a deep thought.

Somehow, this annoyed her. Although she had shown such great shameful display of herself, it didn’t affect him in the slightness. It was unfair. She didn’t know what specifically, but she felt it was unfair!

So, she took it out by throwing a pillow at him, which he easily caught with one hand.

“What is it, Nely?

What is it, Nely, he said? How annoying!

With her current mood, anything he says and does would catch on her nerves. She was being oversensitive and unreasonable. That was why she crawled into her bed, grumpily like a dwarf on a bad hangover.

“Sorry, did I unintentionally upset you?”

She gave him the silent treatment.

“You’re putting me in a bind here,” he said, scratching the back of his ear, troubled.

With his vast experience in life, he was aware of the delicate works he had to do when dealing with an upset female. One simple mistake might cause everything to take a turn for the worst. That was why he tried to act as kind as he could, minding his conduct and words as if dealing with the most brittle material in the world.

“I heard from Anny. It seemed you went on a little adventure today.”

He picked up a topic, trying to change her mood and hoping she would give out some kind of hint.

Nely did not reply and gave him a look from beneath the blanket.

“You went to the church, Astral’s lab, and the amusement park, right? That’s quite a distance. Are your legs fine?”

Receiving nothing as a response, he continued.

“With this, you pretty much explored the independent town, not including the business district. What’s your impression of this town? Is it a good place?” He asked, pulling a chair to sit on.

“The commercial district where people shows their liveliness as they share goods, the industrial district where people make things for livelihood, the entertainment district where people spread and receive happiness, and the business district where people make sure it would last. It might not look like it, but those places rely on each other to keep this town going. If one stopped working, this place will cease to exist.”

Nely didn’t learn about town planning, but she thought it was a huge flaw. It was a miracle such a town could survive until now.

“Did you just think it’s a wonder why this town exists?”

She jumped her shoulder from having her mind read. It was a wonder for her, but to Selv reading her honest facial expression was quite easy. She hadn’t realized she was the type to show everything on her face. That caused Selv to giggle.

“Well, that’s what it means to be a town that doesn’t depend on others. We’ve to be able to support ourselves domestically. But, the main reason lies in the concept we decided, coexisting.”

Coexisting. That was a wonderful concept, she thought. She imagined people, hand by hand, helping each other as they live together. But, can it really be done? That doesn’t sound easy to her. Then again, it was a fact that such town was still standing.

“It’s definitely not easy. It took years until we reached this point. But, do tell me, do the demons in the entertainment district bothers you?”

Pointed out, she opened her eyes wide. She was surprised by the fact it did not bother her.

One month ago, she was scared when meeting with Pierre because he was a demon. What about now? She was bad with him, but that was it.

It was the same when she went to the entertainment district alone. She felt no resistance with their presence even though she was bothered by it one month ago. It became like that without she realizing it.

“There you have it. So, what do you think about this town?”

Nely smiled in response, showing how she thought well of it.

“I’m glad that you like it. That makes all of our hard work paid off,” Selv replied with a similar smile.

Realizing he had successfully averted her attention to something else, he moved to the main topic.

“Nely, do you mind if I ask about yourself?”

That came out of nowhere, causing Nely to tilt her head in wonder with some suspicious in her eyes. Not flinching from her gaze, Selv made a follow-up.

“Well, you’ve been with us for a month and Gilbert entrusted you to me because his work might take a while. On the other hand, Astral is just as you know. She probably won’t have time and even make you take care of her. So, I think it’s about time for us to get to know each other better. Don’t you feel the same?”

That was a sound argument. She would live here until an indefinite amount of time with him as her proxy guardian. He had the right to know. But, shouldn’t he just ask Astral or Annastaya? As far as she knows, they would answer to any of his questions.

“They’re no good. I already asked them, but they dodged the topic, saying I should ask you in person.”

That was an unexpected thing for both of them. She didn’t know why they hide her information because there was nothing important enough to hide.

With no reason to decline, she told him how she lived in a small world with no window. People came to ask or make her do something. That she barely interacted with them. Her sole communication partner was her father who came from time to time after work and Astral, who came to play once every few years.

They, however, never told her about the outside world which left books as her only media to learn about the world. And for that reason, she longed the outside world.

She dreamed of the exciting world where she could go on an adventure, sometimes fighting terrifying monsters, another time helping people in need, and of course exploring the unknown. Having the ‘It’, which appeared from her favorite story, to grant her wish was also a part of her plan.

