Chapter 932: 705
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"No! This can’t be possible!" Oran bellowed, eyes suddenly bursting with dazzling light! "Fall in love with me! Become my slave! Offer up everything you have to me!"
But at almost the same time, Ailin’s eyes also erupted with a silver brilliance.
"Dream on, in my eyes you’re just a little brat with not a trace of masculinity, all perfumed up. Love you? You could go through puberty for another ten thousand years and still have no chance!" The silver light in Ailin’s eyes burst out, not only shattering the charming light in Oran’s eyes but also completely dissipating the natural charm spell upon him.
Now, as Gridis turned to look at Oran, he found him to be just an average-looking young man. Although not ugly, he definitely lacked any striking handsomeness. Gridis couldn’t help but sigh; as a man, he had been affected by the charm spell, believing Oran to be incredibly handsome, whereas Ailin, a girl who should have been affected even more, was completely unmoved. Indeed, Ailin was far stronger in her magical skills.
"This cannot be! This cannot be! My charm spell has never failed!" Oran had already realized his natural charm spell had dissipated, and his eyes were filled with terror. He had grown accustomed to being perceived as incredibly handsome by others; he couldn’t bear to imagine the horror if he were not!
Fortunately, the natural charm didn’t vanish for long and was soon restored. But Oran no longer wished to stay there; without a word, he turned and left. Gridis quietly apologized to Ailin and then followed him out.
"What an idiot," Ailin shook her head.
The truth was, if Ailin had been an ordinary girl, strong though she might have been, she would probably have succumbed. For the magic of charm that Oran possessed was not just any magic, but Giant magic!
And Ailin was strong because she was very familiar with Giant magic.
Ailin was filled with the power of the Giants, a gift bestowed upon her by Long Yi. With the power of the Giants, one could wield Giant magic, and Ailin, in particular, had a profound ability to recognize and counteract it. She was confident that she could even resolve spells cast by Long Yi himself, let alone those from the foolish Oran before her.
Watching Oran depart, Ailin simply smiled, dismissing him as a mere jester. There was no need to even consider him, yet Oran was seething with rage.
His pride in his seductive spell shattered, not only had it lost its effect, but he had been exposed for his true self—an indignity he couldn’t tolerate!
"She’s seen what I really look like, she’ll tell everyone! They’ll all laugh at my ugliness!" Oran lamented in Gridis’s estate. An hour might have passed since the incident, yet he was still rambling on.
"That won’t happen, Miss Ailin isn’t that kind of person. Besides, she hardly has any friends, and except for the Magic Research Institute and the Teleportation Gate, she barely goes anywhere," Gridis said.
"No! She will definitely talk! That’s how people are! They can’t wait to tell others everything they know! Especially when they uncover a huge secret, they’re even more eager to share!" Oran’s face grew more twisted.
"I think you might be too nervous, Miss Ailin won’t do that. And, this doesn’t really seem to be much of a secret," Gridis tried to reassure Oran.
"This isn’t a secret? Of course, it is! A huge secret! If people knew how ugly I am, how could I show my face?" Oran stood up agitatedly, pacing the room.
"No! To protect this secret, Ailin must die!" Oran finally made his decision.
"What? No! Absolutely not!" Gridis immediately objected.
"You want to stop me? Do you also intend to share my secret with others?" Oran’s eyes suddenly turned blood-red! Gridis felt a darkness sweep over him and lost consciousness. When he struggled to wake, he saw a large hole pierced through his chest by a magic spell. Luckily, his heart had not been hit. He quickly used magic to heal himself. Although Gridis wasn’t strong in combat, he knew many life-saving spells. It was for this reason that the Landers had insisted on taking Gridis with them when they decided to perform the Reverse Summoning to a middle Plane.
After a series of spells, his injury quickly healed, but his body was still very weak. Gridis took out a potion from his personal space and drank it, feeling somewhat better. He looked up at the time, only to realize that fifteen minutes had passed.
The fool!
The usually good-natured Gridis swore.
Rushing out of his estate, he headed straight for the Teleportation Array.
Halfway there, he saw Crown Prince Saint Julio with a squad of Seven Star mages rushing his way. Upon seeing Gridis drenched in blood, his expression visibly chilled.
"Master Gridis, what happened to you?" Saint Julio asked.
"Ah! It’s a long story. Do you know where Miss Ailin and Oran are? I have an urgent matter!" Gridis asked urgently.
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"I believe our urgent matters are one and the same," Saint Julio said, casting a spell that sent a squad of warriors, along with Gridis, flying towards the arena atop the Imperial City.
