Chapter 176
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Chapter 176
Luna laughed and said, "Sure, if you want a boyfriend, I’ll ask him to find someone with that interest and introduce you to them."
Swis waved his hand, "No, no, just kidding! Seriously, introduce me to a girl, please!"
Sylas’s hand was still swollen, covered in a paste made from some unknown plant by Ms. Slote. It was wrapped up in a bandage with a beautiful bow. At the moment, she was refusing a gift from a pretty girl. The girl admired her so much and insisted on giving her the gift. Sylas was embarrassed and finally had to ask Leunen to hold it for her.
Caroline said, "Seems like Sylas has more female admirers now?"
"And there are fewer men." Swis added.
Luna mocked, "That’s how men are. They think taking a beautiful girl out will make them look good, but they’re always afraid their partner is better than them. In the past, they only cared about the pretty face of a fairy and went straight to confessing. Now that they see she’s smart and can fight, they all back off. Ha, men!"
"Hey, hey," Swis protested.
Luna said solemnly, "Swis, you’re different, so never stoop down to their level."
Caroline also patted him and said, "After all, you’re my little brother. You’re different from those fools, so don’t stoop down to their level."
"Okay, okay…"
The four of them arrived at the desolate North Tower of Sisters Hall, and laughter and chatter could be heard from their activity room. This was very strange, as usually, aside from them, only Miss Slote was here. Could it be that an inspector had come to inspect again?
The four of them looked at each other and, without saying a word, hurriedly ran over and pushed open the door. They saw Miss Slote sitting with a handsome man in black, having tea, with half-finished knitting sitting aside.
Spider Shirley curled up all eight legs and nestled on Virgil’s lap. The hunter was using a strange technique to stroke its swollen limbs and abdomen.
"How did you come here?" the three of them unconsciously asked Virgil. Caroline, clueless, frowned and looked at the remaining three.
"Oh! Lovely little girls! Oh, and also boys."
The obvious discriminatory tone, with even the omission of adjectives, made the boy glare at him, and everyone gathered around and sat in a circle by the table.
Sylas had no doubt that he could have a heated conversation with Lady Slote on their first day of meeting, but still couldn’t help but ask, "Do you know each other?"
Virgil exaggeratedly said, "Oh, little cute Sylas, how do you not know me! I am the big shot of Star Song Castle, there’s no one here that I don’t know. Lady Slote and I had a ‘strategic partnership’ back in the day."
Sylas nodded, suspecting that this so-called "strategic partnership" was probably similar to Swis and Slote’s relationship, a long-term exchange of information and answers.
As expected, everyone automatically understood it that way, and no one questioned him.
"Hmm, I’ll be leaving tomorrow, so I bought gifts for Sylas and Luna’s little friends. Everyone will have their share, okay?"
As he said that, he started handing out gifts. Even Shirley received a live white mouse with a red butterfly bow tied to its tail (which was currently stuck on its spider web), Lady Slote got new reading glasses, Luna received a delicate comb, Swis got a strange earring, Caroline got a regular notebook, and for Sylas…
"What is this?" She picked out two… cufflinks? They were in the shape of a water lord emblem, with a round and smooth water drop and a few waves, made of mithril material, with a translucent, milky white gemstone in the middle.
Virgil smiled and said, "Don’t you remember what day it is today? She entrusted me to give you your coming-of-age gift."
A huge joy hit her like a sound wave, and Sylas said in a daze, "I don’t remember…"
"You’re an adult now, and she must have already told you everything you need to know. Adults must take responsibility for their actions, be mindful of their words, and be able to carry out their own wishes, okay?"
Sylas pursed her lips, looked at Virgil, and suddenly tears fell. Virgil handed her a handkerchief and said gently, "Adults also need to learn to control their emotions. When we say control, we mean the kind that cannot be seen by others, okay?"
Sylas thought about the person in the center of the desert and thought to herself, "Can emotions really be controlled?"
But she also understood that she indulged in the strong desire to think of Xerath, to the point where she didn’t want to control such emotions at all.
But there were still many other people in the room.
She smiled and said, "Will you visit her? Please thank her for me. I… I need to prepare for exams during the summer vacation, maybe…"
Virgil sighed and had mischievousness in his eyes, as if he wanted to make a joke. But when he looked at the several people around who didn’t understand, he didn’t say anything, took back the handkerchief from Sylas’s hand, and exaggeratedly said, "Ah, this handkerchief is stained with fairy tears! I should sell it, I’m sure it would fetch a good price in Star Song Castle! Goodbye!"
