Scarlet found the Weasley boys and the others at KF Brent Cross. The twins and Ron were happily dev a bucket of fried chi in a er of the restaurant.

  “Scarlet!” Ron was the first to notice her arrival, “Hurry up! You’ve got to try this; it’s so good!”

  She settled in beside William. “Did you order mine as well?”

  “No, but we ordered extra!” Ron said, lig his fingers after swallowing a mouthful. “I bet dad didn’t even knew about these.”

  “Maybe, you share your experieh him in your letter,” Scarlet suggested, pig up a piece with a fork and spoon. She preferred to eat without getting her fingers greasy, though she khis kind of food was meant to be eaten with your hands. “How was your day at the bookstore?”

  “Wonderful!” Ron excimed. “No piles of books to knock over, no invisible books that are hard to find, no books that scream at you...Just some quiet books waiting to be picked up. Some were cheaper than ours, but some were really expensive! I mean – how on-magical books be so pricey?!” Ron leaned in and whispered the st part to Scarlet, his face a mix of fusion aement.

  “Prices are defined by various factors - some are reasohers are overpriced,” Scarlet expined as she slowly cut her portion into bite-sized pieces. “Books aimed at professionals, like engineers, architects, and doctors, tend to be expe’s like paying for tuition if you’re buying those kinds of books.”

  “I hought about it that way...” Ron said, p her expnation.

  Percy passed her the list. “We mao get all the presents and the ing paper. I made some notes here; have a look and see if you o return anything or buy more.”

  “Thanks,” Scarlet said, gng at the list before putting away. Though Percy had a bit of a cocky air about him as a prefect at Hogwarts, she found him reliable when assigasks. And somehow, he didn’t seem as cocky since arriving at the Red House.

  She pushed those thoughts aside and noticed the twins whispering to each other, looking frustrated. “Fred, Gee, is everything okay?”

  “Yes and no.” Fred said, taking a big bite of his chi, “We were trying to find books about game-making, but we couldn’t find anything in the bookstore.”

  “Well, to be precise, they did have some books, but we couldn’t uand a single word they were saying,” Gee added with a shrug, “So, we’re thinking maybe we should try another bookstore?”

  Scarlet frowned, recalling the state of game development in this decade. Unlike in her previous life, when tutorials were easily accessible online before she died, PC games had only just begun to evolve, and books on game development were still quite rare. Should I suggest they start with programming nguages? She wondered.

  “Well...I don’t think you’ll find books that are right for you here,” Scarlet said thoughtfully. “Game-making is a new and evolving industry. Maybe uy and college students would have a better idea of where to start these days. I’m not sure I give you any good suggestions...except perhaps studying a runes.”

  The twins frowned in fusion.

  “Why a runes out of all the branches of magic?” Fred asked.

  “We thought spells and transfiguration would be more suitable?” Gee added.

  “Uhm...” Scarlet hesitated. She couldn’t very well tell them that, in her past life as a transtor, she had worked on game-making topid had a rough idea of how to struct a game. Also, she saw some younger casters pying games with entments ba the Caster Academy, and entment works like a charm with a runes in her current practice. Instead, she said, “Give me some time, I’ll find you a book that’ll help you uand why.”

  The twins’ eyes lit up.

  “Thank you, Scarlet, our dearest long-lost sister!”

  “Midy, you’ve saved us from great distress!”

  “...Stop it.”

  William and Meiko exged gnces and smiled, watg their dy chat happily with her friends.

  Meiko had arrived after William had been in the Hong family for about half a year. She had been introduced by one of the elders from the Tachibana d now served as Scarlet’s bodyguard, proteg the young dy of the joined family from any curses or jinxes.

  Japan approached Magic, or Jutsu, differently. Shrines and temples were scattered across the try, rich with legends and folklore about demons, spirits, gods, and curses. Many Japaill believed in these myths, even if they had never entered anything supernatural in their entire lives. When stras occurred and sce couldn’t offer a logical expnation, people often sought help from shrines or temples. This subtle e between the people and the Jutsushi in Japahem deeply iwined within the try’s spiritual fabric – ever-present but rarely seen, except duriivals, where ceremonies were often viewed as mere cultural traditio, in moments of desperation, the a Jutsu was always there, waiting.

  s or families with a knowledge passed down through geions often hired shrine maidens, Onmyojis, or monks to cast jinxes or curses on their rivals. As a result, these magical practitioners would also be kept close to ter any hidden attack, even in modern times. One of the elders from the Tachibana sensed something strange about the young dy adopted by their young master from a fn try. That’s how Scarlet’s grandparents discovered she riestess capable of using magic. ed for her safety, they called upon Meiko from the to protect her from dangers beyond their uanding. Although relut, Scarlet eventually accepted the request, as her grandparents were deeply worried.

  The legends of Abe no Seimei scared them.

  When Meiko arrived, secretly serving as a Jutsushi bodyguard in the guise of a housemaid, she expected to meet a spoiled girl. To her surprise, she found a girl with a mental maturity far beyond her years - nothing like an i child. The girl Meiko served didn’t hang out with friends, remained calm and posed in her daily life, and followed her pns with strict determination. She had all the traits the Head of a family would want in a successor, but none of the qualities of a typical child.

  William and Meiko worried about their dy’s mental health. They tried suggestions to help her live a more rexed life, but all were deed by their dy, Scarlet, and their young master, Kyle. Uo ge her mind, they instead offered their unwavering support, hoping Scarlet would one day enjoy life like an ordinary child.

  They had almost given up on that hope, but now they finally saw it.

  Their dy had friends at school - friends she could ugh and have fun with. She no longer looked dull and distant, as she had before attending the wizarding school.

  A sense of relief and gratitude filled their hearts, veyed through a single ghey exged in mutual uanding.

  “Oh, William.” Scarlet suddenly remembered something and whispered to her trusted manager. “Did you buy the presents I asked for iter?”

  “Yes, everything is in your room now, ly packed in the box.”

  “In the box? I don’t remember seeing any...Oh, that box,” Scarlet frowned. “I fot about it after I put my bag on it. I o everything up...I really hope they’ll like the gifts.”

  William smiled warmly. “They’ll definitely love your Christmas presents, Midy. You’ve been pnning them for four months.”

  Scarlet responded with a shy grin, uncharacteristically unsure of her choices, a rare trast to her usual fiden every step she took.

  “Hopefully, this will be a great Christmas,” Scarlet said softly, almost to herself.