[ Secret mission #1 : It is one of them!
Objective completed!
Reward : 3000 points
Remaining points: 4110 points ]
Cecil stared blankly at the message, even after the message disappeared, all she could do was stand and stare on blankly.
Something from the corner of her eye made Cecil turn and she saw Xue opening his right palm, a small flame hovering. Another memory replayed in Cecil's mind involuntarily, where Kai first demonstrated his elemental abilities to her.
The tears that stopped started to flow again, and Cecil moved her hands to wipe her tears, realising she was still clutching onto Kai's hands.
He is no longer Kai.
Just as she withdrew her hand, she noticed a change in Kai's face and her blank expression cracked.
"Xue." Cecil called out, her voice lifeless, and Xue halted, looking at her.
Her entire time here, she had never talked to called out to Xue even once. Thus, when Xue heard her, he was taken aback.
"You need to look at this," Cecil pointed to Kai's face, her expression complex. "I have never seen this happen before."
Xue went closer, and he saw Kai's face, that originally resembled him very closely, was changing at a visible pace. From his eyes, nose, lips, nose and even jawline; they were all changing.
"This should probably be the original occupant, his true appearance."
Cecil nodded, "I thought so."
"Do your visions follow the changes we make?"
Cecil shook her head. "My visions only show me the original events that were supposed to happen, since it has changed, my visions are of no use."
Xue noticed the tear stains, and her eyelashes still wet from her tears.
Cecil exhaled shakily, wiping any traces of tears away as she reached forward, her hand trembling slightly as she ruffled Kai's hair for one last time.
...Kai...
I'll never forget you.
Farewell.
I'm glad to have met you.
Xue's indifferent expression softened just a little as he observed her closely.
"Xue."
"...what?"
"Can you talk to--"
"I'll handle his master, just go."
"Thank you, and...can I ask something?"
"Go ahead."
"Can you show me your fire element? Just once?"
Xue followed her request almost instantaneously, opening up his palm and letting the flame dance around his hand and fingers.
It seems like he has assimilated...without any problems.
Seeing this, Cecil didn't feel as suffocated as before, but it was only a tiny bit.
"Thank you, Xue."
Cecil smiled faintly, leaving the room quietly and Xue caught her pleasant fragrance once again, watching her leave, his face obscure.
The moment she left, he put the flames away and produced the same red marble, gazing at it.
She really did all this...just for me and you.
After that, for an entire month, Xue did not catch a glimpse of Cecil.
***
"Did you hear about the principal's favoured disciple?"
"Kai? Didn't the principal announce that his soul was discovered to be damaged by a healer? And that he was fully recovered now?"
"You haven't seen him?"
"I've been busy! And he hardly comes out these days, and...for the entire month, he has never visited Cecil Lan."
"That's because he's a completely different person! The healer told the principal that since his soul was fully recovered, his appearance and memories are affected too!"
"There's such a thing?"
"Anything related with souls is bound to be complicated."
"You know, because of him...the four musketeers of our academy..."
Hana overheard the students talking, and she pursed her lips. A month ago, Xue came to look for her and told her that Kai would not be visiting them anymore.
"Why? Does he not like us anymore?"
"He is not Kai anymore."
"...?"
"Hana, because of...something, my soul has been split into fifty different fragments around Hantulsennem. Kai was one of them."
"Wh...what?"
"He is me, Hana. And now, he is right where he should be."
"Are you saying...you took him away?"
"I absorbed his soul."
Hana was visibly upset by the news, and found it hard to speak to Xue after that. Instead, she went to find Cecil, not knowing why.
"Cecil, you know...about Kai?"
"Yes."
"...are you okay?"
Hana remembered her response clearly, and she could still recall Cecil holding back her tears as she spoke.
"I have to be."
Cecil knew Xue would expose the truth, since it happened in the original novel.
After this conversation, Cecil did not entertain any questions about Kai any longer. If Hana even mentioned about Kai, Cecil would only frown and walk away.
Xue, who was being avoided by Hana and was still affected by Kai revealing how Cecil sacrificed much to help them, kept to himself, drowning himself in training.
