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The wind on the hillside outside Buena Village was gentle.
The dappled shadows of the trees flickered across Allen's face as he lay beneath one, lost in thought. His mind was preoccupied with recent "realities."
Currently, there were only three or four months left before the tutor period in the original storyline, but some "inner dilemmas" were troubling him.
First, there was his attempt to get the Greyrat family to leave Buena Village to avoid the Great Teleportation.
This had obviously hit a snag. It was clear that his words alone weren't enough to convince them. He couldn't just shout, "I'm from another world, get out of here!"
So, he needed external forces to make this happen.
Where were these external forces?
The most promising opportunity lay in the inevitable future contact with the Boreas family in Roa City.
In other words, Allen's "original family."
At the moment, Allen wasn't worried about being recognized. Over the past two years, his expression, hairstyle, and demeanor had completely changed. The sharp, edgy man with a slicked-back hairstyle from two years ago had now become a long-haired, smiling, bespectacled nice guy.
And Philip, who had always been wary of James, had only caught a distant glimpse of Allen during his eight years in the royal capital.
Now, after the passage of time, with insufficient information, it was almost impossible for Philip to connect Allen with his eldest son.
So, it was feasible to stir up trouble as a stranger.
This was Allen's current judgment based on the available information.
But.
If this line of reasoning continued, a new problem arose.
While he had already completed the childhood period and could now enter the tutoring period at any time, the boundaries of this tutoring period had become very blurred. The most logical reason for contacting the Boreas family had also disappeared.
In the original storyline: Rudy received a letter from Roxy announcing her promotion to Water King-level mage. Realizing that his magical growth had stagnated, he decided to pursue further studies at the magic university.
Sylphie, upon hearing this, initially didn't want Rudy to leave. Later, Rudy, considering the joy of nurturing, decided to take Sylphie with him to the magic university.
At this point, Paul refused his request to attend school. He sensed that Rudy intended to keep Sylphie by his side, which would hinder her growth. After discussing with Laws, they decided to send Rudy to the city to work as a tutor, earning his own "tuition."
The main goal was to separate the two, preventing Sylphie from becoming completely dependent on Rudy.
You want to stay with Sylphie and go to the magic university?
Fine, go earn your own money. The condition is that you can't contact Sylphie for three years. After three years, if you've earned enough, you can come back and take her to school.
That's the premise of my agreement.
Later, Paul secretly sent a letter to the Philip family.
Rudy was suddenly picked up by Ghyslaine and taken to Roa City.
Thus began the tutoring period.
But the current situation is:
Rudy's upper limit in magic hasn't improved much, but his lower limit is steadily increasing. In the original story, at this point, he showed remarkable talent in magic, but his application of magic in combat was still lacking.
But after Allen arrived, the two of them sparred daily. After experiencing the monster tide last winter...
This old NEET suddenly became much more mature.
Since then, he's been practicing the battlefield application of magic. Now, he can effortlessly use the mixed magic he would later master.
"Frost Nova!"
Just as his thoughts reached this point, a shout came from nearby.
A wave of frost spread across the ground, turning the grass into icy spikes that rushed toward the tree where Allen was lying.
Allen's thoughtful expression froze slightly. His pupils contracted and expanded.
His vision changed color.
The swaying tree shadows "froze" in mid-air, and the rustling leaves fell silent.
The person under the tree quietly admired the faded ink painting in the "quiet room."
Threads of dark mist rose from the bottom of his vision, gradually encroaching on his entire field of view.
The next moment.
The mist was blown away.
A "wind" rose from within him.
Allen blinked.
The world regained its color.
The frost, as if encountering an invisible barrier, obediently bypassed Allen's feet as it reached him.
The entire hillside was freezing.
But the tree continued to sway in the spring breeze, gently casting dappled light on the face of the person beneath it.
This was its "protected one."
Not far away, the voices of a boy and a girl reached Allen's ears.
"Allen's Rock Art is still flawless... He effortlessly deflects my magic. Now he doesn't even need to draw his sword to release it perfectly. As expected of Allen."
