Chapter 42: Predestined Fate? (1)

Who exactly was that guy?
Even after returning to the real world, Jiang Zhe still harbored this question.
It was no wonder Jiang Zhe was puzzled—that mysterious mage dressed in a black magic robe exerted an overwhelming pressure on him, far greater than that of Professor Hod, and even greater than that of the former dean, Grand Mage Keynes.
In Jiang Zhe’s eyes, not to mention Grand Mage Keynes, even Professor Hod was like a towering mountain that was hard to surpass. To be honest, Professor Hod was merely a professor whose strength was close to that of a grand mage, without any means to conceal his true power. But what about the former dean?
Jiang Zhe had only met the dean of Rexox Academy twice. He believed that if this grand mage took off his magic robe, Jiang Zhe would never recognize him as a grand mage.
But that guy was different…
Similarly, Jiang Zhe sensed no trace of magical energy from him. Yet still, his subconscious kept warning him: This man possesses unimaginable power… truly terrifying!
Jiang Zhe secretly guessed that this guy might be the strongest mage he had ever met!
Just consider the fact that he could see Jiang Zhe within the illusion…
Good heavens, how could such a thing happen?
At first, Jiang Zhe didn’t sense anything amiss. But in the following days, while staying in the mage tower of Vandell, he learned a bit about astrology, and then he realized just how incredible it was for that man to be able to see him within an illusion. It was then that he truly felt fear.
During his time in Vandell, Jiang Zhe read some astrology books and learned that the future depicted through astrology wasn’t just an illusion—it could also be considered a real vision.
In his past life, Jiang Zhe already knew that the universe was composed of infinite space and time. A certain period of space could give rise to countless futures. Just like a person standing at the entrance of a door could choose to enter or not, and if one considered when to enter, there would be even more possibilities.
Astrology revealed the most likely futures among these countless possibilities—this was roughly how prophecy magic worked.
In other words, in a few years, it was very likely that that man would appear again…
But the question was: How did he see Jiang Zhe?

Speaking of which, astrologers do not worship gods; they believe in the almost eternal stars. On the walls of a room on the first floor of Vandel, there is a huge carving: three stars representing [Past], [Present], and [Future], connected by a circular arrow to form a cycle. Astrologers believe that time in space is composed of these three stages—past, present, and future—where one can move from the past to the present, from the present to the future, and from the future… back to the past. However, the laws of this world are not like that; no matter how powerful one is, it is impossible to return to even one second earlier in time. This is the most fundamental law of this world and is recognized throughout the magical community. Yet in history, there was a magician who proposed an idea—this magician’s name was Zoe Brent. Brent believed that this world is built on balance, or rather, relative balance—just as there is light and darkness, water and fire, all existing within a state of relative equilibrium and stability. At that time, the theory of the matter world and the antimatter world had already been proposed, so Brent speculated that if everything in the antimatter world is the opposite of that in the matter world, what about time? Could its direction also be opposite? In the matter world, time moves from past to present to future; then, in the antimatter world, due to absolute opposition, could its time direction be future, present, past? If that were indeed the case, could someone who crossed through the gap between the two worlds, that is, subspace, achieve the goal of returning to the past? Initially, Brent became a laughingstock in the magical community because of this theory, but what we want to mention here is not his theory but another statement he made: Are the fundamental laws truly absolute? Are they really unbreakable and unsurpassable? At first, Brent was almost attacked by the magicians for proposing this idea, but centuries later, some magicians have been pondering this statement repeatedly. In the early days when magic was just taking shape, magicians believed that water could extinguish flames and light could illuminate darkness—these were the unchanging laws of the world. But over time, they gradually realized that not only can water extinguish flames, but flames can also evaporate water, and darkness can consume light—this is merely a matter of the amount of energy involved.

