3 - Change (1)

As Eun Hee-Jin struggled to suppress Ellen's lingering influence, the people around her began noticing the changes. Starting with her appearance.

While washing his hands, Geld caught sight of Ellen and frowned slightly. Something felt… off.

Wait a minute…

"Ellen, did you cut your hair?" he asked.

"Yep," Ellen answered without looking up. "Why even ask? The difference is obvious."

"Huh? Ah, yeah… I guess my mind isn't that clear this morning…" Geld chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.

But his thoughts ran wild.

Is this the same Ellen who used to scold me for mixing up her long-hair shampoo with the short-hair one?

It wasn't just the hair. Even the little things—the ones that should've gone unnoticed—felt different.

---

"Ellen solved the Cipher Cube so fast!" one of the younger kids gasped.

(Cipher Cube: A puzzle cube similar to a Rubik's Cube.)

"Huh?! No way! You're lying!"

"Hey, hey," Ellen leaned back lazily, twirling the cube between her fingers. "Is it really that shocking?"

"Of course it is! You used to take three hours just to finish it!"

Ellen shrugged. "Well, not anymore. I'm a genius, after all." She smiled faintly.

The kids exchanged looks.

This wasn't how Ellen usually responded.

Before, she was always patient, always gentle. If someone pointed out her mistake, she'd laugh softly and say, "I just need to practice more, don't I?" But now?

There was an air of detached confidence in the way she spoke. It wasn't arrogance, but it wasn't quite the Ellen they knew, either.

"Fine! If you are a genius! Solve this one!" The boys handed her the hardest Arcane Cube in that orphanage to her.

Well... Ellen solve it in a minute.

---

Then there was that moment in the garden.

A little girl, Mia, wandered through the orphanage's courtyard, clutching a handmade flower crown in her small hands. She had been looking for Ellen all morning.

And then she found her.

Under the shade of a large oak tree, Ellen sat with one knee bent, an arm draped lazily over it, her other hand resting on the grass. Her black hair, cut short, swayed slightly with the breeze, and the dappled sunlight cast soft golden patterns across her pale skin.

Mia's breath hitched.

She looks so… cool.

For a moment, she hesitated. The Ellen she knew would have been sitting on the porch, reading a book or playing with the younger kids. But lately, Ellen had changed.

Gathering her courage, Mia stepped forward.

"Ellen!"

Ellen cracked one eye open at the sound of her name.

"Mm…? Oh, Mia." Her voice was smooth, a little drowsy. She sat up, stretching her arms. "What's up?"

Mia held up the flower crown. "I made this for you!"

Ellen blinked at it before taking the crown without hesitation and placing it on her own head with effortless grace.

"This is nice, huh?" She smiled lightly, adjusting it slightly.

Before Mia could respond, Ellen reached out and gently patted her head—calmly, casually, like a prince rewarding a loyal subject.

Mia felt her heart stop.

The way Ellen sat under the tree, the golden light catching in her short black hair, the effortless way she wore the flower crown as if it belonged there…

She wasn't just cool.

She was breathtaking.

"E-Ellen…!"

Ellen raised an eyebrow at Mia's flustered expression. "What?"

"U-Uhm… N-nothing…!"

---

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the orphanage, Geld sighed.

At first, he thought it was just a mood swing. But the more he watched Ellen, the more he realized—this wasn't a phase. She felt like a different person.

Her demeanor, her words, her presence.

The younger boys had started challenging her, testing what she could and couldn't do. The girls, on the other hand, had begun flocking around her, eager to impress.

Even the nun and the maid had noticed, but when he brought it up, they had simply laughed and dismissed it as puberty.

Puberty? Geld groaned. Is that really it?

Ellen's change was drastic.

Was it because she got accepted into the academy? No—Ellen wasn't the type to let something like that inflate her ego.

But… what if it had?

Before his thoughts could spiral any further, a knock on his door snapped him out of it.

"Ahem… Come in."

Creak.

The door opened, and Ellen stepped inside.

"Sir Geld, got a moment?"

"Of course! What do you need?"

Ellen met his gaze directly.

"I want you to teach me about Zephyr."

"…Huh?"

Geld blinked.

Did he hear that right?

"Ellen… You mean Zephyr? An Aura breathing technique?"

"Yeah." Ellen nodded. "Teach me how to use it."

Geld stared at her as if she had grown a second head.

"But you're a mage. You've been using magic your whole life!"

Ellen tilted her head slightly, as if weighing his words, then simply shrugged.

"And?"

That single word completely threw Geld off.

"'And'?!" he repeated, baffled. "It's completely different from magic! It takes years of training! Besides, why now? What's gotten into you?"

Ellen met his gaze, she understand the reason behind his gaze.

"Look, I know you're worried about everything that's happening, but trust me. I have my reasons."

Geld let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his temples. "Ellen, this isn't like deciding what to have for dinner!"

At that, Ellen smirked. "Well, I just have a feeling I might be good at it."

Geld narrowed his eyes, clearly still skeptical. But the determination in her expression never wavered. For a moment, he studied her, searching for hesitation. He found none.

"...Alright," he relented, crossing his arms. "I'll teach you. But don't expect it to be easy. And give me some time to prepare a few things first."

Ellen's smirk widened as she turned toward the door.

"Sweet. I'll be waiting."

With that, she walked off, leaving Geld with a deep sigh.