The sound of paint gushing out from the floor and the walls made Mylia feel impatient. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself down and focused on the Daemonās Map.
ļ¼Alright, I should calm downā¦ If I can rearrange these letters in the correct order, perhaps Iāll be able to fill the blank squares and find the answerā¦ļ¼
Mylia took a pen and a note book from her magic bag and started to transcribe the unsolved answer.
Meanwhile, the paint has flooded about 40% of the pedestal, making Mylia feel even more impatient.
Beyond the magic barrier, a battle between Aria and the ghost has begun.
The ghost continuously shot magic at Aria, and Aria kept blocking the attacks with her Calamity Wind. The splashing sound echoed in the room as Aria ran around in the puddle of purple paint.
ļ¼Aria-san, hang in there!ļ¼
Mylia glanced at Aria for a second and then returned her gaze to her note book.
ļ¼Ummā¦ TEā¢ā¢THEā¦ Ugh, this is so confusing. Perhaps I should rearrange all the letters in the correct order firstā¦ļ¼
Mylia hurriedly rearranged the letters in her note book while a sound of metal hitting each other was heard from behind.
When Mylia glanced back, she saw Aria use the Calamity Wind to repel the ghostās melee attack.
The ghost who tried to attack Aria with its staff, was blown away by the force.
ļ¼Whoaā¦ That shield can be used as a weapon too? Awesome! Aria-san truly looks like a magical girl in an anime!ļ¼
As the ghost was blown away, Aria used the opportunity to jump backwards with floating magic to take some distance from the ghost and take a breather.
Calamity Wind was a spell that was developed by the first head of the Griffith Family who was a great wizard. It was a defensive and an offensive spell at the same time which was a combination of wind and a magic barrier.
The user could make it thicker and use it as a shield, or make it sharper and use it as a blade. It also could be turned into a spear to pierce enemies.
Because this spell was so versatile, it required a lot of concentration to use it. Thatās why it was really difficult for Aria to use it while using floating magic at the same time.
ćHooā¦ Looks like youāre not just a little girlā¦ This is getting interesting!ć(ghost)
The ghost recovered. The force from Ariaās Calamity Wind wasnāt enough to take it down.
ļ¼That ghost is strongā¦ If the situation gets worse, I will try to destroy this magic barrier once again and save Aria-san!ļ¼
While still floating with levitation magic, Mylia moved sideways a little so that she could see both Aria and the Daemonās Map.
After rearranging the letters for a while, Mylia tried to answer the mystery again.
ļ¼Letās seeā¦ TEā¢ā¢THESEā¢ā¢ETā¦ āTell the secretā, right? Nice, itās looking good. Nextā¦ OFā¢HISMā¢Pā¦ āOf this mapāā¦ Eh? ā¦TOYOURTā¢UEFRIā¢NDā¦ āTo your true friendāā¦?ļ¼
Mylia was taken aback. She really didnāt expect that.
ļ¼The answer isā¦ TELL THE SECRET OF THIS MAP TO YOUR TRUE FRIENDā¦? Wait a minuteā¦ļ¼
Mylia finally found the true answer of the crossword puzzle, but she was so confused because the rules said that she couldnāt tell the secret of the Daemonās Map to anyone.
ļ¼No wayā¦ļ¼
She looked at Aria, who was fighting the ghost, with a pale face.
ļ¼My true friendā¦.. Aria-sanā¦ā¦ Butā¦ļ¼
Thinking about ātrue friendā, the only person that came to Myliaās mind was Aria.
Mylia had a kind older sister and master, but she never had a friend.
In her previous life, she had never made friends. She only exchanged greetings with her classmates and never hung out with them. In other words, Mylia and her classmates were nothing but strangers.
When she was in high school, she once took the courage to ask her classmates to hang out with her, but they refused. They hated Mylia just because Mylia dumped the most popular guy in the school. They always stared at Mylia with cold eyes full of envy.
Suddenly recalling her past, Mylia felt a bit miserable.
She wasnāt sure if it was okay to tell the secret of the map to Aria.
ćMylia-san, did you solve the mystery!?ć(Aria)
Aria glanced at Mylia and asked after she blocked a fireball from the ghost.
The paint kept flooding the room. It reached Ariaās thighs, making it difficult for Aria to move around. Also, the part of her skirt and robe were dyed purple thanks to the paint.
ćā¦ā¦ā¦ć(Mylia)
ļ¼Aria-sanā¦ Does she think of me as her friendā¦? If she doesnāt, perhaps the rules will apply and I wonāt be able to enter this school anymoreā¦ Thereās also the possibility that I might be killedā¦ļ¼
Of course Mylia thought of Aria as her friend, but she didnāt know exactly what Aria thought of her.
ļ¼I met her at the entrance ceremony. I thought she was a magical girl like in an anime at firstā¦ After that, we worked together to keep a big banner float at the welcome party. I accidentally made her sister float in the air with gravity magic, but because of that, I started teaching her magicā¦ She was kinda cold toward me at first, but then we got closer and closer to each otherā¦ We began to spend our time together. We practice magic in the courtyard every morning and do some research at the library after schoolā¦ After a while, I learned about her past. I was really happy that she opened up to me, but at the same time I also felt sadā¦ I couldnāt even forget the moment when she was crying in front of meā¦ļ¼
She didnāt know why but tears started flowing from her eyes while she was recalling her days with Aria.
This one month she spent with Aria had truly become irreplaceable memories.
ļ¼Aria-san is a lady from a dukeās familyā¦ I may not fit to be her friendā¦ But stillā¦ For me, Aria -san is a precious friendā¦ļ¼
Mylia always wanted to say that, but she couldnāt put it into words because she was afraid.