So some magicians began to ponder. They thought about the theories put forward by Brent—were the laws truly absolute? Were they really unbreakable and unsurpassable?
To be honest, “laws” might be the term magicians mention most often. Some magicians with orthodox backgrounds even refer to laws in every three words they speak when discussing magical theories. But in their minds, laws are hardly something pleasant—they are shackles, a burden imposed on all magicians!
Perhaps at first, you can’t feel the constraints of these laws, but once your strength reaches a certain level and you can truly see the world clearly, you’ll begin to sense the existence of those shackles…
These shackles weaken you, preventing you from reaching higher levels. “Break the shackles,” countless insightful magicians have said to themselves or their apprentices. Though they don’t know exactly what will happen after breaking those shackles, they’re sure it’s a level beyond even holy magicians. In fact, once you break those shackles, it’s as if one foot has already stepped into the realm of gods—a whole new world unfolds before you!
Unfortunately, throughout history, no magician seems to have achieved this…
But in a few years, I believe at least one person will reach this level!
That mysterious magician in black magical robes—since he can see Jiang Zhe from the future, it means his power is already, or will soon be, beyond the laws. This might be something unprecedented in human magical history. Neither great magicians nor holy magicians are enough to describe him. If we must give him a title, we can only call him… [Half-God]!
Let’s not discuss that for now.
“Huh!” Rubbing his slightly swollen forehead, Jiang Zhe took a deep breath. To be honest, after flipping through magical books all morning, he was indeed tired. But he still had no idea why that mysterious magician could see himself from the future.
He didn’t dare tell anyone about this, as Jiang Zhe understood just how terrifyingly strong that guy must be to do such a thing.
Even though Jiang Zhe didn’t know much about the world of magic, he could roughly guess that the guy might possess the strength of a holy-level magician, or even more…
Provoking such a powerful being for no reason wasn’t something Jiang Zhe wanted to see happen.

Besides, Jiang Zhe doesn’t even know who that magician is. Even if he found them, what could he say? After all, that’s still about ten years in the future!
As for whether such a person will really appear in a few years—will the world really become that miserable by then?
Jiang Zhe isn’t sure, but he has no intention of getting involved.
He’s never seen himself as a hero or savior; he’s just an ordinary person with a 20-year-old mind and a teenager’s body. Even if he has a bit of talent in magic, he’s still just an ordinary person with slight special abilities. Saving the world should be left to real heroes.
As for himself, after graduating from this world, he just wants to find a job where he can make a living. If possible, joining the Royal Magic Corps seems nice—although it comes with some restrictions on freedom, there’s reportedly a good amount of gold coin compensation each month…
Once he saves up some money, he can marry a gentle wife like Senior Sister Dia… Ahem!
Speaking of which… I wonder what Senior Sister Dia is doing now?
“…What are you doing?” A sudden question interrupted Jiang Zhe’s thoughts. He snapped back to reality and saw Ravia staring at him with a strange look. Coughing twice, he tapped the magic book in his hand and said, “Can’t you tell? I’m reading!”
“I really didn’t notice…” Ravia muttered helplessly, shaking her head. She glanced at the magic book in Jiang Zhe’s hand and said, “Do you know how long it’s been since you turned a page?” Then she turned to Scott.
Obviously, Scott understood what Ravia meant. He took out his pocket watch, glanced at it, and said to Jiang Zhe in a strange tone, “About six minutes, Sos…”
Jiang Zhe suddenly felt his face burn. Annoyed, he said, “I can’t read carefully enough?” As he spoke, he glanced at Scott sitting at one end of the long table and then at Allen sitting at the other end, and said in surprise, “Hey, Scott, Allen—weren’t you guys with the professor? When did you come?”
“Dude, we’ve been talking to you for ages, and you ignored us completely. Now you’re asking me… asking us when we came?” As he spoke, Allen’s gaze toward Scott lacked its usual ease. Clearly, he was still troubled by what he had seen in the ‘future’.