After Virgil left, everyone gathered around, and Luna exclaimed loudly, "It’s your birthday! Why didn’t you say anything!"
Even Swis chimed in, saying, "Why didn’t Caroline and I know about your birthday!"
"Uh…" Sylas lowered her head in embarrassment, "I don’t really remember because I don’t actually celebrate my birthday."
Her so-called "birthday" was the day Virgil brought her to the tower, which was set as her birthdate and marked the beginning of being eight years old. However, before she came to school, she had no concept of dates and years. The tower had no seasons, so her memories were not tied to specific dates, but rather to Xerath.
Perhaps it was because living alone made time feel blurry, even the archmage didn’t celebrate her birthday. They didn’t celebrate Revealing Day, nor the new year, nor any other holidays. Each day only had the distinction of being a weekday or a weekend.
"Who gave you presents?" Luna couldn’t help but ask.
Sylas smiled, then quickly let go of the slightly difficult expression, afraid that tears might fall due to some external force.
"The ‘teacher’."
"Isn’t that great!" Luna’s excitement started to grow, and her eyes shone with eager anticipation. "Why look so sad? Don’t cry! Let’s go celebrate, how about going out to eat!"
Sylas smiled and nodded, wiping away the tears from the corner of her eyes. "I’m just surprised, I didn’t expect her to remember."
But she still remembered the things the archmage had emphasized to her over and over again, the privileges she had lost after she grew up: hugs, kisses, and other intimate contact that she used to enjoy very much.
It was as if these very beautiful and dazzling cufflinks were a warning letter from her, warning her that this kind of distance in relationships is very inappropriate for adults.
In a broad sense, Star Song Castle is located to the west of Aimekotes. With Dvořák’s help, Virgil usually reaches the edge of the desert directly and swiftly crosses the entire desert after some preparations.
As long as there is a Pegasus…
Another sandstorm rose in the desert. Although there wasn’t too much danger as long as he was careful, it was still uncomfortable to encounter a sandstorm. The sky of the desert, the face of the archmage. It took him approximately three days and three nights to cross the desert, and the sandstorm also lasted for three days and three nights. After reaching Aimekotes, he finally met the archmage and had no doubt that the storm was caused by her gloomy mood.
"What’s wrong, old friend? Your face is as gloomy as this terrible weather! Did someone offend you without any sense?"
Xerath took a sip of milk tea. The hot drink made her complexion slightly better, from pale marble to milky white marble. "I believe I’m in a calm state. Actually, nobody has offended me, and I’m not unhappy either."
"Oh, then your calm state is so gloomy that it’s despairing," he somehow thought of the metaphor he had made earlier—the melancholic old mage on the lonely tower deep in the desert, watching from afar his young apprentice being surrounded by enthusiastic crowds, feeling jealous and heartbroken. Ah, he really sympathized with her. Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but look at his old friend with warmth. "It’s a pity, Sylas is quite famous at school."
"Of course," the archmage said calmly, but underneath there was a hint of undeniable pride, "after the precious gem appears in the world, its radiant light will surely capture everyone’s attention."
"At school, she has countless admirers, surrounded by flowers and gifts every day, receiving more love letters than the ones you wrote to her."
"Virgil," the archmage elegantly set down her cup, still sporting short hair but with just enough length for her to unconsciously charm herself by flicking her hair, "I need to clarify that I haven’t written her many letters. And, even though I’ve been away from the ‘human world’ for so long, I still have some fanatical followers. I’ve heard that young people have fought for my honor. Although I’m not particularly proud of it, well, at least," she shrugged her shoulders, "I still have followers. Don’t think this can excite me."
Virgil perked up, "Who told you that?"
"It was one of the executives from the Celestial Star Seekers Association, who used to be interested in pursuing me. Do you remember?"
Virgil laughed heartily, "What kind of young person? What’s their background?"
"He didn’t say, and I don’t know," Xerath didn’t want to engage in meaningless conversation with someone who seemed to be fishing for information. Although she appeared calm on the surface, Virgil’s attitude was incredibly infuriating, as if she were lying.
Virgil was thrilled. If Sylas hadn’t asked him not to tell Xerath anything about what happened at school, he would have spilled everything now and let the lonely old mage enjoy herself and disperse this annoying storm. This untold story made him feel uneasy, and right now, he just wanted a pair of donkey ears to listen to his secrets.