Chapter 130: Gri Hareler

Who is Gao De?

Just as Gao De finished his “special” lunch and was about to rise and leave, a loud voice suddenly rang out at the restaurant’s entrance.

The man’s voice was so loud it instantly drowned out all the murmurs in the restaurant.

Everyone, including Gao De, turned to look toward the restaurant’s entrance.

A tall, slender young man with a refined appearance, dressed in a standard academy robe, stood at the entrance, his gaze sweeping over the diners.

His eyes were sharply piercing, carrying an inexplicable pressure; few dared meet his gaze directly.

“Gri Hareler is looking for someone? What’s he doing acting like he’s here to cause trouble?” Gao De heard someone whisper beside him.

Gri Hareler. Gao De turned the name over in his mind.

He had never heard the first name before, but the surname was strangely familiar.

While everyone else was speculating about why Gri Hareler was looking for someone named Gao De, Gao De already had a faint suspicion.

At that moment, Gri Hareler’s gaze had already swept across every person in the restaurant.

And during that sweep, he seemed to have already locked onto his target.

His sharp eyes finally settled on Gao De, and under the watchful stares of all, he walked straight over to Gao De’s table.

Gao De stood up, his brow slightly furrowed.

If someone comes with good intentions, they don’t come like this.

“If I’m not mistaken, you’re the one named Gao De?” Gri Hareler asked.

“You’ve got the wrong person,” Gao De replied.

With that, he turned and walked away.

Seeing Gao De walk off, Gri Hareler clearly froze—he had never expected such a reaction.

It wasn’t until Gao De had taken several steps and was nearly out the door that Gri Hareler finally snapped back to reality.

His face darkened, and he hurried forward, blocking Gao De’s path again.

His expression toward Gao De was full of contempt.

“No wonder you got in through a recommendation letter—you’re a country bumpkin who won’t even own up to your own name.”

“How could someone like you possibly have the right to study at the Ceres Arcane Academy alongside me?”

Gri Hareler’s voice was not lowered; if anything, he deliberately amplified it.

As soon as those words left his mouth, and given that the other students in the restaurant were already in “watching a show” mode and watching the two closely,

nearly everyone heard Gri Hareler’s words and learned Gao De’s background.

Gao De stared calmly at Gri Hareler, who blocked his way: “First, whether I have the right to study at the Ceres Arcane Academy is not your decision to make.”

He added calmly: “Second, my name really is Gao De—but I’m not the only person with that name.”

“Just like you’re called Gri—in my hometown, there’s a stray dog named Gri. It’s close to me, barks every day to come find me—but I don’t think you’re that dog.”

“I only know the dog named Gri. I don’t know you. So the Gao De you’re looking for isn’t me.”

Gri Hareler had never imagined Gao De would respond like this—and he clearly caught the implication that he was being called a “stray dog.”

For a moment, he stood frozen, speechless.

But only for a few seconds.

“Heh.” Gri Hareler sneered. “You’ve got quite the sharp tongue.”

“As a senior student, it seems I have no choice but to teach you newcomers some academy etiquette.”

“The academy instructors will teach me etiquette—I don’t need you meddling.” Even in a disadvantageous position, Gao De’s tongue remained unyielding, unlike his deferential tone when dealing with Master Lar.

The reason was simple: with Master Lar, he had a choice—being courteous could earn him courtesy in return.

But with Gri Hareler, whether he was courteous or not, it wouldn’t change the man’s hostility—so why bother? Besides, Gri Hareler was merely a senior student.

What troubles could he possibly cause that would compare to the power of Master Lar, a high-ranking academy official?

“The first lesson I’ll teach you is to show respect to your elders,” Gri Hareler finally snapped, his pride wounded by Gao De’s attitude.

“Your enrollment task is to submit three thousand kilograms of water-gold ore to the Alchemy Division,” a clear, gritted whisper suddenly reached Gao De’s ears—audible only to him.

[Message Spell].

“Let me remind you—I happen to be the current chief of the Alchemy Division. Receiving and verifying water-gold ore submissions falls squarely within my duties. Just watch.”

Gri Hareler looked at Gao De with disdain, as if he could already see the panic rising on Gao De’s face.

Even as chief of the Alchemy Division, he had no authority to reject Gao De’s submitted ore.

But he could still make things difficult for Gao De during the process.

For instance, by enforcing stricter purity standards when verifying the ore. The Alchemy Division already required a minimum purity level for crafting spell golems.

About twenty percent of the ore submitted by new students fails to meet that purity standard.

That means, if he enforced strict review, Gao De would have to submit an extra seven hundred and fifty kilograms of water-gold ore just to complete his enrollment task.

But by the academy’s longstanding unwritten rule, they never checked purity when collecting ore from new students.

Whatever weight of ore a new student submitted was counted as-is.

As long as it was mined from the cliffside caves and met the weight requirement, it was accepted.

After all, the enrollment task’s primary purpose was to test the new students’ endurance—the water-gold ore was merely an added bonus.

Moreover, once a new student completed the task, they became a full student.

In the world of mages, one or two years meant nothing.

That meant it was common for seniors to be surpassed by new students.

As the saying goes: “Never underestimate the poor youth.”

As a senior student, there was no reason to antagonize a new student during enrollment—otherwise, you might be the one suffering years later.

“I’m terrified,” Gao De’s lips moved, replying.

But this reply, too, was audible only to Gri Hareler.

Gao De remained utterly calm in the face of Gri Hareler’s threats.

Because, to him, Gri Hareler’s threats were laughable.

Yet from this incident, Gao De drew one clear insight.

In the academy, the deterrent power of rules remained strong.

“Students must not harm one another.”

That was one of the academy’s rules.

So Gri Hareler dared not act outside the rules—he could only threaten him this way.

He didn’t even dare make overt threats, using the [Message Spell] instead, afraid others might overhear.

…

After giving his reply, Gao De said no more to Gri Hareler and left the restaurant.

Completing his enrollment task was urgent.

He was already desperate to begin the formal mage courses—not a single moment more to wait!

(End of Chapter)