“Enough, stop pretending,” he snatched the magic from Jiang Zhe’s hands and placed it on the table. Ravia tilted her head, thought for a moment, puffed out her cheeks, and asked, “What do you think? Can the professor bring Sister Abel back to the academy? If it works, maybe we can add an astrology course in the future…”
“Add another one?” Jiang Zhe shook his head with a wry smile, saying helplessly, “I really hope the professor fails…” Then he raised his head, pointing his finger as if complaining, “How many courses are there this semester? Fire Blue Magic, Black Magic Defense, and Potion-making—let’s not even mention those three. This year, there are new courses: Alchemy, Enchantment, and Magic Scroll Making. If we add an astrology course too, how are we supposed to live? Oh, right, last year wasn’t it said that everything except those first three is elective? Why do they say we have to choose between Alchemy and Enchantment this year?”
“Alchemy, Enchantment, Magic Scrolls…” Ravia glanced at Jiang Zhe disdainfully and said irritably, “You don’t even know these basics. How dare you call yourself a magician?”
Jiang Zhe, silenced by Ravia, smiled faintly and said softly, “Sorry, I’m just an apprentice magician!”
“You!”
“Enough, enough,” Allen stepped in to prevent another argument between Jiang Zhe and Ravia. Then he pointed upward and grinned at Jiang Zhe, saying, “Dude, you’d better get ready. Maybe we’ll have to add another course…” He leaned in and whispered mysteriously, “You guys don’t understand. People like Sister Abel—I’ve seen plenty of them in knight novels. Haven’t you noticed the way she looks at Professor Hode? Tsk tsk, it’s a shame Professor Hode is such a dull talker. At times like this, all he needs to do is say a few sweet words. Hehe, women need to be coaxed with sweet talk…”
“Ugh…” Ravia stared at Allen strangely, moved closer to Jiang Zhe, and said irritably, “Stay away from me… I’ll tell Lisa what you just said!”
“Go ahead and say it,” Allen remained unfazed by Ravia’s threat, shrugging indifferently. “I didn’t say anything anyway…” He raised his head, glanced at Jiang Zhe, then at Ravia, and grinned at her. That strange smile made Ravia feel uneasy.
“What… why are you smiling?”

“Nothing, hehe…” Allen nervously patted Jiang Zhe’s shoulder and said with a grin, “Dude, remember, women love to hear sweet words…” But before he could finish, he was interrupted by Ravia.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Enough, enough,” perhaps Scott couldn’t stand it any longer. He changed the subject and said, “By the way, Thors, do you think that Argus is really as dangerous as the professor said?”
Dangerous…
That guy is the real danger—he’s even more dangerous than Argus…
Hah!
What does it have to do with me? Even if the sky falls, those great magicians and holy magicians will hold it up. What can a mere apprentice magician do?
Thinking this, Jiang Zhe shook his head and said with a smile, “Why worry so much? It has nothing to do with us anyway…”
“That’s true!” Allen chuckled, but when he and Scott exchanged glances habitually, the smile on his face gradually faded.
Is… that really the future?
The three boys wondered in their hearts.
Just then, Ravia seemed to see something, her eyes lighting up as she stood up and called, “Professor!”
“Shh!” Professor Hod immediately made a gesture to be quiet. After all, there were many old magicians from Vandel in the hall, deeply focused on their research—so focused that they even neglected food and sleep… Just look at the dry bread on these elders’ tables…
Seeing Professor Hod’s smiling face, Ravia guessed softly, “Professor, did it work?”
Professor Hod stammered, “What success or nothing…”
“I mean Sister Aibel…”
“Oh, that…” The professor’s face turned unnaturally red as he scratched his head and said awkwardly, “Well… it’s okay, I guess!”
“What do you mean ‘okay’?”
“Don’t you understand?” Allen interrupted Ravia, smiling. “Professor, by the way, what were you and Sister Aibel whispering about in that room?”
Immediately, after a series of coughs, Professor Hod glared at Allen and said irritably, “W-what whispering? I was just trying to persuade her! It was the dean’s orders!”

