Endless Silver Machine

Calm gradually returned to the center of the battlefield. The wasteland was littered with rubble, and there was no intact rock nearby. Fortunately, the magic burst was only limited to this area.

A huge ice coffin protected all four people at the center of the magic explosion. This was Liuyin's last instinctive reaction when he was dying of consciousness.

Although the magic vortex formed by the fusion of different natural elements was suppressed by Wei Xi's barrier, some of its power was still left, and Liuyin's solid ice coffin became the last barrier.

The barrier that Wei Xi used to hide her magic reaction was not placed on herself, but on Aika and Ling. Only when the two of them are very close to each other, the barrier will lose its effect, otherwise Liuyin, who is sandwiched between the two, will not feel Wei Xi's magic power anyway.

Liuyin felt Wei Xi's magic power the moment before she lost consciousness. Her only concern was not to affect Wei Xi, so she used the remaining magic power to build this ice coffin.

Aika withstood most of the impact and fell into a coma, as did Liuyin. Only Ling and Wei Xi still retained consciousness.

After using high-level enchantment, Wei Xi was not affected by magic exhaustion. This is why she is the strongest enchantment magician in the Holy See. At this time, she was most conscious and noticed that other people had entered the wasteland.

After Gurley carried Aika, who had fallen into a coma to protect Ling and Liuyin, to the river, he also laid Liuyin, who was also unconscious, down next to Aika, while Ling and Wei Xi sat directly back to back on the ground.

Luoluo brought a large medical kit and used his healing magic to provide the three injured people except Wei Xi with the most basic care. Liuyin's injury was the most serious, so Luoluo applied Nia's special herbal medicine to the wound on her right shoulder, and then wrapped a bandage.

When they were in the tavern before, Glibaitonia prepared this medicine kit for Lolo. With such a large workload, if she relied entirely on Luoluo's healing magic, she might run out of magic and fall into collapse, but with her character, she would persevere and carry on.

Gurley watched Luoluo working from the side, everything was done silently.

The moonlight is still there, but no one appreciates it.

After witnessing the tragic scene in the center of the battlefield, Luoluo had always been calm and did not show the panic he had when fighting against the fire wolves before.

Before this battle began, she had already expected this outcome.

But she doesn't want to just be the younger sister who hides behind her brother and is protected by him. When she saw Aika with her eyes tightly closed, she secretly made up her mind.

Covering the sleeping person with the blanket he brought with him, Gurley suggested waiting here until they wake up.

"Aika is very durable. He will probably wake up soon." He glanced at Aika who was lying down. "I can't walk back with two unconscious humans on my back."

"My lady won't bother you."

A strong wind blew across the flat ground. A man in a tuxedo appeared in the previously deserted wasteland.

The sudden appearance of the man in a tuxedo surprised both Ling and Luoluo. From his name for Liuyin, we can know that the man in the tuxedo is someone related to the Holy See.

Having just experienced that fierce battle, even Ling could no longer bear the next battle.

"Uncle Arcas, why are you here?"

Wei Xi recognized the man in tuxedo who was standing there without moving.

"Wagon battle..."

Ling put one hand on the ground and summoned the Light Flame Sword, but the sword fell off his hand immediately. She was so weak that she couldn't even hold the handle of the knife.

Wei Xi, who was behind her, quickly held down Ling's hand, probably hoping that Ling would stop fighting.

"Don't be nervous, I don't mean to be an enemy to you. I am here just to take Miss Liuyin back. She just tried too hard, which is why she has the result like this. On behalf of Miss Liuyin, I would like to express my sincere condolences to you all apology."

After bowing his head in greeting, the man in the tuxedo raised his head and looked at Ling.

"You must be the owner of the magic weapon 'Light Flame Sword', Miss Heinz, right? I have heard about you and your family. Although I don't know if you can listen to my words, but people like Miss Liuyin and Wei There are still many kind-hearted children like Miss Xi in our Holy See, and it is not them who are wrong. I hope you will not be blinded by hatred."

"Kindness? How can you be so gentle to me after things like this! If it weren't for Aika, we would have been buried with your young lady by now!"

Ling waved her hand and pointed at the unconscious Aika, and tears burst out of her eyes.

"But Miss Liuyin chose to protect you in the end and did not let you be buried with her."

Ling fell silent because of the tuxedo man's words.

"So, Miss Liuyin just went too far."

