Chapter 31

Chapter 31

In another residence, a green-haired girl returned home under the cover of night. The moment she entered, a voice sounded not far from her:

"Amelia, where have you been again?"

The man's tone held a hint of exasperation, as if this wasn't the first time the young lady had done so.

Upon hearing his voice, Amelia's heart tightened, but she quickly lowered her head and walked towards her room, not wanting to give an elaborate explanation. She simply said,

"I went out to play with some classmates, that's why I'm back late."

The bespectacled green-haired man couldn't help but ask, "Which classmate?"

Amelia paused for a moment, then after a few seconds of contemplation, replied, "Li Qingzhi and Bruce. We just wanted to unwind after the exams."

The girl appeared as bashful as she did at school, lowering her head slightly while seemingly disinclined to delve into the specifics of her interactions with friends in front of her elder.

Ernest felt a sense of helplessness wash over him, and he couldn't resist sighing. However, he eventually looked back at the green-haired young lady before him, asking, "How did you feel about the midterm assessment?"

Amelia pursed her lips, averting her gaze from Ernest's, "It was alright, I'm not sure about the final evaluation."

Ernest paused before responding, "Your performance in today's magical beast assessment was quite good. After all, you and Li Qingzhi brought back the horn of the Horned Tiger Beast. As long as there are no issues with the other subjects, you should be fine."

"I understand, Uncle," Amelia replied, knowing that Ernest, as her magic teacher, always took an interest in her studies. She reluctantly dismissed her desire to retreat to her room, turning to face him, "I think I did well in the other subjects too."

With that, Amelia turned away, "I'll go rest now. We can talk more tomorrow."

Observing the increasingly introverted green-haired girl, Ernest couldn't help but consider using his teacher's insight to spark some interest in her, hoping to avoid her immediate retreat to her room upon arriving home.

"I have some news for you in advance. The assessment results are out, and they'll be announced tomorrow."

"Of course, I also have your grades for the Magic Beast class. If you want to see them now, that's not a problem."

"However, these grades cannot be altered."

Knowing one's exam results ahead of time might not be an outright temptation, but it was certainly a hard offer to refuse for any student who had just finished their exams. Struggling students might cling to the hope of unexpectedly good scores, while high-achievers would eagerly anticipate seeing their excellent grades sooner.

Indeed, the green-haired girl's figure did show a moment of hesitation. After pausing on the spot for a few seconds, she turned back and entered her room. "No need, thank you. I'll check my results myself tomorrow when they're officially released."

After Amelia entered the room and firmly shut the door behind her, Ernest found himself grappling with a mix of emotions.

He couldn't shake the feeling that he hadn't fulfilled his responsibilities in raising his late brother's daughter.

Despite successfully securing Amelia's enrollment in the prestigious Almont Magic Academy, Ernest reflected on how his duties as a professor there had consumed most of his life. His dedication to researching magical beasts had indeed been unwavering, but now he realized that he had neglected to give Amelia the attention she deserved.

Once a lively and endearing child, Amelia had become increasingly introverted following her parents' demise due to the Wood Vein. He had hoped that making new friends at school would alleviate her loneliness, but apart from her more frequent nighttime excursions, there seemed to be no improvement in her disposition.

Ernest, now in middle age, sighed deeply. Gazing at the multitude of stars outside the window, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt.

Ultimately, Ernest, with his small round glasses, resolved to find an opportunity in the next couple of days to inquire after Amelia's well-being with Li Qingzhi and Bruce. He intended to show concern for the young lady and also ask the two students about their reasons for venturing out together at night.

After all, nights could be perilous, and these three were novices freshly acquainted with magic.

With this thought, Ernest took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily, all the while quietly resolving within himself to ascertain Amelia's recent activities.

He could no longer indulge solely in his research, neglecting the trust his brother had placed in him years ago.

...

The dawn of the following day.

Even before the freshmen, freshly done with their mid-term assessments, could decide on how to celebrate, the notice board in Almont silently revealed lines of text, magically materialized, bearing the results of their recent examinations across various departments.

Beside each freshman's name, their initial grading tier was already inscribed.

The students, unprepared for such swift evaluation, were caught off guard as they approached the board.

Apparently, the teachers of Almont had harnessed a touch of magic during their grading night. Unbeknownst to the students, Teacher Ernest summoned his Cloudbranch Deer to aid in the score calculation, while Teacher Wendy distributed potions to keep her fellow nocturnal educators alert. As for Teacher Neil, who taught Magic History, he employed a textual enchantment that he typically reserved for scripting historical texts, causing the predetermined ranks to automatically appear after each student's name.

Thus, through their individual expertise, the teachers completed the grading well ahead of schedule and promptly displayed the freshmen's rankings on the notice board.

Li Qingzhi, who had originally planned to join his fellow botany students to discuss their outing, had just reunited with Bruce and Amelia when he noticed numerous freshmen gathering around a notice board.

