Alpaca (crossed out) Reynold's Diary, Part Two (Continued)

I know Doug. We have differing political views and once competed for the speakership, but I was clearly the better candidate. Doug a bit bureaucratic, so the Prime Minister and Madam Christine don't like him very much.

I thought that by showing my willingness to protect the young mage, he would at least reciprocate, if not immediately fall for me. But when I went to see him a second time, I saw him carrying books, hurrying along. His hair, which had been draped over his shoulders, was slightly disheveled from running and stuck to his cheeks. A thin layer of sweat glistened on his forehead, but he was struggling to carry the heavy stack of books, which made his knuckles red. It was especially heartbreaking to see those slender, delicate fingers like that. So I rushed forward to try and help him.

To my surprise, after I stopped him, he looked blank, hesitated for a long time, and then asked me:

"Excuse me, who are you...?" Before I could even respond, he hurriedly backed away. "Be careful of these books! They're ancient books. Don't use magic to move them!"

Books... what books? The thing is, oh my god! I just confessed my feelings to him yesterday, and he doesn't even remember me? Besides, even if he forgot, he doesn't recognize the current Speaker of the Federal Magic Council? Is he even a mage? Wait, he... he doesn't watch TV or go online?

"Sorry, but can I go now? I'm going to be late."

As he spoke, he actually looked up at the sun... Did he really use that to tell time?

After asking, I was completely stunned.

--This little mage doesn't even have a cell phone? I was so scared I almost pulled out my magic scanner to see if he was some old man who had used an anti-aging potion and refused to use a smartphone because of his failing eyesight.

The test results showed that he was indeed only in his early twenties, quite young.

This piqued my curiosity. How could a young monk of such age seem to live in ancient times, never hanging out in internet cafes or nightclubs? I observed him for a few days and discovered that he spent every day in the lab, either conducting experiments or taking notes. During his breaks, he would go to the Central Grand Library, carrying stacks of books around. He wasn't reading any popular novels; he was always carrying heavy, supposedly ancient books, sweating profusely, and wouldn't let anyone help him carry them.

Ancient Black Magic protection? Afraid of hurting people? I couldn't help but chuckle. This little mage is really funny. Although I haven't read those books, if ancient Black Magic really existed, how would you even be standing here?

And he actually reads... something like "On the Theoretical and Practical Differences Between Ancient Forbidden Incantations and Modern Magic"... a theoretical book whose title alone makes me want to fall asleep?

He sat at a table by the window in the library, quietly copying notes. The sunlight warmed his hair, making it look like a cake base coated with candied fruit. Sometimes he would use his slender fingers to gather the stray strands of hair that fell in front of his eyes, making his fingers almost transparent in the sunlight, with a soft pink showing through the gaps between them.

It must feel really nice to hold.

For several days in a row, I watched him go to work and come home, go to the library, and buy sandwiches from street vendors for breakfast. His routine was extremely regular. I even saw him get angry once—he was scolding his assistant. Even when he got angry, he didn't come across as rude. His voice was still gentle and pleasant, but his brows were furrowed, his lips were pursed tightly, and when he got really angry, a faint blush would appear on his face...

That really looks beautiful.

His assistant seemed terrified of him. The girl kept her head down, behaving unusually obediently. Keep in mind that he was just an ordinary academician, and his status in the research institute wasn't much higher than this female assistant's. This female assistant wore heavy metallic smoky makeup, a leather jacket, and jingling chains. She didn't look like the kind of gentle, obedient girl at all. Yet, she was being scolded by him until she pouted, tears welling up in her eyes, and kept begging him not to be angry.

That's incredible.

After reprimanding his female assistant, he didn't go back to his experiment. Instead, he walked out of the lab and headed straight for me, who was sitting in a chair.

Um?

"Hello, we meet again," he said. "May I ask what brings you here? You've been with me these past few days, so if you need anything, please feel free to speak to me. My name is Ciprins, Ciprins Field."

I was quite surprised when I took off my sunglasses, turned off the binoculars inside, and removed my mask... Didn't he not recognize me? Besides, I was dressed very professionally; many paparazzi reporters who were watching me wouldn't recognize me. He was just scolding his assistant in the lab, and after he finished, he naturally walked over to me, as if I was always on his schedule—how did he know I was observing him? I change my clothes every day.

"I'm sorry, I didn't scare you, did I?" I quickly stood up. "But how did you find me? Did I bother you?"

"It's alright." He smiled and said, "I remember your mental strength."

Um... do you remember mental power?

I find this young mage increasingly interesting. He speaks politely and gently, but occasionally he'll blurt out some really funny things, like, "How do you recognize spiritual power?" Does he think he's a legendary archmage?

So I gently said to him, "I... I just saw you at the venue that day, and... Please forgive my abruptness, I fell in love with you at first sight. I don't know how to get you... to get you to accept me, after all, you... you said you didn't know me before. I was worried that if I confessed directly to you, you would be scared. But now that you've discovered me... I feel very sorry. The way you cast spells and read books is unforgettable."

As expected, Ciprins looked surprised. I noticed that he had gray-blue eyes, somewhat light and not quite blue, but... you could still say they were good-looking.

He seemed very surprised, unconsciously rubbing his fingers together. After a while, he said, "I... thank you for your kindness... I thought you were in some trouble, but I really didn't consider this possibility..."

He seemed unsure what to say. His awkward reaction didn't surprise me. After all, although he was good-looking, his life was far too regular and monotonous. I had never seen him do any of the activities that young people like. I suppose even if someone wanted to pursue him, they would have been scared away by his seemingly out-of-touch lifestyle.

So I decided to take the initiative. "So, what do you like? I'd like to give you a small gift, but I don't know what you'd like. Do you like books?"

I'm pretty sure I'm right; you can tell by how often he goes to the library.

He nodded, looking a little shy, but he still answered me, "Yes, I like reading, but wouldn't that be too expensive..."

This idea seems pretty good, I laughed.

Next, I gave him a lot of books. There was no need to pick them out; just go to the magic book section of the bookstore and choose the ones whose titles I couldn't even understand. Those books were all covered in dust on the bookstore shelves. When I bought them, the bookstore clerk was so happy that he gave me a gold membership card.

Although he initially refused, after I persisted for a while, his attitude softened, and he accepted my book. He even gave me a bottle of what he claimed was a magic potion to relieve fatigue—it was homemade... However, I was too afraid to drink such an unregulated homemade product, so I put it on the shelf as a keepsake.

But I tried several times to ask him out to dinner, but I failed—he needed to review his notes?

Are you planning to take the postgraduate entrance exam?

"A mage should summarize and categorize the spells they've mastered every day. Learning new knowledge is important, but regular review will also bring new insights," he said with a smile, dipping his finger in water and writing something on the table—a messy, haphazard thing, but he wrote very quickly. Then he told me, "I thought of something today: perhaps we can simplify the protective runes this way to increase writing speed."

Guardian Runes?

I watched him; when he talked about magic, he was in a state of... radiance. His eyes were focused and bright, and his speech was faster than usual. At certain points, his expression was unrestrained and flamboyant...

He really looks like Mephistopheles.

I tried my best to ignore what he said—because although he was charismatic, what he said was undeniably impractical. Runes? Those ancient and complex things, could a young mage like you simplify them so easily?