Night Ambush

"Junior disciple, don't overthink it. Our mentor is just like that, not good at expressing his feelings."

On the way back, Shatuo comforted Reilo.

Young scholars occasionally stopped to bow to Shatuo's mentor. The academy had a strong culture of respecting teachers and valuing virtue. Whenever he encountered familiar students, Shatuo would offer his signature smile. His dark complexion contrasted sharply with his white teeth, and he viewed these scholars as the future of the academy.

Reilo's face was etched with pain.

"Does the mentor only see Senior Brother Wushuang in his eyes?"

Thinking of Wushuang's warm care for him, Reilo's resentment suddenly turned into a profound sense of loss, even a touch of inferiority. It was like Anna, jealous of the God of Light, feeling powerless and helpless.

Compared to the many rumors about Senior Brother Wushuang, his own so-called achievements were utterly insignificant.

Shatuo patted Reilo's shoulder.

"Junior disciple, the mentor once said that this world itself is unfair. Some people are not only born superior but also put in far more effort than others. They are true geniuses! Living under the same sky as them is the sorrow of the mediocre! No matter how hard we try, we can never surpass them!"

Shatuo's words made Reilo feel his immense despair, but it also ignited a spark of unwillingness and defiance.

The sorrow of the mediocre?

No matter how hard they tried, they could never surpass them?

In Reilo's eyes, the scene from a month ago flashed back: Senior Sister Bailing brought him home, and he met Wushuang for the first time. He felt a genuine admiration for him, accompanied by his legends. Wushuang had crushed the six academies in the graduation assessment. At that time, all the scholars who called themselves geniuses in the six academies seemed to pale in comparison, to the point where no one could contend with him.

Compared to that, what was he...

If he were Mentor Gubo, he would surely be proud to have a disciple like Wushuang!

Reilo clenched his fists, but after thinking of Senior Brother Wushuang, he seemed to lose the courage to even shout. He yearned for Mentor Gubo's affirmation, even if it was just a sliver of it from Senior Brother Wushuang, he would be content!

Suddenly, Reilo stopped.

"Junior disciple, what's wrong?"

Reilo looked at Shatuo, gritting his teeth, a hint of determination in his expression.

"As long as I can be like Senior Brother, ranking first on the academy's elite list and crushing the six academies in the graduation assessment, the mentor will surely look at me differently, just like he does Senior Brother!"

Shatuo looked at Reilo, their eyes meeting.

In that instant, Shatuo saw much in Reilo's eyes, and Reilo saw much in his.

"Junior disciple, you must remember that from the moment we entered the academy, we have shouldered the historical mission of passing down the torch. Similarly, no matter how the mentor treats us, he will undoubtedly bear the responsibility of passing down the torch and impart his knowledge to us selflessly! If we don't receive the mentor's attention, we can only blame ourselves for not being ambitious enough, not him."

Shatuo spoke earnestly, patting Reilo's shoulder again.

Reilo lay on his bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

His heart was in turmoil. He had set Senior Brother Wushuang as his goal to learn from and pursue. Although he had worked very hard these past few days, it was clearly far from enough compared to the goal he wanted to achieve.

The gap was no longer something that effort alone could bridge.

What should he do?

The experiences of making natural specimens these days swirled in Reilo's mind like a vortex, replaying before his eyes, yet he couldn't grasp any thread.

"Ah..."

Frustrated, Reilo sat up in bed.

Moonlight streamed through the glass window, casting shadows on the wooden floor. Reilo walked barefoot to the window, gazing at the vast night sky in the distance, finding a moment of peace.

Hoo hoo hoo.

In the silent night, the hooting of an owl was exceptionally clear.

Reilo was slightly startled, turning his head. He saw a figure hidden in the darkness, with an owl and a crow perched on its shoulder, floating ghost-like to Reilo's window.

"Ah!"

Reilo yelped in fright, stumbling backward in alarm, but was suddenly grabbed by someone behind him, their hand covering his mouth.

