“The child wizard, Henry, shouted loudly towards Meldenik, who was walking ahead.
“Hey there!”
Meldenik’s eyes widened as she was humming a tune and happily walking without a care.
“Hello.”
Henry put his hand on his stomach and did a belly greeting.
“So, so cute.”
Meldenik kneeled down as if to greet a small baby rushing towards him.
‘He finally fell for me. This is so easy!’
Henry chuckled slyly and grabbed Meldenik’s shoulder sharply.
“Well, I have something to tell you.”
Normally, Meldenik would have been suspicious. Because she was a doubtful person.
But her solid defenses melted away in front of a child.
Until then, Henry thought Meldenik had completely fallen for him. He believed he could objectively figure out what kind of person she was.
Of course, Isaac thought the same. He just thought of her as someone who adores children.
“Baby, where are your parents?”
“Uh! They went away for a bit, they said.”
Meldenik extended her neck and looked around.
However, sadly, her gaze did not reach the alley entrance where Isaac was standing.
“There’s nobody around, couldn’t have been abandoned…”
“Nono! They asked me to wait here!”
The cunning little Henry firmly grasped Meldenik’s arm.”
It was a sinister scheme to measure the mana held by Meldenik.
Of course, Meldenik immediately fell for Henry’s cowardly plan. She even asked with eyes full of emotion.
“Sure, I’ll play with you! What’s your name?”
“It’s Henry!”
Meldenik naturally grabbed Henry’s hand firmly.
She seemed remarkably adept at handling children.
Henry tried to concentrate on measuring the mana by holding Meldenik’s arm.
But just then, Meldenik asked Henry in a sly voice, low and quiet.
“Little Henry with the glasses, you like studying, don’t you?”
At that moment, Henry’s hand dropped.
“How…how did you know!”
Henry’s eyes sharpened with suspicion.
Meldenik, gripping Henry’s middle finger tightly, said,
“There are calluses on this little hand. So, if I’m to play with our Henry… Let’s see.”
Henry tilted his head in confusion.
Meldenik proudly pulled out the pouch she always carried.
“What’s inside here?”
She was meticulous.
She carried things with her to promote to children whenever and wherever she met them.
And her preparedness was now shining in front of Henry.
“Wh-what’s inside?”
Henry started to get swept up in Meldenik’s pace.
Isaac, who had been watching the situation, struggled to keep a straight face to suppress his laughter.
Just…
“Both are cute.”
At this moment, Henry, having completely forgotten that Isaac was behind him, eagerly peered into the pouch.
“Pencil, pencil case!”
Henry’s voice came out trembling.
“That’s right! It’s a pencil case!”
Meldenik pulled out a pencil case from the pouch and waved it around.
“It’s a pencil case with ancient script written on it, how about that?”
Henry opened his eyes wide and stuttered through the sentence written on the pencil case.
“Truth shall set you free!”
[The truth shall set you free.]
This phrase was the favorite among the wizards of the Mage Tower, including Henry, who sought after truth.
Children nowadays, who are accustomed to instant culture, might not know, but Henry knew very well.
A little wizard and a scholar who loved academia, Henry’s passionate heart swelled with emotion.
“Is she, a good person?”
Henry cautiously looked behind him.
The Lord of the Mage Tower must also be observing this situation.
However, the absence of any touch meant that this woman was not considered a danger yet.
“Yes, indeed.”
Excited, Henry’s eyes sparkled. Sweat trickled down the bridge of his nose.
In the midst of this, Meldenik reached down and pushed Henry’s glasses, which had slid down with his sweat, back up, saying,
“Do you also want a pencil case, and maybe a pencil?”
“A, a pencil…?”
Henry knew very well what a pencil was.
It was quite an old item. Its lead would often break, so it wasn’t used much these days.
Since Henry was a sharp child, he was about to firmly shake his head to refuse the offer of a pencil.
“It’s an old item, but I bought it from an antique shop. Some of the ancient sages used pencils instead of quill pens, didn’t they, probably?”
However, Meldenik seemed to know everything about Henry just at a glance.
Henry’s mouth gaped open, his academic curiosity piqued.
By now, Henry had completely lost any will to investigate Meldenik.
“It’s all things I like……”
The kid covered his mouth with both hands, his eyes wide in surprise.
“Wait, could it be? Did you know about me and choose these?”
“Huh? No?”
“Then, how do you know everything I like?”
With that, Henry placed his chubby hands on his cheeks.
Suddenly, he realized he had been completely played by Meldenik’s skillful handling!
Sitting crouched in the center, Meldenik whispered to Henry in a low voice.
“It’s a secret, but I originally have a special ability.”
Only now it was revealed!
Henry looked at Meldenik with a heart pounding in anticipation.
What could the ability possibly be? As Master Rasmus mentioned, is it really a thief hidden in the magic tower?
Meldenik spoke to Henry in a serious voice.
“It is the ability to know what all children want.”
At Meldenik’s words, Henry’s eyes widened as large as lanterns.
It’s different from what Master Rasmus said. However, if it were true, all the children would be in danger.
‘Master Isaac!’
It was when Henry called out to the owner of the magic tower in his mind.
From a distance, a voice with a half-husky baritone was heard.
“Henry.”
“Yes!”
Meldenik swiftly stood up and glanced around.
Isaac slowly walked out from behind a wall.
Their eyes met.
There was no regret in those sparkling green eyes.
Meldenik stood up from her crouched position, and tapped her nearly-cramped knees.
Dust was seen on the hem of her dress. However, she waved her hand coolly, not seeming to mind it much.
“Hello.”
“Yes.”
Meldenik nodded, looking back and forth between the two, then suddenly clapped her hands.
“Henry, is this gentleman your father?”
This time, Isaac was the one who hesitated.
He had anticipated some suspicion towards his sudden approach….
I had no idea they were connected like this.
He had black hair and black eyes, and Henry had brown hair and grey eyes. Isn’t that a bit prejudice-free?
There was one more person who felt confused by what Meldenik said.
“……Dad?”
Henry rolled his eyes in confusion.
Since Henry was an orphan abandoned in an orphanage when he was young, he didn’t know much about what parents were.
However, when he was very young, he had once called the lord of the mage tower, dad.
Isaac, watching Henry in confusion, started speaking in a soft voice.
“……He’s a guardian.”
“Ah.”
Meldenik, without any doubt, nodded his head in agreement and skillfully put the pencil into the pencil case before handing it to Isaac.
“Here, take this. It was meant for Henry.”
“Thank you.”
“Oh, and try our new product, beer candy.”
He extended his hand modestly, looking down.
At that moment, the tips of Isaac and Meldenik’s hands briefly brushed against each other.
“Oh……”
Meldenik hesitated. It was a slightly strange feeling.
It was as if a static shock, a tingling sensation. It also seemed like a white light flashed by for a moment.
