The instant he finished naming it, a crisp notification sounded beside Lein's ear, announcing that the quest was complete.
He wondered, What good is a "command" spell that tests my Willpower if I can't even cast it?
With Laifu came a little surprise—or perhaps a bit of a shock.
[The host possesses a high-grade surveillance tool in this world: Fire Bats, 25 in total... Beep! Classroom surveillance system activated.]
[Number of students currently in the classroom: 1.]
Lein: ???
It could do that, too?
Lein settled his mind and immediately sensed what this so-called classroom surveillance system was all about.
First, there was the "classroom." Before, when Lein taught physics, the sky had been his ceiling and the earth his floor. After two light showers recently, he'd found a mostly intact ruined house to use as a classroom.
Calling it a classroom was a stretch. It had probably once been a prayer room for some religion, but it was so old that there was no way to tell which deity its followers had worshipped.
But the system considered the entire valley to be the classroom...
As for "surveillance," it wasn't traditional video surveillance. It was a ludicrous combination of ultrasound and hearing.
If Lein focused, he could clearly sense the rings of ultrasound spreading out through the Fire Bats' senses and then returning. The senses of all the Fire Bats combined to form a three-dimensional map that let him "see" every detail.
The map's clarity varied from place to place. Lein noticed that the area nearest him was the clearest.
He took a closer look and realized that this depended on the Fire Bats' abilities.
Take Laifu, for example. Its skills were Hide +15, Listen +12, and Spot +16.
As a result, if an ordinary Fire Bat's view had a resolution of 720p, Laifu's was like an 8K high-definition screen—and, damn, it covered a wide area.
After examining it for a while, Lein decided it didn't seem very useful.
After all, he was already giving the legendary one-on-one lessons.
Lein muttered, "Why call yourself Laifu? You might as well change your name to 'Wall Listener.'"
Laifu didn't dare talk back to its new master. It lowered its head, and as soon as the new master waved a hand, it took its orders and led its underlings as far away as possible.
Fire Bats were omnivorous magical beasts. They attacked other magical beasts they took a dislike to, but they also ate fruit and other plant-based foods.
Lein wasn't keen on feeding them until they were full. Once Fire Bats ate too much, they reproduced asexually on the spot: one ball of fire split into two, becoming two Fire Bats.
Two weeks passed just like that.
Almost every day, after class, Downs would come up with a new spell.
Before he knew it, Downs had learned two fourth-level spells. If he learned one more, he'd qualify as a High-Level Mage according to the system.
That day, Lein was teaching the [Law of Reflection].
"Three lines lie in the same plane; the angles are equal. The image is always virtual. The object and image are symmetrical across the mirror's axis. This applies to both flat and concave mirrors..."
Watching Downs scratch his head made Lein laugh.
But he was used to it.
Every time he taught a law of physics, he explained the basic definitions and then didn't pressure Downs.
Downs would just come up with his own wrong interpretation anyway.
It was as if Lein had written a program called Downs. No matter how careful he was, the program would always have bugs once it ran. Yet somehow it could still justify itself perfectly and keep running.
It was the kind of thing no one could understand.
A program that ran was a good program!
Lein didn't have a single thought in his head. He was practically ready to offer incense to his precious disciple.
Lein stepped out of the classroom, clasped his hands behind his back, and gazed up at the clear sky, feeling a little sentimental.
Putting aside the fact that he couldn't leave, this little valley was quite beautiful.
The valley was neither too big nor too small, covering nearly a square kilometer. In the distance, steep cliffs dozens of meters high separated the valley from the outside world, dividing them into two distinct realms.
The wind and rain outside could hardly get in, and the clouds and mist inside could hardly drift out.
Aside from the two narrow paths leading up to the mountaintop, it was a typical secluded paradise. Unfortunately, there was no path down the other side of the mountain.
That was a real headache for Lein.
He wondered whether he should grit his teeth, swallow his pride, put on a pile of warm clothes, and have Downs carry him out of the valley.
Just then, he happened to spot an unexpected notification, and his expression immediately darkened.
Generally, the system marked allies with green dots. Enemies appeared in bright red. Neutrals were shown as flashing white dots.
