Preparation for Social Week (10)

"Stay here. Make sure you don't go anywhere else in the house and review your notes while I go over some last-minute details," Luke repeated to me five times.

I sat in a chair inside the large library inside the mansion maybe around the same size of the one in school. I stared at the huge pile of notes placed in front of me. Couldn't he just let me get a few more hours of sleep instead? I rubbed my eyes, still tired from waking up so early.

Luke reluctantly left me in the library alone, making sure to look back every several steps. I didn't get why they had to check up on every single thing when they could make the servants do it. For the charity ball, the servants did almost everything from decorating the mansion to providing the catering.

My face dropped onto the surface of the table as I decided to use my notes as a pillow instead. A bed would be better, but it wasn't like I could explore the mansion to find a bedroom. It would be a waste of energy since I wasn't familiar with the layout. I desperately needed a cup of strawberry milkshake after getting some sleep.

The next time I opened my eyes, the sky had already drifted into a beautiful violet. I stretched my arms, feeling a bit stiff after sleeping in a weird position. It was really a beautiful library as the transparent glass walls showed a glittering garden from the other side. It was almost like I was inside a greenhouse.

But was there ever a garden in the inner part of the mansion, surrounded by other rooms? I stood up, realizing I was still surrounded by the smell of books. I pinched my arm, checking if I was inside a dream.

"You're going to be in trouble if you keep on shifting between dimensions," he reappeared behind my back.

"Why is this happening?" I scanned my surroundings once more.

"The spell the gatekeeper placed on you is starting to wear off," he tapped my wrist.

"But I thought you couldn't move between the dimensions without a portal?" I tiled my head in confusion.

"The portal is a medium that helps you channel your power to make the transportation between the dimensions easier," he explained.

Oh. If it was that, I felt I was almost scammed with the price I had to pay for the portals. Recalling my blurry memories of that day, I paid closer attention to how that waiter acted. I sighed as there were actually many clues that he was the gatekeeper. He brought me to the spirit currency centre as the first location like he was a guide.

Everyone respected him as they only whispered about a rare human being coming for the first time in years. But why did he put that spell on me? Something like this never happened before I even met him.

"Once you enter this dimension, it's hard to differentiate between the two worlds. That's why many people spend their lives, wandering around the two dimensions, not knowing how to get back to their original lives," he recalled all the other visitors.

"Then why is the spell beginning to wear off?" I felt grateful towards the gatekeeper.

"Did you consume any heavy doses of mana essences recently?" He picked up one of the reasons.

"I did consume bottles full of medicine which had the Roselia family essence inside when I got infected by monsters," I grabbed onto my hair that changed colours.

"It could be the reason why," he nodded his head.

"Then how can I fix it?" I clasped my hands together.

"You can make a contract with one of us where we can guide you through the dimensions or get a kind soul to do the same spell again," he plucked a rose petal.

"Although I won't be one of them," he drew his line.

"Why not?" My hands slid through his like he was a ghost.

"As you see, my wish is almost fulfilled. I won't be in this world soon. I don't have enough power to help you. I've been spending my days, taking care of the young ones instead," he sadly smiled.

"All I can give you is a temporary spell that can last a few weeks at most for watching over those children," his hands glowed over mine.

"Thank you," I felt a warm wave of energy gloss over me.

"The next time you enter this dimension before the spell wears off, the spell will become useless," he waved, disappearing into thin air.

The roses surrounding the library vanished with him as I found the walls to be solid white. There were no signs of life, except for me surrounded by inanimate objects. The sky was pitch dark instead of its glimmering hues of fantasy like purples. How much time passed by this round?

"Where were you?" Luke walked towards me from the other end.

Behind his back was Belle who appeared equally exhausted from the past few days. She sighed in relief when she spotted my face. The screen that showed the time told me it was late evening, which wasn't bad.

"I was inside the library the entire time," I felt falsely accused.

"We searched for you everywhere. We even went through the entire library multiple times," Belle covered her mouth when she was on the edge of yawning.