Zheng Qing had been captured by Thomas on Saturday night.
He returned to school on Sunday.
Aside from a certain degree of psychological trauma, he was physically fine—losing a little blood and a few pounds of flesh was practically negligible damage for a wizard.
Although, for the sake of his health, the healers advised him to stay in the hospital for a few more days to observe whether there would be any other aftereffects, Zheng Qing ultimately declined. Staying in the hospital for one more day meant falling fifteen hours behind in class, and graduation was looming. He was discharged that very night.
The next day was Monday.
It was also the tenth week of the second semester of sophomore year. The calendar had already reached late April.
For most First University students, the tenth week marked the beginning of a brand-new cycle, since they had just undergone their midterm exams the previous week. But for Zheng Qing, the tenth week was merely another signpost in this semester's long marathon—not even a supply station.
With this weekend ushering in May, there were less than two full months left until finals week at the end of June.
Zheng Qing stared at his calendar and inexplicably felt a little panicked.
In daily life, that panic manifested as absentmindedness in class.
Snap!
"Wake up!"
At lunch, Fatty Xin snapped his fingers in front of Zheng Qing's face, reminding the young teaching assistant, "You were a little out of it in class today... You're not in Crow's laboratory anymore. It's lunchtime now!"
Since the matter involved a school teaching assistant's defection, Zheng Qing would ordinarily have needed to sign a series of Silent Contracts.
But perhaps the School Labor Committee realized that ordinary contracts had limited power to restrain someone like him, or perhaps