Moriarty Is Loved

On the other side, the Silver and Tin Palace.

After reading the newspaper, Isabel breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness..."

Although she knew from the beginning that Iver had only faked his death and disappeared, seeing so many people from the Noble Red still made her feel nervous for Iver.

In any case, Mr. Iver was just a frail and helpless priest who could only move around in a wheelchair...

Could something really have happened?

She worries about this every day, and she reads the newspaper first thing every morning. Isabel, who doesn't usually read newspapers, has bought a lot of them these past few days.

—I just didn't dare show it to Yulia.

Fortunately, Yulia's attention is easily distracted.

Isabel sent Yulia to learn alchemy from the Court Alchemist, and she was gone.

It is said that Yulia has been so engrossed in alchemical practice these past few days that she has been working so hard that she has forgotten to eat and sleep.

She was truly engrossed in studying day and night, even frightening the old man—he came to Isabel several times to tell Isabel that Yulia simply wouldn't sleep. No matter what he said, she wouldn't listen, lying down for three or four hours before getting up to continue studying. When she was sleepy, she would drink Energy Potion Energy Potion instead of sleeping, completely ignoring the side effects they caused.

It took Isabel herself to persuade her to fall asleep.

She also had to hold Yulia while she slept to prevent Yulia from getting up in the middle of the night to read.

Isabel simply couldn't understand why Yulia studied so diligently... She wasn't the kind of fool who couldn't keep up with her peers without effort; she was an exceptionally intelligent genius. Even the Court Alchemist had praised Yulia's talent.

Before retiring to become Court Alchemist, the old man was a very strict university tutor.

Meanwhile, he was in the explosives business in Avalon. He used to be Stibnite Person, but was ostracized by his peers and came to Avalon. Now, it can be said that... at least in the field of chemically and alchemically synthesized explosives, he is basically at the top of the industry.

His most frequent saying was, "I can let you pass the Final Exam, but I won't let you pass the various accidents that happen in the experiments." At that time, the subject with the lowest pass rate at Milton University was the "Alchemy and Chemistry Safety Regulations" he taught.

The old professor was a very rare and rather old-fashioned type of professor—if you failed either the written exam or the lab exam, he wouldn't add a single point to your participation grade, nor would he arrange a make-up exam; you'd have to retake the course. Only after you passed both sections through your own merit would he make up for the lost participation grade all at once.

The fact that she received his approval was enough to prove how diligently Yulia studied.

Even under Yulia's guidance, Isabel began to study. Yanis had already given her quite a few extra lessons, but she still had plenty of time to relax.

But every time she took a break, she would see Yulia still studying, and she would feel inexplicably guilty... so she could only get up and continue studying.

The result is... even though Iver Moriarty was away these past few days, her personal time was still being taken up by another Moriarty.

Thanks to Yulia's tireless dedication to her studies, she didn't insist on going home. Yulia cherished the opportunity to study alchemy with Master Nobel, and even before Isabel had to think of a lie, she proactively provided a way out for Isabel.

This also relieved Isabel.

Although she is a "All-rounder", she is indeed not good at lying.

Now that she had confirmed that Iver was safe, she happily hummed a little tune.

As for that young lady named Aleister... Isabel didn't care much about her.

Based on her understanding of Iver, those words were clearly not his usual line—if he were to compliment someone, it wouldn't be something like "very elegant and beautiful."

"Family, life, dreams, what we read, what we do, what we think... Two different hearts, two souls that have not yet overlapped, are like two exquisitely carved gems. When they overlap, face the sunlight, and turn slightly, they can reflect a myriad of colors on the wall—that is the spark that bursts forth from different thoughts. I call it chatting."

"—And if, by chance, it rotates to a certain angle and reveals a dazzling beauty that catches the eye and is unforgettable for a lifetime—that is the focus of the soul. I call it love."

This is what the guy codenamed "Fox" said when Isabel first met Iver.

Even now, Isabel remembers every single word. They were words so elegant, so magnificent, so dazzling, yet so warm...

This is the kind of thing Iver would say.

His current statement... most likely indicates that the Bureau of Supervision wants to use Iver to instigate internal strife within the Noble Red Society.

After all, he didn't really disappear.

Perhaps this Aleister doesn't even exist, and is just a fake identity of Iver? Meanwhile, Yulia, who was sitting in her room reading and doing her homework, caught a glimpse of the light in Isabel's eyes and the sudden relaxation in her demeanor, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

—It seems my brother is alright.

Yulia thought to herself.

The girl calmly brought her peripheral vision and some of her attention back to the outside world, turned to the next page of her book, and began to concentrate fully on her homework.

She had always vaguely sensed a strange anxiety and low spirits emanating from Isabel. Yulia understood perfectly; it was the same feeling she had when Iver was attacked on his first day of school, or when she had finished reading the newspaper while her brother was still not home.

I'm very worried and anxious. I can't sleep well, and sometimes I have nightmares when I do fall asleep. I also have no appetite when I wake up.

