LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 9
“The faint morning sun is shining through the window.”
-Ding ding
The sound of a blackbird chirping signaled the start of a new day.
“Ugh…”
I found myself on the second floor of the Curved Fish Pub.
Racrina, who had been sleeping with her blanket kicked off, groggily sat up, looking quite a sight.
‘Where am I… Oh right, I left the orphanage yesterday.’
Racrina rubbed her sleepy eyes and tried to piece together her memories.
She had come here after receiving an invitation from a guy named Enoch.
It had only been a day since then, yet it felt like ages had passed.
‘I need to get ready…’
Racrina hurriedly changed her clothes.
After a quick shower in the bathroom that was set up in the room, she quickly threw on the casual clothes Enoch had bought for her.
Honestly, she felt a bit uneasy while changing.
It wasn’t because of the awkward relationship.
It was just that Enoch’s kindness was so overwhelming. Almost scary, really.
‘A suit worth millions… Can I even pay this back…’
Racrina shivered as she inspected her reflection in the mirror.
Something about it just didn’t sit well with her.
It felt like she was focusing more on the clothes than on herself.
Racrina had never once thought of herself as ugly.
But what was this feeling now? Does it mean that a lowly person like herself should stick to lowly things?
Out of nowhere, she recalled the apple wine incident from last night.
Racrina still didn’t know what went into spiced apple wine besides apples.
That ignorance seemed to be the source of her current humiliation.
A feeling of insecurity began to creep in, making Racrina feel uncomfortable.
‘…Enough. Let’s stop this.’
Just dwelling on these thoughts would only make her feel worse. After stopping her self-deprecation, Racrina picked up a comb to fix her hair.
The fancy comb glided through her hair along the shabby road.
@
After a while, Racrina sprayed some perfume and headed down to the first floor.
As she stepped out, a sharp scent of alcohol brushed past her nose.
In the empty main hall, the master was busy polishing glasses and dishes at the bar counter.
“Oh, you’re up?”
“Good morning… But where’s the teacher?”
“Teacher? Oh, you mean Enoch? He’s probably still asleep. He likes to sleep in and usually gets up around eleven.”
The master chuckled as he said that.
Racrina found herself glancing back up at the stairs she had just come down.
It seemed Enoch, the teacher, was still snoozing like a sleepyhead.
Considering everything that had happened yesterday, it wasn’t surprising he was tired.
He’d dealt with a ton of creatures that looked like snakes or dragons, after all.
Probably still recovering from the effects of magic, right?
Despite the awkwardness in their relationship, Racrina couldn’t help but feel a bit worried.
“Are you okay? You look curious. Want to go check on him?”
“Me? Go check?”
“Yeah. If it were some big guy like me, not much would happen. But a cute student like you? He’d definitely sit up and take notice.”
The master smiled and handed Racrina a glass.
The glass contained a fizzy orange drink with bubbles rising from it.
As she brought it closer, a blend of orange and herb aromas wafted up.
“This is Solis Blossom made with Hiba fruits. The refreshing scent and carbonation will shake off your morning drowsiness.”
“T-Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
“Sure. Drink this and go wake him up. While you’re at it, bring the newspaper too.”
The newspaper was, as usual, left by the little newsboy who slipped it under the door.
The master added and then stepped outside with a cigarette in hand, lighting it as he left.
Left alone, Racrina gulped down the Solis Blossom in one go.
The refreshing blend of fruit and herbs, combined with the fizzy carbonation, immediately perked up her tired mind.
‘Leave the glass here… He asked for the newspaper.’
Holding the newspaper, she climbed the stairs again.
The teacher’s room was at the very end of the hallway on the left.
As she walked, Enoch’s face popped into Racrina’s head.
‘Enoch… Teacher… What exactly does he expect from me?’
She recalled their first meeting.
He had ridiculously claimed he could see the qualities of a hero in her, despite barely knowing her.
Honestly, Racrina had thought at the time that remark was just some weird exaggeration.
Right? They had only met that day, so how could he possibly discern hero qualities in her?
Still, the reason she followed him was that there was something oddly compelling in his words.
‘Will you follow me?’
The atmosphere he had back then was just striking.
Not shying away, he locked eyes with her, speaking clearly and firmly.
That demeanor had convinced Racrina.
Whether the person in front of her was speaking truthfully or lying was unclear to her.
But at least he didn’t seem like a malicious person.
For sure, he wasn’t the type to deceive others for selfish gains.
With that trust, Racrina had decided to follow Enoch.
The problem was what came next.
Specifically, the incident that had taken place at the Magnuslar Frozen Tower branch.
In front of a high-ranking wizard that symbolized this era, Enoch boldly called Racrina a future archmage.
Even now, thinking back to that moment makes her breath hitch.
And she realized again.
None of what he had said contained even a shred of falsehood.
‘I’m still confused. Does he really think that highly of me?’
Racrina stood at the door, pondering for a moment.
On the other side of this door lay her teacher.
At first, she had been flustered, then bewildered, and finally, he had etched a strange faith in her heart.
Maybe that’s what you call a benefactor or mentor.
