I'm Someone Who Follows the Rules to the Letter!

"Waiting for me?"

Leon suddenly recalled that before he boarded the royal carriage with Miles, Alicia had worriedly told him to be careful.

Her keen perception of emotions had allowed her to sense the unease and dread he felt toward the Sage King.

So... out of concern, she had stood here on the street outside the manor to wait for him?

Leon looked at Alicia.

Her face usually showed either joy and satisfaction or a focused, serious expression when she was working, always quite earnest.

And now, she wore that very same serious look.

Leon smiled slightly, took Alicia's hand, and led her toward the manor.

"Didn't I tell you? I was just going to see His Majesty; nothing was going to happen. Besides, if you wanted to wait, you could have just sat inside the manor."

Alicia, however, replied, "Outside, I, can, see, you, sooner."

"That, way, it, won't, be, like, Little, Seven."

Who the heck was Little Seven?

Was it a dog Alicia used to keep?

Leon patted her head. "Don't worry. I'm a man destined to become the King of Divine Spells. It's not that easy for something to happen to me."

...

The Duke's Manor.

"Brother Leon!"

A crisp shout rang out within the estate as a lively figure rushed out, her face beaming with a youthful smile.

"Isabella."

Leon opened his arms to catch Isabella as she lunged into his embrace, lifting her up slightly as he laughed. "It's been half a year, and you've put on some weight."

The smile on Isabella's face instantly froze. She scrambled out of Leon's arms, raised her foot, and stomped on his toe, puffing out her cheeks in a huff.

"Don't you know you're not supposed to mention a young lady's weight?"

Leon looked at his sister, who was six years younger than him, and laughed. "You're only ten. How can you be considered a young lady?"

"Why wouldn't ten count!" Isabella gave Leon another light kick and said, "When Duchess Sophia was ten, she already dared to enter the Abyss alone to hunt monsters. Back then, people called her the 'Ice-Blade Maiden'!"

"Duchess Sophia was already at the Silver rank when she was ten. What about you?" Leon countered with a grin.

Isabella pouted. "I... I'm almost there..."

"Almost at the Silver rank? Or almost able to hold a sword properly?"

"Ugh! It's all the same!"

Isabella shook her head guiltily, and only then did she notice Alicia standing behind Leon.

Her small face turned red in an instant, and she hurried to perform a formal greeting. "Hello, Miss Alicia!"

Old Hunter's letters back to the capital had mentioned Alicia's existence. So, when Isabella saw those eyes as clear as emeralds, she recognized her immediately.

Isabella stepped on Leon's foot again. "It's all your fault, Brother Leon! You made me act so rudely in front of Miss Alicia!"

Leon could only cry foul. Alicia had been standing right behind him the whole time; Isabella just hadn't noticed her.

Then he got stepped on again.

"Hello,"

Alicia smiled and greeted Isabella in return.

That smile momentarily dazed Isabella. She quickly leaned in and whispered into Leon's ear:

"Brother Leon, Miss Alicia's smile is so beautiful, much better than Miss O'Henry's fake smile. You have to marry Miss Alicia and make her stay here!"

Leon glanced at the little brat. "Do you even know what 'marry' means?"

"Hmph! Is there anything I don't know?" Isabella said, tilting her head up proudly.

Leon rubbed her round little face and led her and Alicia into the manor house.

"Welcome back, the great hero who saved Solainem!"

The manor doors opened, and a young man in a tailored black tailcoat with a scholarly air spoke. He had a faint smile on his face and opened his arms wide.

"Brother Liam."

Leon shared a hug with Liam.

The young man was his older brother, Liam Douglas. He was an adult and worked in the Empire's Decree Implementation Department, currently a rising star in the imperial political arena.

"This must be Miss Alicia? Our Douglas family will forever remember your kindness in saving Leon's life," Liam said, turning his gaze toward Alicia.

"No, need, for, thanks. Leon, priest, also, saved, me," Alicia replied.

Liam looked slightly surprised to hear Alicia speaking one word at a time, but his refined noble upbringing allowed him to quickly suppress his astonishment. He then said:

"Come inside quickly. Father and Mother have been waiting for a long time."

At the dinner banquet, Leon's mother, Luna, was constantly showing her concern. One moment it was, "You suffered so much in Solainem, you've grown so thin," and the next it was, "As expected of my son, to become the great hero of Solainem."

After fussing over Leon, Luna began questioning Alicia as if she were conducting a census.

It wasn't until the banquet ended that everyone's excitement finally waned enough for them to head off to rest.

Leon sat on the bed in his room, seeing that everything had been kept exactly as it was. He couldn't help but smile slightly as he entered a state of Holy Light Meditation.

His experience in Solainem had made him deeply realize the importance of strength.

And the Sage King's remark—"Your level is too low; you are not qualified to know the answer to this question"—felt like swallowing a fly every time he thought about it.

Even if my strength is low... couldn't you be a bit more subtle! Be a little more tactful when you say it!

Does a man destined to become the King of Divine Spells not deserve any dignity?

Leon finally understood why a single sentence from Zhang Youhong could be remembered for sixty years by the man who ended the era of the supernatural.

If it were him, he'd remember it for sixty years too!

Cultivate! Keep cultivating!

Leon chanted holy hymns and cast the Wish spell, quickly entering the deep state of Holy Light Meditation.

...

The next day.

In front of the doors of the Royal Library.

"Library token. If you don't have one, don't come here and bother me."

A white-haired old man glanced at Leon nonchalantly, his tone blunt.

The old man didn't radiate any aura of rank, appearing just like an ordinary elderly person. However, Leon didn't believe for a second that a place like the Royal Library would have just any ordinary old man guarding the door.

This guy was most likely some kind of hidden master.

Leon took out the library token gifted by the Sage King and displayed it in his palm.

In the next second, the token in Leon's hand vanished instantly, reappearing in the white-haired old man's hand across a distance of seven or eight meters.

The old man scrutinized the token for a moment, confirming it wasn't a forgery or a magical disguise. Only then did he give it a casual squeeze, crushing the sturdy token imbued with the Sage King's mana into sparkling dust.

The old man glanced at Alicia behind Leon. As he opened the doors to the Royal Library, he said, "One token allows only one person inside."

"I know. She is my guard; she won't be going in."

"Guard?" The old man turned his eyes to sweep over Leon. "You have a God-Chosen of the God of Thieves acting as your guard?"

Leon was startled and was about to speak when the old man waved him off.

"Forget it, I'm not interested in such things."

"Since you're the one going in, listen well to the rules of the library."

The old man began his explanation:

"First, you have only thirty minutes to make your selection. Once the time is up, you must leave the library, whether you've chosen a book or not."

"Second, it is strictly forbidden to use recording crystals or any form of recording spells or divine spells to attempt to copy the contents of the collection."

"The library is covered by multiple layers of high-level detection and disruption spells; all recording methods are useless. If you are detected attempting to record anything, you will be expelled immediately, and the matter will be reported to His Majesty for punishment."

"Third, once inside, you may browse freely. However, be aware that all books are under a high-level Oblivion spell."

"Therefore, it is impossible to reproduce the content through memory. Don't even think about it. If you want to remember the contents, there is only one way—use your single borrowing privilege to check the book out."

"Fourth, even a borrowed book remains protected by Oblivion and detection spells. No one other than the borrower can read or memorize the content, and you are not permitted to let others view the book."

The old man fixed his gaze on Leon and asked, "Do you understand these rules?"

Hearing this, Leon nodded obediently. "Don't you worry, I'm someone who follows the rules to the letter!"

The old man finally nodded and allowed Leon to enter the library.