Time slipped quietly by.
Livia spent the entire afternoon in the alchemy room of the manor, which was rare—she wasn’t sticking to Lynn’s side.
Although Lynn was a little curious, he appreciated the peace and quiet, allowing him some space to briefly sort out the current situation.
So far, everything was progressing in an orderly fashion just as Lynn had planned.
Lynn knew that if he intended to go toe-to-toe with the Abyssal Deathsworn with only a few green-grade “Chesspieces”, he might as well bash his head into a block of tofu and become famous for dying in such a way.
Even with Sophie added in?
That was out of the question.
Although Sophie really was the epitome of a phoenix among mortals, before her growth truly began, her fighting power might not even match his.
The two of them together likely wouldn’t be enough to take on just one of those guys.
So, since a direct confrontation wasn’t viable, the magic array became Lynn’s only means of breaking the deadlock.
But activating a magic array was always a slow process, so the real challenge for Lynn was how to keep that Abyssal Deathsworn within the effect range of the array long enough for it to work.
This was precisely where Sophie’s irreplaceability lay.
Sophie wasn’t just the phoenix among mortals, she was also the undisputed protagonist of the original game’s story.
Naturally, that meant she was blessed with immense luck and opportunity.
He figured that enduring the attack of a mere magic array should be no trouble for her.
What’s more, the True Phoenix Blood within her body needed to be tempered by her host suffering serious injuries time and time again.
In other words, as long as Sophie was repeatedly gravely injured and near death, each time she recovered, she would become stronger than before.
This was the so-called phoenix’s rebirth from the ashes.
It was just that Sophie herself didn’t yet know she possessed such a trait.
Lynn nodded in satisfaction.
Not only could he defeat the Abyssal Deathsworn, but Sophie could also use this chance to become gravely wounded, thereby increasing her strength even further.
If Sophie ever learned of this, she’d surely try to thank him in some way.
Ah, come on, we’re friends, there’s no need to stand on ceremony.
Therefore, Lynn had no intention of telling Sophie the truth.
After all, to deal with things and leave with one’s achievements hidden—that had always been Lynn’s style.
Alas, what could he do?
He just happened to be such a kind-hearted person.
Just as Lynn was gradually sinking into visions of the future, a dull bang suddenly interrupted his thoughts.
It came from the neighboring alchemy room.
That Livia… what is she up to?
Lynn walked in confusion to the door of the alchemy room, only to see thick black smoke billowing from the crack beneath the door.
The next moment—
Bang!
The alchemy room’s door was suddenly thrown open.
Livia, looking thoroughly disheveled, stepped out from inside, her face and clothes covered in soot.
Clearly, Livia hadn’t controlled the heat properly and had blown the crucible sky-high.
“Cough, cough… At least I finally did it.”
Livia held up a bottle of pale blue potion, lifting it to the sunlight streaming through the corridor window, inspecting it closely.
“With this potion, there’s no way Mr. Lynn won’t fall into my hands…”
A wicked smile had just appeared on Livia’s lips when, in the next instant, her gaze locked onto Lynn, who was standing right beside her.
“Won’t what…?”
“Uh… Of course, I mean there’s no way Mr. Lynn won’t eat properly anymore.”
Like a child caught doing something wrong, Livia quickly hid the potion behind her back.
She sure did her research thoroughly.
Lynn thought with a bit of helplessness.
“All right, all right, hurry and wipe your face—you look like a little raccoon.”
Lynn took out a handkerchief and began scrubbing at Livia’s face.
“Uwah, I can do it myself, Mr. Lynn!”
Livia snatched the handkerchief and wiped her face at random.
“Really, Mr. Lynn, I’m not a little kid anymore.”
She puffed up her pretty face, grumbling with a hint of a spoiled tone.
“Is that so.”
Lynn glanced at the plains across Livia’s chest.
You’d better not be.
Lynn thought to himself.
“Oh, by the way, Mr. Lynn, what do you want to eat tonight? I’ll go prepare it for you!”
“Little things like that—just leave it to the servants.”
Lynn responded offhandedly.
“No, no!”
Livia clung to Lynn’s sleeve, shaking it insistently.
“……”
Such a pure elementary schooler, immature both in body and mind.
That was the conclusion Lynn reached about the pouting, spoiled Livia before him.
By the laws of King’s City, if he were really to marry her…
He’d probably find himself on the gallows by tomorrow…
But then, it was understandable.
After all, witches were sent to the Witch Academy away from their parents at a young age, all lacking in love, so their personalities were always a bit odd and twisted.
Though he didn’t want to admit it, among all the witches, Livia’s temperament might actually be considered one of the more stable.
Maybe raising her as a little sister wouldn’t be so bad?
Anyway, at this rate, it’d be hard to drive her away anytime soon.
Thinking this, Lynn let out a long sigh.
“All right, all right, you win, my little ancestor. Shall we go to the market together?”
Lynn suggested.
Of course, it wasn’t entirely just to accompany her grocery shopping.
Counting on his fingers, there were about two days left before the Abyssal Deathsworn made their move in the original story.
He needed to buy some materials for drawing magic arrays.
“Mm-hmm.”
Livia nodded with a smile.
Hand in hand, the two quickly made their way to the kingdom’s busiest market.
Well, “hand in hand” wasn’t quite accurate.
Strictly speaking, it was more that Livia was dragging Lynn by the hand.
Not to mention that Livia was running ahead so fast that just getting to the market had almost cost Lynn half his life.
Who knew what she was in such a hurry for.
“Livia, I need to buy some things on my own. Can we meet back here later?”
Lynn asked, a little out of breath.
The Abyssal Church specialized in targeting witches, and besides, the enemy clearly knew Livia’s background and came prepared.
The danger she faced far exceeded what Lynn and Karen would have to deal with.
So, Lynn decided to keep this matter from Livia.
Hearing this, Livia paused for a moment.
What could Lynn be buying that she couldn’t see?
She was a little confused, but when she saw the sincerity in Lynn’s eyes, Livia chose to trust him.
After all, the most important thing between husband and wife was trust!
“Okay.”
Livia nodded obediently, then quickly finished buying the ingredients for dinner.
Afterward, she waited at the rendezvous point Lynn had mentioned, standing there all the while.
She waited until the sun set and the kerosene street lamps were lit one by one.
But Lynn never returned.
Livia was feeling a little disappointed.
Still, she believed that Mr. Lynn would never lie to her.
She had never been wrong about people.
“You’re still waiting? You sure are patient.”
A crisp, pleasant voice sounded from behind her.
Livia turned around and saw a silver-haired girl about her own age, legs crossed, sitting on a bench by the wall.
She wore a khaki trench coat and a gray beret, sitting beneath the streetlight, her shadow stretching long behind her.
“Felica Isandra.”
“What are you doing here?”
Livia’s expression turned icy in an instant.
This girl was her archrival, colleague, and fellow year-mate from the Witch Academy.
Her strength was equal to Livia’s—they were both rare geniuses seen only once in a hundred years.
They often clashed, but neither ever managed to truly outdo the other.
As time went on, every meeting between the two was fraught with sparks.
“Nothing much. I just heard Lynn dumped you, so I came specially to laugh at you.”
Felica shrugged, her tone full of flippant ease.
“Lynn made the right choice. After all, not everyone wants to open their eyes every morning to see an ice block sleeping beside them.”
At that, Felica glanced sidelong at Livia, and seeing that she was truly angered, the corners of her mouth curled up in a faint smirk.
She just loved seeing Livia suffer a setback.