Chapter 1333: That House Atop The Hill

"Well, I'm going now. Are you sure you don't want to come?"

After spending a lot of time with Neron, Yera finally decided to rendezvous with her friends in Mr. Duffy's place.

She had been as considerate as possible, but Yera couldn't deny that she was also very curious about what the rest of her friends were up to.

Besides, she still had to talk to Legris.

"No. I think I'll stay here." Neron muttered, his eyes almost vacant.

"There's a lot I need to think about."

Once Yera heard this, her heart fell a little. She had hoped Neron would come with her and make up with Legris once they arrived at Mr. Duffy's.

They could then sit and enjoy the old man's stories, and Neron would end up falling in love with Magic.

It would have been perfect.

"O-okay! I understand..." She strained a smile and stole one final glance at the boy.

He wasn't even looking at her.

'I guess he really has a lot to think about.'

Many times, she had wondered what went on in the mind of the little boy called Neron.

But she was never able to figure him out. Even now... he felt like an enigma.

"Apologize to Legris when we get back, okay?" Yera yelled.

"Yes ma'am." Neron raised his head and gave her a smile.

That smile of his made it all worth it.

"B-bye then! See you later!"

Yera hid her flushed cheeks and rushed away from Neron, her twin pigtails flying as she ran towards the hillside where Mr. Duffy lived.

'I just want you to be happy, Neron. You, me, Legris, and everyone!'

They were all friends, after all.

**********

As Neron sat by himself, he began to feel a certain dread within.

"Maybe I should have gone with her..." He muttered.

It had been quite a few hours since Yera left, and it was already getting dark.

None of his friends had returned, and Neron was already feeling lonely.

He had never been without his friends for this long, so he didn't know what to do.

Neron couldn't play their usual games by himself, and he soon found himself missing the very activities he had mocked.

'At this point, I would gladly be the catcher...'

He sighed and rose to his feet.

There was no use wasting time thinking about thoughts like this.

'I'll just go and check the geezer's house.'

He still didn't like the idea of going to the house of a Magic Scholar, but he already missed his friends.

'Could this be an elaborate scheme they cooked up just to make me come over?' Neron found himself thinking.

'Or are they enjoying the Magic Class so much that they've lost track of time?'

Either way, Neron didn't plan on staying very long in the old man's place.

He just wanted to see his friends and convince them to come back.

He didn't even mind apologizing at this point.

'It's all just petty anyway...'

*******

It took Neron a lot longer than he thought to get to the hill where Mr. Duffy's house was situated.

He began to feel a little guilty that he had let Yera walk by herself.

'If I knew it was this far, I would have offered to escort her...'

It wasn't like he had anything better to do.

Once he climbed the hill and neared the house—a two-storey building with a simplistic design.

It had an overly long chimney, with fumes proceeding out of it.

At least that meant the old man was at home.

'Whew! It would suck if that wasn't the case!'

The old building's paint was already peeling, and while this house would be considered extravagant for those who dwelled in the slums, it wasn't particularly fancy.

'Still, I bet many of those hoodlums would kill to live here.'

The only reason they hadn't tried to rob Mr. Duffy, or even taking over his house, was due to their fear of Magic.

Everyone knew how dangerous that kind of power could be, and Mr. Duffy was rumored to possess certain Magic Items that could be considered extremely dangerous to the common man.

As a result, he had both the prestige and reverence that came with being associated with Magic.

Neron neared the house's entrance and knocked gently.

"Hello, Mr. Duffy. I'm here for my friends." Neron said aloud, though he couldn't be bothered enough to put energy into it.

There was no response.

'What's going on? He's definitely home, isn't he?'

Neron sighed heavily. He didn't like situations like this.

"Mr. Duffy! I'm a friend of Legris! I'm here for my friends!" At this point, his voice was a little louder, and so was his knock.

Still... there was no response.

"Mr. Duffy... haaa... okay, fine. Legris, it's me. I'm sorry for what I said earlier. Let's just talk it out."

Neron felt a burden leave his chest as he said those words.

He knew Legris could be petty enough to make sure no one answered the door.

But now that he had apologized, all would be well.

Right?

... There was no response.

'What is going on? Why isn't anyone responding?'

Neron didn't know why, but he felt something was off.

"Mr. Duffy, I'm coming in!" Neron tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

He pressed his little weight on the wooden barrier, but nothing was forthcoming.

With no response, and no way to get in, he let out a frustrating groan.

'I really don't want to walk back alone!'

Was this really Legris' doing? Was he so petty that he could do such a thing?

'No! Legris isn't like that!'

Sure, Legris had surprised him with how upset he was earlier in the day, but this wasn't the first time they had gotten into disagreements.

Legris was petty, but not that petty.

'Besides... Yera and the others should be inside as well.'

There was no way they would ignore him for this long.

That meant one thing.

'Something is wrong!'

Well, they could all be sleeping—so it was technically two things—but Neron didn't know why the first thought he had seemed like the most plausible.

He could feel it deep within him.

'I need to get in!'

Neron didn't want to have to do this, but he didn't think he had any other choice.

'I have to use Magic!' n)(..(///--)(1.)n

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