Chapter 51

“Ah, that?”

She chuckled lightly at the seemingly trivial question. Elena replied playfully.

“Well, it’s fine. I used to be scared of not knowing when he might show up, but now that he’s caught, I don’t have to worry anymore.”

It was a lie. Since that day, she could no longer go to the library alone, even though she used to go just fine.

Even though she knew Anguis, that man, had been caught, an inexplicable unease lingered within her.

But there was no reason to explain all this to Felix, so she decided to keep quiet.

“Well, then, that’s good.”

He spoke curtly. Silence returned after that.

Felix gazed out the window while Elena fiddled with her napkin until their food arrived.

They ate in silence and stood up from their seats.

But just as Elena reached for her wallet to pay, Felix stepped forward and paid instead.

“What’s this?”

She asked in a bewildered voice. Felix muttered nonchalantly.

“I didn’t plan on letting you treat me.”

Then why did he ask me to buy him food? Why did he even come out today?

But before she could ask, Felix left the store. As he tried to hail a carriage, Elena quickly shouted.

“Cake! Alice asked me to buy a cake! Over there, at that shop.”

Felix frowned. However, instead of grumbling, he walked toward the shop she pointed at.

Before entering, Elena peeked inside the café.

‘Oh no.’

Inside, Penny and Neville were there again today. But by then, Felix had already opened the door and walked in.

‘Are they going to misunderstand again?’

As Elena hesitated, Felix held the door open and tilted his head.

“Aren’t you coming in?”

If she suggested coming back later, he would probably get annoyed. Left with no choice, she went inside.

The moment she entered, Penny recognized her.

“Oh, Elena. Meeting you here again. Who are you with today…? Oh, it’s just Felix.”

Penny pouted and waved her hand dismissively.

“Why?”

“Why else? I thought you came with some other guy, but it’s just Felix.”

“So what if it’s Felix?”

“You two wouldn’t possibly be dating.”

“Of course not!”

Elena snapped. Dating Felix? If the rumor about her dating Cedric had been awkward, the idea of dating Felix was outright irritating.

But suddenly, a question arose in her mind.

“Why is it impossible for Felix and me to date? Couldn’t we… possibly?”

Neville, who had been listening, snorted.

“You and Felix? You two are always together, yet nothing’s happened so far.”

“I learned from watching you two that men and women can just be friends.”

Penny laughed, playfully hitting Neville’s shoulder.

Even though Elena heard the answer she wanted, she felt strangely unsettled.

‘Why not? Why can’t we date? Is it really something to be so serious about?’

Feeling annoyed for no reason, she snapped at Penny.

“Fine. If you say so, then maybe that’s how it is.”

“Oh my, why are you suddenly upset?”

“Who said I’m upset? Anyway, enjoy your date.”

Elena walked over to Felix, who was frowning at her from across the room.

“Hurry up and choose.”

“Got it. Oh, the fresh cream cake here is supposed to be good.”

When she mentioned it, Felix immediately placed an order.

“One fresh cream cake and one ganache cake, please.”

“Huh? Why the ganache cake?”

“You prefer chocolate cake over cream cake.”

He said it as if it were the most obvious thing and even paid for it. Elena stood there, stunned, until Felix took the packaged cakes and left the shop.

…Is this how friends normally act?

Penny always insisted that men and women couldn’t be just friends. On the other hand, Elena, who was friends with Felix, argued that they absolutely could.

Whenever she said this, Penny would retort, “Well, aren’t you and Felix not exactly like a man and a woman?” in an offhanded manner.

But today, Elena started to feel a little confused.

Was it really normal for a friend to go to my favorite restaurant, order my favorite dish, pay for it, and buy my favorite dessert, all without hesitation?

Elena imagined if Cedric had done the same thing.

‘If it were Cedric, I might’ve misunderstood and thought he liked me.’

But why was Felix different? Why was it okay with Felix but not Cedric?

Why?

