"Hurry, hurry — take me home."
Li Fei urged the Griffin along, eyes fixed on the new spell shining in her System Panel.
No matter how situational a spell might be, it was still a miracle beyond the reach of ordinary people. She was itching to get back and test the effects of Sensitivity Aura in person.
The Griffin let out a resonant, ringing cry and beat its wings hard. Their speed surged. Li Fei pulled her mage's robe tight against the howling wind.
"Stop right there!"
The moment they crossed into Loxibrook's airspace, a clear, sharp voice cut through the rushing wind — and the air around them suddenly thickened like cooling syrup. The Griffin's speed plummeted.
At the same moment, another Griffin shot upward and blocked her path. Astride its back stood a breathtaking beauty in white — tall, straight-backed, and striking. Her constable's uniform was cut like a wedding gown and wore like battle armor. A cascade of chestnut hair fell to her ankles, whipping wildly in the gale.
"Per the Public Order Regulations, flight speed within Loxibrook may not exceed two hundred yards per minute."
Asuna, with whom Li Fei had crossed paths once before, announced in a clear, carrying voice: "You are in violation. I need to inspect your flight permit."
Then she caught a proper look at the face before her — a face she remembered clearly, yet somehow even more captivating than it had been two days ago — and her expression shifted into open bewilderment.
You again?
"Oh, Miss Asuna."
Li Fei rubbed her cheeks, stiff from the wind, and produced a smile. "It's been so long."
"We saw each other three days ago," Asuna said, her face perfectly blank.
"Back home, we have a saying — a single day apart feels like three years."
Li Fei tucked a windswept strand of hair behind her ear and readied her beauty-as-bribery offensive.
"Don't try to get friendly with me. Show me your documents."
Asuna looked away.
"Here."
With a slightly guilty air, Li Fei produced a photograph of herself and Bai Mengtian.
"…Is this supposed to be your identification?" Asuna sighed. "Come with me."
Bestie, does Loxibrook really have the surname Bai? Twice I've flashed your photo, and twice this iron-faced constable has ignored it completely. What kind of 'uncrowned queen' can't even pull rank here…
"No — I'll pay the fine."
The potion's side effects hadn't worn off yet. Li Fei wrestled down the irritable restlessness clawing at her from the inside, snapped off a crisp French military salute, and asked, "How much is the speeding fine?"
"You think speeding is a minor matter?" Asuna, seeing no sign of remorse, said coldly: "Yesterday, someone got drunk and went riding on a three-headed hound…"
"…and plowed straight into a pedestrian. An arm ended up in the hound's stomach."
Li Fei had heard this exact gossip from her classmates that morning. Under the potion's debuff, her composure finally slipped. "But nothing happened this time, did it?" she said, her tone clipped and impatient.
Asuna gave a nearly imperceptible shake of her head and a small sigh.
Such a beautiful face. What a pity about the personality.
She fixed Li Fei with a steady look and said, enunciating every word: "Speeding. Flying without a permit. You're looking at a minimum of three months' imprisonment."
Oh no.
Li Fei watched, wide-eyed and helpless, as a pair of silver bracelets snapped around her wrists. "My best friend is Bai Mengtian — you can't arrest me!" she protested, puffing her cheeks.
"I also remember a saying from your homeland," Asuna replied, expression glacial. "The law applies equally to the son of Heaven and the common man."
With practiced ease, she subdued Li Fei's attempt to resist arrest — and dropped a black cloth over her head.
...
Behind mana-reinforced iron bars, Li Fei sat in silence. She was down to her undergarments, silver bracelets still locked around her wrists, expression sour as vinegar.
The potion's side effects had passed — but her face remained distinctly unpleasant.
Asuna. I will remember this.
Li Fei paced the cell back and forth. Bestie showed no signs of coming to bail her out. With nothing else to do, she shrugged and cast Sensitivity Aura on herself.
— Idle hands and all that. Might as well test the new spell.
Sensitivity Aura (Lv1)
Spell Effect: Increases the target's sensitivity by 10%.
Duration: 20 minutes
Cooldown: 30 seconds
Mana Cost: 6
EXP to Next Level: 0/100
"Sensibilitas Aura."
