Chapter 235

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Chapter 235

"Oh, of course not, I’m concerned about you. You see, I’ve been watching you both dance."

Sly Virgil stopped here and didn’t say how much he actually saw. The inexperienced archmage squinted his eyes and asked with a dangerous tone, "What did you see?"

"Well… nothing much, you danced beautifully, you two were the most beautiful in the whole room, it was amazing, pleasing to the eye, perfect match." Virgil even applauded.

"Don’t, use, that word, Virgil, hm?"

Virgil pouted and said, "Why doesn’t even good things make people want to think?"

"Because these things have never happened and never will."

The archmage chanted a spell, and Virgil quickly begged, "Please don’t, please don’t. Say something else, I noticed you’ve become more lively lately."

"What kind of adjective is this again?"

"Because you often go to the city and even interact with people from all walks of life. How come? Is it not for Sylas, but for a chance encounter?"

The archmage refused to answer this question, but Virgil persistently asked, "Do you feel like your life needs a passing guest? Is there any man you like?"

"No men, but there must be beautiful women, right? You are becoming quite famous in the city! Many people don’t know your background, and there are girls secretly inquiring about you."

Just when Sylas finally managed to get a message from the wind, she happened to hear this sentence. Just as she suspected, powerful women have no shortage of same-sex admirers, and there are even more women chasing after Xerath than men. Unlike herself, Xerath’s mature and austere aura attracts admirers of all ages.

Why did Virgil bring up this subject? Is it possible that Xerath is looking for a… a companion, so she gave him some instructions?

"Master, why not consider Miss Viniorla? She is so lively, and her fun personality would complement your more serious nature. Otherwise, both of you would be dull and boring! You have seen her body, I have never seen such perfect proportions. You have also seen her face, it is just as beautiful as yours. What do you think? I believe you two would have plenty to talk about while dancing together!"

The wind was mischievous, stealing away some of the sounds. Sylas couldn’t hear everything clearly, but she caught the main words. Xerath wasn’t as lonely as she had imagined; she had the ability to make friends and even draw people towards her with her charm. They would approach her and start conversations on their own.

She wasn’t completely distant either, as she had many acquaintances in the city. Sylas thought to herself, even after I left, she made new friends, the kind of friends who… have physical contact.

Xerath never mentioned these changes to her, as if Sylas didn’t need to know about her personal matters. Maybe the archmage didn’t actually need Sylas’s company as much as she claimed.

But theoretically… doesn’t an eternal archmage need someone to keep her company during the lonely years?

In theory, in theory… years of research experience have taught the now grown elemental envoy that what happens in theory is far from what happens in reality. Not to mention, people cannot predict their own long-term actions and thoughts. The archmage can find pleasure by herself, she has infinite time to do what she wants. Men and women are all attracted to her qualities, and they come to keep her company when she feels bored.

The contract demon is just one slightly unique case.

"Virgil, is this so-called financial relationship of yours about taking money to act as a matchmaker?"

Virgil was taken aback, then quickly denied, "No no, not at all, really."

"Then let’s not waste any more time," said the archmage as she turned away. In fact, she was willing to patiently listen to Virgil’s nonsense mostly because she thought he would bring some interesting information. And a small part of it was because Sylas’s name always seemed to come up when Virgil spoke. This audacious old hunter, whose audacity was thicker than the city walls, was the only person who dared to fabulate ambiguous stories about her and Sylas in front of her.

On the surface, she refused to admit it, but she couldn’t help but listen intently. She had been suspecting that Virgil had seen through this, and deliberately said it to her.

However, it didn’t seem so now, because he no longer mentioned Sylas, but kept on talking about Viniorla instead.

She didn’t have any particular thoughts about this dance teacher, and in relation to that, Viniorla probably didn’t have many thoughts either, otherwise she wouldn’t have eagerly inquired about her and her "dance partner’s" progress.

No progress.

Discouraged, the archmage thought even the sound of her footsteps seemed dull. As she was walking halfway, she looked up unexpectedly and saw Sylas.

Both of them were startled. Xerath’s biggest fear was Sylas overhearing their conversation just now. It would be terrible if Virgil, this contaminator, contaminated Sylas too.

"What’s wrong?"

