Apparently, your son was not necessarily your son, and your wife was not necessarily your wife.
Ove did not understand, but he was profoundly shocked, and declared that his social anxiety had deepened by another hundred levels.
"Well? Should I kill them?" he asked Lin Ke beside him.
His disciple always had a mind of his own, and he respected Lin Ke's opinion.
"No, Teacher." Lin Ke slowly shook his head.
He did very much want to kill this disgusting, morally depraved family outright.
But the world had its own rules, and Lin Ke did not want to dirty Ove's hands, either.
"Teacher, have you forgotten the Nathang Common Treaty?" Lin Ke reminded him.
The Nathang Common Treaty was an agreement jointly established by several kings and Heavenly-Tier figures.
It explicitly stipulated that, unless there was a particularly serious feud, Professionals could not indiscriminately slaughter nobles or ordinary people who were not Professionals.
Otherwise, they would face a joint manhunt by the various kingdoms and Heavenly-Tier Legends.
The destructive power of Professionals was simply too great. If one slaughtered a city today and another destroyed a territory tomorrow, Nathang would eventually have no one left!
Kill one noble today and another tomorrow, and the class structure would collapse, taking social order with it.
The endless planes were full of living beings. Anyone who wanted to slaughter could go do it there!
And ultimately, Puxin had not actually done anything excessive today. He had not even harmed a hair on their heads.
Even Lin Ke could not claim there was a feud.
Surely he could not say it was because Puxin coveted the Azan Family's authority and his mother's beauty?
No matter how he looked at it, Lin Ke had nothing he could use against him.
Baron Puxin had actually been very cautious.
Lin Ke needed evidence, something to hold against him!
But that was only as far as the law was concerned.
Lin Ke would not shout anything about revenge being worth waiting ten years for, or fortunes turning with time.
But he had already marked this Baron Puxin in his memory!
Once an opportunity arose, the man's life would be his to dispose of!
"Hmph, at worst, I can hide in my Personal Plane and never come out. I don't like dealing with people anyway."
Ove's expression had turned somewhat uneasy at the mention of the Nathang Common Treaty, but his words remained forceful.
"Let it go, Teacher. I'll submit what happened today to the family council and have Baron Puxin receive the punishment he deserves."
Ove's words warmed Lin Ke's heart, but he still refused.
His socially anxious teacher was usually a kindly man who even needed to fix a smile onto his face and became nervous around three children. Yet for Lin Ke, he had not only rushed a thousand miles, but was even willing to risk standing trial to avenge him.
What an admirable, endearing teacher!
"Lin Ke, I'll stay with you a while longer. I'll leave once your father returns."
Meanwhile, Ove had been considering something else. Seemingly reaching a decision, he spoke to Lin Ke.
Originally, he had planned to stay seven or eight days before returning. After all, while teaching Lin Ke and the others, he had also benefited greatly from some of Lin Ke's ideas.
But his good friend was in dire straits, and although his disciple Lin Ke was clever, he was still young. It would be better if Ove stayed to watch over him.
Just now, Lin Ke had been thinking of him the entire time, afraid that he would be hunted down for slaughtering ordinary people and killing nobles. That warmed his heart.
What a thoughtful, endearing disciple!
For a moment, teacher and disciple were perfectly in harmony.
But just then, a display suddenly flashed before Lin Ke's eyes.
[Mission successful] [You have become the socially anxious Ove's disciple and kept him by your side for five months] [Mission reward: awaiting collection]
Completed?? Wasn't it supposed to be five months? Why...
But this was not a place to linger. Lin Ke had no time to consider why; he could think it over once he was back on the Ox Cart.
Ultimately, he still intended to return to the castle overnight.
He needed to prevent the first wife, Antova, from doing anything foolish. That woman was probably ruthless, too.
With Garros around, she might have held back. Without him, there was no telling what Lady Antova, so obsessed with power and personal gain, would do.
At least, that was what Lin Ke thought.