As Reilo struggled in terror, the stranger behind him suddenly let out a soft exclamation.

Reilo's mind raced. Who had silently infiltrated his room? What would happen to him?

Creak.

The glass window seemed to be gently pushed open by a gust of wind. The ghostly figure from outside floated in. Reilo couldn't see the figure's face clearly, only the familiar eerie green eyes of the owl on its shoulder, and... a crow with blood-red eyes?

"Hmm?"

This figure also let out a soft exclamation upon seeing Reilo.

As if recognizing Reilo, the person then asked the owl on their shoulder in an aged voice, "Are you sure it's here?"

The owl nodded seriously, "Hoo hoo hoo, that's right, it's here. He's one of the witnesses to that murder case."

Receiving confirmation, the figure who had floated in through the window immediately turned an angry gaze towards the person behind Reilo.

"You old fool, isn't this your new disciple? Are you afraid he'll leak secrets?"

"Uh?"

A small cluster of light appeared. Reilo's mouth was still covered by that powerful hand, rendering him unable to move. Then, a familiar figure emerged from behind him, none other than Mentor Gubo, looking utterly astonished!?

The figure drifting in through the window was not just anyone, but a friend of Professor Gubo's, the Deputy Director of the First Year Department, Professor Liuyan!?

What were these two old geezers doing breaking into his room in the middle of the night?

"Reilo?"

Gubo slowly released his hand from Reilo's mouth, his eye twitching, a hundred expressions of embarrassment plastered across his face.

In his shock, Reilo couldn't help but blurt out, "P-Professor, what are you doing?"

Reilo truly couldn't believe that the professors who had treated him with indifference just two hours ago were now barging into his room in the dead of night. He was almost scared to death!

"Uh..."

Gubo glanced at Liuyan before replying awkwardly, "How could I have known it was such a coincidence and I'd run into his place!"

Then, Gubo looked at the pitiful Reilo, who seemed to have suffered a great injustice. He thought about how he had neglected this disciple before, and then the argument with Lianyi. His head was already pounding. He said irritably, "Why are you living here of all places! Don't you know how chaotic it is here! You wouldn't even know how you died here! Do you want me to collect your corpse!"

Reilo couldn't help but feel wronged. "Because... the rent here is cheap."

Gubo waved his hand impatiently. "Alright, alright. Professor Liuyan and I have an important mission and need to borrow your room. Just stay quiet here."

Liuyan, with an owl and a crow perched on his shoulders, shot Gubo an annoyed look and grumbled, "Are you sure this method will work? If we mess this up this time, the Church will have an excuse to interfere in the academy's affairs. Five consecutive albino patients attacked—this must be remnants of dark world wizards secretly collecting offerings for necromancy. The Church's arbiters are not to be trifled with!"

Gubo's expression turned solemn.

"With Jiahei's disguise talent, plus my special magic tool, those wizard remnants will absolutely not be able to detect anything unusual!"

Reilo listened silently as the two elders conversed.

The so-called albinism was a relatively rare genetic disorder in humans, a kind of mutation.

Individuals with this condition had white hair and skin due to a lack of pigment, making them unable to withstand direct sunlight. However, they adapted well to the night, often possessing stronger bodies than ordinary people and gaining special talents. They could be considered a minority of mutated humans adapted to this world's environment.

Over the past month, Reilo had quietly learned some basic knowledge about wizards in the library.

Firstly, through extensive human experimentation, almost every wizard possessed a powerful physique.

Secondly, wizards believed that countless "spirits" existed in the world. By engaging in "equal" sacrificial transactions, they could form various terrifying witchcrafts through equivalent exchange with these "spirits." The most common and powerful method of sacrifice was blood sacrifice.

The organs and limbs of albino humans were one of the high-grade offerings for wizards!

Because of this, albino patients typically fled to the Holy City of Aurora Papacy to escape potential slaughter by evil wizards. A minority also settled in the academies of various Duchies, receiving protection from the royal scholars.

"Hiss, could it be that the deceased I saw that night was actually an albino patient?"