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"Excuse me?

" Layn's eyes opened in shock when he heard the young man's words. After the display of perfect hospitality and politeness, this was how he acted towards a clear guest of his teacher?

n'And what's with the two of them being teachers and elders? Could it be the reason…?' Pondering over the situation in his head, Layn looked amiably at the kids in front of him. Initially, it was Layn's shock that stopped him from flying into a rage. But in the end, it was just pity that held his fury.

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"Layn, please…

" Before the youth could make the situation any worse, Irea intervened. Turning with a frightful expression towards the archmage, she looked at him with pleading eyes.

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"You know, this kind of hurts.

" Calmly reaching for the girl's head, Layn rustled her hair before allowing the sadness to appear in his eyes.

"I'm not some kind of monster that goes around killing kids.

"

n'If I let them run their mouth, the situation will only escalate. A small display should be enough to keep them back.' Even though Layn didn't plan to cause trouble for the girl, it didn't mean the other party was willing to make things easy for him. But since Irea clearly didn't wish for him to cause a scene…

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"The young lives according to their own dreams of greatness.

" Replacing the sad look with a gentle, amiable smile, Layn removed his hand from the girl's head only to pick up her hand instead.

"Isn't this our role as adults to cut them some slack?

"

nGoing as far as sending a quick wink to the girl, Layn forced Irea's fingers apart only to push his own fingers in the gaps. Clasping his hold on the girl's hand down, Layn then looked at the youth in front of him with a triumphant look on his face.

n'What are you going to do now, kiddo?' Amused by the sheer fact that such a weakling dared to pick a fight with him, Layn could no longer feel any hostility towards the kid.

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"I said, get your filthy hands off her!

" Contrary to Layn's expectations, this kid turned out to be far more stupid than he hoped for.

"Men, get him!

" Pushing his hand forward, the youth ordered.

nIn an instant, the place turned crowded. As if half of the people walking on the street turned out to be assassins in hiding, a mass of people threw themselves to forcefully part the two.

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"Layn, I beg you.

" Incapable of tearing off the look of dread from her face, Irea grasped Layn's palm with both of her hands. Looking at him with tearful eyes, she didn't even attempt to hide the shaking of her body.

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"Didn't I tell you?

" Shaking his head in response, Layn used his free hand to pull one of the leftover stones from the recent fight. Given how all the enemies failed to conquer just the initial formation, Layn still had a few useful tricks up his sleeve.

"I'm not some kind of monster.

"

nContrary to his words, Layn's mood turned vicious. Pressing the activator of the formation, the archmage threw the inscribed stone on the floor. Upon touching the ground, the air around the two seemed to stale for a short moment, before everything returned to normal.

nThen, the mass of people crashed right into Layn's formative barrier. Completely see-through and devoid of any harmful parts, it only served to separate two parts of space. And this was where Layn's vicious plan to put the youngling down begun.

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"Hey.

" Forcing the girl beside him out of the daze she entered when her worries didn't come to fruition, Layn looked her in the eyes.

"Since I accepted the deal, that means I will be joining the academy you spoke about, right?

"

nIgnoring the pain on his soul from the moments when she was clearly scared of him, Layn put on a genuine smile. With some of the long-dead emotions now returning to him, he was fully keen on pushing along the path they were directing him towards.

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"Yeah, what about it?

" Genuinely surprised by Layn's inquiry, Irea widened her eyes slightly.

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"From what I heard, it seems that you are some kind of teacher in that academy. And since that's the case, then how about letting me live in your place?

" Moving slightly forward, Layn brought Irea's hand up, right between their collarbones. Still keeping his sight glued to the girl's twitching eyes, Layn revelled in the intimate atmosphere created by the barrier.

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"I… Huh?

" Forced to answer such an unexpected question out of nowhere, Irea hesitated. With her eyes escaping Layn's scrutiny, she noticed the immense crowd of practitioners failing to put even a single dent on the barrier.

n'So that's what he is going for…' Despite all her flaws, Irea wasn't stupid or slow. Even though it was just a hint, she still managed to notice a faint echo of satisfaction on this strange expert's face. Connecting the dots from there was fairly simple.

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"If you insist, then sure. Be my guest!

" Answering decisively with all her hesitation from before now gone, Irea regained her composure. Freeing her hand from Layn's hold, she moved both of her hands up to fix the outer part of his robe.

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"Great then!

" Once again grabbing the girl's hand, Layn brought it to his lips only to place a gentle peck on the outer part of the girl's palm. With sparks of joy appearing in his eyes, he then lowered his head over Irea's ear.

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"How about we get to move right away?

" Kneeling for a moment to pick up the stone he threw a moment ago, Layn sent another wink to the girl before pushing forward. With the centre of the barrier now changing place, the veil of energy that shielded the two of them followed right after them. Pushing the men of this one annoying student to the sides, it didn't take long before the two of them appeared right before the arrogant youth.

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"I will ignore what you attempted to do today since it ended up quite nicely for the two of us.. Just be sure to remember, cross my line in a situation when Irea won't be there to hold me back,

" Smiling at the furious youth, Layn leaned his head on his shoulder before finishing,

"otherwise you will learn why she was so desperate to stop me from taking action in the first place.

"

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