That messy white hair of hers, now standing on end due to her agitation, truly looked like a blown dandelion.
Every strand bristled, making her look even more like a small beast whose territory had been invaded, raising its fur in a show of defiance.
“Stay away from my Boss! Who wants to get to know you!”
Lyra’s voice was sharp and piercing, thick with the scent of gunpowder.
Sophie burst into laughter at this fierce yet adorable display.
Far from being angry, she found the situation even more entertaining.
“Oh, don’t be so grumpy, little wolf cub — I’m a very friendly Senior! Look, I’ll even buy you something delicious!”
She tried to tempt her with food, just as Freya had done earlier.
“Who cares!”
Lyra wasn’t buying it. In her mind, only the things Boss gave her were the best.
Something from this ‘Big Chest Monster’?
Hmph!
She definitely had bad intentions!
Seeing that Lyra was about to continue her outburst and might even do something more drastic — like actually pouncing and taking a bite — Freya sighed softly.
She reached out and grabbed the back of Lyra’s collar.
“Lyra.”
Her voice wasn’t loud; in fact, it was quite gentle.
However, her tone carried an unquestionable gravity and steadiness.
Lyra’s body stiffened, her snarling expression freezing instantly.
She turned her head to look at Freya.
The ferocity in her red eyes faded rapidly, replaced by a trace of grievance and confusion, but mostly by an instinctive obedience to Freya’s words.
She could bark and snap at Sophie, but she had to listen to her Boss.
Freya looked into those eyes that were as clear as water, currently filled with ‘Why are you stopping me?’ and shook her head slightly, signaling her to calm down with a look.
Only then did she turn to Sophie, speaking politely but with a hint of distance.
“Senior, Lyra’s personality is… direct. She isn’t used to being too close to people. Please forgive her.”
Sophie blinked, looking at Freya’s calm but firm face, then at Lyra, who had stopped her aggressive posture but still stood in the middle like a wary little hedgehog.
Sophie shrugged, the smile on her face never fading.
“Alright, alright, since dear Freya says so. However…”
Her amber eyes darted around.
Suddenly, her hand shot out with lightning speed, reaching toward Lyra’s fluffy head —
She still hadn’t given up on the idea of “petting” the bristly little beast.
However, Lyra’s reactions were startlingly fast!
Or rather, her wariness of Sophie was etched into her very bones.
The moment Sophie’s hand moved, Lyra yanked herself back like a startled rabbit.
She didn’t just retreat; she hid directly behind Freya, her hands tightly gripping Freya’s arm.
Poking only half her head out, she continued to bare her teeth at Sophie, letting out a dissatisfied “grrr,” looking exactly like a puppy growling at a stranger from behind its owner.
At this point, even Freya couldn’t help but chuckle.
Sophie retracted her hand with a look of regret, but the interest in her eyes grew even stronger.
“Tsk, what a quick reaction. This really is interesting!”
“Senior…”
Freya felt a bit helpless.
“Fine, fine, I’ll stop teasing her. Let’s go to the library.”
Sophie finally restrained herself a little, but she still followed them with a smile, maintaining a moderate distance.
Her gaze, however, kept drifting back to Lyra as if she were looking at some rare treasure.
Thus, the walk to the library formed a peculiar sight —
Freya walked in the middle with a steady pace.
Lyra clung tightly to her side, one hand still tugging at her sleeve, occasionally turning back to snap her teeth and give silent warnings to Sophie.
And Sophie followed leisurely behind with an intrigued smile, as if she were enjoying a fascinating play.
The setting sun stretched their shadows long, intertwining them.
Accompanied by Lyra’s occasional low growls and Sophie’s light laughter, they formed a scene that was both eerie and harmonious.
The surrounding students looked over one after another.
However, considering that of these three, one was the Academy Genius and person of interest, one was a Senior with a hot temper and immense strength, and the last was the mysterious assistant who had just “beaten” Willow and allegedly kicked a wooden sword into a wall, no one dared to approach or gossip.
They only watched with curious and fearful eyes.
The grand, quiet silhouette of the library finally appeared at the end of their vision.
The hall of knowledge was right before them, but Freya knew that tonight’s trip to the library would likely not be as peaceful as she had envisioned.
At the very least, with this “little wolf cub” and that enthusiastic Senior by her side, it was destined not to be a quiet night.
The moment they stepped through the library doors, the noise was instantly cut off.
Bookshelves towering to the dome stood like silent giants, arranged in an endless labyrinth.
Soft magical lights cast a warm glow between the shelves.
Occasionally, a student or Professor in academy robes walked by soundlessly, with only the rustle of turning pages and extremely low discussions echoing in the air.
As soon as Lyra entered, she subconsciously tucked her neck in, even her breathing becoming lighter.
She didn’t like this overly quiet environment; it always made her feel suffocated.
But thinking of the roasted lamb leg and honey-glazed ribs Freya had promised, she endured the discomfort.
