Klein had another student.
Although it's often said that one sheep or two sheep are the same to herd, in reality, the content Lux and Sona needed to learn was completely different.
Lux naturally awakened her Light Magic talent, which is a special type of Elemental Magic. Everything had to follow the cultivation of Elemental Magic—the characteristic of Light Magic is its vastness, its power like heaven's wrath, belonging to the doctrine of overwhelming firepower.
Sona, on the other hand, was an Ionian, naturally closer to the spirit realm. Considering her natural blue hair, Klein had reason to suspect she might have a small amount of Vastaya blood. Therefore, for Sona, what she needed to learn was music theory, performance, enchantment spells, and control over psionics.
In Summoner's Rift, AP Spellcasters' output gear is often highly similar, but in Runeterra, even among Spellcasters, the paths each person chose and the knowledge they studied had almost nothing in common.
So, besides being able to teach them together, Klein needed to prepare two complete lesson plans and teach them individually according to their aptitudes.
Of course, this wouldn't stump Klein. With the knowledge reserves of a Mouth King, let alone teaching two students, teaching twenty or two hundred wouldn't be a problem at all!
Moreover, students were like batteries to Klein; he exchanged knowledge for magic. The stronger Lux and Sona became, the more nourished he would be. It was a win-win situation for everyone!
...
Klein wasn't the only one who was happy.
After Augatha heard about Lux's gains, the Crownguard family's matriarch was also very pleased.
At dinner that evening, she, very rarely, praised her daughter directly.
"That's the Buvelle Family!" Even though she had already learned the detailed story from others, Augatha's tone was still filled with disbelief. "And my darling became friends with her the first time she saw her... Lux, your performance truly makes me happy."
"Sona is a very gentle person." Receiving her mother's praise and affirmation, Lux felt delighted inside, but on the surface, she maintained a calm and composed demeanor. "I'm also very happy to gain such a friendship."
"Lux, Lux, I heard from Uncle Xin Zhao," Seeing the focus of dinner shift to his younger sister, Garen, who had been wolfing down his food, couldn't help but share some of his observations from Dawn Fortress. "Sona is an Ionian. What do Ionians look like?"
"Ionians look normal, of course." Her brother's thoughtless words made Lux want to roll her eyes. "Uncle Xin Zhao is also from Ionia. Does he look any different from us?"
"He's incredibly strong!" Garen said with a look of obviousness. "You can't imagine how exaggerated the equipment he uses for training is—Jarvan and I can't even lift it!"
"Then you might be disappointed." Lux shook her head. "Sona isn't that strong. If anything, she's more skilled in music."
"But you're not skilled either!" Garen still looked intrigued. "How could you have something in common with her? Or have you learned to play an instrument?"
"I only know one piece, the simplest 'Hymn of Valor in G Major'." Lux replied with a calm smile. "It was probably... accidentally learned when I was trying to fix that broken music box before."
Garen instantly realized what Lux was referring to with the music box and froze on the spot, becoming completely silent.
For some reason, Garen felt that ever since he started training with Xin Zhao, his younger sister had become increasingly incomprehensible.
She used to be so easy to fool, right?
And Augatha's gaze also converged on her troublesome son—obviously, Lux's words reminded them of Garen's "destructive power."
Garen, at twelve years old, was at his most energetic and destructive. Little rascals at this rebellious age could cause any kind of mischief!
Lux's words served as a reminder to Augatha that she absolutely had to make Garen behave. From the current results, even training with Xin Zhao couldn't completely exhaust his excessive energy.
"Tomorrow, Miss Sona will visit our estate." Thinking this, Augatha withdrew her gaze and spoke casually, as if by accident. "Garen, mind your manners. I don't expect you to be as well-behaved and universally praised as your sister, but I at least hope you don't impulsively cause unnecessary misunderstandings and trouble—understand?"
Although his mother was calmly eating salad after saying these words, Garen only felt a chill originate from his spine and shoot straight to the top of his head.
At this moment, even Garen, who wasn't much of a thinker, realized the significant importance of this visit.
"No problem!" Garen gave two thumbs up. "I will definitely demonstrate the responsibility and accountability of a big brother!"
"Are you referring to the responsibility of blaming your bedwetting on your sister?" Lux subtly added a jab. "Or are you referring to breaking your sister's toys and not being able to put them back together, flipping the board when playing chess with your sister, or hiding cards when playing cards with your sister?"
Lux calmly recounted Garen's "glorious deeds," making Garen almost slide under the table—and these things had all actually happened, undeniable dark history. Even Garen, at his rebellious age, couldn't face such shame.
Seeing Garen's face turn completely red, Peter, the nominal head of the family, finally cleared his throat.
"Ahem, that's enough. Garen is a boy after all; it's fine for him to be a bit lively at this age..."
"What do you mean 'that's enough'?" Peter's words did not stop Augatha from lecturing her son; instead, they fueled her anger, making her raise her voice. "Are we just going to watch Garen become someone as unpopular among nobles as you?"
"I—" Peter never expected that a casual remark to diffuse the situation would completely draw the fire to himself. "How am I unpopular...? His Majesty trusts me, and I naturally respond to that trust with loyalty!"
"The result is that everything you propose in the noble council is rejected!" Augatha seemed to have been prepared. "This winter, Silvermere suffered from frost, and what happened? In the noble council, Erwindale, Fosbairo, each of them had less severe frost damage than Silvermere, but they all received tax reductions. Only our fief still has to pay full taxes as usual!"
"Paying taxes is a noble's duty..."
"But tax reduction during natural disasters is also!" Augatha said somewhat helplessly. "My dear, politics isn't about fighting; politics is about human relations and social etiquette. Everyone knows our Crownguard family can fight, but besides when there's a fight, who remembers us?"
