Side- Cecil Moore (3)
“Get out!”
Ayla threw a pillow.
Cecil, who was about to open the door and enter, was hit in the face by the pillow.
Feathers from inside flew everywhere.
While Cecil was coughing, Ayla threw another one.
“I apologize. My lady is preparing to receive guests. If you could please wait outside a little longer…”
The flustered butler said. Cecil dismissed him.
“Ayla, what’s the problem? Everything went exactly as you wanted.”
“When did I…! When did I ask you to kill my family? You’re the one who did it. How could you, how could you do such a thing…?”
Cecil became genuinely curious.
“Then how did you think you could become the Duchess?”
Ayla fell silent.
Her eyes were visible through her disheveled long hair.
Her gaze darted around, lost.
“I… I would be loved by him… and love him in return…”
“The Duke already had a lover. He loved her so much that he had a secret wedding. Secret or not, there was a notary and a priest officiated, so it was a marriage vow. She would have become the Duchess if she hadn’t died. But… that’s strange, aren’t you blaming her death on me?”
“I, I…!”
“But she committed suicide, fearing her humble status would be a burden. It worked out well, didn’t it? Because she loved the Duke so much and knew her place.”
“But Ayla, you weren’t like that. How did the youngest daughter of a baron even think about marrying a Duke?”
“I…”
“I’m listening.”
Cecil spoke gently.
If this wasn’t the process Ayla wanted, what kind of thoughts did she have when she made her wish to him?
“No. It wasn’t me… I didn’t want this… This isn’t…”
She mumbled.
Cecil gave up hope.
As expected, Ayla hadn’t thought much about it.
He kindly explained to his disciple.
This was the only way she could become the Duchess.
Was she resenting Cecil because she thought there was another way?
It was a difficult situation.
He felt the need to correct her misunderstanding.
“Ayla, I’ve told you many times. Controlling others is difficult. Furthermore, the Duke is a knight. He knows how to protect himself with magic. Haven’t I already told you how difficult it is to interfere with another person’s magic? You weren’t listening in class. There’s no way to make him love you. Especially when his feelings for someone else are so deep, you can’t even make him misunderstand.”
“I don’t want to hear it!”
Ayla covered her ears with both hands.
Cecil continued speaking because he didn’t want his lovely Ayla to unfairly resent him.
“If he loved you and had another secret wedding, it would have been easy, but that’s impossible, isn’t it? No matter how wealthy your family is, the baron doesn’t love you enough to pay a huge dowry for his youngest daughter. And the Duke didn’t need a dowry at the time either. However, if you inherited the family, then the Ducal family would have reason to consider the advantages. I merely nudged them to desire you more.”
“No! No, no!”
Ayla shook her head.
“This isn’t it. I wanted to be loved. I wanted him to love me. Love… Why did you do such a thing if you couldn’t even make him love me!”
Cecil tilted his head.
“Being loved is your responsibility.”
“He doesn’t love me! He’s not interested in me.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Aaaah!”
She screamed, tearing at her hair.
‘Poor Ayla.’
Cecil felt a stir in his heart.
The feeling was so novel that he wanted to continue observing it.
His primary research was the immortality he inherited from his master, but this much extra research would be good.
“That woman is gone now, isn’t she?”
She cried.
“Then why can’t you cast the spell?”
“Oh dear. You thought I didn’t do my best for you.”
Cecil realized why Ayla resented him.
He cleared up the misunderstanding.
“Sometimes there are people like that. People who continue to love a lover who is already dead.”
“Aaaah!”
“Ah…?”
She seemed to understand the situation, but Ayla was still distressed.
Cecil felt awkward.
“Get out!”
She screamed with all her might.
“What are you doing, drag him out! Get out! Get out of my sight!”
The servants of the Duke’s castle dared not drag out the wizard.
Cecil left on his own.
What he wanted to see was not a screaming Ayla.
It was the cute and kind Ayla.
‘Emotional humans are irrational.’
Cecil sighed.
To waste time dwelling on what was lost, even after gaining everything one desired.
For Ayla, time wasn’t an abundant resource, so it was incredibly foolish.