The system clearly informed him: [Students currently enrolled: 1. Auditors: 2.]
The notification had appeared ten minutes ago.
Perhaps because the other party had shown no hostility, Lein hadn't received a bright warning alert.
Lein's heart sank. If they meant them harm, he and his disciple might already be done for.
The thought made Lein furious.
At that moment, he was wearing a robe that King Cervantes had sent him last time.
The robe was a rich blue, breathable and comfortable, with gold thread embroidered around the cuffs. That kind of understated luxury gave Lein a distinctive air. And when he flipped on the switch for the [Tesla coil], his Lightning King aura shot through the roof.
Lightning danced around Lein's long fingers. His cold face darkened and brightened with every flash.
With a cold snort that echoed through the valley, the atmosphere grew tense.
"You came without listening. You listened without understanding. You understood without knowing what to do. And when you did it, you couldn't do it right... You've traveled a long way to get here, gentlemen. What brings you to me?"
Silence!
Complete silence!
There was no wind, nor the chirping of insects.
Apart from the faint crackle of electricity, there seemed to be no other sound in the valley. No other living creatures, either.
Thirty meters from the classroom, beneath the shadow of a large tree, two barely noticeable shadows quietly blended into its shade.
Several seconds later, one of the shadows finally stirred.
It twisted against the trunk, then formed a question mark.
[Could this be a trap?]
The other shadow stirred, turning into a pair of eyes that warily scanned the area. Then the eyes suddenly fixed on another tree not far behind them.
Among its thick leaves, a tiny bat sat hanging upside down like a statue, watching the two of them.
The pair of eyes jolted. A long sigh followed.
A second later, the shadowy eyes visibly grew larger until they finally turned into a person.
It was an old man with white hair, dressed like a rogue. When Lein saw the emblem on the man's chest—a dagger wrapped in a mass of shadow—his pupils shrank.
Damn!
It was the Rogue's advanced class, the [Shadow Dancer]!
As a high-level extraordinary class, a Shadow Dancer could summon a [Shade], an Undead creature, to serve them. They could also perform a [Shadow Jump] similar to [Blink], briefly entering the Shadow Plane before returning to the Main Plane to make a short-range spatial jump.
It was safe to say that no Shadow Dancer was a pushover.
The only question was whether this man was a Master Level Shadow Dancer or a Legendary one.
Curiously, Lein was nervous, but the other party was clearly even more so.
The old man appeared and immediately bowed. "My name is Natton Black Shadow. This is my disciple, Sanders Dark Guard."
As he spoke, he pulled another, younger Shadow Dancer out of the shadow beside him. He practically pushed down on his disciple's head as they bowed to Lein together.
"Hmm?" Lein deliberately tilted his chin up at a forty-five-degree angle and looked at the other man through his nostrils. His "hmm" served as his reply.
The other man continued, "We meant no offense to Your Excellency, respected Legendary Archmage. After all, a century has passed since the Magic Net collapsed. I truly never expected to meet a genuine Legendary Archmage in this Age of the End of Dharma. Our intrusion was disrespectful. If there's anything we can do to earn your forgiveness, we'll do our utmost to carry it out."
Lein considered it for a moment, then didn't bother to be polite. "I recently killed an arrogant White Dragon. Find its treasure and bring it to me."
The old Shadow Dancer, Natton, visibly relaxed. "As you command, Archmage."
With that, he took his disciple and vanished without looking back.
They sped away, and only after they finally left the valley did his disciple dare to ask, "Teacher, I didn't think that guy seemed all that powerful! Why are we afraid of him?"
"Idiot!" The old Shadow Dancer smacked his disciple hard on the head and cursed, "If you don't know enough, then look and learn! We slipped into the range of an Archmage's Mage Tower. That's a textbook case of trespassing. Even if he killed us, His Majesty would still have to come and apologize on our behalf afterward. And that was a Fire Bat just now! A Legendary Fire Bat! A hundred years ago, only an Archmage of at least Master Level was qualified to keep one as a Magic pet. Our supposedly impressive concealment skills never fooled him for even a moment."
This time, Sanders was genuinely frightened.
Before you continue