In the blink of an eye, the man in the tuxedo appeared next to Liuyin, who was sleeping next to Aika, and picked her up with both hands, not caring about the neat tuxedo that was stained with blood.

"Long time no see, I'm under your care again this time."

The man in the tuxedo did not look at Gurley who was standing next to him, but this sentence was obviously directed at Gurley.

"Just remember to owe me a favor, Arcas."

Gurley did not stop the man in the tuxedo from taking Liuyin away without permission, and just responded to his greeting in a low voice.

A smile appeared on the corner of the man in the tuxedo. Another strong wind blew by, and he disappeared from the place with Liuyin.

Ling stood blankly, and she did not hear the brief exchange between the man in the tuxedo and Gurley.

"Are you blinded by hatred... You said so too..."

Ling walked to Aika and stretched her hand towards his sleeping face.

At this time, Aika slowly opened her eyes.

"It hurts...huh? What do you want to do?"

Looking at Ling's hand stretched out to her, Aika didn't know what it meant.

Ling didn't expect Aika to wake up so soon. She just wanted to touch Aika's sleeping face. Even I don't know why I want to do this.

It was impossible to take back the hand that had been stretched out, so the panicked Ling simply raised his hand...

Snapped--

"How did I offend you? I was treated like this as soon as I opened my eyes!"

"I just want to hit you, idiot!"

Aika wanted to continue arguing with Ling, but another person rushed out from behind Ling and threw himself into his arms.

It was Luoluo. She hugged Aika's waist tightly, buried her face in his arms and cried loudly.

The bandages were soaked with blood and tears.

…………

The riverside place where Wei Xi once went alone now has a small round table.

The owner of the small round table gently put down the delicate tea cup in his hand and sighed.

"Knocking on the door when entering a house is the most basic etiquette..."

"I didn't know there was a door to knock on here, but I walked in without any hindrance."

It was a young girl wearing a close-fitting cheongsam, with long chestnut-colored hair tied behind her head. She put down the teacup and unfolded a classic folding fan in her hand.

Tara, who rashly broke into the expelling barrier, walked to the small round table, pulled out a chair and sat opposite the young girl.

The other party just glanced at the heavy book in her arms and covered the corners of her mouth with an unfolded folding fan.

"Please be careful next time. After all, you are already a professor at Frost Moon Academy. It will be nerve-wracking if your students are like you."

Tara ignored the obvious sarcasm.

"Serving tea to guests should be a form of etiquette."

"Unfortunately, this is the last drink." The woman did not respond to Tara, and then changed the topic, "His Holiness the Pope seems to have made a meaningless decision. As far as I know, Miss Liuyin has never participated. Why did you send her here for such a decent mission? Miss Wei Xi and the eldest daughter of 'Heinz' are both strong enough opponents. It can't be just to practice with Miss Liuyin, right?"

"The Pope is not as simple-minded as you think. Anyway, everything is fine now."

"It seems that you care about those children very much. Are you still planning to accept them as students?"

"Then it depends on what the people above think." Tara stood up and held her eyes, "I advise you not to have any thoughts on them in the end, otherwise you may be targeted by Frost Moon Academy."

The gaze under the round-framed glasses was like a razor blade directed at the cheongsam girl, but she just smiled and accepted Tara's threat.

"Okay, okay, don't stare at me with such a scary look. It will also cause headaches if the toys are broken. I won't do anything to them yet, I just want to see how far they can grow. ,Is this okay?"

Although the words seemed to be begging Tara to let her go, the confidence of winning could be heard in her tone.

Tara just laughed at that.

"You can do whatever you want, but do you think you, or the Nemesis Society, can really persuade them?"

Finished. Tara walked deeper into the woods without looking back.

When her breath completely disappeared, the cheongsam girl was completely relieved, relaxed and sank into the chair.

"It's so tiring. Sister-sama, there really hasn't been any change... It seems like this place won't last long. I've seen such a precious battle, and I've gained enough tonight."

The small round table, chairs, and tea sets all disappeared into the air with the figure of the cheongsam girl.

At this moment, time here flows normally.

The gentle breeze smoothed the traces she left behind.

…………

When Liuyin opened his eyes, he saw familiar ceiling patterns.

The faint scent of lemon is the only trace left in this room by the best friend who left me not long ago.

She slowly pushed herself up and sat up from the bed, a twinge of pain making her frown slightly.

