[Chapter 29 - Memento Vivere : Remember To Live Pt. 2.5]

"Alright, that should do it." I said, examining myself in the mirror. As I did, the door next to me opened revealing Louse standing in the frame.

"Lady Cere is ready to depart"

"Right, thank you."

Louse slightly bowed before turning around and disappearing into the manor. I soon after started making my way out to the front. My appearance was much more casual compared to the last few days, in regards to my lack of armor. Instead I simply had my silver wand fixed in a sheath on my side.

I emerged outside and saw the carriage waiting. As I approached one of the handmaidens opened the door for me and I went inside to take a seat. Immediately I was taken aback. Lady Cere sat in front of me but her appearance had entirely shifted. The frail boney girl from before was gone and aside from her clouded eyes she looked entirely normal.

I couldn't hide my shock and I felt it display itself prominently on my face. "H-how?"

Cere chuckled to herself "My that was rather forward."

"I'm sorry" I swiftly lowered my head and apologized

"No it's really okay" she smiled "The reason for appearance is that my body constantly releases the mana it makes leaving too little for my body to properly function. Before I used my first spell I lived life like any normal kid. But after it was like the cork had been removed from a bottle and couldn't be put back"

"So after releasing mana for the first time, your body was never able to stop…"

She nodded "Indeed. In time my body grew weaker and weaker to the point I almost died. In order to save my life I am told a special item was used to place a total freeze on my body's mana. In return I cannot make more mana nor lose the little I still have. That and my vision seemed to be the price to live for me."

"So how are you able to" I hesitated

"Look this way now?" she asked and answered before I could respond " I am able to by using soul stones and the same principle of mana transference that would be used to power a spell or create magic tools and weapons." she turned and pulled her black hair to the side revealing a low cut in her dress and a rune displayed on her back "Using this as a conduit I can have the mana from the stones placed in my body restoring the levels to what they should normally be. As a result my body experiences a transformation into a proper physique"

I was in awe. "So why not just constantly do that?" I said inquisitively. There was obviously a reason as to why and perhaps it was rude to ask but I found myself at the mercy of my curiosity.

Cere released her pitch black hair and it fell once again covering her back and hiding the rune. "Because it is both incredibly expensive and temporary. The seal on my mana applies only to that, my mana. So any additional mana I can receive is consistently fleeting and I will quickly begin to wither back to my usual appearance. Additionally the process is taxing and the mana used by an elf is incredibly pure. For my body to accept it the mana in the transfer has to come from a soulstone of at least S grade and even then it is rougher."

"I see.."

"That is why I do so look forward to outings like this as it is one of the few times"

"Right, that makes sense" I said and she replied with a bright smile. As the ride continued in silence I replayed the conversation in my mind and couldn't help but notice that by the end I found myself almost motivated to ensure Cere had a good experience on our trip.

Aside from that I think the only other word to describe how I feel would be, excited…