Chapter 211: Household Matters

"What a peaceful breakfast—finally quiet."

For the first time, without any spirit's possession or noise, Li En awoke from his dream completely undisturbed.

He got out of bed, took a deep breath, and became slightly more alert.

He wiped his face and stepped out with his sword.

After a brief morning training, while it was still far from daylight, Little Laina ran out—Li En tested her lessons and assessed her progress.

"Hmm, as expected."

Li En rubbed his chin and unconsciously shook his head.

"If I don't push harder, I won't be able to keep up much longer."

The girl's swordsmanship talent isn't just astonishing—it's a direct leap toward the Hero's realm.

Just in sword technique, even if he restrained his movements and reactions, Li En was already struggling to keep up.

This, despite her having no physical enhancements—her bodily hardware is merely Ruishi level. Technically, this shouldn't affect sword duels, yet in perception, reaction speed, and mobility, she's already achieved post-reaction-first-strike and overcoming strength with weakness.

"I need to consider her evolution path—if Sun War Lion won't work, are there any other strong lion-line evolutions?"

Li En pondered—it would likely be after dealing with this current matter, once the "Owl" was eliminated.

"Let's eat first."

After the sunrise illuminated the entire courtyard, shouts from above halted the already heated sparring session—Li En had unconsciously gotten carried away, while the girl stubbornly pushed through to the end.

"Grilled fish? Uh, and fried eggs… Sallyman, did you make this?" The scent was both unfamiliar and oddly familiar—definitely not the household cook's.

"Mm, it's been a while—I hope I haven't forgotten everything." This time, around the parlor table, it wasn't just Li En and Laina as usual.

Sallyman sat at the head of the table, smiling at Li En, with a cup of hot coffee and freshly delivered newspapers beside her.

Her maids bustled around her; seeing the stack of documents, she clearly had no intention of leaving today.

The maid squad had cleaned every room, laid down carpets and hung paintings—though the place now had a homely feel Li En liked, he dared not ask how long Sallyman planned to stay.

In one corner of the room, Ophelia was in "standby," while Laiya was tending to her physical condition.

As she attached cute little ornaments to her, she also told her "sister" fairy tales.

"And so, the prince sent by the queen succeeded in seducing Snow White, freeing her from the torment of living with seven crude giants—she no longer had to wash endless stinking socks or yellowed bed sheets…"

"The prince is such a good person! Just like Li En." Ophelia sighed like a child, showing her intelligence was gradually growing.

Though the fairy tale itself, originally introduced by someone, seemed deeply flawed.

"What's your plan today?" Li En glanced at Sallyman but said nothing.

This is my home, isn't it? Then why did you stay last night, bring maids, and now act like you're not leaving?

"Nothing. The princess has been preoccupied with her aunt's affairs—she won't have time to seek me out. My people can handle her." It seemed Sallyman's loyalty to Dainya wasn't strong—but perhaps that was the normal attitude of a competent intelligence officer; a worker isn't a lapdog.

Sallyman sipped her coffee and continued reading the documents, occasionally frowning.

"These branch managers really think I'm an idiot… Martha, send 'Snake Scale' to deal with them. The other Sallyman is too naive—letting others ride over her and still pretending it's fine."

Uh… the other Sallyman? You're not even pretending anymore?

Beside her, the familiar head maid took the documents, announcing that the traitors and embezzlers would soon face death.

This sharp, decisive Sallyman—perhaps she is the true Radiant Rose, one of the top nobles in this city.

In this era, such great nobles all have their own enterprises; Sallyman controls several merchant guilds.

She glanced at the ledgers and recent operations, discovering some had crossed the line long ago—for great nobles, once a subordinate's disloyalty is confirmed, they don't need to go to court—they handle it directly.

On one hand, it's truly a family matter; on the other, leaked information would damage noble reputation.

"What about you? If you're free, help me with these documents—might need your assistance later." As she spoke, Sallyman didn't look up, as if avoiding direct eye contact, yet her tone was firm.

Like a household manager saying, "You'll handle this eventually—get used to it."

"I actually have something—I might need to go to Radiant District soon." The spirit card summoning was almost complete; Li En wanted to investigate what happened back then.

Radiant City likely has many survivors from that time—perhaps he'd encounter someone involved.

Under current circumstances, having one more spirit card usable gave Li En more security.

