A Familiar Feeling

“Hello, Senior,” Selina replied politely to Ylenia’s warm greeting.

“Didn’t expect to run into you at the exam venue.

We must have some fate, huh?” Ylenia said, clutching her stack of score sheets, her purple eyes sparkling with delight. For reasons she couldn’t pinpoint, she’d felt an instant fondness for Selina from their first meeting—a familiarity, as if meeting an old friend, urging her to draw closer.

Yet, this was only their second encounter, with no prior connection.

Where did this sense of recognition come from? Ylenia couldn’t figure it out. Feelings were often inexplicable—liking someone didn’t need a reason. Besides, as a senior, what was wrong with bonding with a charming junior?

“Indeed, I didn’t expect you’d be involved in something as important as the exams,” Selina said earnestly. She didn’t mind Ylenia’s enthusiasm. A cheerful girl was hard to dislike, and Ylenia reminded her of a younger Litiya—vibrant and endearing.

She wondered how her little apprentice was faring. One reason for visiting the tavern was to ask if the staff had seen a blonde, blue-eyed girl. Without her, Litiya must be heartbroken.

Did she still return to Kendall Town? When Selina asked Leisen, he’d confirmed seeing her occasionally, even noting that Litiya had thoughtfully placed Selina’s tombstone next to her mentor’s.

Though Selina was alive, Kant was dead to the world.

A tombstone wasn’t amiss. She’d visited it, leaving flowers for her mentor but not her own.

Neither Blue Star nor Seraris had a custom of offering flowers to one’s own grave. Staring at her name on the stone always felt eerie.

“Oh, it’s nothing special—just helping out,” Ylenia said, blushing with embarrassment.

She couldn’t admit she was here slaving for credits due to last semester’s laziness, barely scraping by to pass.

“No need to call me ‘Senior’ all the time. I’m Ylenia Winston. Just call me Ylenia,” she added.

“Alright, Ylenia,” Selina replied, her enthusiasm muted.

Girls are perceptive, and despite Selina’s efforts to hide her mood, Ylenia caught the subtle signs of distress. “What’s wrong, Selina? Trouble during the exam? You seem off.”

“Is it that obvious?” Selina gave a wry smile, shaking her head. “Not exactly trouble, just frustration. I clearly chose the Warrior Department yesterday, but today the examiner said I’m also registered for the Magic Department. They wouldn’t let me leave until I complete it.”

Ylenia hesitated, guilt creeping in. “From your tone, it sounds like you don’t like the Magic Department?”

She knew the mix-up was her fault—her unauthorized addition of the Magic Department to Selina’s form.

Though well-intentioned, it had disrupted Selina’s plans. While it caused no material loss, meddling was still wrong.

Ylenia felt ashamed but wanted to understand why a girl with clear magical talent resisted it. Talent was rare; disliking it was rarer still.

“Resist? Not quite,” Selina said. “I’m just not used to magic. I prefer the feel of controlling battle aura.

I know I have magical talent, but talent is static, while people are dynamic. I won’t let something lifeless like talent dictate my choices.

It might point to a brighter path, but to me, choice outweighs talent. Talent’s intangible; the path under my feet is real.

How I walk, what kind of person I become—that’s my decision.”

Her words left Ylenia stunned, staring at the delicate girl before her.

A faint silhouette seemed to overlap with Selina’s figure—Litiya. The familiarity clicked. Selina shared the same unique aura that had drawn Ylenia to her reclusive senior, Litiya, making them close friends.

Litiya’s presence, untainted by material disparities, was like a night-blooming cereus—fragrant, untouchable, neither haughty nor humble, exuding a refined grace that felt comforting.

In her clan, Ylenia had seen enough cutthroat schemes. Litiya’s light-in-the-dark aura was rare, and now, Selina embodied it too.

But Selina’s presence felt deeper, more seasoned, her words carrying a weight unbefitting a teenage girl. The contrast between her mature perspective and youthful appearance amplified her unique charm.

Faced with such a person, Ylenia resolved to be honest. She couldn’t deceive or hide anything from Selina, just as she’d learned with Litiya.

Despite Litiya’s fame at Tianqi, she had few true friends, despising pretense and flattery. Sincerity was the key to her trust.

Ylenia had to confess her actions.