“Oh…” Allen nodded as if suddenly understanding, then chuckled and said, “But didn’t Sister Aibel refuse to go back just a couple of days ago?” Before he could finish, Professor Hod covered his mouth and hurriedly said, “Stop talking nonsense! If she hears you, she’ll refuse to go back again. Just wait and see how I deal with you!” With that, Professor Hod waved at the children present and said, “Alright, go back to your rooms and get ready. We should be able to leave tomorrow.”
“Yes, Professor!”
But as for packing, there wasn’t much to pack. After Professor Hod left, the children continued to observe the mages in the mage tower. For them, this was the best learning opportunity—something most people could never get.
Scott chose an alchemist named Boxer. It seemed the old professor was crafting a scroll. Jiang Zhe also watched for a while until the old professor picked up an engraving pen thinner than a hair strand…
Looking at the dense lines and runes on the scroll, I bet the distance between any two lines couldn’t exceed the thickness of two hair strands…
What skillful work!
With such thoughts, Jiang Zhe quickly changed his spot, fearing that the old professor might sneeze and take it out on him and Scott…
Still, in some ways, these old professors were quite “cute.” For example, if you watched them work, despite their stern expressions, they probably wanted you to keep watching.
Jiang Zhe hadn’t noticed at first, but as Professor Boxer crafted the magic scroll and sparked a few exclamations from Scott, coughs began to sound one after another in the mage tower…
Cough! Professor Yad, the astrologer, took out his prideful model of celestial movements, immediately drawing Lavia’s attention.
Cough! Professor Bernardin, the alchemist, started mixing potions, and the materials he used amazed Scott, who had been drawn over.
Seeing Scott, the little troublemaker, distracted, Professor Boxer became displeased. Trembling, he took out a small vial of red liquid from the cabinet and muttered, “It seems dragon blood would be better for that scroll…”
Dragon blood?
Not only Scott and Lavia but also Jiang Zhe and Allen were drawn in. The other old professors grew even more upset, muttering in dissatisfaction.
“It’s just the blood of a big lizard. What’s there to be so proud of…”

“That’s right; it’s just the blood of a subdragon. I’ll get a whole bottle of red dragon blood later!”
“It’s just to trick those ignorant kids. Using dragon blood to make scroll cores—let’s see what you can achieve…”
Amidst the grumbling dissatisfaction of the group of senior professors, Professor Boxer grinned smugly. Suddenly, he sniffled…
“Achoo!”
After a long silence, the kids quickly ran away from Professor Boxer, followed by the mocking laughter of the other senior magicians.
To be honest, Jiang Zhe wasn’t very interested in making scroll cores, as it was a skill-based task that required carefulness and perseverance. Even the slightest mistake during the process could render the scroll ineffective or even useless altogether…
Could you endure long hours of hard work just to end up with a failed product? At least Jiang Zhe couldn’t.
While Professor Boxer argued with the other senior professors, almost coming to blows, Jiang Zhe went to the southeast corner, where an old professor was concentrating on carving something. Even when he sensed Jiang Zhe approaching, he merely glanced up before continuing his work.
From Abel’s introduction, this was an alchemist named Jarbat, a master especially in the field of creating magical puppets.
Professor Hode said that Professor Jarbat used to be a professor in the Imperial Royal Magic Corps, but for some reason, he left Sassen and came to Vandel…
It seemed that most of the magicians living in Vandel had once worked for the Imperial Royal Magicians.
After watching Professor Jarbat for a while, it was interesting to see him carve chess pieces. But when Jarbat used tweezers to place tiny, crumb-like gears inside the bodies of those puppet chess pieces, Jiang Zhe felt tired…
It had to be said that perhaps too few magicians had visited Vandel recently. Even when they did come, they were just kids, which disappointed the senior professors there. Just like Elder Jives, who would talk about space theory to anyone he could find, these elders seemed eager to find an apprentice.

