Chapter 144 - VOL 2 Chapter 89: On the same wavelength.
"Hahaha, that's good. So, what did you do?" Upon hearing the cheerful reply from the pair of troublemakers of the Order, the director couldn't help but ask in an amused tone, letting out a laugh.
"Not much, we just visited several interesting places in space and ended up in the Auroria system, where we went down to take a look. Oh, and Erik hired his first assistants." Sigrún responded with a calm smile, but her last words immediately drew everyone's attention, especially Adrián's.
"Erik finally hired assistants?"
Adrián asked with interest, since one of the concerns among the councils of the alchemy and artificery regulatory institutes was the fact that Erik still had no assistants. After all, they had already granted him an extension, and yet there was no sign that he was actively looking for assistants, which caused them great discomfort and put them in a rather complicated position.
Although the young man's talent was overwhelming and his achievements even more impressive—so neither of the two institutes wanted to find themselves in the situation of having to revoke his license—they simply couldn't keep bending the rules for him, as that would only create more problems down the road. Therefore, they were hoping that this monstrous young man could at least do what was required regarding his assistants; everything else was manageable.
"In reality, they're more like prospects for future assistants, but they're cute kids, fufu."
The one who answered was Eleonora, who couldn't help but laugh softly when she saw Adrián's expression. He could only sigh wearily, thinking that if he were the master of such a talented young man, things wouldn't have turned out like this; that pair of troublemakers were far too lenient. But he quickly pulled himself together and asked seriously.
"When does Erik plan to hire real assistants, then? The councils already gave him an extension to avoid losing his licenses, but if he continues like this, it'll be inevitable for him to lose them."
"Don't worry about that. Erik is going to submit a request to the regulatory institutes so they can issue a summons in his name as soon as we get back, since he can't delay any longer." Sigrún commented playfully, causing Adrián to feel as though a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He smiled with satisfaction and added.
"That's the best. It's alr—"
Adrián stopped speaking halfway when a crystal tablet appeared in his hand. Reading something on it made his expression turn ironic. He turned to look at Eleonora and Sigrún.
"Speak of the devil, it seems Erik caused some trouble in the library."
Hearing the news, Eleonora and Sigrún looked at each other in confusion. It was practically the first time they'd heard that Erik had caused problems—most of the time, he practically fled from them like they were the plague. So besides confusion, the news also generated a bit of concern in them, and they quickly asked in unison.
""What happened?""
Seeing the worry on Eleonora's and Sigrún's faces—while everyone else, except the director, who seemed to be holding back his laughter, turned to look at him with interest—Adrián responded in a calm, measured voice, though an ironic smile tugged at the corners of his lips.
"Apparently he had a disagreement with a disciple and some students, and he ended up beating them all."
"Erik beating someone? Now I've got to see that."
Disbelieving, Sigrún stood up from her chair after speaking and extended her Ethereal Projection toward where she felt Erik's presence. But what she 'saw' there erased the worry on her face and replaced it with a proud smile as she exclaimed in a boastful tone.
"Hehehe, as expected of my disciple."
Sigrún's strange statement and her proud smile gave the others a bad feeling. They immediately extended their own ethereal projections, and each ended up with ironic smiles on their faces as they looked strangely at Eleonora and Sigrún, who quickly teleported to the site without paying them any mind. Shortly after, everyone present followed them, not wanting to miss the scene.
In the hallway connecting to the library's private rooms, one could see a bizarre tableau. Seated on a majestic, intricately designed throne made of solidified Myst was Erik, holding a book in his right hand, which he read without a care in the world. In his left hand was a beautiful porcelain cup, into which Seraphina poured tea with a smile—a perfectly normal act for such a professional maid.
To Erik's right were the siblings and Olivia, seated in beautiful chairs with an elegant appearance and intricate geometric designs, likewise created from solidified Myst. They were eating delicious cookies from white paper bags, sporting expressions that seemed both enchanted and as though they were contemplating life and destiny.
But there was something that drastically changed what might otherwise have looked like a scene from a fairy tale. On the floor of the hallway were several unconscious young men in various positions, all with visible bruises and blood on different parts of their bodies. None appeared to have serious injuries—just minor contusions that would heal within a couple of hours thanks to the accelerated regeneration of mana users at their level.
However, the most terrifying part of the scene was a young man in the center of the hallway, who was bleeding profusely, with his limbs bent at odd angles and missing several teeth. He seemed to have lost consciousness with his eyes and mouth wide open, his face frozen in an expression of indescribable terror and suffering.
To top off the strange sight, on Erik's left side were several guards dressed in futuristic-looking black armor etched with intricate runes, also seated on chairs made of solidified Myst. Although these chairs were simpler than those used by the siblings and Olivia, they were still quite beautiful and elegant.
The guards had complex expressions full of confusion and disbelief, and instead of cookies, they held blister packs of healing pills and various magic bags—the kind typically used for mana crystal transactions—but they were handling them with great caution, as though they were dangerous artifacts.
