[S3] Chapter 36: Smile

"Where do you want to sit?"

"I don't really care."

"Next to Luna?"

"That's fine, I guess."

After this pointless discussion with Kajsa, I go back to the kitchen of our guild office to help Eliza cut the pizza we ordered for today's meeting.

"Where is Miko?" she asks.

"I don't know. She's read my message but hasn't replied yet."

It's perfectly reasonable to expect me to know where my girlfriend is. Still, today is one of those special days where I don't even have a clue. After we woke up this morning, she just told me she had something to take care of, and we haven't spoken since.

As if she had sensed that we were talking about her, I hear someone unlock the front door, and she actually walks in. I go into the hallway and look over at her. She puts on her slippers and gives me a questioning look.

"Where have you been?" I ask somewhat hesitantly.

"I was taking care of something, I told you, didn't I?"

"Sure." I kind of hate it when she's like that. I'm well aware that she doesn't have to tell me everything she does. I also trust her not to do anything shady, but the control freak in me actually flips out a little. While I'm pondering, she comes over to me and gives me a little kiss.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you about it. But it's nothing bad. I promise."

I briefly swipe my lips with a thumb and follow her into the kitchen. Together with Eliza, we carry the numerous pizza boxes into the meeting room and spread them out so that everyone can reach them. Luna is already setting up the laptop and beamer.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?" I ask Eliza, who hurries back into the kitchen.

"No, no. Sit down. We're about to start." It's not entirely out of place to see Eliza smile, but she's showing hers a little too often today. I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me a little uneasy.

Even the way she initiated this meeting was a little odd. A few days ago, she posted a message in our group chat saying that we should meet up and order some yummy food. While I was looking forward to the pizza, Miko was quite suspicious.

Once we're all sitting together, a certain tension is in the air. A pizza party is supposed to be fun, but even without knowing or precisely because I don't know what the reason for today's meeting is, my appetite is a little spoiled. Even Kajsa looks at Luna with a certain unease in her eyes.

"Thank you all for following my invitation. I don't know who saw the news about the press conference being held at the Ministry of Magic today. As soon as I saw the announcement, I wanted to watch it with you and then talk about how to proceed. As Guild Leader, I've already been given some insights that the public doesn't have. I'm sorry I waited until now to share that knowledge with you."

The way Eliza ends her statement with a tired expression scares me a little. I suspect Jora will announce his resignation today, but if that was all there was to it, I doubt Eliza would have gathered us all to watch the whole thing. The livestream, organized by the country's biggest news channel, begins in an instant. When I see the logo in the corner of the screen, I realize the scale of this broadcast. Usually, news for the world of mages is at best shared in text form on the ministry's website, but a broadcast on a regular TV channel is an absolute rarity.

While everyone's eyes are fixed on the screen onto which we are projecting the image, I hear a happy munching sound in my left ear. Kajsa, who is sitting opposite me, is digging into her first slice of pizza. I noticed that she also looks a little worried, but that's more because she's mirroring us and not necessarily because she understands what's going on. Luna sighs and is about to say something to Kajsa when the broadcast starts, and a spokesperson from the ministry addresses the audience.

"I would like to welcome you to our press conference from the headquarters of the Ministry of Magic. For reasons of urgency, we have not invited the press today, but we are open to questions through the usual channels, which we will answer in the coming days. With me is Jora, the current King of Mages, and Henry, who is the principal of the Loewenstadt Academy of Magic, the largest school of its kind. First, I will give the floor to Jora, who has something to announce, and then I will take over again before the principal has something to share."

You can tell that the ministry spokesperson is not used to this kind of work. Still, his way of addressing the audience makes him approachable, almost likable. The camera pans over to Jora, who is wearing a black suit today instead of one of his colorful ones.

"Good afternoon, dear viewers. I'm sure many of you are wondering who this strange guy with his long ears might be. My name is Jora. I was the King of Mages until recently. That is merely the title for the person chosen by some of the mages of the country to represent our interests. As you can tell by my words, I no longer hold this position. And there will be no new king or queen of the mages in the future. To place the wishes and concerns of all the mages of a nation on the shoulders of one or two people is simply unimaginable when you think about it. Therefore, a new council will be formed to work more closely with the Ministries of Magic of our neighboring nations and especially with the government of our country. I would like to thank everyone for the excellent support over the last few years and to everyone who believed in me."

The gentle expression on Jora's face looks very genuine to me, even through the camera. Although I don't know exactly what he achieved in his time as king, I can feel his sincerity and gratitude. I take a deep breath and look around. Miko and Eliza continue to stare ahead, but Kajsa is busy comforting a slightly sniffling Luna. I'm definitely surprised. What's going on now?

"Luna? Are you alright?" I whisper.

"She once told me that she would like to become queen. Now her dream is dead."

"Shut up, nobody needs to know that."

"Then don't make such a fuss."

"Shh, be quiet," Eliza says, slightly annoyed. The ministry guy speaks again already.

"In addition to this council, there will also be a federal program to integrate mages into traditional jobs. As there are fewer and fewer dungeons, some guilds have already been forced to shut down. However, we do not want to abandon those who have kept the country safe for so many years. That is why the government has announced that mages can join a newly founded police unit, for example. A concept for such a unit has been around for some time, and the work is not entirely different from that inside a dungeon, so mages can be integrated relatively quickly after an entrance exam. Other areas of work, such as medicine or manual labor, require a bit more in-depth education, but that's what the Loewenstadt Academy of Magic is for, so I'll pass that on to the principal."