She stayed glued to Freya, her wary gaze scanning the surroundings like a spotlight —
Especially toward that “Big Chest Monster” Sophie, who was still smiling behind them.
“Dear Freya, what information are you looking for? Your Senior is very familiar with this place. Maybe I can help you.”
Sophie lowered her voice, but her enthusiasm still felt particularly energetic in the quiet environment. She seemed completely unaffected by the library’s atmosphere.
“Thank you, Senior. I’m looking for some advanced analysis on the stability of Ancient Energy Runes, and…”
Freya responded in a low voice as well, listing several relatively obscure book classifications.
She needed to catch up on the lessons she had missed and also wanted to use this opportunity to see if she could find more peripheral records related to the “Chaos Core” and the “Essence of Holy Sword Power.”
The ancient books section of the library might have clues, but it required permissions and luck.
“Oh? Those sections are in the northwest corner. It’s a bit out of the way, but they have a pretty complete collection.”
Sophie pointed the way with the familiarity of a regular, then looked at Lyra, who was still stuck to Freya like a little tail while watching her like a hawk.
“What about you, little wolf cub? Do you want to find something interesting to read too? Like… the Aurora Continent Fierce Magic Beast Illustrated Guide? Or Introduction to Basic Melee Magic? I think the latter suits you quite well.”
She teased Lyra on purpose.
Lyra snorted through her nose and turned her head away, pretending not to hear, but her fingers gripped Freya’s sleeve even tighter.
She didn’t want to look at any guides or introductions; those words made her dizzy!
She just wanted to finish quickly and go eat meat!
The three of them maintained a delicate formation —
Freya walked in front, Lyra stayed close to her back-right, and Sophie followed about one step behind on the left —
They passed row after row of towering bookshelves, heading toward the library’s more remote northwest area.
The further in they went, the fewer people there were.
The light grew dimmer, with only the magic lamps embedded at intervals on the tops of the shelves emitting a steady glimmer.
The air grew thicker with the scent of old books.
Freya quickly found the target bookshelf and began focusing on browsing the titles and numbers on the spines.
Bored, Lyra leaned against the shelf next to her and yawned, her red eyes beginning to lose focus.
Sophie, meanwhile, watched Lyra with great interest, seemingly finding it very amusing to see her struggling with boredom while not daring to act out.
She suddenly leaned close to Freya’s ear and whispered.
“Dear Freya, where did you find this little assistant? That temper, that look in her eyes, plus that move this afternoon… Tsk, tsk, she doesn’t look like someone an ordinary family could raise.”
Freya’s fingers searching through the books paused for an imperceptible moment before returning to normal.
She answered in an equally low voice.
“By chance. She’s very reliable.”
She didn’t want to discuss Lyra’s origins too much.
“I can see she’s reliable; she’s very protective of her master.”
Sophie laughed softly, her gaze drifting back to Lyra, who had started secretly scuffing the floor with her toe.
“It’s just that personality of hers — like a little firecracker, one spark and she goes off. But… I like it! She’s so lively!”
Her amber eyes shone with sincere appreciation, lacking any malice.
Just then, Freya pulled a thick ancient book from an upper shelf. It had a deep blue hard cover and no gold-leafed title.
The edges of the pages were slightly damaged, emitting a faint musty smell and a strange ripple of magic.
She flipped to the title page, where the name was written in an extremely ancient script —
Starry Sky Remnants: Unrecorded Energy Resonance Conjecture.
She hadn’t noticed this book before.
Perhaps it had been newly categorized and shelved, or perhaps it was just too obscure.
However, the phrase “Energy Resonance Conjecture” made her heart stir.
Just as she was about to flip through it carefully, a very slight, almost imperceptible scratching sound came from the shadows on the other side of the bookshelf.
It sounded like fabric rubbing against a wooden shelf, or perhaps… someone holding their breath?
Almost at the same moment, Lyra snapped her head up.
Her bristling white hair hadn’t completely flattened yet, and her red eyes became as sharp as knives, piercing straight into the shadows where the sound originated!
Her body leaned forward slightly, and a very low, warning growl rumbled in her throat.
Freya and Sophie also immediately sensed the anomaly.
The smile on Sophie’s face vanished, and her hand moved inconspicuously toward her lower back.
That was where she usually kept her Melee Magic short staff.
Freya closed the ancient book, naturally holding it in front of her as a shield, while her other hand secretly gathered a wisp of mana.
Someone was hiding there!
And they were very likely spying on them!
A remote corner of the library, dim lighting, silent observation…
This was definitely no coincidence!
“Who’s there?”
Sophie spoke first. Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried the scorching pressure unique to a fire mage, breaking the dead silence of the area.
Silence hung in the shadows for a few seconds.
Then, a thin, small figure wearing an ordinary academy uniform and keeping their head down, concealing their face, walked out from behind the bookshelf in a panic.