“...”

“I-it’s really mine. Although, it’s my mom’s relic... But, it’s, it’s really mine. Really.”

Diana could no longer speak, tears once again pouring out of her eyes. The man simply stared blankly at her sorrowful appearance.

“..I’m sorry.”

The man reached out his hand slowly. It was the arms of a stranger, but Diana just wanted to cry. It didn’t matter in whose arms she was crying in, and so she buried her face in his robes.

“I’m sorry.”

Diana cried for a long time.

The man would comfort her with a light pat with his hand but then she would cry again and again and again. At some point she came to her senses and the man took off the hand that had comforted her.

“.. You must be quite thirsty, right?”

Diana nodded.

The man handed over a water bottle that was attached to his waist and gave it to her. Diana struggled to open the lid as she had no strength left in her arms.

“Hand it to me for a second.”

The man took the bottle from Diana’s hand and opened the lid.

“Th-thank you.”

Her voice completely cracked.

With each gulp of water, the taste of blood flooded her mouth along with a stinging pain. The man patiently waited for her to finish and finally took out the pendant.

“I’ll give this back.”

The man who hanged the pendant on his neck paused. The pendant cord was broken.

“Hic, hicc.”

Her tears threatened to come out once again. Then, a light shone from the man’s hand, fixing the broken cord in an instant.

It was magic. Diana looked at the man with wide-opened eyes. Her tears dried up just like that.

“Are you a sorcerer?”

“Yeah.”

The man replied in a subdued voice.

“Woah, it’s my first time seeing a sorcerer. It’s so fascinating! Wow.. Woah, it’s really amazing!”

“I sure am quite.. amazing.”

Diana stroked the cord several times. The sorcerer carefully put the pendant back on her neck, making the relieved Diana let out a laugh.

“This is driving me crazy.”

The sorcerer muttered when he saw Diana’s smile. Surprised by the words, Diana looked at the sorcerer.

“I wasn’t saying it to you..”

The sorcerer put his head down and wrapped his hands around his face.

“Ah, shit! Ah, ah! Damn it. Philippa. Philippa, if it’s like this, Thesevitz will...”

The sorcerer’s tortured groan leaked through his fingers.

“...”

This time Diana was the one who waited for the sorcerer to calm down. It was not long before the sorcerer got himself together and looked up. He uncovered his dry face and untied his robe.

“First, wear this.”

“Yes? Ah, I’m f-fine.”

Diana took a step back, looking down at her leg stinging in pain as she attempted to move it. One shoe must have flown away without her knowing it, as one of her feet was bare.

‘My shoe.. Can I find it? But, if I ask for a new one.. the Head Maid will get mad..’

Looking at the expression on Diana’s face, the sorcerer finally realized Diana’s sorry appearance. The sorcerer clenched his hand, a round light appearing as he opened it.

“Woah!”

Diana looked at the sparkling light as if she was possessed. The small sphere illuminated Diana’s figure very well. Her hair tangled with scattered leaves and branches, her skirt which was torn somewhere along the way, her half-clad feet, and her limbs that were full of scratches.

“Damn!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Diana apologized reflexively.

“No, it’s not targeted at you..!”

The sorcerer who shouted, breathed heavily, his hand reaching out and grabbing Diana’s wrist.

It was a gentle touch. However, the scarred wrists were long sore. Along with her realization of the pain she was feeling, it amplified the feeling of strain.

“.. It hurts.”

Diana murmured unconsciously.

“Stay still for a moment.”

With a distorted look the sorcerer put his hand on Diana’s wound and muttered. A flow of warm energy came from the man’s touch, permeating into her wrist.

“..!”

The red marks disappeared in an instant. Her other wounds healed as well. The surprised Diana touched and pressed here and there.

“Don’t touch it. It’ll take time to recover even if it looks completely healed.”

“Thank you very, very much.”

“..Well, it’s nothing.”

The sorcerer put his robe around Diana.

“Even though it feels stuffy, endure it a little more. Where is your father? Because it’s dangerous, I’ll take you back home.”

The robe was much softer than Diana’s smile. She fiddled with it, muttering softly in response.

“There’s none.”

“What?”

“..I don’t have a father.”

Diana glanced at the sorcerer. The sorcerer’s appearance, which had become a little softer, hardened again.

“You...”

The sorcerer wetted his dry lips and asked with a serious look.

“How old are you this year?”

Though Diana tilted her head, she answered obediently.

“Thirteen years old.”

“Thirteen? You said thirteen?”

The sorcerer asked as if he couldn’t believe it. The tall sorcerer bowed his head and touched Diana’s shoulder.

“Yes. I’m thirteen...”

Diana replied, blurring the end of her words.

“Birthday, when is your birthday?” The sorcerer asked impatiently.

The questions of unknown reason started once again. Realizing he was too impatient, the sorcerer sighed.

