The native plants of the Kingdom of Hutton swayed in the summer breeze, their leaves and the grass covered in morning dew, reflecting as if searching for unchanging light.

"Our school probably won't get lively until the second half of the year."

Lanchi looked around the campus, his expression slightly lonely, and sighed to Hyperion.

"Indeed."

Hyperion echoed Lanchi's words.

*This sounds like a school leader's speech,* she thought.

"In the future... I mean, once everything settles down, if you could really become a manager at the Icrete Academy, would you?"

Hyperion asked quietly.

She remembered Lanchi's goal was to retire at twenty, but she didn't know if his ambition would lead him to accept a return engagement after retirement.

"Only if the Icrete Academy desperately needs me. If everyone can live happily without me, then I won't show up again."

Lanchi shook his head nonchalantly.

"Being an ordinary lecturer at the Icrete Academy is fine. Not many class hours, and I can help the school a bit."

Hyperion nodded silently upon hearing this.

"But Lanchi, my father has been missing for over a year. Even if we rescue him by then, it's likely that I will become the duchess, not the almighty genius, Micah. Are you sure you still want to cling to the duchess's coattails?"

Hyperion reminded him.

If he is missing for two full years, he will be presumed dead, and the process of inheriting the title by the duchess will have already begun. Even if Duke Micah returns, he will no longer be the duke.

She worried that Lanchi's wishes would backfire, and he would end up empty-handed.

"Wouldn't that be even better? It sounds so cool. Duchess Hyperion, I'm counting on her for my retirement at Icrete. Of course, I have to cling to her coattails."

Lanchi praised with a smile.

"...Okay then."

Hearing Lanchi's words, Hyperion subconsciously looked down at her legs.

Even though they weren't speaking literally, she couldn't help but let her imagination run wild when Lanchi mentioned it.

Imagining Lanchi hugging her leg one day and shouting, "Duchess, I'm hungry, food, food!" made Hyperion feel too weird.

But such a thing would obviously never happen unless Lanchi drank fake alcohol.

"Since you put it that way, then I have to work hard too."

Hyperion muttered to herself.

Although her process of inheriting the Alanzar family and becoming the new duchess might face many setbacks, and many people might superficially submit to her but not truly respect her, she would strive to be a good person, change everyone's perception of her, and show everyone that she is a trustworthy leader of the Alanzar family.

The trip to the Northern Continent made her realize that being a half-demon was just her beginning, not her end. Her teacher, the Ice and Snow Witch, had also become a respected and noble priestess as a half-demon.

The two continued to chat casually as usual, walking towards the Magic Engineering Institute area.

They took a different route today.

Instead of passing through the lawn in front of the Magic Engineering Institute, leading to the old liberal arts building near the entrance, they entered the Alchemy Institute's botanical garden.

Despite being obscured by various flower shadows, and occasionally startled by birds flying past,

after passing through this botanical garden of the Alchemy Institute, they could see the main building of the Magic Engineering Institute, that artistic iron tower-style glass curtain wall building.

Lanchi and Hyperion returned to the Icrete Academy to submit their "Search for Stone Tablet Holders" project report and record magic devices, but Loren was still not at the school.

When they passed by the Sage Institute, they heard from Teacher Theresa that a big shot from the Church of the Goddess of Fate had arrived, and Loren had to personally receive them.

And it seemed that another big shot was coming in a few days.

Loren would not be able to return to the Icrete Magic Academy for the time being.

Lanchi and Hyperion didn't know why Loren was so busy lately.

However, Loren was often away from school due to official duties last semester, so they were used to it.

Since they were still on academic leave and hadn't returned, and had even exceeded the time limit by more than a month, their Shadow World challenge licenses were locked and frozen to prevent anyone from impersonating them to enter the Shadow World. Unable to report to the dean, the two could only go to the Magic Engineering Institute to find Professor Bolao to help them with their return procedures.

With Loren absent, Dean Bolao of the Magic Engineering Institute had the highest authority in the entire school. After all, the entire Icrete Academy's curriculum system and the royal capital's city defense barrier were designed by him.

"It's good not to have to go back to the Sage Institute. It feels so good not having to attend classes for a semester."

Lanchi stretched greatly, praising the school.

"...After all, you've already become a principal on the other side of the sea. It's really beneath you to attend classes."

Hyperion looked back at the school building, her mood complex.

She, who hadn't missed a single class last semester except for Shadow World-related absences, had skipped the entire semester this time.

They didn't have to attend classes this semester because they hadn't chosen any at all.

As long as they submitted and passed the graduation project report, plus the Shadow World credits they had earned last semester, they would have enough credits.

"I kind of miss the Protoss Royal Magic Academy. I wonder how my good students, Zestira and Shia, are doing with their studies."

Lanchi suddenly felt a surge of responsibility-driven concern.

"I also miss my adopted sister, Mishura."

Hyperion sighed similarly.

She couldn't forget the days she spent in Milford Territory in the Northwest Province. Even now, she felt like a member of the Milford family, and her luggage still contained many gifts from her adopted sister.

"I wonder if we'll have the chance to go to the Northern Continent again in the future. The Protoss Empire and the Aethertan Kingdom are both behemoths on the southern shore. To the north, there are also the Northern Kingdoms and the Theocracy, the Land of Eternal Night and the Disaster-Stricken Wasteland."

Lanchi murmured to himself.

Hyperion looked at Lanchi and found that he was also looking at her, his expectant eyes seeming to ask her, *Do you want to go to the Northern Continent again? Shall we go together?*

"..."

Hyperion was a little worried that if Lanchi went again, he would become President Loki McCarthy.

In the end, she nodded.

Supporting such a man was tiring because his ambition was far stronger than he himself imagined.

But she couldn't discourage him either.

She just needed to remind him to be moderate at key moments, otherwise, he might never find his true peaceful life again.

"But the most important thing right now is to clear the Crimson Moon Ruined World Shadow World, and then take a trip to the giant Cricht Empire at the southernmost tip of the Southern Continent. To be honest, I've never been to the Cricht Empire, and I've been curious for a long time."

Lanchi seemed to have clarified his vacation goals, clenched his fist, and was full of motivation for the work ahead.

"The only pity is that there will probably only be the two of us in this Shadow World."

The first thing they did when they arrived at school was to look for Frey, but Frey was missing.

Even Vice President Asuna didn't know anything about Frey's disappearance, and the president had asked her to remind them not to inquire too much about Frey from the school recently, because they were close to Frey, and they might be investigated by the Royal United Council in the near future.

"Frey..."

Without this powerful and good teammate, Hyperion felt that their next challenge would be much more difficult, but she shook her head, she believed that Frey would return.

"Anyway, the scale of the Cricht Empire is much larger than the Protoss Empire. This time, you must restrain yourself, we'll keep a low profile, and please don't bring the experience you had in the Protoss Empire to the Cricht Empire, okay?"

Hyperion's head throbbed every time she recalled the night Herrom saw Lanchi's interview program.

Unlike the constitutional monarchy of the Protoss Empire, the Cricht Empire is an absolute monarchy.

Lanchi's tricks in the upper and lower houses of the Protoss Empire would not work.

"Don't worry, I'm good at adapting to circumstances."

Lanchi nodded affirmatively.

"...I hope you mean that literally."

Hyperion said faintly.

But thinking positively,

Lanchi only transformed into a dragon when he encountered favorable winds in the Northern Continent. The Cricht Empire, after all, is considered Southern Continent territory, so the chances of Lanchi mutating again in the Cricht Empire are not high.

(End of this chapter)