[Roxy Pov]
My name is Roxy Migurdia.
I was born in the Biegoya region, on the Demon Continent, in the village of my people, the Migurds.
I had a generally pleasant childhood. My parents were incredibly kind. I remember not thinking much back then.
At first, I didn't realize I was different from others. My parents tried to hide it from me. Although I was a full-blooded Migurdian, I couldn't use my race's telepathy.
This meant I couldn't converse freely with my people.
In my case, I lived in a terribly quiet village, but I knew people were talking around me. It was exceptionally isolating.
I learned magic from a wandering mage and left my village shortly after she left.
I met many faces and people with diverse dreams throughout my travels, until I finally ended up in Sharia.
I went to school there and met many more people, some of whom I could call friends. Eventually, I learned all I thought possible there and left. I must have hurt someone in doing so.
I knew I hurt my teacher, but I neglected that thought. I was a prude and clung to the old ways. That's how I saw it, and because of that, the word "teacher" was assigned to me as such.
I continued traveling, and over time, I grew a bit conceited throughout my travels.
After all, I was a Water Saint-level mage.
There weren't many in the world who could hold such a title. I had even risen to the position faster than my teacher.
This only soured my image of the man even further.
I thought he wasn't unique at all, and that I was.
I thought of myself as better, and I considered myself that way for a while.
That was until I arrived in Asura. I was drawn to Ars, the kingdom's capital.
I hadn't set foot in the city for years, but I believed I could only serve the king or some high-ranking noble.
That's how exalted I felt by then, and because of that, I encountered an unsavory character.
A perverted noble who, in reality, had no intention of using my abilities and only wanted my body.
The same body that looked like that of a teenager in the midst of puberty. The same one I was constantly reminded I had and mistaken for a child.
I felt disgusted. Not by the man's unmistakable lust, but by his actions and bearing.
If it had been a handsome young man who desired to possess me, perhaps I could have considered him... But the man in front of me? I didn't stand a chance.
I vividly remember how I used my magic to escape from that mansion.
I didn't look back as the knights pursued me.
Eventually, I eluded them and ran into a man who offered me help. His name was Laws, a simple hunter from the small village of Buena, on the outskirts of the Fittoa region.
That day marked an unmistakable turning point in my life.
When I arrived in Buena, I didn't think much of the town.
The people here treated me with indifference because of my hair, but they didn't necessarily treat me badly either.
In essence, they didn't care too much. I thought my employers would be the same, but when I met them, my feelings proved unfounded.
The boy I was tasked with teaching was three years old; that's right, a boy whose parents claimed he had accidentally cast an Intermediate Spell was to be my student.
I mocked him, but the boy demonstrated expertise in the way he moved.
Eventually, I realized I had gravely underestimated him, and my accusatory comments were forcefully stifled less than an hour after arriving at his doorstep.
Rudeus Greyrat, to all intents and purposes, is a prodigy without equal. I hadn't seen the Demon God Laplace or the Water God Reidar fight, but even I knew just by looking at him that he was comparable.
Unlike me, the gods had granted him boundless talent, despite being human.
Rudeus was a prodigy who comes along once in a thousand years, and he was to be my student.
I was quickly humbled.
Everything I thought I knew had become a fraudulent claim in front of the boy. Were incantations required for spells? Of course not. You just had to learn how to use them that way. Was a person's total mana capacity set at birth? No, it could be increased when they were young, and with age, it faded and stopped increasing.
That's how my mental state began to decline slightly. I tried not to let it bother me.
Still, I dedicated myself to tutoring the boy, but no matter what I gave him, he still absorbed the learning with ease. Nothing was difficult for him. No arithmetic equation posed a threat. Any spell I taught him, he learned it almost perfectly.
Despite his overwhelming intelligence, there wasn't much I could do, but he insisted on calling me his master.
I was no master to this boy. I was simply someone who came in and out of his life. One of many, certainly.
He didn't see it that way, and I didn't understand why. I couldn't understand why.
I didn't understand the boy at all.
He applauded me for knowing something and made fun of me whenever he saw fit. Honestly, if I'd been twenty years older, I would have fallen in love with him, or so I thought...
As I interacted with him, I realized that's exactly what I would have.
He had the bearing of a man you could fall in love with and the attitude of someone who would make me tremble. However, that wasn't the case, and it wasn't until I saw him that night that my outlook on him changed completely. That nighttime incident.
Honestly, that was my lowest moment, and I'll regret it for the rest of my life.
The first night I arrived at the Greyrats' house... that day I masturbated in front of my employers' door, without a shred of shame, without thinking about my actions or the consequences.