But then again, they didn’t want to find an apprentice who was too clingy—at least not one who would keep interrupting them while they were engaged in deep academic research. After all, it could take months, or even a year or two, for a mage from Vandell to start such research. How could they still teach their apprentice during that time? So, they thought of finding a genius mage as an apprentice, like Abel… But the problem was, there were so many mages in Vandell that there wasn’t enough for one apprentice each. Should they look for more? Genius mage apprentices weren’t everywhere, after all. Thus, the older mages in Vandell gave up on this idea. Like Elder Jives, they simply shared their theories with anyone they could find—wasn’t that good enough? With this mindset, while the young ones watched, the older mages slowed down their movements as much as possible so the kids could understand. Ideally, they would even ask a few questions to satisfy their desire to teach. Unfortunately, perhaps because the older mages pretended displeasure too convincingly, the kids didn’t dare speak and just watched quietly, which undoubtedly left the older mages disappointed. Of course, this didn’t include Jiang Zhe, who could still have a few words with Professor Jarbat. Professor Jarbat was carving pieces that, in Jiang Zhe’s memory, resembled chess pieces—soldiers, castles, knights, bishops, queens, and kings. The piece he was holding at the moment was the one representing a soldier. Aside from lacking a face and being unfinished, the rest was incredibly lifelike. “Do you know this, kid?” “Chess pieces?” “Hmm, do you know what this represents?” “It represents a soldier!” “Heh, you know quite a bit. Have you played it before?” “Yes!” “Really?” “Really!” Watching Professor Jarbat shake his head, Jiang Zhe became puzzled. After all, it was just chess from his past life—he had indeed played it before. While talking, Professor Jarbat finished carving the soldier piece. He placed it on a strangely shaped chessboard, then added the other five already carved pieces. After reciting a few spells over them, he smiled at Jiang Zhe and said, “If you had to choose one piece to represent yourself, which would you pick, kid?”

“Hey, Jelbart, since when have you become so generous?” Before Jiang Zhe could speak, an old professor appeared beside him. He remembered from Abel’s introduction that this was a great astrologer named Werman, one of Abel’s mentors.
“I find this kid interesting. Can’t I give him a chess piece?” Old Professor Jelbart snapped at Old Professor Werman, eyes narrowed.
“Sure, sure!” Old Professor Werman chuckled and said to Jiang Zhe, “Kid, you’re in for a real bargain! Choose one before he changes his mind!” He glanced at Jiang Zhe from head to toe, frowning slightly.
“Choose what? Choose what?” Before Jiang Zhe could respond, Allen ran over from somewhere, marveling at the chess pieces. Just as he reached out to touch them, Old Professor Werman quickly stopped him.
“You can’t touch them. They’re Jelbart’s treasures. If you break them, he’ll definitely hold you accountable. He’s the most stingy person around…”
“Who’s stingy? Werman!”
“Not stingy? Then give me back the silver I owe you from before!”
“What do you mean you owe me? You borrowed it from me, and I refused, so now it’s my debt?”
“You clearly agreed to lend it to me…”
“I changed my mind. I won’t lend it now!”
“You… still say you’re not stingy? Last year, Gers asked you for two pieces of pure crystal. You clearly had them, but you said you didn’t…”
“I… I kept those two crystals for my core…”
“Okay, another time, Chelf asked you for a piece of moonstone. You said you didn’t have any at first, but when little Abel asked, you gave it to him yourself…”
“Of course, it was little Abel…”
“Still say you’re not stingy?”
“I’m stingy? I…” Seeing Scott and Lavia arrive because of their argument, Professor Jelbart grew fierce and said, “Kids, today I’ll give each of you a chess piece. Let’s see who still calls me stingy!”
This statement left Old Professor Werman stunned. After a moment, he said indifferently, “Fine, give them away then. Just a few worthless dolls…”
“Go away!” Waving his hand at Old Professor Werman, Professor Jelbart glanced at the four kids present, his face filled with concern. Gritting his teeth, he said, “Forget it… Each of you can choose one. I’m giving them to you!”