He was just like Cecil, whom also drowned herself in training.
Hana felt that three of them were becoming more distant than ever. Compared to Xue revealing the truth, she was more upset by this fact.
The somewhat harmonious atmosphere between the three of them wasn't there anymore.
***
"Alright, everyone of you here has been students here for the past two months. In another two weeks, and the semester will come to an end," Eri elucidated. "After which, you'll have a break of two weeks. For those who wants visit your hometown, please inform me beforehand. For those who aren't, you don't need to do anything."
Cecil fiddled with the rock in her hand, swinging it about. Eri noticed this conscientious student of hers while talking, and she furrowed her eyebrows.
Finishing her words, Eri approached Cecil who didn't move when she dismissed the class. After hearing about Kai's situation, she finally understood Cecil's tenacity in training.
She was hurt.
She was in sorrow.
Alas, she did not know where to turn to.
Poor girl, behind that haughty facade, she must be in pain.
"Cecil."
Cecil stopped playing with her rock, the dazed look in her eyes gone. "Miss Eri, I know class is dismissed, I'll stay here awhile longer."
"Are you planning to go back to your hometown?"
Cecil paused.
In the novel, this semester break never happened. Xue immediately escaped the academy after absorbing Kai's soul. At that time, he did not know that the principal had executed a man-hunt on him.
Thus, after two weeks, he decided to come back to academy to kill everything and destroy it completely. However, he was greeted by a sight of horror when he reached Indigo, the town where everyone needed to pass through to head to the academy.
It was a corpse invasion, only capable by dark magic users.
The academy was helping the civilians and fighting off the invasion.
Xue only decided to use this invasion to destroy the academy, along with everyone, he even killed the civilians too. After he succeeded, he realised that the invasion was somehow planned.
That was because, the invasion possessed two corpses that had his soul. Moreover, one of the wandering peddlers was also a soul of his, present in the town.
It was too much of a coincidence.
Alas, in the end, it was never revealed what the invasion actually was and who was the mastermind.
The author tossed it aside.
Nevertheless, Cecil knew that this invasion...it would be better for Xue to step in and help.
"No, I am not returning--actually, yes...I will be returning to my hometown."
Cecil wanted to decline, but she remembered that Hana would definitely head back home.
"Oh, that's great, Cecil. I'll inform the administrator."
"Thank you, Miss Eri."
Cecil remained expressionless, her mind drifting off to Hana.
The heroine is a trouble magnet, and Xue will naturally join her.
...and if anyone truly caused trouble for Hana, Xue would slaughter them like ants.
No, ants would be too high of a regard. Even ants are better than them in Xue's eyes.
Cecil waved it off, the invasion wasn't as important as preventing Hana from seeing Xue killing people in front of her. Especially with how sensitive their relationship was now.
I cannot jeopardize my OTP! Even with how sad I am!
She sighed heavily, saying her goodbye to Eri and setting off to find Hana in the water division. Cecil ambled along the pavement, luckily, the earth division was close to the water division.
Observing her surroundings, a fond memory played in her mind and she blinked rapidly, shaking her head. Everything seem to remind her of Kai, and it left an ache in her that can never disappear.
She sighed again, the walk to the water division quiet yet gloomy.
...it was then she heard a shriek.
She raised her head up, startled, and she heard a familiar name being called out.
"Xue!"
Cecil smacked her hand against her forehead, a sense of unease welling up within her.
She knew what this meant.
Not again!
Why are people always looking for deaths so eagerly!
There should be a limit for how many times I can act as a calming pill for the great lord protagonist!
Cecil rushed forward.
***
《 start 》
The words from my other "me" regarding that annoying woman from that day has been driving me mad.
Now that I want to ask her, if what he actually claimed was really true, I can't see her.
For an entire month.
Not even a glimpse of her.
Not once.
I know those words are true from that day, since I can feel it from "me"...but I still want to ask her.
I want to hear it from her own mouth...or is it because I just want to hear her call out to my name again?
...no.
Should I seek her out myself?
...no.
...
...I think being in a sensitive spot with Hana has made me unable to think straight.
《 stop 》