One by one, the lights of the academy came on. The darkness of the night was quickly illuminated by the moon, stars, and artificial lights. Then... a voice filled my ears.
"So, you are asking the academy for permission to go on a 'trip', perhaps for a few months?"
Melany's voice echoed across the room and I nodded, even though she couldn't see me.
"Exactly."
Melany took a tired, deep breath.
"Haaa... Even I can't really do that, you know? A week or so could be somewhat okay... but a couple of months off probably? It's one thing if you're in your second year or something, but you're only in your first year, Aiden."
"I'm sorry, but I 'have' to do this. And while I'm on this 'trip', I'm going to find a solution to Lucia's problem."
Melany paused as if she had heard something wrong.
"Excuse me?"
"I mean Lucia, your daughter. I'm also going to solve her problem."
Melany was silent for a while. Then she spoke in a low voice.
