Chapter 136
With a carrot in front of him, the little horse ran much faster than usual. It took Sylas about a month and a half to almost finish the previous part. During that time, her report card was brought back by Shamodial. After Xerath looked at it, she felt that the scores were definitely enough to apply for Star Song Castle, so she didn't really worry about it and guided Sylas to fill out the form.
"What is this? Previous education experience?"
"Um, write 'Star Song Castle Advanced Preparatory' instead." Actually, it should be filled in as Aimekotes, but Xerath doesn't want to reveal it.
"The honors and awards received?"
"No need to fill in."
"Why can the vacant space be left blank? I mean, if there is something available and we don't apply for it, what if we can't get it later?"
Xerath glanced at her and said with a smile, "Isn't that exactly what you want?"
"No... I also, I also want to go to school. I promised you," Sylas replied with a woeful tone.
"Okay, okay, I shouldn't have made that joke. If your grades are sufficient, you don't need to fill it in. If your grades are not enough, these honors will serve as a supplementary reference. Besides, you don't have any, unless your paper can be published tomorrow."
"But I haven't finished writing it yet."
"So?"
"So... there's nothing to fill in? Here are five report cards, though."
"This represents that a student can apply to a maximum of five schools. Usually, everyone keeps one application for four schools. Give it to me." She reached out and took the application form from Sylas's hand, checked it, and put it in an envelope. However, the recipient was not the Star Song Castle advanced school application office, but Maryland Stellar.
This will use up Maryland's staff relative quota, which means that even if Maryland has a child, they will have to compete with everyone else for the limited spots. This will definitely make Maryland's mother, whom they haven't seen in over a decade, very unhappy (after all, everyone likes to take shortcuts). On the other hand, Maryland's brother must be delighted with this move, as it gives him another excuse not to have children.
Maybe it was the sound of her sigh that caught Sylas's attention. The little beast asked concernedly, "Teacher, what's wrong?"
"Nothing important... just reminded me of my mother."
"The person who tried to force you to get married but didn't succeed?"
Xerath nodded. Despite coming from a family of mages, her mother didn't have any special magical talents, and she didn't believe that research work was more valuable than "the cornerstone of perpetuating human society," which is procreation. She looked up at her students and thought that maybe she should find some time to show her mother what truly constitutes the cornerstone of human society.
Of course, it's education!
She didn't intend to discuss this with Sylas and instead asked, "How is your essay coming along? Is there anything you want me to take a look at?"
Sylas smiled and made two cute dimples on her cheeks. "I'm almost done with the experiment. Since it will take some time to analyze, should we start preparing now?"
Xerath nodded thoughtfully and said, "Well, since that's the case, I have good news for you. Shamodial brought a letter today. Last time, I sent your experiment report and measurement data to the union's editorial board, and they included them in the 'Yearbook.' It has your name on it. The new edition of the 'Yearbook' will be released in January next year. Are you happy?"
"Wow! Really?!"
"Yes, the editorial board included the measurement report, regardless of whether it was from a qualified mage or not."
Sylas looked calm and asked, "So, does it mean that your name is not mentioned?"
"No, why?"
Sylas shook her head, feeling a little down because her name couldn't be mentioned alongside Xerath's. But she said, "I feel like it's not right. It was clearly completed under your guidance."
"Thank you for thinking of me," Xerath smiled.
Sylas widened her eyes, looking like she didn't quite understand what Xerath meant.
"Some mentors take credit for their students' work, while some students try to distance themselves from their teachers. So, having your name on a paper is quite sensitive. If your paper gets published... my name will be written after yours. We still have time."
Sylas felt happy and sat on the side, looking down at her hands.
While Sylas was focused on writing her paper, the archmage was also busy preparing for a short journey. She chose a beautiful sunny morning to inform Sylas that they would depart today.
"Like this? So suddenly? Is it the same way back?"
"Yes," said the archmage, summoning a Mountain Giant in a cloud of smoke and rumbling sounds.
"Will... will it bring another storm?"
"That's hard to say." The archmage held her hand and led her from the Mountain Giant's arm to a seat on its shoulder. They began their new journey amidst the swaying motion.
Sylas's eager anticipation cooled off a bit after realizing it was different from her imagination. The archmage half-laid on a floating water cushion called Hyectra, watching a soaring book. The book, unable to fly its usual zigzag route, was held mid-air by the water lord's tentacles. Even so, the book still fluttered in the wind.
A shadow cast by the overhead dark clouds conveniently covered the archmage.
