Sincerely, Vanessa [EN]: Chapter 43

“If it were the one who created the seeds of monsters, they wouldn’t have bothered moving me or Gideon here. They would have just destroyed the magic circle of the Night Vandals.”

Gideon didn’t say anything, but he was clearly listening to Vanessa, his head slightly tilted.

“If they wanted to invite someone to this cave, wouldn’t that person rather want to protect the magic circle?”

“I think so too.”

“But it was definitely a young boy who lured me here….”

Vanessa thought blankly.

Surely, the professors said that magic to alter faces was impossible. Many have tried, but only met with miserable failure.

It was possible to cloud the mind and cause hallucinations, but Vanessa was very clear-headed in the clear morning air at that time.

“That boy didn’t seem to be acting on someone’s orders. His actions seemed very deliberate, as if he knew all the actions I would take.”

As Vanessa made a serious face, Gideon glanced down at her.

When Vanessa stepped on the teleportation magic circle, Gideon didn’t even see the boy Vanessa mentioned. No matter how he looked, there was no boy….

If it was definitely magic aimed at Vanessa, why did they target her?

Gideon hid the suspicion that lingered on the tip of his tongue.

“I don’t know who it is, but there’s no disagreeing that they are a great magician.”

“But at such a young age, to have such amazing skills, to draw a teleportation magic circle….”

Vanessa tilted her head.

“Could it be a great magician who can hide their age?”

Vanessa was grasping the point faster than he thought.

“Vanessa.”

“Yes?”

Gideon seemed to choose his words for a moment. Vanessa sensed what he was about to say.

“If you’re going to talk about that magic circle….”

“That’s right. Can you keep a secret?”

“Yes, of course. I will never tell anyone.”

Suddenly, Gideon stopped and stared at her intently. Vanessa was momentarily nervous.

“You must remember that knowing a secret is always dangerous. Promise me.”

“Yes, I promise. I’ll be careful.”

It was the Night Vandals’ magic circle that protected Frebah. Knowing its location could not be safe, especially if someone was targeting those magic circles.

Vanessa understood that part and nodded diligently. However, she kept pondering the identity of the boy in her head.

The two walked for quite a while after that. The mysterious cave was interesting for a while, but the endless darkness gradually brought on bad thoughts.

Where is the exit? Of course, I trust Gideon, but can we both get out without getting hurt?

Gideon keenly noticed Vanessa’s unease and stopped.

It was hard to know the exact passage of time, but it seemed like they had been walking for several hours already, so it was time to rest.

“Vanessa, shall we rest again?”

“If you’re doing it because of me…”

“No, I’m tired.”

Gideon said firmly and leaned against the wall. He tilted his head and urged her with a look that asked why she wasn’t sitting. Vanessa eventually sat down next to him.

Their shoulders were close enough to touch. The cave was very cold, so each other’s small warmth was helpful.

“I want to drink something warm. Marianne’s tea would be nice.”

Gideon said leisurely.

“Vanessa, something sweet?”

“Um, melted chocolate would be good. Or vanilla cream tea.”

“Come to think of it, our first meeting was when you were glued to the display case at Cafe Dulce in Nimrod. It was very impressive.”

“Their lemon meringue tart is the best! I couldn’t help it.”

“Moderately sweet and moderately sour. It tasted good. Jennian liked it a lot too.”

Thinking of Jennian made her smile. Messy, crumpled hair, one side white and the other stained blue with paint.

‘You idiot! All magic must be done with confidence!’

The day Gideon and I took a boat on the lake behind Jennian’s house, the sunlight shining through the leaves and the warm laughter.

I didn’t even know who Gideon was back then. Who would have thought he was Duke Valder?

“By the way, why did you come to Nimrod?”

“Well, there was someone I wanted to see, and I had something to ask Jennian.”

“The person you wanted to see, is that Jennian? Are you like family?”

Gideon made a sullen face at Vanessa’s serious expression. His eyes wandered aimlessly. Like family with Jennian.

“Well, we’re close. He took care of me when I was young….”

“Jennian is a very famous magician. Do you know people who are close to Jennian well?”

Even in the darkness, Vanessa’s watery eyes seemed to shine brightly. Gideon subtly turned his gaze away.

“I don’t know them very well. He tends to enjoy a very reclusive life.”

“My patron is acquainted with Jennian! I was hoping to get even a small clue.”

“Are you curious about who your patron is?”

Gideon slowly tilted his head. Their bodies had been touching for a long time. Vanessa’s shoulder touched Gideon’s arm, and it felt natural for warmth to spread through each other’s bodies.

Vanessa hesitated for a moment before answering. She hoped her feelings would be conveyed well.

“Actually, it’s not that I want to know who my patron is. It’s just….”

Gideon’s gaze fell near Vanessa’s eyes. His long eyelashes fluttered down.

“I can tell from the letters that you are a kind person and that you care about me, but sometimes I wonder if you really exist. I know you’re reading my letters and you know everything….”

Vanessa frowned. She didn’t even know why she was being so childish.

To the teacher who had led her, an orphan, to this point, and to Gideon, who, despite his high status, was listening to all her whining.

