Chapter 573
Undercurrents Beneath the Victory
Chapter 573 Undercurrents Beneath the Victory
The howling north wind swept across the desolate plains, and the snowstorm extinguished the lights of the artisan street, but it did not bury the bustling activity behind the glass windows.
The restaurant "Gears & Malt" was filled with the aroma of grilled meat and beer, and the noise almost pulled down the rickety brass chandelier overhead.
The adventurers loudly proclaimed their day's harvest, while the craftsmen complained about the mages' many faults, interspersed with a few apprentices arguing about rune configurations.
Although most people are unwilling to acknowledge the value of the scientific school, many apprentices have applied geometric principles to the design of magic circles over the past two years.
The artisans on Artisan Street are also like that.
Because that thing is really useful.
Generally speaking, the mages of the Academy don't like to go into the artisans' kitchens. Unless they are really struggling financially and can't even afford the most basic meal in the mage tower.
However, the embarrassing situation of not being able to pay for a meal is obviously unlikely to happen to the incredibly wealthy Miss Castellion.
She's sitting here simply because someone brought her here.
Before leaving this snowfield that holds so many of her memories, she wanted to come back and savor the taste of those days, and share those memories with her best friend.
Ophia cut the sizzling sausage on the plate with the elegance of someone cutting a top-quality steak.
Ilana, on the other hand, was cutting up the roasted pork knuckle with a knife and fork. Although her movements were quiet and elegant, the food on her plate was quite different from her cool and quiet temperament.
"The smoky flavor here is very special; it's a taste I've never had in the Holy City."
"It's quite surprising, I thought you would prefer more refined food."
"That's generally true, but sometimes I want to try something different."
As she forked a piece and put it in her mouth, Ophia narrowed her light blue eyes slightly, as if recalling some pleasant memory.
She savored the rich and delicious meat juices, swallowed the food in her mouth, and then spoke in a pleasant voice.
"Besides, it was His Highness Colin who recommended this place to me."
"Did you two often eat together before?" Ilana looked at Ophia in surprise, a hint of envy in her cool eyes.
"It's not often, just occasionally."
Ophia put down her knife and fork, picked up a napkin and gently wiped the corner of her mouth, her eyes softening.
“I often ask him questions, not only academic ones, but also about life… You know, being smart isn’t enough here. If you’re not tactful enough, you can easily be fooled by those cunning magicians. But that prince helped me a lot when I was young and knew nothing. Sometimes I even feel… like he’s my father.”
Ilana nodded silently, a gentle smile on her face.
"You two have such a good relationship."
Ilana felt a deep sense of awe and gratitude towards her mentor, who lived far away in the south. It was his book, "Advanced Mathematics," that opened a door to truth for her and made her realize that extraordinary power and soul level were not everything in this world.
A soul is ennobled by its contribution to the world, not the other way around.
However, precisely because this kindness was so profound, she, being introverted, always felt indebted and was too embarrassed to take the initiative to write a letter to bother him.
After all, His Highness must receive a lot of letters on a regular basis.
"Of course."
Ophia's lips curled up slightly, her melodious voice tinged with a hint of excitement, and she gently flicked the end of her golden hair that reached past her shoulder with her index finger.
"After all, I am his favorite student."
It's not about showing off.
She simply wanted to share this joy with her close friends.
Ilana was genuinely happy for her. She picked up a potato with her fork and poked at it in the plate, thinking to herself that she wished she had half of Ophia's confidence.
However, Ilana didn't feel too much regret about the things she couldn't have. After all, Ophia was by her side, and it was the same if she had them in Ophia's place.
Just yesterday, they both passed Professor Hector's hellishly rigorous test. It was a victory for the "Scientific School" and a turning point in their lives.
Ophia promised her that they would have their own independent laboratory in the Tower of the Great Sage, with ample time and resources to verify the scientific school's conjectures and continue to carry forward the light that Professor Colin left on this snowfield.
If one day she can bring the light of science to this snowfield, perhaps that would be a way of repaying the kindness that Prince Colin has shown her all this time.
Perhaps by then, she'll be a little more confident than she is now...
However, just as Ilana was thinking this, Ophia's words were like a bucket of ice water, extinguishing the longing in her heart.
"By the way, Ilana. I'm going back to the Holy City."
clang--
Ilana dropped her fork onto the plate with a crisp, abrupt sound.
