Chapter 129
However, because of this, there is always a discrepancy in Sylas's understanding and the understanding of ordinary people regarding the hidden meanings of many words. Although there has been intensive correction for several months, the situation is expected to improve, but it can never be completely the same as an ordinary person's.
"Although the words we usually use are simple, they can have many meanings. When used in different contexts, they can present more complex states. When we read texts written by ancient people in different languages, it is impossible for us to fully understand each word as they did." The book flew up again and covered her face, so Sylas couldn't see her. But the voice still came through, "For example, when I say 'my little beast'..."
Unexpectedly, the expected words after this sentence didn't come for a long time. Sylas waited silently, observing Xerath and guessing that maybe she had been caught up in her thoughts by a certain sentence and forgot about their conversation.
She didn't find it impolite, but rather enjoyed Xerath's focused state. When Xerath is focused, she would not mind being openly observed by Sylas. At that time, she usually doesn't have strong reactions to external stimuli.
However, Xerath was not as focused on a specific sentence as Sylas thought. She just felt that this metaphor was not appropriate. She used this very affectionate term before because it nicely summarized their relationship, but at some point, the meaning behind it had changed.
It turned into a very magical word, as if just by repeating it, this stubborn and spiritual girl would belong to it personally, not because of the power of the contract, but because her whole soul surrendered and promised to never change.
This word now contains too much self-interest for her, to the point where she can no longer determine whether using this example is appropriate.
Sylas couldn't understand, so she tentatively said, "Um..." What she wanted to say was that it made her feel like they were both holding each other's shoulders, their foreheads touching, with only each other in their eyes. But she changed to a more precise and distant description, saying, "It created a kind of isolated context that only the two of us, and maybe Virgil, would recognize. In this situation, the words have a different meaning."
After saying this, she started to sweat coldly from the back of her neck, deeply understanding the meaning of "Although we don't lie, we also don't tell the truth."
"Very true," her teacher calmly replied. "There are many words like that in poetry. I plan to personally understand them, starting with some things I am familiar with."
Sylas was sweating profusely and no longer had the desire to read.
The next day, Xerath made time to review Sylas's submitted experiment report. Overall, there weren't many issues. Experiment reports are relatively procedural things, and after looking at a bunch of example reports, Sylas almost deduced the pattern, so she wrote it almost perfectly according to the standard manual. Xerath didn't have any major comments, but she could always see Sylas looking at her from the corner of her eye.
That's right, Sylas was looking at Xerath. She believed she was doing it discreetly, without arousing the teacher's disapproval. She clasped her hands together, resting her chin on them, with no difference from her usual thinking posture. Even if Xerath felt that the direction of her gaze was strange, she definitely wouldn't think she was peeking, but rather that she was "daydreaming again without knowing what she's looking at."
"Sylas."
"Ah, yes!" she looked up and openly stared at Xerath.
A light came from somewhere, illuminating her fair and smooth skin, pale lips, golden hair, light eyebrows, and gray eyes. All of this made her stand out like a bright silhouette against the darkness. Xerath didn't even lift her eyes, "Even if you keep staring at me, it won't make your score higher. Did you read the literature? Did you find the materials? Do you have an outline?"
"...No, no, no."
A faint smile appeared on her lips. She slightly closed her eyes and playfully looked at Sylas. "Well, why don't you hurry and go then?"
This was the first time their eyes met today, and Sylas suddenly felt happy. With great enthusiasm, she rushed into a pile of books.
Because of this exchange of glances, Sylas felt greatly encouraged. After a while, she came back holding a stack of books and placed them all at her side. She opened one book in front of her and quickly skimmed through it. After a while, she closed the book and searched for the next one, jotting down notes on the nearby notebook once she found it.
It was evident that she was enjoying this process. All her movements were light and agile, and her genuine joy couldn't be faked. Xerath stopped concealing her admiration and looked at Sylas with her chin held up for a while.
Her early education seemed to be quite successful... she tried to convince herself to critically analyze Sylas's work, but the work itself was so outstanding that even the author couldn't help but marvel at its brilliance.
