What Is this?

Mmh?

Those titles…

Magic 4 Kids. Magic as Easy as 1, 2, 3. Mana is an Open Spell-book. The Wizard King. And even a title that reminds me of that one edition who used to be so popular on Earth. Magic for fools…

I looked up at Vivian, who seemed to be waiting for me to pick something.

"Uhm… Aren't those children books?" I asked.

"Not really?" She tilted her head to the side. "Isn't it what you were looking for?"

"I was hoping for something more serious and more detailed."

"Is that so? You won't find anything else here though."

Uh… HUH?!

"This library is divided in different floors, and the books are arranged by level." Vivian explained. "The ground floor is the beginner level."

"A-All those books are for children?!"

"Not exactly. Although it's true they're mainly aimed at younger audience, since it's often at this age people are initiated to magic, they can also be read by adults! Some of them are even specifically made for the illiterates, with almost no text and only images."

Wow. There is at least half a million books here. And there are all meant for novices? Gods.

"The thing is, I learned the basis of magic a long time ago," I explained. "So I was expecting something more… advanced."

"Then it's going to be a problem…" Vivian muttered with a long face.

"How so?"

"Lynett, you didn't pass the test, right? You probably don't have access to the upper floors yet."

I furrowed my brows. "I need a permission to borrow books?"

"Yes, of course."

What do you mean, of course? I can understand arranging books by their levels. It's actually a pretty smart idea. But limiting their access? I get that books are precious here, but what's the point? What did I come here for, then?

"If you want, I can borrow some books for you." Vivian proposed, as she saw the disappointment in my expression.

"You can do that?" I asked with a renewed enthusiasm.

"Well, I don't have access to the last floors, but I can at least borrow you intermediate level books."

She's an angel. I'm sure about it now, she's an angel.

"Then I'm counting on you," I told her with a serious tone.

Vivian chuckled a bit. "Any preferences? You said you were looking for books about magic, right?"

"Summoning magic," I specified after thinking for a while. "Oh, and if you find anything about demons, it would be also appreciated."

I hesitated asking her for books about soul magic. However, not only I'm not sure I'll find anything here, but since it's a forbidden magic, I also don't think it's wise to ask this to someone I just met -although she does seem very nice.

"Alright, I'll find you these," Vivian exclaimed. "I'll be back in a moment, wait for me, okay?"

I nodded.

As she left for the staircase, I sat at one of the tables, letting my gaze wander freely in the library. Although it was the beginner floor, and its books should be mainly aimed at children, there weren't so many children here. In fact, there were mostly people my age. Teenagers, or even young adults. Vivian was right. Adults did read those books with childish-sounding titles. Well, why not? As long as the content is good. After all, it's true that not all beginners were children. Thinking about it, only nobility had the privilege to send their children at school at a young age like this. Most people would start their apprenticeship in their teenage years.

After waiting for about twenty minutes, Vivian finally returned, her arms carefully wrapping a bunch of books.

"Here!"

She neatly lined all the books on the table so I could see them better.

"These are for you," Vivian said, as she pointed the first two books. Fundamentals of Arcane Familiars and Shadowbringers. "I hope this is what you were looking for. I wanted to to bring you some more, but I can only borrow four books at once."

"It's more than enough! Thank you very much!"

Delighted, I took the two books. They were old and heavy, but the leather still felt soft as I ran my finger over the gold lettering. I had almost forgotten this feeling of excitement when you got a new book -although they're not exactly mine. Then, my eyes fell upon the two remaining books.

Aqua Pura and Guidebook of Healing Rituals.

"What about these?" I asked.

"They're for me," Vivian responded as she took a seat next to me.

"You're a water mage?"

"Yes," she replied, her lips proudly curling into a smirk. "What about you?"

"Huh? W-Well, I haven't specialized yet."

"I see. I heard the Whitehearts have a high affinity to the Light attribute. You should become a healer!"

"I guess."

A healer, huh? That's not a bad idea. I remember I once wanted to become a healer. But if I officially specialize in Support magic, won't it mean I'll have to completely rely on my teammates when it comes to battles? And what about solo battles? Mmh. Maybe not after all. However, it's true that I'll have to choose a specialization soon. It's better not to let the world know that I can do anything.

At that moment, a clanging sound echoed through the campus. A pealing of bells announced it was now five o'clock.

"Already?"

Vivian got up and carefully placed her books in her arms.

"Heh? You're leaving?" I asked.

"Yes," she responded. "I hadn't notice it was already this late."