Now, it's finally the other people's turn.

... It seems that Isabel really does like her brother.

Yulia felt a growing appreciation for Isabel.

But that's not enough.

At the very least, it has to be something more intense than what I like...

Yanis smiled as she looked at the two girls sitting opposite Isabel in her bedroom, reading books and newspapers. Her paintbrush never stopped, but she gently urged them, "It's time to go to school, Isabel."

"Oh well..."

Isabel replied.

Her voice was no longer filled with worry, but had become clear again.

Tsk tsk, still not working, Isabel.

She still has a lot to learn from Miss Yulia's acting skills...

Yanis thought to herself.

Meanwhile, at the Royal Law University.

Professor Bard, who was short in stature, finally breathed a sigh of relief after reading the newspaper.

"Looks like Iver is alright, and has even had a new romantic affair."

He really had to Dean Meg. He thought to himself with a chuckle.

At that moment, Ms. Meg walked into his office.

"Hey, Bard!"

The old lady's voice was loud and clear, full of laughter and energy. "Have you read the newspaper?"

"I've seen it, thank you... Dean Meg."

Professor Bard expressed his gratitude.

"Hey, it's nothing. Even if you hadn't asked me, I probably would have handled it anyway. Isabel likes him a lot; he might just be Prince Iver someday."

Meg, with one hand on her hip and a small bottle of rum in the other, couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Not to mention, it gives me an excuse to deal with those Lloyd's's guys—I've been wanting to get back at them for ages! Want a drink? Captain Brand."

"No, thank you. Dean Meg, you should also drink less alcohol..."

Bud suggested gently, "You're already this old..."

"Whether you drink or not, you'll be dying soon anyway. While you're alive, live life to the fullest and don't miss out on any enjoyment; when you die, die happily and without any regrets."

Meg didn't take it seriously. "When it's time for a person to die, they should just obediently die. If you don't die when it's your turn, then you can expect to be targeted by Amber."

"I don't want to be frozen. That posture is too ugly. Do you want to, Bud? You're not young anymore."

"I still have a long way to go. I'm in good health."

Bard laughed and said, "I'm planning to go to the Theocracy for an archaeological expedition next year—by then Iver's legs should be almost healed, and he said he'd come with me. I've been looking forward to it for a long time."

"Oh, speaking of that."

Meg took another swig of her drink and casually remarked, "There's an exchange student program next year. The Theocracy wants to send a few students from their seminary to teach Advanced Divine Arts for six months."

"Advanced Divine Arts?"

Professor Bard paused for a moment, unsure where to begin his rant. "Can it really be taught in six months? Wait... have the long-eared creatures finally decided to teach humans this?"

"Hey, I think it's all about attitude."

Meg scoffed, letting out a burp. "You think you can't learn it in six months? I don't think you can either. They probably think so too—but I think Iver might actually be able to learn it."

"He's only been practicing the Path of Dedication for a short time, and he's already heading straight for the Third Level. When I was drinking with Yanis, she said she thought Iver would advance to the Third Level next month... Nobel told me that Yulia is also a genius. James is definitely good at drawing jokers."

"I think, Bard... why don't we let him give it a try? After you finish the archaeological expedition with him, it will be around the time the school starts in the Theocracy, right? It's just that you'll lose a good teaching assistant, and you'll have to work hard for another six months."

"If it's something that's good for the child, let him go if he wants to. I'm very flexible here; we can do it a little earlier, so as not to miss his opportunity."

Professor Bard chuckled and said, "This is a rare opportunity... Even if he doesn't learn it, he can still gain the friendship of the elves. After all, he's among the first humans to receive Advanced Divine Arts education, and who knows, he might inherit Bishop Mathers's position. No, who knows, he might even make his mark on history—after all, history pays special attention to the 'first,' 'first time,' and 'first batch' aspects."

"Then let him decide for himself."

Meg said decisively.

She thought for a moment, then slapped her thigh. "I still have to warn him—don't get too close to those shady women from Noble Red. They're either after his manhood or his kidneys. In short, they're not good girls."

"Alright, you can prepare your lesson now. I'm going to go cause trouble for the old men."

"... Who are you going to cause trouble for now?"

Bard sighed, "Dean, you're so busy."

He and Meg have known each other for a long time.

Back then, he was a confident and composed young man, but Meg had always had this kind of personality in her teenage years—time changed many things, but it did not change Meg.

Just as if she were immune to the hourglass, time left few marks on Meg's heart.

"I don't know, I haven't thought it through. Anyway, one by one, there aren't many that are without problems. I won't wrong anyone."

Meg laughed heartily, "Don't panic, let me roll the dice to decide... Hmm, let's go find Charles. Hopefully he's already up."

Charles Drost —that's the name of the Minister of Trade.

Budd observed three seconds of silence for him.

Update complete! 6500 words! Taking a break definitely worked! My sleep schedule and overall condition are back to normal!