Chapter 48: *The perfect excuse*
Kevin was glad he took the time to calm down. He then grabbed the collar of Axel’s sweater and kissed him passionately. He had always been more of a man of action than words, and this fiery kiss conveyed to Axel that he had missed him too.
Axel didn’t expect this but responded fervently to Kevin’s kisses. He had really missed him that morning, and he was happy to feel that Kevin had missed him too.
As his hands slowly moved toward Kevin’s enticing butt, they suddenly heard someone cough. Axel reluctantly parted from Kevin and said, introducing him to the red-haired boy, "Kevin, this is Erik. Erik, it’s Kevin, the one Alan told you about."
Erik extended his hand and laughed heartily, winking at Kevin, "It’s not just Alan who told me about you; your man keeps talking about you all the time. I couldn’t wait to meet you."
Kevin shook his hand and smiled at him, "Alan talks a lot about you too; I was also looking forward to meeting you." Fortunately, nobody noticed his relief that it was indeed Erik, and he felt like he could breathe freely again.
Erik seemed very pleased to hear that, and Axel then asked Kevin with obvious curiosity, "So how did it go?"
Kevin couldn’t tell him that he had just unlocked a whole new skill block in front of Erik, so he simply said, his eyes shining with excitement, "It was awesome! I managed to craft two low-grade Healing Potions, and I also meditated for two hours."
A familiar voice then exclaimed behind them, "Fuck, Axel! Weren’t you supposed to tell him to slow down on meditation? Do you want him to go into a coma?"
They all exclaimed together, "Alan!"
Upon hearing his voice, Erik immediately went over to Alan, who pulled him into a hug and kissed his forehead. Then, he began rubbing his lips against Erik’s, teasing him before kissing him fiercely. He let Erik go only when he was out of breath, and after giving him one last kiss, he turned his full attention to Axel with an expression that clearly said, ’I’m waiting for your explanation.’
Seeing his friend look at him that way, Axel thought he had luckily found the perfect excuse for Kevin. He immediately said, "Let me explain, okay? Yesterday, we went for a walk in Dawn City, and I introduced Kevin to Tony. I still had weapons to sell him."
Well, that wasn’t exactly a lie, so he continued, "Kevin apparently made a good impression on him because Tony showed us a necklace made of a strange black metal that can suppress the negative effects of meditation, and it can also increase his absorption of elemental particles. Thanks to this necklace, I promise there’s no more mental fatigue for him. Problem solved—Kevin can now meditate with serenity. And by the way... do you really think I would have let him put himself in danger?"
Alan was stunned. He had never heard of an item that could have this kind of effect before. He turned to Kevin and asked, completely ignoring the last thing Axel had said to him, "Can you show it to me? Do you mind if I give it a try to check its effectiveness?"
Kevin took off his black chain and handed it to him, "No problem, Alan. You can keep it for testing if you want; I still have to do my hour of workout and my stretching session. If you can bring it back to me around 4 PM, that would be great. I would like to meditate a bit more afterwards."
Alan nodded and said, "I’ll bring it back to you even sooner. You don’t have to worry about it. Thank you, Kevin, for letting me try it."
Kevin waved his hand to indicate it was not a problem at all. Alan, having been a little taken aback by what Kevin had just said, asked suspiciously, "And what about your training program? Did Axel set that up for you?"
Kevin chuckled a little, embarrassed, and told the truth—after all, there was nothing to hide, "No, it was me. I was a bit ashamed to have such a weak body, so I set goals for myself. But don’t worry, it won’t interfere with my apprenticeship as a mage."
Alan nodded, very satisfied. It was just as important for a mage to have good physical stamina as it was to have a strong mind, "That’s a very good initiative, Kevin."
He then remembered what Kevin had said earlier before he interrupted him to scold Axel and asked curiously, "Did you really manage to craft two low-grade Healing Potions in your first alchemy class?"
Kevin nodded and took out teacher Ian’s detailed formula. He handed it to Alan and said, "Yes, I succeeded on my first attempt. It’s thanks to our teacher; he prepared this detailed formula for us, and everything is explained on it. You just have to follow the steps; it was really easy this way."
Alan took the paper and read it, and a smile appeared on his face, "It’s Ian, isn’t it?"
Kevin just nodded, and Alan said, giving back the paper, "Ian is the youngest alchemy teacher in the Sun Sect and a true genius at crafting potions. You couldn’t have had a better teacher. He’s also a very good friend of mine, so you will probably run into him outside of class as well. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask him; he will definitely help you."
Kevin had suspected this a little since Ian had mentioned Alan when they were talking together, so he said, "Great! Actually, I really enjoy working this way; it’s very efficient, and you don’t waste time."
Alan chuckled and then, more determined than ever to be Kevin’s tutor, said, "Did Axel warn you that I had made a request to become your tutor?"
Kevin nodded and asked, "That would be really great! When will you get an answer?"
Alan laughed and replied, "So eager to learn, huh? That’s good! To answer your question, maybe in a week or two, but I’m sure they’ll let me be your tutor. So prepare yourself for some intense training."
Kevin laughed heartily too; working hard had never been a problem for him. When he nodded, Alan could see how serious he was by looking into his eyes.
