"Slowly, don't rush."
"Move aside, senior, you're in the way."
"You're the one who should move, you inconsiderate junior."
I couldn't walk properly, and right now, the two girls in front of me were arguing, fighting over who had the better right to help with my rehabilitation.
On my right was my senior, a year older than me, while in front of her, to my left, was my classmate.
Although in terms of year, I didn't have a junior or senior position—because I had no classes with them, meaning I had no classmates or fellow students under the same teacher—we all lived in the same dormitory.
"Little sis, you agree, right?"
What did she mean, 'agree'? I didn't even know what the two of them were talking about.
"No, don't listen to her. This old witch wants to… wants to eat you."
"What did you say? I'm an old witch?"
The two of them continued their verbal quarrel.
Please, don't fight… what about my rehabilitation? I thought. They didn't hear; my voice still couldn't come out.
The argument escalated, moving from a verbal spat to hair-pulling and shoving.
"Eh…!!!"
Both of them caught my body as I nearly fell because of their fight. Then, full of regret, they said, "Sorry…"
I didn't mind. Besides, it wasn't their fault, nor was it their responsibility. I switched to using my walking aid to get to a resting place, leaving the two of them still busy arguing behind me.
I sat on a chair facing a table. Across from it was an empty chair.
This was the place where my teacher first taught me to read and write, and also the last place we sat together when we discussed Decarya.
Then, a thought occurred to me.
"Decarya, bring my teacher back to me."
I said it in my heart; it was neither a plea nor a prayer.
Suddenly, a single cigarette appeared, floating in front of me. I stared at it. The afternoon sunlight reflected off the cigarette paper, creating a gradient of white and orange. I reached out, took it, and examined it closely.
"The color and the smell… there's no mistake… this is the kind of cigarette my teacher used to smoke."
I lifted my head, facing the sky.
"Thank you, Decarya," I said in my heart.
"Little sis, are you okay?"
My senior and my friend came over. I nodded in response.
"I told you, don't cry."
My senior said, wiping away my tears, which had unknowingly streamed down my cheeks.
I wasn't crying, nor was I sad. On the contrary, I felt a little happy.
"Well now… I love to see fellow students caring for each other like this."
A voice came from behind. I turned and saw a female figure: the Chronicler who had given me the identification tag, the one I used to call 'teacher' without knowing her position.
"Good afternoon, Chronicler Alpha of Preservation."
My senior said, bowing her head respectfully, followed by my friend beside her. I couldn't stand, so I just sat and bowed my head slightly.
At that moment, I felt confused. I had never noticed before, and my teacher had never told me, but it seemed to be customary to show respect to a Chronicler.
So the person I used to call 'teacher' besides my own teacher held the rank of an Alpha…
Alpha of Preservation raised a hand and said:
"It's good to see you looking after your little sisters."
She looked at me.
"You don't need to bow to me."
I lifted my head, and her hand gently stroked my hair.
"Teacher Preservation, sorry to interrupt."
My senior raised her head, then shifted her position to my side. She pulled me closer, even creating a distance between me and Alpha of Preservation.
"You're mistaken. I only have one junior here."
She then gave a cynical look.
"I do not acknowledge or consider that one over there my junior."
Hearing my senior's provocative words, my friend lifted her head.
"Who would want to be your junior anyway? Only people who… eh…"
She didn't finish her sentence and turned to look at me instead.
"N-no… wait… it's not like that. I-I didn't mean it."
She scratched her head, perhaps out of frustration, then suddenly stopped and pointed at my senior.
"It's all her fault. Look at her face, she looks like a witch, doesn't she?"
Hearing the spontaneous, mocking remark aimed at my senior, Teacher Preservation let out a small laugh.
"That's enough, now. Don't fight. You are sisters here, under the same roof, walking the same ground. It's okay to argue… but don't cross the line."
"Sorry…"
They both apologized after the gentle reprimand.
"Now, the reason I came to see you all was for this."
In the palm of her hand was a key.
"What is this for, Teacher?"
"It's to lock that mouth of yours."
The two of them started up again, right after being scolded. I felt this wasn't right, so I made them quiet down by pulling both of their ears.
Instead of getting angry, Teacher Preservation laughed. She probably took our bickering as a sign of closeness.
"This is the key to your teacher's room. Take it."
I took the key. Honestly, I didn't know her room was locked, because I used to just walk in and it was never locked.
"Alright, that's all from me. Enjoy your time. See you later."
Teacher Alpha of Preservation then left after giving me the key.
"Want to take a look?"
"Sounds interesting. Let's go see it."
I nodded silently in agreement.
In front of me was the door to my teacher's room. I hoped it wouldn't be locked, I wanted to believe that, but as my hand reached for the doorknob and tried to open it, the door wouldn't budge.
"Bestie, give me the key."
"Hey… wait, what's with the 'Bestie'?"
"It's our pet name for each other."
My friend said with confidence, feeling she was one step ahead. My senior was shocked to hear it. She patted both of my cheeks.
"Little sis, that's not true, right?" Then she pointed at my friend.
"You're not friends with this wild creature, are you?"
"What do you mean, 'wild creature'? You old witch…"
"Oh… so you're saying it now, are you? You've got some nerve…"
"Hmph… of course I do. Who's afraid?"
With that, another verbal battle began, and I ignored them both.
Right now, I wanted to look inside. I might have been in and out of this room often before, but only to meet my teacher, and I never really knew what was in here.
As soon as I opened the door, the smell of tobacco wafted out, mixing with the air around us. I stepped slowly inside by myself, using my walking aid—a cane.
I saw an open window. The wind blew through the curtains, sending a few sheets of paper flying towards the ceiling. The afternoon sunlight streamed through, casting a soft warmth into the room.
There was nothing special in here, and I knew that. This room was just a place for my teacher to relax; there was no research or records, just an ordinary living room complete with its furniture.
I stepped further in and, for the first time, saw a painting of a woman and a little girl on the wall.
"The painting is nice."
"Could it be… you and your teacher, bestie?"
Yes, that was probably true. And if I remembered correctly, this painting depicted the moment I first learned to read and write.
"Hey… look at this."
My senior called out. She had found something interesting.
"Woah… that's a magic staff, isn't it?"
There was a large chest in the corner of the room. My senior must have been curious and opened it, finding a staff inside.
She looked at me like a cat waiting to be given a fresh fish. I knew she was asking for the staff, so I nodded, allowing her to have it.
"Hey… that's cheating. I want something too."
I was sure this would happen when my senior got something.
My friend then rummaged through the chest until she lifted a large sword with one hand.
"I want this, bestie. Can I?"
I nodded in agreement, because I was sure my teacher wouldn't be angry if I gave these items to the right and deserving hands.
Suddenly, there was a metallic clinking sound, as if something light had fallen.
"Little sis, look at this."
My senior picked something up.
I looked at it. It was something like a crown… no, wait, it was smaller and looked lighter. Maybe a tiara.
"Hm…" Seeing the tiara in my senior's hand, my friend fell silent.
"Give it to me," she then snatched the tiara from my senior's hand.
"There. It suits you perfectly, doesn't it?"
And she placed it on my head. Both of them looked at me and clapped. The sound of the window banging in the wind drew my attention away.
Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew in, whipping the curtains and sending the papers flying again.
And when my focus returned to the two people in front of me, both of them were kneeling, each holding the item they had just received.
"State your command… Princess."