“Let’s go!” Riya shot to her feet, her chair scraping sharply against the floor.
She gave Ize one last, deep look—her gaze was complicated, hard to decipher. There was warning in it, anger, and perhaps even a hint of… grievance that Ize simply could not understand?
Without another word, she strode out of the tavern, not even looking back.
“Everyone, sorry, we’ll excuse ourselves for now.” Lien, seeing this, immediately stood up, flashed an apologetic smile at everyone present, and quickly followed in Riya’s wake.
At that moment, Luke—who had just dawdled back from the restroom and was hiding in the shadow of a pillar, witnessing the entire scene—clenched his fists tightly, his eyes shining with the light of “uncovering the truth.”
‘Case closed! Completely solved!’ Luke shouted inwardly.
Why was Riya angry?
Because Riya-sama and Senior Ize are a pair, but Senior Sara was telling Ize to stay away from Riya.
Isn’t that basically telling them to break up?
How could she not be mad?
Then, thinking of how Senior Ize always keeps a respectful distance from all women, and those strange potions of his—like ones that can change his voice…
Luke suddenly felt that he understood everything and reached a shattering conclusion:
‘So that’s it! Senior Ize… he doesn’t like women at all! His true love is that genius from Liyue Academy! But no matter what, I must stand by Senior Ize!’
He glanced at Ize, who was slumped over the table, seemingly “drowning his sorrows in drink,” with an unprecedented look of understanding and resolve.
The tavern gathering finally ended in an unclear, heavy mood.
The students of the various academies, each deep in their own thoughts, returned to their temporary inns to rest up for the journey to the Raymond Territory tomorrow.
Dragging his “exhausted” body and mind, Ize returned to the room with Luke.
Emma, having solved her debt crisis and proven her potion-making skills, was in high spirits. With some wine in her, she had long since fallen into a deep sleep.
It was Sara who used wind magic to float her back to her room.
Ize, meanwhile, called Luke out alone to a quiet corner in the hallway.
“Senior…” Luke looked at Ize, whose face was half-hidden in the dim light, and felt a chill in his heart.
Ize said nothing. He simply raised a fist, which looked plain and entirely lacking in magical or martial enhancements.
Luke gulped.
The next second, Ize’s fist came down like a gust of wind. Of course, he controlled his strength and aimed mostly for the meatier parts of Luke’s body.
“Ow! Senior, go easy!”
“Serves you right for seeing everything!”
“I’m sorry, Senior! I really didn’t see anything!”
“And for not bringing paper!”
“Ow! Senior, please stop… I promise to keep my mouth shut! Whatever happened between you and Riya-sama, it’ll rot in my stomach!”
“You dare bring it up again!” Ize’s blows became just a little bit heavier.
After the beating, Luke rubbed his aching arms, grimacing, but his gaze grew even more “resolute.”
He believed he fully understood his senior’s “well-intentioned warning”—this was a lesson in action: this matter must never be spoken of!
“Senior, don’t worry!” Luke lowered his voice, swore solemnly, “I, Luke, swear on my future happiness, that what I saw in the restroom tonight, and the… uh… sincere feelings between you and Riya-sama, I will never breathe a word to a fourth person!”
Ize looked at Luke’s “I get it, I really get it” face and almost choked. It felt like his “physical memory erasure technique” had no effect—maybe he just wasn’t ruthless enough.
But this fool’s imagination was absolutely out of this world!
He and Riya, sincere feelings?!
That’s one dangerous person—he wanted to avoid her at all costs, never get entangled.
He waved a hand, too tired to even bother explaining.
As long as Luke kept his mouth shut, let him think whatever he liked.
After all, Luke wasn’t a main storyline character.
Sometimes, misunderstandings are like snowballs rolling downhill—they only grow larger, and trying to stop them forcibly might just trigger an avalanche.
“Get back to sleep!” Ize barked irritably.
“Yes, Senior!” Luke, as if granted amnesty, darted back to the room, his heart filled with the sense of mission to keep his senior’s secret.
