Sincerely, Vanessa [EN]: Chapter 130

To Teacher, From Vanessa 130

The place she fell into was pitch black, devoid of any light. She gasped in surprise. Listening intently, she heard the eerie sound of water dripping: drip, drip.

She quickly summoned light. The surroundings brightened, revealing a long passage stretching forward. However, its end was still swallowed by darkness. A chill ran down her spine.

Vanessa composed herself and began to walk quickly. The memory of the cave she was in with Gideon was vivid, without any blurred parts. According to that memory, it would take a long time to reach the limestone lake, so she didn’t want to delay.

If this was a trap, she wanted to confront it quickly; if it was someone’s help, she simply wanted to accept it gratefully.

But who on earth would play such a prank?

Even when she stepped quietly, the sound echoed loudly inside. The anxiety she hadn’t felt when walking with Gid consumed her. It was a completely separate issue from her magical skills.

Only then did Vanessa realize that he had kept talking to reassure her in the past.

Her eyes twitched again. She swallowed hard and tried to pretend to be okay, speaking loudly to herself.

“I need to hurry and see the magic circle.”

Because she had to find a clue to wake up the sleeping prince—no, the sleeping duke. Because she didn’t want that duke to forget her, preferring to stay asleep.

It was dark, damp, and silent.

Vanessa was startled by even the sound of a single drop of water falling from above, turning around sensitively. She kept feeling like someone would jump out and attack her. But when she turned around, all that was there was still darkness. Her pace quickened.

Thanks to moving without rest, as if running, she soon reached an area where the path widened. Now, just a little further was the lake.

Unlike before, since she was alone, she would have to jump into the lake with all the lights off. Of course, once she was in the water, she could light it up from within….

Still, she was afraid. This kind of pitch-black darkness was something she could never see in the city. It wasn’t a darkness that felt serene because there was light somewhere; it was a color that seemed to devour something, overwhelming her.

Finally, the width of the narrow path suddenly widened. Along with the clear sound of water falling, the lake, like a hidden jewel inside the cave, was revealed.

A clear blue color that was dazzling to the eyes. It was still an amazingly beautiful sight.

However, contrary to expectations, Vanessa was not alone there.

“Huh…?”

Someone was sitting on the rocks by the lake. Clearly, in the past, magic couldn’t be used within five steps of the lake, but the person whose back was visible was surrounded by light, dangling their feet.

As if noticing someone approaching from behind, the person turned their face. It was a face that looked like they were just passing through adolescence… Messy, choppy brown hair and blue eyes.

Vanessa frowned.

“…You.”

“I thought you’d come straight here, but you’re later than I thought.”

The boy grumbled.

“I’ve been waiting for over a week. It’s the place I’ve put the most effort into hiding, and it’s a place only you know, so what are you going to do if you come here late?”

“Hey, you….”

“You have no sense, no sense at all. Ah, well. That man knows this place too. It’s a bit much to say that only you know it.”

Vanessa, forgetting her gloomy mood, glared fiercely. The one who had trapped Vanessa in the Morea Forest, appeared in Jonah Hill’s bookstore, and introduced himself as ‘half’.

“Hello. Long time no see, right?”

The boy giggled and laughed.

Vanessa stomped towards the boy, but stopped at a certain distance. She tried to calm the rising annoyance and anger, carefully examining the boy for any traces of magic.

She couldn’t figure out how that boy was here… She guessed that he was an incredibly great magician, unlike his appearance, but this was definitely strange.

Was he really a fairy, as he claimed? But whether he was a good fairy was something she had to watch and see….

When Vanessa didn’t come closer, the boy, who had been pouting, jumped off the rock.

“It’s not bad to be wary. I thought you were too quick to give your side.”

It was a light step. But as the boy approached, Vanessa took two steps back. The boy stopped, grinning mischievously at the unchanged distance.

“It seems like you’ve definitely realized the condition. Is the fulfillment going well?”

Even at the sudden words, Vanessa stood still and calmly. Instead of answering, she returned the question.

“Who are you?”

“I told you. I’m half. Call me Half.”

“You should know what I’m trying to ask. Okay, Half. How did you get here?”

“That’s a bit of a funny question. I told you last time.”

Vanessa tried to smooth out her face, which was about to crumple. Right, you brought me here.

“Are you related to all of this?”

“That’s too broad of a question to ask. How mean! Well, if I have to answer, it would be a lie to say no, but it’s a bit unfair to say that I’m related to ‘those things’ you’re talking about. Especially that man collapsing, that was really unexpected.”

