Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 212: Hidden Lessons

Damien blinked his eyes, trying to process Elyon’s explanation.

"So... you’re saying that spell wasn’t really made for humans?"

"Precisely," Elyon confirmed. "It’s an issue of compatibility. Your body is simply reacting to something it wasn’t built for."

Damien groaned, rubbing his temples. "Great. So I’m allergic to elf spells now?"

Theo stifled a laugh, while Elyon, with an uncharacteristically apologetic look, muttered, "Not allergic. Just... uniquely sensitive, it seems."

Damien let out a long sigh. His magical journey was turning out to be much more complicated than he’d anticipated.

"Ah, I see. Even for simple magic, I always wondered why it didn’t require constructing circuits. So that’s the reason," Theo said, piecing together the explanation.

"And... in simpler terms?" Damien asked, his tone hesitant.

"It means that unless you can endure the ticklish sensation, you won’t be able to use magic."

Endure? Impossible.

There was no way Damien could tolerate that tickling!

"Noooooooooooooooo!" Damien’s cry of despair would have echoed far and wide, had it not been muffled by Elyon’s barrier spell.

...

In the end, Damien still couldn’t use magic.

Elyon promised to create spells that didn’t require using magical bodies for Damien’s sake. But when Damien asked, "How long do you think it’ll take?" Elyon simply avoided his gaze.

"So, today was a false promise!" Damien lamented, flopping facedown onto the table in defeat.

As if sensing his mood, Zima, who had been serving dinner, gently patted Damien’s head.

Even after the recent embezzlement issue had been resolved, Zima had taken sole responsibility for Damien’s care.

Apparently, this had allowed Leonide and the others to start training more seriously as household retainers.

Although Damien thought it was too much for them—they weren’t quite adults yet—they had insisted. So, Damien had no choice but to let them follow their aspirations.

Currently, they were learning their duties from Theo’s retainers, including Sebas, working tirelessly day and night.

Whenever they visited Damien, they always looked utterly exhausted. To counter this, Damien made sure to pamper them as much as possible.

As a result, Damien’s daily care had fallen entirely onto Zima’s shoulders.

Damien tried to make things as easy as possible for him, but Zima seemed eager to handle everything himself, which often made it seem like he was overburdened.

Though Zima claimed he enjoyed it, Damien was concerned about his lack of breaks. He’d have to find additional staff soon.

Lupusregina had already agreed in principle to join his household when the new mansion was ready, which was a relief. Sebas had apparently already broached the idea with her before Damien got involved, so there wouldn’t be any issues on that front.

Still, Lupusregina was a woman, and it was considered improper for her to handle Damien’s personal care.

Damien had once suggested, "Wouldn’t a woman be better suited for someone like me?" but it seemed that wasn’t the issue.

Besides, Lupusregina might not even want to.

So, recruiting additional staff was a pressing need.

Zima had protested, saying he didn’t want to lose time with Damien, but Damien felt this was non-negotiable.

Sure, it would mean less time together, but with proper rest days, they could enjoy some quiet moments, right?

It was a pressing matter, after all.

...

Damien had been expecting Theo to visit after dinner that evening, but the plans were suddenly canceled.

Apparently, Theo had to cobble together a report about Damien to submit to the Church.

Initially, Theo had planned to write something brief about the day’s magic measurements and submit it with a recommendation for "continued observation." However, now that it was confirmed Damien’s magic matched that of the elves, Theo explained there was no way such information could be included in the report.

Instead, the official report would state: "Investigation inconclusive due to lack of detailed methods; further research discontinued."

In reality, though, the investigation into Damien’s "copying" ability and the unusual way his magic functioned would continue behind the scenes.

Then there was the matter of Damien’s "magic emission."

Elyon had theorized that the reason elves felt comfortable around Damien was because the magic he emitted matched their own. As for why he was emitting magic at all, Elyon speculated that since Damien lacked a magical body, he couldn’t contain such a vast amount of magic within himself. However, this too required further investigation.

None of this could be written in the official report, of course, so the report had to stick to vague generalities and claim the investigation was complete.

With no usable findings left, Theo had to fabricate the rest of the report. Theo had looked so drained from the effort that Damien considered bringing over a snack to lift her spirits.

Would it be helpful, or would it just get in the way?

He decided to ask Sebas first.

...

In the end, Damien brought Theo a snack, spent a little bit of time chatting and cheering her up, and then returned home.

He had said it helped motivate him, so Damien considered it a success.

The following day, Theo spent the entire day finishing the report. And today, the day after, he had left early in the morning to deliver the completed document to the Church.

He had assured Damien he’d be back by midday if there were no complications.

Until then, Damien had some free time.

During Theo’s absence, Damien had been studying the country’s written language with Elyon, and with Zima by his side.

Living in this world—and especially being of help to Theo—made literacy essential.

With this in mind, Damien had secretly started taking lessons from Elyon some time ago.

He had kept it a secret because he knew that if he mentioned it to Theo or Sebas, they would blow the matter out of proportion. They’d either insist on teaching him themselves or hire a proper tutor, which would only cause unnecessary trouble for them.

So, Damien had approached Elyon, who had agreed to teach him in exchange for "ten favors owed." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Those debts, Damien had promptly repaid on the spot.