NOVPUBLanci followed Nara’s Secretary down the paths of the Saint Kray Monastery, as staff and students in academy uniforms flowed past him.
People always lingered in the plazas they crossed, and the monks of the monastery knelt devoutly in prayer.
Groups of students were either sparring with swords or engaged in animated discussions, their vitality shining brightly on their faces.
Whenever Lanci passed by, he could hear whispers from behind.
It seemed they were guessing his identity.
A young man escorted by Nara’s Secretary was probably no ordinary figure.
"It seems Mr. Landry is quite charming,"
Nara’s Secretary commented to herself.
"Could it be that these students are curious about my identity?"
Lanci asked her.
As the Headmaster’s Secretary, Nara was more outgoing than she appeared, and they had chatted quite a bit along the way, becoming somewhat familiar.
"Perhaps, but among the students who gave you attention, only forty percent were males, whereas sixty percent were females, which suggests that a portion of the students are interested in you simply as the opposite sex,"
Nara put forward her analysis.
"...Hopefully, they just don’t understand me yet,"
Lanci shook his head.
He was no libertine. If Loren had a natural passive charm for attracting women, then he was surely born with a passive barrier to them.
"Don’t you get a lot of female attention in your hometown?"
Nara’s Secretary asked.
"The vast majority of women keep their distance respectfully, even my colleagues maintain politeness from afar. Perhaps once the students get to know me, they will see me in a proper light,"
Lanci spoke earnestly.
"Is there no woman who gets close to you?"
Nara, for some reason, began to understand the invisible barrier around him, but couldn’t quite articulate why it existed.
"There are some, although aside from one who is quite normal, the other two are of the sort who could not marry,"
Lanci said helplessly.
"..."
Talia stopped short as she crossed Lanci’s mind.
Why Lanci felt Xiu Bao wouldn’t marry, she disagreed.
And aside from her and Hyperion, who was the other?
She always felt there was a mysterious woman she had never met.
As Talia pondered, Lanci and Nara were quickly approaching the vast area where the Main Hall stood.
The emerald lawns were like whole pieces of soft velvet carpets, and the bright red maple leaves turned into patches of dazzling gems as they fell, embellishing the scene.
"These students will one day become pillars of the Cerryti Empire. I believe under your careful mentorship, they will surely grow better,"
Nara’s Secretary glanced back and said,
"It seems you do have a way with women, Professor. It just takes a girl with enough fate and destiny to get close to you. Often, such people are called ones with an emperor’s fate."
Nara’s Secretary led Lanci through the Main Hall’s garden, past the quaint and elegant arched gateway, revealing a wide-open view.
She returned to the earlier subject.
The garden was part of the Main Hall’s domain, inaccessible to non-teaching staff. In the center was a fountain, where clear water continuously gushed forth, making a pleasant babbling sound, and under the setting sun, it refracted a kaleidoscope of colors, occasionally blooming into several huge crystal roses among the dense, fiery shrubs.
"Miss Nela, do you understand Divination?"
As far as Lanci knew, Divination Attribute holders were the rarest among the thirty-one types of attributes, and such esoteric topics were typically favored by those with the Divination Attribute.
"Some aptitude, but not enough to become a Diviner. True geniuses who can become Diviners hardly ever end up in some cushy clerical job unless they have an exceptionally quirky personality,"
Nara’s Secretary shook her head.
She was merely the Headmaster’s Secretary, who enjoyed reading, and the Terre Monastery happened to house countless ancient texts, and her responsibilities allowed her the freedom to peruse them.
"But shouldn’t an emperor’s fate be something that would make someone more popular?"
Lanci thought for a moment and asked with curiosity.
Like Loren.
"There’s what’s called a prosperous emperor’s fate, but there’s also one called a calamitous emperor’s fate. In times of chaos, they could be a benevolent ruler or a tyrant,"
Nara’s Secretary explained.
"I see, but I have no desire to be an emperor; I just want to strive toward a carefree life,"
Lanci joked along.
He didn’t really believe in such things.
"The Cerryti Empire today might actually need a benevolent ruler,"
Nara murmured almost imperceptibly, then shook her head slightly, deciding not to continue the subject.
She led Lanci through the garden to a quiet brown stone cloister.
Through the stretches of columns, the garden remained visible until it faded from sight, and gradually they walked indoors into the Main Hall.
After a while, Nara stopped in front of an intricately carved santalwood door.
She knocked lightly, the clear sound echoing in the silent hallway.
"Headmaster Violet, the new professor, Mr. Landry, has arrived."
Before she had finished knocking—
"Come in."
A voice that was authoritative yet warm floated through.
Nara pushed open the heavy santalwood door and gestured for Lanci to enter.
"Thank you."
Lanci thanked Nara and stepped into the grand hall.
A faint fragrance was refreshing, and the bright light streaming through the Rose Window cast shadows on the marble floor, creating a painting as exquisite as an oil canvas.
Seated in front of the Rose Window, behind the desk, the woman turned her gaze toward Lanci.
