After I was done cooking I decided and packed it in a container, putting it in my dimensional storage, I jumped down the window of my room. My plan was simple, to enter Julianna's room through the window, there wasn't any other viable option left for me.
I could try to open the door and enter from there but Lucy probably wouldn't allow me to and as such window was the only other option left for me.
Thankfully, Julianna had left the window open, whether it was because she had forgotten or if she always left her window open as a default, I didn't know but seeing it open I entered the room.
It was dark, the lights of the room were turned off, and I willed a little bit of mana into my eyes to activate what you might call night vision, truly the world of magic and shit.
There it was, Julianna lying on her bed under her blanket all curled up, she wasn't sleeping, I could tell that much.
I walked towards the bed and then sat next to her, I wasn't planning on talking to her while standing the entire time.
"So, umm, you know you gotta show some reaction when someone enters your room through a window, you know? Where's your survival instincts?" I tried to joke.
What? It sucks?
Well, I don't have anything better so shut it and deal with it.
Julianna didn't answer and stayed the same.
"You left the window open on purpose, you knew I had come from there"
Julianna curled herself up a bit more but still didn't say anything.
I remained silent for a while and began to speak once more.
"I don't really know what to say to you. I don't even know what you're feeling, or what's running through your mind right now, but I'm pretty sure whatever it is that's running in through your mind is just some dumb shit."
When you find yourself in a situation where you can't think straight, when fear takes control of you, and all you can imagine are the worst of the worst scenarios.
At times like that...
"All I want to say is"
the best thing you can do for that person,
"You know I lost twice to you in the arcade last, it wasn't a perfect win. So, in a way, I think I lost."
is to act like everything is normal.
Nothing has changed.
Nothing will change between us.
So...
"So..."
It's okay.
"Let's go to the arcade again, I will beat your ass with a perfect score this time"
....
I didn't have anything else to say, to begin with there was nothing I could help her with, her problem was something that she herself will have to come in terms with herself. I stayed silent and slowly started to train my mana.
What? I have nothing else to do. I said my piece, so now all I can do is just wait for her.
.
.
.
.
The room was now full of butterflies, flying around.
The butterflies that I made.
I looked at the butterflies that flew too high, hitting the ceiling, and then burst and disappeared.
Yeah, you heard that right.
When they burst, they turned into tiny, shimmering particles before fading away, like firecrackers, I understood the phenomenon that was happening.
The truth was, they simply assimilated along the energies that revolve around us, basically the atmosphere.
I need to work on it...
You see, these aren't your normal butterflies as you could have already guessed.
I made them using mana and aura. Gave it it's body—eyes, wings, and even proboscis which is just a fancy word for the tongue. It was a delicate process but you see, these eyes, wings, and tongue were dead. They simply existed but weren't functioning, like a dead body or a statue.
So, I proceeded to the next stage, an even more delicate process. I used both soul energy and the myst to give it the senses to see with its eyes, flap its wings, and fly into the air, taste buds for the tongue, and ...made it so it can follow orders instead of me having to keep my concentration to control them like a puppet with some strings attached.
I used all my components of the World's Will and was able to create a small link with it.
When the butterfly burst I felt that link dying.
Where am I going with all this?
Well, you see the process not only helps me with harmonizing my components with each other and increasing my proficiencies but by creating these little creatures, creatures that would be functioning, and then by spreading them across the entirety of the world, I will have the entire world under my watch.
I will have a far more efficient means than the system.
The situation that occurred when I was in the third dungeon wouldn't happen again.
I would love to call myself a genius but ...we are facing some issues.
You see, it keeps on continuously consuming my energies to keep itself sustained. The amount it consumes isn't a lot, but if I want to create a worldwide network, I'd need a whole swarm of them. All of them draining me? Yeah, I'd be dead within a minute.
I need to find another way, a way for it to sustain itself without consuming my energies or components, whichever word fancies you.
I do have an idea about it. If I can make it sustain itself by using the assimilated energies in the atmosphere that would be wonderful. The question is, how the fuck am I supposed to do it?
And this wasn't the only problem, my butterflies which are made by me harmonizing my components, get disrupted as soon as they come in contact with anything. They burst and disappear, just like that.
Plus, the link between it and me is kinda weak, so fragile that I probably wouldn't realize if a link has died if I didn't keep my focus.
And once the butterfly flows a bit too far away from me, the link between us dies and it disappears, since it can't sustain itself.
It's still not perfect and many of the problems would need a raise in my proficiency to be resolved, like me not being able to share senses with my butterflies and other shit, which is the most important part.
The day is still far away when the world will be under my watch and I will know about everything that's happening in the world.