A ripple of mana light washed over her body — and Li Fei jolted like she'd touched a live wire. On reflex, her chin dropped to her chest, and she squirmed from side to side.
A moment later, a faint breeze slipped in through the narrow slit of a window. Li Fei scrambled into the corner at once, every muscle pulled taut, even her toes curling inward against the soles of her feet.
"…Ten percent, and it's this intense?"
She pushed the words out between clenched teeth.
Her neck had always been sensitive to begin with. With Sensitivity Aura active, even the faintest breath of wind made the skin there feel cool and tingly — an almost unbearable ticklish warmth. The fabric of her clothes, normally soft and comfortable, now pressed against her skin like sandpaper. Every instinct screamed at her to tear it all off.
"Endure it… you'll get used to it eventually…"
She muttered to herself, forced herself to bear the discomfort, and stood on her toes to pull the window shut.
Then, in an effort to make twenty minutes feel less like an eternity, she started thinking out loud — a stream of quiet, rambling commentary to keep her mind occupied.
"Actually, come to think of it — this spell has real uses…"
"It does make me sharper. I can feel the direction of air currents, the shifts in temperature… If I could stay accustomed to this state, I'd have much faster reaction times in a fight. It'd be nearly impossible for an enemy to land a sneak attack on me…"
"As for the downside… at baseline, the discomfort is about on par with having a full bladder and then downing five hundred milliliters of water, then sitting still for twenty minutes. Not great, but survivable. Even if you're moving around, it's not unbearable. But if the spell's level were higher — and you cast it on an already-wounded enemy — the effect would be devastating. Anyone without serious willpower would be completely wrecked by one hit of Sensitivity Aura. Combat effectiveness: at least halved…"
"For interrogation purposes, this would be phenomenally effective…"
"Also, once the coming-of-age ceremony is done — if applied correctly — this thing might double my sales commission at the tavern."
"Good spell. Must use often."
The twenty minutes passed with agonizing slowness.
By the time the spell wore off, her undergarments were soaked through with sweat, and strands of black hair had stuck to the corners of her lips.
Li Fei collapsed onto the narrow cot, chest heaving with long, shuddering breaths, staring up at the ceiling with glassy, unfocused eyes.
"Last meal delivery."
A familiar voice sounded at the edge of her hearing. Li Fei craned her neck and saw Bai Mengtian — dressed in a constable's uniform — strolling in with a food tray, those bright eyes brimming with barely concealed, gleeful mischief.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't our famously talented Special Enrollment student. Few days in and already behind bars?"
"Let me out!" Li Fei scrambled off the cot and rattled the iron bars with both hands.
"Mind your status, criminal."
Bai Mengtian conjured a chair out of thin air and settled into it beside the bars, tilting her constable's cap to a rakish angle on her head. The pale blue uniform sat snug against her figure, the tie hanging loose and undone over her chest. Below the waistline was a very short leather skirt, long legs crossed and wrapped in translucent black stockings, one high heel dangling half-off, swaying idly from the tip of her foot.
If the entire law-enforcement corps looked like this, Loxibrook's crime rate would probably skyrocket.
"Then get in here and say it!"
Li Fei puffed up her cheeks.
"Heh."
Bai Mengtian flicked her wrist. The iron bars swung open with a clang of metal on metal. The constable-for-a-day strode in head held high — and behind her, the bars slammed shut again.
"Oh? She actually came in."
Li Fei blinked — then slowly turned around, spread her hands wide, and tilted her chin up with imperious confidence: "You walked right into my domain. Are you really coming in here to die?"
"How else am I supposed to make you call me Mama?"
Bai Mengtian advanced one step at a time. She snapped her fingers, and a translucent blue barrier shimmered over the iron bars. "Silence Ward — it blocks both light and sound…"
Before she could finish the sentence, Li Fei launched herself forward in a flying tackle and sent her tumbling onto the cot. A cascade of glossy black hair fanned across the mattress like a blooming black datura.
"I've been waiting so long to hear my prey scream."
Li Fei straddled Bai Mengtian's midsection, looming over her with predatory delight, fingers poised and aiming for her ribs. She let out a villainous cackle.
