Return to the Academy

When the tent flap was lifted again, everyone saw Chen Cheng, full of life and vigor, following behind Melinda.

It was at this moment that the little loli, Fini, finally had the time to put on her mistress's airs and scold Chen Cheng alone.

"You idiot, are you tired of living? What did I tell you before? I said I would protect you if there was danger.

What are you showing off for in front of me with your meager skills? You actually took my things without my permission.

Who do you think you are?"

Fini said this while hitting his chest with her hand, and then tears began to stream down her face.

Seeing this, Melinda led everyone away. She knew Fini was very worried about Chen Cheng and that they needed some space.

When Chen Cheng saw that no one was paying attention to them, he directly hugged Fini.

Fini squirmed in his arms for a moment, then stopped moving.

Chen Cheng rested his chin on Fini's forehead and whispered softly:

"You have to trust your little slave. Your little slave is different. That mere Earth Tyrant Bear can't do anything to me."

"Besides, I even killed the Earth Tyrant Bear that scared you, Miss Fini, in the end."

Chen Cheng lowered his head and whispered in Fini's ear.

Fini was startled when she heard this, "What did you say? You're really not lying to me?"

"Of course not. How could I lie to my lovely Miss Fini? If you don't believe me, you can ask Teacher Melinda."

However, Fini did not become excited. Instead, she started crying again.

She wasn't stupid. She knew how much it would cost Chen Cheng to kill that Earth Tyrant Bear.

At the same time, she blamed herself. If she hadn't been so willful, Chen Cheng wouldn't have been in danger and gotten hurt.

Seeing this, Chen Cheng hugged her again and comforted her properly.

Fini, who had stopped crying, broke free from his embrace, snorted, and left directly.

Chen Cheng was also a bit confused, not knowing why the young lady was throwing another tantrum.

However, seeing her throw a tantrum made Chen Cheng feel much more at ease.

What Chen Cheng didn't see was Fini muttering as she left:

"Never, never, never again."

Not long after Fini left, the little fatty Akasto came waddling towards him.

At this moment, the little fatty Akasto's face was no longer the smiling, cheerful one from before. He glanced around, then leaned down and whispered in Chen Cheng's ear:

"Be careful of that shorty Coles. When we were being chased by that berserk Earth Tyrant Bear in the mountains, I noticed that the big guy next to that shorty was hiding in the bushes near us."

Hearing this news, Chen Cheng's thoughts changed. He had previously thought it was just a coincidence, but now, with Akasto's reminder, Chen Cheng realized something was wrong.

The notice for this practical class had been issued by the academy a month ago. He believed that the army stationed here would have already cleared this forest, either driving away or killing any fierce beasts that could truly endanger the students' safety.

Otherwise, the academy would not be able to bear the responsibility if these noble children were injured or killed.

Moreover, the Earth Tyrant Bear was so huge. According to the beast encyclopedia, the Earth Tyrant Bear was a lazy Magical Beast. Its lair was fixed, and it spent most of its time sleeping in its lair.

If there really was an Earth Tyrant Bear in this area, it should have been cleared out by the soldiers long ago.

Chen Cheng did not react excessively; his expression remained as usual.

Then, he bragged to Akasto about how fast he had escaped, and the two acted as if one was showing off and the other was saying, "I could do that too."

Coles, who had been watching Chen Cheng from afar, couldn't stop his eyes from darting around. He didn't know if Akasto had discovered him in the forest earlier.

However, looking at the Image Recording Crystal in his hand, none of that mattered anymore. Even if people found out, so what? He just wanted to kill a slave, and it was attempted murder, so there was nothing to be afraid of.

As for Fini and Akasto being frightened, that was just being frightened.

At this moment, Chen Cheng's thoughts were the same as Coles'. He also knew his current identity. Even if it were revealed that Coles wanted to murder him, what then?

Moreover, it was possible that because his plan failed, some crazy noble might think that a slave had offended their noble status and directly get him killed.

Although this thought was absurd, considering the unified empire that his current body represented, it ultimately collapsed due to a rumor, true or false, leading to the demise of a vast empire.

Therefore, Chen Cheng truly did not believe that the vested interests in this twisted and absurd world would have the thoughts of a normal person.

The little fatty also reminded Chen Cheng to keep an eye on Coles, lest he be ambushed again without even knowing who his enemy was.

