The winter morning in Herlom was bitingly cold. The sky was still dim, but a faint dawn gradually illuminated the eastern horizon.

In a quiet corner of the Protoss Royal Magic Academy's dormitory area, the front yard of a beige brick house was covered with a thin layer of frost.

It seemed to have snowed lightly last night.

The windows of the house were somewhat blurred, as the indoor heating and the cold exterior formed a layer of water mist. Through this mist, one could vaguely see sparse green plants adorning the outside windowsill, and frozen frost flowers clinging to the bare branches in the courtyard. Each leaf seemed frozen in time, waiting for the arrival of spring. In this desolate morning, everything seemed so peaceful.

Today was still a weekday, Thursday.

The weekend was almost here.

Zestira woke up early in her bedroom and took care of herself.

Then, she crossed the living room, pushed open the door of the house, and walked out expressionlessly.

Standing by the door, she lightly placed one hand on the door frame. From afar, she could see that the courtyard had almost turned into an animal garden.

Still on the swing under that big tree, Lanqi sat there feeding the gathered small animals, while the large black fox lay elegantly on the ground, as soft and smooth as a sofa.

He gently scattered millet on the grass as the little birds chirped, hopped, and pecked at the food, while he turned his head to talk to his new animal companion, the fox.

Even from a distance, she could hear the teacher's chatting voice with the big fox drifting over with the cold air.

"Awoo."

"You're asking if I know any other Great Demon clansmen?"

"Awoo."

"What do you mean, 'other' Great Demon clansmen? Do you really think of me as one?"

"Awoo."

"Don't take away my human rights. Everyone knows I'm human."

"Awoo."

"You're still concerned about the Great Demon clansmen..."

"Awoo."

"Don't expect too much. Even if there are other living Great Demon clansmen, they might be particularly embarrassing guys."

"Awoo?"

"Like the kind who look aloof, dignified, and beautiful on the outside, but are actually twisted gluttons at home. After indulging in a life of ease, they completely lose the desire to work hard. Does that sound like a Great Demon clansman to you?"

"Awoo."

The big fox raised its head and shook it.

"Alas, I'm quite worried about her too. She's long past her marriageable age, but she still insists on identifying as a young human woman. I don't know how long she can keep up this charade."

"Awoo."

"Indeed, a disgrace to the Demon clan, expel her from the Demon register."

And at the door of the house on the other side...

"..."

Zestira listened silently, gradually narrowing her eyes, then suddenly rubbed them.

"?"

Her eyes seemed to be playing tricks on her just now. She thought she saw a red glow on the teacher's head, but it seemed like an illusion. Upon closer inspection, there was nothing there.

After pondering for a while,

She decided to pretend nothing had happened.

Although she had considered asking her knowledgeable teacher why that might be, it would be impolite to say something perhaps ominous on a beautiful morning.

Zestira still didn't understand the specific content of the teacher's barrier-free communication with the big fox.

However, she believed that these chat logs were all stored in the big fox's simple mind.

In time, there would definitely be an opportunity to read them.

"The teacher has a long lifespan and will live a good life."

Zestira shook her head slightly and walked towards the path in the garden.

At the end of yesterday's monthly assessment day, Lanqi had a bounty of over one million credits.

Finally, according to the 20% settlement, 249,535 credits were given to Zestira.

Zestira looked at the numbers on her bracelet and didn't know what to say.

It was as if he had a cheat code.

She didn't know what the teacher was like in the Shadow World.

It turned out that when he said "If you find the Shadow World difficult, bring him along" when he and she had just gotten off the train and were walking on the streets of Herlom, he really meant he would take her to clear the game at the speed of light.

Even after witnessing the teacher's prowess, she now only wanted to train in the Shadow World herself, instead of completely relying on the teacher's protection again.

She felt that she had learned a lot from the teacher and understood her own path.

She needed to put it into practice.

Soon.

She walked up to Lanqi.

"Teacher, are you busy with work today?"

Zestira asked.

Her tone was still the same as usual, but there was obviously more respect in her humility.

"Not really, what's up?"

Lanqi thought about it. He had basically finished all the meetings he needed to attend yesterday.

There wasn't much work left to do at the school. He would spend the last two days at the school talking to Associate Professor Xiduo about the Empire.

"Then we can go collect the pink Divine bonus reward."

Zestira said.

In addition to the reward of over 200,000 credits, there was also something that couldn't be bought with credits under normal circumstances.

That was a pink Divine-grade item.

It essentially belonged to the Protoss Empire's treasury, and each item was registered. There were strict regulations within the Empire, and it was a prohibited item for private transactions.

"Okay, the Endless Library should be open for business now."

Lanqi put away the feed and stood up. He was already prepared to depart, and the big fox had turned into a piece of black silk on his shoulder.

The collections were located in the treasury deep within the Endless Library, and the Endless Library was not far from the Protoss Royal Magic Academy. It was only a short walk away.

Zestira nodded.

When selecting the reward, in addition to using her bracelet, she also wanted to see how the teacher would choose the magic cards.

……

Half an hour later.

During the winter weekday in Herlom, the commercial district still maintained its usual hustle and bustle. The temperature did not suppress people's usual work and life.

Along the high-rise buildings on both sides of the street, pedestrians walked by in heavy winter clothes, and the white air they exhaled mixed with the surrounding air, forming light mists.

In this busy crowd, a young man and a girl following him crossed the street until they came to a wide square.

Located in the south of Herlom, the giant building, the Endless Library, was a treasure trove of culture and knowledge in this strange city.

Unlike other buildings, the library looked both ancient and modern, combining Gothic pointed arches, futuristic metal lines, and rotating fictional structures, as if it were the intersection of time and space.

The two walked purposefully into the giant bronze door at the entrance. The ceiling was engraved with various totems and ancient legendary creatures. The spacious hall that was revealed had a giant floating crystal ball in the center displaying constantly changing text and images.

"I haven't been to this library since I arrived in Herlom."

Lanqi looked at the navigation hub and said with a smile to Zestira.

"I get lost every time."

Zestira obviously hated this building.

Because the library was too large and its internal space was complex, it was easy to get lost in it.

Some important areas had powerful enchantments, and entry was not allowed without permission. This caused many places to become dead ends, making it difficult to get out of this maze even with a map.

For most citizens and travelers of the imperial capital Herlom, the Endless Library was mainly a place for exploring the unknown and experiencing the bizarre.

But they didn't need to spend too much time inside today.

They only needed to go to the collection self-service extraction room and use Zestira's student bracelet to select the pink Divine-grade reward from the catalog.

Half of the next chapter has been written, but not finished yet. I will finish it before twelve o'clock.

I can't sleep, I feel like I'm going to die.

(End of this chapter)