I quickly erased Master Avana’s words from my mind.
I didn’t want to waste my time in the warm bath worrying.
Instead, the dream I had a week ago on the ship resurfaced.
Since that day, whenever I got lost in thought, my mind inevitably drifted back to it.
It was definitely related to magic, but I couldn’t recall the details.
And after that, I saw something strange as well.
All I could remember was a red sun and an eye.
Clunk.
The door opened, and Master Avana stepped out of the hut.
She was the only one I could ask about this.
“Master, I had a strange dream.”
“Hmm? You were asleep already?”
“No, it was from before.”
She tilted her head.
“What was it?”
“I don’t remember exactly, but it felt like giving up everything to obtain something. Something like that. Right after that dream, I developed a talent for magic. Before that, I was just ordinary.”
She answered nonchalantly.
“A magician’s dream isn’t just a dream. Sometimes, it holds the power of foresight. Maybe it means you gained magic by giving up everything else?”
“…….”
I had already figured that much out.
Master didn’t seem too concerned as she lifted the black pants and white shirt in her hands.
“Buffalo leather trousers and a white fox fur top. The inside stitching, where it might rub, are lined with silk.. Really, I just love you humans. How do you even make things like this?”
Buffalo leather. White fox fur. Silk. These were among the finest materials, on par with spices, gunpowder, and textiles imported from the New World.
And she was giving me something this luxurious?
“But these are your clothes, Master. Will they even fit me?”
“That doesn’t matter. Just come out and put them on. You’ve had enough of a bath.”
“Alright.”
Master Avana slowly approached, placed the clothes beside the tub, and turned away.
She was wearing a simple, single-piece garment—probably traditional elven clothing.
As I stepped out of the tub, strangely, not a single drop of water clung to me. It all drained back into the bath.
I quickly dressed in the clothes she gave me. Naturally, they were far too big.
“I’m dressed. But as expected, they’re too large.”
“Hmm, that’s fine. Magic can fix the size.”
She raised her right hand, and at some point, a long staff had appeared in her grip.
At the tip of the staff was a large purple rose.
A stream of violet light flowed from it, scattering into the air in a graceful curve.
In an instant, the clothes shrank to fit me perfectly.
“Ta-da. Perfect, right?”
She was really giving me something this precious.
Looking up at my master’s bright smile, I had to admit—
“Thank you, Master. I’ll truly serve you as my teacher from now on.”
“Hmm, did you think it was a scam before? You’re finally clean enough. Come inside. Psyche has prepared a meal.”
She turned around and walked lightly ahead.
Practically floating.
Seeing that, I finally understood why I had to change clothes.
Elves probably found human garments quite heavy.
We entered the hut.
An elven home was vastly different from a human one.
The walls, floors, ceiling, doors, and even the stairs were all made from a single tree.
As if someone had grown the tree into the shape of a hut.
“A rather skilled biologist from my clan made this for me.”
Master Avana’s face was filled with pride.
She must have been eager to show it off.
But… why a biologist?
“Ah, so elves build houses from living trees.”
“Elves aren’t allowed to cut down trees, so we can’t build houses the way you humans do.”
There was a hint of envy in her voice.
I glanced at her and asked,
“You really like human things, don’t you? Your clothes, for example.”
“Hm? Oh, well, we’re not allowed to kill animals either, so we can’t wear these kinds of clothes.”
Master Avana pushed aside a semi-transparent leaf hanging to one side and stepped through.
I looked around several times.
Based on the hut’s exterior, there shouldn’t be any extra space inside.
I decided to follow her in.
Inside, a vast lake stretched before me.
Large enough to fit an entire building from the Western Continent Trading Company.
“This is ridiculous.”
The door I passed through was just a gap between the roots of a great twin-trunk tree.
I had no idea what kind of magic was at play here.
Magic really could do anything.
I followed my master and sat down on a chair by the lakeside.
The table was full with all sorts of fruits.
There were also fresh vegetables, some that looked like roots, others like leafy greens.
And some things I didn’t recognize at all—but they were probably edible.
“Eat.”
A voice suddenly spoke beside me.
I turned to find Psyche already sitting there.
When did she get here?
“Are these… what elves eat?”
Psyche ignored my question and picked up a fruit.
She bit into it with a crisp snap.
The round, peach-colored fruit disappeared between her crimson lips.
She didn’t answer even after I waited.
I guess she swallowed my question along with the fruit.
Left with no choice, I reached out and picked the same kind of fruit.
But just as I was about to take a bite, Psyche reached out her hand.
I instinctively dodged.
“What are you doing all of a sudden?”
She glared at me before grabbing my fruit.
With a pop, she plucked off the stem, then placed the fruit back in front of me before continuing her meal.
“Hmph. Psyche must like you.”
