Darkness and Light

"D-dead…?" Carrie froze, dropping her Little Wizard's Guide, which fell to the ground with a thud.

She forced a smile, looking at the others with confusion. "You… you're joking, right? Where's Tina? Tell her to stop hiding and come out!"

Her voice trembled as memories of her time with Tina began to surface.

Tina had been a cheerful and spirited girl, even a trainee knight. Along their journey, she'd looked out for Carrie…

"My mentor is great too. He lets me read all the books in his lab," Carrie recalled Tina saying at their last gathering, her face bright with a smile.

Opening her eyes, Carrie looked at Wayne and the others, each with their heads bowed, their silence heavy. Her heart sank. That vibrant girl who walked with a spring in her step had left them.

"How… did she die?" Carrie's voice was barely a whisper.

"Experimentation," Wayne said, his voice low, his gaze sharp with a mix of sorrow and a growing, fearful vigilance. "You know that wizards believe in the principle of equivalent exchange."

"When we signed contracts with our mentors, they promised to teach us knowledge, but they also required us to fulfil certain conditions. Among those was a clause requiring our cooperation in their experiments."

Wayne's eyes were red as he looked at Carrie. "If the contract doesn't explicitly say an experiment won't result in an apprentice's death, then there's a risk involved."

The other three looked pale, their faces etched with fear. Their contracts likely contained similar clauses, and Tina's fate could easily become their own.

Carrie blinked, trying to process what she'd just heard.

"A contract?" She thought of Lucian's requirements for her in their contract. His main demand seemed to be… to respect and honour him.

"But… Tina said her mentor was kind…" Carrie struggled, unable to reconcile the image of Tina's warm mentor with this tragedy.

"Wizards only care about contracts. What they say, what they do—it's often layered with traps and ulterior motives," Wayne muttered, almost snarling. "Do you really think they'd train us selflessly, without expecting anything in return?"

"Equivalent exchange is the most basic law among wizards! When you receive something from a mentor, you need to consider what they're gaining in return. If they seem to gain nothing, maybe there's a deeper motive—just like with Tina…"

Listening to Wayne's frustrated outburst, Carrie felt a rising sense of confusion.

Lucian… Carrie clenched her hands, feeling dazed and disoriented.

...

"Didn't sleep well last night?" Lucian asked, noting Carrie's distracted expression and frowning slightly.

"I'm… I'm fine." Carrie hastily looked away, but a chaotic whirl of thoughts churned within her.

She tried to stop herself from overthinking, but the more she thought about Lucian's willingness to help her despite his injured state, the more a chilling thought nagged at her… did he also have an agenda?

The idea made her feel as if she'd suddenly lost her footing, leaving her feeling unsteady and anxious.

"Take a break," Lucian said, waving her off and settling down with a glass of water as she composed herself.

Carrie watched him, hesitating, but as she opened her mouth to speak, she found the words stuck. After a long pause, she finally lowered her head in silence.

"Something on your mind?" Lucian set his glass down, looking at her.

"Ah! No… nothing…"

"I've noticed you've been off all morning. Go on, spill it," Lucian said with a sigh. Did this girl not realise she was an open book?

Carrie opened her mouth, grasping for an excuse, but under Lucian's calm gaze, she felt she couldn't lie.

"I… I heard that wizards operate by the principle of equivalent exchange, but…" Carrie trailed off, feeling embarrassed now that she'd started speaking.

Lucian listened silently, his expression unreadable.

Of course, he wasn't selfless—Carrie's "cost" was simply being absorbed by his system. But seeing her troubled and wary now, he realized this misunderstanding could interfere with her future studies.

After a brief moment of thought, he looked at Carrie, who was avoiding his gaze and finally spoke.

"This is… my experiment."

"Huh?" Carrie looked up, confused.

"To put it simply, I'm trying a different approach to balance the mentor-student relationship," Lucian said with a smile, extending a hand. "You could say I'm investing in your future."

"My future?" Carrie stared at him in confusion.

"Yes, your future," Lucian said, patting her head. "Imagine that someday, you become a full-fledged wizard. Then, I'll have a fellow wizard as an ally."

"Unlike other wizards who rely on contracts and mutual exploitation, wary of each other's motives," he said, sensing an opportunity to inspire her.

"I'm not a fan of the cold, ruthless system wizards follow, where relationships lack warmth or trust. If I ever get the chance, I'd like to change that—just like how we use knowledge to shift the rules of nature."

"For now, I'm not strong enough to change others, so I'll start with myself," Lucian continued, pausing to look directly at her. "One day, I hope wizarding students can study without fearing for their safety. I hope that by then, relationships between mentors and students can be peaceful and beautiful."

As Carrie listened, she began to see a glimmer of that bright future Lucian described, a place full of sunshine and flowers. Her eyes shone, and watching Lucian's gentle smile, she felt his figure grow larger, almost heroic.

"Mentor… I-I want to follow you and make that dream a reality!" Carrie lifted her head, her voice unwavering.