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Join the ServerThe moment she stepped out of the royal palace, Lia took a deep breath of the cold air.
It was the taste of freedom.
And also the taste of money.
“We’re rich.”
She grabbed Klein’s arm, her eyes shining like two stars.
“Unrestricted access to the royal treasury!”
“Do you know what that means?”
“It means we can get free materials to build a high-energy particle accelerator!”
Klein looked at her excited expression, and the corners of his mouth turned up unconsciously.
“You were very brave in there just now.”
“Of course.”
Lia puffed out her chest.
“Who am I? I’m the woman who’s going to become an Archmage.”
“But…”
She suddenly lowered her voice and leaned close to Klein’s ear.
“Actually, my legs were weak at the time.”
“That Augustus, his aura is really strong.”
“If you weren’t by my side, I might have really couldn’t help but throw those few bombs out.”
Klein chuckled softly.
He reached out and ruffled her hair.
“With me here, you don’t need to throw bombs.”
“I know.”
Lia rubbed her face in his palm.
Like a cat being petted.
“Ouch, my teeth.”
An exaggerated groan came from the side.
Horace clutched his cheek, looking at the two of them with a disgusted expression.
“Can you two be a little more considerate of us lonely old folks?”
“Exactly.”
Laplace also pushed up his glasses.
“Young people these days, they have no shame. Hugging and cuddling in public. What has the world come to!”
Only Eleonora watched them with a smile.
“I think it’s quite nice. It’s good to be young.”
Lia’s face turned red, and she quickly let go of Klein’s arm.
She stood up straight and proper.
“Thank you, esteemed Archmages, for saving my life today.”
She bowed.
“Cut the formalities.”
Horace waved his hand.
“We didn’t help for free. Just what you said in the palace, I want to use that particle accelerator for free too!”
“And that large astronomical telescope you mentioned.”
Laplace also came over.
“How did you know I really wanted that thing? You’re practically the person who understands me best!”
The group of people walked towards the Academy, chatting along the way.
What should have been a thrilling court coup was turned into an academic seminar by their conversation.
And on the other side.
Inside the royal palace.
Augustus sat in the ruins.
The attendants were carefully cleaning up the debris on the floor.
A shadow in a black robe emerged from a corner.
It was the leader of the royal family’s secret guard.
“Your Majesty.”
The shadow’s voice was hoarse and low.
“Do you need me to… take care of them?”
“Take care of them?”
Augustus slapped his loyal subordinate across the face.
“How are you going to take care of them? That old madman Horace has three forbidden spells in his hands. That star-player Laplace can smash meteorites on your head.
And that flower-grower Eleonora, her vines can suck you into a dried corpse. Plus those two freaks who can even dismantle the ‘Absolute Royal Authority’. Are you… going to your death?”
The shadow was silent.
‘Indeed.’
‘That lineup, even if the entire secret guard was thrown in, it probably wouldn’t be enough for them to chew on.’
“Then… are we just going to let it go?”
“What else can we do?”
Augustus sighed.
He stood up and walked to the window.
He looked at the tall mage tower in the distance.
It was brightly lit.
A symbol of the most brilliant minds in this country.
“Times have changed, Shadow.”
Augustus said softly.
He recalled what Lia had said earlier.
“‘A defensive array based on the principles of quantum mechanics.'”
Although he didn’t understand it, it sounded very impressive.
“Go.”
Augustus suddenly ordered.
“Inform the Minister of Finance. Cut next year’s military budget in half. And allocate all of it to the Royal Academy of Sciences.”
The shadow was stunned.
“Your Majesty, this…”
“Do as I say.”
Augustus’s gaze became firm.
“If you can’t beat them, join them. Since I cannot monopolize the truth, I will become the largest shareholder of the truth.”
“Also.”
Augustus pointed to the broken gate.
“Find the best craftsman and fix this door. No.”
He changed his mind.
“Don’t fix it. Just put up a sign here. And write: No Ninth Circle Mages allowed to pass.”
Shadow: “…”
‘Your Majesty, has your anger muddled your brain?’
Of course, Augustus was not muddled.
He had just suddenly understood a principle.
In this new world full of variables, it was better to be a smart person who understood the times than to be a high and mighty loner.
Even if this smart person was occasionally extorted for a large sum of money.
As long as he could keep his throne, this was a profitable deal.
Moreover.
He was very curious.
