Meanwhile, at that moment.
Delia was having a dream.
It wasn’t a good one.
The dream was filled with memories from her childhood.
Memories of a time when happiness was a rare occurrence.
“You’re destined to be a High Mage.”
“Everyone is counting on you.”
“Only you can be the hope of Arpen.”
Born as someone favored by Mana, she had carried the expectations of both her family and the royal court. At the same time, she felt the weight of harsh standards imposed on her.
The Arpen Duchy was a small nation that boasted neither a Master nor a High Mage. Delia was the one and only hope and future for such a country.
As time flowed on, the growing expectations gradually morphed into burdens.
This pressure bore down on her shoulders and tightened around her stomach, making each day stiflingly difficult. It was as if she couldn’t even breathe freely.
Then came the moment.
She found a refuge.
‘Rudine.’
The ninth princess of the Arpen Duchy.
And Delia’s half-sister.
Being with that girl, who always welcomed her with a smile, felt more comfortable and cozy than anywhere else in the royal palace.
‘But…’
The sweet time did not last long.
During a lesson with Diplyn, Delia’s mentor, Rudine suddenly experienced a Magic Overload accident.
They managed to save her life, but Rudine became an invalid overnight.
She lost both her eyes, her voice, and the ability to use her legs because of the aftereffects of the rampage.
Right after learning of the incident,
Delia begged her father for the first time in her life. She would do anything he asked if only he could find a way to restore Rudine to her original self.
But the response she received was cold.
“We don’t have the resources to fix a defective product.”
A declaration that it wasn’t worth the time and effort to tackle something impossible. And from that day on, Rudine was confined in the tower north of the royal castle.
The only reason was simple.
It happened after news of Delia visiting Rudine every day for her sick visits spread. In other words, it was seen as a hindrance to her magical training.
The day her one and only refuge disappeared,
Delia became noticeably quieter.
It was only natural.
She had lost someone she could confide in. Gradually, her expressions of emotion diminished, and eventually, she adopted the unemotional face she wore now.
As time passed,
in the winter just before her seventeenth birthday, Delia left the duchy and headed for Arsen Academy.
But she felt no particular excitement.
It was bound to be no different from the duchy.
Finally, on the day of the entrance exam.
When Delia first visited the Academy, she was met with countless gazes. Most of them were similar to the stares she had received back in the duchy.
‘If there was anything different…’
It was just the addition of jealousy and envy.
Other than that, everything was the same. So she thought to herself that it was going to be a boring three years.
But that wasn’t the case.
During the specialty exam, Delia encountered a type of human she had never seen before.
‘Ulan.’
When she first saw him,
the emotion Delia felt was ‘surprise.’
He was strutting around campus with his shirt off, claiming his tremendous strength was magic.
And that wasn’t all.
Ulan’s gaze was different from everyone else’s.
There was a mysterious glimmer of emotion and a strange longing in his eyes. Once she realized this, her surprise transformed into curiosity.
‘A fascinating person.’
He rescued her during a crisis and said they would be together in the future.
That sparked her curiosity.
What were his true intentions behind those words? Did her hunch hold any truth? After several tests, her suspicion turned into certainty.
‘That guy has feelings for me.’
The instant she recognized this,
Delia’s heart stirred slightly.
It was a first for her. No one had ever shown such interest in her, making it so obvious they liked her like Ulan did.
Blessed by the love of Mana, yet she had received no love other than that.
He was the first person to make her feel what it was like to be cherished by someone.
Right after thinking of him.
‘I want to see Ulan.’
Delia resolved to wake up from her dream.
And after persistent effort, she slowly noticed the dark world around her becoming brighter.
As her vision lightened,
a strange ceiling came into view. It seemed to be the ceiling of a hospital room. Just as her eyes blinked open, she suddenly heard loud voices.
“You can’t do it like that!”
“Handle it more gently!”
Voices presumed to be from nurses and doctors.
A group of four or five people was anxiously observing someone’s actions.
And in that moment.
“Is this how it’s supposed to be?”
The voice she had longed to hear called out.
Ulan’s voice. That meant Ulan was also here. At that moment, Delia’s eyes sparkled.
Crack!
Something broke.
Then came the doctor’s scream.
