Chapter 17 - The Senior Disciple
In the room where Dahlia had left, Tobias leaned back against the chair’s backrest.
He knew he was to blame for how things had turned out, but he couldn't shake off the feeling of helplessness.
Dahlia was the daughter of Carlo, his master in the art of magic toolmaking.
The first time he had seen her was in the workshop of the Green Tower.
She had returned from the academy’s research lab, carrying a stack of books.
When Carlo introduced him as her senior disciple, she wobbled over to him, still holding the books, and gave him a brief bow.
Her red hair was tied into a single bundle, and she wore large silver-framed glasses that seemed to hide her green eyes, paired with a modest, dark gray dress.
She was a woman with none of the charm expected of her age, carrying an air that was almost boyish.
They had met several times after that in the workshop, but at the time, Dahlia had been working as an assistant in a professor's lab at the academy, so they rarely spoke.
It wasn’t until she started making waterproof cloth that they spoke a bit more.
Dahlia had started researching not only at the academy but also at the tower. She tried drying slimes on the rooftop and in the garden, and sometimes choked on the large amounts of slime powder she was working with.
Her passion for her research, much like a child’s, was endearing.
He had once teased her, saying, "Soon, the slimes will hold a grudge against you."
But Dahlia, after struggling with the slimes, managed to register waterproof cloth and raincoat as magic tools with the Merchant Guild, making a profit contract.
At that time, he hadn’t yet registered a single magic tool himself.
He was both amazed by her achievement and yet felt a prickling discomfort when he thought of the words "senior disciple."
The engagement had come as a surprise.
On the day Dahlia had stayed over at a friend’s house, he was unusually invited to drink by his father and Carlo.
It was then that Carlo had asked him, "Would you marry Dahlia?" Without much thought, he had accepted the proposal.
Perhaps, rather than marrying Dahlia, he had wanted to succeed Carlo.
The next day, this was conveyed to Dahlia as well.
Her emerald eyes widened in surprise as she was formally introduced to him once again.
It was only then that he noticed how she was almost his height when standing next to him.
Feeling embarrassed and uneasy, he had said, "You’re quite tall." She had only smiled awkwardly in response.
Having Dahlia as a fiancée—the conditions had seemed favorable, he thought.
She was the daughter of his master in magic toolmaking, the daughter of his father’s best friend, and her background was well-established.
Her personality was gentle like Carlo’s, and he had never seen her raise her voice in anger.
While she sometimes became engrossed in her work as a magic toolmaker, she was adept at managing household duties.
Her looks were plain, but not unattractive.
After their engagement, whenever he asked for something, Dahlia would mostly comply.
If he requested something, she would inquire about the details, but she had never once replied emotionally or with defiance.
When she dyed her bright red hair to a deep brown, just as he had asked, Tobias secretly felt relieved.
She would be a wife who would follow him as a senior disciple. He thought he could protect her from the front while she stayed behind him.
Just as it was time to submit the marriage registration, his father failed to get out of bed in the morning and passed away right there.
Orland & Co. was thrown into chaos.
His mother, bedridden; his older brother, who was away on a business trip to another country; himself, rushing through various procedures; and the company, facing delays in its operations.
Dahlia had paused her work as a magical toolmaker and helped with various procedures and bookkeeping.
"She will make a good wife," others had said, and Tobias felt a sense of pride.
He had hoped that one day, he would be able to help Dahlia, just as she had helped him. He wanted to be the one to protect her.
But the gears had started to slip.
About a year after his father’s death, Dahlia’s father, Carlo, collapsed at the Merchant Guild and died suddenly.
When Tobias arrived at the hospital, Carlo was already cold and in the process of being prepared for the funeral.
Dahlia had been quietly wiping her tear-streaked eyes with a damp handkerchief.
Without clinging to his own arms in tears or uttering words of lament, she simply carried out the funeral calmly and proceeded with the necessary procedures.
It may have been from that point that Tobias began to sense that something was off.
There was a part of him that felt irritated by her. He had repeatedly made his one-sided demands.
When he asked her to dress more modestly, she changed into clothing like that of a married woman.
When he requested that she refrain from drinking more than two glasses of alcohol, she complied.
He told her that he didn’t like the smell of cosmetics, and she stopped wearing even powder.
