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“Hey… Just how long are you planning to stay here for?” Gilles asks tiredly with an open book in his hands.
“Until I can acquire level 85 magic.”
At my words, he nearly drops the book in surprise.
“Level 85? …..Alicia, I know you’re just trying to do your best right now, but it’ll be pointless if you collapse. You need to rest sotis too, there’s so things that you just can’t force through only willpower,” Gilles says reasonably.
I swear, with so of the lines he throws out there, it makes it seem as if he’s the older one, not .
“If you spend all your ti practicing, when are you planning to go visit gramps?”
Oh, right! I still need to visit Grandpa Will.
I glance over towards the window….. It’s already pitch black outside. I didn’t realize that the light streaming into the library had changed from sunlight to moonlight.
How long ago did the moon appear? Is it even still rising at this point? Just how many hours have I been practicing magic for?
“Gilles, the sun is gone.”
“Yes, Alicia. It is…. Duh! It’s night, so of course it’s gone,” Gilles says snarkily, casting a withering look my way.
This ans that I’ve been practicing all day and half the night but I still haven’t made any progress. I’d at least wanted to master transforming into a lion before I stopped for the day.
I’ve been trying to perform level 82 animal shapeshifting magic for hours on end to no avail.
“You were planning to go to school tomorrow, right?”
“Yes… I was.”
I an, there’s really no reason for not to go.
“Then I feel like you should hurry up and get so sleep now…”
Sohow, it feels like he’s treating like I’m a child and he’s my mom.
….Do I seem like I need soone to take care of ? ? A villainess? I can’t let myself seem like soone who needs to be babied! I need to beco a woman whose every actions shows off her determination and independence.
But if it continues on like this, far from seeming like a wicked villainess, I’m rely going to be labeled as an irresponsible and childish little girl.
“That’s true. I should probably get so sleep now,” I admit, smiling a bit self-consciously.
Gilles nods his head, seemingly satisfied by my reply.
And so without being able to make any progress, Gilles and I leave the library and head to bed.
“Alicia? Are you awake?” I hear Father call from the hall.
Am I still dreaming? Or is this really happening?
“Ali?” I hear him tentatively call out a second ti.
Still half asleep, I drag myself out of bed and walk over to open the door.
“Yeah?” I ask when I see him standing just outside my room. My eyes are still half closed and my brain isn’t really awake enough to be working properly yet.
Drowsily, I realize that a villainess should never let others see herself in this vulnerable, unrefined state, but since it’s just my father, hopefully he can forgive for letting my guard down.
“Morning, Ali,” he greets. His expression is one of relief.
“Good morning, Father. What’s wrong?”
“You really don’t know why I’m here? I heard that my precious daughter was kidnapped and even injured!” Father cries, his voice a bit louder than it needed to be.
Oh yeah. I was kidnapped. I kind of forgot.
Father’s eyes are wide as the stare into mine. They hold so traces of frustration and anger. And as I look into those eyes, my head slowly starts knocking off the cobwebs of sleep.
Co to think of it, Father hadn’t been ho when I ca back yesterday……
And it’s not like I saw any of my brothers either.
“Where were you yesterd–….” I start to say, but then I stop.
Finally, I’m completely awake. I’m so shocked to see that Father’s eyes are wet that all my tiredness disappears in an instant.
…..Had he been that worried about ?
“Thank god you’re alright,” he says, patting tenderly on the head. His voice sounds a bit choked up and his hand feels so very big and warm as he continues to stroke my hair.
So just the simple touch of a father’s hand can soothe my heart this much. Though, Grandpa Will’s hand can also make feel just as safe and content.
Slowly, Father removes his hand from my head. Then he looks straight in the eye and slowly opens his mouth to speak again.
“Alicia, I want you to stop monitoring Liz Cather.”
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T/N: First we get so mothering from Gilles…. and then we get so fathering from her actual father T-T I’m loving the family feels~!
What about you guys? Do you like the warm, caring atmosphere? Or do you prefer when Alicia is fiercely independent?
P.S. No chapter again this Friday (tomorrow EST). Honestly, I probably won’t ever post on Fridays. It’s my long work day so I just don’t foresee having the ti or the energy to haha.
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