“Ha!” Then he laughed as if he had lost his mind.

‘Is he going.. insane?’

Oblivious to Diana’s worries, the sorcerer muttered to himself. This appearance only further instigated her concern.

“.. Gosh! Philippa. When you disappeared, you were..? is that why? Thesevitz, that bastard. What do you mean you didn’t know the reason why Philippa disappeared?”

The smiling, crying, and squealing sorcerer wrapped her up once again with his robe. He murmured some sort of spell and lifted her up into his arms.

“Oh my!”

Without any notice, Diana was lifted into the air.

“Please let me down!”

“Because you don’t have any shoes, just endure it for a moment. You can’t just walk barefoot right?”

“...”

“Why are you this light? Do you even eat? With your stature like this, you’ll be mistaken as a ten year old..”

The sorcerer sighed and shook his head, he then took a stride forward.

Diana, who was struggling, got surprised and hugged his neck.

“Right, hang on tight.”

“.. Thank you, Mister Sorcerer.” Diana said in a crawling voice.

“Hermann Rietchev.”

Hermann Rietchev.

In order to remember the name of her lifesaver, the first sorcerer she had ever seen, Diana tried to roll the name in her mouth a few times.

Hermann looked down at her with a mysterious look on his face.

“I’m your mother’s best friend.”

Diana opened her mouth wide, coughing into the cold wind.

“Tell me if you’re sick.”

“I-I’m fine. It-it’s just that I’m surprised. How can my mom’s friend be here.. Are you really my mom’s friend?”

“Yeah. I’m the one who cast a spell on the pendant. That’s why I asked.”

Diana’s mouth opened again.

“Woah. So, this was a magical pendant?”

Diana took the pendant out once again. However, she couldn’t feel anything different from other normal objects..

“..So, you didn’t know.”

Hermann glanced at Diana, who was smiling innocently and clenched his teeth. He couldn’t believe that she didn’t even tell her own daughter that the pendant was magical.

Philippa.

He knew he was simply opening the child’s old wounds, but he couldn’t help but ask.

“Can you tell me how and when your mother passed away?”

The child suddenly stopped moving. Hermann hastily added.

“The last time I saw her, she was really healthy. That’s why I don’t know what in the world happened.”

The child didn’t remain silent for long.

“She passed away when I was seven years old, by a carriage accident.”

“Did you say a carriage accident?”

Hermann asked back as if he could not believe it. Diana said with a slight shrug.

“Yes, it was raining and the carriage skidded on the slippery road.”

“Ha. That’s impossible. What is this ...”

Her mother’s death was a great sadness for Diana, but it happened a long time ago. It was a sad, painful, and hard thing to go through, but enough time had passed for her to finally give up and accept it.

You can’t live if you don’t let the dead go.

However, for her mother’s friend this was a bolt out of the blue. So she kept silent and left him to mourn.

For a long time, she could only hear the sound of leaves passing by the wind and the cries of grasshoppers. Finally, Hermann spoke in a hoarse voice.

“..Let’s go together to your mother’s grave tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

***

Diana’s face was buried in a soft pillow. It felt like she was buried in feathers. It was warm and cozy like the bed she used when she was young. As Diana opened her eyes from her sleep she awoke to a bright feeling around her.

The room was brightly lit by sunlight coming in from a large plaid glass window.

‘Where is this?’

There was no such big window in the maid’s room where Diana stayed. All she had there was a small wooden window, where a tremendous cold wind would blow in in winter. She often thought she’d rather not have a window.

Suddenly, she came to her senses.

“Oh, crap!” Diana jumped out of her bed.“Oh my, what time is it now? What will the Miss say? No, I must be crazy. When did I fall asleep?”

She didn’t remember.

The last thing she remembered was coming back in the arms of Hermann. Did she fall asleep in her mother’s friend’s arms?!

“Crazy! Diana, you must be crazy!”

Diana screamed then shook her head. She didn’t have time to dawdle around right now. After all, she slept outside overnight without notifying them.

She was scared, already knowing that the head maid would be very angry at her.

‘Shoes! Where are my shoes?!’

While looking for her shoes, Diana realized that someone had changed her clothes.

‘W-who changed my clothes?’

It was made of a soft pink material.

‘No. More than that, where is my clothes.. and where is Mister Hermann? I have to go back quickly...’

Feeling impatient, Diana searched the room.

Diana soon found a quill pen, ink, and paper. She hurriedly wrote,

[Thank you for saving me. I work at the Bordeaux Mansion. It would be great if we can meet again.

-Diana-]

The handwriting was very crooked. It was as if it was written by a child who learned to write for the first time.

‘Mom was very smart and had beautiful handwriting. What should I do if Mister Sorcerer questions about why her daughter’s handwriting is like this?’

Ah, she doesn’t know anymore. First things first, she had to go. Diana opened the door in a hurry but soon stopped.