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GLEN led her to a bower situated some distance from the lounge area in the school’s courtyard. Most likely because the common area and cafeteria were too conspicuous. This particular shaded bower rested between the common area and a garden often used by students for trysts with their lovers. Its location made it a well-kept secret because students were careful not to pass through it. Having studied and lived at the Academy for three years, Emma set out to use this spot to talk to Glen. But she was frankly astonished to learn he knew of it as well.
“Miss Emma, was that the first time you took the attribute test?”
“Yes…”
Sort of, she added mentally. His lips curled as if he knew she lied. Emma honestly didn’t hold a positive impression of Glen. If she had truly met him for the first time yesterday, she was certain she would have exclaimed over him in delight and excitement like the rest of the girls.
Unfortunately, he had made the worst impression on her at the royal party, their true first meeting. Logically, she knew the Glen in front of her wasn’t to blame for the Glen four years from now. Even so, she barely restrained herself from treating him coldly. She spoke to him, doing her best to maintain a polite, neutral attitude.
“I… I went to talk to Professor Katie about the paper turning black and learned that it wasn’t indicative of something wrong with the form or the special water.”
“Interesting. Which means your original result was different?”
“I’m not sure what you’re getting at, but all I know is that my primary affinity should have been with the element of time, accompanied by a slight affinity for water.”
“And you’re absolutely sure of it?”
Glen leaned against a tree, staring directly at her. He clearly found the incident strange, too, yet Emma wasn’t certain she could give him the answer he sought since she was still perplexed. Gazing at the budding leaves carried by a spring breeze, she nodded slowly in response. What she did know was the truth behind the paper turning black. In that case—
“Lord Glen… You possess an affinity for time as well, don’t you? This is the first time I’ve met someone else with the same power.”
“Hm. Same for me.”
“Is traveling to the past also forbidden in the Olano Kingdom?” she asked.
“…And pray tell why you would ask such a question?”
“Oh, um… Curiosity, I suppose.”
Emma fumbled for a reasonable answer at Glen’s unexpected interrogative riposte. She’d asked him because of his presence in the Academy during her second chance at life when he hadn’t shown up the first time until their third and final year. She was still trying to solve that puzzle.
But this world only had one timeline. If the past changed, it would rewrite the future to reflect that. The only ones who would know the difference were time travelers. As one herself, Emma knew this indisputable fact better than anyone. Which led her to think that Glen’s existence in this reality was her fault, regardless of his affinity with time.
I don’t know exactly how he came to be here, two years earlier than last time. The only conclusion I can draw is it has something to do with me. She realized she had asked him the wrong question.
“Well… It is essentially forbidden, yes…” he finally answered. “But due to the extreme rarity of those attuned with time magic in the first place, no one really knows how to utilize the ability.”
“Forgive me, but…it sounds like you might have used your power for your own ends.”
“No comment.”
“Wh-What do you mean by that?!”
His shocking reply made Emma forget about her facade, allowing her real self to leak through. Glen started in surprise for a beat, before a smile lit up his handsome face.
“That’s for me to know and you to find out, hm?”
“Well, I’ve never used the ability for selfish reasons. I haven’t even thought about it!” she shot back.
“Good. Better that way. Otherwise, there’s a chance that even the moments you cherish, the ones that sustain you in painful times, will vanish.”
Emma fell silent. She couldn’t bring herself to ask him more because of the sadness she saw on his face. A strong gust of wind buffeted them. The trees surrounding them swayed. Countless leaves fell and fluttered in the air. She instinctively closed her eyes against the sudden blast.
Once it swept by, Emma lifted her eyelids. Glen was right in front of her, even though he’d been five paces away a second ago.
“Ngh! I— What—”
“Hold still. A few leaves are stuck in your hair.”
Before she could ask him what in the world he thought he was doing, she realized he was fixing her tousled locks. She promptly froze. What now?
The nerves she experienced when he took her hand during the dinner party returned. She had no reason to feel uneasy. He was just doing her a favor. But no amount of logic stopped her heart from beating hard and fast. His unique scent didn’t calm her down either. She didn’t know if it was cologne or something else, but he smelled different from Ian and Bernard.
Desperate to keep the tension from showing on her face, Emma pressed her lips together tightly and endured his ministrations. Another powerful gust of wind rushed by. Then she felt a drop of water on her forehead. Is it…raining…?
When she tilted her head up, her gaze met Glen’s. His cheeks seemed somewhat flushed.
“Miss Emma… Did you know?”
“What?”
Glen’s tone of voice was perfectly normal and calm. She must have imagined the red staining his cheeks as well as the droplet of water. A trick of the twilight and my own mind.
“That magic requires emotional control.”
“I do… But why are you…”
This being her second time attending the Magic Academy, such a concept was child’s play to her. Yet she sensed she was missing something important about the meaning of this conversation, so she tilted her head curiously at him. Glen broke eye contact and laughed softly.
“Never mind. You don’t need to know why. Right then… I believe that should do it. I must applaud myself for a job well done, considering how turbulent I’m feeling on the inside.”
“Huh? Yes, um, th-thank you very much.”
He finished plucking all the leaves out of her hair. Emma thanked him, quickly bid him farewell, and turned to walk the path leading to dormitory eight. Once she exited the garden, she ran. She remembered her promise to Ian to meet him that night.
I have to hurry. Oh, if there’s still time before lights out, I’ll ask Rashida if she knows any magic to fix my hair. She reached up to touch her atrociously burned fringe and…found it in its original, pristine state.
“What in the world…?”
Her usually silky locks brushed over her fingers.