She took a large notebook from the shelf where she specifically kept it, adjusted her glasses with a push, and started writing in it. It had some wear and tear from being caught in the wind a few days ago, and the ink from the previous page had even bled onto the one she was about to write. But the archmage didn't think it necessary to dispose of it. The neat handwriting avoided the irregular black shape, making it appear more like a simple pattern inserted into the text.
Most good books have something in common - they can make you think of many related things at the same time, and this will make your mind become more active, like a bunch of lively fish, ultimately prompting you to share your new discoveries with others.
Sylas couldn't help but look up and wanted to share a paragraph she had just read with Xerath, but unexpectedly, she was pierced by a sharp gaze that reached deep into her heart.
Her heart skipped a beat, and in an instant, she forgot what she was about to say, and even forgot to question why Xerath was looking at her, she just felt like she had been sucked into a bright silver well.
"Teacher..."
"Sylas... I... um..." Xerath stared at her, their gaze appearing somewhat unfocused.
In the midst of a brief pause, Xerath's lips moved slightly, but no sound came out. For a moment, Sylas even doubted if she had been affected by a Silence Spell.
"I've finished... I've finished correcting your experiment report." Her tone was elusive, and it was only in the second half of the sentence that she suddenly pulled back, as if she had abruptly returned from a ethereal dream to the mortal realm. "Overall, I'm quite satisfied with it. I couldn't find any major issues and I've already corrected the minor errors for you. Take it back."
"Really?" Sylas seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Xerath became slightly interested and asked, "Are there any other things you're dissatisfied with?"
Sylas shook her head and said with a smile, "I always fear making mistakes. It's great to write following these reference experimental reports without any mistakes."
Xerath's face softened. "Being careful like this is not a problem. Experimental reports are just explanatory things. As long as you describe the facts clearly, it's fine. However, I still hope your other writings can have more spontaneity." She handed the experimental report back to Sylas. "I don't care if you make mistakes, everyone does. But not everyone thinks like you do, and that's what I care about."
Sylas suddenly felt breathless from those words. She couldn't say if it was joy or shock, but when Xerath directly mentioned "you" and "me," those two words combined simply made her heart flutter in an unusual way.
"I... I can do it."
"I know you can." She didn't say it out loud, just nodded slightly, and then withdrew her gaze, adopting an attitude of keeping others at a distance.
Can't look anymore. Xerath clenched her fist, trying to calm the throbbing pain in her veins.
Sylas's joy was abruptly interrupted. Just a while ago, they were quite close, but Xerath drifted away again. At first, she felt immensely disappointed, but after a while, she realized that as long as she achieved a little bit more, maybe they could go back to how it was before. For her, the reward for studying hard was a little warmth from Xerath – she didn't need anything else.
Well then, she returned to her seat and carefully read the thoughts she had written down, trying to use this method to get back to the working state she had before.
Anyway, Xerath was right there by her side, not going anywhere. Whether it was being distant or being close, the distance between them was just a few steps, from this table to that table.
She was basically successful, with the belief of "Xerath will never leave her", she was able to immerse herself in the state of "selflessness", to the point that Xerath came to call her for dinner again.
This is also quite nice, the archmage approached her willingly, gently patting her shoulder from behind, at the same time there was also the scent of old parchment heated by body temperature surrounding Xerath.
"Let's go, it's not too late to eat after looking around."
Sylas breathed carefully, nodding slightly, pushed the chair away and stood up. Xerath was waiting for her, and when she walked over, they left the library side by side.
After dinner, Xerath took Sylas for a round trip in the long staircase of the mage tower. As they passed by Tower Rock, which Shamodial had changed, they both sat back on the sofa.
Xerath leaned comfortably against it, while Sylas occupied a small sofa, watching her hesitating to speak.
"Sylas, what's wrong?"
"Can... can I sit next to you?" She pointed to the spot beside Xerath.
Xerath smiled and asked, "Why are you being so polite to me? This is also your home."
Sylas sat down beside her and put her feet on top of Titus. The lazy footstool wobbled a bit when she arrived and then fell over, even more crooked and lifeless.
"When I was in school..."
"Hmm?"
"Every time at this hour, I miss you a lot."
Not used to people expressing their feelings so directly to her, Xerath shyly smiled first and said, "Then you can write me a letter."
"Hmm...yes, I will write a letter, or maybe read the ones you've sent me a few more times."
Really? I feel the same way.