Even when he asked her to handle work like an assistant, she did everything calmly.
So when it came to the profit contract, he had assumed she would just give her consent after the fact.
The conversations they had about magical tools flowed somewhat, but that was all.
The magical tools Dahlia thought of were always things he couldn’t even imagine, and this began to stir something bitter within him.
Looking back, he realized that Dahlia had never once leaned on him, clung to him, or relied on him.
And then it hit him. It was simple, really.
To Dahlia, he was nothing more than her "senior disciple."
She became engaged to him because he was her senior apprentice and because Carlo, her father and mentor, had told her to.
She probably would have married anyone else.
And perhaps, it was the same for him as well.
Yet, if asked whether he liked her, he knew he had liked her, for sure.
There was no one else for either of them. He had thought they would get married like this, in a kind of vague certainty.
But then, he met Emilia.
A few months before they were to submit their marriage registration, a petite girl had joined the company as a receptionist.
She had soft, bright honey-colored hair and light brown eyes.
She had a face still bearing traces of innocence, with just a hint of makeup on her pale skin, as if she had applied it for the purpose of working.
She was cheerful, and although she made mistakes at work, she always appeared to be doing her best.
"Being a magical toolmaker, Tobias-sama, you’re truly amazing."
Emilia had said the first time they spoke, her eyes shining.
He had replied that it wasn’t such a big deal, and that had been the end of it.
But before long, he realized that their eyes met often.
I must not get too close to this girl—each time, that thought crossed his mind.
Because he had realized just how deeply he was drawn to her.
One day, when a few people from the company were having a meal, Emilia had joined them.
She was of noble blood, but her mother had been of lower status. She said that her parents separated without being allowed to get married.
She had given up attending the high academy to care for her ill mother, and after her mother's death, she had been living alone in a modest way.
And now she wanted to learn the job and work hard. Everyone present had promised to support her.
Whether it was sympathy or affection, Emilia had started receiving a lot of attention from the men in the group afterward.
When she had come to him for advice, asking how to turn down the men who were approaching her, he had tried to act like a brother, giving her advice.
And yet, he couldn’t deny the jealousy gnawing at him.
A few days before the marriage registration was to be submitted, Emilia was supposed to consult with him during lunch, but an unexpected guest had arrived. Feeling bad about breaking his promise, he invited her to dinner instead.
During their conversation, Emilia had casually mentioned, "I’ve never lived in a house with a family, always in rented rooms."
He had invited her to see his new home, and in that new home, Emilia, crying, had confessed her feelings for him. That had been the moment Tobias had unintentionally proposed to her. He knew it was completely his fault.
But even knowing that, he was certain that if he had been given another chance, he would have done the same.
Emilia, only Emilia, was the woman he had truly fallen in love with.
As Tobias sat in deep thought, a hesitant knock echoed.
He replied with a simple, "Come in," and a woman with bright honey-colored hair, timidly stepped inside.
"Um... Pardon my intrusion."
"Emilia, I told you to stay inside since Dahlia came."
When Dahlia had arrived, Emilia, who had just stepped out of the room, was told by others to stay inside. Tobias assumed she must have waited until Darya left before coming out. He didn’t want them to meet.
"I’m sorry, I couldn’t help but worry... Tobias-san, uhm... may I ask what you and Dahlia-san talked about?"
Her bright brown eyes glistened, and she looked at him anxiously.
"It was about magical tool-related work. The engagement has already been broken off. There’s nothing for you to worry about."
Tobias said with a forced smile.
Emilia looked down, clenching her hands tightly.
On her wrist gleamed a gold engagement bracelet, adorned with garnet that matched his eyes. It had originally belonged to Dahlia, but Emilia had been thrilled to receive it.
"...I’m sorry."
"There’s nothing for you to apologize for."
"But, Tobias-san, I knew you were engaged, and yet... I ended up falling for you."
With a trembling voice, tears streamed down her white cheeks. Tobias gently wiped them away with his finger.
"You haven’t done anything wrong. It's all my fault."
He hugged the girl, her body slender and soft—he felt an overwhelming need to protect her, no matter what.
This feeling, this love, was the only thing that was true.
At the same time, a small, dark voice echoed inside.
Dahlia, I was never able to be anything other than your "senior disciple."
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