"Return...to the Holy City?"
She didn't even bother to pick up the fork, staring in astonishment at her best friend, her companion who had just been promoted to a full-fledged apprentice yesterday.
"You mean... a vacation?"
Her intuition told her that Ophia's expression wasn't about taking a vacation, and she gradually realized that this was a farewell dinner.
Ophia's next words confirmed her anxiety.
Ophia took a deep breath and spoke in a calm tone.
"No, it's about going home."
"But...why?"
"Hmm...you should be able to guess, right?"
Ophia lowered her head, unwilling and afraid to look into those sincere eyes, afraid of revealing the true secret hidden in her heart, and the resentment hidden beneath her forbearance.
She didn't actually want to leave.
In fact, if she hadn't experienced the "maze incident" two years ago, she would definitely have fought those magicians to the bitter end for the sake of justice.
However, she now knows very well that such persistence is meaningless. Rashly challenging a group of devils far stronger than herself will only cause justice to die for no reason and lie in the devil's grave.
So she followed Colin's instructions—
Preserve your strength and wait for the right opportunity.
With her index finger twirling around the increasingly messy ends of her hair, she finished her "capricious" answer, word by word, in a deliberately casual tone.
"Although I came to Xuebang to study, I came more to follow in Mr. Colin's footsteps. My father said I would give up, but now it seems... he has once again misjudged his immature daughter."
Ilana's lips trembled slightly.
"So... you're just giving up like that?"
"if not?"
Ophia raised her head, a helpless bitter smile on her face, perfectly concealing the shocking information that could shake the entire academic community beneath her straightforward yet naive thoughts.
"Two years have passed, and he still hasn't returned. I've gradually come to understand that some waiting may be destined to be fruitless. Moreover, my father's health hasn't been good lately, and family affairs are piling up. I'm a daughter of the Castellion family, and I can't just stay in my ivory tower forever."
Ilana opened her mouth, wanting to refute, but didn't know where to begin. Her usually calm thoughts were now a tangled mess of yarn.
Yesterday they were cheering in the classroom, dreaming of sailing far and wide on the ocean of truth. How could it all come to such an abrupt end today?
She looked into Ophia's eyes, those deep blue eyes that, though smiling, seemed to be veiled by an impenetrable mist.
Although she wasn't good at socializing, Ilana's intuition told her that what she had heard was not the whole truth.
Ophia wasn't the type to give up easily because of a little setback, and besides, she didn't seem to have encountered any setbacks.
However, Ilana ultimately didn't ask anything.
As a friend, she had no right to question a noblewoman's family responsibilities and could only silently wish her well.
Silence spread between the two.
After a long while, Ilana finally found her voice, trying to hide her anxiety, and spoke in a very soft voice.
"If you leave... what will happen to the scientific school?"
This is the most practical problem.
Although the scientific school of thought has emerged today thanks to the journal Science and a large number of simple and easy-to-use "scientific tools," it is still not recognized by the mainstream academic community.
Furthermore, not only was he unrecognized, but the candidate for Great Sage, Uriel, consistently suppressed the School of Science, while the Great Sage tacitly condoned his arrogance.
Ilana had no doubt that if it weren't for the Castellion family's coat of arms as a shield, Professor James Wally's laboratory would have been stripped away once again.
That was the last refuge for the scientific school.
If they lose that place, these magic apprentices and researchers from common backgrounds will probably be completely devoured by Professor Uriel.
"Yes, that's exactly what I'm worried about."
Ophia sighed and put down her knife and fork.
She looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to the table, then took out a pre-prepared letter from her inner pocket.
It was a thin envelope, sealed with the bronze seahorse emblem of the Castellón family, which looked lifelike in the dim light.
She placed the letter on the table, slowly pushed it in front of Ilana, and spoke with unprecedented solemnity.
"...So, you shouldn't stay here either."
Ilana was stunned for a moment.
"I……?"
"Yes."
Ophia's voice was low, yet unusually firm.
“I know this request might seem a bit unreasonable, but you are my most trusted friend, and I can only entrust this matter to you… Please listen to me calmly.”
“The Castellón family has no influence here. If I’m not here, no one can protect you. So… I want you to take Jamie, Ram, and everyone else who is willing to go with you and leave this place.”
"This letter will guide you to the South, where you will continue your studies and your unfinished research."