At the same time, he secretly vowed that after returning this time, he would make the William family pay.

Because he also knew that this was all he could do. His family could not truly oppose a noble just because of a scare.

At this moment, in the mentor's tent, Isabel, who had just entered, her expression changed. Then, she looked at Melinda with the eyes of someone looking at a madman.

In her hand was already a sharp dagger emitting a chilling killing intent.

Melinda, who was still immersed in resolving the rift with Chen Cheng, knew something was wrong when she saw Isabel's expression.

She knew her best friend's temper very well. Seeing her like this was a precursor to murder.

Melinda quickly stepped forward and grabbed her hand, but Isabel said in a cold tone:

"Do you know what you're doing? If this behavior of yours gets out, you'll be burned at the stake. Haven't you considered me or Teacher Adolf?

For you, and for me and Mentor Adolf, I have to kill that little slave."

Isabel's words were exceptionally cold, but Melinda could only manage a bitter smile, tears welling up in her eyes again.

Seeing her best friend like this, Isabel's heart ached, and her killing intent towards Chen Cheng intensified by another third.

"Isabel, there's nothing between him and me. Yes, I confessed my feelings to him, but he rejected me. Now, I only see him as my younger brother. You can't kill him now."

Melinda was even willing to ruin her own reputation to dispel Isabel's murderous intent towards Chen Cheng.

Upon hearing that Chen Cheng had rejected her, Isabel felt a lot more at ease, but for some reason, her annoyance towards Chen Cheng increased by another third.

Then, she put away the dagger in her hand.

Seeing Isabel put away her dagger, Melinda's hanging heart finally relaxed.

Although Isabel held a deep prejudice against Chen Cheng due to his status, she believed that Chen Cheng would eventually cast off his slave identity and become a powerful noble.

That's right, even now, all Melinda could think about was that as long as Chen Cheng gained true noble status, the two of them could finally be together.

After tidying up their belongings, the two left the tent. Upon arriving outside, the commanding officer of the camp was waiting for them outside the tent.

This officer was a tall, rough-looking middle-aged man. He wore steel armor crafted by the kingdom's magical artisans and a long sword engraved with magical inscriptions at his waist.

At this moment, his expression was somewhat haggard, not only because of the Earth Tyrant Bear that Chen Cheng and the others had encountered, but also because something had happened in the mountain area within their defense zone where Hui Dun was located.

When Melinda and the other young woman saw this general, they didn't show any pleasantries. Although Isabel disliked Chen Cheng, that somewhat impetuous slave student who liked to show off.

However, with the appearance of powerful fierce beasts like the Earth Tyrant Bear, and no matter what, Chen Cheng was a member of the academy, and this general was also at fault for not maintaining strict defenses.

Although Como was a general, he didn't have much confidence when facing Melinda and the other young woman. After all, this was a world where extraordinary powers existed.

In the Kingdom of Moss, masters who reached the Gold rank were few and far between, let alone Melinda, who was already at the peak of Gold, and Isabel, who was at Gold rank in both magic and combat.

These two women, wherever they went on the continent, whether it was any country or any noble territory, would be treated with the courtesy of distinguished guests.

And what's more, his own strength as a general hadn't even reached the Gold rank.

After Isabel severely reprimanded him in a military tone, she waved him away.

At the same time, the academy students, seeing the way Isabel and the other teacher had just reprimanded the general, had stars twinkling in their eyes.

Fini, in particular, admired Isabel the most among all the teachers at the academy.

This General Como was usually not so easy to deal with. In the mountain entrance area under his jurisdiction, if their fathers wanted to send people into the forest through his defense zone, they had to beg and plead just to get permission.

Melinda saw that the young students had packed their bags. Due to the appearance of the Earth Tyrant Bear, this practical class was now concluded.

Although the class time wasn't sufficient, the lessons that needed to be taught to these young students had been conveyed, and they had also learned about the terror of the fierce beasts on this continent.

However, after everyone left, the fierce beasts in the outer areas of the forest suffered. General Como directly led his men and scoured the outer areas as if they were plowing the land. And he actually made some discoveries, such as the fifth-level Vine Snake, which was skilled at hidden ambushes.

If Chen Cheng and the others had encountered this creature before, the three of them would truly have been poisoned to death by this snake without even realizing it.