So how should she approach him now?
It feels a bit too casual to treat him like an ordinary teacher. Honestly, she had received so much from him.
Should she treat him like a benefactor then?
But that felt a bit too stiff.
Drawing a clear line would feel awfully cold.
“Hmm…”
No answer came after much contemplation.
This wasn’t really something that could be resolved by mere pondering.
As Racrina mulled over her questions, she stepped inside.
“…Teacher?”
@
Enoch considered his life as a reincarnator to be quite nice.
This wasn’t a lie but a sincere truth.
A confident life where he could spend money as he wished, bestow kindness on others, and show off good deeds.
He even held strength that surpassed the average person. Actually, he was even stronger than that.
Enoch was fully prepared to make his name and fame known wherever he went.
Yet even he sometimes found himself gripped by a peculiar emotion.
The source of that was the subtle dissonance between experience and reality.
‘Song. Haven’t heard it in a while…’
Enoch recalled the music he loved in his dreams.
The familiar beat and lively melody.
A song he had added to his playlist over ten years ago.
During his time in reality, he always played this song while driving to work.
Filling the car with his favorite music, grabbing a coffee at the drive-thru,
And then enjoying a drink against the backdrop of the music while watching countless people pass by outside the glass.
That was the reality Enoch remembered.
A routine that had lasted over twenty years.
That memory had not easily faded even after coming to this world.
So naturally, Enoch first replicated that routine here too.
Driving the car, drinking coffee, and singing his beloved song out loud.
But what lay beyond those familiar scenes? A foreign and unfamiliar landscape.
Faces of residents that were greater in number than the Asian folks.
Occasional proverbs and dialects he couldn’t understand.
The steel jungle was replaced with scenery he’d never visited before, reminiscent of Europe.
In that moment, Enoch felt a subtle emotion that he couldn’t quite put into words.
This is… right. Is this the feeling one gets when you travel overseas, listening to nostalgic songs alone on a bus full of foreigners?
Familiar songs, familiar vehicles. Yet the scenery around him was completely different from his memories.
The subtle sense of disconnection he felt then.
That was as close as anything to the emotion Enoch experienced.
‘Do I get lonely?’
It was hard to define, but Enoch figured maybe that was loneliness.
‘Loneliness… sometimes, it’s a bit lonely. I just wish someone would silently hug me tightly.’
Enoch’s consciousness drifted through the darkness.
Then it slowly began to sink.
In a dream within a dream.
He was sinking deeper into a profound sleep.
At that moment, a mysterious voice whispered in his ear.
-Teacher
‘Who is it?’
-Teacher!
‘Is that Racrina?’
Enoch’s consciousness floated back to reality.
The layers of dreams piled up quickly vanished.
It was quite literally the blink of an eye.
Enoch slowly opened his eyes and turned his gaze toward the source of the voice.
“Teacher.”
“…”
“Wake up. Master wants you downstairs.”
Next to him was Racrina, just as he expected.
She was sitting by the bedside, leaning forward to peek down at his face.
“…”
“…?”
Enoch silently stared at her.
Feeling his gaze, Racrina flinched as though asking what was wrong.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Racrina.”
‘Wait a second. If you’re angry because I woke you early, it’s not my fault but the Master’s-”
“You had Solis Blossom, didn’t you?”
Racrina blinked in surprise.
“Uh… Yes. But?”
“Where’s mine?”
“Huh?”
“Bring it over quickly. Leave the newspaper behind.”
Enoch said that while rubbing his eyes, indicating he had nothing more to say.
Racrina stood there momentarily dumbfounded before huffing indignantly and dashed out.
Occasionally, sounds of mumbling could be heard from the direction of the hallway.
“Solis Blossom… Solis Blossom.”
Enoch lay in bed, rubbing his eyes.
At the same time, he recalled the fragrance that rose up.
Golden apples and lemon glove herbs, and the fresh scent of Hiba fruit.
Lastly, the first scent that had a faint hint of something.
‘Riolah. Or maybe Alaria?’
Excluding Solis Blossom, the last fragrance that reminded him of Alaria flowers must have belonged to Racrina herself.
“…Looks like I can’t afford to sleep in anymore.”
Enoch sighed as he recalled the scent of her perfume.
Trying to escape the disconnection from reality by falling asleep was now not an option.
With a student like her around, Enoch’s life as a teacher was bound to get much busier from now on.
And above all, it was clear that Racrina would come to wake him up every single morning from here on out.
The lady with Alaria scent and Solis Blossom would come to wake him.
It was like something out of a fairy tale.
A cruel fairy tale featuring a wicked witch that wouldn’t let a child sleep.
‘…Guess my routine just grew.’
Enoch chuckled at the thought of huffy Racrina.
Yeah, at least it’s better than being woken up by that bald master.
With that sentiment in mind, he sat up from bed.
The faint yearning he felt in the dream faded away into nothingness.
The status window activated right after that.
-Ding!
[Notification: Racrina’s information has been updated.]
[Racrina has joined you as a hero.]
[Notification: First Hero Registration Reward!]
[Content: Use a random talent coupon!]