Chapter 20: Morgan Lily
「Huh, you ask why I patted your head the first time we met?」
「Umu...let me think how to say it...」
「My Spirit Origin can observe some of your possibilities, so from the first time I saw you, I could see the possibilities of you in other worlds.」
「One possibility is that you are a bit of a playboy, smooth-talking outside but not truly loving anyone.」
「Another possibility is that you are shrouded in darkness, lonely, wearing a black mask, never revealing your true face.」
「Those are two forms you could become in the future, or forms you have become in other worlds.」
「But the first time I saw you, you were a gentle and radiant person.」
「No matter which possibility, each is too cruel for you. When I saw you, I also saw those other possibilities appear, and I couldn't help but feel pity for you, so I couldn't stop myself from patting your head.」
「You must keep this kind and passionate heart, Eikou!」
...
[May 21]
[Nine days remain until the midterm exam.]
[A few hours later.]
That noon, after finishing the home economics exam, at the Magic Workshop in the principal's office.
"I have finished diagnosing her condition,"
Da Vinci pushed up her glasses and calmly analyzed,
"Miss Morgan's Spirit Origin has been altered to a certain extent; at present she is no longer the Morgan of class Berserker, but another Spirit Origin in class Caster, that is, Aesc the Rain Witch."
"Rain Witch, Aesc… that is her form and name when she was young."
Eikou nodded, thinking briefly.
He turned to look at Morgan in the Magic Workshop, or rather, Rain Witch, Aesc.
The blonde girl with the braided hair sat obediently on a chair, wearing a pointed hat on her head, round glasses on her face, looking like a fairy-tale witch attending a tea party.
Her quiet green eyes curiously glanced toward the Mystic Codes in the Magic Workshop, but she didn't dare move, only sat shyly in place.
"In short, she is now Morgan Lily, a young Rain Fairy?" Eikou asked.
"That's right."
"How did it end up like this…" he restlessly scratched his head.
Of course, he had already guessed the real reason beforehand.
"The reason she suddenly became younger must be blamed on the chocolate you made.It contained your mana and skills, along with the high-level power Protection of the Lake, the ability to create and nurture new kings which is the skill Hero Creation, plus your trait Disaster With Women — all of those factors stacked together, leading to a certain degree of modification to Miss Morgan's Spirit Origin."
"To be precise, it's not complete rejuvenation, but rather that her Spirit Origin was accidentally modified into this form."
"It's my fault," Eikou said regretfully, "I made that chocolate and gave it to her without knowing the consequences."
"You can't really be blamed. This conclusion is drawn from the results. Normally, who would think a piece of chocolate could cause such a thing, and moreover this effect applies only to Morgan; if anyone else ate it, nothing would happen."
"Principal Da Vinci, I have a very important question—"
Eikou swallowed hard, trembling as he asked,
"...when can she return to her original form?"
"Once a Spirit Origin is modified, changing it back is very troublesome." Da Vinci frowned, analyzing seriously, "You must prepare for the worst: she might keep this young form permanently."
"For life?"
"Umu… it's possible she might never recover in this lifetime. What will you do then?"
Eikou took a deep breath and said with resolve: "Give me some time, I will find a way to infiltrate Sesshouin's Singularity once more, and obtain the Holy Grail to help her recover."
Da Vinci looked a bit surprised: "Oh, you're willing to risk yourself for her again? What if you can't get the Holy Grail?"
"Then I will take responsibility and care for her for life!"
"Ha ha, that sounds heroic. I truly didn't misjudge you."
Da Vinci chuckled,
"Don't worry, I just wanted to test you a little. There's no need for you to risk your life with Sesshouin, nor to shoulder a lifelong promise. Your chocolate isn't that powerful. Morgan will recover tonight."
"She'll recover tonight?"
"Umu, by tomorrow at the latest, depending on her Magic Resistance," Da Vinci said. "For Morgan, this Spirit Origin is just an ancient dream, but she will soon wake from it. Compared to that, you were pretty cool just now."
"…This whole thing was caused by me, but please don't make me say such embarrassing words,"
Eikou said awkwardly, though in his heart he let out a sigh of relief.
Anyway, it seemed this time hadn't caused any serious consequences; Morgan would likely return to normal soon.
Both of them turned to look at Morgan Lily.
The younger version of Morgan, namely Rain Witch Aesc, paid little attention to their conversation. Instead, she held volume 1 of "Eigu: Reverse Genji Plan" from the table, absorbed in reading.
She lowered her head over the book, revealing only half of her adorably flushed face, and began to focus on a particularly vivid passage:
"…The boy named Eigu had just finished a battle with a Japanese housewife, but was immediately greeted by three older witch. He brushed aside the hair covering his right eye, only to discover two more married woman on his right."
What in the world are you reading, and why is such a lousy book in Da Vinci's Magic Workshop—does the principal also like this kind of thing?
"She will recover tonight…"
Thankfully this incident hadn't blown up too much.
Fortunately he reacted quickly: the moment he saw Morgan transform during the home economics class, he immediately brought her here, avoiding trouble.
Reality proved this decision extremely correct and wise, because the Morgan before him looked like a completely different person; if left there, who knew what kind of uproar it might have caused.
An innocent, naive, yet sweet Morgan—for many people that would be a terrifying sight!
Before she recovered, Eikou felt he needed to take careful care of her.
Moreover, this matter absolutely must not be known to Morgan's subordinates or acquaintances.
After all, Morgan was a proud Queen; how could she allow herself to appear before others in such a tender, childlike form.
This was like someone dragging out your old middle-school nicknames and those "cool" teenage status posts—uwaa, just thinking about it was mortifying.
Therefore, the existence of the Rain Witch must absolutely be kept secret!
"Principal Da Vinci, today I want to ask for a day off."
"Today? Mochizuki-kun, did you forget, your midterm exam is coming up, you still want to skip class? Moreover today is also the day the new homeroom teacher arrives."
"I know."
"So that means you want to take care of Morgan?"
"Of course, I can't let her run around in this state. Before she returns to her original form, I want to take good care of Rain Witch Aesc."
"Haiz…"
Da Vinci felt a bit of a headache, she rubbed her forehead.
"Alright, that's fine, but you still have to make up the lessons to catch up, homeroom teacher Scathach is a very strict person."
Eikou nodded solemnly, then walked straight toward Rain Witch Aesc.
Rain Witch Aesc, as soon as she saw him approaching, immediately sat up straight, nervously put her pointed hat back on, her timid appearance like she was about to meet an important honored guest.
He came before Aesc, slightly lowered his head so that their eyes were level.
"Hello… perhaps you don't recognize me, but my name is Eikou."
The blonde witch gave a gentle, friendly smile, softly placed her hand on his head, tenderly rubbing.
"Hello, I'm very happy to meet you."