Oh, of course. She's a student too, she must have things to do. To think I took her time even though she was busy… I couldn't bring myself to hold her back, although I was a little disheartened to see her leave.

"Sorry, I can't stay, but I hope you'll enjoy your books!" Vivian said with a friendly smile.

"It's fine! Don't mind me."

We probably won't meet again, right? This academy is huge, and there is over 10,000 students here. The probability of bumping into her again is pretty low… Thinking about this, I mustered my courage and called her out.

"Vivian! Will I see you again?"

The young girl glanced at me with round eyes, her head slightly tilted. After a short moment of silence, a grin played on her lips.

"Sure!" She responded, the broad smile on her face growing. "We're friends, aren't we?"

Eh… Eh?! Really?

"Besides, I'll have to return these eventually," she continued as she pointed the two books she lent me. "They're under my name."

Oh. Right. Of course.

As she was about to leave, Vivian abruptly stopped and turned in my direction one more time.

"How about tonight?" She inquired.

"Tonight?" I repeated, my brows furrowed.

"Yes, if it's okay with you, how about we eat together tonight?"

"S-Sure!"

Vivian chuckled.

"Cool! Then eight o'clock at the Glasshouse refectory. Okay?"

"Okay!"

She waved at me with a gentle smile before leaving the library, this time for sure.

…

I HAVE A FRIEND! Hahahaha! How about that Frost? No tails, no golden eyes, a real normal human friend! Moreover, I'm eating with her tonight! Hehehe, a meal with a friend. How long have I dreamt about this? Damn, I want brag about it. I want to go home and tell mom that I'm eating with a friend. I'm definitely regressing mentally. But who cares? After all, I have a friend! Today is a great day!

After Vivian left, it took me a while to calm myself down. If from an outside perspective I was completely composed, in my head, my brain cells had already decided to throw the biggest party of the year.

◊◊◊◊◊◊

I'm an idiot.

Once I completely regain my cool, I decided to read the books Vivian had gotten for me as I had time to kill until the evening meal, and since I was in a library, there was no better thing to do.

I decided to start with the book about summoning magic, Fundamentals of Arcane Familiars, and I finally have a way to get rid of Pikachu. Thinking about it, it should have been obvious. I feel so stupid…

Magical beasts feed on mana, so familiars are entirely dependent on their owner. Once their owner run out of mana, they can no longer maintain a material form so they disappear until being summoned again. There is another way to force them to disappear though. By defeating them. Familiars don't die. Once they are defeated, they simply vanished and can't be summoned again for a certain period of time. The cooldown time entirely depend on the condition of the familiar and its master.

I haven't passed a contract with Pikachu, so he isn't a familiar. But his situation isn't so different. All magical beasts are territorial. If you defeat them, unlike familiars they won't vanish, but they will still leave the area, searching for another territory. So basically, I just need to beat Pikachu up until he decides to leave. This is totally animal abuse, isn't it? I'm quite reluctant to do it… Moreover, there is one more problem. Since Pikachu isn't a familiar, he might actually die if I go to hard on him. I created him so I feel responsible for him. I don't want to keep him, that's for sure, but I don't want to kill him either. I mean, creating him just to kill him afterwards? That would be so cruel…

How troublesome.

I decided to leave things as they are for the moment. I'll figure something out. Eventually…

I had stayed in here for quite a long time, now. It should be almost time. I left the library, heading to my room. I had to ask for the way several time since I had no idea how to get there. Turns out that the library isn't that far from my dormitory.

Looking at the sky, I could guess it was about 7:30 p.m. Throughout the years, I learned to tell the time by tracking the sun's position in the sky. That's how most people did without a clock or a watch. I did have a pocket watch, but since I rarely went out, I never really took the habit to always wear it.

When I finally arrived in front of my room, I noticed the door was unlocked. Was Nomi inside? I opened the door, and I saw her. My roommate was seated on her bed, facing the entrance. She was leaning forward, her elbows resting on her knees with her fingers intertwined. Her face was devoid of expression, her eyes however… She looked furious.

"W-What?" I asked, a bit hesitant. "You scared me. Were you waiting for me? What's with that expression?"

Without breaking the eye contact, Nomi lifted her left hand to show me something.

"What is this?" She questioned coldly.

As I followed the direction of her hand, my eyes fell upon what was left of the closet Pikachu destroyed this morning before fleeing. A wooden skeleton of charcoal.

Fuck.

Nevermind, Pikachu, you're dead.