Three days passed by quickly.
"Remember, this would only sustain for 24 hours and it is very sensitive to magic. In no circumstances should you use your magic, or else you would be exposed. Got it?" Ambrose's face was grim, clearly not happy teaching me this magic. He was still in his child form, and he told me that it was for his own sake that he suppressed his magic and mana by maintaining a kid form. Daddy still didn't meet Ambrose these past five years, but he was aware that I was training my magic in the library, so he closed it off from other people.
I persuaded Ambrose to teach me a disguise magic, and he called it cloaking magic. It was one of those S-Level Spells that could be used by any Magic Wielder, no matter what elements they could control, but this spell needed a lot of mana. He was against it at first because this magic was complicated. One wrong move and I might completely lose my original face and existence. But because I was really good at persuading, he taught me how to and after a few minutes, I was able to do it.
I turned to the mirror in the library and was shocked by my new appearance.
From white, my hair became grayish, the same shade as Teacher Kathleen's. It still had natural curls on the end. My eyes weren't golden, instead it had the same emerald shade as Daddy's eyes. I still had the same physique, but it wasn't that bad. I looked clearly different despite just changing my hair and eye color.
Perfect!
I was wearing a dress that was usually worn by commoners, but it had green and blue accents on it, matching my current disguise. I didn't bother to tie my hair since it already looked nice as it was. Turning to Ambrose, I gave him a smile and playfully curtsied.
"What do you think of my dress, Sir Ambrose?" When I raised my head, he had a small smile on his face. He approached me and gave me a pat on the head. "You look good, little miss. Now go and enjoy." I nodded as an agreement and bid him goodbye before heading out to Daddy's office.
There were no guards or servants stationed in the hallway. I actually asked Daddy about this because the guards and servants might be able to figure out that I could use magic. He dismissed everyone today so it was a comfortable silence as I walked towards Daddy's office. I knocked three times on his door before slowly peeking inside.
I smiled when I also saw him in commoner clothes, and he certainly looked dashing. His clothes were supposed to be plain, but now it looked so regal. The key to fashion would always be the face.
"Yllaria?" He sounded doubtful and I smiled at him before heading in. "Do I really look different, Daddy?" He shook his head and walked towards me. "You're still my daughter, no matter what your appearance is." His green eyes looked gentle and I can't help but smile wider. Really, what a sweet father.
I just noticed that he looked a little different because of his hair color. From red, it turned to black. "Did you wear a wig, Daddy?" I was right because he took off his fake black hair to show the red one underneath. "Do I look fine?"
"Yes of course Daddy! You look very handsome!" He smiled with my compliment and held my hand so we can head out of the office. I faced him when I remembered something. "Ah right, where's Teacher Kathleen, Daddy?" He suddenly halted and I also did. I was about to ask for the reason when I noticed that he was staring at the space in front of him. I turned to that direction and my mouth parted when I saw Teacher Kathleen.
She was wearing commoner clothes, yet she looked really different. Maybe it's because I was used to see her wearing the knight's uniform, but she seemed really refreshing right now. Her usual ponytail was gone, because now she was letting her straight hair loose. The upper part of her hair was braided like a crown but she has some loose strands on her face. Her red eyes didn't look fierce, instead she appeared to be so modest and kind. She was so gorgeous that even I can't take my eyes off her.
Wait.
I turned to Daddy's direction just to see him still dumbstruck at Teacher Kathleen.
"Oh my…" It was supposed to be a whisper, but I guess they both heard it since they turned to me. I immediately smiled and scratched the back of my head.
"Greetings, your grace and milady." Teacher Kathleen curtsied to us and I headed to her. "Teacher Kathleen, you look so stunning!" She shyly smiled at my compliment. "You look pretty, lady Yllaria." I turned to Daddy who was staring at us.
"Daddy, are we pretty?" Despite the distance, I saw how his ears turned red and I can't help but giggle. When I took a glance to Teacher Kathleen's direction, I also noticed a faint blush on her cheeks. Hm? I smell something fishy.
"Daddy?" I tried to tease him and he just nodded. "Yeah… You're both… pretty." His voice became lower until it was almost inaudible, but I was able to hear it. I noticed Teacher Kathleen's face turn redder and I almost burst out squealing like an idiot.
Why do I feel like I was watching a romance drama of teenagers?
"Anyways..." They turned to me and I brightly smiled at them. "Shall we go?" They nodded at me and that was the signal of the start of my operation. I grabbed Teacher Kathleen's right arm and entwined it with my left, then Daddy's left arm with my right. Now, we were walking side by side and I immediately noticed the red tints on their faces.
Goodness! This is so fun!
"Let's go!"