Ize stood alone in the shadowy corridor, gazing at the silent night outside and the faint outlines of distant mountains, letting out a long sigh.
The trouble with Lemon Academy was set aside for now, Emma’s crisis resolved.
But Sara’s excessive attention, Riya’s unfathomable attitude, Luke’s astounding misunderstanding, and the imminent, dangerous journey with so many “protagonist template” characters…
Just thinking about it all made his head ache.
His usual “Way of Survival” was facing an unprecedented, dire challenge.
“Raymond Territory…” he murmured the name, an ominous premonition growing stronger in his chest.
Just as unease gripped his heart, that cold and familiar system notification sounded again in his mind, utterly devoid of emotion:
[Divine Choice System at your service. Host, please make a suitable choice as soon as possible.]
[Choice 1: Proactively reveal some of your true strength to Senior Sara, request to serve as the team’s vanguard, and display your “protagonist” spirit. Difficulty: S. Reward for completion: Protagonist Value +10.]
[Choice 2: Stay up late crafting powerful poisons or trap magic devices, secretly weakening your competitors (including but not limited to Lien, Rogue, etc.), reducing potential threats. Difficulty: A. Reward for completion: Villain Value +10.]
[Choice 3: Make full use of the “Presence Reduction Potion” and remain as hidden as possible during the journey, avoiding action unless necessary, quietly observing and gathering intel. Difficulty: C. Reward for completion: NPC Value +10.]
Looking at these three choices, Ize’s lips twitched.
Even quietly observing and not acting is rated C in difficulty?
Is it that hard to earn NPC Value now?
Late at night.
In deep sleep, Ize suddenly felt a heavy pressure on his body, as if something was weighing him down, squeezing the air from his lungs.
The vigilance forged by the system’s constant pressure snapped him awake in an instant, sleep vanishing completely.
In the darkness, his heart clenched.
Who would sneak into his room in the dead of night, except for someone up to no good?
Someone from Lemon Academy, refusing to give up, here for revenge?
Or a hitman sent by the Silent Moon Chamber of Commerce?
Thoughts flashed by in a split second, but his body moved even faster than his mind.
He tensed his waist and abdomen, and with speed and strength far beyond his supposed abilities, he flipped, pinning the intruder beneath him in one swift, clean motion.
One hand locked onto the person’s throat, the other tried to restrain any resistance.
But the sensation under his hand made him pause.
Hm…? This body feels… soft?
Through the thin fabric, he could feel the slenderness and unusual softness below him, completely unlike the muscular build of a typical assassin or thug.
The person beneath him seemed to freeze as well, momentarily forgetting to struggle.
The feel was… not bad.
Could it be a nimble fatty?
Ize’s mind rapidly scanned the faces from tonight’s gathering, trying to match someone who fit the “fatty” description—but came up empty.
His eyes sharpened, and in the dark, he “locked on” to the person’s position with cold precision. A chill filled the air.
Almost as a reflex, he poured a dose of the interrogation potion he’d developed straight into the person’s mouth.
He lowered his voice, speaking with unconcealed, ice-cold killing intent, squeezing the words out between his teeth:
“You’ve got some nerve, sneaking into my room… Aren’t you afraid I’ll—”
The threatening words were cut off, for just then, the clouds outside shifted, letting moonlight pour through the window.
The cold light outlined everything in the room with both blur and clarity.
And illuminated the face of the person pinned beneath him.
Silver short hair shone softly in the moonlight. The usually frost-covered, exquisite face now had potion residue at the corner of the mouth…
At that moment, flushed red with shame and struggle.
Those perpetually cold, aloof silvery-gray eyes now stared at him in shock, burning with outrage and even… a trace of extremely rare humiliation and grievance, born of such a wretched predicament.
Ize’s body froze. His grip on her throat and arms loosened unconsciously.
A chill ran from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head, his scalp prickled, and it felt as if his blood froze in that instant.
Heaven help me—why is it… Riya?