In the game.
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
Although Layla usually appeared gentle and timid, when it came to people she truly cared about, she became firm and decisive.
The moment Elric left, she immediately called Faruzan over. The two of them quietly slipped into Elric's room and began searching everywhere for the letter he had just written.
The room wasn't large at all — just a desk and a wardrobe.
After all, this was only a temporary residence. Once the competition ended, he would be leaving anyway.
The two carefully searched the cramped space, but after a long while, they found nothing.
Layla frowned slightly and said,
"I can't find it, Faruzan-senpai…"
Disappointment showed on her small face. She hadn't expected her senior to hide things this well. Even after searching for so long, they still came up empty.
In such a small room, where could it possibly be hidden?
"Don't rush. Take it slow. Young people shouldn't be so impatient,"
Faruzan comforted her and continued searching.
This time, she checked every corner even more carefully. Perhaps the hiding place was particularly clever.
After living for over a century, Faruzan had learned one thing: no matter what happens, stay calm and don't panic.
She took a deep breath, steadied herself, and bent down to check under the bed.
She had heard before that many boys liked hiding things under their beds — she decided to try her luck.
She loosened her twin ponytails and tied them into a high ponytail so her hair wouldn't get dirty when she crouched down.
And sure enough — she found something.
"Huh? What's this book?"
Faruzan pulled out a yellowed booklet from beneath the bed, looking almost like an ancient manuscript.
"What is it?"
Layla walked over and read the title aloud.
"The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon?"
The two exchanged glances, both seeing confusion in each other's eyes.
Who was the Yellow Emperor?
And what was an "Inner Canon" supposed to be?
They had no idea.
Curious, Faruzan flipped open a random page and glanced at it.
Then — she immediately snapped the book shut.
Her delicate face instantly flushed red.
"D–Disrespectful! H–How dare he keep something like this!"
In that brief glance, she had seen the words "bedchamber arts."
Although Faruzan was over a hundred years old, she was still a lifelong single woman. She rarely encountered things like this — she had only heard vague rumors.
Now her face was burning bright red.
She quickly stuffed the booklet into the pocket of her skirt, making sure Layla hadn't seen it.
"This is… pseudo-forbidden knowledge. Layla, you're still young — you shouldn't read this kind of thing."
Noticing Layla's puzzled gaze, Faruzan grew even more embarrassed as she forced out those words.
At the same time, doubt crept into her heart.
Had she really been letting Elric run too wild all these years?
Even this kind of thing had entered his collection now.
Lust truly was a blade that scraped the bones!
No, no — she couldn't think like that.
Faruzan patted her burning cheeks, trying to calm herself down.
Elric was an adult man — having desires was normal.
But the mistake was letting her find out!
This book was confiscated for now.
She would settle accounts with him later!
"Oh… okay…"
Layla blinked her golden eyes, still not fully understanding.
But judging from Faruzan's reaction, it definitely wasn't anything good.
Senior really was… kind of bad, collecting weird things like this.
"So… this still isn't the letter, right?"
Layla said disappointedly, her small face slightly flushed as well.
After searching for so long, even she was starting to feel tired.
"Fragile beauty" wasn't just a nickname.
Faruzan, now composed again, shook her head and continued searching.
Strange — the room was so small, yet they still couldn't find it.
Could he have taken it with him?
After all, even that so-called Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon had been found, yet the letter was still missing. That didn't make sense.
"Forget it. He probably took it with him. Hopefully Lumine can figure out what Elric is really up to."
Faruzan sighed and decided to leave.
If Elric came back and caught them inside his room, just imagining it was awkward.
Two mentors and a junior sneaking into a male student's room while he wasn't home…
Just thinking about it was hard to describe.
"Huh? Faruzan-senpai, look — could this be the letter?"
At that moment, Layla suddenly noticed a white paper envelope on the desk. She opened it and found several photos and a letter inside.
The two exchanged looks, both silently embarrassed.
…Seriously?
Was this the legendary "hidden in plain sight"?
Who would've thought something so important was just lying on the desk?
Trying to ease the awkwardness, Layla coughed lightly and opened the letter, reading it word by word.
"..."
"..."
After a while, Layla put the letter down, her expression complicated.
No wonder Senior wanted to return to Fontaine.
So he really was from Fontaine to begin with.
And apparently he even held a high-ranking position there.
She couldn't help wondering why he had come all the way to Sumeru in the first place.
"Looks like Senior is a normal… uh, not-quite-normal normal person. I just didn't expect him to have such a close relationship with the Hydro Archon of Fontaine."
Layla gave an awkward laugh.
The relationship was a little too close, honestly.
If someone sent her a letter like that from afar, she'd probably be furious.
It was way too bold.
She couldn't believe Senior dared to write something like that to a foreign god. She truly admired his courage.
If it were her, and the Dendro Archon appeared in front of her, she'd probably be so nervous she couldn't even speak.
As for Elric being from Fontaine, neither of them really minded.
Sumeru maintained friendly relations with other nations — otherwise scholars wouldn't be traveling abroad for research.
If relations were bad, those scholars would've been doomed long ago.
The only nation that didn't really get along with everyone was Snezhnaya.
After all, Snezhnaya had managed to antagonize nearly every other country by itself.
So they didn't resent Elric for holding a high position in Fontaine.
Besides, he hadn't stolen any national secrets and had always behaved properly.
Faruzan could only conclude one thing:
She would keep a close eye on Elric!
They quickly put the letter back where it was.
This was way too absurd.
Great Hydro Archon, we truly didn't tamper with anything.
Every word on that page was written by Elric himself. We didn't add a single stroke.
If you ever march into Sumeru because of this…
I'll personally expel him from my mentorship!
Justice before kin!
Advance Chapters available on Patreon
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