Though they were unaware of the results being released at that moment, the sight of the assembled students stirred a vague premonition in Li Qingzhi and his companions.

"My goodness," Bruce exclaimed, the one most attuned to academic performances. "Could it be that the exam results are out?"

After a brief moment of surprise, Li Qingzhi also grasped the situation. "Seems like it."

"Let's go have a look too!"

While Amelia remained composed, Bruce's expression was a struggle. "Isn't it supposed to be in a few days? I'm not mentally prepared yet, wuwu."

Despite his words, the brown-haired youth eventually joined Li Qingzhi and Amelia in heading toward the noticeboard.

A few minutes later.

Li Qingzhi, initially rated at the Second Stage, couldn't help but heave a huge sigh of relief. Glancing aside, he noticed that Amelia was also at the Second Stage.

Yet, before he could scroll down to see Bruce's results, a mournful cry came from the brunet.

"Ahh! I'm only at Rank 1!"

Though there were quite a few people at Rank 1, it was still rather demoralizing to be placed in the least favorable rank for one's initial assessment.

Moreover, Bruce seemed to have a compelling reason not to perform poorly. Though he hadn't explicitly mentioned why, both Li Qingzhi and Amelia had witnessed him pushing himself relentlessly to avoid a low score.

Yet, Bruce had indeed been rated at the very Rank he wished to avoid.

In addition, each evaluation was followed by their performance rating from this assessment, indicating the student's standing within their respective rank.

Unfortunately, no freshmen were directly rated at Rank Three this time.

However, despite quite a few students being at Rank Two, Li Qingzhi received an exceptional A grade, which was rather uncommon for freshmen.

Li Qingzhi never imagined he would rank among the top in his cohort. Back at Three Silent Mountains, his academic performance had always been at the bottom.

Perhaps it was due to Ludwig's constant tutoring. Witnessing the other's earnest dedication, Li Qingzhi couldn't help but subconsciously place more importance on his cultivation.

Of course, at Three Silent Mountains, Master Ling Shen and his senior fellow disciples were all kind to him. However, everyone had their own practice, and while Li Qingzhi occasionally felt lonely, he didn't want his master or seniors to worry too much about him. After all, he knew they had already sacrificed a lot for him.

Upon arriving at Elmont, Li Qingzhi didn't wish to trouble Ludwig excessively, but fate seemed determined to bind these two contrasting personalities together.

Despite Ludwig's seemingly cold and aloof demeanor, he had been secretly assisting Li Qingzhi. Li Qingzhi felt that, beneath Ludwig's icy exterior, there lay a heart warmer than anyone else's, though it wasn't easily revealed. Through their time spent together, Li Qingzhi no longer viewed Ludwig as merely the stern-faced Chief who only enforced punishments, as other students did.

While Li Qingzhi's mind swirled with thoughts, the surrounding freshmen had already started discussing their grades and planning where to relax during the upcoming days.

Bruce, however, remained frozen in place, seemingly unable to accept the outcome. Seeing his friend's dejected look, Li Qingzhi couldn't resist offering some comfort.

Yet, just as Li Qingzhi was about to speak, his thoughts, which had been wandering back to Ludwig, were interrupted by the sight of a familiar blond figure not far away.

It's Ludwig!

As Li Qingzhi's heart stirred, a genuine smile involuntarily spread across his face, and he couldn't wait to share his joy with the other person.

He swiftly moved to Ludwig's side, lifting his eyes and smiling as he gazed at the blond youth before him. "Ludwig!"

The blond teenager, who was somehow present there, also swiftly turned his gaze in his direction at that moment.

Li Qingzhi, with a touch of excitement, found her heartbeat involuntarily quickening slightly. "I did quite well in this exam! Thanks to you~"

Upon hearing this, the blond teenager before him faintly smiled, as if he had taken note of his achievements long ago.

Aside from the freshmen fixated on their own grades, it seemed that only Ludwig, a senior, was standing not far from the notice board at this early hour.

"Well, I did catch a glimpse."

"Certainly, you've been working hard lately."

In that moment, as Li Qingzhi's heartbeat was yet to settle, the sight of Ludwig's blue eyes made him suddenly realize how truly joyful it was to have done well in his exam. He hadn't let down Ludwig, nor himself.

With this thought, Li Qingzhi couldn't help but smile as he expressed his gratitude, "You've worked hard too."

"You've been helping me with lessons these past few days!"

Ludwig quickly turned to look at him, "So, you must have had some free time lately, right?"

Li Qingzhi was initially taken aback, but he soon understood that Ludwig was referring to the dinner they missed.

Just as Li Qingzhi was about to respond, a fellow student from his dormitory called out to him from behind, their tone clearly friendly, "Li Qingzhi! Come on, let's discuss where we should hang out later!"