Starry Night

"You used a magic scroll just now?" Lucia noticed that when Donald took down the guards, he hadn't chanted any incantation, yet there was a clear fluctuation of Water Element magic.

"No, it was Ice Spear." Donald sat across from Lucia, his back against the tree trunk.

"You can cast Ice Spear?! But you've only been enrolled for less than a month. When did you start learning magic?" Lucia was stunned.

"Half a year ago." Ever since telling Wesley about his training progress, Donald had decided to gradually reveal this reality within a small circle. After all, everyone would find out sooner or later anyway.

"Half a year? You advanced to Magic Apprentice in half a year? How is that possible?" Comparing this to the time she had spent on her own advancement, Lucia found the answer absurd.

"I'm just naturally gifted." Donald could only attribute his abnormally fast advancement to talent. He couldn't exactly tell her he'd discovered the secret of Runes, could he? After more than half a year of daily practice without fail, he could now draw those five Rune symbols by heart, and the original Rune drafts he used to keep close to his body had long been destroyed.

"No! You didn't chant an incantation! Hmph, you're lying to me."

"When there's no particular reason, I generally don't lie."

As he spoke, Donald casually released a small fireball. The tiny flame, glowing with a faint blue light, was cupped between his loosely gathered fingers, floating slowly as his palm turned, then gradually brightening under Lucia's horrified gaze until it dissipated.

"You really can use magic without incantations?!"

"Just naturally gifted." Donald tilted his head back and said flatly. He looked at the stars through the mottled leaves above, starlight falling on his face as well.

"Bastard! How could there be such a talent! No, you said earlier you used Ice Spear. Are you dual-element?!"

Donald waved his right hand lightly, and a verdant leaf floated up gracefully. Then with another wave, a solid-looking Wind Blade spun out, catching up to the floating leaf in an instant and slicing it cleanly in two. The halves drifted left and right as the Wind Blade dissipated.

"I cultivate all Five Elements." After saying this, Donald glanced at Lucia, who was already dumbstruck, and felt a mischievous thrill. Having just escaped death, he was in an unusually good mood, which was why he'd inadvertently acted so childishly.

"Then untying the ropes was the same method, right? I wanted to ask earlier how you did it. Those guys must have thought that with our mouths gagged, we couldn't chant incantations. They never expected you to be such a freak. Hmph! And those bandits in Whispering Forest—you actually lured them away and killed them all, didn't you? No wonder no bandits ever showed up again after that." Lucia said bitterly. Thinking back to how she'd worried for nothing that night made her furious—he must have been laughing at her in his heart the whole time.

"I wasn't that skilled back then." Donald hadn't expected to be scolded for saving her. He silently lamented that being a genius really wasn't easy, and after mumbling a vague reply, deliberately changed the subject: "I just remembered from seeing our carriage earlier—those guys were probably targeting you specifically."

"Why do you say that?" Lucia dropped the previous topic, since this question might be more important.

"Do you remember? That guy said, 'I know you're from the Magic Academy.' He said 'you' several times, not 'you all.' I thought it was strange at the time—how could he be so sure there was only one person in the carriage? Normally, if you weren't certain, you'd say 'you all,' right? Besides, that road doesn't only lead to the Magic Academy. Since he knew the person in the carriage was from the Academy, it means he either got prior intelligence or had already been watching this carriage. And this carriage—usually only you ride in it, right?" (Author's note: The Hells Continent doesn't speak English, so 'you' and 'you all' are distinguishable.)

Lucia nodded slightly, her expression grave.

"Alright, knowing this has nothing to do with me makes me feel a lot more relaxed." As he spoke, Donald even stretched his arms and legs, loosening up his muscles, looking genuinely at ease.

"Hey! How can you say that? I take back what I said during the day. Now I'm starting to hate you again."

"Whatever. I don't even remember what you said during the day. Look, I think we should avoid being alone together from now on. Both times we've run into danger, and each time is scarier than the last."

"Who wants to be alone with you!?" Lucia stood up, stomped her foot, and stormed off toward the horse. A moment later, she came back. "We're not out of danger yet. I need to take responsibility for your safety. Once we're back at the Academy, see if I want to be alone with you, hmph!"

"You're right, we're not out of danger yet. Let's go. We can't stay here too long."

The two mounted their horses again and continued heading due north, this time without pushing to a full gallop.

It wasn't until dawn broke that they finally spotted a main road. They rode northeast along it for about ten minutes before reaching the first town.

After asking around, they learned they were now in Almeri Town, in the northern part of the province.