“Sometimes, when I feel alone, I think it would be nice to know even one piece of information about you.”

Gideon blinked slowly. He hesitated for a moment and then carefully opened his mouth.

“There’s not much I can tell you. However, if you are acquainted with Jennian, that person must also be a magician. Jennian has never even talked to ordinary people. That’s all. I’m sorry.”

“Then, if I continue on the path of a magician, will there ever be a chance that I will pass by you?”

Gideon frowned at those words.

“Walking the path of a magician for that reason…”

“No. It’s fun to learn magic, even though I lack skill. But if I could meet you, it would be even better.”

Vanessa’s bright blue eyes looked at Gideon. The eyes, surrounded by long, thick eyelashes, were excessively clear and beautiful.

He somehow felt drained, so he barely answered.

“…It could be.”

Vanessa smiled and stretched out her legs. She patted her long, slender legs, wrapped in tight pants, and jumped up.

It was clear that Gideon was resting not because he was tired, but because he was worried about her, and now that she was much better, it was time to move forward again.

“I’m okay now. Let’s go.”

“I’ll send you desserts made by Cafe Dulce when we get out. Where is your dormitory?”

Vanessa held back a laugh because that was what Gideon said without forgetting in the meantime.

“The fourth floor of the Moon Wall. Send it as lemon meringue tart.”

He repeated ‘Moon Wall’ several times and smiled. Vanessa felt her heart tighten whenever she made eye contact with him.

Did I really catch some kind of disease? Vanessa tried to brush it off as she stroked her chest. Thump, thump.

The two started again. The road had some curves and some flat parts.

However, she was concerned that the road was gradually widening and the ceiling was getting very high, but there was nothing she could do. She had no choice but to walk hard.

“The ceiling is getting higher and higher.”

Gideon tilted his head as if he was aware of it too.

“I should study geography next time. I don’t know when I’ll fall into a place like this again.”

“You said you were already taking a lot of classes. Are you still doing literature?”

“Ah, really!”

Gideon laughed softly as Vanessa huffed. Vanessa felt good when she made eye contact with him as he laughed.

But thanks to that, she directly faced the process of Gideon’s expression changing stiffly. The affectionate golden eyes instantly took on a cool air.

Vanessa tilted her head in bewilderment and then covered her mouth, which was about to leak a sound.

There was definitely light leaking out. There was an exit.

However, the exit was dozens of meters above. And below it, there was something huge. ‘It,’ covered in thick, shiny scales all over its body, was curled up and asleep.

Gideon slowly reached out and made Vanessa step back.

Vanessa didn’t know what to do. I wanted to help in some way, but I couldn’t know if I had enough ability to do so. She just clenched her fist, worried that she might be a hindrance.

Gideon’s eyes flickered and then softened as he looked back for a moment. It was a smile to reassure Vanessa.

The huge thing, sensing the presence of people, slowly opened its yellow eyes and looked at Gideon. The vertically long pupils narrowed and widened repeatedly.

It soon moved its huge tail and tapped the stone wall.

Thump. The cave wall vibrated violently even with a light movement.

Gideon put strength into each of his fingers and gripped the hilt of his sword.

Neither Gideon nor Vanessa had ever seen a dragon, but it would be strange if they didn’t call that a dragon.

No one would have known that the fairy tale that the Night Vandals were friends with dragons was real.

He had to be careful not to collapse the cave by using great magic. Gideon briefly examined the height of the ceiling and the space behind the dragon.

The dragon’s mouth opened wide, revealing sharp teeth. A long tongue swept through the gaps.

Gideon waited calmly for it to come to him first.

And in an instant, the dragon straightened its curled body and jumped out. At the same time, Gideon swung his sword at the dragon’s head.

A tremendous sound that tore through the air spread along the trajectory of the sword’s movement.

It contained powerful magic, but it was not enough to completely tear through the dragon’s thick skin, only creating a long, torn wound.

The dragon was not afraid of the blood flowing and tried to chew up this intruder with its mouth open.

However, with the intention of tearing apart the soft flesh exposed inside the mouth, a sword with force was quickly approaching.

Clang-!

The dragon hurriedly bit the sword with its teeth. Veins stood out on Gideon’s forehead as he held the sword with both hands. After a moment of confrontation, Gideon was suddenly pushed back by force.

“Gideon!”

Vanessa screamed, but the reason he was pushed back was because he had taken one hand off the sword. His right hand reached out, and magic surged from his fingertips.

Darkness hidden in the cave stretched out black tendrils and pierced through the dragon’s body. The realization of magic was so fast that the dragon had no time to defend.

Kieeeeeeeek!

The dragon dropped the sword it was biting and screamed in pain, and Gideon struck the dragon with his sword.

The dragon instinctively stepped back. Its yellow eyes were excited, and its pupils widened and then narrowed again. Gideon prepared to attack again.

But somehow, the dragon didn’t seem to be looking at him.

Gideon, noticing it, turned his body to Vanessa, and the dragon’s tail was already flying.

Gideon protected Vanessa with a physical barrier, but the tail broke the barrier at once and headed for Vanessa.

“Vanessa!”