A knock sounded on the door.
"Come in."
"Excuse me, sir, did you call for me?"
A young man in his twenties with snow-white hair and beautiful blue eyes, Luke Morran, entered the room. He wore a neat uniform and a badge pinned to his chest.
"Sit down." Louis Wallson invited him to sit.
Sitting opposite, Louis took a sip of the coffee that had been served. He began to speak,
"I've received a report."
Hearing Louis speak, Luke's face grew slightly stern.
"With such a large squad, you failed to capture the target, especially Ethan Reiss. I heard he was fighting Anser one-on-one, and Reiss has more advanced equipment than before."
"And even though Zoya Bryan is a fire mage, if you surround her and rain down a barrage of attacks, you should be able to capture her."
Louis looked at Luke with a slightly gloomy expression.
"I heard you took command of all three squads, and you also encountered the black gate over there."
"I don't doubt your leadership skills. However, I feel you're still too reckless. Even though you managed to close the black gate without any casualties."
Louis stared straight at Luke.
"You possess more power than the others. Are you still afraid to use it?"
Hearing this, Luke clenched his fists. His eyes trembled slightly.
"Ice mage, Luke Morran."
Luke could only lower his head.
"I'm sorry, sir." His voice trembled slightly.
Louis sighed at that.
"No. You don't need to apologize. I know what you've been through. I'm the one who should apologize."
"It's just that, as a high-ranking official here, I saw the potential of your power. And you seem to be wasting it."
Luke remained silent and lowered his head.
After a moment of silence, Louis spoke again,
"A gate has been discovered in the southern seas. Those exploring the seas are asking for help. Even with many men deployed, it's difficult to deal with the monsters in the ocean."
"Will you help them?"
Louis asked Luke, who no longer lowered his head.
Although his face looked a little pale, he tried to steel himself.
"I will try."
...
"Then you have to find out." Zain said to Zidane.
"How am I supposed to find out, bro?"
"I don't know, maybe you'll find out in time."
"What if I never find out?"
"Then let it go." Zain replied casually.
"Brother."
"What?"
"Sometimes I feel like you don't seem to have a care in the world."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Silence enveloped them.
"Dane."
"Yes?"
"Life is full of mysteries. You never know what will happen even in the next second."
A slightly confused Zidane listened intently.
"Perhaps the power once obtained through desperation will be easily attainable and even emerge on its own."
"And that power might even evolve into something no one could have imagined."
Zidane was a little surprised to hear this.
"How is that possible?"
"Perhaps."
"And also, sometimes when you're looking for an answer, it might be right there, near you, and you might even know it."
"What do you mean, bro?"
Zidane tilted his head, not understanding what Zain was saying.
"Just think about it slowly. Sometimes, without having to look for it, the answer will come to you."
With Zain's lack of expression, Zidane still didn't understand what he meant.
But there was one thing he did know.
The faint smile on Zain's face and his jade-green eyes gazing into the distance held a feeling.
Sadness.
...
"Sorry, I can only serve tea and simple snacks."
After being invited in, Evan, Rian, and the village chief, Gio, sat in the living room.
Charlotte served them tea.
"It's okay. Thank you." Evan smiled at Charlotte, and Charlotte smiled back.
However, Rian sensed something strange about their smiles.
"Did they know each other before? It's quite strange to see Dad remain silent after receiving that slightly cold look."
In Rian's eyes, Evan wasn't the kind of person who was friendly and patient with everyone. Seeing him laugh sincerely at Zain and listen to his every word struck Rian as odd.
But Rian thought it might be because they'd known each other for quite some time.
Seeing Evan only smile bitterly made Rian chuckle a little inwardly.
"This house is quite comfortable to live in. How about the children's lives here?" Evan began.
"Yes, even though it's simple, at least we try to keep them from going hungry and cold." Charlotte replied.
"Then, what about their education?"
"For school, we can only send a few children who are old enough to attend college in the city."
"We actually wanted to send the other children to elementary school, but since this village is quite far from the city and there's no one to look after them, we have no choice but to keep them here." Gio and Charlotte said.
"And about the children here..." Rian asked.
"Ah yes, there's a teacher who's coming here. He'll be staying and teaching the children for two weeks a month. He's a kind person, he teaches the children, and he even provided letters of recommendation so the children can attend high school in the city."
"I see. Thank goodness, that's good to hear." Evan said with a smile.
Even though the world was nearly destroyed by a monster attack, education was still essential for everyone. With the emergence of geniuses, technological development could flourish.
This country doesn't discriminate against children who need an education. Both the upper and lower classes have the right to attend school and receive the same education.
The more educated children there are, the more their country will progress.
Unfortunately, somewhat contrary to expectations, humans are selfish creatures.
"It's rare for teachers to approach and teach children like this. Because teaching is considered quite a high-stakes profession, they prefer to remain in their buildings and only prioritize the truly brilliant." Evan commented with a slightly mocking tone.
"Yes, you're right. Sometimes city people can be quite annoying." Charlotte said with a slightly mocking smile.
"Yes, most of them got their positions through their money. If it's a child from the upper class, they'll pay more attention and even praise them even if they're not that bright."
"And if it's a child from the lower class, they'll try to monopolize their genius and recommend them under their own name."
"Yes, and that makes it seem as if the teachers are truly guiding them."
Gio, Charlotte, and Evan exchanged their own comments.
Could they even be called comments?
"No. They're openly mocking." Rian thought to himself.
They casually exchanged comments that spread all the way to the government.
"Even though a minister of law was standing in front of them... No, the minister of law was also mocking the government he worked for. Was he mocking himself too?" Rian could only mutter to himself and shake his head.
...
"Ah, by the way, there are other creatures with long lifespans besides elves." Zain spoke, breaking the silence.
"What are they?"
"Vampires."
"Vampires?"
"Yes. They drink human blood to stay alive."
Zidane felt a little intrigued by the story.
"What's their story?"
Zain stood up and picked up his long shovel.
"Do you want me to tell you?"
"Yes." Zidane nodded.
"No."
"Why?"
"It's okay, I just don't want to."
Zain turned and walked away.
"Where are you going, brother?"
Zain didn't answer, just waved his hand, leaving Zidane still sitting there.