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The night before the entrance ceremony.

Elena, lying on her bed, couldn’t close her eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling. There was no sleep coming no matter how tightly she shut her eyes. The sound of her own heartbeat ringing in her sensitive ears, amplified by the darkness, kept jolting her awake.

What could be causing her heart to race so? The answer was already in her head.

If we’re counting simply by the number of times, this will be her third time entering the Academy.

One might think that going through the same experience three times would diminish any excitement, but the meaning behind the first and second times was distinctly different, and the school life she would have this time would hold a different significance from before.

As time goes by, people change, and if it’s about a person’s life, it’s only natural for there to be many changes since the beginning. Elena recognized that she had changed through her regression and understood that her existence had altered those around her and the world itself.

With the preconditions having changed, the events that would unfold in the future would also change.

It was like starting a completely new story rather than merely walking down a predetermined path. Even after regressing, the reason Elena looked forward to her upcoming school life was precisely this.

“Above all, he will be by my side…”

The biggest change for her compared to her previous life was the relationship with Damian.

Unlike in her first life, when they had pushed each other away, now it was the exact opposite.

Now, with no worry about the world’s potential destruction as before, what mattered most to her was how she would spend her days with Damian, and she had experienced firsthand just how sweet life with him could be over the last year.

For her, the stage of starting anew at school was one of the most anticipated events.

Just like the first-time students entering the school, Elena too felt the longing for school life. Even if she kept memories of her previous life, they were nothing but a childhood treasure box, like something others would reminisce about.

The only memories worth recalling were those spent with friends and with Damian, but just like always, they didn’t end well. The sweetness was fleeting, leaving behind only bitterness.

Yet, perhaps that’s exactly why she held such great expectations for this time that was different from before. Although she couldn’t foresee how the time tainted by painful and sorrowful memories would change, she had no doubt that the moments she would spend with Damian would surely be filled with happiness.

As her thoughts continued to spiral, her mind was naturally filled with thoughts of Damian.

The image of Damian swinging his sword just before the entrance ceremony came to mind. When they first arrived in Ruden, he seemed so preoccupied with matters concerning Elteman, but lately, he appeared more worried about what lay ahead than excited.

It wasn’t unreasonable given he knew a bit about the future of the world—specifically, his own future. Still, one would think he could lean on the main character of that story a bit more. Nonetheless, he always seemed to insist on shouldering everything by himself, just as he had before.

“You really don’t have to worry so much…”

She knew that after their engagement ceremony, the intensity of Damian’s training had increased.

Even with what he had shown thus far, he had already far surpassed the growth speed he had in her original history, yet since that day, he had started getting stronger much quicker than Elena had anticipated. Perhaps it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say he would achieve transcendence before reaching twenty.

Elena was well aware that the reason for his accelerated growth was her own influence.

He was the type of person who became stronger the more he gained, so it was only natural that he intended to solve whatever challenges awaited Elena Edelweiss on his own, having observed him for so long.

If he thought she was clueless Elena Edelweiss, it was a good thing, because anyone aware of everything could clearly see that every action Damian took was for her sake.

While Elena was pleased to know that Damian was striving for her, seeing him push himself so hard made her discomforted.

What she truly desired was happiness that could be built alongside Damian, not a burdensome process he had to suffer through. After all, that would just be self-satisfaction.

Elena stood up and extended her hands, pulling out the power that resided within her.

A bright sphere resembling the starlight filled the space above her hand. It was a force entirely different from the magic typical of humans. The Divine Power, which could only manifest for the gods and their believers, now lay upon her hand.

This was power inherent to Elena herself, drawn from her own body, rather than simply resulting from faith, making it her own—though it had originally been from the previous owner.

“Bright.”

What had once radiated a dark, overwhelming power akin to the night had now transformed entirely. The former ominous aura was absent, replaced by a star shining brilliantly in the darkness—fitting her name and appearing divine.

Elena herself couldn’t pinpoint when this change began. Perhaps it had happened simply with the passage of time under the owner’s influence, or maybe it had started when she touched the Sacred Relic meant for Damian.

