“Alright. You should be able to walk properly now.”
As soon as we stepped out of the room, the elf lightly tapped my thigh and said that.
At that moment, the lingering pain completely disappeared, and an inexplicable surge of energy filled me.
She really is a magician.
She was already descending the stairs in the distance, so I hurried my steps.
By the time we reached the main gate of the Continental Trading Company, a maid brought her a hat.
She pulled the hat down low, covering her eyebrows and tucking both her brows and ears inside. The hat was so wide that it completely covered her shoulders.
As I stared at her curiously, the elf pulled her scarf up to cover her nose and spoke.
“I’m Avana. You?”
“I’m Ran, Ran.”
“Is that so? Alright, Ran. From today onward, you’re not a slave—you’re a magician. So if you keep walking around with bent shoulders like that, I’ll scold you. You know butterflies, right? You have to spread your shoulders wide and walk confidently, like a butterfly.”
I nodded.
Should I try straightening my shoulders?
But for some reason, they just kept going up and down awkwardly.
“Heh. How amusing. Now, follow my lead. Stretch your arms straight forward.”
That was easy.
“And raise them up.”
Got it.
“Now, extend them outward while keeping them straight.”
Okay.
“And snap! Bring them down to your sides.”
Huh?
My chest suddenly pushed forward, and my stomach sucked in.
Avana patted my head and said,
“The most important thing for a magician is… Hmm, the terminology is complicated. Let’s put it simply—it’s confidence. If you lack confidence, your magic won’t listen to you either.”
My magic won’t listen to me?
What does that mean?
Avana didn’t seem inclined to explain further. Instead, she lightly placed a hand on the gate.
With a creaking sound, the gate swung open on its own.
I had wondered how she could open such a heavy gate with her light frame, but to think she did it with magic…
“Don’t look so surprised. You’ll be able to do it too.”
She seemed to have misunderstood something, but I didn’t bother correcting her.
She walked through the streets of the port without saying much until we left the city. Just watching her movements, I could tell she was on high alert.
Come to think of it, Count Furst had also been more cautious when walking through the port than when he was on the ship.
A few men whistled at her, drawn by her tight leather pants and slender figure, but fortunately, nothing else happened.
If she had shown her face, though, it probably wouldn’t have stopped at just whistles.
And then, all of them would have died by magic.
Thinking about it that way, Avana was actually quite kind.
“This way.”
Avana pointed towards the forest—where there was no path at all—and started walking in that direction.
I was holding her hand, and when I hesitated, she stumbled slightly from my weight.
“Heh. What are you doing? Why aren’t you coming?”
“Wait, you’re going that way? But there’s no path!”
“There’s no human path. But there’s an elven path. Just trust me. You know how to walk in the forest, right?”
“Of course I do, but…”
“Then trust me.”
She started walking ahead, and I mustered my courage to follow.
The forest was incredibly dense.
The ground was covered in grass, the air filled with branches—it seemed impossible to pass through.
But as I followed Avana’s path, strangely, nothing hindered me.
Normally, I’d expect to misstep on uneven ground, twist my ankle, or get scratched all over by branches.
I’d be making a ruckus, snapping twigs and crunching leaves, disturbing every wild animal in the area.
Flutter.
Creak. Creak.
Yet, I could hear the sounds of animals and insects so close by.
Which meant… they hadn’t noticed us at all.
I lifted my face to feel the wind.
As I thought, I was walking with the wind.
That meant there was no scent left behind.
“Is this also magic?”
As soon as I spoke, the entire forest fell silent.
They must have been startled.
For them, it was probably like a strange creature suddenly appearing in their home.
Avana paused slightly, glanced at me, and brought a finger to her lips.
Telling me to be quiet.
I followed her lead, and soon, the forest regained its natural sounds.
It seemed they had dismissed my voice as just a trick of the wind.
From then on, I walked behind her in silence.
After some time, we arrived near a cabin.
It was inside a massive tree.
Or rather, it seemed as though the tree had grown around and swallowed the cabin.
Which came first, the tree or the cabin?
Avana pulled down her scarf and took off her hat, shaking her ears, eyebrows, and hair free.
She must have been quite uncomfortable.
Thinking about it, it was impressive that she had managed to walk through such a dense forest wearing such a wide hat.
“For a human, you walk quite well. Maybe because you’re young, you managed to follow my movements quite naturally.”
“Thank you. But… do you always say ‘for a human’ like that?”
“Why?”
“You say it a lot. Do you have other human disciples? You seem to know humans well.”
“I don’t.”
“Then have you walked through the forest with other humans before?”
“No. You’re the first.”
“Really? Then how do you know if I walk well for a human or not?”
Avana’s face turned slightly red as she rubbed her left ear.
So she touches her ear when she’s embarrassed.
That’s a useful habit to know.
“Heh. Good point.”
She quickly changed the subject and walked ahead.
She didn’t take my hand this time, which probably meant she wouldn’t be helping me walk anymore.
That made sense—the area around the tree with the cabin was completely devoid of vegetation.
Of course.
That massive tree must have absorbed all the surrounding nutrients, leaving nothing else to grow.