ćMylia-san, are you okay!? Donāt tell meā¦ Is the map a trap!?ć(Aria)
Aria was really worried when she saw Mylia start crying.
She should be worried about herself because the ghost kept attacking her and pushing her toward the wall.
After hearing Ariaās voice, Mylia wiped her tears with her sleeves, raised her face and looked at the answer on her note book once again.
āTell the secret of this map to your true friend.ā
ļ¼I canāt tell because I donāt have the courageā¦ Aria-sanā¦ She is my precious friendā¦ Butā¦ļ¼
Mylia deactivated her floating magic and went down to the pond of purple paint. Because she was quite short, she soaked into the paint up to her waist.
Mylia then put her hands on the Daemonās Map that was stuck on the pedestal.
ļ¼Even if I would be considered breaking the rules and be expelled from this school, perhaps I could still help Aria-sanā¦ But Iā¦ļ¼
Mylia wasnāt afraid of breaking the rules. She was afraid that Aria would reject her.
While remembering the cold gazes from her classmates in her previous life, Mylia started trembling.
ćMylia-san!?ć(Aria)
ćHey, young witch, you should worry about yourself!ć(ghost)
ćć¼Ughh!ć(Aria)
The ghost rushed toward Aria and swung its staff at her, but Aria managed to block it with her Calamity Wind.
Aria then compressed her Calamity Wind and made it sharper and sharper, and tried to strike back at the ghost.
As the sound of wind rotating at a high speed was heard, the ghost quickly jumped backward several meters away from Aria.
ćMylia-san, if itās a trap, then please retreat immediately! You can teleport outside this room, right? Donāt worry about me. I will find another way!ć(Aria)
ļ¼Aria-sanā¦ No. She is totally different from my classmatesā¦ She is a kind and caring person unlike those cold peopleā¦ We have spent our time togetherā¦ Iāve even been to her bedā¦ She is my precious friend. I should believe in her! Say it, Mylia! What are you afraid of!? Just say it!!!ļ¼
Mylia clenched her teeth and fists, turned toward Aria and shouted.
ćć¼ć¼Aria-san!ć(Mylia)
Aria was surprised that Mylia suddenly shouted, but then she smiled at Mylia.
ćYes, Mylia-san?ć(Aria)
Mylia raised her face and looked Aria in the eyes.
Even though tears began to blur her sight and her body began to tremble, Mylia decided to tell Aria her earnest feelings.
ćAria-san, you are my dear friend! I donāt know what you think of me, but I think you are a wonderful and lovely girl! For me, you are the first friend Iāve ever made! You are my precious, precious friend!ć(Mylia)
ćMyliaā¦ sanā¦ć(Aria)
Mylia then took a deep breath in and shouted.
ćć¼ć¼Aria-san, the content of the Daemonās Map is actually a crossword puzzleć¼!!!ć(Mylia)
ļ¼Please, please, pleeease!!!ļ¼
Aria was a bit confused, but on the other hand, Mylia was so nervous.
ćEh? Itās a crossword puzzleā¦?ć(Aria)
The moment Aria got the idea what Mylia said, the pedestal started shining brightly.
ćć¼ć¼ļ¼ć(Mylia)
Because the light was so bright, Mylia spontaneously covered her face with her hands.
Meanwhile, the Daemonās Map started floating in the air and folded in quarters by itself.
ćMylia-san, what is happening to the map?ć(Aria)
ćIām not sure butā¦ could it beć¼ć(Mylia)
Mylia hurriedly grabbed the map that was floating in the air and spread it.
ćThe puzzleā¦ it turned into a map! Aria-san!ć(Mylia)
What She saw on the map was no longer a crossword puzzle, but a map of the Daemon Fort which now was known as the Adrashelm Royal Girlsā Academy.
ļ¼Yes, yes! It turned into a map! That means I can stay in this school and officially become friends with Aria-san!ļ¼
Mylia raised the Daemonās Map in her hands in joy as happy tears began to flow out from her eyes.
ćMylia-san! You did it!ć(Aria)
ćUn! Iām so happy!ć(Mylia)
ćButā¦ Aa-ahhā¦ Actually, I was planning to say it before you didā¦ć(Aria)
ćEh?ć(Mylia)
Ariaās chest was aching when she saw Mylia who was crying in joy beyond the magic barrier. She was so happy when Mylia said that she was her precious friend.
Aria wanted to answer Myliaās feelings but she was too embarrassed to say it clearly that she couldnāt even look directly at Mylia.
She once glanced at the ghost, but there was no sign that the ghost would attack.
She then turned her face toward Mylia and decided to tell her true feelings.
ćMylia-sanā¦ Me tooā¦ For me, you are the first friendā¦ Iāve ever madeā¦ in my lifeā¦ć(Aria)
However, she couldnāt say it loudly. While being stared at by the ghost, Aria murmured while blushing.
ćAria-san, I canāt hear you!ć(Mylia)
ćU, Ummā¦ć(Aria)
Mylia looked Aria in the eyes, but Aria could only blush and glance at Mylia.
She then inhaled deeply and took the courage to look straight into Myliaās eyes and say her feelings to Mylia.
ćMylia-san! Me too! For me, you are my precious friend! Iāve always wanted to say it, but I didnāt have the courageā¦ Mylia-san, please be my friend!ć(Aria)
Ariaās confession echoed through the room.
Perhaps, it was the moment when Ariaās blushing face became the reddest it had been in her entire life.
ćAria-sanā¦ Un! Letās be friends!ć(Mylia)
Mylia nodded vigorously as she replied and made a big circle with her arms.
Aria responded with a nod too. She then smiled as her eyes became teary.
ļ¼Aria-sanć¼ My cute and lovely friendć¼!ļ¼
It had been years since Mylia reincarnated to this world, but this was the first time she had officially made a friend.