Chapter 95

... However, I'm saying this to my Mel, so it doesn't matter what it is! Besides... I really miss Mel. We've both been so busy these days that we haven't even had time to sit down and have a proper chat.

Mel happily leaned in, ready to bend down and kiss me...

"Snap!"

We were all suddenly stunned, and at the same time we tried our best to resist the urge to cast a curse, and we twisted the hand gestures we were about to make back into some strange hand gestures.

I stared blankly as I saw a large group of reporters, all carrying jetpacks... surrounding me!

Oh my god! A reporter!?

The leader pointed at me and roared, "Look, this is the Flame of Fury... Wait, by the God of Light!"

The man suddenly turned pale with fright, his face paling even more than Damala's. He dropped his camera, which would have been ruined if it hadn't been hanging around his neck. He rubbed his eyes vigorously, staring at me intently, which made me frown involuntarily...

The reporter finally stopped rubbing his eyes and stammered, "Y-you, I've seen you Federation Research Institute. Aren't you that little... shabby... low-level... you... the one who's often used as a negative example by Doug... um..."

Yes, it's me. "Junior Academician" and "Junior Researcher" are just what outsiders call us low-level researchers in the research institute. There's nothing wrong with that.

Now that he mentioned it, I remembered. This reporter seemed to be from the Federation Central Daily Newspaper Office, and he often went to the research institute for interviews. No wonder his face looked familiar. Oh... I remember he wrote a report criticizing "some mages at the research institute who embezzled huge sums of money but achieved nothing; their research was not even as marketable as their research on the Black Moon Calendar."

--I'll remember this because my assistant, Keweite, argued with me, saying that the Black Moon might be a fabrication by the priests of the Shadow Moon Temple to deceive believers, otherwise why couldn't it be seen with telescopes? I corrected him, saying that the Black Moon, or Shadow Moon, only rises on specific days, and can only be glimpsed by chance with the Mage Eye, so...

... Um, what's with those expressions? What's wrong with you guys?

... I... I'm not some stripper cannibal, why are you all staring at me like that? Hey! You, the Federation reporter, you don't need to hide, this isn't a spell gesture, it really isn't...

Chapter 95

"..." I awkwardly stretched out my hand... This was really just a meaningless gesture; I absolutely had no intention of uttering a forbidden spell!

No, no, you... you don't cry!!!

The Federation journalist was being supported by his colleague, sobbing uncontrollably! Everyone was looking at him with pity... My God! Didn't I say that everyone is no longer afraid of dark mages? Why is he crying like this? I'm really not one of those dark mages in the legends who can turn passersby into frogs at will, and I've said it many times, we mages don't turn people into frogs, that's what witches do!

However, after looking around, I think it's the reporter's own problem. I didn't see any other reporters crying like that! Oh, maybe he remembered writing an article criticizing me? But I'm truly a mature monk now, not a hot-blooded apprentice, so of course I wouldn't get angry over this, much less lay a hand on ordinary people.

"Excuse me! Lord Flame of Fury, are you really a... low-ranking employee of the Osland Federation?" A reporter pushed past his weeping colleague, squeezed in, and asked excitedly.

I involuntarily took half a meter back. I felt like this reporter was... about to pounce on me and devour me! Was he Abyss ogre in disguise? And when he asked that question, the person behind him... was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Uh..." I thought about it for a moment. A researcher at Federation level two is indeed not considered high-ranking, so I nodded.

"Wow..." The reporters on the other side exclaimed in unison.

Another reporter chimed in, "However, I've heard that even the lowest-ranking academician qualification at the Federal National Magic Research Institute is very difficult to obtain, but with your exceptional magical abilities, it should be quite easy for you, right?"

No, no, no, it's really, really hard to pass!

So I said, "It's really difficult to pass the exam, even for me! Because the examiners are so incompetent, they can't understand what you're doing at all. When I was being tested on basic spells, I accidentally used a few ancient spells, which resulted in a very low score. And using a computer system to record spells is incredibly unreliable. This kind of assessment method is very inflexible and rigid. For example, if a sorcerer uses an original spell that wasn't recorded, the computer will immediately judge it as unqualified—that would be terrible!"

Speaking of this, Mel seemed even angrier than I was, a firsthand witness. He told the reporter, "It's unbelievable! The research on the reconstruction of ancient teleportation arrays at Ciprins was considered useless! And what project received awards at their institute? Vibrating sticks!"

The reporters' eyes seemed glued to me, as if they were playing a staring contest. Their eyes were wide, and when they realized I was looking at them, they all exclaimed "Ah!" in unison, along with some deliberately forced coughs.

Mel seemed to be getting angrier the more she talked...

"And what's more, their vice-dean actually suspended Ciprins! A half-baked mage who couldn't even undo the Transformation Spell himself!" Mel said, his voice particularly agitated. This made me laugh, but at the same time, I felt a warmth in my heart. I quickly patted Mel's back to calm him down—I wasn't even this angry myself, yet Mel was still furious about what had happened to me... Mel is truly... truly a gift from the God of Light!

Ah! That's not right!

Speaking of Duoji, wasn't he just seemingly thrown off a cliff?

I glanced down with some apprehension. I didn't want to see a splattered mess of slime juice, especially since its former name was Duoji! Oh, it was Duoji, right? I hope I didn't get it wrong this time?

I immediately turned around to see if the battle on the Dragon Emperor's side was over so I could go down the cliff to rescue Duoji, but... I was speechless again!

--The enormous black dragon had vanished. (His appearance was so sudden, and his disappearance so silent. Dragon knights can summon dragons through contracts, and dragons can summon knights, but... such a huge black dragon! How long did His Majesty the Dragon Emperor practice to be completely silent and unnoticed? I even had the absurd thought that he might have been hidden in another dimension under his dress!) Goliath seemed to have a knack for dealing with the media, because I couldn't find him or Xuefeng anywhere, and even Moli had run away. There Annihilator and mecha fragments scattered everywhere, along with the unconscious mecha pilot and the masked man lying on the ground in a pitiful state, and...

I couldn't help but cover my eyes... because I saw over there, well, His Majesty the Dragon Emperor, weeping with tears streaming down his face.

She was now lying weakly in Queen Cynthia's arms, sobbing and wiping away her tears, biting her soft red lips, patting her chest repeatedly, and putting on an act that said, "Although I am terrified and at a loss, I still have to try to be strong and wipe away my tears."

Then Mel and I fell into a deep silence.

"Your Majesty the Dragon Emperor!" the reporters cheered. "Your Majesty the Dragon Emperor is out of danger! Was it Flame of Fury who saved you? Your cage was just thrown off the cliff, and everyone saw it live. The camera lens in your hand was also smashed, so netizens were extremely worried about your safety. It's so good that you're safe and sound!"

The Dragon Emperor raised his head and glanced at the reporters.

Having been a dark mage for so many years, I've developed an extremely keen sense of foresight, so at this moment, I suddenly have a very ominous premonition...

I saw the Dragon Empress Agnes struggle to her feet, swaying as she tried to walk over, carrying her tattered white dress (stained with blood, making her look particularly tragic). However, I think if these reporters knew that the blood was sprayed by a severely wounded enemy with a broken leg during her beating of the mech warriors, they probably wouldn't have rushed to help her. The reporters hurriedly flew over and landed on the cliff. Mel and I followed, but then she grabbed my hand!