Lucia asked for directions to the local sheriff's residence and headed straight there. Donald could only follow behind her.

"Who died in whose family, coming to knock on your grandpa's door this early?" The man who opened the door was a crude middle-aged fellow who had just pulled on his pants, with only one arm through the sleeve of the sheriff's distinctive gray uniform.

"Shut your filthy mouth. We ran into bandits."

"Bandits? You dare say there are bandits on my Wild Bull's turf? I think you're just eloping with your lover and got caught by your family..."

"Slap!" The man calling himself Wild Bull was struck hard across the face. Just as he was about to retaliate, he saw the Golden Token Lucia had produced. A shiver ran through him, and without hesitation, he brought the hand that had been reaching out to slap himself hard on the other cheek.

Before he could speak, Lucia pressed on: "Is there a legion stationed nearby?"

The sheriff, who had just been spewing insults, now stood at attention despite still being half-dressed, his tone suddenly proper and formal: "Reporting, ma'am! Seventy li southeast, the Crimson Knights are stationed!"

"The Crimson Knights? Good. First, tell me where in town we can get some sleep, then go fetch the Crimson Knights. Tell them I ran into bandits!"

"At once!"

Wild Bull led the two to the town's only inn. Just as he was about to step inside to give some instructions, Lucia kicked him: "What are you doing here? Get going!"

Donald chuckled inwardly. That Wild Bull's earlier nonsense had really pissed Lucia off.

"Then... how should I address you to them?" It seemed the token Lucia had shown was a symbol of a certain status, which was why the sheriff only called her "ma'am."

"Just tell Captain Kaz everything you saw and heard! ... Don't mention me to anyone until you see Captain Kaz!"

The sheriff snapped to attention, shouted "At once!" and immediately sprinted back toward his residence, presumably to find his horse.

Unfortunately, the small-town inn, which hardly looked like it would be bustling with business, had only one room left. Lucia regretted sending Wild Bull away—he surely could have arranged for two rooms. Now she couldn't very well throw her weight around at the innkeeper, who was greeting them with a smile. After a moment's hesitation, the girl gritted her teeth and took the only room. Donald followed her in without a care.

"This time, you're the one choosing to be alone together," Lucia said coldly.

"After a whole night of exhaustion, you expect me to sleep on the street?"

"Hmph! You're sleeping on the floor!"

Donald made an indifferent face, grabbed a pillow, and curled up on the floor. Lucia collapsed onto the bed. Long hours of riding were truly exhausting.

"Hey! Feeling the pressure?"

"Judging by the looks of things, your family business is really something."

"Boring!" The same joke, but this time Lucia didn't laugh.

Crimson Knights Captain Kaz held a duke's title, but he preferred being called Captain Kaz, for the Empire had over a dozen dukes, and even counting the Royal Knights, there were only eight knight orders. When Captain Kaz led over a hundred fully armed Formal Knights riding into this remote little town, all the townsfolk came out to watch—it was the first time in the town's history that so many knights had arrived.

"Captain! That noble young lady was about to check into this inn before she sent me to find you... Oh, you see, this is the only inn in town..." The sheriff, Wild Bull, had an awkward look on his face. Judging by the grand show of force Captain Kaz had brought, the girl was far more distinguished than he had imagined, and this shabby inn seemed utterly unworthy of her status.

Captain Kaz ordered Wild Bull to call out the innkeeper, instructing him to clear out everyone else without disturbing the guest who had checked in that morning, and assigned four trusted knights to assist him in case of unnecessary trouble.

Then, aside from Captain Kaz standing guard alone at the room's door, all the other knights and nearly every resident of the town waited quietly in the open space outside the inn, all the way until dusk. Yet most of them had no idea what they were waiting for.

Lucia was shaken awake by Donald. Her first words upon waking were: "Huh, why is it dark again? Did we sleep through the whole day? Why hasn't anyone come yet?"

"Probably already here. There are a lot of people standing downstairs."

"Shh, keep your voice down. Let me freshen up quickly. Is my dress wrinkled? Does my face look terrible? Is my hair a mess?" Without a mirror in the room, Lucia could only tidy herself up with Donald's help.

In truth, every sound inside the room fell upon Captain Kaz's ears at the door. As a Level 4 Knight, his senses were far sharper than an ordinary person's. But it wasn't until Lucia pushed open the door and stepped out that he bowed and spoke.

"Princess, you are awake."

(In gratitude for the tips from esteemed patrons like Wu Dao and True Qingmang, there will be an extra chapter tonight.)