76: The Villainess Gives a Present
Apparently, if one confessed their love at the clock tower behind the school building in the evening following the festival, their love would come true.
This common legend was very exciting, but now wasn’t the time for that.
“Aaah…”
A week had passed since the end of my internship for work training.
Anita hadn’t been feeling well since then. We were in the middle of an experiment in herbology, yet Anita was absentmindedly stirred things in a beaker while leaned on her elbow.
Seeing that, I quickly finished the experiment and slipped out with Eivind.
“What should I do, Eivind? Anita is so lifeless.”
“I’m very honored that you come to me for advice, but… I guess it can’t be helped. Her childhood dream was shattered. The other day, her mother came and apparently spoke to her about a wedding with a smile on her face.”
“I wonder, is the Royal Institute of Magic is that good?”
I pouted and Eivind gave a bitter smile.
“What? With the curse broken, everyone is suffering from liver damage. Do you really want to turn them against you this quickly?”
“What do you mean?”
“I contacted them to see if there are any side effects, and they say they’ve been partying every night and have been hungover for days.”
“Aren’t they just shortening their lifespans?”
I couldn’t hide my bitter smile when I spoke those words.
After all, the institute was supposed to be filled with the smartest people in the country. But even an elite group like them got so excited, they drank themselves silly the moment they got the freedom they deserved.
Well, I just hope they haven’t drank any rub alcohol from a beaker…
Suddenly, I felt a sharp gaze—of course, it was Anita’s.
“Wow, look at how lovey-dovey you are today. I’m so jealous. Please invite me to your wedding. Even if all you wear is a linen apron, I’ll make sure to prepare a gift.”
“I wonder what Anita’s future might hold!”
In fact, since she’d be abiding by her parents’ wishes, I didn’t think she’d have any financial problems… But at this moment, Anita’s heart may have been on the brink of despair.
Hm, why does it feel like I’ve seen a girl in this exact situation before?
[—Doesn’t she remind you of the Withered Grass Lady?]
Yes! That’s it!
When the Withered Grass Lady in my heart pointed it out, it all clicked.
The former Cecily once wished to die. Now that she was completely healed, she was curiously comparing the beakers in the experiment from those in the textbook.
I was currently brewing a cold remedy. However, because colds were a multi-symptomatic disease, various herbs had to be mixed together, which required delicate measuring techniques…
Anita’s beaker isn’t doing so well, though.
The mixture had already started to separate. Anita, who was mixing it absentmindedly, didn’t seem to care about that at all.
“Oh c’mon, what are you doing?!”
I mercilessly emptied Anita’s beaker and quickly began to gather a new batch of herbs and minerals.
As expected of the best magic school in the country!
There were so many materials, even for the average student was allowed to use them. Moreover, I had a secret connection.
“Eivind, do you have any Zoicide and Beryl magic crystals?”
“I have them in my lab, but what are you going to make?”
“Please~”
I winked, and the next sage teleported with a sigh.
The next moment, the powdered forms of the crystals I requested were lined up on the table. After a bit, they appear in the form I desired them in. With an assistant like him, I was confident that I could progress magical civilization to the next generation in about a year.
“Well, I don’t intend to meddle that much.”
After about ten minutes of experimentation, Eivind returned and asked, “Will this amount of material be enough?”
The elixir was completed, and I triumphantly held the beaker to Anita. Inside was a small amount of bright red liquid
“Here, a gift!”
“What is that…?”
“It’s a Rejuvenation Potion!”
Eivind and Anita (plus Cecily) were flabbergasted.
Moreover, the sweat on Eivind’s hands as he placed the on my shoulders from behind was insane.
“Hey, wait a second… are you serious?”
“Who do you think I am?”
“That’s precisely why I’m scared!”
Thank you for your trust in the Great Sage from 800 years ago.
Of course, I didn’t have any interest in giving anything dangerous to my dear friend.
“It might hurt a bit, but… I can guarantee it’s effectiveness. So, when you feel like you want to start your life over, just drink this. You should be able to start over from your current age.”
“The issue isn’t that it’ll taste bad, but that it’ll hurt?”
“Well, it forcefully activates and regenerates all the cells in your body, so… well, your bones might creak for a bit…”
“Stop it, just thinking about it gives me goosebumps!”
I felt bad for Eivind, who had a pale face, but I suddenly realized something.
Giving her this as it were in a beaker would be boring, right?
“Ah, do you have containers for long-terms storage? I’d prefer if it were in a cute shape.”
“Ah, yes, yes… I did prepare some just in case.”
Eivind carelessly handed me a heart-shaped vial. By threading a string through it, it could be worn as a necklace. The magic formula for sealing and blocking out light engraved on it was disguised as a sculpture. It was a perfect container.
Let’s not think about how much it cost… The same goes for the total price of the materials I asked him for.
But when I urged her to take it, Anita said, “How annoying!” and took the heart-shaped vial.
I wondered if Anita just didn’t understand the value of everything, or if she was plain uninterested.
“You’re really bad at encouraging people, Cecily! A Rejuvenation Potion? I’ll become a cool and cute hag! I don’t need such a thing!”
Anita’s eyes burned red as spoke, like usual.
Even if the teacher was going to scold us for being noisy and ignoring the lesson, I couldn’t help but smile.
Ah, my friend is so adorable today.
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