Taking a Disciple

The next day, at Sparge Mansion, Frankland was somewhat troubled.

The people he had sent to assassinate Victoria had been gone for an entire night without any news, as though they had vanished into thin air.

He had already confirmed that Gandalf had not made a move, nor had there been any news of Victoria's death. Frankland could not help wondering whether the treasure had been discovered by the people he sent, causing them to flee the imperial capital overnight.

Frankland had discovered in his ancestor's journal that Victoria's ancestor and the Sparge Family's ancestor had been close friends. The reason they had risen to prominence was because the two had encountered a great opportunity. The Sparge Family's ancestor had obtained their family's inherited treasure, while Victoria's ancestor had acquired a strange statue. From then on, their strength had advanced by leaps and bounds, and they eventually became Saint-level experts.

Although Frankland had never seen his family's inherited treasure, he knew that the reason his family had been able to endure was because of it.

Based on certain records, he guessed that the strange statue obtained by Victoria's ancestor should still be in their ancestral home. Thus, he had tried every possible means to find that treasure.

He had searched for so long without finding it, and now that such a strange situation had arisen, it was only natural for him to be suspicious.

No one knew that the unlucky mage had been knocked unconscious by Olivier and tossed into a corner of an inn.

Olivier had not made it public because he did not want Victoria to be affected. Everything could wait until she woke up.

After that, Olivier went on as usual, but Frankland grew anxious. He kept trying to confirm whether the treasure had been stolen while also keeping an eye on Victoria, but he found no clues and took no action.

Another five days passed, making it the thirteenth day since Victoria had begun recovering.

Victoria woke up.

Everyone was overjoyed.

She was in excellent condition. Olivier did not know how powerful her soul had become, but he could sense that it was incredibly strong. Conservatively, it was at least level nine or Saint-level.

As a three-element Soul Mutator, such strength was not surprising.

With sufficient talent and such a powerful soul, becoming a Saint-level expert would be easy. She probably would not need long to become a deity either. Olivier could foresee that Victoria would definitely shatter the Yulan Plane's records.

At the same time, he felt fortunate. If it had not been for him, this girl would have died young.

He also sighed inwardly. Across the many material planes and divine planes, there were countless geniuses, but only one in ten thousand could truly grow up.

The girl was extremely clever, even surpassing Linley at the same age, and possessed wisdom far beyond her years.

"Big brother, do you want to take me as your disciple?" Victoria stared at Olivier. She felt that he was not very old either, so she asked.

After she woke up, Olivier had not rushed her. He had let Lady Mary and her family spend time together, and Lady Mary had already told her that Olivier wanted to accept her as his disciple.

"Yes. Will you agree?" Olivier replied with a slight smile, his tone patient.

"But I have to stay with my mother. If I learn magic from you, no one will cook for Mom." Victoria explained. Usually, when her mother and brother went out to work, she stayed home to cook. Otherwise, they would have nothing to eat when they came back.

"You know how to cook?" Olivier had not expected an eight-year-old child to be able to cook.

"Of course. I've known how to cook since I was six." Victoria spoke proudly. Cooking for her mother and brother was what made her happiest.

"Don't worry. Once you become my disciple, I'll hire someone to cook for your mother. Of course, you can also live with your mother and still cook for her." Olivier thought this girl was filial and kind-hearted.

"Oh, that's wonderful." In her eyes, mages were noble adults. She had wanted to learn magic, and once her greatest concern was resolved, she readily agreed.

"Do you have any other questions?" Olivier saw that Victoria looked as though she wanted to speak but hesitated.

"Big brother, if I become your disciple, can I become a Saint-level expert like you?" Victoria asked. She knew Saint-level experts were powerful and that becoming one should be difficult.

"Of course. My disciple will definitely become a Saint-level expert." If you could only become a Saint-level expert, I wouldn't even take you as a disciple.

"Really? That's great! I have to become a Saint-level Archmage so I can protect Mom and my brother." Victoria said happily, as though she were already Saint-level.

"You definitely can." A little girl who wanted to protect her mother and brother—was that the logic of a strong woman?