"I wanted to ask you something, but you haven’t come up for a long time. So I thought of coming down to look for you…"

Xerath nodded and led her upstairs back to the library, thinking angrily in her heart: This wicked old hunter has lost his usefulness, it’s time to kick him out.

"What did Virgil say to you? You don’t look very happy."

Xerath couldn’t help but touch her face, wondering if her unhappiness was really that obvious. "Just some trivial matters between old acquaintances. The old hunter can’t keep things to himself, so he had to say them right away. Do you have any questions?"

Sylas quickly handed over the prepared questions and planned to stick with Xerath these days. She had made plans to exchange information at the library, but now she had to break the appointment.

Six months went by quickly. Sylas’s review was nearing its end, to the point where there were no more questions to do. The Revealing Day also arrived. The festival atmosphere in Withered Leaf City was strong, but for many mages who registered for the exam, it was no different than hearing the toll of a funeral bell. The deadline made people nervous. Sylas wore a formal apprentice outfit and stepped into the teleportation array, wearing her thick, embroidered robe with four colored threads.

She couldn’t help but glance at Xerath beside her. She stood tall, just like before, and if it weren’t for the occasional blink of her eyes, someone might mistake her for a valuable life-sized sculpture, with expensive gray gemstones embedded in her eye sockets and a face crafted by the most famous artisans.

"Don’t be nervous, I’ll wait for you at the library."

Her exam venue was still at the familiar Star Song Castle, in the summer hall where she and Xerath had skipped many dances. The floor tiles, enchanted with special magic, had some new tricks today. They flew up from the ground to form walls, slicing the spacious summer hall into many narrow rooms. The rooms had tables and chairs placed far apart, and each candidate entering the exam room was given a wristband. This wristband was made of the same material as the inspector’s handcuffs, and it would banish all elements, preventing the mages from casting spells and eliminating the possibility of cheating.

This was not the only precaution. The examiners cast a group Silence Spell at the front, and then the written test began.

Other than being tiring and exhausting, the exam wasn’t too difficult for Sylas. After leaving the exam hall, she went straight to the library. It was lunchtime and most of the students were leaving the library, but she went against the flow and walked in.

The library was very big, and she couldn’t find anyone. She regretted coming in and thought she should have waited for Xerath at the entrance. Just as she was about to turn back, someone tapped her shoulder. In the unique smell of parchment and ink in the library, she sensed a slightly different scent.

It was Xerath!

She turned around and indeed saw Xerath smiling at her. She smiled back even brighter and placed her hand on the hand resting on her shoulder.

But Xerath’s smile vanished in an instant, and she quickly regained her indifference, silently pulling her hand back.

The afternoon exam was the same. Xerath said she would wait for Sylas in the library. After leaving the closed exam room, Sylas "bumped" into Xerath again by luck. The difference from the morning was that Xerath directly called out to her, and they kept a careful distance.

The exams ended in two days, and Sylas received a letter from her acquaintances in town, inviting her to go out and play. Xerath encouraged her to go, but she refused unhappily. She was not pleased with how Xerath was pushing her away, but she couldn’t tell the truth when Xerath asked her for the reason, so she became even more upset.

"Why don’t you take a break and go out to relax for a while?"

Sylas replied unhappily, "Teacher, you never go out to play, don’t you need to relax?"

"Going out to play doesn’t relax me. It’s just how I am. But based on my observation of you, you seem happier when you’re with your friends, right?"

Sylas pouted and said, "No."

She was just venting her frustration a little, but Xerath didn’t know how to handle this conversation. Sylas had never acted this way towards her before, but lately, these angry expressions were becoming more frequent. She didn’t know how to respond, so she tried to remain calm and said, "If you want to go out, you need to let me know where you’re going."

Sylas also realized she was being unreasonable, but Xerath’s calm attitude showed that their little disagreement hadn’t affected her at all. Sylas, feeling defiant, hid deep in the library, lying on Leunen. There was a book in front of her, but she wasn’t actually reading it.

"Ma’am, are you angry?" Leunen’s features floated up from below her body, and it whispered in her ear.

"I’m not."

"Then why are you unhappy? What’s the matter?"

"I don’t know. Do you know? You’re just a blob of impure water."

"Your mood closely relates to the color of the water, you know!" It pointed to the place where it touched Sylas. "The color here is noticeably darker."

Sylas laughed so hard it made her angry, "This is the color of my clothes, don’t try to deceive me."