Ilana stared blankly at the letter, then looked up at Ophia, her mind completely blank.
She had just shared the good news of her promotion to magic apprentice with her family, but Miss Castellion wanted to leave the school.
This……
Ok.
If it were a request from the Castellion family, her parents wouldn't object. After all, she was an Imperial citizen, and to put it bluntly, everyone in the Empire knew the prestige of that surname far exceeded that of a certificate from the Academy.
However, she was still not mentally prepared.
It felt as if her life's little boat had just set sail when an unseen wind blew it off onto a different course.
"south……"
"Yes, downstream of the Benliu River, there is a place called Leiming City. Although you may not have heard of it, it already has the soil needed for 'science'."
Unlike the bewildered Ilana, Ophia's tone suggested that everything had been arranged without Ophia's knowledge.
Ophia tapped the envelope lightly with her index finger, her aquamarine eyes burning with a kind of fiery passion that Ilana couldn't understand.
This further confirmed her suspicions—
Ophia concealed part of the truth; her sudden decision was not merely due to the capriciousness of a young lady.
"Could you... explain it to me a little more clearly?" Ilana asked earnestly.
This wasn't for her own sake, but to convince the others in the lab.
“I’m sorry, this is the last thing I can do for my friends,” Ophia shook her head, answering seemingly irrelevantly.
"...I had His Highness Colin build a new mage tower for you in the south. Although it doesn't have the Void Realm or the grandeur of the Great Sage's Tower, it has ample funding, people who pursue the truth, and our respected mentor."
"But...this is too sudden, can you give me some time?"
“Ilana.” Ophia interrupted her, suddenly gripping Ilana’s right hand, which was resting on the table, tightly with both hands. The scalding heat melted away the coldness on the back of Ilana’s hand.
“I don’t care what others choose, but I hope you will listen to me. You are a genius and should not be buried in the increasingly fierce wind and snow.”
"Let's go to a sunny place; our mentors are waiting for you there."
……
The sun-drenched Colin Manor welcomed the night amidst the hustle and bustle. The candles on the silver candlesticks burned quietly, casting flickering shadows of the people around the dining table.
Seemingly sensing an impending battle, the perceptive fox-eared maid hurriedly pushed the food cart away from the restaurant.
Just then, a soft and light cry broke the "ceasefire agreement" between the Padridge and Colin families.
"hiss……"
Mia, sitting on the left side of the dining table, gently rolled up her lace sleeves, revealing her fair forearms.
On that snow-white skin, two rows of neat and clear teeth marks were clearly visible, with two small dots at the end.
That was evidence she deliberately preserved.
Hehehe, my dear, that's your sister.
It's reasonable to take off your clothes when apologizing, right?
"Qiqi, please help me check if I'm getting tetanus?" Mia asked, tears welling in her eyes, turning to her "best friend" with a pitiful expression.
Upon hearing Miss Padridge speak to her, Kiki immediately perked up with excitement and joy, and eagerly took the arm of the succubus king as if it were a priceless treasure.
"Tetanus? What's that? Let me take a look."
"Mr. Colin told me that some wild animals carry a lot of germs. I hope I won't get a scar on my arm?"
"Guns? Leave...scars?" Qiqi was completely confused. She had never heard of succubi leaving scars when they were injured. And what were these germs?
To my shame, she was a top student at the Demon King Academy, yet in front of Miss Padridge, she seemed like an uneducated academic failure.
"Won't it leave a scar?" Mia repeated.
This time, Qiqi understood and immediately covered her mouth exaggeratedly. In an instant, the insignificant little injury turned into a disability that could lead to amputation.
"My God, Miss Ya Ya! This wound is so deep! That murderer... he wanted to tear you apart alive!"
A satisfied smile appeared on Mia's face.
No wonder she's "Miss Eloise" in the hearts of the citizens of Thunder City, she's quite the actress!
Qiqi laughed helplessly while secretly apologizing to the person across the table.
Across the table, Vivian was holding a cup of black tea, mimicking her brother's movements as she sipped it. Hearing Miss Padridge's accusation, her elegant demeanor crumbled, and she nearly crushed the cup.
However, the little tyrant of Shanghai doesn't make things difficult for ordinary demons.
She just stared intently at the culprit, Mia Padridge, her ruby-like eyes practically spitting fire.