Full of holes, only vague words passed between the two. The boy smiled and spread his arms. Vanessa ended up frowning at his relaxed attitude, as if telling her to guess who he was.

There were hardly any clues. Vanessa hadn’t met the boy very often. Once in the Morea Forest, once in Jonah Hill’s bookstore. And now, once in the returned cave.

The number 3 was too small to figure out someone.

However, the boy had questionable aspects that anyone could see, and Vanessa had pondered his identity for a very long time. Not every day, but sometimes. Every time she used magic, she remembered the boy smiling as he sat crouched in front of the bookshelf, reading fairy tales to Vanessa.

Who on earth was that child? She would blink at that thought and fall asleep….

The boy had clearly influenced Vanessa’s life. Even if he hadn’t completely colored the white paper, he had clearly marked a dot on it.

If she hadn’t stepped on the teleportation circle in the Morea Forest, she wouldn’t have known about the magic circle of the Night Vandalu. Also, if it hadn’t been for that fairy tale, she wouldn’t have known the conditions for realizing magic.

Of course, she might have found out even if that fairy-like child hadn’t intervened. But the timing would have definitely been delayed.

The boy bought time… But for what?

That was the most concerning thing. The boy’s intervention wasn’t for Vanessa’s sake.

She silently examined the boy again. Half was still smiling brightly. He seemed a bit taller than the last time she saw him, but his hair was still messily tangled like a bird’s nest. The blush on his round cheeks was the same.

He had similar colors to Vanessa, which made it even more confusing. Because something absurd came to mind.

Back in Bamberg Academy, when you passed through the entrance of the largest central building, there were large portraits of great magicians and figures who had graduated from Bamberg Academy hanging above. Next to them were written the amazing achievements they had made, and the students grew their dreams as they passed underneath.

Among them, the largest portrait was undoubtedly that of Bam Vandalu, the founder of Bamberg Academy.

Faded brown hair fluttering like a mane. Blue eyes with a hint of laughter and kind wrinkles around the eyes. A smile that seemed to have ulterior motives.

Vanessa had also held hope as she looked at the eye color similar to her own… That I too would become a great magician.

So Vanessa thought she was crazy even as she opened her mouth.

“…Bam Vandalu?”

And she burst out laughing and immediately shook her head.

“Haha, I’m crazy. Of course not-”

“Correct. Should I give you a prize for getting it right in one go?”

At the cheerful voice, Vanessa blankly opened her mouth.

The boy, no, Bam Vandalu, began to laugh loudly at the dumbfounded expression. The cheerful laughter, like a child, echoed loudly off the cave walls.

“You got it right in one go, but what’s with that expression? It’s funny.”

Even at those words, Vanessa couldn’t be polite. Rather, her eyebrows shot up into the sky.

“Are you really Bam Vandalu?”

“That’s right. The magician who founded Bamberg Academy… You have to live for about a thousand years to appear like a fairy in places where you’re needed, right?”

Vanessa scoffed coldly at the grinning smile.

“I thought it was ridiculous even as I said it, but you’re Bam Vandalu. How can I believe that? Just say you’re an unknown genius magician.”

Bam Vandalu mischievously twinkled his eyes at the glaring blue eyes.

It’s natural for magicians to be suspicious. It’s not surprising. And since a monster from a thousand years ago appeared with the face of a child, it was something to laugh at even if the most innocent person in the world was in front of him.

Then I have to show proof.

The boy, turning around with bouncy steps, sat in front of the lake. Then he waved his hand enthusiastically at Vanessa.

“Come here. Oh, hurry! If I was going to attack you, I would have done it earlier, why would I do it now? Please get rid of that suspicious look.”

Vanessa, letting out a short sigh, stood by the lake, keeping a distance from him. The light that Vanessa had summoned quickly disappeared, but the space was bright with the things that Half had summoned….

“…….”

Come to think of it, this was also evidence. Bam Vandalu must have engraved the magic prohibition circuit [a magical barrier], but he knew how to ignore it.

Vanessa felt her face turning pale. Wasn’t I a bit rude earlier?

The boy stretched out his small hand and tapped the surface of the lake. Small ripples spread out….

And at some point, the water inside the lake soared up and began to coil around like a snake. The sight of embroidering the sky along the huge flow was like dancing. Vanessa’s eyes widened in surprise. Unconsciously, her feet moved back.

Soon, all the water that had been protecting Bam Vandalu’s magic circle was drawn out and hovered over the heads of the two. When the boy gestured, Vanessa approached with staggering steps and looked into the lake.

Only a wide and deep pit remained. And the magic circle engraved on the bottom.

The light of the magic circle had completely faded and was barely visible.