Lilia's Tale

Chapter 7: Jewelry

The next few days went similarly to the one where I learned about corporeal and incorporeal summons, complete and incomplete ones, as well as contracts. I learned to control my summon more and more with each passing day, but was still not capable of summoning a goblin. I managed to make something very similar in shape, but only ever managed to summon something that felt lacking.

Eventually, the day arrived. As I routinely woke up, put on some clothes and went downstairs at the break of dawn, I noticed Father was already up.

"Good morning. You're up early today," I said to him.

"Good morning, Lilia. Today is the day, so I have to make sure everything is ready."

"The day?" I asked, curious of what exactly he was referring to.

"Miyu-san should be arriving early today."

"Miyu-san? Who is that?" I asked again.

"The Great Alchemist."

"Oh. Right, I had to meet them."

I then went to sit at the table, as Father was preparing breakfast. As I sat down, I noticed the dress I was wearing appeared to me as quite informal, something for everyday life rather than important meetings such as this one. Figuring there would be a guest, I wanted to act more like what my body suggested, as a little girl. As such, I asked, although reluctantly:

"Should I maybe dress up more for today...?"

Father looked at me to try and see why I asked such a question.

"You will be fine. Miyu-san is someone who puts work before everything else, so I don't think she will really have anything to say about your attire."

"Well, alright then," I shrugged, feeling awkwardly dissatisfied.

A work-aholic, huh? That reminded me, although only briefly, of my previous life, where I dedicated myself to my work and my wife, while my wife did the same. It also made me look back at the time I spent as a slave, and how overworked I was. My train of thought then inevitably arrived to the current day, and what had happened recently. It drifted to the concept of magic as a whole, and how I simply accepted it and made use of it, seeing the effects of it in front of me eyes. However, I also found myself wondering why I had accepted the life I was currently living so...easily.

I felt as if something was amiss. I knew myself quite well, and I knew I had always been someone who worried about his situation, sometimes too much. I wondered what made me accept this one so readily. Was it the vast difference in lifestyle from being a slave to being a simple girl? Or maybe was this awfully similar to how things were back on Earth? I could not remember the name of this world, but I knew I had been living on it for quite some time now. I most certainly accommodated my mindset to that of someone living here, but I was surprised at how sudden, yet simple the shift from one life, at the farm, to another, here, was. As I was thinking, Father finished breakfast, so I stopped thinking and simply ate.

"Is there anything that you want me to do specifically, especially when she arrives?" I asked.

"No, she should be coming from the forest alone, so things should be fine. You should stay next to me to greet her."

"Alright. Again, are you sure I shouldn't be dressing up more, putting something more frilly or I don't know?" I asked again, although I found myself anticipating a positive answer for reasons I wasn't sure of.

"That is up to you. If you want to change, finish breakfast, wash your hands and go ahead."

"Alright, I'll do that," I said, awkwardly happy about the answer.