Then, her first outing was granted not long ago.

She ended the explanation she had given to Annatasya, wondering on how much it conveyed to him.

“I see,” Selv said, nodding with a serious expression.

Noticing his thoughts were somewhere else half-way, she doubted his seriousness as a mere act. Her mood had turned sour.

If he didn’t have any intention to listen, why ask?

Doing as he pleased and ignoring her now? That was it. She won’t bother doing anything for him again!

She pouted, showing her disapproval of his selfish action. It was then Selv realized his mistake. He was too busy with himself that he forgot he was dealing with something delicate.

Prolonging would further increase the chance of trouble, so he coughed, and said his last topic.

“Nely, do you still wish for the same thing you told me?”

Well, of course. That was mostly her reason to come all the way here. She greatly wished for it even when Selv shattered her dream. Although thanks to being busy with the kidnapping and the aftermath, she had gone over her disappointment, somewhere inside her small body, she was avoiding that topic.

What can she do? To her, who could not speak since birth, hoping for a miracle was her best bet. And she had lost that bet.

Being a good sport, she tried to let it go as it was not for her. Yet, here he was, touching her sensitive place, and upsetting her all day. She wondered whether his reason here was to only annoy her.

“Want me to grant that for you?”

She doubted her ears, fed up. Despite informing her of the impossibility of it, now he offered to grant it? Was she a joke to him? She felt insulted.

Pulling the blanket over her head, she showed her protest by showing her back.

Selv showed no sign of fretting because he had expected this much.

“Remember when I told you after ‘It’ disappeared, the task was handed down to the Guardian? As the current generation, I have the duty to grant people’s wishes. Although this’s a curse to me, the duty remains valid,” he said with a bitter laugh, trying to make light of his problem.

Obviously, that bitter laugh of his further annoyed her. She thought there was nothing to laugh there. It was because he tried to ignore the pain that things became like yesterday. She had learned to smile to cheer people up. But, laughing at own misfortunate seemed different.

“Well, what I’m trying to say is there might be a chance I can help you with it.”

That was great. Now you are done? Get out from this room, now- Wait a second. Did he just- No. She must have misheard it.

Despite doubting her own ears, she perked them up, now ready to listen. Selv didn’t miss her reaction. He continued, fully aware that she was listening.

“Before I tell you, what do you think a curse is? Is it something visible? Psychology thing, perhaps? Is it constant? Dynamic? Passive or active?”

He made her wonder, enjoying the seconds as he told her answer was wrong until she gave up. Now, begging the answer with her eyes.

“The answer is all,” he said with a teasing smile.

That was cheap, she protested with puffed cheeks and glare.

“To be more precise, it depends on what type of curses we are talking about. If you’re talking about something that haunts you from the past, that’s the psychology type of curse. The other one is…”

Selv showed his palm, pulling up his sleeve until half-way up, showing there was nothing. He then faced it to the ceiling.

When Nely thought his motions were like those of magicians, making things appear from thin air, he did just that. From his bare hand, a ball of light appeared with the size of a tennis ball, floating, letting out a light comparable to a small lamp.

Nely stood still as he once again showed his hand around, trying to show there was no trick behind it. The light kept a consistent glow and glued in the air five centimetres above his hand.

Once he thought he had shown enough, he erased it by closing his hand.

“There you have it.”

Nely jumped right at him, taking his hand, feeling it so not to let a single thing off escape her. She inspected her hand, its fingers, the rough palm which tells his life. Next, his arm. It was bigger and manlier than it looked. It was well-toned with muscles, not visible above his long sleeves.

He had the opportunity to do the same to her father, but Selv was definitely above him. This was quite something, she thought while testing the firmness of his muscles.

“Err, may I continue?”

Selv asked, feeling slightly uncomfortable by how she thoroughly checked his arm.

Came back from her trance state, she hurriedly let go and nodded as if covering for something.

“Although different, the other curse works on the same base as that. Magic.”

Magic as in the thing she read in her books? Flying to the sky, splitting the sea, rising the ground, unleashing a ball of fire. That magic?

She was in disbelief. Was he messing with her again? The ball of light just now could also be something cleverly hidden so she didn’t notice the trick. She looked at his face. There was not a hint of it being a mere joke.

