Clean as New

Horn felt he must be crazy.

He had taken Miss Anna to Fireplace Bay, even preparing himself to face the wrath of the family head, only to return with just 12 scrolls of basic Elemental Shaping Magic.

Nine Ice Arrow scrolls and three Fireball Spell scrolls.

But besides this, no one else could help them.

By the time they returned to the mansion, it was almost dawn. He tiptoed as he pushed open the door, poked his head out to look around, and seeing no one, quietly urged Miss Anna to hurry back to her room.

This was their only chance. The master had been summoned by the Pope and would be in the Holy City for several days.

He stood at the door, watching Miss Anna's retreating figure as she ran upstairs, only letting out a sigh of relief when she disappeared around the corner of the staircase.

Immediately after, a man's mocking voice rang out, "How was it? Did you have fun at Fireplace Bay? Did you find any Magisters willing to help you deal with me?"

Seeing the figure slowly emerging from the shadows, Horn's heart leaped into his throat.

The man stroked his mustache, a slight smirk playing on his lips, his expression a fake smile. "Among the Magisters you found, one happens to be my former student. He told me all about Miss Anna's wish. 'Evil magician'? This is the first time someone has described me like that."

"Miss Anna is young and a bit ignorant."

"But Mr. Horn, you are no longer a child. Am I to understand you intend to openly defy the family head's orders?"

"I have no objection to the master's orders."

Horn took a deep breath and glared back, unyielding this time. "But that child has been loyal to the family since childhood. His father died for the family. This expedition is a sure path to death. To forbid them from seeing each other one last time would be too..."

"Miss Anna is betrothed to Young Master Aisok. This marriage was decided the moment she was born."

Hearing this, a flicker of anger flashed in Horn's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

Aisok's ill repute was known throughout the Imperial Capital. He frequented places of ill repute and had once abused three dancers to death. After the scandal died down, he didn't curb his behavior; instead, he escalated, causing another death just a month ago. Horn remembered how Aisok had looked at Anna during his last visit, like he was ogling a pretty toy.

Who would entrust their daughter to such a beast?

But Anna's father was just that kind of person.

Simply because Aisok's father was the founder of Imperial Military Industry, this marriage alliance would bring him countless political resources.

In reality, they didn't care about Anna's future; they just wanted her to be an obedient commodity for exchange.

"Young Master Aisok wants his fiancée to be pure, not just physically, but in reputation as well," the man with the mustache said coldly. "If news of Miss Anna meeting secretly with some unknown brat gets out, what will Young Master Aisok and his family think?"

Horn remained silent.

The man before him was a Grand Magus of the Astrology Society, bestowed the title "Silver Fox" by the Empire, signifying his crucial position within the society. In truth, he was sent by Imperial Military Industry to "educate" Anna.

Aisok had become infatuated with magic, and he wanted his fiancée to become a Magician. The master had actually allowed this man to come to the mansion to manage Anna's life.

"It seems you have nothing more to say. When the family head returns, I will report your actions in full." A malicious smile spread across Silver Fox's face. "As for Miss Anna, I will educate her into a good wife."

The sound of shattering glass interrupted their conversation.

The sound came from upstairs, in the direction of Anna's bedroom.

The noise was exceptionally clear in the quiet late night, and it also caused Silver Fox's expression to change, as he sensed a powerful fluctuation of Magic Power.

But... how was this possible?

His student had reported that all the experts in Fireplace Bay dared not accept the commission upon hearing his name. This was an expected outcome, which was why, upon receiving the news, he hadn't personally gone to bring them back to the mansion.

In Silver Fox's view, sometimes the sense of despair brought by inaction was even stronger.

Even if they secretly fled to Fireplace Bay, they wouldn't find anyone to help them. This would teach Anna a lesson, making her more obedient in future education.

After all, Aisok liked obedient girls.

With a dull thud, Silver Fox's figure turned into black smoke and ghosted into Anna's room.

The room was empty, save for the broken window and the cold wind that continuously blew in from outside.

Horn arrived late. When he entered the room, panting, he was almost immediately stunned by the sight at the window.

Heisenberg had said that the basic Ice Arrow was drawn into the magic scroll, but the ice sculpture at the window had nothing to do with Ice Arrow. He didn't know what to call this spell—the magic power from the scroll had condensed into a spiral slide tens of meters long. By the time it reached the window, Anna had already slid a distance. She clutched the hem of her white lace dress, shouting excitedly.

It was as if this was a slide leading to a fairytale world, just like in novels.

Horn noticed Silver Fox's face turn pale, clearly also awestruck by the exquisite ice magic.

But soon, Silver Fox revealed his true nature as an "evil magician." A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and his body once again turned into black smoke, rushing out the window and heading straight towards Anna at an even faster speed.

He couldn't discern the essence of this spell for a moment, but this was not a fairytale world.

In the real world, a runaway young lady eloping could never succeed.

Silver Fox arrived before Anna.

The damsel in distress saw him and became somewhat flustered.

"Miss Anna, you're becoming more and more mischievous."

Silver Fox looked down at Anna, scrutinizing her. After such an unseemly act, she should be terrified.

In fact, Anna had always been afraid of him, because he possessed many magic techniques that caused pain without leaving physical scars.

Aisok mentioned that he disliked defective products and that his fiancée had to be as good as new before being sent over.

He continued, "Have you forgotten what the Heart Devouring Curse feels like?"

As expected, Anna's face turned ashen. She retreated several steps in fear, her eyes filled with wariness as she looked at him.

Silver Fox was quite pleased with Anna's reaction. He believed that pain was the best teacher, especially for a child of Anna's age. He continued to guide her, "If you don't want to relive that feeling, hand over the scroll in your hand to me."

This statement, however, seemed to remind Anna of something.

Her gaze shifted back and forth between the scroll and Silver Fox for a long time. Suddenly, she made up her mind, bit her lip, and tore open three magic scrolls right before Silver Fox's astonished eyes.