How to Raise a Dumb Wolf - Chapter 106

“…The ship arrived this morning. We will leave tomorrow.”

At that moment, Hock was explaining their plans to Aisha.

“Princess Elizabeth and your mother both seem well, so do not worry too much.”

“Mm.” Aisha nodded with a smile. “I’ll come to see you off tomorrow. I’ll contact you often with magic during the journey, and when you return to Vitas, remember to write to me too.”

“All right.”

Hock gave a simple nod, then paused slightly. After a moment’s hesitation, he raised a hand and stroked Aisha’s head. She instinctively narrowed her eyes.

“This period has been difficult for you as well. I’m sorry. Tina has… been extremely tense lately. She is very afraid that you will be hurt.”

After a brief pause, Hock continued, “We both know that Major General Wolf is an excellent young man. If you genuinely care for one another and believe you are well suited, I have no objection. Of course, you know there are still objective difficulties between you that give us reason for concern. We truly hope you can always remain beside us, Aisha… But if you make a different decision in the future, we will respect your wishes. You are an adult. You know what suits you and how much you can bear. You are entirely free to make any bold decision, and whatever the result, or whenever you change your mind, your mother and I will always stand behind you. We were absent for almost your entire childhood. That is something for which we will always be deeply sorry…”

Hock spoke very slowly, his gaze never leaving Aisha. His deep eyes reflected the face his daughter shared with his wife. He cared deeply about Aisha’s thoughts and wanted her to understand every word.

Aisha was somewhat surprised to hear him say these things now. Her father had come to Wold with her mother and Elizabeth, but unlike Tina, who served as an invited guest, Hock had remained largely unoccupied and kept a low profile. His personality complemented Tina’s: he was steady and quiet. When Aisha and Tina chatted happily, Hock usually listened in silence from nearby.

Now that she thought about it, he had indeed reacted far less strongly than Tina to her relationship with Major General Wolf.

“Thank you, Father,” Aisha said, moved. “I will think about it carefully.”

She understood the “objective difficulties” between herself and Les that he meant. They were the same concerns Tina had raised before: race, culture, nationality, and the complications created by their respective identities. Although these problems still seemed far away, Aisha considered them from time to time. At present, there appeared to be no perfect solution…

Aisha pressed her lips together at the thought. While her attention wandered, Hock suddenly looked elsewhere. His brow furrowed slightly.

“Mr. Eric Green, please wait!”

Aisha paused and instinctively turned. Hock composed himself, then strode calmly toward a marble pillar nearby. Eric appeared to be leaving, but Hock caught up and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Mr. Eric, it has been a long time.”

Aisha was extremely surprised to see her teacher here at this hour. Eric had appeared so calm earlier that she assumed he must now be in his laboratory on the ninth floor of the upper section, continuing the research he had pursued for so long.

Eric still wore the black robe most common among mages. His thin frame left the robe hanging somewhat loosely around him and gave his silhouette a desolate quality. At the hand on his shoulder, Eric visibly stiffened. Only after a long moment did he slowly turn his head.

“…It has indeed been a long time, Byrd.”

Eric’s tone was peculiar. His expressionless face revealed no emotion, but he watched Hock with distinct wariness and a faint hostility.

Hock nodded. “It must have been more than twenty years.”

“Mm.”

Eric nodded coldly.

An awkward silence followed.

Eric regretted that he had failed to leave in time. He had no desire whatsoever to see the man before him. Hock’s face alone irritated him. Even without saying a word, the man’s eyes seemed to regard a defeated rival with the pity of a victor. That would have displeased any man, much less the intensely proud Eric. He had never fought Hock face-to-face, but apart from Tina Killott, he had never lost to anyone of his own generation—and he hated losing.

He did not know why Hock had stopped him now. Did he intend to parade his victory? Or… mock him?

Hock was considering the matter too. He and Eric had never gotten along as students, and that had not changed. Eric disliked him for a perfectly obvious reason. Tina had been slow to recognize emotions as a young woman, but that did not mean Hock and Eric had been equally blind. From school to the army, Hock had spent a very, very long time making her understand the nature of his love and persuading her to face it.

