Chapter 189: Claire's Emotional Anchor
The two parted ways at the junction.
Dark returned to his dormitory and, without waiting for evening, took the gift to Claire's office.
As expected, Claire was in her office, troubled by how to pack her belongings.
Her office didn't seem messy, but there were an awful lot of books.
Many were borrowed from the library; these books all needed to be returned one by one.
Some were bought from Traveler's Street; taking them out of the academy required an approval process.
However, given Claire's status, it was likely she had already obtained permission from Principal Cynthia.
"Let me help."
Dark temporarily set the gift aside and began rolling up his sleeves to sort things out.
Claire, who just a short while ago had appeared completely grown-up, couldn't help but blush slightly, sighing at the passage of time in her heart, yet she didn't object.
About half an hour later.
Dark sorted out the books marked with the library's insignia. He summoned DemiDevimon, had it carry the books, and headed towards the library.
Claire, meanwhile, left the office with the rest of her belongings.
Although Dark's visits to the library had become less frequent, he still knew every corner of it.
He had DemiDevimon carry the mountain of books to the counter, then explained the situation to Senior Pandora, and they began registering the books together.
Each time Pandora registered a book, she would use her administrator's authority to activate the library's magic guide circuit, sending the book back to its original place.
As books grew wings and flew off automatically one by one, the stack of books by the counter grew steadily smaller.
Both sides now had the leisure to talk.
Pandora exclaimed: "Are all these books borrowed by Professor Claire? She borrowed one or two every day; I didn't expect there to be so many already. I really wonder if she has a special way of reading."
Dark said: "Perhaps that's what a Sage is!"
Pandora: "How is your [Fusion] spell coming along?"
Dark: "I 'fished' a bit during class and made some progress, but it's still very difficult."
Pandora: "Difficulty is normal. The [Fusion] spell is among the most challenging even in our fourth-year curriculum. For you to have made this much progress is already quite remarkable."
Dark shrugged: "Perhaps it's because my computational ability is exceptionally strong."
The advanced mathematics he learned back then wasn't for nothing.
Pandora was also curious: "I always feel your arithmetic skills are stronger than mine. Did you come up with the vertical calculation method and the multiplication tables yourself?"
Dark: "They're just minor techniques."
...
After sorting out the books, Dark bid farewell to his senior and went directly to Claire's dormitory.
As soon as he pushed open the door, he found the room full of animals jumping everywhere.
Dark rubbed his forehead, feeling that if Aunt Claire became unreliable, even Alvit would have to step aside.
She had clearly deployed the [Zoo] Field Card in her dormitory, but she had released too many animals to help with packing, and those animals were doing everything possible to vie for attention; two monkeys were each grabbing a sleeve of an article of clothing in a tug-of-war.
Dark had originally intended to help tidy up, but he didn't expect the situation inside to be one where "there were too many monks for too little gruel".
"It seems help isn't needed!"
So he closed the door and wanted to run.
"Don't!"
Claire's cry for help came from inside.
...
It wasn't until most of the items were organized that the two went to the dining hall for a relatively hearty dinner.
Dark, rarely letting loose his appetite, ate heartily despite the [Gluttony +1] prompt, giving Claire face.
"Eat more; the more you eat, the taller you'll grow."
Claire continuously put food into his bowl but didn't eat much herself.
Although it wasn't particularly obvious.
Dark still felt that the impression she gave off was decisively different from when she first arrived at the castle.
She came like a wanderer, but as she was about to leave, she had grown roots.
It was a very hazy feeling.
But in any case, it was changing for the better.
Dark was no longer so worried.
With stomachs full, they each went their separate ways.
Claire needed to hurry and visit professors from various departments.
Dark also had his own research to do.
The winter night was cold, the moon was bright, and stars were sparse.
Dark researched at his experimental desk until almost ten o'clock, finally making some breakthroughs.
He breathed a slight sigh of relief and, as if by some impulse, came to the balcony, bent down to pick up the Cow Grass that had rubbed against him, and looked up at the moon.
One or two bats flew across his line of sight, surprising him slightly.
There were bats in the castle, but as winter deepened, bats should have been less active.
But that was the habit of ordinary bats.
However, some special bats do not follow this hibernation pattern.
His thoughts quickly moved on.
Dark didn't pay too much attention; he shifted his gaze slightly towards the direction of the teachers' dormitory.
Having such a relative in the academy felt quite different.
The nights spent learning the prerequisite knowledge for [Zoo] with Claire, though busy, created a sense of compactness and fulfillment that was easy to get used to.
After this week's cessation, he felt a bit empty.
It seemed he had lost the race against time.
He shook his head, unable to suppress the growing sense of loss within him.
...
Coincidentally.
Claire was also on her dormitory balcony, looking at the castle under the night sky.
Her expression was melancholy, but her gaze remained focused on a specific area.
If one had studied the castle's geography, they would find that it was an area concentrated with secret passages.
Only those who had ventured deep into the secret passages knew that there was a space-folding phenomenon within, where the actual unfolded area was larger than the entire castle.
Claire had also ventured deep into the secret passages.
However, she didn't have the childlike innocence of a hero or a Valkyrie, so she didn't leave any so-called treasures in the secret passages.
But back then, their exploration of the secret passages was still superficial.
They only knew the secret passages were marvelous, but not that they could be marvelous to such an extent!
Halloween.
The Resurrection Ritual of the Moon Goddess!
Even though this matter had been reported in the newspapers, only a handful of people could truly discern its intricacies.
Claire agreeing to Cynthia's invitation, besides coincidentally wanting a quiet place, stemmed from this.
Traveling abroad these past years, even though the scenic wonders, cultural customs, and local sights had their merits, after transforming those experiences into written accounts, the void in her heart not only remained unfilled but deepened further.
This led to several outbursts of frustration.
It indeed caused a bit of trouble.
Claire's lips curved slightly.
Her days at the academy had indeed calmed her.
She also had some clear goals.
What she wanted to do.
Not what others wanted her to do.
Those who had passed away were, after all, gone.
Those who survived still had to continue living.
One cannot always live in the past.
I'm sorry, Peter.
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