“It might be unbelievable at first. But, the world used to be filled and worked with magic as the foundation. Everyone could use a certain level of magic such as filling a bucket of water or making fire on the stove. The talented people could, as you might have expected, soar through the sky, changing the terrains, and even making fire strong enough to reach the sky. What I did was a mere child-play,” he said, looking at his hand that invoked magic.

Facing forward, he saw Nely looking at with a look of expectation. He let out a sorry laugh.

“I could try teaching you the basic, but don’t expect much. Nowadays, there isn’t anyone who could use magic except me and the demon race. I don’t know the reason. Some says it’s because the Goddess had abandoned humans while other because humans evolved into a species that is incompatible to use the source of magic, mana.”

Selv realized the topic had gone off-track, so he kept the rest to himself and continued.

“Anyway, the other type is a real curse from the magic system that no longer exists among humans. Even If I want to, I can’t dispel this one,” he said the last part to himself. “So, what I’m trying to say is, if it with magic, there might be a chance.”

He faced Nely who was facing down, considering his words.

She was lured by the world magic. Of course, she was dreaming of the world of sword and magic. She never knew the world she dreamed was not a fantasy, but, in fact, was real in the past. She would love to get that experience, to the point she regretted not being born at that time.

But, another thing crossed her mind, keeping her from accepting his sweet offer.

‘I’m sick of playing nice to everyone. I was never the type to help people out of goodwill in the first place’

His words rang inside her head, warning her from makinga a careless decision. She believed he was being weak and not saying the truth at that time. If not, he wouldn’t help people as he did. But, she was having second thought now.

If there was a lesson she could learn on her stay, it was not to think before asking. She even saw the result of asking the wrong thing. Because of that, she hesitated to make a wish.

Was this something she should ask for? Won’t it cause trouble to him? She didn’t wish for him to go back to his previous state again, so it was safer not to ask and play it safe.

Was she okay with it? Of course, not. She wants to speak. She wants to be normal. Those were her wishes. If she didn’t have a strong desire for it, she won’t go this far. But, but…

As she was assaulted by a heavy pressure, she felt a warm touch on her hand. Selv looked at her face to face while holding her hand.

“Don’t worry. You don’t need to think too much about it. Children should do and say what they want without minding the trouble. It’s the adults’ duty to take care of it. You might also say that it’s your duty to be selfish.”

It was okay. There was nothing to worry about. He delivered words to assure her that she was permitted to do so. He managed to sway her doubt with his sweet words.

Nely could not resist the sweetness of his words. She faced him with a puppy look, eyes dropped low, not showing any of the fierceness she showed today. With that look, she asked for one last confirmation.

Was it okay?

“Of course. Leave everything to me.”

He delivered a smile to reassure her for one last time. And Nely obediently nodded with a bright smile on her face, devoid of all worry.

Selv could not help but averted his eyes from it while keeping a straight face.

Conveniently, the time was about right to end it. Excusing himself by saying it was already late, he left.

Nely saw him off and dropped herself to her bed, unable to hold her feeling, rolling on the bed while giggling.

Her weight was off her shoulder. She had done it. Everything went well to her liking. Selv got over his depression while she earned a promise to cure his disability. She grabbed her pillow and buried her face in it, flailing her feet around.

It was her first accomplishment. She had never done anything with so much effort. The reward was good, but, as expected, the sense of accomplishment was better.

Her heart was beating rapidly, stopping her from sleeping, making her wants to do something to exhaust her overflowing energy. At this rate, she won’t get a wink of sleep tonight. So, she did what was natural for her, jumping on her bed with a pillow on her chest.

She hopped, mimicking a rabbit, creaking the bed. She got too into it that she missed the sound of door opening, Selv looking at her with a warm expression.

Huh! She finally realized his presence, froze, moving up and down by the bouncy the bed gave from her force until it went still.

“I forgot to ask whether you can spare me your time tomorrow. But, it seems you’re busy at the moment. I will ask you again in the morning. Goodnight.”

He left, without giving her time to make an excuse, with the same smile on his face.

Soon after, her face burned red until her ears. She covered it with a blanket, but it was still clear even with the cover.

Let’s just sleep and forget everything. She thought and forced herself to sleep. Obviously, with a different kind of racing heart, she wasn’t able to until later.

Even with what she experienced here, she was but a child in the heart.