Fortunately, the properties had completely changed. Had there been even a hint of the previous form remaining, Damian would have detected the Divine Power as soon as it was unleashed and rushed in.

Elena folded her hands, placing the star back into her body.

It also meant that she no longer had to worry about using her divine abilities as she had before. The change in nature did not alter the total amount of power she possessed, and she knew better than anyone what she could do with it, having faced it before.

The moment she began to use it for real, she’d wield power capable of reshaping the world itself, yet she had never revealed this power in front of others.

Using Damian’s terminology, it could be said… there was no credibility in it.

No matter how much of a genius magician she was, it wouldn’t make sense for her to suddenly be able to wield this divine power one day. Rather, revealing abilities she had kept hidden all this time would be much more believable. Either way, the outcome would be the same.

If he had known she possessed such power, would he have relied on her a bit more?

Elena pondered this internally but already knew the answer. Even during their first meeting in her previous life, Elena was a fully developed mage. Clearly stronger than Damian, she was not in a position to be protected by him. Yet, his actions remained unchanged, both then and now.

Even if one day she told him she could use Divine Power, it wouldn’t alter his behavior. He was just that kind of person.

“Still, I hope you find happiness in this life.”

If Damian hoped for a better future for Elena, she felt the same about him. Elena had walked through the bleak moments alongside him, more than he could ever know about what kind of future awaited her.

As the lengthy battles came to an end and he lay dying in her arms, she had once again resolved to regress. All the misfortunes he endured were a result of her own immaturity; it was better that the source of that tragedy met its end rather than he perish along with a world that had broken apart without any recompense.

Elena quietly closed her eyes and engraved that determination in her heart once more.

This time, she vowed she would make him truly happy.

*

“Elena… Elena, wake up…”

Slowly, my consciousness began to rise with his voice calling me. As I lifted my heavy eyelids and opened my eyes, he was right in front of me. As soon as I opened my eyes, he leaned down to meet my gaze and spoke to me in a gentle tone.

“Elena? Did you sleep well?”

I simply nodded in response to his question.

Though my mind was alert, I wasn’t ready to rise from under the blanket just yet. That’s the magic of mornings. Even with my senses returning, the warmth of the blanket and the lingering fatigue kept me anchored in place.

His golden eyes reflected the sunlight streaming through the window, sparkling more than usual today. Perhaps it was because I had just come from the darkness. Or maybe it was because I had been thinking of him before falling asleep. I unconsciously reached out to the light that had suddenly appeared before my eyes. He was close enough for me to do so, since he was leaning down.

“Oh.”

Before I knew it, I had pulled his face toward me with my arms. There was no way I had the strength to pull someone as trained as him toward me without using magic, but he must have sensed my intention and came closer willingly.

He remained quiet and sat still for a while, but as time passed and he seemed to shift into a more uncomfortable position, he propped my head with one arm and climbed into the empty space beside me. The remaining arm wrapped around me, cradling me. Although his arms were far sturdier than the soft blanket, they were far more comfortable in their embrace.

In a situation where we were both holding each other, I asked him as he climbed onto the bed.

“Weren’t you here to wake me up?”

“I realized it might be too early. I think I’ll need to sleep a bit more. Even so, Hailey should be along soon to wake us both up. Should I wake you?”

“No, I think I could sleep a bit longer.”

I closed my eyes, leaning against his embrace.

His gentle hand stroking my hair felt like a mother singing a lullaby to her baby. It felt warmer here than in the sunshine-dried blanket. However, letting myself fall asleep here made me remember what had transpired last night. I gently patted his back to coax him into sleep too.

“『Sleep』”

“That’s unfair magic…”

“Hehe.”

He was fundamentally resistant to most magic, but that didn’t mean he could withstand the magic I cast directly on him.

Listening to the slow descent of his breathing, I closed my eyes once more.

Later, when Hailey visited the room, she would scold us for this scene.

 

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