"Meow~"
The cat, which had been clinging to Shade's clothes by the pillow in hopes of getting some food, suddenly looked up. It gazed curiously at the falling snow from the ceiling, its amber eyes reflecting the strange sight. It extended a small paw to bat at a descending snowflake; startled by the icy-cold sensation upon contact, it quickly extended its paw again out of curiosity.
Judging from Miss Mia Gaud's letter, Mia was less than half a year old; she had likely never seen snow before.
Miss Louisa looked around; they were still in Shade's bedroom. Although snowflakes were drifting down from the ceiling, the current situation was far too ordinary compared to last night.
"This is all I can do for now. I can feel how powerful the miracle art I've mastered is, but I cannot fully utilize it. Currently, I can only manifest snowfall in a certain area. Fortunately, maintaining the appearance of the snow consumes basically none of my Spirit or Elements," Shade said, then cancelled the effect of the miracle art, otherwise, he wouldn't be able to eat his breakfast.
Mia seemed somewhat disappointed, incessantly scratching Shade's quilt and making noise; she liked these white, cool things.
Miss Louisa pondered for a moment
"As I expected. Your Ring-caster level is too low and your Spirit is too scarce, so even if this miracle art belongs to you completely, only a portion of the effect can be realized. This is easy to understand."
She spoke with a hint of regret, glanced at the temperamental cat, and added
"But the future is promising. This is equivalent to saying that once you advance to a higher ring, you will certainly be able to immediately master a miracle art of immense power."
Shade nodded and took a bite of the scrambled eggs, finding the taste quite good. It seemed that Miss Louisa, who lived alone, had long since mastered the skill of cooking.
"By the way, why did you engrave the [Little Match Girl] Spirit Rune? I was by your side last night, and the scene when you engraved the Spirit Rune seemed somewhat different from the usual..."
She spoke hesitantly; this was likely the question she truly wanted to ask.
Before Shade could answer, Miss Louisa took the initiative to explain her own situation
"I told you before that my low Fourth Ring utilizes the story of *The Little Match Girl* to link the Words of Ascension. The Enlightenment Rune [Match] obtained from the story, the Enlightenment Rune [Dream] obtained from the story, the Whisper Rune [Frozen Person] obtained from contacting a relic, and the Profane Rune [Compassion] obtained through a doctor's help, together with my own [Scribe], construct the Words of Ascension—*Outside the Match's Dream, the Scribe pities the Frozen Person*."
The Fate Ring slowly appeared behind the blonde girl, and the five Spirit Runes she mentioned were displayed before Shade. Aside from these, Miss Louisa also possessed the four Spirit Runes required for the Fourth Ring; she already had the qualifications to advance to the Fifth Ring.
"You see, Detective, I also understand the power of [The Little Match Girl], but I have never heard of anyone being able to engrave an Enlightenment Rune directly using the name of a story. Nor have I heard of a miracle art associated with a rune that completely reproduces that story."
She looked at Shade, her emerald eyes filled with a probing gaze. Shade also looked at the blonde girl. After a moment of eye contact, Miss Louisa leaned forward slightly, allowing Shade to smell the faint scent of perfume on her.
Feeling a bit shy, she asked in a soft, tentative voice
"Although this is incredible, combining it with the questions you ran to my house to ask on Thursday morning, and inferring from common sense—Shade Soren Hamilton, you wouldn't happen to be..."
Shade saw his own reflection in Miss Louisa's eyes. Using a full name usually only happened in serious conversations.
Miss Louisa looked at him expectantly, but Shade decided to let her say it herself.
"...the original author of *The Little Match Girl*, would you?"
Shade blinked. The air in the room seemed to freeze at that moment. Miss Louisa held her breath. Shade shifted his gaze away from hers and nodded
"If you mean in this world, yes, it is I."
"Oh~"
Miss Louisa pursed her lips and leaned back, resting her back against the chair. She didn't delve deeper into Shade's strange phrasing, but instead watched him eat while sitting on the bed. After a long while, she spoke
"Although I guessed it, hearing you admit it personally still feels incredible... you're just telling me like this?"
"Why can't I tell you? Miss Louisa, would you tell this secret of mine to others?"
Shade asked, using a tactical retreat to advance.
"Of course not. Since you trust me, I naturally cannot speak recklessly."
The blonde girl shook her head and then gave a relieved smile. The awkward atmosphere that had hung between them since she started questioning dissipated because of Shade's answer.
"I'm just curious. After all, everyone else mastered the power of the Match Girl, but you stepped straight to the end, while I am still moving forward step by step... Did you use the Time Key to... no, you don't have to answer."
Shade stared at the scrambled eggs on his plate; the flavor was rich.
The following words concerned his secrets, but thinking carefully, since Miss Louisa had already guessed, it was better to be honest. After all, the only secret he truly wanted to keep was his identity as an outsider.
Thus, he temporarily set down his cutlery
"Actually, it's fine. It was the Time Key. I told you all that the first time exploration I experienced was an Angel-level key, but actually, it wasn't. It was an Unknowable-level key. I met a God, and God helped me, so there are traces of me in the past."
He nodded to Miss Louisa, meaning *that's how it is*. Miss Louisa looked up and covered her forehead with her hand, gazing at the morning light through the gap in the curtains beyond Shade
"I didn't expect to hear something like this first thing in the morning."
"Is it unacceptable?"
Shade took a bite of bread, tore off a small piece, and offered it to Mia. The cat immediately leaned forward and took a small bite.
"This explanation makes sense... My reason tells me that everything you say is true, but emotionally, I can't accept such a magical thing... Alright, I accept it, it sounds reasonable... So when you were at Lakeview Manor and faced the Evil God, you were fine because that wasn't your first meeting with a God..."
She murmured to herself while Shade lowered his head to eat. He could cook, of course, but he wasn't quite used to the dietary habits of this world, and his skills weren't great, so breakfast was usually bread.
"Shade, I won't tell anyone about this. If you didn't say it, I wouldn't have guessed in my entire life that an Enlightenment Spirit Rune could be obtained this way. Truly wonderful. If this could be publicized, it would probably be the most significant achievement in the study of Enlightenment Elements in the last hundred years."
She adjusted her mood and took a deep breath
"Shade, could you grant me one request?"
"What is it?"
Shade looked up at her. The blonde girl's eyes seemed to sparkle; she had clearly made up her mind before speaking
"Let me become your teacher."
"Huh?"