I gave in to my own lust and paid the price for it.
He saw me, Rudeus, a boy barely three years old, saw me doing something he shouldn't have seen until he was much older.
And the worst part of all...
is that he knew what I was doing. He didn't seem confused like any three-year-old should. He knew what he was doing and went back to his room after apologizing to me.
I froze at that very moment. I felt like I should have left that house before anyone woke up... but for some reason, I didn't.
I stayed, and the next day I couldn't look Rudeus in the eyes, and for some reason, he didn't say a single word to his parents...
I didn't know why, and I avoided him for two days until we ran into each other one night while taking a bath.
There I was able to apologize and make peace with him, but that day something happened.
We stared into each other's eyes more than usual, more than I should have, more than was allowed.
And then I felt it. My heart raced and my cheeks flushed.
That feeling was one I was already familiar with, but it always ended in disappointment. But why?
Why with this child? A child who hadn't even had his first birthday... and yet...
That night I cried myself to sleep into my pillow and called myself a perverted cradle snatcher, but that feeling, far from disappearing, grew even stronger.
A three-year-old boy... and, shamefully, my heart skipped a beat.
Although it wasn't that I'd done anything outrageous with such a young child. I wasn't that noble.
Months passed, and our relationship changed. Now we were more like friends striving for the same goal.
He kept going even when difficulties arose.
His will was admirable, and his strength to overcome adversity, commendable.
But something happened... the day Rudeus befriended Sylphiette, Laws' daughter, who, unfortunately, had the same green hair as the hated Superd tribe.
However, Rudeus didn't care, and just like that, he befriended the outcast and bullied girl as if it were the most natural thing in the world. When I saw the two of them playing... I felt jealous.
It was also that day that I discovered her ability with magic and took her under my wing.
The truth is, I didn't want to leave Buena just yet. So this incident only served as a scapegoat to keep me staying a little longer.
I felt terrible for having exploited the girl's situation in this way and for being so selfish toward a boy who was smarter than his age.
But when I realized that the Greyrat family didn't mind my presence, I felt relieved, even blessed.
I, Roxy Migurdia, a demon, was accepted by a family of humans, and it didn't stop there. The village acknowledged me and welcomed me with a smile and a wave as I passed.
I had found a home in this place, but with each passing day, I knew my departure would have to come.
Rudeus graduated, and after that, he changed.
He took his self-improvement more seriously. I saw an immediate improvement that I couldn't even imagine matching while here, teaching Sylphiette.
Rudeus became an expert in swordsmanship. Not that I blamed him for my shortcomings.
and Sylphiette...the girl had sworn that one day she would be able to walk alongside the boy, and I intended to help her to the best of my ability and again i get jealous
They both aged slowly and continued to improve rapidly.
Even with the shock of the assassination plot against a North King, my quiet life in Buena Village continued. Yet, I could sense it.
The impending day was drawing ever closer.
The day I would have to leave.
In another life, I'm sure I would have left without a second thought after Rudeus graduated from my teachings. I would have reflected on my actions and become a better person.
I had already done that.
I had flaws, many flaws.
They were issues I had tried to resolve, but I needed time to do so. Whether alone or with a different environment, I didn't know. I only knew that my time to leave was approaching, and that I had much to do once I left. I had much to prove to the boy I had grown attached to and for which I somehow develop feelings for him, no matter how bizarre it may seem.
I met Rudeus Greyrat, my student, who would always be a beacon of admiration for me.
Because I, Roxy Migurdia, admire a six-year-old boy who, probably unknowingly, changed my life for the better.
Rudeus earned my trust, and I wanted to be the capable person he saw in me.
"I will make sure I become someone you can be proud to call your master." As I finished writing the last words in my journal, I wiped the sweat that had accumulated on my forehead.
It was already completely dark outside, and almost surprisingly, no sounds of ecstasy reached through the walls. That was because today was the last day I would spend in this house. Even thinking about it made me sad.
"Tomorrow is the big day, Sylphie..." I whispered as I leaned over the desk and blew out the candle that lit my room. "Take care of him after I leave, since I can't do it myself...not now."
And just as I suspected, Sylphiette passed the exam without any problems.
That same day, I left the Greyrats' house. I wanted to grow, to grow as a person. Rudeus and Sylphiette had opened my eyes, and in order to keep my promise, I had to leave. I was sure they would understand. But then Rudy said something unexpected.
"Please! When we see each other again, let's go on adventures!" were the boy's words. With all my willpower, I held back my racing heart and accepted his proposal, managing to retain what little dignity I had left.
I look forward to seeing what kind of adult you become, Rudy.