"I love you too, Masters, and I swear I'll do the impossible to never let you down," Erik said with a smile and a serious tone, nestled in the warm embrace of his Masters.
Upon hearing her beloved disciple's words, Sigrún tightened her grip on Erik's arm and whispered sweetly in his ear, her voice full of love.
"You don't have to do that, Erik. You don't need to fulfill anything; I just want you by my side."
"You're the most precious thing in my life, Erik. You don't have to be a genius; you don't have to do anything special. Just smile at me every day like you always do; that's all I need to be happy and feel encouraged," Eleonora also whispered lovingly in Erik's ear, her eyes misting over as she squeezed his arm even tighter.
Meanwhile, Seraphina approached Erik with a huge plate full of cookies, which greatly excited the star-haired boy. However, upon realizing that his arms were 'sealed' by his masters, he could only look at the cookies with sadness.
Noticing Erik's predicament, Seraphina smiled a little amusedly, but quickly took a cookie and brought it to the young man's lips, who bit into it joyfully, then looked at the beautiful Victorian maid with gratitude. She responded with a lovely smile.
…
…
…
A few days later, in front of an elegant building with opalescent glass walls that captured the sunlight and reflected it in multicolored flashes, a beautiful sign could be seen above the entrance that read in Galactic language, "Learning Tower 253". Erik stood there, accompanied by Eleonora and Sigrún.
"Fufufu, aren't you excited about your first class, Erik?" Eleonora smiled a little excitedly as she looked at the star-haired boy beside her.
"Not much, master. I've already had plenty of classes at home, so this won't be much different. What worries me more are the looks I'm getting from everyone around us. You two are too famous; if looks could kill, I'd have died a couple of times already." Erik replied with an ironic smile as he observed the gazes of the people around them, who seemed ready to devour him alive.
"Hehehe, you'll have to get used to that. Those are the consequences of having the two most beautiful and prestigious women in the entire galaxy by your side." Sigrún commented with a mischievous laugh as she looked at Erik, who responded after rolling his eyes.
"And that's exactly why I wanted to come alone. Having such a high profile will get me into trouble."
"Fufufu, you can't deny us the joy of seeing our cute Erik attend his first university class. Besides, sooner or later, you'll end up with a high profile; it's better to start getting used to it." Eleonora said happily as she adjusted Erik's hair and tunic one last time, causing the people around them to freeze in place at the sight.
"You're making it worse, Master. Look at them; they've even stopped moving." Erik commented with a slightly defeated smile, which only made Eleonora laugh, continuing to adjust his tunic.
"Fufufufu."
"Eli, stop teasing Erik, hehe." Sigrún, despite saying that, also joined Eleonora and began checking Erik's face and brushing his tunic with a brush Erik had never seen before.
"You planned this, didn't you? You even bought a brush for this, Master Sigrún," Erik remarked in an accusatory tone, which only made the women of unmatched beauty and prestige smile mischievously.
"Hehehe/Fufufu."
After Sigrún and Eleonora released Erik from the torture of the massive attention he was receiving, they all entered the building together. They made their way to an elevator inside, which took them to the 20th floor. They walked to a classroom where a beautiful woman who appeared to be in her 30s, with white hair and violet eyes, sat behind a beautiful and elegant black wooden desk.
"Hello, Professor Sunflare; long time no see."
The moment the three of them entered the classroom, Sigrún greeted the beautiful woman behind the desk, who looked up and opened her eyes in slight surprise. She quickly composed herself, then elegantly stood up and spoke.
"It certainly has been quite some time, Master Eldurdóttir and Master Silverwood. It's a pleasure to see you again."
"It's a pleasure to see you as well, Sage Sunflare." Eleonora responded elegantly as the beautiful white-haired woman bowed respectfully and asked.
"May I inquire about the reason for this unexpected visit?"
"Not much, just that my disciple is enrolling in your class." Sigrún replied with a smile as she placed one of her hands on Erik's shoulder. He simply nodded while looking at the woman, who then turned her gaze to the boy and smiled kindly.
"So, you are Master Eldurdóttir's disciple. It's a pleasure to meet you. Welcome to my class."
"Hello, my name is Erik. Nice to meet you," Erik greeted with a smile, bowing slightly, following the etiquette lessons he had been taught.
"Well, Professor Sunflare, I entrust my disciple to your care," Sigrún said with a smile, to which Sage Sunflare responded with a respectful bow.
"Of course, Master Eldurdóttir, it will be my pleasure."
After bidding farewell, Eleonora and Sigrún left the classroom while Erik walked in, finding eight other students already seated in front of elegant white wooden desks with various runes carved into them.
