Eyy, So Lame!

Without being able to do anything further, Arran immediately dropped down again just like that. He must have spent all his energy just to scrape up a shovel and running over there to protect Aria.

So Arran's condition, which was actually getting better, ended up getting worse again. Not only was he sweating profusely, his face was also starting to turn pale again. Blue even!

"Arran!" Aria immediately tried to use her magic, but Arran's breathing was still heavy as if he had a very high fever. 'What should I do? I'm out of painkillers,' Aria thought.

The effect of the poison should have improved, but if no painkillers were given, Arran would still be in quite a bit of torment until he was completely healed.

And Rei who saw that knew exactly what they needed. "I have the antidote." He said first. "I will give it if you comply with my request."

Hearing that Aria was about to say yes, but Arran interrupted again. "Just die, you son of a witch." He cursed.

Managing his expression, weirdly Rei just chose to swallow that insult. "If that happens, I will ask Hiki to kill 2 of your friends though."

"Sounds troublesome, but sure I guess." Hiki chirped.

"Damn you--" But before Arran could ramble again, Aria had already covered his mouth.

"W-What do you need?" She asked again.

"Easy. I just need…" Rei started. Not even just Aria and Arran, Hiki was also somewhat looking forward to what he would say. "The information about the person who taught you micro-magic. Are there any great magicians around here?"

"Eyy, so lame!" Hiki chirped like a disappointed spectator.

Though vice versa, Aria, who didn't really understand the question, looked confused instead. "Micro-magic…?" She repeated.

"...Earlier, when you turned the soil into a jelly-like texture. Don't tell me you don't know that."

But luckily Aria knew this one. "Ah, that, I just accidentally saw it in a book in the library. And it suddenly occurred to me…" And she also remembered again how she had almost buried Rei in that jelly.

"..." Even though it was in accordance with his initial expectations--too exact even, Rei didn't look happy and could only stand there silently as if he was having an inner conflict by himself. The inner war he had long forgotten since last year.

"Tsk, screw it." He mumbled for a second.

Only after a long silence, Rei finally spoke again. "If it's only until tomorrow he won't die right?" He asked. "Then come to the mansion tomorrow. I'll give you the antidote later."

==================================

Arran obviously wouldn't let Aria go there, let alone by herself. But knowing that Aria would definitely sneak up there while he was sleeping, Arran managed to hold back his sleep desperately even though it was so hard to do. He was quite stubborn himself, so in the end Aria had to use sleeping pills on him.

So here she is, again standing in front of the Malven residence.

Aria wasn't really sure either, but it looked like they needed something from her. And that seems to be related to her magic. "Don't tell me they want to make me do work like a mercenary…" She muttered worriedly.

Because even though it was the last thing she had to worry about, Aria still got scared by that possibility.

"Ah, Miss Aria, right?" One of the maids immediately approached her as soon as she entered the mansion. "Mr. Alrei already said you would come."

But unlike what she had feared, she was instead welcomed nicely as if she was a real guest. Aria of course became more agitated seeing that, but for now she could only follow them until they took her to the greenhouse.

The maid left and said that Rei would come in a moment. So while waiting, Aria couldn't help but look at all the pretty plants and flowers that were there. Especially since almost all the plants there are medicinal plants.

In Mrs. Rumia's shop, she often only saw dried plants and leaves. So this was actually her first time seeing lots of medicinal plants that still look alive in their pots.

Only after a while, Rei finally entered the greenhouse. "You came earlier than I thought." He said, grumbling a bit while carrying a thick stack of books in his hands. It's definitely his fault if he didn't sleep last night, but the problem is he also doesn't like doing anything troublesome before breakfast.

But because Aria didn't answer and just stood there trembling, Rei could only sighed softly. "You know, Hiki once accidentally gave that flower to a girl." He suddenly said while pointing to a pot filled with purple flowers near Aria.

And apparently Aria was a little surprised to hear that. Because she knows that it's a Jorm flower which scent can make people faint instantly. "I-Is she okay?"

"Yeah, she woke up after three days." He replied.

After that Rei looked at Aria for a few more moments before finally starting to speak again. "But you really don't know what micro-magic is? Then macro-magic neither?" He asked and Aria just shook her head.

BUSH! And suddenly Rei burned one of the flowers there. "What I just did is called macro-magic. Meanwhile, what you did yesterday was micro-magic." He explained immediately. "To put it simply, macro-magic only focuses on releasing your magic energy. Whereas micro-magic is more focused on how you direct and control your magic."

"And… I actually kinda need that, but unfortunately I'm not very good at it." He honestly added.

"Meaning…? Do you want me to teach you how to do it?"

"No. I've given up on that. It's a waste of time too if I study it again." He replied. "Which is why I thought maybe you could just work for me as well."

"...!" Hearing that Aria's heart sank slightly because the direction of her conversation was going exactly in the direction she was worried about. "I-I can't kill people or anything like that!" Aria screamed in fear.

"...Well, that's a bit of a shame. But don't worry, that's not what I planned." Rei replied. "For now I just need to measure your abilities first. So read this." He continued, pointing to the books he had brought with him earlier. "I've marked the magic you should try."

And even though she was a bit scared, Aria came closer to take a look. But rather than the types of magic she had to try, Aria was even more surprised by the number of the bookmarks she saw. There were more than 10 bookmarks there!

"D-Do I have to try everything?"

"Choose 2 that you like." He replied. "Learn it as long as you need. And when you're done, tell the guard in the front to call me." He added.

"..."

"That's all though. Is there anything else you need?"

Being asked that, even Aria couldn't let go of that chance. "I-I want to see my friends first! I mean, if I may… I beg you."

Rei scowled a bit, but he finally called out to the 2 guards in the front. "Take her to their place." He ordered, though he still oddly raised his finger as if he had not finished speaking. "Mm... But if I tell you not to heal their wounds, will you listen to me or not?"

"They're hurt??"

"Of course. They're real thieves, so I had to at least…" Rei replied as if it was obvious, though he immediately felt weird explaining it.

But even just hearing that, of course Aria already got a heart attack and started to choke by herself. So out of pity, Rei was forced to loosen up the situation a bit.

"Hh, fine, you can heal them." He finally said. "But don't try anything weird, let alone run away." He added.