“Really?” Allen glanced secretly at Professor Jelbart’s expression. Just as he was about to reach for the piece representing a knight, Professor Werman spoke up. He sized Allen up several times, shook his head, and pointed at another piece, saying, “Kid, I think this one suits you better!”
“A castle?” Allen looked puzzled and said shyly, “My ambition is to become a knight…”
“Don’t worry, trust me—it won’t go wrong!” Professor Werman said with a smile.
Not understanding, Allen hesitated for a moment before following the other’s advice and choosing the piece representing a castle. As soon as his fingers touched it, a faint yellow glow surrounded the piece, and then it actually opened its eyes…
Oh my god!
At first, the other kids thought those eyes were just decorations…
“Is it a magic puppet?” Scott stared in disbelief as the large figure of the castle piece wobbled along the board.
Seeing Scott’s surprised expression, Professor Jelbart, though visibly distressed, forced a smile and said, “It’s just a few trinkets, nothing more…”
“Hey!” Professor Werman smirked at Professor Jelbart, then at Scott, pointing at a piece and saying, “You should choose this!”
“A knight?” Scott looked at Professor Werman doubtfully, then touched the piece. A faint light flashed, and the knight piece came to life, holding a long spear in one hand and an iron shield in the other, and saluted Scott properly.
Seeing that Scott and Allen seemed confused, Professor Werman explained, “A castle represents military achievements and victory; while a knight represents honor and courtesy. Think about it carefully when you go back—this is what suits you best!” With that, he turned and saw Ravia biting her lip, staring at the board. After glancing at her a few times, he sighed softly and shook his head, saying, “You should choose the queen…”
“The queen?” Professor Jelbart looked at the stunned Ravia in surprise. Seeing the family emblem pinned to her chest, he shook his head reluctantly.
It seemed Ravia didn’t understand what the queen represented. She held the piece as if she really liked it. The only one left was Jiang Zhe, and on the board, the unchosen pieces were soldiers, bishops, and kings…

Strangely, Professor Wellman hesitated. After examining Jiang Zhe carefully several times, he still remained undecided. Shaking his head, he said to Jiang Zhe, “Kid, among the remaining pieces—soldiers, bishops, and the king—if you had to choose one, which would you pick?”
“Of course the king, buddy!” Allen interjected softly. “Choose the king! It’s a magic puppet—after all, the king is the strongest, right?”
“Not necessarily,” Scott replied calmly, dismissing Allen’s opinion. “The strongest piece should be the queen, both on the board and in terms of what she represents…” As he spoke, it seemed he realized something. He glanced at the queen in Ravia’s hand, then at his own knight and Allen’s castle, looking enlightened.
“Have you made up your mind, kid?” Professor Wellman asked with a smile.
“If the king won’t do, then I’ll choose the bishop…” Allen mumbled softly. As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Jiang Zhe reach out and pick up a piece representing a soldier, leaving him stunned.
Not only was Allen shocked, but even Professor Wellman and Professor Jelbart were taken aback. After a long pause, Professor Wellman asked, “Why not choose a soldier? As this guy said, even if the king won’t do, choosing a bishop is still an option… Have you forgotten that these are magic puppets? Soldiers are the weakest ones…”
“That doesn’t matter,” Jiang Zhe said, holding the soldier piece in his hand. Looking at it—dressed in a shoddy magic robe and staring at him in confusion—he chuckled lightly. “Allen wants to become a knight and earn battle honors, so he chooses the castle; Scott values noble honor and etiquette, so he chooses the knight; Ravia, perhaps as the granddaughter of the Grand Duke of Altak, chooses the queen… And I neither need battle honors nor care much about honor. I’m just an ordinary civilian, so I choose the soldier…” With that, he looked up and smiled at Professor Wellman. “Right, Professor Wellman?”
“Hehe,” Professor Wellman’s furrowed brows had long since relaxed. He said something incomprehensible to the kids, “Fate isn’t absolute, children!” Then he glanced at Jiang Zhe, nodded in approval, and said, “It’s remarkable that you can have such a mindset at such a young age. When you graduate from Riox Academy, if you can bear to give up the title of Imperial Royal Mage and its generous salary, you’re welcome to come to Vandel…”
“Wow…”