The surrounding students gave him different kinds of looks—reverence, curiosity, jealousy, envy, and even hatred—something that made Erik sigh as he ignored them and made his way to the only empty desk, which was the last one in the row near the wall.
"Well, now that everyone is here, let's begin the class. My name is Lyra Sunflare; I am a peak sage, and today I will be teaching you an introduction to the unification theories of the Great Event..."
…
…
…
A few days later, in the middle of the night at Sigrún's mansion, Eleonora, Sigrún, and Erik were eating a delicious meal. They were seated at a wooden dining table with intricate details, while Seraphina stood in a corner with a professional smile on her face, like a loyal shadow.
"It's going to be sad not seeing you for five years, masters." Erik commented somewhat despondently while eating a juicy chicken leg.
"Yes, it's really something horrible for us too, and although we tried to stop it, they really need us at the Zephyria Border Front." Sigrún replied, downcast, not wanting to touch her food, to which the star-haired young man remarked.
"But I never really imagined there would be a war against another galaxy. It's surreal."
"It's not that strange; it's just that you still don't know much about the world. The universe is infinite, and there are all kinds of intelligent species, most of which aren't particularly peaceful." Eleonora spoke with visibly low spirits as she stared blankly, lost in her thoughts.
The room fell silent again, the only sounds being Erik eating slowly while thinking about various things, until, after a moment, the boy spoke once more.
"Well, since there's no other option, I can only wish you good luck, masters."
"Ahhhh," Sigrún exclaimed exasperatedly as she stood up from her chair, and at the same time, Erik was lifted into the air, surprised.
"It's decided. Tonight, you'll sleep in my room. I won't let you go until it's time for me to leave." Sigrún said, smiling at the boy floating in the air, to which Eleonora commented with a smile,
"Fufufufu, it's an interesting plan. I'll join in."
With that said, Eleonora and Sigrún began walking toward the bedroom with smiles on their lips, while Erik floated helplessly in the air. Seraphina, in a corner, covered her lips with one of her delicate hands, trying to hide her smile.
When they reached the bedroom, Sigrún set Erik down in the bathroom and then spoke with a small smile.
"Get ready for bed."
Erik, accepting his fate, simply nodded, took a good, relaxing bath, and put on a pair of shorts he had made himself for sleeping. Then, he stepped out of the bathroom, but what he found left him stunned.
On the large bed in the room were the two women of celestial beauty, bathed in the soft, dim light of the stars that filtered through the nearby window. Their smooth, delicate skin glowed slightly under the starlight, adding an ethereal touch to their already stunning beauty.
On the left, Sigrún looked almost like a creature of light. Her golden hair cascaded over the pillow in soft curls, while her white, nearly translucent pajamas provided a simple yet elegant contrast to her fair complexion. She gazed at him with half-closed eyes, though there was a playful and mysterious spark hidden in her gaze.
On the right, Eleonora seemed to be the embodiment of the starry night. Her straight, silky brown hair spread around her head like a river, interrupted by flashes of starlight that highlighted her golden eyes, which almost glowed in the dark, filled with wisdom and an almost mystical serenity. Her black satin pajamas, like her sister's, wonderfully contrasted with her skin and clung delicately to her slender figure.
The two women smiled cheerfully when they noticed Erik's gaze wandering over them, as he seemed to get lost in contemplation. But after enjoying the moment, Eleonora lifted Erik into the air and placed him between the two, where each of them embraced one of his arms, then rested their heads on his shoulders.
"I'm really going to miss you, Erik. Even though I haven't left yet, I feel like the next few years will be the longest I'll ever experience in my life." Sigrún kissed Erik's cheek and commented with a bit of melancholy as she rested her head on the boy's shoulder again.
"But you're a thousand-year-old baby, master; time will pass in the blink of an eye for you," Erik commented playfully, while Sigrún refused to look at him and simply rested peacefully in her position.
"You know, Erik, I used to think the same thing at one point. But even though a year used to pass by without me noticing, that changed when you came into my life. Now I'm aware of every day I spend by your side and the joy that brings me.
So, even though we have long lives, it will still feel like a long time for us—maybe even more so than for you, who hasn't even lived a century yet." Eleonora spoke with melancholy as she hugged Erik's arm and traced small circles on his chest with her index finger.
"It's definitely going to be a challenging time, but I think we'll be okay. Time will eventually pass, and I'll make sure to have some nice surprises for you both when you return," Erik replied softly, then kissed each of them on the forehead.
"Then I'll look forward to it," Sigrún responded with a gentle smile.
"But don't do anything crazy," Eleonora added with a smile as well, and silence fell over the room as they simply enjoyed their time together.