"Heh."
"? Sylphie, your squinting smile is a bit creepy... By the way, the village has been quite lively lately... Look, there's a carriage passing by..."
"My father said it's the season for planting Barthel flowers and wheat, so there have been carriages coming to deliver seeds."
"The planting season has arrived..."
The voices of the two children faded into the wind, and Allen continued to ponder.
Given that Rudy has been focusing on the practical application of magic and strengthening lower-tier spells, Roxy's promotion to King-level hasn't had much impact on him.
Because in their correspondence before her promotion, they had been discussing magic.
He already knew that mage ranks meant little to someone with his peculiar combination of large mana reserves and small output. As long as he increased his mana output and adjusted the form, he could make every Rock Bullet reach King-level power.
What mattered was his ability to apply low-level and mixed magic.
At this point, Rudy was already several versions ahead of the original storyline. While he hadn't reached the adventurer period yet, he was already at the level of the Demon Continent arc.
The urgency to earn money and study at the magic university had diminished.
The trigger for the tutoring period—"going to the magic university for further study"—had disappeared.
Moreover, Sylphie no longer clung to Rudy, so the motivation to "go to the magic university together" had also vanished.
Allen had even "tested" Laws about this, asking if he was worried about Sylphie's growth since she spent so much time with them.
Laws gave Allen a long, strange look before replying in a low voice.
'Not too worried, because I "trust." And Sylphie has already grown a lot, which proves it.'
Trust??
Who??
What does that mean?
Before Allen could ask further, Laws suddenly made a twisted expression and pushed him away, clearly displeased.
It was all very strange.
But if it were just this, it wouldn't matter. Allen wouldn't mind pushing Rudy to realize he needed to improve, nor would he mind helping Sylphie "grow," since she rarely opposed his suggestions.
The more critical and thorny issue wasn't with them.
It was with Paul.
Paul had shown no intention of introducing Rudy to Roa!
If the old man didn't send the letter, they wouldn't even have a tutoring identity, let alone an adolescent tutor period. There would be no tutoring to speak of!
Although the system had said that his own adolescent tutor period would begin the moment he interacted with the original storyline characters.
But did that mean Allen had to run away from home again, charge into Roa City, stand in front of Eris, and say:
"I, Allen, Sword Saint, declare you my disciple?"
Wouldn't that get his head chopped off by a certain nearly two-meter-tall FURRY dark-skinned "babe"?
Moreover, Allen had already pulled this stunt once before. Doing it again would surely get him disowned, right?
So, Allen had also tested Paul on this.
Paul's response was that Sylphie, Rudy, and Allen would form the perfect foundation for a future adventurer team.
Magic university? What for?
Why not just become adventurers?
Besides, noble girls at school, when they take off their clothes, their flesh is all soft and their figures completely distorted.
It's a complete deception. Adventurer women's bodies are honest—what you see is what you get, without any corsets or other nonsense.
Back when he was in noble school before the age of eleven, he had been fooled many times, and so on.
This line, identical to the original story, left Allen utterly speechless.
Paul was Paul, his mindset as unyielding as a rock, not even softened by being thrown into a cesspit.
But Allen somewhat agreed with the point about adventurer women being better, because...
He had always preferred adventurers.
Especially the great adventurers who soloed dungeons near Shirone.
If you narrowed it down to blue hair, a cold expression, thin lips, petite stature, and a cute adventurer...
That would be perfect...
Suddenly, a shadow intruded into Allen's vision, and strands of white hair blocked his view.
He blinked.
It was Sylphie's face.
Sylphie leaned over him, her hands on the grass beside his head.
A white off-the-shoulder dress.
White hair floating in the air.
Her fair skin seemed almost translucent in the sunlight.
The wind brushed her face, her ears twitching slightly. Her reddish-brown eyes looked at Allen, squinting gently in the wind.
There was a certain tenderness.
It's worth noting that the dress was one Allen had picked out for Sylphie at the market at the start of spring.
