“Idiot.” Thinking of Winnie, Aesphyra's lips involuntarily curled into a barely noticeable arc, perhaps even she herself hadn't realized it.
He even went to seek help from Vanessa for her sake, always claiming to be a wicked young master, yet his actions had nothing to do with 'wickedness' at all.
This Winnie from the current timeline was truly nothing like that rotten brat Winnie from the original timeline's path. Although both were equally irritating to hit, their cores were completely different.
Although he was still quite annoying, Aesphyra had completely changed her opinion of Winnie. She even felt that everything from back then might've just been a dream, and that the previous Winnie was equally unreal.
In fact, Aesphyra had long suspected this possibility, and not just once, yet each time, the theory had ultimately been dismissed due to logical inconsistencies.
Even if she truly discarded existing logic and suspected that Winnie was Vanessa in disguise, or that Vanessa was Winnie pretending, from Aesphyra's sharp, veteran perspective, neither Vanessa nor Winnie's personalities appear to be fabricated.
So then, who was impersonating whom? Who was the original, and who is the true self??
Just this question alone defied reasoning, because according to Aesphyra's long-term observations, both individuals possessed distinct personality traits. If one's character was an act, subtle flaws would inevitably emerge over time.
An acting skill so flawless that even she couldn't detect a trace, only possible if the mask had completely fused with the skin.
And that was exactly the crux: with Aesphyra's level of expertise, she could tell that Winnie and Vanessa's acting abilities were on entirely different tiers.
Vanessa's skill clearly surpasses Winnie's by a large margin, so much so that Aesphyra had to admit she was exceptionally talented. But Winnie's performance was clearly far inferior, his true emotions completely unguarded. At a glance, he gave off the beauty of apparent brainlessness, probably couldn't hide anything even if he wanted to.
They were simply not on the same acting level.
Could a single person simultaneously display two entirely different personality traits, two greatly different levels of acting skill?? Even with Aesphyra's deep understanding of performance, this seemed overly exaggerated.
True acting must blend genuine emotions, wouldn't such a person risk schizophrenia??
If that were the case, then someone was so profoundly enigmatic as to play dual roles in front of her, portraying two distinct acting styles so convincingly that even she, a seasoned actress, couldn't detect the deception.
Such terrifying skill, Aesphyra couldn't guarantee she herself could pull it off perfectly.
Thus, the idea arose once more, only to be dismissed by Aesphyra again.
This possibility was nearly zero.
Furthermore, any sane person would instantly realize these two couldn't possibly be one and the same.
One, a gentle, graceful, elegant lady of angelic refinement; the other, a coarse, careless, blunt-mouthed fool with no manners, could they really be the same person?
Unless they both share the surname Varelis, no mental sound person will ever confuse the two.
Still... there was perhaps one imperfect method, worth trying?
………
After delivering the medicine to Aesphyra, Winnie returned home with the remaining bottles of the Blessed Angel's Kiss byproduct.
Mirexia had spent considerable time and energy caring for him, her student council duties had piled up. She needed to rush back and catch up on the backlog.
Winnie arrived at his doorstep and knocked. “Dell, are you there? I'm back.”
After a moment of silence, the sound of bare feet tapping across wooden floorboards, Shikondell opened the door immediately. The elven girl, who seemed to have not seen him in days, looked delighted upon spotting Winnie standing outside, her eyes sparkling.
'Virtue + 50.'
'Current Virtue: 10354.'
“Winnie, you're finally done with your work??”
Hearing this, Winnie instantly felt a pang of guilt.
His previous excuse to Shikondell had been entirely fabricated, yet she actually believed him all this time.
Although, it was true he'd been busy recently, extremely busy. So busy he'd fainted from exhaustion and lay bedridden for several days.
“Ah, yes, I'm finished for now. Student council work really was overwhelming these past few days. Mirexia told you, right?”
“Mm, President Mirexia did mention it, but she didn't say exactly what you were busy with.” Shikondell tilted her head slightly, strands of hair slipped gently over her shoulders.
“Well, you know, at the beginning of the semester, the student council gets swamped with all kinds of affairs.” Winnie explained.
“Oh.” Shikondell nodded vaguely, as if understanding, yet clearly not.
“Come to think of it, it's been ages since I've had Dell's cooking. Heh, been running around everywhere lately, mind if I have the pleasure of tasting your cooking tonight?” Unable to explain further, Winnie quickly shifted the topic.
“Eh? Ehh? Of course, of course!” Shikondell was instantly hooked by the new subject, replying eagerly.
Winnie said he missed her cooking, does that mean he missed her too during these days?
Hehe.
'Virtue + 50.'
'Current Virtue: 10404.'
Still as gullible as ever.
Seeing the Virtue change and Shikondell's reaction, Winnie knew he'd successfully diverted her attention again.
Heh, Shikondell was still too naive. Throw out any topic, and she'd latch onto it, ignoring everything else.
Back home, Winnie found the dorm exactly as clean as when he'd left, proof that Shikondell had diligently maintained the hygiene during his absence. Even his own room remained fresh and tidy.
Moreover, Shikondell had good sense, she never touched things that weren't hers, especially anything involving Winnie's privacy.
Returning home, Winnie flopped onto the sofa like a master returning to a household with a devoted wife, doing nothing, simply waiting for his 'wife' to serve him. Well, at least he always left Shikondell with enough living expenses before leaving.
He sprawled ungracefully on the living room sofa, one hand holding the greenish byproduct potion, examining it up and down, sniffing it occasionally, shaking it to watch the tiny bubbles rise, deep in thought.
What kind of potion was this exactly?