At Master Avana’s words, Psyche furrowed her brows and retorted,
“The stem is poisonous. It doesn’t affect us, but humans are weak to poison.”
“That’s true.”
Master casually picked up a long stem and began chewing from the root up.
“So it’s safe to eat now?”
Psyche didn’t react and simply continued eating.
Completely ignoring me.
That was just rude.
I stared at the fruit in front of me for a while.
It should be fine now, right?
I took a bite.
Wow.
This is insane.
That’s the only way to describe it.
It was even better than the orange I ate after starving for three days.
Psyche turned to look at me.
“Good?”
With my mouth full, I couldn’t answer.
Honestly, I didn’t even want to.
She ignored me twice earlier, so she had no right to complain now.
Still, this fruit was unbelievably delicious.
I was genuinely grateful to have been given something this good.
I nodded.
At that, Psyche sharply turned her head away.
I couldn’t see her face.
Master Avana chuckled softly.
“Hmm.”
I quickly swallowed and picked up another fruit.
Then, I held it out toward Psyche.
She furrowed her long brows and glanced at me.
I smiled slightly.
“This one? No poison, right?”
Psyche scowled and shoved my hand away.
“It’s fine. Eat it.”
She changed the direction of her outstretched arm and picked up the same type of fruit she had just eaten.
Among all these fruits, she chose to eat the same one again.
She must have a very firm preference.
But seriously, having a conversation with her is incredibly frustrating.
Judging by how things are going, it seems unlikely that we’ll get close anytime in the next few years.
Master Avana touched her eyebrow and raised one corner of her lips.
“Isn’t she beautiful? You’d be happy if you took her as your wife.”
If things were as simple as that, sure.
I lowered my voice and replied nonchalantly.
“I suppose so.”
Master Avana’s lips twisted slightly.
She leaned in and spoke in an eerie tone.
“From what I see, you didn’t just follow me obediently, thinking, ‘Wow, magic!’ right?”
Disappointing.
She probably expected me to shrink back in fear.
Did she really think I’d be intimidated by something this trivial?
Or was she testing me?
I replied leisurely.
“I once heard that elves can’t lie and are pure-hearted. But that doesn’t seem to be true. Do you have another motive?”
“Do you really think lying is exclusive to humans? Look at the wilderness that elves admire. It’s deception and trickery itself. Humans like to think they’re cunning, but compared to the wild, they don’t even come close.”
She called me here for a meal, and now she’s talking about things that are terrible for digestion.
Good thing it’s only light vegetables.
“Fine. Then tell me the truth. Why did you need a young human boy with magical talent?”
“I already told you. You’re Psyche’s partner. Psyche is a magician, so her partner should be one too—otherwise, one of you would end up sad. The difference in lifespan would be too great. As for why it had to be a human… Hmm, ask Psyche yourself. That was her condition, not mine.”
I turned to Psyche.
“I know you don’t like answering my questions, but why does it have to be a human?”
After a brief silence, she answered bluntly.
“Personal preference.”
With that, she reached out again.
And once more, she picked up the same fruit.
She’s certainly consistent.
I turned back to Master Avana.
“Then what about the promise that I could leave once I became an adult?”
Master Avana muttered in a low voice.
“Are you seriously saying you’ll reek of fire and iron every night while holding an elf? You might as well torture me instead. When I said ‘from morning till night,’ that was just to test you. I had no intention of giving you to Count Furst.”
I stroked my chin.
“Hmm. So Count Furst was just making a gamble—whether I’d actually stay here or not. Or maybe whether I’d serve him in the future.”
“That’s why he said it. That you might not be loyal, but at least you know gratitude. He probably doesn’t expect you to serve him.”
Ah.
So that’s what he meant.
Master Avana asked,
“But for a fourteen-year-old, you’re quite mature, aren’t you?”
“I hear that a lot. But maybe I’m not.”
“Not?”
I tapped my head a couple of times.
“Sometimes, thoughts that don’t feel like mine pop into my head. Especially when I’m learning something new. I understand most things in one go, and it feels like I already knew them. Even though I know I didn’t before. It’s strange.”
“…….”
“So, to sum it up—if I have to marry Psyche in exchange for learning magic, I’ll do it. But I won’t betray my sense of gratitude, so I’ll still help Count Furst. Satisfied?”
Master Avana nodded.
I’d get to learn magic.
In exchange, I’d have a beautiful elf wife.
Shady.
Something about this feels off.
Of course, I could just be overthinking it.
But Master Avana clearly said—
Elves lie, too.
Which means I have no idea how much of what she said was the truth and how much was a lie.
The life of a slave that I’ve lived so far whispers to me.
This is too sweet to take at face value.
I quietly continued eating my meal.
I just need to get stronger.
That comes first.