Amidst Allen’s surprised cries and Raviya’s astonished gaze, Professor Wellman smiled and nodded at Jiang Zhe, then said in a peculiar tone, “Remember, kid, soldiers represent infinite possibilities!”
“Infinite…” Jiang Zhe was stunned. Just as he was about to ask a question, a scream came from the rooftop—it was Aibel’s voice.
“No! I’m not going back to Riox! I’m not going back to Riox!”
“What… what’s going on?” Like everyone else, Allen instinctively looked up, then glanced at Jiang Zhe in confusion and said, “Didn’t the professor say he had convinced Sister Aibel? He even told us to get ready to leave tomorrow…”
“Could something have happened?” Raviya bit her lip and rushed off. Following her, Jiang Zhe and the others, filled with doubts, climbed the stairs after her.
After those kids left, Professor Jelbart looked at Jiang Zhe’s back and said, “That kid is very special!”
“Mm, I know,” Professor Wellman nodded and said thoughtfully, “I think the elders have also felt that deep dark power within that kid…” He glanced at the remaining pieces on the board—those representing the bishop and king—smiled slightly, and said, “But still, he’s a very interesting kid…”
“Interesting?” Professor Jelbart shook his head and smiled, then suddenly picked up a golden hammer from a tray on the long table and smashed the last two pieces in two quick knocks.
“Hey, Jelbart, are you crazy?”
Looking at Professor Wellman’s astonished face, Professor Jelbart said calmly, “I don’t want two identical pieces in my work…”
“…Hey! You’re really stingy this time!”
“Go away!”
Meanwhile, Jiang Zhe and the others had arrived at Aibel’s room. There, Aibel, who used to act like an older sister, was now crying like a little girl, pushing Professor Hod out of the room forcefully.
Seeing Professor Hod’s innocent expression, Raviya blushed and said distrustfully, “Professor, what did you do to Sister Aibel?”
“I didn’t do anything!” Standing at the door, Professor Hod snapped, “I don’t know what happened. She had already agreed…”
“Really?” Allen tilted his head and asked distrustfully, “You really didn’t do anything?”

“I did nothing…” As he spoke, Professor Hodder came back to his senses and gave Allen a slap on the back of the head, saying irritably, “What are you little rascal thinking about? I clearly told you I didn’t do anything!”
“Hehehe…” With a burst of laughter, Elder Jeffs appeared before everyone, leaning on his cane.
“Elder Jeffs, good to see you!”
“Hehehe, hello, kids…” No sooner had Elder Jeffs finished speaking than there was a loud clattering noise coming from Abel’s room. It seemed many things had been broken.
“Oh no, don’t break all my treasures…” Elder Jeffs trembled with concern, stroking his gray beard, and pointed toward the room, asking softly, “Who is it? Who made her angry again?” As soon as he spoke, the four kids pointed at Professor Hodder.
“I… I didn’t do it!”
Seeing Professor Hodder’s helpless expression, Elder Jeffs shook his head and said smilingly, “It’s okay, it’s okay. We know how little Abel gets when she’s angry. Ah, it’s all our fault for spoiling her… Uh, don’t tell her that later… Let her break things; it’s not anything valuable anyway. She’ll calm down after that…” As he spoke, Elder Jeffs’ slightly cloudy eyes suddenly sharpened, and he frowned, muttering, “That’s not right…”
After saying that, he pushed the door, but it seemed locked.
“Little Abel, it’s me…”
The door creaked open. Professor Hodder tried to go in, but was stopped by Elder Jeffs. He patted Professor Hodder’s shoulder, showing no sign of his usual frailty, and nodded, saying, “I’ll go in first and take a look!” His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.
“Bang!” With a soft sound, Elder Jeffs locked the door after entering the room. Seeing Abel’s tear-streaked face, he asked anxiously, “What… what happened? Little Abel? Did little Hodder make you cry? Alright, let me teach that kid a lesson!”
“Grandpa Jeffs…” Abel grabbed Elder Jeffs and clung to him, crying softly, “He… he’s going to die… I just wanted to sneak a peek to see if he was cheating on me with another woman, but…” As she spoke, Abel looked outside the door and said through sobs, “Grandpa Jeffs, he’s going to die… He’ll be killed… No! Don’t let that happen!”
“…” Facing Abel’s tearful face, Elder Jeffs fell silent.