"Alright… I reviewed the mentor list for you. Of eleven total, I only recommend three—I've marked them."

Li En took the list—filled with neat, elegant script; Sallyman had clearly put in serious effort.

This was the mentor list sent by Luo Yisi—it didn't mean these Grand Mages would become Li En's mentors, only that they were willing to let him study under them for a period. But for most apprentices, this was effectively a lifelong commitment: if you learned well, you stayed; if you didn't, it was your fault, and switching mentors rarely mattered to anyone.

Li En had no such concerns—given his current level and Sallyman's connections, he could directly petition a court mage as his master.

"Uh… they're really playing games."

A quick glance left Li En stunned—was this really a list of Grand Mage mentors, or some bizarre criminal catalog?

Not all Grand Mages are good—or even human.

Those who exploit apprentices as laborers are already considered decent; many cross the line entirely—using apprentices as test subjects or scapegoats. Some mentors take in so many students they accept anyone, simply because "consumption" is high.

Ordinary apprentices blindly choose based on rumors or instinct—whether they step into a trap is pure luck.

"Tsk tsk, this guy's impressive—he only takes female apprentices, and half of them are pregnant."

This wasn't because he was a beast—considering the children born were usually deformed bio-monsters, he was worse than a beast; he used female apprentices as incubators.

"He has male apprentices too—but the scenes are too grotesque—I didn't write them down."

Alright, no need to elaborate—just imagining it was nauseating enough.

Li En stared at Sallyman with growing shock—this "inner Sallyman" was nothing like the "outer" one.

No wonder she was once the royal intelligence chief—she even had this level of scandalous classified information.

"…Is this really okay? Eleven mentors—six are extremely dangerous, swinging between beast and worse-than-beast, three are waste who steal research funds, and the others don't seem outstanding at all."

Looking at the list, Li En was stunned by the state of these Grand Mages—he'd assumed they were all excellent researchers.

Even if they didn't reach Kuku's purity, at least a few normal researchers would do.

"The royal court only cares about results—they don't care how they're obtained. In reality, unless evidence is exposed publicly or victims directly accuse them, the court can't intervene."

Alright—different positions, different perspectives. Perhaps in the royal court, these "hazardous materials" were better collaborators.

"The current royal court and these mages operate on inertia—they cooperate as long as they don't go too far. We can't really interfere."

"Too far" probably meant: "pay sufficient compensation," "clearly explain things to apprentices (test subjects)," and "don't randomly use ordinary citizens as test subjects."

Compared to the ambitious church, the mages showed sufficient respect to the crown—provided they weren't hindered in their research or material acquisition.

The constant output from the underground ruins was the main reason they sided with the crown.

That's also why they were the most aggressive transnational organization pushing for underground ruin exploration—purely for the ruins' benefits.

"…Actually, there are good ones—even morally and technically excellent. But they're all absorbed in their own research and fields, leaving no time to take apprentices—most are already full. If you want to join, you need a letter of recommendation. Those who accept anyone are inherently problematic."

With this intelligence chief's guidance, Li En's selection became simple—there was little real choice; after a quick look, he settled on one Grand Mage of the Evocation school.

He had his own stance—he didn't need a mentor to "package his future and employment." He just needed one who could provide solid, systematic training; too close a relationship might entangle him in factions and cause new trouble.

"The Owl… has it been confirmed? Do you know the approximate time?"

But at this moment, Sallyman asked proactively.

Some operations had already been set in motion, but handling them was difficult—more intelligence would help Sallyman plan better.

"No, neither time nor location is known." Li En gave a bitter smile—he knew this was unreliable.

"Night Owls? How could you find them during the day? The moment they appear, the attack has already begun."

Against such an opponent, you might not even realize you've been struck until it's too late—if you don't spot her eyes beforehand, you can only wait to be hit before countering.

"So passive," Sallyman frowned—this feeling of waiting to be attacked by fear was the hardest for an intelligence chief to accept.

"But there are still key nodes we can judge."

"Uh, yes—her target is me, and…"

Li En looked out the window—the latest news was that the queen was en route; the princess certainly wouldn't miss it.

"Snap!"

On the other side, Sallyman suddenly put down her pen and papers.

She quickly ate her lunch, glancing at Li En.

"Hurry up and eat—you're going to Radiant District, right? I'll give you a ride."

(End of Chapter)