At the time, Sylphie's face had turned completely red, waving her hands and muttering about not wanting it, how it was too expensive, and how it might look strange on her.
Allen had firmly insisted it wouldn't look strange at all.
After all, he was a man with a monthly salary of two silver coins.
Although, since becoming a full-fledged "family member" of the Greyrat household last winter, the payments had become irregular, often given like pocket money.
It was quite ridiculous.
Shouldn't brothers settle accounts clearly?
Paul really didn't understand.
But Sylphie seemed to love that dress.
Now, she wore it every time she saw Allen.
Allen looked at Sylphie's smiling face before him.
But lately, whenever Allen saw Sylphie like this, he felt a strange sense of familiarity.
It was like...
The feeling he got when looking in the mirror every morning.
It must be an illusion.
"What's wrong, Sylphie?"
Sylphie's hair had grown to shoulder length. After her mana depletion turned her hair white, no new green hair grew. Perhaps because the hair strands had died, the white hair was exceptionally smooth, neatly framing her pointed ears and swaying in the wind before Allen's face.
"It's time to go back for lunch."
——
March was the season for planting.
Carts laden with crops were parked along the irrigation fields, with baskets of seeds being unloaded directly into the fields.
This was one snapshot of the agricultural economy of the Asura Kingdom.
Allen and the two children walked along the road, with villagers in the fields occasionally looking up to greet them.
Allen, deep in thought about how to smoothly transition into the tutoring period, had nearly perfected his Water God Style's "Flow Sense" over the past year. Even without activating it, his senses were incredibly sharp.
But processing too much information would overwhelm him, so he selectively ignored most of it to avoid mental exhaustion.
For example, at this moment, his thoughts were repeatedly "plowing" through the fields of his inner dilemmas, while the external noise was just the spring breeze blowing across the fields. His main focus was on "plowing."
The breeze was merely ripples on the surface of his thoughts.
"Hey, Rudy! You've grown taller again! What a handsome lad."
"Hello, uncle! Thank you!"
Allen's brain: ~Useless information, ignore.
"Hey, Sylphie, you're getting prettier by the day~ That dress is so cute~"
"Thank you~ Auntie, Allen gave it to me. :)"
Allen's brain: ~Useful information, noted. Will buy more in the future.
"Hey, Allen, you've gotten even more robust~ Haven't seen you around lately, you should come visit sometime~"
Allen's brain: ~Complimentary information, should respond with thanks...
Wait, what the hell???
Allen's neck stiffened. He blinked, snapping out of his thoughts.
At this moment, he didn't even need to turn his head to recognize the voice—it was Mrs. Somar's tone, twisting and turning in the wind.
In his peripheral vision, he saw Sylphie frowning at Mrs. Somar, while Rudy instantly transformed into a jokester, eagerly engaging with her.
"Allen has gotten more robust indeed! He hasn't visited you lately, but he'll definitely come by soon~~"
Rudy was such a good guy, always helping to "defuse" situations.
Tonight would be his last.
Allen nodded, looking down at his feet, not planning to engage with the overly hospitable Mrs. Somar.
At that moment.
A gust of wind blew past his face.
The wind was brought by a carriage passing behind him, then settled. The curtain on the carriage window fluttered in the wind.
A gaze peeked out from within, then withdrew, brushing past Allen.
Unlike the cargo carts by the irrigation fields, this was a luxurious, widened passenger carriage, even with a raised crystal roof.
Then, one after another, carriages passed by.
All of similar design.
Four in total.
Almost every one of them...
Cast a gaze...
Of "scrutiny."
——
The carriages didn't stop, their wheels still turning.
Moving forward.
The curtains fluttered in the wind, and the palpable sense of "scrutiny" from the Water God Style's "Flow Sense" vanished.
It was as if they were just passersby who happened to glance at the pedestrians by the roadside.
But Allen stopped in his tracks.
Sylphie, beside him, raised an eyebrow in surprise, glancing at Mrs. Somar, who had suddenly become excited upon seeing Allen stop, then turned to look at Allen.
"A-Allen??"
