On Lann’s first day back at Airetusa, he was taken by the arm by Lady Margarita and they wandered around the academy for quite a while.
The apprentices in the academy still bore the standard appearance of female warlocks.
They wore no hats, did not tie back their hair, and donned revealing, sexy outfits as a rebellion against societal stereotypes.
Margarita’s appearance with Lann attracted a lot of attention.
After all, the Demon Hunter had disappeared for four months, and they had assumed the two had broken up.
But now it seemed their dean was still infatuated with this young Demon Hunter.
The apprentices, initially a bit excited at seeing Lann back at Airetusa, wisely understood the dean’s intentions under Margarita’s supposedly friendly yet actually dangerous smile.
As a result, their enthusiastic bodies cooled down, and they respectfully stood along the corridor, greeting the dean.
Lann couldn’t help but click his tongue at this scene.
"Tsk tsk, I didn’t know you were so authoritative."
"If you want to experience my ’authority,’ we can have some fun tonight."
Maintaining her smile, Margarita mouthed without looking back.
After the joke, her tone uncharacteristically grew serious.
"Your reappearance is a big deal, Lann."
"Airetusa is an educational and academic institution. It’s the most authoritative magic academy on this continent. You should imagine how many spies, or family informants, are among my students?"
Beside Margarita, Lann maintained a flawlessly impeccable ceremonious smile.
This smile was reserved and gentle, exuding a kind of distant pride, which in turn made others even more attracted.
The ceremonial smiles of the Sons of the Emperor were mostly .
With such a smile, if they wished to withdraw from a social occasion, it wouldn’t appear abrupt or rude.
And if they wanted to delve deeper into the social scene, this smile could make others feel flattered and be more effective.
Lann watched the female sorcerer apprentices scattered in the corridor.
They approached gracefully, showed respectful expressions and bowed, then left neither humble nor arrogant.
On the surface, they seemed like paragons among female warlocks, surpassing wild mages by miles.
But, behind the scenes?
"I guess..." Lann maintained his smug smile, "at least seventy percent of the apprentices report the academy’s actions to their families or future employers."
"Absolutely right, your estimate is very close to the truth."
Margarita whispered, having long known her young lover’s extraordinary sensitivity in politics and social matters, she was not surprised.
"We are merely an educational institution, a research institution. As long as someone seeks the secrets of magic, wishes to go further on the path of magic, we don’t turn anyone away. Whether they’re representatives of a political group or reserve members of a spy agency, we accept them all."
"To be precise, even if we didn’t want to accept them, we couldn’t."
"Take that red-haired beauty you’re familiar with, for example..."
"Triss is not prettier than you, Rita."
Before the blonde warlock could finish, Lann very alertly interrupted her, making a decisive comparison.
This crisp reaction made Margarita involuntarily laugh.
"Stop it! Back to the point, Triss is a patriot, and it was well-known during her student days. She was born in Maribo, she calls Temeria home. During her student days, she had extensive contact with the officialdom of Temeria, which paved the way for her to become Veltrest’s court advisor after graduation."
"Is this kind of behavior a problem for an Airetusa student?"
Margarita asked Lann.
The Demon Hunter didn’t even hesitate.
"It’s certainly not a problem. Students approaching graduation contacting their future employers and demonstrating their knowledge and connections—it’s perfectly reasonable."
"So..." Margarita said lightly, "in Airetusa, students don’t even have to hide while gathering intelligence. And previously, Airetusa didn’t have much worth spying on. Though we are a top-notch magic academy, we’re just an academy."
"But now..." Margarita glanced at Lann.
"Your connection to Airetusa is making many people speculate and fear. And with your habit of disappearing every few months, not a soul in the world can find you. This pattern of action is quite nerve-wracking for a super-skilled swordsman."
Lann now wore a smile that was both amused and bewildered.
"So, am I now the most valuable intelligence in Airetusa?"
"Alright, then let me pray..." With that, Lann clasped his hands together, looking very pious. "I pray Lady Margarita’s next words are not about kicking me out."
"Of course not!" the blonde beauty playfully tapped the young man beside her.
"I was thinking of buying you an estate near Gos Velen, or else your every return is too eye-catching." Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on novelꜰire.net
The casual remark from the warlock made the Demon Hunter click his tongue in surprise.
Though he now considered himself quite wealthy, to buy an estate just like that... Was there really such a big difference in spending habits?
"If you were an ordinary Demon Hunter, it would be a good idea, but you aren’t... I’ve never seen a Demon Hunter in Airetusa with a laboratory."
Under Margaret’s speechless gaze, Lann bashfully smiled.
He indeed wasn’t a typical Demon Hunter.
Due to his high academic standard, Airetusa’s equipment was probably the only one in the world that could turn his theory into reality.
"So there’s no choice but to see if a small path could be opened beneath Airetusa’s large reef, so next time your return would be less noticeable. As long as no one sees you entering the academy, you will blend in like any other apprentice."
Margarita waved her hand nonchalantly.
But Lann knew Airetusa was a castle built atop a massive reef, beaten by the sea for billions of years, further strengthened by magic and human endeavor.
Even with magic, creating a path was not easy.
Yet Margarita didn’t even hint at these difficulties.
"Then I’ll trouble you, dear dean."
Lann and Margarita had now reached an outdoor terrace facing the sea.
The Demon Hunter turned and closed all the doors and windows behind him.
When he turned back around, he held two objects in his hands.
"As a return, I’d like to give you a gift."