“No, don’t break it!”
“I was being careful!”
“Then why is it breaking?!”
“It must have been old.”
Ulan replied nonchalantly.
Only then did the scene beyond the hospital room come into view. The examination equipment lay broken on the floor, with the doctor and nurses displaying expressions of despair.
The moment Delia saw this, she instinctively understood the situation.
While getting examined, Ulan had likely destroyed all the equipment. Smiling softly at the thought, Delia heard the familiar footsteps approaching.
Looking over, she saw Ulan had joined her. As soon as he made eye contact with Delia, he asked how she was doing.
“Are you finally awake?”
“…Yeah.”
“How’s your body?”
“I’m okay. Just a bit weak.”
Her voice sounded as if she were about to collapse.
Then a severe thirst struck her.
But she held it back. She had something important to tell Ulan now that she had just regained her senses.
“Thank you, Ulan.”
For coming to save me.
And for allowing her to meet him once again, Delia sincerely expressed her gratitude.
Meanwhile, Ulan waved his hand.
As if it didn’t matter to him.
“It’s nothing special.”
“Why? Nothing special?”
“Because you’re fated to be with me in the future.”
Those were the words he had said when they first met.
Delia burst into laughter.
After a moment, as she quenched her thirst with water, she leaned back against the soft pillow and her lips began to move.
“You know, I had a dream.”
“What kind of dream?”
“Just an old dream.”
That was how Delia began to ramble on about the memories from her dream.
There was no particular reason.
It was just that she wanted to talk about it.
How long had it been?
After quite a while had passed,
her story came to an end.
“…This is about when I was a child.”
She shared everything from learning magic from Diplyn to her half-sister Rudine.
Once her story finished,
she felt much lighter. It was something she had never been able to share with anyone before.
“By the way, did I ever mention my reason?”
“What reason?”
“The reason I want to become a High Mage.”
Well, she knew that reason.
After all, she had heard it in her past life.
However, since she had never spoken of it in this life, Ulan shook his head.
Delia took a gentle breath and opened her mouth.
“I want to become a High Mage, to restore my sister to her original self.”
It was the same as before.
She spoke the same reason she had heard in her past life.
But to cut to the chase, Delia in her past life could not achieve her goal. Her sister had left this world much earlier than expected.
‘But even after that…’
Delia continued her research without giving up.
And after considerable time passed,
just before the Gate of the Abyss opened in this land, she finally succeeded in creating a Healing Potion for the symptoms of Magic Overload.
When she witnessed a wizard who had become an invalid from the Magic Overload regain their original power, Delia collapsed to the ground and wept.
‘That was the first time.’
It was the first and last time that Delia, who had always kept a doll-like expression, poured out her emotions. That’s why it remained so vividly in her memory.
As she silently recalled the past,
Delia suddenly spoke up.
“Don’t you think it’s strange?”
“Strange?”
“The reason I want to become a High Mage.”
When she first confessed this to her father, he had responded.
To not attach a strange reason, and to become a High Mage solely for the sake of the duchy. That was her mission and her purpose of existence, he had said.
It wasn’t just her father.
Her mother and other siblings all said the same thing. So Delia had thought all along that her reason might be considered strange.
‘But…’
Ulan’s reaction was different.
He showed no sign of thinking her to be strange after hearing everything.
And soon, his answer came.
“Not strange at all.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s for a precious family member. What’s strange about a goal for that?”
Ulan replied without hesitation.
As if it were the most natural thing in the world. At that moment, Delia’s eyes widened slightly.
“Your reason isn’t strange at all. What’s strange is Diplyn and the King of Arpen.”
“…Huh?”
Delia blinked her eyes.
After a moment, she spoke with a bewildered expression.
“Um, Ulan?”
“What?”
“The King of Arpen is our dad!”
“Yeah. Your dad is strange.”
Without a moment’s hesitation.
Delia stood there dumbfounded for a moment before bursting into laughter. Who else could speak ill of the King in front of a princess?
Yet oddly enough, it didn’t bother her.
On the contrary, it felt refreshing. Almost exhilarating.
After quite a while of chuckles,
she wiped the tears from her eyes. Then she stared at Ulan closely.
‘I don’t know why.’