In Sylphie's eyes, Allen's expression shifted rapidly—first surprise, then a hint of shock, followed by contemplation.
In an instant, his expression melted like spring snow, and he simply said, "I'm fine, let's keep going."
Rudy and Sylphie exchanged a glance, both stealing a look at Mrs. Somar, who had slumped back into disappointment in the fields, before catching up to Allen, who had already taken a few steps ahead.
Under the sunlight, Allen's face was expressionless.
This expression hadn't appeared on his face in a long, long time. Over the past year, he had either been smiling with squinted eyes or wearing various emotions on his face. This stoic expression from two springs ago...
Hadn't been seen once in the past year.
This was why Sylphie and Rudy were surprised.
But strangely, since encountering Allen and the two children, the carriages ahead seemed to deliberately slow down.
Maintaining a rigid, unchanging distance, firmly "sticking" within the trio's line of sight.
It was as if the carriages were "leading" the three of them.
Entering the village entrance.
Crossing the solid dirt road of the village.
Passing through the village.
Finally, at a corner, the four carriages turned one after another, disappearing behind a side wall.
Out of the trio's sight.
Rudy, however, was utterly stunned.
Because, beyond that wall, was the Greyrat family's gate.
He turned to look at Allen again, his expression questioning.
Allen remained the same.
His steady gait, unruffled pace, led the two children onward...
Onward...
Turning the corner of the wall.
What met their eyes.
Was the sunlight pouring generously over the Greyrat family's front door.
The four carriages had come to a halt, and Paul and Zenith's panicked voices could be heard from inside the Greyrat residence, rushing out the door.
Servants dismounted, placing a footstool by the door of the lead carriage.
Then they opened the door for the person inside.
Spotless leather boots, finely stitched silk trousers, a noble-style luxurious coat.
The person stepped out of the carriage, onto the footstool, then onto the rough ground before the Greyrat family's gate.
It was a middle-aged man with a scholarly air.
He took a deep breath of the fresh country air, a smile spreading across his face.
Then, ignoring the hurriedly approaching master of the house, he slowly turned to look in the trio's direction.
The midday sun blazed down, illuminating his face.
Beneath his curly brown hair was a face with squinting eyes and a smile.
Kindness and coldness, two completely opposite qualities, were strangely mixed in his expression.
It was impossible to tell which was his true face.
Sylphie, seeing his expression, felt a pang of unease. For some reason, she suddenly felt tense.
She reached for Allen's hand beside her, grabbing it, and turned to look at him.
But she was stunned.
In her gaze, Allen's cold expression was slowly changing.
His eyes gradually squinted, his lips curling into a smile as he returned the gaze of the visiting "guest."
Dust hung in the air between their gazes, flickering and shimmering.
This was the system prompt that had risen the moment their eyes met, back when the carriage and the person had brushed past each other on the country road outside the irrigation ditch.
[Detected host interacting with tutoring period storyline characters.]
[Childhood period ended.]
[Adolescent tutor period begins early.]
[Score reset.]
[Current stage: Adolescent tutor period, cumulative participation score: 2 points.]
[Please continue to strive, leaving your "mark" in the eyes of the protagonists and supporting characters amidst the torrent of the jobless era.]
[Current swordsmanship levels:]
[Sword God Style: Advanced.]
[Water God Style: Saint-level.]
[North God Style: Advanced.]
Allen's gaze passed through the words [Cumulative participation score: 2 points] and landed on the "guest's" face.
At this moment.
Under the same sunlight, in Sylphie's eyes.
The two of them smiled at each other.
She suddenly felt...
That their expressions...
Were far too similar.
In the next instant, she realized the source of her unease.
Noble; middle-aged; luxurious carriage; arriving at the knight's family's doorstep; Allen's unusual behavior.
The person before them.
Was likely...
Allen's biological father.
The wheels of the carriages before the Greyrat family's gate had come to a halt.
But fate continued to roll forward.
Note: So far this story is published up to chapter 135 on my patreon, go check it out and remember that if we reach the goal of 90 power stones I will publish the next chapter.