Outcome
Outcome
"......."
I couldn't open my mouth for a moment.
Because two proposals were violently clashing in my head.
'No! How long has it been since breakfast, and you're already thinking of skipping it? I'll be waiting on the terrace after the greeting, so you absolutely must come!'
The bright smile of Licia, who had boldly hugged her bag to her chest while leaving the First Research Lab just a few dozen minutes ago, flashed through my mind.
A young apprentice who had barged into my daily life, declaring she'd skip lunch if I didn't show up, and left as if running away without giving me a chance to refuse.
By now, that child must be waiting with bated breath at the outdoor terrace on the second floor of the Magic Tower, having already ordered a sandwich, just waiting for me to arrive.
"......Rion?"
Her starlight-like eyes, calling my name softly, were visibly wavering.
Swoosh.
The glimmer of expectation that had been lingering in Master Amelia's eyes slowly faded.
Interpreting the meaning of my silence in her own way, her eyelids drooped heavily.
"By any chance...... was my proposal bothersome? Or......"
Her voluptuous chest heaved slightly with anxiety.
The sight of her biting her pale lower lip looked exceptionally pitiful.
"......Do you have a prior engagement?"
My heart ached the moment I met those eyes looking up at me, murmuring dejectedly.
I let out a deep breath and carefully took hold of Master's white hand, which was about to be withdrawn.
"......I did have a prior engagement."
At my honest answer, Master Amelia's shoulders flinched noticeably.
"I promised to have lunch with Licia, whom I accepted as my disciple, at the terrace on the second floor of the Magic Tower. She even threatened to starve if I didn't come."
A dark shadow and a sense of self-deprecation instantly clouded her eyes.
She must have thought she had been pushed aside, as expected.
However, I gently wrapped my hand around her knuckles and calmly continued the sentence that was about to be cut off.
"......But Master."
I held her hand, which was gripping mine tightly, and whispered in a soft voice.
"I feel sorry for Licia, but I want to have a meal with you for the first time in a while."
"......Huh?"
Master Amelia's eyes widened.
"The appointment with that child can be postponed. To me, the most precious person who must always be my top priority is...... you, Master Amelia, who took me in and raised me. You are the only one."
That was my honest heart.
Having been terribly hurt by the members of the Dawn's Light party and having run away to the Magic Tower with my heart completely rotting away, the person who became my only salvation and sanctuary was the Master right in front of me.
No matter how much Licia admired me and comforted the wounds in my heart, it could not compare to the weight of the Master who had maintained her purity for a hundred years and embraced me with such benevolence.
The moment my answer spread quietly inside the Master's office.
"......Ah."
A very faint gasp escaped Master Amelia's lips.
Instantly, all the gloom and shadows that had been on her face were washed away as if it were a lie.
Clack, swoosh.
"Really...... are you really going to eat with me? You chose me, not that child?"
She smiled brightly, like a young girl who had just received the doll she had wanted her whole life.
That smile was so brilliant and dazzling that it reminded me not of a Great Mage who had lived for a hundred years, but of a pitiful young lady who had just learned about love.
Her cheeks flushed, and her eyes, strangely mixed with tears and joy, sparkled like stars.
"Yes, Master. Isn't it only natural? If you wait for a moment, I will send a message to Licia to postpone our appointment."
"No, no! Isn't it inconvenient because magic communication leaves a mana trail? I will send a message to that child myself through the Apprentice Management Office. You just...... just wait here comfortably with me, Rion."
Master Amelia waved her hands hurriedly, like someone afraid that my answer might change, and cut me off.
"......Understood. Then I will follow your way, Master."
As I nodded, the Master smiled brightly with an expression as if she truly possessed the whole world, and walked over to the magic communication device prepared in one corner of the office.
A moment later, a top-tier Magic Tower breakfast set was summoned silently via a magic circle onto the huge circular marble table inside the office.
Softly toasted rye bread, beef steak with a subtle scent of red wine, and fresh seasonal fruits were neatly arranged.
"Now, Rion. Sit here."
Master Amelia gently led my sleeve and personally pulled out the chair right next to her.
Usually, according to Magic Tower protocol, the rule was for the Master and the disciple to sit facing each other across the table, but to the current Master, such rigid rules seemed to be of no concern.
Rattle.
With the sound of the chair bumping, as soon as I sat down, the Master also sat down right next to me, sticking close.
"Master...... isn't this a bit too close?"
As I was slightly flustered and tried to move my body away, Amelia gently applied force to the hand holding my sleeve and instead stepped even closer.
"Close? That's nonsense. I've raised you in my arms all this time, so what is there to be shy about now? I just...... want to eat with my child a little closer."
"......Understood."
Unable to create any more distance, I picked up a spoon and took a bite of the beef steak.
The soft juices and the rich flavor of the wine spreading throughout my mouth warmed my stomach.
"How is it? Does it suit your taste? I ordered it to be specially prepared with the recipe of the chef you liked the most before you left on your adventure."
"......It's excellent. It tastes exactly like what I used to eat when I was young."
