At the end of the first year living in the Imperial Capital—
Around three in the afternoon, inside the largest jewelry store in Eiseberg:
Agusheed was selecting jewelry displayed in the glass counters,
All under the astonished gaze of the store owner.
According to Flamme, today was their first wedding anniversary.
So, they were supposed to prepare a gift for each other.
Although Agusheed thought it was a waste of time and delayed his progress on decoding the Spell book of Sage Ewig,
Since it was Flamme's request, he didn't refuse.
After all, complying with her wishes and living in a "human way" might help him gain some insight.
However…
"Choosing gifts really isn't my forte…"
Looking at the hundreds of different jewelry pieces in the display case, Agusheed sighed to himself.
"Forgive me for speaking out of turn, Lord Agusheed…"
Seeing Agusheed unable to make a decision for so long, the shopkeeper rubbed his hands together and asked:
"If my memory serves me right, today is your wedding anniversary with Lady Flamme…"
"Are you here to buy a gift for Lady Flamme?"
Agusheed nodded, glancing at the shopkeeper, whose face seemed vaguely familiar.
"Yes."
"But I'm not sure which one would be best… Do you have any suggestions?"
The tall shopkeeper laughed heartily and patted his sturdy chest, assuring Agusheed to leave it to him.
"Among all the jewelry, the most suitable choice for a married couple is definitely the Mirror Lotus."
As he spoke, the shopkeeper expertly picked out a necklace from among the hundreds of displayed items.
"This Mirror Lotus necklace is something I brought back from the southern regions of the Empire, crafted by the best artisans in the Empire—"
"If it's for Lady Flamme, then there's nothing more fitting."
Agusheed didn't doubt the shopkeeper's enthusiasm.
The longer you live, the keener your eye becomes.
The Mirror Lotus necklace was indeed as exquisite as the shopkeeper described.
He could see the superb craftsmanship and the precious materials used.
Moreover…
When it was placed among all the other jewelry, Agusheed hadn't noticed it.
But now that he held it up for closer inspection—
The craftsmanship seemed to match the same artisan who had made the shoes he once gave Flamme.
"Alright then, I'll take this one. If you can, please wrap it up for me."
Once he made up his mind, Agusheed didn't hesitate.
Seeing the price tag, he reached into his coin pouch and pulled out six Lassil Gold Coins, handing them to the shopkeeper.
But the shopkeeper only carefully wrapped the Mirror Lotus necklace and handed it back to Agusheed,
Never once reaching for the gold coins.
"Is it not enough? Or is the price marked wrong?"
Agusheed asked, puzzled by the shopkeeper's refusal to take the coins.
"That's not it at all—"
The shopkeeper shook his head and gently pushed Agusheed's hand holding the coins back.
"Lord Agusheed, I can't accept your money."
"Have you forgotten?"
"You and Lady Flamme once did me a great favor. If not for you two, I would probably have died long ago."
Agusheed didn't respond immediately, because he was trying to remember—
But he couldn't.
Though the shopkeeper's face indeed looked faintly familiar,
Agusheed honestly didn't recall him.
"My apologies…"
"Even though you say so, I really don't remember you."
Faced with Agusheed's blunt and somewhat hurtful honesty,
The shopkeeper only laughed heartily, as if he expected this reaction.
"Still as straightforward as ever, Lord Agusheed. You haven't changed at all."
The shopkeeper thought back to the incident eight years ago,
When Agusheed's unintentional words had devastated the entire merchant caravan.
He shook his head with a smile of acceptance.
He solemnly placed the box containing the necklace into Agusheed's hands and said:
"Even so, I've always wanted to repay both you and Lady Flamme, no matter what."
"Perhaps neither of you remember me, but eight years ago, in the Leob Hills,
If you and Lady Flamme hadn't stepped in, my caravan would have been slaughtered by demons."
"So, let this Mirror Lotus necklace serve as the reward I never paid back then."
"If this necklace can be of use to you and Lady Flamme, that would be the best repayment."
Even as Agusheed walked out of the jewelry store, the shopkeeper's words still echoed in his ears.
"Repayment… for something I did unintentionally eight years ago, something I've already forgotten—"
"Why would he remember it for so long?"
"I can't understand—was I ever like that?"
Agusheed pondered these questions as he walked through street after street.
After the sixteenth time a passing pedestrian bowed respectfully to him,
Agusheed finally returned to the small house he and Flamme had purchased in the capital.
Watching the evening sunlight stain the window frames with a warm, golden hue,
He gently pushed open the oak door.
The hinges made a faint creaking sound—
That sound was something Flamme had deliberately enchanted using Magic to Make the Door Creak When Opened.
She called it a "Signal of Coming Home" and insisted it was an essential ritual.
When he walked into the living room, Agusheed immediately smelled the aroma of rosemary-roasted chicken
Mixed with the faint bitterness of some magical potion.
Without a doubt, Flamme had come home much earlier than him.
He looked toward the kitchen, where Flamme was busy at the counter with her back to him.
Her light red hair was casually tied with a hairpin crafted from the cover of an old spell book.
The hem of her apron was stained with some kind of purple powder.
"Agusheed, you'll never guess what I just discovered—"
Without even turning around, Flamme called out to him.
She tapped her short wand on the cast-iron pot.
"Remember last time you said that stews are best enjoyed at precisely 62.3 degrees?"
"I tried using Magic to Heat and Magic to Cool to maintain that exact temperature."
"But as I maintained the temperature for long periods, I noticed the basic spell structures began to transform."
"I'm calling it the Principle of Magical Convertibility. A few more controlled experiments should confirm it."
"By the way, how many new theories have I discovered so far?"
"Twenty-one."
Although Agusheed had always been rather forgetful,
When it came to Flamme, he always remembered everything clearly.
But he didn't know why.
And he wasn't sure if, in the future, he would forget it all.
When Flamme finished up her work in the kitchen,
She took off her apron and slowly sat down in front of Agusheed.