16: Chapter 16 Avril is here to escape the hustle and bustle.

On the streets of the small town.

Avril followed behind Potter, feeling a bit regretful about coming to find him.

She claimed to be helping find treasure, but she was actually here to seek some peace and quiet.

Perhaps it was a common trouble for beautiful women; there were always endless suitors around her, wave after wave.

Hiding in the royal palace meant no one could bother her, but staying in one place all day was stifling; no matter how vast the palace was, it would eventually feel suffocating.

Hearing that Potter had quietly left the Royal Capital, the chill surrounding Avril faded slightly. She made up a random excuse and brought Mora along to follow him.

On the way, she heard Potter mention meeting an interesting person, but she didn't pay it much mind.

Since the person couldn't possibly become Potter's student anyway, they naturally wouldn't be sharing a room. However, from Potter's tone now, it seemed he intended to take that person as a student.

Avril knew mage courses very well; they involved at least a full day of classes during the daytime.

Where would the peace and quiet be then?

A cramped place without harassment versus moving about freely but with an unshakeable tail.

How to distinguish the pros and cons between the two? The icy look in Avril's eyes showed signs of confusion.

Mora, considering herself the most excellent maid, keenly sensed her confusion: "Your Highness, please rest assured, Mora is here for everything."

Potter clearly heard their whispering: "Zhang Mu is an exception."

"But Mr. Potter," Mora said with a look of doubt, "ever since I pledged my loyalty to Her Highness, I have never seen a man who could ignore Her Highness's beauty."

Mora felt that perhaps because of his old age, Mr. Potter could no longer understand the mindset of young men.

Having guarded her princess for over ten years, Mora had never met a man who wasn't moved by her; their eyes were always filled with desire.

Even the few who appeared calm, upon closer inspection, revealed madness hidden beneath that surface.

Men are all black-hearted, Mora thought, clenching her small fists.

"That's why I said he's an exception." Potter didn't look back; his tone wasn't argumentative, simply stating a fact.

The eyes are the windows to the soul; looking through Zhang Mu's windows, he saw only a deep-seated indifference.

"Teacher," Avril said, comfortingly patting the little maid's head, "do you plan to take on another student?"

Potter's footsteps paused for a moment before he continued walking: "I'm still observing."

Despite the ambiguous answer, Avril sensed a hint of hesitation, but she gave up questioning further; after all, this was her teacher's own business.

But Potter saw through her thoughts: "He is excellent, it's just that my time is running out, and... it might involve him."

"Avril, we should not force our will upon others, nor should we define others as lost just because they reject us."

"Otherwise, we would be no different from the Church."

The Church was terrifying—this was the consensus of all living beings on the continent. Avril understood what kind of rebellion she and her teacher were about to commit.

"Teacher, are you going to test him?"

"I don't think a test is necessary." Potter suddenly turned around. "He will be a steadfast fellow traveler, but..."

After hesitating for a moment, he turned back and continued walking: "We should leave behind a spark."

These past few days, Potter had been constantly wondering whether he should tell Zhang Mu what he was doing.

In the end, he chose to hide it.

Zhang Mu was an independent individual with his own consciousness, coming from a remote corner and just starting to encounter and understand the world.

He shouldn't pour his own philosophies and perceptions into him before Zhang Mu had formed his own basic concepts and views of the world, thereby influencing him.

Because Potter couldn't be certain that he was definitely on the side of truth; the future of humanity, or rather the continent, required constant exploration and testing.

Having an additional, different path was a good thing.

Avril's gaze fell on his back: "A steadfast fellow traveler... Teacher, isn't that a bit too idealistic?"

The heart is hidden beneath the chest; even if one were to cut it open and look directly at it, things might not be clear.

Potter shook his head and didn't explain further.

The three of them wove through the crowd of townspeople and arrived at No. 18 Hatton Street.

Just as they were about to enter the house, Avril suddenly said, "Teacher, I want to walk around a bit. I've been in the palace for too long."

"Mm." Potter wasn't worried about her safety and pushed the door open. "Just don't leave the town. Magical beasts have become much more active lately."

"Okay, Teacher."

Responding, Avril led Mora toward the street.

...

Zhang Mu strolled through the town, browsing the trinkets in his inventory.

They were all sorts of miscellaneous items, from small things like nail clippers and ear picks to larger ones like hand drills and chainsaws.

In the Other World, these would certainly be novel enough, but their specific value would depend on the market.

Looking at it this way, shops with a single type of product wouldn't work; a General Store would be the most suitable.

Zhang Mu turned his steps and headed toward the town's only General Store.

It took about five minutes to get nearby; it was just around the next corner.

As soon as he turned the corner, Zhang Mu was stunned for a moment.

In front of the General Store stood a woman who seemed to be enveloped in ice blue.

Ice-blue long hair, eyebrows, and a robe of the same color.

A mage?

Zhang Mu was quite puzzled.

From what he learned from Potter, mages and other transcendent Professionals mostly gathered in well-informed large cities.

Why were mages coming to this remote town one after another?

Additionally...

He scanned the residents passing by on the stone road. Were mages very common? Or had they never seen a mage before?

Surprisingly, no one was crowding around to watch; they didn't even spare a second glance, let alone...

His gaze fell on the woman's profile.

Her ethereal beauty was evident even from the side. Were the townspeople all Ascetic Monks with no desires?

Zhang Mu pondered for a while without a conclusion, shook his head, and walked over. He wanted to check the General Store to see what items would sell well.

"Your Highness, there's nothing in the shop... Stop!"

Startled by the shout, Zhang Mu was snapped out of his thoughts about what to take out first.

He looked up instinctively. A maid in a black-and-white cinched-waist uniform had suddenly appeared in front of the woman, her arms spread wide and an intimidating warning on her face.

Looking left and right, Zhang Mu pointed at himself: "Are you talking to me?"

"Hmph," the maid sneered. "Man, I've already seen through your intentions. Don't try to use such low-level tactics like playing dumb to get close to Her Highness."

"Mora," the woman turned around, "that's too rude."

After saying that, she bowed slightly in apology: "Sorry, sir. Mora has had little contact with the outside world. Please forgive her rudeness."

Zhang Mu glanced at her face; she was indeed beautiful, but he didn't care and immediately looked away.

If she had a pair of cat ears, he might have looked a few more times.

"It's fine," Zhang Mu replied and walked into the shop.

During this, Mora was like an old hen protecting her chicks, arms wide open, staring at him threateningly until he entered the shop.

"Mora," Avril's tone grew slightly heavy.

"Your Highness, he must be..."

"Mora." The tone was level, but it carried an icy chill.

Mora lowered her head, her fingers twisting together over her stomach.

Avril withdrew the coldness radiating from her body: "He did nothing.

Is this how I taught you, to presume others' intentions without cause?"

"I'm sorry, Your Highness." Mora buried her head even deeper, feeling a bit aggrieved.

It couldn't be helped; in the Royal Capital, whenever her princess left the palace, ill-intentioned men were like bears attracted to honey, desperately crowding around.

Mora had never been wrong in stopping them.

After a moment of silence, Avril softened her tone: "In the Royal Capital, I let you be because those were familiar faces whose motives were already exposed.

The gentleman just now was a stranger we don't know. It's very unfair to judge him based on stereotypes."

"Mora understands."

"Let's go. We'll walk around somewhere else."