“Just like humans,” I muttered under my breath as I followed Avana.
Clunk.
We hadn’t even reached the cabin yet when its door suddenly swung open.
As expected of a magician’s house.
Was a monster going to pop out?
But contrary to my expectations, an elf girl around my age appeared.
She stood with her hands on her hips, wearing a grumpy expression.
Oh wow.
She was absolutely adorable—yet at the same time, incredibly captivating.
If I had to put it another way, she was like an angry, enchanting little rabbit.
“Master! Why are you so la—”
She stopped mid-sentence when she saw me.
Avana, with a mischievous grin, walked up to her, placed a hand on her shoulder, and looked back at me.
“Look! See what I brought home? Ta-da! Your betrothed.”
The elf girl’s face turned ice-cold. She immediately spun around and vanished inside.
…Betrothed?
What in the world was she talking about?
As I stood there, dumbfounded, Avana approached me again.
“She’s just shy. It’s not that she dislikes you, so don’t worry too much. Now, come on in… Though, you’re quite dirty. Hmm, maybe we should get you cleaned up first?”
Avana lifted her head and looked at the tree.
Then, she raised both hands and clapped.
Clap!
To my surprise, the upper part of the massive tree began to twist.
Four large branches stretched out like tentacles. They gathered together, twisting and intertwining, before extending toward me.
“Whoa!”
Someone tripped me, and I fell backward.
When I turned my head, I saw roots rising from the ground, spreading out to form a massive bathtub.
No way.
By the time I turned back to look at the ends of the branches, it was already too late.
Clear water spouted out like a fountain.
Splash!
With the water pouring directly onto my face, I couldn’t catch my breath.
It was as if I had fallen into the ocean, flailing helplessly.
Avana just watched with amusement, laughing.
Couldn’t she help a little?
“Take off your clothes and toss them somewhere. I’ll prepare new ones.”
Saying that, she went inside.
As the water rose to my neck, the flow from the branches finally stopped.
Sniff, sniff.
This wasn’t ordinary water.
It was so slippery that I couldn’t even hold the edges of the tub.
Of course, something from a tree wouldn’t be just plain water.
But couldn’t they have just filled the tub normally and let me get in?
Did it really have to be like this?
Grumbling to myself, I removed my clothes. Since they were just rags meant for a slave, they were easy to slip off even when wet.
I watched the torn fabric fly through the air.
It was the only thing I had ever owned as a slave.
I’d grown strangely attached to it.
Maybe I’ll wash it clean and wear it again later.
I closed my eyes.
Then, I slipped under the surface.
As I floated there for a moment, a strange feeling crept up on me.
Suddenly, I felt incredibly embarrassed.
I cautiously opened my eyes.
Two elves were looking down at me from above the water.
And their gazes were strangely directed… downward.
“Ahhh!”
I twisted my body and covered myself with both hands.
The elves averted their eyes with a hint of disappointment.
I know we’re different species, but this is a bit much.
Do elves not feel shame?
“Where exactly were you looking?”
Both elves glanced away and simultaneously fiddled with their left ears.
“It’s just… fascinating.”
“N-not really.”
These women, seriously…
Wait, is touching their ears an elf habit, not just Avana’s?
Maintaining my awkward position, I spoke.
“Master. You are my master, right? I’ll just call you that. If you’re not going anywhere, could you give me something to cover myself with? I see elves wear clothes too.”
“Hmph. Alright, alright. Hold on.”
Avana clapped again.
A massive leaf fluttered down from the tree.
It landed precisely over my bathtub.
Regaining some sense of dignity, I leaned back comfortably.
Then, I recalled what I had heard earlier.
“So, I’m supposed to be her mate?”
Avana crossed her arms.
“That’s right. Her name is Psyche.”
“Psyche?”
Psyche turned her head away but glanced at me from the corner of her eye.
“Hey. For a human, you’re pretty good-looking.”
Long eyebrows and ears.
And an absurdly beautiful face.
Other than those, she was no different from a human.
Her personality seemed a bit rough, but if I were to marry a girl like this, I wouldn’t complain.
Still, this was too sudden.
“So, did you take me in as a disciple because of Psyche?”
Avana nodded.
“It’s my duty to find her a mate. And unfortunately, she wanted a human. It was a headache for me too. But I couldn’t just pick any random human. She’s a magician, after all. If her partner is going to be one, he should be a magician too, don’t you think?”
“Hmm, I see.”
“What do you think? You don’t hate it, right?”
“Well, I mean…”
Of course, I didn’t hate it.
As a slave, I never even dreamed of romance.
If I could have an elf wife, I’d bow a hundred times in gratitude.
But things this good never come easily.
In my experience, anything that seems too easy always has a catch.
If it didn’t, it would already be common.
If it were truly easy, there would be tons of human men married to elves by now.
But I had never heard of such cases.
Well, except in that novel I secretly read once.
Something like My Wife is an Elf or whatever.
I looked back at Avana and asked,
“Are there any conditions I don’t know about?”
At my words, Avana exchanged a glance with Psyche.
Then, she muttered softly.
“Well, first, you have to survive.”
“…What?”
“Magic study tends to get people killed.”
