Aftermath 2 – Kesera's Solitary Retreat
Kesera Le Armo Ascentrius. Eldest daughter of the great ruling house of Ascentrius, destined to become a mighty archmage. At least, I had no intention of tarnishing my own name, and I'd never once felt ashamed of it. It didn't matter if that prowess came from memories of my past life. Those memories weren't even all that perfect to begin with. Even without them, I was confident I could've handled things just fine.
The rift torn open by the trajectory of my platinum wand at my fingertips sealed back up perfectly, neat as you please. Once the job was done, I didn't bother looking at wounds that would heal anyway. I'd just cleaned up some filthy, discarded formula—that was all~☆
"Kesera, well done."
"Meh~☆ No biggie."
This'll probably get recorded in some crystal orb somewhere. I can already picture the reporters swarming. God, I hope they don't make a fuss over something like this. It was just a bad day, that's all.
"You found the inversion point of the void root and twisted it back, right? But the laws of the spirit world and the physical world are fundamentally incompatible. How were you able to solve it so quickly?"
"Beats me~☆ I'm just a little kid~☆"
The professor just stroked his mustache regretfully as I played dumb. Yeah~ Keep wondering about it~☆ Regret giving me all those pointers earlier~☆
"Anyway, I'm outta here~☆"
"Hrm... Very well, Miss Seris. You're dismissed."
"Thank you, Professor Joshua."
I confirmed the cleanup was fully verified and headed straight back to class. The TA chattered on praising me the whole way, but isn't that just par for the course?
By the time I got back, the other academy students in the class had paired up and were sparring with wooden wands. Naturally, no idiots dared challenge me. Hmph, better this way. Keeps the annoyances off my back—lucky break.
**
After class, I headed straight to my forward operating base. The White Class dormitory of the Imperial Academy, my room marked with the name Sera. The interior, styled like our mansion back home, had already been touched up by the servants when I moved in, and it looked like they'd kept the dust at bay while I was gone too.
A. Lone. Fi. Nal. Ly.
Being by myself felt so damn good. Sharing space with that guy had me tossing and turning for no reason... This is... perfect. So... perfect?
"Ugh... Whatever~☆"
The soft touch of the bedding against my skin was pure bliss—leagues beyond those stiff hospital sheets. That silky sensation clinging to me made me wriggle and squirm under the covers.
Oh yeah, I haven't written in my diary today. And since it's been a while, I should check the practice room too.
"No slacking."
I wanted to roll around more, but I forced myself up and headed to the practice room. The magic circle I'd drawn two weeks ago still lingered faintly. Professor Oslo's tricky replication magic deduction, right? I'd pushed so hard I blacked out, burning way too much mana without a thought for my body.
I knew handwriting was better than channeling mana, but verifying with magic lets you spot errors at a glance. Plus, for big spells, you can draw circles with minimal mana beforehand. That's why I proved it magically... but now I know how dangerous poor control can be. Complicated stuff by hand from now on...
I jotted the remaining traces onto magic paper for later. Good to know conditioning matters, and mana ale is risky. No warm mommy magic here to recharge my energy with every step—like being fresh out of the cradle.
"Got it~☆ Sigh... I wanna go home."
To do that, I gotta work harder. Let's see~ How're my scores?
Crunching the numbers, I could drop a few subjects, but nothing's set in stone, so I'll take 'em all. Wonder if two years' worth of grade-skipping is possible~? Gotta ace field studies too for that... Even dragging weaklings along, I need top scores. Better practice cost-effective spells for then.
Once I finished logging on the magic paper, the practice room was spotless. Now... icicle spears over here, wind magic there. I fired dozens of spells at the straw dummies.
If I really tried, I could blow up the dummy—or the whole room—without batting an eye... But that's what open fields are for, not practice rooms.
Still, after a bit, my solar plexus started aching.
"Hoo... Haa...♡"
Quite the workout—I'm breaking a sweat. Skipped cleanse today and drew a bath instead. Soaking in warmth should help... Been craving that lazy soak.
I stood before the mirror, stripping off my academy uniform. Somehow, this short skirt felt natural now. Whatever—plenty more ahead without dwelling.
Grabbed my usual shorts, set them by the bathroom, and sank into the hot water.
"Hot hot hot... Ouch!"
Steamier than I thought—dipped a toe and yanked back. Too hot? Mages are handy for this.
"Ice, whatever~☆"
A random chunk plopped in. Okay, now...
"Eek... C-c-cold!"
Nothing trickier than bath temps. Fire and ice tag a bunch, overflowed the tub a few times, finally got it right and slipped in.
...Up to my chin. Heavenly.
"Haaah~♡"
I'm objectively pretty, but even scratching my neck like some old geezer, my voice comes out cute. Short stature means I fit perfectly, and part of me wants to savor childhood longer. But the height thing? Never got used to it—hence the time magic.
Mom's over fifty but looks twenty-something, skin tight. Mages live till mana runs dry, apparently way longer than expected.
Glancing down, past the floating petals, my chest peeked from the water. Past budding—now a slight, touchable swell. Calling it "breasts" feels off... but they're puffing up.
"Barely a month since secondary traits kicked in..."
I kneaded the firm, muscle-knotted mounds absentmindedly. No real ♡ tingles from touching.
Getting sleepy... Body heating up, face flushing. Body's bloated enough—time to soap up and out. But outside's chillier than expected. A bit longer? Splash—back under.
And... soaking solo, thoughts drift in this flower-herb-scented bath. Craving something sweeter than candy? Nah, more like booze-mixed scent...
That guy's face pops up.
'Discharged tomorrow, so I won't show up in front of you anymore.'
Why's that line first? Annoying annoying annoying—total piss-off. Staring straight at me with that clueless pretty-boy face.
Tch... Show up again, and I'll kill you for real.
"Haa... Hate it."
This guy's face keeps haunting me—infuriating. Past life as a guy, swore no dude ties. But his delicate prettiness and that 'opposite sex' hormone rush shaking my principles? Ridiculous.
Ugh... Thinking makes it worse. Stay longer, and he'll monopolize my brain—drain the tub.
Towel off quick, cleanse again. Mirror opposite shows my body, girlier than before. Born female, duh. Soon breasts grow more, hips widen. Height too... maybe give up. Mom's not that tall either.
Oh yeah, mirrors can store images like crystal orbs, right? Head to library for mirror magic? Not for his face. For daily records—might need later.
Clueless to my own thoughts, I burrowed deep into bed.