When I think back, it's the first time I've seen what the principal looks like. We spent a whole month at his school but never met him in person. Hannah was the one who looked after us the entire time. Not even a teacher felt the need to take some time for us outsiders. Alright, enough complaining and back to the livestream in front of us. Wait... this guy looks a bit too good and young to be the principal of such a prestigious school, doesn't he? Dark hair that looks almost black, gray-blue eyes, a well-groomed beard, and the perfect amount of tiredness in his expression.

"…our school has long offered programs that provide our students with a pathway into traditional careers. With the new support from the government, this offering will expand, and our students enrolled in purely magical courses will have the opportunity to change their major and utilize their existing credits."

Why do I feel like I missed half of his speech? I definitely didn't spend that much time admiring his appearance. If I actually did, I deserve to die stupid and uninformed. But in my defense... the others seem to be getting more and more inattentive, too. Even Eliza turns away from the screen and grabs a slice of pizza.

"I'm definitely surprised. I was expecting them to sugarcoat it a bit more," Eliza says before wolfing down the food in her hand.

"As if anyone cares about mages losing their livelihoods. The first stories you'll read are about angry people who are afraid of us taking their jobs," Luna says with a sarcastic undertone.

Miko sighs, a little annoyed. "As if any of us would take another job."

For now, I decide to leave this uncommented. Still, since we have been basically out of work for a few months already, I was considering what to do in the future without dungeons. The first and most obvious option would be to find another guild. Some regions still have enough missions posted. I also had the illusion that I could work in a hospital, but without a medical degree, they don't care what I can do with my healing magic.

"We'll all be jobless soon?" Kajsa asks with a certain carefree attitude.

"Most likely," Luna answers, and Eliza clears her throat loudly.

"No, we won't. I won't let that happen."

Everyone at the table no doubt notices the lack of conviction in Eliza's voice, but I just smile at her and say, "Thank you."

◆◆◆

The broadcast of the press conference ended shortly afterward. I'm not sure what to take away from it. The government cares about us mages? So they decide to create opportunities to use magic in real jobs? Up until now, they seemed content to separate us and let us fight in the dungeons, pretending we didn't live in the same world as them. Funny, I feel attacked, like I've always been a witch.

"What's wrong?" Miko asks as we go outside to throw away the trash from our meeting.

"Nothing, why?"

"You look tense. What's the matter? Are you afraid we'll lose our jobs?"

"As if I care about that. I've done a lot of jobs in my life. It wouldn't be hard to give up being a witch and do something different." My words sound a little too harsh like I'm blaming Miko for everything.

"What about me? Do I belong to that old life?"

"What a stupid question. Are you trying to provoke me?"

"I'm sorry." the way she tries to smile breaks my heart. Miko is absolutely miserable, even if she doesn't show it all the time. I know she's suffering, yet I make such a fuss and give her even more to worry about. It makes me hate myself.

I punch the trash container, and it feels like I might just have broken my hand. Miko flinches and looks at me with concern. I literally stomp the few steps over to her and hug her tightly, resting my forehead on her shoulder to hide my face.

"I'm sorry for being so stupid."

"It's all right." She begins to gently caress my neck, and goosebumps spread all over my body.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

I breathe in and out deeply, slowly but surely relieving the pressure on my chest. I'm glad Miko isn't like me. Otherwise, this would probably have erupted into a full-blown argument.

"Do you want to go home?" I ask in a whisper.

"Not yet, let's spend some time with Eliza."

"You're right, she's probably lonely."

"We should have visited her more often."

"Probably."

No idea how long we've been hugging, but I think we can stop now. I let go of Miko and turn around only to see Eliza standing in the doorway, smiling at us proudly. A little awkward, especially because she doesn't look like she wants to go back inside or make room for us as we walk towards the entrance.

"So… what have you been up to? Do you want to go to Miko's room? I can turn on some loud music if you want to."

Miko sighs, "You are disgusting."

"Oh, come on, it's a natural thing, no matter that you're both women."

Could we stop talking about our sex life?

"Maybe we should go home after all," Miko says, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry. I just wanted to lighten the mood a bit. Do you want to hang around a little longer? Luna and Kajsa are staying, too."

"But don't ever talk about anything like that again."

"I can't promise, but I'll do my best." Eliza giggles and shows what feels like the first genuine smile of the day. Yes, it's not all that easy, but we still have each other.

Lately, it literally scares me how often I have to tell myself that. In the end, even I am not the one who suffers directly, which actually makes it worse. There's not much I can do for Miko, even though I'm with her all the time.

I know best what it's like to lose the most important person in your life. In my case, I just had to accept that my mother was dead, and that took me years. Lilith is still alive, and she wasn't taken away by a terrible disease but by her decision to leave with her sister, her only real family. When I think about it, I find it hard to hold that decision against her. I know I shouldn't stress about it, but what else can I do?

Eliza, Miko, and I go back into the building, where we are met by Luna, who is staring at the floor as if something terrible has happened. Before any of us can ask what's going on, she starts talking.

"How would you like to have a sleepover here? All of us together, we get something to drink and some snacks. We can watch movies, play games, or just chitchat."

So, Luna also got the impression that she wanted to do something for Eliza, even if you can tell that she's not the biggest fan of her own idea.

"Can we?" Miko says, looking at Eliza with doe eyes. She just moans and breaks into a grin.

"How can I say no to that?"