- - - - -
My mouth gaped when I saw the bustling streets in the capital. It was a new experience for me. For the past five years, I never thought of getting outside the walls of our place, since I was too busy learning new things about this world. But now, it was really worth it to take a break in this kind of place.
There were a lot of booths around. From food stalls, games and souvenir shops, it had a lot of variety. There were also some performers in the middle of the street, and it clearly looked so fun.
"Where should we go first, Adele?" I asked Daddy to call me Adele outside the place in order to avoid being exposed. "Let's go to the food stalls first! The food looks delicious!" I grabbed his hand, and also Teacher Kathleen's, then we headed to the first food stall I saw. It was a cotton candy stall. I never thought I'd see one in this world.
"I want one, Daddy!" He smiled at me before heading to pay for the cotton candy. I also noticed Teacher Kathleen's stare at the cotton candy. "Mommy? You also want one?" She immediately turned red as she heard what I called her. Hee hee~
It was actually my plan all along. This was the reason for this kind of disguise and why I wanted Teacher Kathleen to go with us today. I wanted for people to look at us like we were a family, because that was one of my dreams in this world.
If I were asked, I wanted Teacher Kathleen to be my mother. She was ruthless as a knight, but she was more than kind to me whenever we were done training. Without her telling me, I already knew that she was kind to me not because I was the daughter of her master or she liked Daddy, but because she was really a good natured person. Her hands may have taken thousands of lives, her red eyes may have witnessed millions of deaths, but she was still a kind person in my eyes. If she wasn't, then I shouldn't be able to sense any sincerity in her, but she was always genuine to me. Not just to me, but to the people who treated her right.
At the very least, this was my selfish plan in order to be happy, even in a short while. I might sound pessimistic, but I already knew that I wouldn't be able to predict anything that might happen in the future. I changed a lot of details in the story's plot, but I won't stop because of that. I already had a resolve to live in this world with the people I love.
"Adele?" I snapped back to reality when I noticed Daddy staring worriedly at me, while holding a cotton candy in his left hand. I gave him a smile and he gave me the cotton candy. I took a bite and a sweet flavor immediately melted in my mouth. "It's so delicious." I said and I saw them smile with my reaction. I placed the cotton candy in front of Teacher Kathleen's mouth.
"Mommy, taste it!" She was taken aback with my action, even Daddy looked stunned, but I pouted and showed them pleading eyes. "Please?" Teacher Kathleen sighed and took a bite. I really wanted to take a picture when her expression became so innocent. Her lips curved up and she was smiling so widely.
"You like it?" Teacher Kathleen nodded with my question, and I saw Daddy buying another one. I softly squealed when I saw their shy expressions when Daddy was giving the cotton candy to Teacher Kathleen.
"Little miss, you have very cute parents." The vendor told me and I giggled with his words. "I know right, mister. Thank you for your cotton candy." He smiled at me and went to serve other customers. I turned to Daddy and Teacher Kathleen's direction and chuckled when I saw Teacher Kathleen eating the cotton candy.
"Let's go to another stall, Mommy, Daddy?" Teacher Kathleen still looked a little awkward with what I called her but she just smiled and agreed. We headed to different food stalls, eating lots of foods and also giving those two a little push to each other.
"Oh, a shooting range." I said and went to the booth. There were lots of stuff there, but I stared at the necklace that was said to be the 'grand prize.' That necklace…
"Is something the matter, Adele?" Teacher Kathleen asked me as she stood in my left, while Daddy was in the right. I nodded and pointed the necklace. "I want that." A man immediately popped out in front of us and I was taken aback by surprise. He was an man in his 50s, but he certainly has good features.
He was taller than me, and a part of his hair was already white. He has black eyes that gave me an impression of a swirling, dark space that carried a lot of secrets. His overall physique was good, but I had a feeling that this person was a cunning one.
"You want that necklace, little miss?" His lips curved up to a wry smile, and I had an perilous feeling. I can also feel Daddy and Teacher Kathleen tensing up beside me, but I held their hands to stop them. "Yes, I want that, mister. How can I get that?" I showed him the brightest smile I could give, but it didn't seem to faze him.
"By this, little miss." A round board appeared out of nowhere in his hand and it really looked nasty. It looked like the round board used during archery, but it had more layers. There were ten colors and each layer was really thin. "Using a bow and these arrows, shoot every layer of the board. Only one arrow per layer and you are given a spare one. If ever you miss once, then it would be game over. You should start from the outermost then to the innermost layer." He gave me a bow and arrow that also appeared out of nowhere.
It was a black bow that had intricate designs and the arrows were also black. I didn't sense anything bad so I just received it. There were eleven arrows, and he told me that there was a spare one just in case that I missed. I stared at the board that was at least 10 meters from me.
