“So, everything you just said... Ain did all of that?”
“Yes!”
Erylin’s eyes sparkled with stars as she nodded in agreement.
“Thanks to him, the instructors at Persephone were able to brew that potion!”
“If it weren't for him, the monsters in the academy's Echo Forest would have harmed so many more people!”
Erylin tidied up the items on the table one by one and held them tightly in her arms, seemingly unwilling to let her parents touch someone else's belongings again.
She felt that doing so wasn't right.
Adela’s gaze held a hint of displeasure. She pinched her husband’s arm and asked, “Is someone perhaps feeling a little jealous?”
“Cough, that’s merely an award in potionology. A true test of strength is still...”
Seeing Orion still stubbornly making excuses, Adela expressionlessly stepped on his foot.
The more she thought about how he had spoken ill of Ain earlier, the angrier she became.
Recalling her own groundless suspicions about Ain from before, Adela couldn't help but feel a wave of guilt.
She decided to vent all of it on her husband.
Adela stepped down even harder.
Feeling his wife's hostile gaze and her pouting lips, Orion quickly spoke up.
“Alright, alright, I get it.”
“But looking at it another way, even if he's highly accomplished in potionology, so what? It's still a fact that he neglected his core magic classes! His attendance records and academic grades are right there. Surely those can't be faked!”
Adela felt her husband was simply targeting Ain.
Did he absolutely have to pick on the boy's weaknesses?
Just as Adela was preparing to properly "discipline" her husband tonight, Erylin, who was about to put the items in Ain's room, paused and turned around with a rather strange expression.
“Father, what were you saying just now?”
Orion adjusted his clothes, coughed a few times, and said, “I'm talking about Ain's academic performance. Don't you know? His attendance rate for the past three weeks is zero, and he even failed several subjects!”
“Not only that, he's almost a third-year, yet he's still only a Tier 1 Mage?”
“This is no longer a matter of attitude; this is simply...”
“But Ain isn't a Tier 1.”
Feeling a bit bewildered, Erylin hesitated for a moment before interrupting her father.
“Erylin, I know you want to speak up for that boy, but...”
Erylin spoke up in confusion once more.
“Isn't Ain a Tier 4?”
“Huh? Tier 4? Him? Isn't he a year younger than you? Erylin, don't...”
...joke around.
He couldn't finish the sentence.
Seeing Erylin's serious expression, Orion finally realized something was amiss.
He picked up the file and pointed at the text on it. Once Erylin saw it clearly, she thought for a moment, as if remembering something, and replied.
“Oh! He seemed to have mentioned this to me. He said he just never had the time to take the rank evaluation...”
“And Father, Ain didn't fail any classes!”
Feeling like her father was slandering Ain, Erylin replied with some dissatisfaction, “He applied for course exemptions before the term ended, which is why he didn't attend classes. Those failing records just haven't been cleared yet...”
Wanting the person she cared about to shine more in front of her family, Erylin thought for a moment and intentionally added another line.
“And that was personally approved by the Dean!”
Orion and Adela blinked, seemingly unable to process everything Erylin had just said.
“Setting aside the course exemption, Erylin... Ain is a Tier 4? I recall that even you haven't reached Tier 4 yet...”
As if recalling something, Erylin chuckled and recounted all the glorious deeds she had seen or heard about Ain.
This included, but was not limited to:
Beating up Mordred.
Beating up Sevis.
Charging into a horde of magical beasts alone to rescue Lillian.
However, regarding the last event, Erylin concealed a few details, keeping the secret of the witch to herself.
As for the previous events, she even exaggerated them a bit.
For instance, she painted Mordred as incredibly powerful.
And when describing Ain's duel with Sevis, Erylin depicted the magic Ain used as a high-level spell comparable to a Tier 5 spell.
Watching Erylin ramble on enthusiastically, Adela looked at her with a face full of smiles.
She knew her daughter had feelings for Ain.
And she certainly wouldn't let such an outstanding future son-in-law slip away.
“T-That's how it went! That's how Ain defeated Sevis that day!”
Erylin took a few deep breaths. Recounting everything in one go had left her a bit winded.
Just as she was about to call a maid to bring some water, Adela grabbed Erylin's hands, her eyes shining with anticipation as she stared at her daughter.
