Bandages Off, Blushing Glances
I woke up in pitch darkness, the only sound the intermittent rasp of breathing breaking the silence. Rolling over, there was the mummy from earlier, fast asleep—or so it seemed. Saaah— saeek— Yeah, that snoring confirmed it. My mana was completely drained, but I could still move my body. What the hell kind of spell had I cast? No clue, even after racking my brain. This great future archmage doesn't make mistakes☆. And with no mana left, how did the space warp like that? Guess I need to check the seal I bungled to figure it out... But I'm stuck in this infirmary for the foreseeable future.
So, pulling off that kind of power with my pathetic scrap of mana? It's like bench-pressing hundreds of kilos buck naked, no gear. I could shift positions a bit, sure, but drop it and the barbell rolls away. Same as that growth spell with accelerated time axis last time. At the mansion, I knew my limits and dialed it back... but without Mom to clean up my messes, it all blew up spectacularly.
Yeah, keep blowing up incidents like this, and Mom'll lock me down for good. But thinking about her again... nah, not such a hot idea. Getting scolded terrifies me.
"Agh... ugh... haa~ Should I get up for a sec~☆?"
Lying here sweating makes me fidgety and irritable. My chest feels all tight and stuffy inside. No magic for a while, so time to rest up proper.
"Ugh...!"
A groan of pain from the next bed. But why does that voice sound... kinda nice? Not the pain part, but the tone itself. Like a fresh rookie's timbre—easy on the ears. Wait, no. Why am I thinking a guy's voice in my room sounds good? Have I lost it...?!
No... his face must be wrecked anyway, right? Yeah, observing the ugly mug should calm my nerves. Back in my past life, they said observing particles changes their state. Ultimately, that parasite-like cute face was the problem. Wreck that, and no more heart-pounding for this jerk.
I eased up from the bed. So quiet, even the sheets rustling echoed. Tiptoeing closer, mana-recovery herbs scented the air. Up close, the mummy was wrapped head to toe, holes only for eyes, nose, mouth. But the problem wasn't that... those eye holes weren't flesh-colored. They had irises. He was wide awake.
My face burned whoosh—. Not on purpose or anything, it just—
"Ahem, ehm—"
Pretending to sleep now just pisses me off more. Haa... just go back to sleep already!
"Hey, you! I saw that."
The total scrub shut his eyelids like nothing happened. He's faking it on purpose... Rage bubbling, but I can't exactly smack him. Hah, whatever. My fault for picking a fight with this loser anyway.
"Tch... Sweet dreams, squirm in agony all you want~☆"
***
Three days later, both me and that scrub seemed way better. Treatment magic must pack a punch—bandages were coming off. And... his pretty-boy face was back to normal. The day they unwrapped him? Total shock. So I'd been avoiding looking at that face while journaling at night. No words between us since that first night anyway.
Professor Karia came by daily, whispering something over there—inaudible, irrelevant. She drew the curtain, turning it into a soundproof broadcast booth. The scrub never left for surgery or anything. Maybe ops while I slept? Today, the quack brought her blue syringe—sleeping pill central.
"Kesera, bedtime~"
"Eek... Gross~☆ Don't wanna, you scrub nurse...!"
"Heh, wanna cuddle more with your boyfriend?"
"No way! Gah—!"
Who're you calling boyfriend, you quack?! Every visit, she calls me his girlfriend over there, then boyfriend here... I'd bite my tongue off before dating that scrubby rookie. But the blue shot in my arm? Eyes slam shut. Haa... deep sleep after fixes everything, so lucky.
***
"Kesera's asleep."
"Yes..."
"How's the left arm? It'll take time to get used to the fresh regrowth."
Professor Karia unwrapped the bandages, revealing a baby arm twitching on his oversized frame. Grim sight that'd wrinkle any nose, but she poked it like a fascinating toy.
"Pretty small, like hers."
"Needs two weeks to grow full—better bind it. Nightly rehab too."
"...Thank you."
That was the end of her intellectual vibe. Mischief flooded her face as she leaned to Gail's ear, whispering—knowing full well the curtain blocked all sound outside.
"So, Kesera as a girlfriend?"
"That brat? No way. Ten-year gap."
"Really? Age gaps matter in love~?"
"Ugh, but she's such a kid."
"Her actions say otherwise. Still see her as a little girl?"
"Well..."
That smug heu~scrub☆ face flashes—still wanna punch it. But I lost perfectly this time; gotta admit what I must. Gail was unqualified. Still, separate from that, Kesera didn't act her age. At the end, she deflected the void magic. If she'd ditched responsibility like a kid and lost control, he'd be a twisted wreck right now—dead or worse. She gripped her staff to the last, fighting the rift's spread post-crack. Even Gail, no void expert, saw it.
"...No."
"Right? Sneaky types like her are cute when carried~?"
"No, don't say that! Professor!"
"Anything between you two?"
Professor Karia pressed with a sly grin. That first night flashed—her sneaking close, eyes meeting...
"Hoo... You didn't slip me a love potion, did you?"
"Think I'd experiment on you~?"
"No... haha."
She went intellectual again—no lies in that mode. And me? Falling for that kid? Nah. Got someone I promised to date, awkward post-rejection or not...
"Visitors starting tomorrow. Hide this arm—no weak stomachs can handle it."
"Yes... thank you."
"Seeing people airs you out. Back to class soon?"
Professor Karia delivered when it counted. Leaving, she stomped a flower by the door—probably common Egaila bloom, tossed aside. But under it? Yerina's name tag.
***
At the Student Council Hall, interning for the Imperial Magic Bureau, Yerina was approached by an agent in uniform.
"Intern Yerina."
"Yes, Agent Jerens."
"Field training today. Support request from southern Gertowin."
"The 12th Street remnant comms case?"
Yerina's guts shrank to pea-size with dread. No direct Chaos clashes yet. Field work? Full-on war now. Two archmages dispatched already. Thrust into an empire-shaking mega-case as a solver? Ultimate honor, unmissable shot for an intern like her.
But...
"Hesitating?"
"N-no, sir."
One junior came to mind—why? But this chance couldn't slip. Nail it for official promotion.