"grumble……"
Vivian slammed her teacup down and let out a mocking sneer.
"That was a lesson for the thief! Who told someone to shamelessly wrinkle his elder brother's clothes in public? And who are you calling a wild animal?!"
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She turned to look at Sheren Tang standing behind her and pointed angrily at her mouth.
"Shenette, get me my mouthwash! I accidentally bit into a piece of stale fox fat that wasn't properly seasoned, ugh, ugh, it almost suffocated me!"
Sherry glanced awkwardly at her mistress, then at the obviously unapproachable Miss Mia across from her, and could only brace herself and hand over a napkin.
"Miss, please be mindful of your aristocratic manners..."
"Demeanor is for people, not for vixens who steal food!"
Vivian refused to budge an inch.
Luo Yan, sitting in the main seat, sighed and put down his teacup, feeling that this meal was more tiring than fighting a battle in the Wanren Mountains.
Edward looked at him with some sympathy; it seemed that being too handsome wasn't all good.
However, he must say that Prince Colin had some of his own fault, and that refusing unnecessary kindness is a lesson every gentleman should learn.
Unfortunately, Edward didn't know that indecisiveness was exactly the character of "Roxie Colin," and Colin was simply being true to his persona.
Just as the war was about to escalate into World War II, the silent heroine finally couldn't help but do something.
It wasn't because she couldn't stand the tense atmosphere, but because she felt she should contribute her own strength to the harmony and peace of this family.
Moreover, she had important business to attend to.
"Your Highness Colin."
Eileen took a deep breath and looked intently at Colin, who was sitting on pins and needles.
"The air here... is a bit too stuffy. I'd like to ask you to move to the study to discuss some of the ideas we talked about back at the front. Would that be convenient for you?"
This suggestion was a lifesaver.
Luo Yan immediately stood up, his movements as swift as if he had been prepared all along.
"As you wish, I also have some thoughts I'd like to discuss with you at length."
……
The war between the Padridge and Colin families continues unabated, and neither of the demons notices that the Demon King's home has been raided by the hero.
The study on the second floor felt like another world.
The oak door, engraved with occult script, completely shut out the noise downstairs, while the flames in the fireplace flickered quietly, casting a warm glow on the books covering the walls.
Eileen sat awkwardly on the velvet sofa.
Luo Yan then gently raised his index finger, causing the teapot on the tea cabinet to float up automatically and pour a cup of warm black tea for the two of them.
Holding the hot tea poured by Luo Yan himself, the fragrant aroma lingering around her nose finally relaxed Eileen's tense nerves.
She started the conversation in a casual tone.
"Your home is quite lively."
Luo Yan gave a helpless smile.
"I'm sorry you had to see this."
“No… I think it’s nice to be a little lively,” Eileen smiled a little shyly, gently rubbing the rim of her glass with her index finger, and said softly, “To be honest, I prefer the feeling of your home to the solemn and dignified Campbell’s Castle. Whether it’s the food here or the fireplace here… it all gives me a warm feeling.”
Seemingly sensing that her words were somewhat ambiguous, Eileen blushed as soon as she uttered them, hurriedly trying to explain that she didn't mean it that way.
Worried that she would only make things worse and eventually wish she could disappear into the ground, Luo Yan took over the conversation in a gentle voice.
"It is my honor to make you feel at home, which shows that the Colin family has not neglected their distinguished guests."
Hearing Colin's words, Eileen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but a few awkward feelings involuntarily arose in her heart.
"Is that what you think...?"
What she really wanted to ask was something else entirely.
Are they just guests?
Having discerned the implied meaning in those words, Luo Yan pondered for a moment and then gave what he considered the most appropriate answer.
"Partly yes, but not entirely."
Eileen looked up in surprise.
"for example?"
Luo Yan said in a gentle tone.
"To me, you are not just a guest."
Her fair, snow-white face was instantly flushed with a rosy glow, and wisps of steam seemed to rise from her silver hair... which, of course, came from the teacup.
Instead of continuing to tease the cute heroine, the wicked yet elegant demon king changed the subject, turning the remaining warmth to more serious matters.
"So... the important thing you mentioned earlier was actually just to confirm this matter?"
Upon hearing that it was serious business, Eileen quickly lost her shyness and adopted a formal expression.
"That... of course not."
With his arm resting on the armrest, Luo Yan crossed his index finger on his knee, his face showing an expression of eager interest.
