In an isolated area hidden in a sea of trees, a mansion stood in the clearing at the center of the forest. There was a wall that surrounded the mansion, which indicated the area that was owned by the owner of the mansion.
A fountain made out of marble that sprayed clear blue liquid was what greeted the entrance of the mansion’s walls. Blooming flowers were of varying colors, and luscious green grass was placed neatly in the area around the mansion. The landscape within the mansion was pleasing to look at and was without a doubt maintained with care.
Aside from the brick walls that surrounded the mansion’s perimeter, there was a steel gate that led to the entrance of the mansion’s area. The gate was opened as a golden blond-haired girl wearing a princess dress opened it after inserting a key that she had taken out of her dress.
Entering the area of the mansion, the girl wearing a princess dress was followed by a white-cloaked mage and a twin-tailed girl wearing a maid outfit. They were none other than Alisceon, Allen, and Iris as they entered Alisceon’s mansion.
“Alisceon, why aren’t there any maids or workers in your mansion? Shouldn’t you at least have one so that you can maintain the condition of this mansion?”
Allen asked that question to Alisceon, as he had already noticed the peculiarities of the mansion when he found out that he couldn’t find any life signature inside the mansion.
Hearing her teacher’s question, Alisceon sported a bitter expression on her face as she began to remember what happened to her workers.
Noticing Alisceon’s odd expression, Allen didn’t pry any further since he could ask her later after they settled inside the mansion.
Silence permeated the three of them as Alisceon opened the door of the mansion using another key, and they entered the mansion.
***
Inside the living room, two couches faced each other with a table in the middle. On the table, an exquisite white ceramic teapot and two teacups were placed on it.
Sitting on the couch that was situated on the right side of the living room, Allen crossed his legs as his black pants came into view. He was wearing his usual medieval clothing.
On the left side, Alisceon sat quietly as if she was waiting for Allen to start the conversation first.
As for Iris, she was currently tasked by Allen to maintain the mansion’s condition as it was her job as a maid. The fact that Alisceon allowed Iris to roam the mansion while being aware of the documents that were hidden in the mansion proved her trust in Allen.
She wasn’t afraid that Allen and Iris could find any documents or information inside the mansion that they could use against her since she trusted Allen because of his identity as her magic teacher. And not only that, she had already signed a soul contract with Allen, so she no longer had anything to lose. After all, she had already sworn her loyalty to Allen.
Picking up the teapot, Allen poured the contents of the teapot onto both of their teacups as hot green liquid filled the two teacups.
Gracefully holding his teacup, Allen smelled the aroma of the tea as the steam that emanated from the teacup entered his nose. After sniffing the tea, Allen slowly drank the tea as he sipped it in peace.
‘As expected. I am more of a tea person than a coffee person. Drinking tea calms me down.’
With that thought in mind, Allen finished drinking his tea as he placed the teacup on the table, and his attention shifted to Alisceon.
Alisceon had waited patiently for Allen to finish drinking his tea without interrupting him. Her patience scored her good marks in Allen’s mind as he viewed Alisceon better than before.
One mustn’t be impatient to become a mage, or else a mistake would cost a life. After all, chanting impatiently would without a doubt lead to the mage’s doom. But for Allen, who could cast magic spells without the need for incantations, impatience wasn’t a problem since it would only be a matter of mana control to cast his magic spells.
If Alisceon was impatient and had other bad qualities regarding her personality, Allen wouldn’t have accepted her as his student in the first place. With his numerous <Supreme> talents, Allen was confident that he could easily judge the characters of those he had met, and Alisceon wasn’t an exception to that talent of his.
At the time Allen met Alisceon when she was in danger, he had already seen through her true personality and character, and that was why he didn’t mind accepting her as his student. After all, he knew that aside from her lack of self-confidence and self-esteem, she didn’t possess that many bad qualities in her character.
And besides, even if Alisceon had an evil character that didn’t have any moral compass, he wouldn’t mind taking her as his student as long as she wasn’t treacherous. Even if he knew that she had a good character and was unlikely to betray him, Allen preferred to be cautious, and so he urged her to sign the soul contract.
Allen was well aware of how unpredictable the human mind was, and because of that, he wasn’t taking any chances. He had already foreseen the possibility that Alisceon would be corrupted by the magic that she had learned from him and that was the purpose of the soul contract. With the presence of the soul contract, he didn’t have to worry about the possibility of Alisceon betraying his trust.
With the presence of the soul contract, the possibility of betrayal was zero.
That was why Allen trusted Alisceon to some extent, since even if she was planning on scheming against him, it was impossible with Allen’s <Supreme> talents that he wouldn’t notice such actions from Alisceon.
With that thought in his mind, Allen gazed at the uneasy expression on Alisceon’s face as if she was already expecting what question he would ask her.
“Where are the inhabitants of the mansion?”