Chapter 81 : Chapter 81

Chapter 81. Dramatic Ups and Downs

Taen paced back and forth inside the room, walking to one end before turning around and heading to the other.

He truly could not imagine that such a thing would happen—the disappearance of one of the main leaders of a school within the City of Apprentices.

Since the founding of the City of Apprentices, only a handful of incidents of a similar scale had ever occurred, yet this extremely rare event had happened to him.

But the key issue was not Beloli’s disappearance itself. What truly mattered was that Beloli had personally promised to include him on the approval list for modification surgery.

When Taen had first received that sudden piece of good news, the unexpected joy had nearly overwhelmed him. After the initial surge of excitement, however, he quickly forced himself to calm down.

He knew he had to keep a low profile from that point onward. Otherwise, some jealous apprentice might suddenly lose their mind and attack him out of sheer envy.

Because of this, he chose extreme caution in everything he did afterward. He would rather do nothing than risk making a mistake, living as if he were walking on thin ice.

Unless absolutely necessary, he did not leave his room. He remained inside the dormitory and avoided any social interaction with other apprentices.

However, when he went out once to buy food, he heard the terrible news.

Beloli had disappeared.

Although the search had been issued as a task by the school, the mission clearly stated that apprentices would only receive the opportunity for surgical instruction after finding that notebook.

As for Taen, he had discovered Richter’s corpse. Beloli had considered that a contribution and casually promised to reward him by granting him the opportunity.

But that promise had only been verbal.

Now that Beloli had vanished, he did not know whether the matter would still be honored.

Taen paced around the room two more times before finally gathering his courage and deciding to ask about it.

He remembered that Instructor Losqi had been present at the time. If he went to ask him, perhaps the instructor would acknowledge his eligibility for surgical instruction.

With a nervous heart, he stepped outside and set off toward where Instructor Losqi was staying.

---

“That is enough. Hurry and arrange for someone to kill those merchants who transported the corpses for us. Burn down their houses as well. We cannot leave any evidence behind for the school.”

However, the apprentice standing in front of him clearly disagreed and immediately retorted.

“I cannot arrange it personally. If I do, that investigator will trace it back to my identity. It will still cause trouble for the Alteration School.”

Losqi frowned. He knew that the apprentice was not refusing because of concerns about causing trouble for the school.

The real reason was fear of being caught by the investigator and ending up in prison.

“Fine, fine. You handle it however you want. Just make sure those merchants cannot say anything that would harm our school.”

Since the apprentice had ranked well in the assessments, Losqi gave him more freedom in how to deal with the matter.

Besides, he already had a mountain of other problems to deal with. Matters like this could only be left to the apprentices, so he had little choice but to accept the other party’s proposal.

The frown on Losqi’s face had not relaxed for a single moment that day. A pile of troubles had left him visibly irritated.

“What do you want, apprentice?”

When he saw Taen entering, Losqi asked with a trace of anger.

The moment Taen saw Losqi’s expression, he knew things were going badly.

He realized that today it would probably be impossible for Losqi to acknowledge his eligibility for surgical instruction.

Losqi was quite famous among the apprentices, though mostly for negative reasons. It was the first time many apprentices had seen a formal mage handle matters so poorly.

Not only would he help you if you paid him, but when it came to the benefits apprentices were entitled to under school regulations, he was notoriously stingy.

Unless you offered him something extra, he would not even give you the benefits you deserved.

He was practically one of the most hated figures among the apprentices, yet he was still one of the administrators of the school.

It was said that he had served as an administrator for many years even before becoming a formal mage, and his reputation back then had not been any better.

“Instructor, I want to ask something. Did you hear Instructor Beloli say that she would include me in the surgical instruction list for modification surgery?”

A rare smile appeared on Losqi’s face that day, but his reply was merciless.

“Where did you hear such nonsense? I think you have gone mad wanting that qualification. You did not even rank in the assessment, yet you still want to claim such a privilege.”

“But…”

“There is no such thing. Now get out!”

Taen felt as if he had fallen straight into an abyss. His mind went blank for a moment before he finally remembered to move his feet.

But suddenly, a gentle female voice sounded behind him.

“What is going on here? Why is it so noisy?”

Taen realized that the voice had come from behind him. However, the action taken by Losqi in front of him completely caught his attention.

Losqi immediately stood up from his chair. His tightly furrowed brow relaxed slightly as he called out loudly,

“Chief! We have finally been waiting for your arrival. Now we truly need you to help the Alteration School get through this crisis!”

Taen slowly turned around and saw a strangely dressed woman.

She was tall and slender. Instead of the long robes typical of mages, she wore a form-fitting outfit in a pale beige color.

Her eyes were a beautiful shade of purple, adding a touch of brilliance to her flawless face.

Taen was not sure whether it was merely his imagination, but her beauty seemed almost too perfect—beyond what one would expect from a human.

Lucy’s soft voice sounded again. This time, it reminded Taen of birds singing deep within a forest, soothing and pleasant to hear.

“Apprentice, what do you need?”

Under those circumstances, Taen did not hesitate. He poured out the entire story in one breath, speaking with full confidence.

Lucy chuckled softly before turning to look at Losqi.

“Losqi, did such a thing happen?”

Losqi unconsciously reached out and touched the desk before replying,

“No… Actually… it does seem like that might have happened. I just had too many things on my mind earlier and forgot about it.”

From the overwhelming Mana radiating from her body and the badge on her chest, he had already determined her identity.

She was the chief official responsible for the northern region of Graysoil Province—a mage of a rank clearly higher than his own.

In front of someone with a higher status, he could no longer brush Taen aside carelessly. If Taen started arguing loudly, it would lower Losqi’s standing in Lucy’s eyes.

It was better to generously give Taen what he wanted and send him away as quickly as possible.

Taen was overjoyed and looked at Lucy with deep gratitude.

Lucy placed a hand on the door and said,

“Then let us leave it at that. Apprentice, you may go now. Your matter will be discussed later.”

Taen understood that no matter what, he had to leave at this moment. He stepped out while repeatedly expressing his thanks.

“Thank you… Instructor.”

Lucy closed the door and turned to look at Losqi.

Losqi spoke rapidly.

“Chief, you have finally arrived. That bastard who left our school has become an investigator and is now trying to harm the Alteration School. If you had not come, I cannot imagine what would have happened. Our school might have been expelled from the City of Apprentices like the Law School.”

Lucy’s voice was no longer gentle as it had been earlier. Instead, she spoke coldly.

“That is a minor matter. What truly brought me here is Beloli’s disappearance. Tell me about that.”