Eric might once have had an opportunity too. But he could not lower his proud defenses enough to make Tina understand, nor had he possessed the long years Hock shared with her. Until their relationship was severed completely, Tina had always considered Eric an important friend. She had been shocked when everything suddenly went wrong on the night before her wedding. Hock knew that although Tina had never shown it clearly, the incident still weighed on her…

“…Tina has always believed in your talent for magic,” Hock said slowly after some thought. “We are also grateful that you agreed to teach Aisha, Eric.”

“…”

Eric said nothing.

“Three o’clock tomorrow afternoon,” Hock continued. “We will leave from the port. If you are willing, you may come with Aisha.”

Aisha anxiously observed the atmosphere between her father and teacher. She could not intervene in such a matter, but the tension between them felt ready to erupt and left her deeply uneasy. Unable to predict how the exchange might develop, she could only await Eric’s answer.

Eric remained silent for a very long time. Just when Aisha thought he might refuse to answer at all, he said, “I understand. I’ll see tomorrow morning whether I have time. I probably won’t.”

He spoke more quickly than usual, sounding somewhat flustered.

“…Also, I have run out of ink. I came down to buy more. Since you’re here, Aisha, I’ll trouble you to buy it. I’m going back.”

“A-all right, Teacher.”

Aisha hurriedly agreed.

Eric nodded at her, turned, and rapidly walked away. In his haste, he almost stepped on his own robe and fell.

Only after Eric vanished beyond the public area did Aisha turn back to her father and ask in concern, “Father… will this be all right?” Merely listening to them had convinced her there was a very high chance that the next day would be excruciatingly awkward.

“It will be fine.” Hock stroked her head. “This is for your mother too.”

…

After Hock said that, Aisha assumed Eric would certainly accompany her to the port the next day. No one knew Mr. Eric’s schedule better than she did. He devoted vast amounts of time to research, which was important, but rarely so urgent that it could not be postponed. Overall, if something truly important arose, Eric possessed considerable freedom.

Unexpectedly, after the morning’s lesson ended, Eric did not mention the trip to the port once. As always, he returned directly to his laboratory the moment class finished and shut the door tightly. If anything differed, it was that he specifically reminded Aisha, “Do not disturb me.”

He had not said those words in a very long time, not since Aisha grew accustomed to life in the Tower. Now he only gave such a warning when performing an especially important experiment. Yet today felt different. His retreating figure appeared peculiarly hurried, almost as if he were hiding from reality.

…Hopefully, that was only her imagination.

Still, to be safe, Aisha gathered her courage and knocked on his laboratory door before leaving for the port. There was no response. Eric neither scolded her for deliberately disturbing him nor answered at all. Aisha could hardly drag him forcibly to the harbor, so after delaying for several minutes, she reluctantly departed alone.

“…Have a safe journey, Mother.”

At the port, Aisha naturally embraced her mother and said farewell to her father. The weather was excellent and looked ideal for sailing.

Tina reluctantly patted Aisha’s back before releasing her. “If the pressure here becomes too great, find an opportunity to come home and rest for a while. The Tower of Magic has no fixed extended holidays. You need to make time to relax occasionally.”

“All right.”

Aisha smiled, though she did not think she would request leave anytime soon. She had grown accustomed to life in the Tower. And in her opinion, rather than finding time to rest at home, it would be better to study hard and strive to graduate as early as possible—even though the mere thought of graduation now frightened her somewhat.

“Then we should go?”

“Mm. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Aisha.”

Their luggage was already aboard, and Elizabeth had already boarded after saying farewell to Aisha. The enormous vessel King Richard had specially dispatched to carry them home lay quietly at anchor behind the couple. Everyone except Tina and Hock had boarded. Hock showed nothing unusual. Seeing that the hour was near, he extended a hand to help Tina aboard. Tina kissed Aisha on the cheek one last time before turning toward the gangway.

She stepped carefully onto the deck. Suddenly, she felt Hock’s hand tighten around hers as he looked in a particular direction. Tina paused and was about to ask with a smile what was wrong. Then she followed her husband’s gaze and froze.

At some point, Eric had arrived at the port. He had plainly run in haste, and sweat covered his face. Without warning, their eyes met, and both looked utterly stunned.

“You…”

Eric stared at Tina, at a loss. He appeared more vulnerable than Aisha had ever seen him. Only after a long while did he continue.

“You have… aged so much.”