Elena then thought about her relationship with Alice. If it were Alice, she would also know Elena’s preferences and willingly buy her food and dessert.

With that thought, the conclusion came easily.

‘Well, friends can do that.’

Felix and Cedric were clearly different. That’s why it was fine with Felix but not with Cedric.

Elena convinced herself of this. Her tangled thoughts seemed to clear up a bit.

Yes, it’s because we’re friends.

***

A month had already passed since they started the club. The rumor about her dating Cedric, which had spread throughout the magic department, had died down thanks to Penny and Neville’s active defense.

However, Penny and Joy, unwilling to give up, occasionally asked if anything was going on between her and Cedric.

To Penny’s disappointment, nothing was happening between Elena and Cedric. In fact, there wasn’t even a chance for them to meet alone, as there were no swordsmanship classes.

But over the past month, there had been a significant achievement. The project to invent a “talking teddy bear” was nearing success.

Of course, it hadn’t been smooth sailing. They had experienced two major failures. The first attempt was a complete disaster. The second attempt succeeded in recording sound, but the playback was too rigid and mechanical.

What they wanted was a cute, doll-like voice.

After two failures, Thomas redesigned the blueprint, and Elena modified the voice recording magic tool accordingly.

Meanwhile, Oliver enthusiastically repaired the teddy bear. Today, they were preparing for their third attempt.

“Here, Oliver. Put this inside and sew up the bear’s back.”

“Got it!”

Oliver carefully placed the magic tool inside the stuffing and skillfully sewed up the bear. His work was so flawless that it was hard to believe the bear had ever been repaired.

“Alright, now let’s record.”

Thomas pressed the bear’s belly firmly with a determined face.

“This time, it has to work!”

Then, he lightly pressed the bear’s belly. The three of them held their breath.

If Thomas’s voice came out as it was, it would be another failure.

Soon enough.

“This time, it has to work!”

A cute voice came from the bear.

The three of them shouted in unison.

“Wow!”

“It worked!”

“We did it!”

Oliver and Thomas even hugged each other, only to lose their balance and tumble to the floor.

‘Are they really that happy?’

Though Elena thought this, she, too, was thrilled enough to jump for joy.

As she chuckled to herself, someone tapped her shoulder. It was Cedric.

“Congratulations. You really did well.”

“Oh, come on. Thomas deserves more credit than me.”

“Still, it wouldn’t have been possible without you.”

“I’m the best everrrr!”

Meanwhile, the bear’s voice interjected with such a line. It was undoubtedly Thomas’s doing. Elena and Cedric burst out laughing at the same time.

This was a promising start for their thesis preparation.

***

Once they succeeded, everything else went smoothly. They made a total of seven bears. Each of the four members, excluding Felix, kept one as a memento.

Since Felix didn’t want one, the remaining two were sent to his twin siblings, Tony and Lindsey, ensuring they wouldn’t fight by making identical bears. These were sent to the Christian estate.

As for the last one…

‘It’s been a while since I’ve sent a letter.’

Even though it was just a letter, Elena felt awkward and smiled.

The last bear was to be sent to her father, who was in the toy business. If he gave a positive response, the Bellote Trading Company would sell the bears.

Of course, both Elena and Thomas, as the primary developers, would receive a share of the profits.

Elena hadn’t written to her father much while attending the academy. She had sent letters during her early years, but after realizing her father rarely replied, she stopped.

This was probably her first letter in nearly five years.

Because of this, she wasn’t sure how to start.

Moreover, this wasn’t a letter from a daughter but a developer. Writing it was even harder.

But for the sake of her dream, she had to write it.

With a determined face, Elena dipped her quill into the ink.

[To Father,

How have you been? I’ve been doing well, despite a few ups and downs.]

The beginning was the hardest, but the rest came surprisingly easily.

Elena wrote the letter swiftly. After sealing it with wax and her family’s crest, she sent it off.

She could only hope for positive news from her father.