"Ouch... Ow, ow..."
Aesc Shiomi kept her eyes shut as Shiomi carefully examined her hands.
"You should at least use Magecraft for protection," Shiomi frowned. "Aren't you skilled at body reinforcement?"
"I just wanted to hit you quickly, so I didn't pay attention to controlling my Mana," Aesc said with an embarrassed smile.
During their sparring earlier that day, her attacks had started out precise and disciplined.
But even though Shiomi stood before her wide open, his stance with the spear practically giving up the weapon's advantage, she couldn't touch him at all.
Before she knew it, impatience got the better of her, and she completely neglected her Magecraft.
The result was blisters forming on her hands from gripping the wooden spear.
Those delicate hands, unmarked by even the faintest callus, now had reddened palms that stung faintly.
"You really…" Shiomi pressed his lips together. "Forget it, I'm partly responsible too."
He had thought there was no harm in sparring with her all day as long as she enjoyed it, not realizing she'd forgotten to reinforce her untrained body with Magecraft.
Only when she could no longer grip the spear did Shiomi notice the blisters.
"Heh heh…" Aesc felt a strange mix of emotions—something between happiness and embarrassment.
He studied her palms with gentle care, blowing warm breath over them to ease the sting. Different from the concern shown by her parents, Vivian, or her clan, his tenderness carried a completely different weight.
"Stop laughing and choose," Shiomi coaxed softly. "You've got two options. One's quicker, the other slower, but still works."
"What do you mean?" Aesc asked in confusion.
"The quick way is I heal your palms right now. It'll be over in a blink." He looked at her. "The slower way is I make a potion, apply it, and give you a massage. That'll take about half an hour."
Aesc's eyes widened, and she nodded quickly. "Of course the second one…"
"Alright, wait a bit." Shiomi understood immediately.
He gave her nose a playful flick, then went to the corner of the room and began using the tools in Aesc's workshop.
She watched his back as he caused plants for the potion to sprout from the soil in a flowerpot, then harvested what he needed and deftly brewed them into a green potion.
Potion-making itself wasn't hard for Aesc—what caught her attention was what he did before that.
The soil was good for growing plants, but without any seeds, how had he produced the herbs?
The only thing she was certain of was that it wasn't Magecraft, but something far more mysterious.
The brewing didn't take long. By the time Aesc, lulled by a strange sense of comfort while watching him work, started to feel drowsy, he returned.
"Thanks for waiting," Shiomi said, sitting back down.
"No, it wasn't long at all."
Aesc shook herself awake and leaned against the soft bench cushion, watching his focused expression as he tended her hands.
The potion felt cool and soothing. When it touched her blistered palms, there was no pain—only a pleasant tingling that spread under her skin.
She straightened instinctively, afraid she'd melt into the feeling and collapse.
"Relax…" Shiomi noticed her tension. "Is it hurting too much?"
"No, not at all," Aesc shook her head, easing again at the sound of his voice.
Gentle Mana flowed across her palms. She knew her hands would heal far sooner than the half-hour he'd mentioned.
"Sorry for worrying you," Aesc apologized without thinking.
"There's no need," Shiomi said quietly, finishing one hand before starting the other. His tone was steady, patient. "Honestly, I'm glad. It means when you practice spear techniques, you don't have to rely on Magecraft to heal like I do."
Aesc blinked in surprise. "Doesn't Tenkei's master help you with that?"
"My master only let me rest my head on her lap while she healed me with Magecraft," Shiomi said casually. "She's also the one who taught me Magecraft."
"Tenkei's master is… a woman?" Aesc realized, pulling her hands back without thinking, interrupting his work.
"Ah… yeah." Shiomi hesitated, then nodded. "She's the Queen of the Realm of the Dead."
He knew Aesc might feel uneasy about that, and he had no way to explain it.
If she got upset and chose to ignore him, that would be natural.
"…No wonder you're so considerate," Aesc muttered, opening her palms again.
The gesture told him to continue.
"Maybe," Shiomi said. "But I'm not as gentle or thoughtful as you think, and I don't really care much for the outside world."
"Really?" Aesc was surprised. "But didn't you fight the calamity for the Rain Clan?"
"You wanted to fight," Shiomi said softly. "I couldn't force you to run. From the start, the only one I cared about here has been you."
It struck Aesc then—if she had obeyed her mother's command back then, he truly would have taken her away from Orkney to the mainland of Britannia to escape the calamity.
It sounded sly, but it wasn't wrong.
In fact, it was precisely because it was him that she could believe it.
"The potion worked even better than I thought," Shiomi said, gently lifting her wrist for her to see. "Does it hurt anymore?"
Aesc slowly closed her hand. "Mm… it's like the blisters were never there."
"Then—"
"But what about the massage?" Aesc asked seriously.
"…Right now?"
Shiomi had expected her to push him away given the mood, maybe needing time to calm down.
"Are you going back on your word, Tenkei? The great Sage really has no credibility," Aesc teased, her eyes glimmering with warmth.
Realizing her intent, Shiomi stopped hesitating. He cupped her hand and began massaging it carefully.
"Your hands are really strong, Tenkei," Aesc remarked, taking his palm with her free hand. "And big too."
"I don't take much care of them. They can't compare to yours," Shiomi smiled.
"That's why… whenever I hold yours, or when you hold mine, I feel safe." Aesc's cheeks flushed as she interlaced her fingers with his.
"Aesc…"
"No, I was just… huh?" Aesc let go, flustered, words tumbling out. "What am I even saying…"
Shiomi slowly reached out, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and drawing her close, pausing for a moment midway.
"If I'm wrong, push me away."
With that, he pulled her into his arms, brushing his hand through the hair that fell over her shoulder.
Aesc heard her heart pounding wildly. She leaned quietly against him, holding his hand even tighter.