Eileen put down her teacup, leaned forward slightly, and continued speaking.
"This war has made us realize a fatal weakness. Although we have made remarkable achievements in industrial production, we are almost powerless against the threat of supernatural forces, especially against organized magical attacks like those of the Academy Mage Corps."
Eileen recalled the brutal war on the front lines, especially the memory of the Ryan Camp being vaporized by the combined spells of the mage corps, which still haunted her to this day.
The Duchy of Campbell also has some steel-level and even silver-level mages, but they mostly fight independently on the battlefield, existing as a kind of mobile artillery, and their tactical role is to supplement the main artillery.
Whether in terms of range, suppressive power, or defense against magic... they are far inferior to Xuebang.
“That is indeed a problem.” Luo Yan nodded. “I remember we discussed this when the war had just begun.”
"Yes, my brother and I also discussed this issue later, regarding your idea of a magicians' guild."
As she said this, Eileen's tone carried a hint of gratitude.
"We all agree that this is a brilliant idea. The Duchy of Campbell needs its own institution for the selection, assessment, and promotion of magicians... We cannot send our young men and women into the hands of those cannibalistic demons and pin our hopes on the lack of any moral compass or kindness among those magicians."
Luo Yan smiled gently.
"I'm glad you think so highly of my suggestion, and I believe you do have the ability to accomplish this."
The saying that noble souls are often reborn into noble families is not entirely accurate. Like Newtonian mechanics formulas, it only applies to classical mechanics and becomes inapplicable in extreme situations such as strong gravitational fields or near-light speeds.
There is a real-world example in the Twilight Province: Earl Theron Gard of Sparrowwood Territory has a soul level lower than that of his strongest knight.
For example, a fallen noblewoman was kidnapped and sold to a rat-man's cave to be bred, and the soul of the offspring was no different from that of an ordinary person... This was written in Marius's private experimental journal.
For example, the souls of some illegitimate children are only slightly stronger than ordinary people in terms of initial stats; Marius himself is an example of this.
Rather than saying that the reincarnation of a soul follows a matching mechanism dependent on a belief system, it is more accurate to say that it is the combined effect of the matching mechanism and the soul's own will.
In layman's terms, the higher the level of the soul, the more information it receives during reincarnation, essentially allowing it to reincarnate with its eyes open.
They instinctively seek out lands that best match their spiritual state, including extremes of love and hate, even if physically distant. Moreover, they go to embryos that resonate strongly with their own souls, completing the implantation of their souls… and this step involves choosing a family.
As for what script they received, that's another matter.
According to the theory of the Soul School, probably only those "fireflies" who first drifted from the "sea of consciousness" in the starry sky to this earth were unwittingly put into flesh and blood bodies and truly started from scratch.
This is why Marius said that the Duchy of Campbell was a pure land, and this statement was not a baseless conjecture.
There must be more extraordinary individuals born on this land than elsewhere, just as the Holy City has a much higher concentration of extraordinary individuals than other places.
That's not just because the people in these two places are wealthier and can afford the holy water and prayers of the priests, and the proportion of people whose bodies are collected after death is higher. More importantly, it's because the rich material world has promoted the development of spiritual civilization, and the proportion of normal souls has naturally increased.
Therefore, Luo Yan strongly suggested that the people here build their own mage tower so that they could decide for themselves what shape their souls should be shaped.
Eileen looked intently at Prince Colin sitting opposite her, a troubled expression on her face.
“My brother has approved the plan to establish the ‘Mages’ Guild’ and promised to provide the highest level of financial support. However, there is a real problem right now… we are short of people.”
The Duchy of Campbell is, after all, the land of knights, where knights are as numerous as hairs on a cow, but mages are few and far between, not to mention that they are also drained of their lifeblood by the mage towers of the Academy.
Occasionally, there are a few adventurers who come from unorthodox backgrounds, and their magic skills are often unsystematic, mostly learned from their peers.
Eileen raised her head, her emerald green eyes looking directly at Colin, her gaze filled with a mixture of expectation and a touch of shy pleading.
“Colin, you have teaching experience at Xuebang, you are not only knowledgeable, but you are also a powerful magician yourself.”
"I would like to invite you to serve as the first president of the Mage's Guild, to forge a shield for our duchy that can resist magic!"
(End of this chapter)