Because time, once passed, can never be retrieved.
‘It’s best to visit later.’
Ayla had a poor memory; her resentment would soon fade.
He decided to focus on his research in the meantime.
There was much to do.
Since he had moved his residence to a new territory, he needed to build a new workshop, and he also had to continue his research on emotions.
He was busy.
However, this kind of busyness was always welcome.
Research subjects that provided intellectual inspiration were precious.
Wizards sought truth, but they couldn’t control humans.
While trying to grant Ayla’s wish, Cecil realized something.
It was possible to adjust the surrounding conditions, but directly intervening with humans was incredibly difficult.
Previously, he had accepted this as a limitation of magic, but why should he?
Wizards were those who refused to acknowledge limitations.
They were those who illuminated ignorance with light and pioneered new paths.
He felt a curiosity about the essence of humans.
Cecil began to research magic that could directly influence humans, and time passed once more…
When he had achieved a certain level of success and came to his senses, a messenger sent by the Duke was waiting in front of his workshop.
The messenger said that the Duke had a favor to ask of Cecil.
He wished to meet Cecil in person for this.
“Very well.” Having received permission, the Duke personally came to see Cecil.
The passage of time was visible on his face. His once taut skin had lost its former vitality.
‘Has it been that long?’ Cecil felt a pang of regret. Ayla must have aged too. He might no longer be able to expect her former cuteness.
The middle-aged Duke spoke.
“Indeed, you haven’t aged a bit.”
He seemed surprised by Cecil’s appearance.
Admiration and anticipation were evident in him.
“I implore you, please become our child’s tutor. He is still young, and needs a guardian. You are my child’s godfather. You are the ideal person.”
-I hope you will teach my children magic.
It was a request that brought back memories of a day in the past.
It was in that castle that Cecil met Ash.
Ayla’s child.
A young, cute being who had grown within Cecil’s magic even before his birth.
If not for Cecil, this child would not have been born.
“Alright.”
Cecil smiled and agreed.
He was different from most humans.
Unlike emotional, ordinary humans like Ayla.
The rational him knew what he wanted and always obtained it.
“Ash.”
In the Duke’s castle, Ayla’s son, who strongly resembled her, was growing up.
“Make your mother happy.”
Like Ayla, with foolish wishes.
The wizard, who sought to understand humans, knew that young Ash’s true desire was not what he expressed.
What Ash truly wanted was for Ayla to love him.
However, Cecil didn’t tell him the truth.
Young and cute Ash was happy just seeing Ayla smile, lost in her fantasy.
He was foolish enough to be genuinely happy even when his own desires weren’t fulfilled.
Ayla’s child might even be dumber than her.
But perhaps, aren’t humans cuter the dumber they are?
Ash, crying and laughing in his fantasy, was adorable.
This distortion gave Cecil a strange sense of satisfaction.
His heart stirred.
Was this “joy”?
Cecil wondered.
And when Ayla died.
“Master!”
Ash, not even properly dressed in his outdoor clothes, ran to Cecil.
He clung to him, weeping.
Cecil found the small creature’s heartbeat, hot tears, and the peculiar prickling resonance that strangely affected him, fascinating.
‘Poor Ash.’
This feeling must be “pity.”
Or perhaps “fondness”?
The sensation of feeling emotions was addictive.
‘Ah. I see.’
Enveloping young Ash like a cocoon, Cecil thought.
It was natural that he hadn’t felt emotions until now.
He hadn’t cared about anyone…
Emotions were like research.
You could only possess them by observing them frequently and examining them deeply.
Cecil was a lacking person.
He realized that his emotionlessness, which he had considered a unique advantage as a researcher, was actually evidence of a deficiency.
Why was Cecil continuing his master’s research?
He didn’t particularly desire immortality.
The answer was: “Because other wizards did.”
Because all humans with emotions grieved and upheld their master’s legacy.
Cecil wanted to become a proper human.
He wanted to complete himself.
That was his own desire, one he hadn’t even known about.
He was like Ayla.
He didn’t know exactly what he wanted.
But he instinctively knew the method to achieve it.
Cecil now wanted to have emotions.
As always, he would get what he wanted.