"But if we walk faster, we won't be in a hurry."
The Mountain Giant ran across the wilderness and arrived at their destination by evening. The archmage didn't have any intention of hiding, so they set up their instruments and equipment outside the crystallization range directly.
The instrument is a custom-made anemometer from Withered Leaf City. According to Sylas's idea, to measure if the wind is stimulated, they just need to place the measuring device where the wind comes in and blows out, and then measure the speed difference. The color indicates the direction of the wind, and there's no need for a special wind vane.
Before the temperature became unbearable, Sylas recorded the wind speed every ten minutes. The wind speed remained a stable value. Afterwards, the archmage summoned the Mountain Giant again in a place far from the settlement, and they rushed to the outskirts of Doloru Town overnight before changing into the form of an Earth Child and infiltrating the town.
They arrived late at night and unexpectedly, the receptionist at the inn recognized her. After a warm greeting, she apologized to Xerath, saying, "We only have one room left."
"Is...?" A gloomy sense of foreboding rose in Xerath's heart.
"It's a king-sized room, so you don't need to worry! We have unlimited hot water, and the room is especially quiet. The bed is big and guaranteed to be clean and tidy. You and your...sisters will be very comfortable staying there. Rolling around on the bed is also not a problem."
"..." We don't need to roll around on the bed, the archmage thought calmly in their mind.
Sylas couldn't help but burst into laughter, but she tried to hide it from Xerath by turning her head away.
In an awkward moment, Xerath came out after taking a bath and found Sylas sitting on the bed, already drying her hair. Xerath stopped in her tracks, as the image of them embracing and rolling around together, since the receptionist said the words "rolling around," kept haunting her mind.
As the first half of her life (at least for ordinary people) was dedicated to academics, Xerath didn't really have a clear understanding of such things, but she had a vague imagination. Things like rolling and embracing, kissing and touching, and occasional glances, all became a bit clearer in reality when they intersected with Sylas's gaze.
Stop having such fantasies.
She sat by the bed with her back to Sylas, lifted the covers, and lay down. However, to her surprise, there was only one sheet, and her hand accidentally touched Sylas's arm. It was a bit awkward, not pulling back, but also not leaving it there.
"Hmm... Are you tired? You've been on the road all day and busy all night."
"Not yet..." She has been excited ever since earlier, even though she didn't know exactly what she was excited about. But just the thought of being close to Xerath made her restless.
Xerath secretly felt embarrassed. It seemed like Sylas was becoming less afraid of her lately, as she noticed the increased time of her gaze. "Hmm... Research report?"
"I have been protecting the data well, it's all stored away."
"The success of the experiment makes you excited, hmm?" Unable to resist, she reached out and pinched the little girl's cheek, pressing her thumb against the shallow dimple when she smiled, "Keep on smiling."
Sylas just smiled and planned not to tell the truth.
Xerath saw that she refused to meet her gaze, so she started talking herself, "There's less than a month left until the holiday, I think your acceptance letter will arrive in these couple of days. Make sure to finish writing before you leave."
Sylas remained silent and suddenly fell forward, covering her head.
Xerath also slowly climbed into the bed. In fact, it didn't bother her to be observed by others. In the past, she was often stared at and people would whisper about her everywhere she went. They would say things like, "That beautiful girl we talked about before," or "The top student of the grade," or "A very arrogant and cold beauty," or "Emerson's youngest apprentice," or "The youngest archmage in history." There was always someone watching her, openly or secretly.
But only... she used to understand. She was the Elemental King, and her appearance met the basic standards of aesthetics. No one with any connection to the elements could fail to sense the constant pressure emanating from her. Nobody genuinely thought she was ugly. Her achievements were enough to make people look up to her, and Sylas's gaze towards her was filled with admiration and envy.
It was her own desire for something different.
"Teacher..." Sylas turned to face her, revealing her emerald eyes from under the covers.
"Hmm?" Xerath responded softly.
"It's really nice to meet you."
"Why did you suddenly say such things?"
"...Anyway, anyway, it's just too good!"
Xerath touched her head and said, "Go to sleep."
"Can I... Can I hug you?"
Xerath's eyes widened in fear. She could almost "see" what would happen next, rolling around. Then, she frowned and whispered, "No, it's not allowed. Go to sleep."
Sylas's excitement faded and her face gradually lost its rosy color. She bit her lip and lowered her eyelids.
"Well, a handshake is okay, right?" she persistently asked.