At my compliment, the Master smiled brightly like a child again, reached out with her white hand, and personally wiped away a small bit of sauce on the corner of my mouth.
"By the way, Rion."
Master Amelia chewed the steak, which she had cut into very small pieces, elegantly, then spoke softly as if she had just thought of it.
"Yes, Master. Please speak."
As I asked, wiping my mouth lightly with a napkin, she lifted her glass, moistened her lips slightly, and continued carefully.
"That...... as I was sending the message through the Apprentice Management Office just now, a thought suddenly occurred to me. The apprentice you took in this time, Licia Lowell. Looking at her age, she just turned twenty."
"Yes, that is what I heard. She is on the younger side among the apprentices entering the Magic Tower."
"Yes, it is a very fresh and lively age. Since they say her personality is easygoing and bold, in a way, she could be a very attractive impression."
Master Amelia put down her glass and glanced at me.
"That...... I'm just asking because I was suddenly curious. Rion, you...... in terms of personal preference, who are you more drawn to? For example...... do you like a younger woman, much younger like Licia? Or......"
She swallowed slightly. Her voluptuous chest sank heavily and rose in time with that movement.
"Do you prefer an older woman...... who is older than you, has rich life experience, and can fully embrace you?"
......Older or younger?
At the sudden topic of conversation, I stopped thinking for a moment, holding my fork.
When I couldn't answer readily and remained silent, Amelia began to add words hurriedly, perhaps wondering how she should take my silence.
"I, I must have flustered you by asking this suddenly. It's just...... since the elders of the school or high-ranking nobles of the empire keep hinting to me about your marriage or relationships, I thought it would be good to know your standards in advance as the Master of the Magic Tower and your mentor, so I just threw it out as an academic...... no, a political question. There is no deep meaning."
"......Well. I haven't thought about it deeply."
As I answered indifferently, Master Amelia pulled her chair closer to me.
"If you haven't thought about it, then think about it carefully right here, right now. Because a partner has a huge influence on a mage."
"Younger children are certainly lively and pleasing to the eyes. But...... they are just as emotionally unstable and weak, so there is a high possibility that they won't be able to support you when you are actually struggling and exhausted. Rather, you might end up having to cater to that child's emotions one by one and take care of them, which could waste the energy you should be using for magic research. Isn't that the case just looking at Licia's behavior earlier? Didn't she make you uncomfortable by saying she would skip lunch according to her own stubbornness?"
Her voice carried emotions like a subtle leading question.
"But an older woman is different, Rion. A woman who is older and has experience will never make unreasonable demands of you or trouble you with childish tantrums. Even if you don't say it, she can read the shadows in your heart first, and when you are exhausted and collapse, she can become a reliable sanctuary where you can lean on without any conditions. Furthermore......"
She gently overlapped her white, slender hand on the back of my hand.
"The wisdom and magical achievements accumulated over a long time will be a huge inspiration for your growth, and you can achieve perfect mental communion. Rather than a young flower that is only flashy on the outside, a mature woman who has endured a long time and gives off a deep fragrance is...... wouldn't she be the most perfect salvation for a mage like you who has returned with deep wounds?"
The advantages of an older woman she was talking about were excessively specific, and above all...... it was describing Master Amelia herself right in front of me.
"......."
I lifted my eyes quietly and stared at Master Amelia.
"Master."
"S-s-sure? Why, Rion?"
Master Amelia was startled and hurriedly withdrew her hand that she had placed on the back of my hand.
"Today, you are explaining the advantages of relationships between men and women or older women very specifically."
At my indifferent pointing out, Amelia rolled her eyes violently for a moment, not knowing what to do.
"T-that is......! Ah, yes! Among the periodicals published by the Continental Magic Society recently, a new paper titled 'The Effect of a Mage's Emotional Stability on Mana Resonance' came out! Yes, it is a paper written by a very renowned sage!"
She desperately glossed over it like someone whose foot was pricked.
"According to the statistics of that paper, it is recorded that mages with older partners have a 30% lower probability of experiencing Mana Backflow than those with younger partners! I, as the Master of the Magic Tower, it is only natural educational duty to convey such latest academic trends of the continent to you! It is never because I have other selfish motives, Rion!"
"......I see. If it is the latest academic trend, I should keep it well in mind."
"Y-yes! I am truly glad that you understand my deep meaning. Now, eat more before the food gets cold."
"......."
I quietly put down my fork.
"Master."
My voice, which had sunk low, broke the silence.
"Y-yes? Why, Rion? Is it...... the food not to your taste? Or did I talk too long about unnecessary things, making it uncomfortable to......"
Master Amelia lifted her head with a voice full of tension.
"......I still haven't thought deeply about whether it's an older or younger woman. However, if I have to tell you my personal preference according to that academic trend......"
I looked down quietly at her white, slender hand placed on the table.
The hand of my only benefactor, whose fingertips were trembling slightly.
"A woman who has accumulated deep wisdom over a long time and can fully embrace my jagged and broken heart without any conditions seems much more attractive."