Sensing the arrival of the Master-level individuals and the director—who did not bother to conceal their presence in the slightest—the guards immediately jumped out of their chairs as if they had springs, then bowed respectfully. However, they still exchanged uncomfortable glances about the items in their hands, fearing their superiors would interpret them as bribes.
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As for the Master-level crowd who had just arrived on the scene, with the exception of Jessica—who regarded the spectacle with an inscrutable expression—they all sighed wearily. The image of Erik on his throne, surrounded by beaten students on the floor, overlapped in their minds with that of two young women who seemed to love causing trouble.
The Masters' eyes kept flashing with visions of a blonde-haired, blue-eyed young woman covered in blood, laughing gleefully atop a mountain of 'corpses'—in reality, other unconscious youths—and another young woman with golden eyes and brown hair, seated on a beautiful wooden throne with intricate golden details, surrounded by people of various ages and attire begging for mercy with desperate expressions, while she maintained an elegant, unruffled bearing like a bloodthirsty empress.
"Oh, masters, you came. Are you the arbiters the guards were talking about?" Seeing the arrival of his masters, Erik asked with a warm smile on his face, remaining seated on his 'throne' because, thanks to the hand of a certain maid on his shoulder, he couldn't get up.
"Not exactly. We just noticed the commotion and came to check."
Sigrún commented cheerfully while walking among the 'corpses' on the floor, a huge, proud smile on her face. She was joined by Eleonora, who couldn't help but smile coquettishly as she looked at her beloved disciple.
"Oh, that?"
Erik remarked, glancing calmly at the young people on the ground. Then he set his teacup on a small platform of Myst that appeared beside him. He pointed at the unconscious students on the floor and continued in a tone full of righteousness.
"Actually, I just foiled a kidnapping attempt and caught the criminals in the act."
Hearing the words Erik spoke with such an innocent expression, the guards and the Master-level individuals all rolled their eyes at the boy's boldness. At the same time, those Master-level folks found themselves brainstorming ways to prevent such a valuable talent from being further corrupted by that troublemaking pair.
"Fufu, so my Erik was capturing criminals. I think I'll have to make a few delicious desserts for my justice-loving hero..." Eleonora said with a playful smile while checking Erik for injuries, not even bothering to look at the youths on the floor. Erik replied calmly, in a tone filled with righteousness.
"Even though I only did what an honest member of the Arcane Order is supposed to do, I'll shamelessly accept this reward."
"Then tonight we'll celebrate our hero's brave actions, hehe..." Sigrún joined in merrily as she adjusted Erik's clothing and hair, feeling that her Erik was truly the best in the world, that they were authentically destined to be together, naturally on the same 'wavelength'.
Meanwhile, the Master-level individuals couldn't help but roll their eyes at the shamelessness of both the disciple and his masters. They shook their heads, realizing it was far too late for the boy; he'd already been completely tainted by the brazenness of those two master troublemakers.
"Hahaha, it looks like you've made a great contribution to the Order, Erik. Make sure to stop by the meeting room later so we can give you a reward."
For his part, the director spoke in a cheerful, enthusiastic tone, casually surveying the scene around him and selectively ignoring the hidden photographic spheres that the demon in maid attire was calmly retrieving without even trying to hide it from him.
Upon hearing that, the guards and the Master-level individuals present turned to look at the jovial director with an expression that seemed to say, "Are you really going along with this?". That was the case only among the Master-level folks, though; the guards barely had the courage to look the director, let alone make faces at him.
"Oh, well, it was just something normal for me, as the honest member of the Order that I am. But if the director wishes to reward me, I won't refuse."
With not a hint of shame, Erik quickly answered with a serious, composed expression, looking straight into the director's blue eyes. Several Master-level individuals smacked their foreheads in disbelief; there was no hope left—he had already fallen completely under the influence of his masters, the greatest troublemakers of the Arcane Order.
"It's only natural when making a great contribution to the Order. That boy had been causing trouble lately because his master made a major breakthrough, so this event is the perfect excuse to teach them both a lesson, since the master has been playing dumb about reporting his breakthrough."
The director spoke amid laughter, but the sharp look in his eyes didn't go unnoticed by the other Master-level individuals present. They were surprised to hear about the rise of a new Master-level in the Order, as it was the second in less than a hundred years—an unprecedented occurrence, even among long-standing factions.
"Oh, so that's why that idiot thought he could kidnap people in broad daylight without consequence..." Erik commented with realization, looking with pity at the young man in a pitiful state in the middle of the hallway, almost as if observing a terminally ill patient on death's door.
"And who was that idiot trying to kidnap, Erik?" Sigrún asked with a smile, satisfied with Erik's now perfect appearance. He responded by pointing at the siblings, who were trying with all their might to play dead alongside Olivia.
"My assistants. Can you believe it?"
"What a moron. Don't worry; we'll settle things with his master after they send his idiot disciple to prison for a while." Eleonora nodded as she thought of ways to toy with the idiot who raised such a disciple. But Erik replied calmly while sipping tea in an elegant manner.
"That's not necessary. The culprit is that idiot alone. Let the normal process take its course; there's no need to go to so much trouble."
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