With this money, what kind of surprises, or… scares, could that little girl named Lia bring to this world?
***
The days after the storm were so calm they felt unreal.
No roars from Laurent, no threats from the king.
Only the royal supply carts that arrived on time every day, and the dizzyingly long string of numbers in her bank account.
Lia felt like a mouse that had fallen into a rice jar.
Happy, and decadent.
“Open your mouth.”
“Ah—”
Lia obediently opened her mouth.
A neatly cut piece of strawberry cake was placed inside.
The cream was dense, the strawberries sweet and sour.
Perfect.
She closed her eyes and let out a satisfied sigh.
At this moment, she was curled up on the sofa on the top floor of the mage tower.
A thick woolen blanket was draped over her.
In her hands, she held a copy of “Introduction to Quantum Mechanics” (Klein’s handwritten revised edition).
And the feared Master Klein of the magical world had now transformed into a professional feeder.
“Is it good?”
“Delicious.”
Lia licked the cream from the corner of her mouth.
“Klein, your skills are getting better and better. If you ever don’t want to be a mage anymore, you could open a dessert shop. It would definitely be a hit all over the continent.”
“I won’t.”
Klein forked another piece of cake.
“Why?”
“Too much trouble.”
Klein held the cake to her lips.
“Besides, I only make it for you.”
Lia’s face blushed slightly.
‘This guy.’
“Oh, right.”
Lia said indistinctly, chewing on the cake.
“I’ve already drawn up the blueprints for the particle accelerator. But there’s a problem.”
“What problem?”
“The cooling system.”
Lia frowned.
“Conventional water cooling can’t handle that level of heat. I need a more efficient cooling medium.”
“Liquid hydrogen?”
Klein suggested an idea.
It was a concept Lia had mentioned in a previous paper.
“Yes, but refining liquid hydrogen is too difficult. The current equipment can’t reach the low-temperature environment I want.”
Klein put down the plate.
He untied his apron and sat down beside Lia.
“Remember what I did to that metal arm at the Academy the other day?”
“You mean, the Absolute Zero Field?”
Lia’s eyes lit up.
“That’s right.”
Klein held out his hand.
A ball of ice-blue light condensed in his palm.
The surrounding temperature instantly dropped.
But it wasn’t biting.
Because he controlled it with extreme precision.
He only formed a microscopic, extremely low-temperature field around his palm.
“I can solidify this magic into a rune array. To serve as the cooling core. Although it can’t reach true absolute zero, it’s more than enough to liquefy hydrogen gas.”
Lia looked at the ball of light.
Then she looked at Klein’s serious profile.
She suddenly felt that this was the most wonderful combination of magic and science.
Science provides the theory.
Magic provides the shortcut.
And they provided each other’s inspiration.
“Klein.”
“Mmm?”
“You’re a genius.”
Lia praised sincerely.
“Takes one to know one.”
Klein dispersed the magic in his hands.
He turned his head and looked at Lia.
His blue eyes reflected the starry sky outside the window, and the girl before him.
The atmosphere suddenly became a little subtle.
The air seemed to be filled with a sweetness even greater than that of the strawberry cake.
Lia’s heart began to race.
She instinctively clutched the book in her hands.
“Um…”
She tried to find a topic to break the shy silence.
“You… aren’t you eating?”
“I don’t like sweets.”
Klein moved a little closer.
Their breaths mingled.
“But,”
His gaze fell on Lia’s lips, which were dotted with a little cream.
“I suddenly feel like trying some now.”
Lia’s brain instantly shut down.
What kind of wolfish words were these?
Before she could react, Klein had already lowered his head.
He gently, kissed away the bit of cream at the corner of her mouth.
The warm touch was fleeting.
But it was like an electric current that instantly broke through all of Lia’s defenses.
Her face was as red as a ripe tomato.
She shrank into the blanket.
Only revealing a pair of moist eyes, looking at him accusingly.
“You… you’re cheating!”
“Am I?”
Klein licked his lips.
As if savoring the taste.
“It is indeed quite sweet.”
He said with a smile.
A hint of triumphant cunning in that smile.
“Next time, we can have something even sweeter.”
Lia buried her head in her book and didn’t dare to look at him again.
The night was gentle. The stars were bright.
You think this chapter was thrilling? Wait until you read Did Mr. Villain Cross Into the Wrong Book?! Click here to discover the next big twist!
Read : Did Mr. Villain Cross Into the Wrong Book?
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