And then my system will be of basically not much use.
I will get r—
My thoughts were interrupted as I noticed Julianna peeking around from under the blanket.
"You finally coming out?"
"I have been meaning to for a while but you seemed so focused on your work I decided to just stay silent" She muttered, her face still covered with the blanket, I could only see her eyes, it was the first time that I had seen them since she usually wore a hoody low over her head and a mask all the time.
Her eyes were a clear blue, like that of an ocean.
"Yeah, I was just gonna train a little since you were so focused on your dumb thoughts, and then a thought hit me, and I started making butterflies, thanks for waiting so patiently"
"You are supposed to be comforting me but your words are anything but comforting" She grumbled in a low voice and then slowly turned around, still in her blanket and peeking through it.
"You can do Mana Sculpting?" Julianna asked with curiosity and amazement evident in her voice.
Mana sculpting was the term used in the world for what I was doing.
If I had to explain it in terms of this world then mana sculpting was an intricate manipulation of mana to create beautiful and ethereal-looking art.
It's like regular art—drawings, sculptures, whatever—but with one big difference. Instead of just creating something by hand, mana sculpting brings your creations to life. Or, at least, it looks like they come to life when in reality they are just being controlled with almost invisible strings attached to them.
A huge difference between what others in the world do and what was trying to do is the fact that I wasn't puppeteering my butterflies but instead, they were moving on their own.
Just like mana sculpting, people who use aura can engage in the same process, referred to as Aura Sculpting.
However, both Mana and Aura Sculpting demanded a high level of proficiency, requiring intense concentration.
The people who were skilled in Mana/Aura Sculpting were people who immersed themselves in their creations for an indefinite amount of time, even years.
It was simply a hard and long process.
But ...the end result simply made up for it. Art that is produced by Mana/Aura Sculpting was spellbinding, possessing an ethereal look, no matter what word you used, it was impossible to describe its enchanting charm.
That's basically how the world describes it, so I understood why Julianna was a little shocked and amazed to see a teenager her age able to do shit like this.
But the thing was, I was someone who could use 4 components of the World's Will, it was only natural for me to be able to learn and do this shit faster than others and in a more proficient manner.
"I can" I replied.
"Is there fucking something you can't do" She seemed a little angry.
"There are"
"Heh, like what?" She asked narrowing her eyes, looking at me skeptically.
"I can't provide comforting words even when I know someone close to me needs me to, I can't help them, I can't understand them, can't relate to them, and I don't know what I am supposed to do and then I end up hurting the people who care about me" I replied.
"At least, you know you are a piece of shit" Julianna muttered.
"That's why I need things to be told in a clear cut manner" I shrugged.
Julianna huffed and then kept looking at the butterflies that were flying away, after a while she began to speak up.
"I ...don't have parents. Mom and Dad died in an accident when I was just a kid. My sister was the one who took care of me, she was everything to me but when I was in my last year of elementary she just ...disappeared. No one knew what happened, there were no traces to help find her and then the case was just ...closed. After that, my aunt took my custody and well, she was nice to me at first—too nice, and my past self didn't realize what she wanted wasn't me but the money that my sister had left in my account, she had made one in case anything were to happen to her someday so that it would help me, as you might guess, once aunt got the hang of my account she changed, not in a good way.
Still, it wasn't a complete nightmare. I had school, I had friends. It wasn't perfect, but I was getting through it, you know? And then... it all burned down.
One night, because of some stupid mistake my aunt made, the house caught fire. I was asleep and didn't realize what was happening until the smoke was already choking me. By then, my aunt and everyone else had already escaped. They didn't even bother to check if I was still inside. They left me to die in that burning house.
By the time the firefighters came, the flames had eaten half the place. They dragged me out, somehow still breathing. But I wasn't the same. My body... it was a mess of burns. So bad that even Elixirs couldn't fix me. Sure, they could the wounds, but they can't bring back what's gone, not like I could have afforded those Elixirs."
Slowly, very slowly, Julianna started to remove the blanket from her face, her eyes carrying fear, fear of rejection.
It was the same face that I saw posted earlier in the school forums, in their heated duel, Aleister had ended up destroying Julianna's mask and her hoody away, it was a face that was burned badly, too badly to be recognized as human, the epidermis was mostly damaged and some places even the dermis was, without a question, it was more severe than third-degree burns.
"Well, you aren't winning any beauty contest for sure, but honestly, you gonna rock the look in the haunted house when the cultural festival arrives," technically, I am not wrong.
...
I waited for a response only for her to let out a chuckle and a short laugh as she spoke up "Well, I can't argue."
"I was expecting a punch or a cuss but okay..." I muttered.
