Since then, I always visited this small library to read more books.
The old woman also did not seem to mind if I always came here.
In fact, sometimes she looked happy when I visited. Maybe, she felt glad when her book collection was being read by others.
—
I also learned more about Velmoria, starting from its regions. And also what races lived in this world.
And in my opinion, the most interesting and intriguing one was about the human race.
——
Ah, I once had a conversation with that old woman, she said she wanted to be called Norm-san.
The first time I heard her name, I was also a little surprised because I thought her name suited a man more than a woman.
Well, everyone has their own name.
While I was engrossed in reading a book titled Human, Norm-san suddenly approached me.
"Cyve, do you like magic?" , asked Norm-san to me.
"Of course!" , I answered quickly.
"Look at this" , Norm-san immediately showed me an object.
A small box with a black color on the outside, it looked like a stone.
"What is this? A magic tool?" , I asked.
There are some objects or items given by someone with a very large amount of magic infused into them.
The more magic given, the stronger the item will be. And that is what is meant by a magic tool.
"Just as I thought, you must have guessed it" , said Norm-san, confirming my words.
Slowly with her right hand, she opened the box and it revealed its contents.
Inside, there was a ring with a purple gem as its ornament. The place of the ring looked very luxurious and also clean like a new item.
I was amazed to see this object.
"This ring I found when I was young... I was given it by someone and he told me to take care of this ring" , said Norm-san.
"And I think... this should be yours, Cyve" , she continued.
W-wait!? Me!?
"I feel a great power within you that suits this ring... so take it" , said Norm-san who might have been slightly forcing me.
I swallowed hard because of doubt and worry.
This ring looked so good, especially since I also liked the color purple... but what ring was this?
"Norm-san, what is this ring used for?" , I asked Norm-san to make sure of this ring.
"This ring is the object you told me about yesterday" , said Norm-san.
"Yesterday?" , I began to feel a little confused.
Ah, I remember. Yesterday Norm-san told me about her family. I also started to recall what we talked about yesterday.
——
(Yesterday)
Like the previous days, I visited Norm-san's house happily.
When I arrived, I saw Norm-san reading a large book in her chair.
"Norm-san, what book are you reading?" , I asked curiously.
"This book? This book was given to me by my husband..." (Norm-san)
"Norm-san, you're married!?" , I asked.
I wouldn't say I wasn't surprised... because previously Norm-san had never once mentioned her family.
I also never asked, because I thought that was too much of an invasion of someone else's privacy.
If it made someone uncomfortable, then I would just end up feeling guilty.
"This is the first time I've spoken of this to someone else... Cyve, I think you are someone who can listen to my story" , said Norm-san.
——
I did not read any book that day, and only listened to every word spoken by Norm-san.
—
Norm-san had once been married and used to have a house in the elf village where I lived.
She married someone from the human race, at first their neighbors did not care and ignored them.
But over time, like being doused with oil, the villagers began to spread unpleasant gossip.
Some said they had committed a forbidden relationship, others said they had broken the law in a sacred place.
And many more insults were thrown at the two of them.
But instead of their relationship weakening, it caused them to love each other even more.
Norm-san's husband wanted to always protect her and stay with her until the end.
And Norm-san also wanted to live together with her husband until they had a large family.
A year later, their wish came true.
Norm-san gave birth to a baby boy from her relationship with her husband.
During childbirth, her husband was only allowed to wait outside the house... while it was Norm-san's mother who helped with the delivery.
Her husband could only sit and wait outside, hoping everything would be fine.
——
Their child grew up to be a kind boy who liked to help others.
Even though their child was a human, it did not make Norm-san lose her love for her son.
Her child did not become an elf like his mother, but a human like his father.
Norm-san said her son was very active and always played all the time, even playing with other elf children.
But, there was one of his friends who apparently wanted to bring him down.
He deliberately damaged a flower planted by a girl, and that child accused Norm-san's son of being the one who damaged the flower.
"I didn't break it—" , said Norm-san's son trying to explain.
Instead of believing or forgiving him, the girl slapped his cheek so hard that it made him fall to the ground.
"You insolent brat!"
"Just because you're a human child, don't you dare disturb this village... you child of an illicit relationship!!" , the girl insulted Norm-san's son until it provoked his emotions.
Norm-san's son immediately hugged the girl's leg and did not let go.
He tried to show that he did not break the girl's flower.
"Let go, bastard child!" , shouted the girl.
That sentence made Norm-san's son feel deep pain in his heart.
The girl kept trying to push him away... she even hit his head.
On the other hand, Norm-san's son also hit the girl's leg, which made his body hurt even more.
He bit his lip to endure the pain, but in his eyes it was clear he was truly upset.
His head felt very dizzy from being hit repeatedly, even his vision seemed blurry.
"Both of you, stop that!" , shouted an old man who was passing by.
The villagers began to gather and watch the incident, and even though the old man asked Norm-san's son to let go of the girl... he still didn't let go.
——
When Norm-san heard the news, she immediately went to see her son.
She saw her son bleeding from his nose and bruises everywhere.
Even so, he still smiled in front of Norm-san as if not wanting his mother to be sad about his condition.
Norm-san immediately carried her son and took him home to treat him quickly.
Without her son knowing, the girl who hit him was the daughter of the leader of this elf village.
Surely she spread bad rumors about Norm-san's son to the elves living in this village.
Not only her son was affected, but Norm-san and her husband were also shunned by the villagers.
They all avoided communicating with Norm-san's family.
One afternoon, Norm-san's son insisted on leaving the house and went to the garden to see the flowers there.
How surprised he was when he saw the flowers in the garden already ruined and scattered everywhere.
He turned his gaze and saw a large black dog running as if it had just left the garden.
Feeling pity, Norm-san's son decided to clean up the flowers.
But instead of a positive response, the villagers thought it was Norm-san's son who had destroyed the garden and was trying to fix it again.
Feeling furious, the girl who had hit him before forcibly pulled his hand and took him to Norm-san's house.
She was not alone, the villagers also followed her steps to Norm-san's house.
And finally they arrived right in front of Norm-san's door.