Chapter 75: The Mage and the Apprentice

Salser followed Caren out of the marble tower where the infirmary was located, with the little girl named Akko trailing behind them—perhaps simply because they were all heading in the same direction. The place seemed to always be draped in that chilly night sky, and with the semester not officially started yet, there were few students on the paths, making the whole world feel like it was in a state of slumber. In the distance, the lake, crisscrossed by winding rivers, waited quietly, making the entire school appear like a dark green island surrounded by a foggy sea, while the lake itself seemed like a bay flowing into the island.

The night was silent, and mist rose from the river beneath their feet, blurring the moonlight, making it feel as though they were walking underwater.

Salser followed Caren's pace slowly along the floating stone steps, while Akko played with the potion he had given her, shaking the clear liquid in the bottle back and forth in her hands. She unscrewed the cap and began to sniff at the contents.

After a moment, the girl dripped a drop onto her hand, furrowing her brows and staring intently at the droplet in her palm. Her eyes narrowed like those of a house cat.

She seemed to be considering licking it.

Caren glanced away from Akko, "I'll consider this from a goodwill angle for now—did you know she would do this when you gave her the potion?"

"Your understanding of goodwill might be a bit skewed, Sister."

"You misunderstand, Bettrafio, if I were to consider this from a malicious angle, I'd think you might have given her a potion that would make the drinker fall in love with you."

"I've never heard of such a potion, and I wouldn't make a move on a little girl I've just met."

"That's quite the unromantic answer, but I'll accept it as true for now."

"Don't say 'for now,' I can assure you there isn't," Salser's tone left no room for doubt. "I suggest you don't take fairy tales and novels for maidens too seriously, or it might affect your intellectual development," he said.

Caren didn't argue, merely nodding slightly, "Let's leave the first half of your statement for now. How about we continue with the second half? Look at the man up ahead who seems quite frivolous—he's making a move on the new student."

Salser glanced in the direction she indicated.

Ahead was a circular garden with a central fountain. Many plants uncommon in the secular world were cultivated here. A girl of about Akko's age stood on the pebble path that ran through the garden. This path connected two sets of floating stone steps at either end, with a small red-brick house to the left and a small river passing through the garden to the right. The gardener, who seemed easy-going, was plucking a branch from a carnivorous plant to give to the girl.

As she thanked the gardener and made her way back towards Salser on the floating stone steps.

On the other side of the path, a young man emerged from the mist.

The young man wore a spotless white mage's robe and had equally fair skin. Below his waist, he wore wide-legged black trousers with gold embroidery and matching black boots, the gold trim of the trousers twisting like water snakes in the night breeze. His hair was like silver threads crystallized in the snow of winter, and under the moonlight, his eyes shone like pale purple flames. He waved to the girl, his figure slightly blurred in the mist, resembling a phantom.

The man crossed the three-meter-wide, slightly damp floating stone steps, walking down with a light and cheerful stride. This stone path formed a T-junction, with one side leading to Salser, the other side to the white-robed young man, and the downward path leading to the garden filled with various dangerous plants.

He crouched down beside the girl, leaning on a simple ebony staff.

"Greetings, Miss Sucy, our new student."

The girl looked up, her gaze indifferent. She wore a simple green dress with a brown shawl, and her skin seemed to faintly glow green under the moonlight.

She stared silently at the young man for a while, making him feel somewhat awkward.

Her skin was oddly colored, as if she had transformed from a plant, her expression wooden, like an ancient statue: a narrow forehead, faint eyebrows, a small chin, droopy eyelids, sparkling red eyes, yet her demeanor was dull as a log. But what was most astonishing was her hair—fluffy, light, with curled ends, as if it had a life of its own like snakes. Her pale pink hair, almost white, casually covered one eye, and against its backdrop, her complexion seemed even paler.

"Are you the toxicology teacher, or the potion teacher?" the girl said listlessly.

"Ah... this..."

"He's just a good for nothing visiting professor," Caren said slowly as she walked over, "A graduate from here, his knowledge in toxicology isn't much better than a illiterate's understanding of ancient languages. What he's best at is luring talented young men and women to another continent, like a human trafficker."

"I'm here to meet the new students with permission, Miss Hortensia," he turned to her, speaking calmly.

"Oh, is that so? Did you tell them—the place you're taking them to is a country that that was recently defeated in war?" Caren casually taunted him, "Supposedly, the queen initiated the invasion, but was pushed back over the border by interference from a Holy Cross Inquisitor."

"My stance is not with any particular country, nor any specific people, but rather with the hero I once nurtured, who continues to forge ahead," the man said with a calm smile, "We both know that the wars in this world never truly end and will continue indefinitely. And besides—if the battles aren't challenging, they wouldn't be worth calling battles. I believe the hero I've chosen has merely encountered a setback; her abilities have long been acknowledged, so it's just a setback."

"It seems you're quite adept at using such lofty speeches to deceive, Wizard Merlin. I doubt the bones buried in the Adai wilderness would agree," Caren nonchalantly taunted him.

Salser wasn't paying attention to their conversation, instead, he was thoughtfully observing the little girl—any skilled mage could see the talent in her, she was almost capable of manipulating the power of the Warren. Gods know how she had managed this. It wasn't strange for this Wizard Merlin to approach her for a chat. For a mage looking to take on an apprentice—striking up a conversation with a talented and moldable child wasn't unusual at all.

"Sucy!" Akko jumped up like a cat, taking quick steps to reach the girl's side, and held up the bottle in her hand, bringing the mouth of the bottle close to her face, "Look at this! This potion, I just got it from a mage who can create magical lifeforms with a wave of his hand! You must know about this, right? I've been wanting to lick it to try, but I've also been really scared!"

For Akko's unusually enthusiastic approach, the girl named Sucy seemed unaccustomed to it, merely moving her head back with a resistant gaze while also didn't speak a word. She raised the branch of the carnivorous plant she had just picked, aiming the green mouth, filled with slime, at Akko—at the same time, her other hand's nails scraped along the end of the branch.

Although her expression remained unchanged, the malice was evident in her actions.

In an instant, the slimy mouth opened wide, snapping towards Akko like a snake.

"AHH!!"

A scream, followed by a white flame that shot up over five meters high.

Half the potion spilled into the carnivorous plant's mouth. In the same instant, it and Akko both let out deafening screams, and from its slimy mouth spewed dazzling white flames, which lasted for over ten seconds before it drooped listlessly.

"…What is this potion?" Merlin pondered for a moment, then turned to Salser.

"It's a gift I gave to this little girl for self-defense, a token of our friendship," Salser shrugged, then began to blurt out nonsense, "Magic is friendship, you know?"

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