"Xiao Xi... is becoming more and more reliable..." She remembered the pure white figure she saw at the last moment, "Even if I'm not here..."

He leaned his back gently on the head of the bed, and the window next to him reflected the courtyard he was used to seeing.

Liuyin's eyes were not looking at the beautiful Xia Jing, but at his slightly tired expression reflected in the glass.

"sorry……"

If he didn't punish himself internally, Liuyin would definitely be overwhelmed by this feeling of guilt.

It's just apologizing for yourself, it's just selfish.

Because of this thought, Liuyin did not get any redemption in his heart.

At this time, the door of the room was lightly knocked three times, and Liu Yin's thoughts were brought back to reality.

She hurriedly arranged her raised hair and patted her cheeks to make her face look better.

As a blue knight of the Holy See, you must always be careful not to show your weak side in front of others.

Especially the youngest girl like herself needs to pay more attention to this outside the Holy See.

"Please come in."

——Yeah, no problem.

——There was no tremor in the voice, and the expression was perfect.

Liuyin nodded with satisfaction. But after seeing the person who walked in, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"dad……"

"Do you feel okay?"

"I feel fine now, but I still may not be able to get out of bed and move around."

Only in front of this person did Liuyin allow himself to be his true self. There is no need to pretend to be strong, just show your true side.

This man is the highest person in charge of the Holy See, Pope Sethis.

As if he was in his own room, he walked straight to Liuyin's bed and sat down.

Although he was a high-ranking leader of the Holy See during his visit, now he seems to be just a kind father who can be seen everywhere.

"Although I named you this time to carry out the mission alone without any experience, I didn't expect you to make such a big fuss. Now that you are so scarred, you slept for a week when you came back. I will give you a little punishment. Nothing wrong?"

Pretending to be serious, he stretched out his hand and flicked Liu Yin's forehead mercilessly.

"Oh! Yes, I'm sorry..."

"Hahaha, no need to apologize! Although it's not exactly the same as planned, there are unexpected gains."

Pope Thetis stood up and walked to the window, pushing open the two closed windows. The natural scent from the courtyard flooded into the room, mixing with the original lemon scent and turning into a unique freshness.

"dad……"

Liuyin didn't know whether he should ask this question, but he was troubled by this question in his heart.

She unconsciously clutched her chest.

"Um?"

"Xiao Xi...how...is she...now?"

——Asked...

But the moment she said this question, she regretted it again, and she didn't dare to hear the answer.

She realized this again - she was running away.

It was precisely because of his recklessness that he caused what Pope Thetis called a "big commotion." If Wei Xi was injured due to her own reasons, Liu Yin didn't know how to face this fact.

——If you are my shield, then I want to be your sword.

Entering the Holy See and becoming the Blue Knight, he gave up his childhood when he should have been playing around with children of the same age... The vows he made at that time supported Liuyin all the way.

"Oh, I just wanted to talk about this matter." Pope Sethis sat back on Liuyin's bed again, "But before that, I want to ask you a question."

"Eh?"

"In your eyes, those people... how do you say it?" He thought for a few seconds, "Well... that is, what do you think of the children around Wei Xi?"

Liuyin was stunned. She had never thought about this problem until just now.

The memory gradually became clearer. She was silent for a while, then smiled.

"I think compared to here, that is Xiao Xi's real place."

Even Liuyin himself didn't expect that he would admit that Wei Xi had left him so simply.

"Hahaha, is this the answer you got? It seems that what I am going to say next should be good news for you."

Then, he whispered something into Liuyin's ear.

"Hey! Is this really your decision?"

"Of course. Thanks to you for making such a big noise, I can justify this behavior!"

"Really...I see..."

In fact, Liuyin still didn't know what method the man in front of him used to achieve "that kind of thing".

"Today I'm here to ask for your opinion. Since you have already spoken so highly of them, you must agree with my approach, right?"

"Well, considering the current situation, it is indeed the best choice. But is there no problem with Augustus?"

"The best they can do is stir up a small stir. In the Holy See, my words are the most authoritative. Then you can continue to rest. I have arranged a vacation for you during this period."

"Well..." Liuyin smiled and watched Pope Sethis walk to the door of the room, "Dad, thank you..."

He just turned his back to Liuyin, raised his hand, and left the room.