It turned out that just moments ago, Oran had suddenly burst into the underground Teleportation Array and, without a word, wanted to start fighting. However, Ai Lin stopped him, telling Oran that if he wished to fight, no matter the reason, he should head to the Arena. Naturally, Oran didn’t listen, but Ai Lin turned and walked away, with Oran in hot pursuit. Ai Lin led Oran to the Arena, pausing and walking as she went.
After hearing about this, Saint Julio immediately notified all Seven-Star Mages within the Imperial City to assemble at the Arena. In the eyes of these Seven-Star Mages, Miss Ai Lin was the benefactor who transformed them. How many have leaped from pitiful Two-Star or Three-Star to Six-Star or Seven-Star! Any disrespect towards Ai Lin would be considered an affront to the entire Seven-Star Mage team!
Under Saint Julio’s leadership, all Seven-Star Mages within the Imperial City, whether on duty or off, were already en route to the Arena, and even the Emperor of Saint Jialin was on his way.
When Gridis and Saint Julio arrived, the battle had not yet started; Ai Lin and Oran were confronting each other in the center of the venue. The Emperor had arrived, and Master August, seeing Gridis bloodied and battered, hurried over to inquire. Gridis then briefly summarized what had happened, and the Emperor’s brow furrowed more deeply with every word he heard.
"Isn’t this just a madman?" Saint Jialin said.
"More precisely, it’s a character flaw," said Gridis.
"To me, that sounds like madness. Is he a woman? To care so much about his own appearance? And to go as far as to even attack you without proper cause? If one day he truly joins my Divine Auffa Empire, who knows what kind of huge mess he could make!" Saint Jialin grew angrier as he spoke, seeing such a person as nothing but a ticking time bomb.
"I heard that when he was young, he was mocked for a birthmark on his face... Although it was later cured, but..." Gridis tried to explain further.
"I don’t care if he had a birthmark or if his face was covered in XX; it makes no difference to me! I respect him as a student of Master Lou Aran, but I have no obligation to pander to just any student!"
Saint Jialin swore outright.
Gridis, knowing that he was half to blame as the one who introduced Oran, could only stand there with a flushed face, unable to continue speaking. Realizing he had perhaps spoken too harshly, Saint Jialin immediately cleared his throat and said, "Ahem, Master Gridis, your character is witnessed by the entire Plane, and my words were not directed at you. Please do not take offense."
Of course, Gridis knew the words were not aimed at him, but he felt genuine remorse inside. He sighed lightly and said, "I just hope today’s incident can be quickly resolved, and then I’ll immediately take Oran to see the teacher. His personality... is not suited for this place."
Yet, Saint Julio just smiled and responded, "No, I think after today, there will be no need for you to take him away. Speaking of which, he might end up staying here forever."
Saint Julio pointed towards the center, sure enough, the standoff with Mana had already begun.
Gridis asked Saint Julio, "How strong is Miss Ai Lin, really?"
After pondering for a moment, Saint Julio said, "I do not know. However, if we use Long Yi as a benchmark, you can basically understand, right? Long Yi, the king of the Stellar Realm’s Arena, pursued and killed ancient Mages across the entire Plane, slaying three Sanctuary Mages. And Ai Lin fought Long Yi to a draw."
At this, Emperor Saint Jialin spoke up again, "Long Yi’s accomplishments should include another recent feat. A day ago, Long Yi just killed Soro, the student of the ancient Powerhouse Adaman, and has made it known that he will seek out Soro in the future."
Upon hearing these words, nearly everyone around began to draw a sharp breath.
Although not many knew who Soro was, everyone was well aware of who Adaman was. That notoriously ill-tempered ancient Powerhouse was known for his pettiness. After Long Yi had killed Landers’ disciple and had also humiliated Landers himself, nearly everyone expected Adaman would teach Long Yi a lesson. But now, the so-called ’lesson’ had its result.
Long Yi had won again.
And not only had he won, but he also dared to openly provoke Adaman!
He showed complete disregard for Adaman!
And Ai Lin, with such explosive strength, was actually able to fight Long Yi to a draw! No! Rumor had it she even held a slight advantage!
This revelation greatly astonished Gridis.
Gridis had always known Ai Lin was strong. However, he did not know just how strong she was, as their limited encounters had mostly been academic discussions. His impression of Ai Lin was of someone with vast knowledge and a pleasant disposition. And now, adding formidable strength to that, could this be what they call perfection?
Gridis really wanted to call Oran back, but deep down, he felt that surely there would be no problem, right? After all, apart from his charm spells, Oran was also very strong. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to vote and support me. Your backing is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)
