Chapter 12
The night was quiet.
Sole’s room was wrapped in soft lamplight.
Outside the window, the garden lay beneath the moonlight. The faint glow it had carried during the day was gone.
In its place, only a silent pressure remained.
—I’m sleepy, but I can’t fall asleep.
Sole rolled over beneath her blankets.
“…This feels strange.”
The magical beast in her arms had already curled up and fallen asleep.
Its breathing was calm and steady.
It looked completely at ease.
(Must be nice…)
Thinking that, she looked up at the ceiling.
Then—
Tap.
A very light sound.
From the window.
Sole blinked.
“…?”
Again.
Tap.
This time it was unmistakable.
(A bird?)
Just as she was about to sit up—
The space outside the window rippled gently.
Just like it had during the day.
But quieter.
And much closer.
“…Good evening.”
A voice fell softly into the room.
Sole froze.
“…What?”
Outside the window—
Standing there—
Was a young man who had discarded his black cloak.
Hair the color of night.
Calm blue eyes.
Verunoa Ashley = Emanraat.
He was simply there.
Standing casually outside her window.
For several seconds, Sole’s brain gave up trying to process reality.
“…Huh?”
“Did I startle you?”
“Don’t ask if you startled me!!”
She finally found her voice.
“This is not a normal place to show up!!”
“I have already passed through the barrier.”
“That is not the problem!!”
Verunoa narrowed his eyes slightly.
Just like during the day.
—He was smiling.
But his eyes were not smiling at all.
Sole recognized it instantly.
(There it is—that type of smile…)
“Why are you here?!”
“To confirm something.”
Not a hint of hesitation.
“To confirm what?!”
Verunoa paused briefly.
Then answered matter-of-factly.
“Your magical power condition.”
“Now!? In the middle of the night!?”
“This is the time when your condition is most stable.”
The logic made sense.
Which somehow made it even more irritating.
Sole gripped her blanket tightly.
“No, no, no. Even doctors come during the day!”
“I am not a doctor.”
“I KNOW THAT!!”
“And since it is late, you should probably keep your voice down.”
A pause.
“THIS IS YOUR FAULT!”
Verunoa’s gaze suddenly shifted to the magical beast.
“…It’s asleep.”
“It is asleep!”
“The fluctuations in its magical power are low.”
“SO WHAT?!”
Without another word, he lightly raised a finger.
Then—
The air outside the window changed.
The pressure vanished.
In its place, a cool, transparent current flowed into the room.
The heaviness inside Sole’s chest eased slightly.
“…Huh?”
“A magical adjustment.”
“You just did that!?”
“Yes.”
He said it so casually.
As though it were completely ordinary.
Sole froze beneath her blanket.
(This person… really does whatever he wants…)
Verunoa quietly continued.
“There are no abnormalities.”
“…Really?”
“At present.”
Then he added,
“However.”
His voice became slightly lower.
“As expected, your condition is not normal.”
Sole slowly sat up in bed.
“…What’s not normal?”
Through the window, Verunoa looked directly at her.
“You.”
That single word caused the air to freeze.
And yet, strangely—
She wasn’t afraid.
She only felt more strongly that she was being observed.
Verunoa continued.
“You are collapsing, yet stable.”
“You should be breaking, yet you are not.”
“I cannot explain why magical beasts gather around you.”
A brief pause.
“And.”
His gaze softened ever so slightly.
“My magical power is not rejected by you.”
Sole blinked.
“…Is that unusual?”
“Extremely.”
Verunoa let out a quiet breath.
“That is why I came.”
“At night?”
“At night.”
“That is still not normal!!”
She said it again.
Verunoa fell silent for a moment.
Then—
“What is normal?”
“Huh?”
“Who decides that?”
Sole found herself unable to answer.
The moon outside the window seemed unusually quiet.
Verunoa turned his gaze away slightly.
“…That will be all for tonight.”
“Huh? You’re leaving already?”
“Are you dissatisfied?”
“That isn’t what I meant!!”
As Sole hurriedly protested—
For just a moment—
Verunoa’s eyes shifted.
Only slightly.
Yet that tiny change erased the unnatural feeling behind his earlier smile.
(Oh.)
Sole noticed.
(That expression was different.)
But only for an instant.
The next moment, his usual expression had returned.
“Next time, I will come officially.”
“Wait, today’s visit wasn’t official?”
“It was unofficial.”
“The worst!!”
He said it so casually.
Then Verunoa took a step backward.
Space began to distort around him.
But before leaving, he spoke one last time.
“Belinoar Soles ≠ Neferiate.”
It was the first time he had called her by name alone.
Not formally.
Not distantly.
Just a simple call.
“We will meet again.”
And then he vanished.
The room was left in silence.
Sole remained frozen for a long moment.
“…What was that?”
She collapsed back onto her bed.
“Why is he so scary, but somehow not exhausting?”
The magical beast in her arms sleepily let out a single cry.
“Kyu.”
Staring up at the ceiling, Sole muttered,
“He’s definitely a weird person…”
And yet—
Her drowsiness had become a little lighter.
Later that night.
Outside Sole’s window.
Beyond the garden.
In a place where no one should have been—
Space distorted for a brief moment.
A faint silver-blue light appeared.
And before it vanished, a single voice whispered:
“…As expected, she really is…”
The words trailed off.
Then the presence disappeared completely.