…………

In the next month, neither Aika nor Ling was assigned to work, but lived in a room on the second floor of the pub to recuperate.

During this period, the mysterious man in a tuxedo—according to Wei Xi's introduction, was the housekeeper who took care of her and Liuyin's daily life in the Holy See. He once visited the tavern and brought them two letters written by Liuyin himself. letter.

The first letter was written to everyone, and the content was generally an apology for the damage caused by the last time the magic was out of control, and a thank you to everyone for taking care of Wei Xi. And I hope that I can make amends for that reckless impulse, and that I will visit you again if I have the chance. This meticulous approach is similar to Wei Xi.

The second letter was written to Wei Xi alone. Everyone knew that Wei Xi cried after silently reading the letter. No one knew what was written in the letter. But Wei Xi's reaction seemed to have told everyone the general content.

After that, Ling found Gurley and chatted all night, and Aika was also present.

What they were talking about was nothing more than the Holy See.

Ling has never been able to understand what the man in the tuxedo said, "Don't be blinded by hatred." She still can't accept this idea that seems to her to be a compromise.

——For example, take the friendship between Miss Liuyin and Miss Wei Xi. Do you think that is a hypocritical relationship? A vicious heart will not give birth to innocent feelings. Tolerating good people and punishing evil people is indeed the right thing to do. As long as you make a mistake, you must work hundreds of times harder to make up for it. But this can take many forms. Just giving life for life is what an unevolved beast would do.

The above is the exact words Gurley told Ling. She didn't say anything else for a long time after that, and finally left with just a "thank you" and left.

Although Aika didn't know whether Ling had communicated with Wei Xi later, the atmosphere between the two was no longer as tense as before.

Among Liuyin’s letters to everyone, there is also a letter within a letter.

It was a letter of recommendation submitted to Shimoyue Academy in the name of the Holy See, with the intention of allowing Aika, Luoluo and Ling to enroll immediately without taking the exam.

"Just now, they were sending executioners here with murderous intent to arrest people, but now they are sending something like this. I don't know if I can accept it."

Aika placed the recommendation letter on the table. He will not accept "gifts" from the Holy See on his own initiative. It is up to everyone to decide whether to accept them.

"Isn't it obvious?" Gurley took the letter of recommendation and looked at the sealing wax on the envelope carefully. "I'm doing this to sell you a favor, and this letter of recommendation is exactly what you need most. Although Frost Moon Academy is in a neutral position, but they will not turn a blind eye to the recommendation from the Holy See. You will undoubtedly encounter great resistance if you want to enter Frost Moon Academy based on your own abilities. With this letter of recommendation, you will save a lot of trouble. Of course, whether you accept it or not is your own business."

"I think this is an opportunity..." Luoluo hesitated, "Because no matter whether we accept this letter of recommendation or not, we will eventually enter Shuoyue Academy. And if we enroll in the name of their recommendation..."

"The Holy See will not embarrass us for other reasons..." Wei Xi took over Luo Luo's words, "In this situation, I think... it's just that I think... we should enter Shuangyue Academy as soon as possible, and try our best to I got their protection... This is not because I am originally from the Holy See..."

Wei Xi carefully chooses the way of expression to avoid misunderstanding by others. She is still worried about the stereotypes surrounding her identity.

"I think Wei Xi is right."

"Eh? Miss Ling..."

"I said that this time I reluctantly agree with your opinion! Don't ask me to repeat the same words so many times..."

"Thank you... thank you..."

"Then, if everyone has decided..."

Aika patted the table lightly and made the final decision.

…………

"Sister Nia, brother Geli, thank you for taking care of me during this time!"

At the entrance of the magic train, Aika bowed to Nia and Gerry, who although they had not been together for long, cared for everyone like family, as did the three girls around him.

"You are still so dull even though you are about to leave. If you continue like this, you will become a boring man!"

"That's it, just don't forget that you still owe the salary advance from our store."

"I have already charged all the travel expenses you advanced to him to his account. If you don't want to see him drained by me when you come back, just try your best to grow up enough to be able to pay off all the debts!"

"Wait a minute, this is the first time I've heard that there is such a thing! Then won't I have to spend all my life in your little place?"

"Why, don't you want to?"

"This and that are two different things..."

Even though he was far away from the tavern, Aika still felt the same atmosphere as in the tavern.

No matter where you are, as long as your family is by your side, you will feel the warmth of home.