But being with Ulan brought her more laughter.
To be precise, she felt more honest with her emotions. She relaxed, even felt comforted, like she had back in the cave on the first day of the exam.
‘What is this feeling?’
It felt okay to just be herself.
Not as the Princess of the Arpen Duchy, but simply as a first-year student at Arsen Academy, Delia.
‘Something about Ulan makes it seem like…’
He would accept her as she was.
Just as that thought crossed her mind,
Delia’s eyes widened suddenly. As if she had just realized something important.
‘Ah, I see.’
When she first saw Ulan,
she felt surprise. Then curiosity started growing, and eventually, an interest began to form.
And now—
She finally recognized her own feelings.
‘I like Ulan too…’
She swallowed the rest of her words.
Delia’s ears turned slightly red.
Her golden eyes deepened with both excitement and nervousness.
“Delia?”
Ulan moved a bit closer, his voice laced with concern.
“Your face is red, do you have a fever?”
“…I didn’t, but I feel like I might.”
“What?”
“Ulan.”
At that moment, Delia called out Ulan’s name.
With a serious expression.
“I have something I want to say.”
“What is it?”
Delia clenched her fist tightly.
And then, with an earnest face and a slightly trembling voice, she stated.
“Is it okay if I stay by your side?”
“Hmm? You’re already next to me!”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“You silly.”
After a small whine, she looked Ulan in the eye again.
“I’m asking if I can be beside you anytime, anywhere.”
Not just now, but in the distant future too.
No matter what happens.
“Can I be at your side?”
With those words, she hoped her feelings were conveyed enough.
After sharing her thoughts, Delia waited with a nervous expression for Ulan’s answer. But in that moment, Ulan suddenly shook his head.
“Sorry, but that’s a bit difficult.”
“…What?”
Her mind went blank.
It felt as if her heart had dropped.
She never expected to be rejected. But just for a moment, Ulan continued speaking.
“You’re important.”
“I’m i-important?”
“Yeah. Above all, you’re precious.”
Nodding solemnly,
Ulan pointed behind him.
“So, rather than beside me, be behind me.”
“…!”
“So I can protect you whenever.”strong>
Just like he had in their past life.
Ulan smiled.
The moment Ulan finished his answer, Delia wore a slightly dazed expression. But that lasted only a moment, and soon she felt her face heat up.
“Precious? Protect?”
Considering those unexpected words left her flustered.
So reflexively, she covered her entire head with the blanket. Meanwhile, Ulan immediately stood up.
“If you’re tired, get some rest.”
“…Wait a moment.”
Then Delia grasped his wrist.
Her small, pure white palm. After a moment, she peeked her head out from under the blanket.
“I’ll correct what I said.”
With a still rosy face,
Delia looked up.
“Can we continue to be together moving forward?”
“Of course, anytime.”
This time, she received a prompt answer without hesitation.
Ulan firmly grasped Delia’s wrist, his big, solid hand. Delia smiled faintly at the warmth radiating from it.
“Then, I look forward to staying by your side.”
With a smile as soft as starlight,
finally, she was engulfed by a feeling of relief.
Just then.
“Ulan student!”
A distant voice called out for Ulan.
The doctor and nurses who had previously disappeared.
“Hurry back to the examination room.”
“With this equipment, it shouldn’t break.”
“Now, let’s do the examination properly!”
It seemed they had brought sturdy equipment.
Ulan immediately turned his body.
“Well then, excuse me.”
“Okay. See you again tomorrow.”
Delia waved her hand.
Though she didn’t want to let him go just yet, it’s fine.
Because they would see each other again tomorrow. With effort, she swallowed her regret as she sent him off.
Not long after that,
Crash! Bang!
The sound of examination equipment breaking, followed by another scream from the doctor.
Delia giggled softly.
“I already miss you.”
Suddenly murmuring that thought,
she was startled. Because it was a feeling that had slipped out unexpectedly. So she cleared her throat and turned her gaze out the window.
The night sky was adorned with stars.
It was her favorite scene, but today, she wished the night would pass quickly, and morning would break.
She longed for tomorrow to come soon.
With that small wish in her heart,
Delia smiled brightly.
Chapter 21. Cramming
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/darkmtl.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")