“Erylin...”
“You two should get engaged right now!”
“Sure, sure, let's get eng—”
Erylin froze. After a brief moment of shock, a crimson blush rapidly climbed up her cheeks, even coloring the tips of her ears with a young girl's bashful innocence.
“Mom! What are you talking about!”
Erylin shook off her mother's hands in mild annoyance, her gaze drifting elsewhere.
“I just think Ain is really amazing! He and I are just friends!”
“As for getting engaged... no, that won't do...”
Lillian's figure appeared in Erylin's mind.
How could she selfishly snatch away someone else's happiness?
At that thought, Erylin seemed to make up her mind and added, “I don't like Ain!”
“Really?”
“Really!”
“Then what if you and Lillian marry him together at the wedding?”
“That... that...”
Adela couldn't help but giggle.
“Erylin, you hesitated.”
“Ugh! I... I...”
The young girl's face flushed crimson once more.
“Ugh... Mom, you're so annoying!”
Erylin instinctively wrapped her arms around her mother's, swaying them side to side to hide her embarrassment and bashfulness.
As a mother, how could Adela not see through her daughter's little thoughts?
“Cough, of course not!”
“Hmm?”
Feeling his wife's "gentle" glare, Orion swallowed the rest of his words.
In truth, after hearing Erylin's account, he was actually quite satisfied with Ain.
But the boy was still a tiny bit inferior to how he had been in his youth. Yes, that had to be it.
“It won't work... Ain won't agree to it!”
Erylin muttered softly.
Adela, however, was completely unconcerned.
“Why wouldn't he?”
“But... but this really isn't right...”
“Of course it's not!”
Orion interrupted, a rare occurrence.
“Erylin is the primary heir of our family. If there's to be an engagement, that brat has to come ask for your hand himself! How could we let Erylin go begging him?!”
Orion had no intention of letting his daughter suffer any grievances over this.
“Father! That's... that's not the point!”
Erylin had absolutely no idea what had suddenly gotten into her parents.
Wasn't she still far from marriageable age?
She was still studying at the academy!
“Don't worry, Erylin! Until that brat humbles himself and comes to find you in person, I will absolutely not allow you to get engaged to him!”
Adela let out a sigh and replied with a worried face, “It's just an engagement. Erylin and the children are still growing. Why are you putting so much pressure on them?”
“If that boy really doesn't come to get engaged to Erylin and gets snatched away by someone else instead, what will Erylin do?”
Orion replied with absolute confidence, “I can tell with just one look at him. He's exactly the same as I was back in my academy days!”
“Is a guy like that really going to be so sought-after?”
Adela couldn't help but cover her face.
Her husband was so desperate to disparage Ain that he didn't even hesitate to drag himself down with him.
“Besides, if Ain doesn't come to get engaged to Erylin, doesn't that just prove his mind isn't on our daughter at all!”
“What kind of logic is that! Feelings must be nurtured over time! No! Once Ain returns, I will definitely make him get engaged to Erylin!”
Seeing her parents bickering more and more fiercely, Erylin couldn't help but sigh.
Did she really deserve Ain?
...
Cold seawater washed over Ain's arm wave after wave. His academy uniform was already thoroughly soaked, clinging tightly to his body.
The sea had washed his usually neat hair into a messy tangle, with a few wet strands plastered limply across his forehead.
【Character Status】
【HP: Healthy (Fatigued)】
【MP: 3546/3546】
【Negative Effects: Mana Leakage, Mana Overload, Physical Exhaustion, Mental Exhaustion, Divine Backlash】
“Ugh...”
The moment Ain regained consciousness, he felt his chest being repeatedly pressed by someone.
Someone was sitting beside him.
Soon, he felt a pair of warm lips pressing against his own. However, it didn't feel like a kiss; rather, it seemed like they were performing CPR.
Ain suddenly felt that these lips were somewhat familiar, as if he had been treated this way before.
Was it Lillian?
Ain gently raised his hand, wanting to push the person away.
“Lillian, you misunderstand. I didn't drown...”
Ain slowly opened his eyes. His vision was blurry, but his outstretched hand brushed against an exceptionally high mountain peak.
Hiss...
Lillian...
...grew bigger?
Rate on N.U.