After much pondering, he decided, since he personally created this potion, he should follow the alchemist's tradition: any unknown byproduct should be tested personally by the creator, driven by academic curiosity.
Of course, times had changed. Nowadays, many alchemists skip such principles, instead paying others to test dangerous potions.
But Winnie wasn't wealthy like those alchemists, couldn't afford it, nor did he want someone else to risk their life for him. So he decided to test it himself.
Strictly speaking, the byproduct was made from his own blood essence combined with various nourishing herbs. Even if it is harmful, it probably couldn't be too dangerous, right??
He did recall learning that certain alchemical ingredients could have multiple hidden effects. But since this formula came from Saintess Elusa, it must have been reliable. Even if some herbs' negative effects overlap, they should've been purified by the Saintess's blood.
After weighing it all, Winnie gathered his courage, poured a small portion of the potion into a tiny bowl, and downed it in one gulp.
Slurp, slurp. Huh, it tastes slightly sweet.
Strange, didn't add any sugar. Why does it taste sweet?
Now, to observe the effects. Winnie sat upright. Fifteen minutes passed.
Nothing happened. Winnie checked himself in the mirror, no strange spots on his body, no dancing little people in his vision, mind clear and refreshed. Everything is normal.
Seems the byproduct isn't toxic.
But if not toxic, what's the effect?
Wait.
Winnie felt he might've figured it out. Recently, due to constant and excessive blood loss, he'd been exhausted, like he hadn't slept in days. Even getting out of bed left him weak and limp.
Now, that fatigue is completely gone. He felt energized, mentally sharp and vibrant.
Could it be... this byproduct restores mental fatigue??
Winnie pondered.
That makes sense. The main product treats physical injuries, while the byproduct addresses mental exhaustion.
But still not certain, what if it was a delayed toxin that only activated after accumulating in the body??
Driven by rigorous academic principles, Winnie drank the portion remaining. Result? Even more influential, so much energy he wanted to rush to the student council and battle paperwork for three hundred rounds.
Aside from that, no noticeable side effects appear.
Looks like it's truly non-toxic. No reaction even at this dosage.
“Winnie, dinner's ready.”
“Oh, okay, I'm coming.”
Pocketing the remaining green vitality potions, Winnie headed to the dining table. It'd been a long time since he'd eaten Shikondell's cooking. While not exceptionally delicious, her meals carried a certain warm, homely flavor, like the feeling of home, comforting.
Unlike the vast, cold, lifeless mansion back in his hometown, returning to this dormitory at Carillian Academy brought a sense of inner peace to his otherwise slightly lost soul.
Perhaps, without even realizing it, he'd already begun to see this dorm at Carillian Academy as his real home.
After dinner, Winnie took Shikondell out for a walk, hadn't spent time together in a while.
The next day, Winnie left the house, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, aimlessly wandering around campus.
Tomorrow marked the beginning of classes. Over the past few days, he had been occupied with helping Aesphyra recover, so even though he had been on campus, he hadn’t managed to prepare for the new term.
Tch, all that damn silver-haired dwarf nut's fault. Everything's her doing. A real jinx, equal-opportunity destroyer of everyone's fate to strengthen her own.
As Winnie thought this, he somehow wandered into an abandoned park.
Huh??
He recognized this park. If he remembered correctly, this was the old tree in the park's crevice where he'd recently delivered messages to the academy's mole.
This park was nearly deserted. Winnie had delivered several messages here before, he knew well that at night, it felt haunted, completely empty, in stark contrast to the bustling streets nearby.
So logically, it should be empty now too.
Yet, that didn't seem to be the case.
At a glance, under that familiar old tree, sat someone he knew fairly well.
A delicate figure leaning gently against the trunk, eyes slightly closed, lashes like thin cicada wings fluttering down, glistening faintly with dew.
She cradled a book in her hands, the open pages resting quietly on her smooth, pale thighs. Jet-black hair cascaded down, following the slender curve of her waist, flowing over sleek black tights, spilling onto the grass.
The flawless, aloof black-haired girl slightly parted her eyes, as if resting, thick book open, abandoned park, decaying old tree, the scene was breathtakingly beautiful.
But,
Seeing this, Winnie felt somewhat surprised.
The black-haired girl leaning against the tree was clearly Isatia. Her presence here wasn't entirely unreasonable, she liked quiet places, so seeking out deserted spots to read made sense.
But,
What was she doing now? Just resting??
Normally, Winnie would think so, glance once, then pretend not to see and leave. But after what happened in the library, he felt something slightly off about Isatia's state.
She... seemed to be asleep again.
Could the princess possibly be someone with no sense of time? Staying up late reading, full of energy at night, then constantly dozing off during the day??
Doesn't seem like it.
If her sleep hadn't improved, why did he keep seeing her fall sleeping with a book in hand?
And why did Isatia carry around thick historical books wherever she went?
From this distance, Winnie couldn't read the title, but judging by its thickness, it definitely wasn't some light novel or casual read, most likely another academic historical publication.
This troubled Winnie. Was the princess really okay? Just casually sleeping in an abandoned park, was that safe?
Could it be, like last time, that she'd collapsed from sheer exhaustion and passed out??
Seems very possible.
But people with poor sleep quality usually had faint dark circles, why didn't she have any??
Should he go check?
After the last incident, Winnie no longer saw the princess as some unreasonable brat. And truthfully, he'd already tangled with so many fated heroines, what's one more causality?
Fine, he'd go check. Judging by her state, she looked like she'd fainted. It wasn't safe for a girl to be sleeping here like this.
“Isatia? Isatia?” Winnie approached and called her name, but received no response. Isatia remained quietly leaning against the tree, eyes gently lowered, silent.