When did she become this easy-going?
Taking a deep breath she spoke up "It's better than hearing something like your inner beauty matters a lot and the stuff, my friends told me all that stuff, things that made me happy and relieved when I heard them but even though they said all the right things, they slowly drifted away. By the time I was in my second year of middle school, I was completely alone. They couldn't handle the way I looked, no matter what they said.
In that regard, maybe, it's okay to not know the words of the person you want to comfort wants to hear, maybe it's okay to not understand them. After all, how could you? You aren't the one who suffered, it's impossible for you to understand what they are going through no matter what until you, yourself, go through with it. And maybe it's okay to end up hurting them in that process a little too, it's much better than giving them the fake kindness that would do nothing but act like a slow poison and before you know it, it will corrode you until just existing makes you feel like a burden.
So, thank you for remaining you, today"
She wasn't crying rivers, but the corners of her eyes were a little watery.
I don't know but it seems like things worked out.
Once she seemed to be okay and all, I finally asked
"Wanna eat now? I cooked, you know?"
I cooked and I swear if she didn't eat it I am never fucking cooking again.
Julianna looked at me with amazement and then spoke up.
"Ugh, my shitty day is gonna end with a shitty dinner, isn't it?"
This bitch...
.
.
.
.
Before we went through the dinner, I told Julianna about how Lucy was waiting outside and then she cussed at me before wearing her mask and her hoody over her head and ran off to the door to check on Lucy.
Regardless, Lucy was standing at the door, she resembled a puppy and I don't know if she sensed my thoughts but she gave me a threatening look.
Then after a lot of hesitation, Julianna talked with Lucy, she didn't show her face without the mask, like she did with me, it was clear that she still needed more time which was honestly understandable.
There was no way she would go all, wow my trauma and all is now gone after a little talk with this idiot.
She was still afraid of losing her friends like before, just because it worked with one guy didn't mean it would work with others or that's how she probably thought.
I don't know.
I can't be sure.
But whatever the case, at least she was back to acting like she always acts around us, it was a matter of time before she was back to normal.
We all ate dinner together, to which I got the compliment Well, it is edible.
These fuckers...
Do they know how hard cooking is? A little appreciation would have been nice.
Whatever, it's not like I am trying to be a chef or something.
After dinner, we played around a little on the console and sometimes I won and sometimes I lost.
Julianna seemed to like it whenever I lost.
At 3:00 we decided to call it a day and decided to leave.
"I will wait until you are comfortable taking that mask off around me and I hope I won't break your trust when you do" Lucy looked straight at Julianna and Julianna simply replied with a thanks before closing the door.
"Oh well, things ended well, didn't they?" I said to Lucy who just narrowed her eyes as she spoke up.
"Hey, what are you? Some emotionally stunted guy? How clueless do you have to be to talk shit like that to her?" Lucy barked at me before heaving out an angry sigh as she muttered "But it's also because of your absolute crappy behavior that Julianna needed in the moment, honestly if it would have been anyone else other than Julianna I am pretty sure you would have gotten your ass kicked out"
...
"You spied on us" I replied realizing that this girl here could control all the security in the school, in other words, she could easily just take control of the cameras inside of Julianna's room, which she fucking did.
"So what?" Lucy retorted.
....Ah, well, nothing.
"Well, see ya" I bid my farewell deciding to go back to my room but just as I was ready to Lucy stopped me, grabbing my hand as I turned to her.
"You, you said you have a potion that could heal and even regrow the lost limbs" She spoke up, her face downcast, "if you used it on Julia-"
Without her saying anything more I knew what she was trying, so I cut her off
"No"
"But why?" Her voice was a little shaky
"A potion like that doesn't exist in the world, if Julianna just recovers like nothing had ever happened the headmaster of this academy would take notice of it for sure and he will realize that it's because either an item from the hidden dungeon or an artifact from deep within the dungeon tower, both of which cases I can't let happen. I am not strong enough to fuck around with Regis, he would turn me into a punching bag" I replied.
It was a logical answer.
But it didn't seem to help Lucy.
"Besides, I don't think Julianna would like it. Imagine the scars you were carrying around all the time suddenly just disappear. Would it lighten her burdens? I guess, it will but knowing that I helped her, or anyone else for that matter would just make her burdened with a debt she probably would have no idea how to pay off. At the end of the day, I am not that close with Julianna that she had be able to handle a help like that." I shrugged and Lucy slowly let go of my sleeve and then just turned around and started walking away.
I entered my own room, only to find Aleister who was awake and ready to bring a fight to me, went without saying I knocked him unconscious again and threw him out of the room.