Olivier felt that he was about to accept an extraordinary disciple.

Lady Mary, who stood nearby, beamed when she heard Victoria's words.

Victoria's bright eyes darted around.

"Greetings, Teacher." Without needing to be taught, Victoria proactively bowed to Olivier.

"Good. From today onward, I am your teacher." Olivier was extremely satisfied with Victoria. Not only was she talented, but she was also filial and polite.

"Teacher, who is stronger, you or my brother's teacher?" After bowing, Victoria immediately started asking questions again.

"Of course your teacher is stronger."

"Teacher, can I become stronger than my brother?"

"With me teaching you, you'll surpass him very soon."

"But my brother is already a level-one mage."

"You'll surpass him soon enough."

"Teacher, do you have any other disciples?"

"No."

"Teacher, I'm your only disciple. Do I get a gift?"

"Uh..."

Victoria had endless questions, making Olivier's head ache.

This disciple was not easy to handle.

"Victoria, I just remembered something very important. I'll go out for a moment and be right back."

Olivier remembered the middle-aged mage who had attempted the assassination. He quickly changed the subject and took the opportunity to slip away.

Very soon,

Olivier returned carrying the middle-aged mage.

"Lady Mary, this man is the culprit behind Victoria's coma." Olivier spoke to Lady Mary, then asked Victoria, "Victoria, do you still remember him?"

"I remember. That day, he and another person came to my house looking for our family's treasure. They threatened me, and then I fainted." Victoria remembered how they had beaten and threatened her. She had been terrified at the time.

"This man is from the Sparge Family. The other was Frankland, the second young master of their family. They wanted to steal whatever inherited treasure your family has." Olivier finished speaking.

Lady Mary was greatly surprised.

"My lord, but our family doesn't have any inherited treasure." After marrying into the family, Lady Mary had indeed never heard her husband mention any family heirloom. Their family had already fallen into ruin. If they had possessed an inherited treasure, they would not have become so destitute.

"Think carefully. Is there really nothing?"

Olivier did not care much about the treasure, but to avoid trouble, it would be better to get to the bottom of things.

"Our home is only this big. If there were any treasure, we would have found it long ago." Lady Mary thought Olivier did not believe her and wanted that treasure too.

"Since that is the case, how do you want to deal with this man?" Olivier asked, handing the decision to the mother and daughter.

"Teacher, can I beat this bad man?" Victoria asked angrily.

"Of course you can." Victoria somehow produced a stick and began beating the middle-aged mage. Olivier had sealed the man's magic power. His physical strength was only around level one or two, so even ordinary blows from a stick hurt terribly.

"Ow! Ahh..." His screams continued without end.

"You hit me! You hit me..." she shouted as she beat him.

Olivier broke out in a cold sweat. Would such a fierce disciple develop violent tendencies?

What Olivier did not know was that Victoria often secretly followed Hank out to mingle around, picking up some hooligan habits. If someone wronged her, she had to pay them back.

"My lord, will the Sparge Family retaliate?"

Lady Mary asked worriedly.

She had heard of the Sparge Family. It was a very powerful family, one she could not afford to provoke.

"Please rest assured, Madam. Since I have accepted Victoria as my disciple, and for her future safety, I can use this matter to make an announcement and warn certain people." Hearing Lady Mary's concern, Olivier decided to make a high-profile move to prevent anyone from harming Victoria.

Sparge Mansion

Frankland had received no news from his subordinate for a long time. He was not worried about the middle-aged mage's safety; he was only concerned about where the treasure was.

"The imperial capital is protected by magic formations. It is impossible for him to escape without a sound. Then he could only have fallen into the other party's hands. It shouldn't have been Gandalf, so was it him?"

Frankland pondered.

"Anyone capable of silently subduing a level-seven mage must be at least level nine. Where did this guy come from? He ruined my plans. I won't let him off."

However, Frankland also knew that dealing with a level-nine expert was nearly impossible with his own influence. It was only talk.

"This is troublesome."

For the moment, Frankland had not figured out how to handle what came next.