"Thank you, Young Master Lin Ke! Thank you for sparing me!"
By then, Puxin had come over to Lin Ke and dropped to both knees, weeping bitterly.
"Remember, don't reveal my teacher's level. Just say he's above level fifteen." Lin Ke could not be bothered to look at him. Leaving those words behind, he was about to help Furon out.
But just then, a thin piece of parchment fell from Puxin's clothes, and Lin Ke happened to glimpse the writing on it.
It read: My darling Lin Ke and my younger sister Furon will be coming to Parrot City tomorrow.
Lin Ke's pupils contracted.
He immediately strode over and snatched up the palm-sized piece of parchment.
"Did Antova give you this?" Lin Ke's voice was like a biting winter wind.
"Yes, Young Master Lin Ke."
Completely terrified, Puxin hid nothing. He merely lay prostrate on the ground, trembling like the lowliest slave.
Lin Ke's expression turned cold. Turning away, he said only, "Mother, Teacher, we're returning to the castle tonight!"
Then Lin Ke said to Ove, "Teacher, could you call John and the others for me? Tell everyone to bring the supplies and gather at the city gate."
John and the purchasing party had not gone back. They had originally planned to enjoy themselves for another two days before leaving.
Some guards and servants had gone to Pink Street to have fun. Finding them one by one would be difficult, so they could only rely on Ove's booming voice, which had reached the entire city earlier.
Ove nodded and immediately relayed Lin Ke's message.
Lin Ke noticed that Ove seemed to be using some sort of magical element to spread his voice through the air, just like a loudspeaker.
"Let's go, Mother."
His heart aching for her, Lin Ke helped Furon up and followed Ove outside, leaving behind the Baron's Residence, ruined both physically and in the hearts of its people.
On the way back, Furon curled up like a little girl and fell asleep. Every so often, she woke with a start, calling out "Garros," only to fall asleep again as Lin Ke gently patted her back.
Just as Furon had done when Lin Ke was little and sick, staying awake all night.
"Teacher, thank you for everything today."
Lin Ke spoke softly toward the cart's roof.
Once Ove recovered from his fury, his social anxiety returned. Besides, as Garros's good friend, it would not be quite appropriate for him to share a cart with Furon.
So Ove sat on the roof of the cart, meditating.
But Ove did not answer Lin Ke. Perhaps he was feeling shy.
Lin Ke smiled and looked at John, who sat wide-eyed to one side, clutching a small dagger as if keeping watch. "John, if you're tired, meditate for a while."
John shook his head vigorously. "You meditate, Young Master. I'm not tired!"
He had been blaming himself for not attending the banquet and protecting his young master. Now, he only wanted to make up for it somehow.
Though his presence probably would not have made much difference.
Seeing John like this, Lin Ke understood what he was thinking, so he turned his attention to the system.
His mission had just been completed for no apparent reason!
Strange. It's only been a few days...
Lin Ke frowned and began to think.
As he understood it, the mission had two requirements. The first was to become Ove's disciple, which he had already accomplished.
The second was more time-consuming: Ove had to stay by his side for five whole months.
Who would have thought it would suddenly be completed today?
Wait...
At that moment, the "Knowledge" bloodline in Lin Ke's mind glowed faintly.
Endless knowledge could very well bring sufficient wisdom, but sufficient wisdom could not obtain endless knowledge.
For instance, Confucius's wisdom could not tell him how to build a mobile phone, but a transmigrator with enough knowledge could demonstrate sufficient wisdom.
After all, acquiring and understanding information was very important.
And now, after thinking it through, Lin Ke finally discovered why the mission had been completed.
The reason lay in those words Ove had spoken.
"Lin Ke, I'll stay with you a while longer. I'll leave once your father returns."
That was what Ove had said.
Until... his father returned!
P.S. It's the end of the month! Time to hand over those monthly votes~ And recommendation votes, too~
(۶ꈨຶꎁꈨຶ)۶
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