Ugh, it's really far. And every layer was too thin. I stared at it more and that's when I noticed something. The left side of my lips rose up when I noticed something.
"There's no time limit, right?" He nodded. "Are you sure you'd be the one to shoot, little miss? I forgot to tell you, but you can't swap to any person once you shoot an arrow. You'd have better chances if you'll leave it to your parents." I scoffed with his words and took an arrow before positioning it one the bow. I breathed in before aiming for the outermost layer.
"There's no need for them to show their amazing skills, mister." I said and released the arrow. A smile formed in my lips when it hit. I drew another arrow and aimed, then I released and hit the target.
The cycle continued until I was down to the 10th layer. I didn't miss anything so I still got two remaining arrows. A crowd also formed around us upon seeing my skills. When I took a glance at the man, he was smirking at me, clearly amused.
I drew two arrows and I heard everyone gasped.
"Do you really think…" I released the arrows and stared coldly at the man. "You could fool me?" The arrows hit the target and everyone gasped when an explosion happened. It wasn't big, but it was certainly loud. Daddy and Teacher Kathleen grabbed my arms but I stayed on my place. The noise died down when the man clapped his hands.
"Impressive, little miss. You have a good eye." I rolled my eyes with his insincere words. From the start, there weren't ten layers, but eleven. I don't know if it was a slip of the tongue, but he told me that,
'If ever you miss once, then it would be game over.'
If there were ten layers and eleven arrows, missing once would still give me a chance. It would be 'bad' to miss, but it wouldn't be 'game over' if that was the case. I also noticed the different shade of a small dot in the center of the board when I stared at it before starting.
Really, what a nasty game.
"My prize?" I laid out my hand and he just laughed. It took him a few minutes before regaining his composure and giving me the necklace I was eyeing. "Are you sure you want this, little miss?" His tone became low, and I could hear the threat in his voice. Daddy and Teacher Kathleen must have also heard it, since I could feel their bloodlust.
"Oh come on, mister. I wouldn't have made such an effort for a show if that's not what I wanted." He smirked at me and completely placing the necklace on my hands. I turned to Daddy and Teacher Kathleen. "Let's go, Daddy, Mommy." We walked away but I could still feel the man's stare at me.
"Why do you want that so bad, Adele?" Daddy asked me and I turned to his direction. "It has a faint presence of mana inside, Daddy. I want to experiment it." He looked shocked, but didn't comment anymore.
The necklace has a gold pendant in a shape of a clock. It wasn't thateye-catching, but if you practice magic, you would be attracted to such item.
"Wait, Adele. Your hair is slowly turning white." I grabbed a few strands of my hair and my eyes widened upon seeing some parts of it returning to its original color. I looked at the necklace and immediately gave it to Teacher Kathleen.
Ambrose, that stupid magician!
"Why didn't you tell me it would fade if I would be exposed to external magic?" I really thought the disguise would fade if I was the one using magic, not those from the outside forces.
"Should we head home, Adele?" I shook my head on Daddy's question. "No, let's continue strolling. Can you hold that for me, Mommy?" Teacher Kathleen nodded in response to my question.
We were about to head to other booths when a crowd of people came rushing in our direction. The current was too much for me to handle and I got swept by it. I can't use magic either, so I had no choice but to go with the flow.
When the rush subsided, I sighed when I noticed that I was separated from Daddy and Teacher Kathleen. "I knew it." I muttered as I noticed the sky was turning dark. Ah, it was already setting. We had so much fun that I didn't notice the time. I walked towards a dark alley and sat there for a while. My feet hurt a little after standing and walking around, then being dragged on to a sea of people.
My eyes widened when I noticed another faint presence of mana around. It wasn't similar to the necklace, so I knew it was different. I trailed the direction of the presence, not noticing that I was going deeper into the dark alley.
I stopped when I the moonlight greeted my eyes, blinding me for a while. When my vision cleared up, I gasped upon seeing a young boy kneeling beside a lifeless body of a woman. At that moment, my head rang upon hearing a passage in my mind.
'Beyond the bustling streets, blinding lights, and the chatter of the people, there laid a woman in red. A dress stained with blood, giving the impression of a rose-colored dress. Beside her was a child, whose face was as blank as a canvas, staring at her lifeless body. No voice came out from his mouth, no tear fell from his eye, and no emotion was felt by this young boy. This was a horrendous scene, where only the moon was the witness.'
The young boy with a dark hair turned his head to my direction, showing me a face void of emotion. Aside from that, what caught my attention was his eyes.
Violet eyes, like an amethyst.
This is…