Chapter 8
"Unfortunately, the priest he killed seemed to have some extraordinary background. Raphael finally had a guilty conscience, so I went to Saint Trelanxi to find him and pried open his mouth.
"Isn't it because you had a relationship with him before?"
"Come on, what kind of relationship could I have with him…"
"Virgil."
It seemed like Virgil had some remarkable history with Priest Raphael, and suddenly he said, "Let's not bring up this matter anymore. We're all grown-ups now, aren't we? I never thought he should repay me for the favors I did in the past, and I never used them to threaten him…"
There was a hint of amusement in Xerath's eyes. "I didn't say anything, Virgil. Tell your story."
"You shouldn't have asked me," Virgil breathed a sigh of relief and continued his story, "He cast an Exile Spell in the Sun God temple, with the enhancement from the entire temple's Sunstone. The spell lasted a very long time. The elements there are extremely rare, but enough to cause many explosions. But just when I was about to drug her, the Exile Spell unexpectedly failed. It was a terrible elemental turmoil. Anyway, I came back alive, and I used up all the scrolls you gave me last time.
"It's okay, we can write new ones. The important thing is that you're alive."
"Thank you," Virgil blinked at her, raising his cup, "I'll be fine, best of luck with your essay."
Xerath also raised her cup, playfully tapping Sylas's head, "Of course it will go smoothly."
"Mate, this little elemental envoy… I mean, could she be an ascendant or something?"
"Virgil, wake up, even if she's an ascendant, she's still made up of some kind of element, Sylas has a human body."
"Are you sure?" Virgil looked at Sylas suspiciously, while Sylas watched him cautiously.
"I'm sure, I've been investigating all afternoon, she's made of flesh and blood."
"Alright, scrolls are the same as before, two copies please."
"I've already written them, just waiting for you to pick them up. This time, I won't charge you, you've done me a big favor."
Virgil laughed heartily, "You're too kind, Xerath, how… how did you manage to tame her in the end?"
Xerath shook her head, "It's not about taming. A child with innate elemental perception talent can naturally feel the rational beauty of magic."
Virgil whistled again, "See, I'm not wrong. She has surrendered to your beauty."
Xerath corrected seriously, "Not mine, but my spells."
"When I saw her - or more precisely, when she hit me - I knew she would love it here, just like you love to build your mage tower at the Elemental Gate. It's full of chaotic elements, and being with the elements is much more suitable than being with humans."
"Just as you said."
Virgil rested his hands behind his head, propped his legs up on the table, and leaned back in his chair, "I'm just suited to being with animals."
After grabbing Sylas, Virgil felt she was young and frail, fearing she might die in his hands. So, he traveled day and night, and it only took him five days to get from the Keatler area to Aimekotes. After finishing dinner, he immediately felt sleepy, so he went back to his room right away.
Xerath, on the other hand, took Sylas back to her own room. With the help of the water lord and numerous water droplets, they thoroughly cleaned her. Then, Xerath conjured a swirling cloud to cut her hair short. Finally, she no longer looked like a small wild creature, but like a little mage apprentice.
Hyectra commented, "Except for the hair."
"What?"
"Apart from the hair color, she looks just like you when you were a child."
"Really?"
"Yes, the first time I saw you, you were wearing this outfit. Maybe you can let her try summoning a water elemental."
Xerath shook her head, "No, she can't. She has no idea how to control her powers. She might make Aimekotes flood."
"Oh, what a pity… I thought I would have a companion or something."
"Are you lonely? I can summon more water droplets for you." Her slender fingers traced complex patterns in the air, like playing a complicated melody. The water droplets appeared out of thin air, moving towards Hyectra, who was floating in the middle. He pleaded, "Ma'am, that's enough. Please let these infants return to the Elemental Realm. Taking care of this little troublemaker already requires most of my energy…"
He pointed to Sylas, who Xerath was leading.
Xerath escorted Sylas to the door of her room, letting her sleep alone here. The wind barrier protected the entrance of the room, preventing Sylas from wandering around the mage tower.
She had a good sleep but was woken up in the morning by the sounds of an explosion and screaming. She quickly got up, took off her pajamas, put on trousers and a shirt, and didn't even have time to put on her wizard's robe before rushing downstairs.
On the same floor as her room, a hole had been blown open in the wall. Hyectra, who was round and chubby, had turned into a water membrane that barely held on near the hole. There was a neat circle of scratches at waist height on the wall, as if it had been hacked with force by an axe. Sylas had an arrow stuck in her chest and fell backwards, while Virgil squatted behind the couch, still in a shooting position.
She rushed over and picked up Sylas, scolding Virgil, "Virgil! What are you doing?!"
"It's not my fault! She was screaming and shouting, almost killing me. It was self-defense!"
Xerath hesitated near the arrow, looking helpless. Virgil walked over and gently tapped the shaft of the arrow, causing it to tilt to one side and fall down.
"Look, it's alright. It's a tranquilizer arrow, just to make her sleep for a while."
"You should explain why our house has become like this."
"I woke up in the morning, washed my face and brushed my teeth. I heard noises outside, so I took a quick look. She was about to open the door to the terrace, and I shouted, 'Don't open the door!' I didn't expect her to turn around and start screaming. I was knocked down by the shockwave, and your terrace also exploded. I was afraid she would be blown away, so I wanted to go and pull her, but she screamed even louder. Hyectra couldn't even get a chance to call you."
Xerath asked, "What about my cook?"
Aimekotes' cook is a Fire Lord, and the butler Hyectra is an elemental creature at the same level. It should not be a problem for the three of them to handle a child.
"Um… he stopped your little pet from ascending the wind element here and flew out on his own…"
"You guys…"
Virgil shrugged, "I wanted to rate her as S-class."
"You told me yesterday she was A+ class."
"Isn't this to save on fees?"
Xerath carefully checked the newly purchased little beast in her arms and said, "She's fine."
Virgil protested, "Of course she's fine! She's, she's an almost S-class demon beast."
He secretly increased Sylas's rating.
"Okay, do you need anything? I don't have any good medicine for major injuries here."
Virgil patted himself, there was no sign of external injuries, so he shook his head and complained, "You've really lost interest in me, you actually don't care about me anymore."
Xerath thought seriously and explained, "I'm sorry, I made my judgment based on your strength."