"That's different." Peter stubbornly shook his head, reaching out to hold his wife's hand. "My dear, I know it's hard to maintain and manage the entire family, but we are Crownguard after all, Crownguard who protect the kingdom. The core of nobility isn't to seize benefits for oneself, but to collectively bear responsibility, because—"
"Because it's a noble's duty!" Augatha looked at her husband, who, though nearing forty, still possessed an astonishing sharpness like a fine sword. She finally sighed and finished the latter half of the maxim she had heard countless times. "It's all my fault. I must have been blind back then, to choose such a stubborn and difficult person!"
"Hehehe." Peter caressed his wife's hand, no longer speaking, just chuckling. After a long while, he looked at his son. "However, Garen, your mother is right; you are indeed a bit too impulsive—pay more attention in the future!"
Garen, who had just managed to crawl out from under the table, was suddenly called out again. The bewildered teenager clearly couldn't understand the love between his old-married-couple parents. He only instinctively felt a sense of being overwhelmed and cloyed, with a touch of grievance.
Helplessly, he could only nod and stand up: "I'm going to go move around and digest!"
As for Lux—she had already quietly left when Augatha started talking about politics.
Seeing that both children had stopped eating, Peter cleared his throat: "I'll go check on Garen. He seems to be training too much lately. It wouldn't be good if he hurt himself..."
"Too much what? He's full of energy right now; you don't need to worry so much!" Augatha snorted, emphasizing 'full of energy'. "Now, go take a bath!"
"I had meetings all day at Dawn Fortress today, I'm a bit tired..." Peter realized the problem and quickly let go of his wife. "Today, then... I won't wash for now... okay?"
"You should wash even more when you're tired." Augatha took charge, pulling her husband. "Come on, come into the room with me!"
...
Lux, back in her room, was clearly unaware of her parents' little game. She changed into her pajamas, lay on the soft bed, and seemed a little melancholic and troubled.
"Klein." Lux's small hand unconsciously stroked the hilt of her sword, her azure blue eyes looking out the window at the brilliant starry sky. "Tell me, what exactly is politics?"
"Politics? Why are you bringing up that topic?"
"I'm just a little confused." Lux sighed. "Sona and I are truly friends; we can hear each other's hearts. But even Mother thinks this is a political activity—many people are praising our friendship as 'finding a kindred spirit through music,' but according to Sona, their emotions aren't praise and admiration, but mostly jealousy..."
"That's politics!" Klein organized his thoughts. "Politics is the sum of social activities and social relationships, a game that people play from birth and continue to play throughout their lives."
"...Sounds complicated." Lux seemed a little disappointed. "I once thought that if I just understood etiquette, I would understand these things."
"Etiquette is just the rules, like the basic rules of this game." Klein continued to explain. "But this game has never defined what victory is, nor is there a permanent victor—many people, for their entire lives, for generations, have never figured this out."
"Have you figured it out?"
"No."
"That's too bad." Lux shook her head. "Looks like I won't figure it out either."
"It's best not to figure it out." Klein suddenly chuckled, then, in a Chant-like tone, spoke earnestly, "The thing Lux despises most in her life is the internal strife among Demacia nobles, especially young people in their prime—they could have enjoyed all pleasures openly, but they always put on a stern face, ruining all the beautiful moments."
"...You're saying weird things again." Lux snorted. "How boring."
"Alright, then I won't talk about that topic. Let's talk about your brother. Haven't you always been very protective of him?" Klein's tone became teasing again. "Why did you mock him so mercilessly today?"
"...That's because my idiotic brother really doesn't like to use his brain."
"Last time I said that about him, and you said I was talking nonsense, that it was Courage."
"..."
"However, your tone when you mock him feels familiar. It's very much like when I criticize you."
"..."
"I'm truly touched, Lux—you've always been earnestly learning from your respected teacher, and you're even able to flexibly apply what you've learned to your brother, afraid that he might fall behind you due to laziness."
"..."
"Moreover, you clearly understand your brother's characteristics. Instead of directly advising him, you use a sarcastic tone to say all this, to motivate your unreliable brother, because you found that this is how you yourself are motivated."
"..."
"What a kind, what a thoughtful sister; you truly have a golden heart, shining like your talent!"
Under Klein's blatant teasing, the embarrassed and annoyed Lux finally couldn't take it anymore. She raised her sword high, scabbard and all, and flung it out the window—because her recent training had been quite effective, Klein flew directly over the low wall and was thrown straight into the garden.
Then, just as Lux realized her mistake and hurriedly changed out of her pajamas to go to the garden to retrieve her sword, someone knocked on the door.
"Lux, your sword fell in the garden!" Opening the door, Lux saw Garen's triumphant face. "Hahaha, so you can be careless too—"
"Thank you!" Lux couldn't help but feel relieved: "Uh, and I'm sorry, I was just at the din—"
"You promised me before that you wouldn't tell about the bedwetting thing; I already gave you the candy." However, Garen didn't listen carefully to Lux's words. Instead, he thought he had caught his sister's weakness. "So, to get your sword back, you have to say 'Big Brother Garen is the best to me'—"
Then, as Garen waited for praise from his sister, Lux's expression darkened.
The next moment, she grabbed and twisted, directly snatching the sword back from Garen's hand, then slammed the door shut, leaving a bewildered Garen staring at the bedroom door, dumbfounded.
Lux's strength... wasn't it a bit too much?
"I think you're absolutely right." Lux, back on her bed, clutched the sword hilt again, gritting her teeth. "That Garen fellow is a complete and utter idiot!"
"No." This time, it was Klein's turn to sound inexplicable. "He's not an idiot—believe me, he's just a simpleton."