She could feel it — the soft skin beneath her starting to flush warm, to tremble — and then ten pale, nimble fingers slid straight into Li Fei's armpits, and the smirk on her face froze solid.
She still had the energy to counter-attack?!
"No — this can't be happening…"
Li Fei's eyes went wide. A deeply unpleasant premonition rose in her chest.
"Hehehe, the results of my special training are paying off."
Bai Mengtian licked the corner of her lips. "Today, I shall repay that past humiliation — tenfold!"
"I didn't expect you to have grown this much in such a short time…"
Li Fei's voice dropped low, a dangerous glint entering her eyes.
Then — she suddenly broke into a radiant, open smile. Mana stirred lightly within her as she opened her palm:
"But I haven't played my trump card yet."
"Sensibilitas Aura."
"What — that's…"
At the sound of the familiar incantation, Bai Mengtian gave a small shiver, expression shifting to surprise.
"Wail! Tremble! Turn into a fountain!"
The corners of Li Fei's mouth curled back with shameless abandon. Even her pupils seemed to have taken on a ♥ shape as she savored the anticipated joy of crushing her adversary.
But the smile vanished from her face a moment later.
"Why isn't it working?!"
Li Fei shook her head vigorously, unable to process the fact that the spell that had just had her climbing the walls — was being completely ignored by Bai Mengtian.
"I have Sensitivity Aura running on myself at all times, you know."
Bai Mengtian covered her mouth with a delicate laugh.
"Ah— I can't believe it — was this part of your plan all along?!"
The realization of what was coming next hit Li Fei like cold water. Cold sweat broke out all over her body instantly.
"Fei-bao, I genuinely didn't want to use this on you — I was worried you wouldn't be able to handle it. But since you decided to fight dirty first…"
Bai Mengtian giggled, and tapped her index finger lightly against the center of Li Fei's brow: "Don't blame your bestie for not holding back."
Ugh…
The awful sensation that had only just faded came crashing back in full force. Li Fei let out a wail, launched herself off Bai Mengtian like a startled rabbit, and slammed her hands against the iron bars, screaming in pitiful distress:
"Help! Help! Let me out of here!"
It was, of course, entirely useless.
"Scream all you want — no one's coming."
In the end, the trembling star courtesan was huddled in the corner of the cell, completely swallowed by Bai Mengtian's shadow.
...
"Bestie, I'll take responsibility for you."
Bai Mengtian lit a cigarette and settled on the edge of the cot.
Li Fei, now in a fresh change of clothes, lay sprawled across the mattress in full dead-fish mode, gripping the thin blanket with white-knuckled fists. The tracks of tears were still visible at the corners of her eyes.
There is no justice in this world. Even my own best friend can bully me now.
"Thirty years of good fortune, thirty years of bad…"
Li Fei muttered darkly under her breath. With some effort, she shifted her body and nestled her face against the warm, silky smoothness of Bai Mengtian's thigh. She plucked the cigarette from between her bestie's fingers, took a light drag, and said, half-lidded: "I'm planning to advance to Sequence 9. Any recommendations?"
"Witch."
Bai Mengtian answered without a moment's hesitation. "Among all the mage Classes at Sequence 9, nothing compares to Witch."
"Hmm…"
Li Fei frowned. She had heard of the Witch covens' rather notorious reputation. The Life alignment had dispatched armies of angels and paladins multiple times trying to wipe them out. The Nature alignment wanted nothing to do with Witches. Even the Death alignment kept its distance…
"Too risky. Anything else?"
"Druid."
Bai Mengtian offered the same recommendation as Mama Nicole: "Druid is the most common Class among Nature-alignment mages — but that's precisely what speaks to its strength and reliability. It never would have become the mainstream if it weren't."
"A rare and obscure Class might be powerful. But a mainstream Class will be powerful. Keep that in mind when you build your own spell system later. Spells like Sheep Transformation, Blink, and Cleanse are learned by almost every mage with the means to do so… There are always idiots who think 'common' means 'mediocre.' They tend to die in particularly undignified ways."
"Understood!"
Li Fei nodded — then, on a whim, decided to try her luck: "One more thing. I have a friend who learned a very powerful spell, but she doesn't have enough mana to cast it. Is there anything that can help with that?"
"Sure."
Bai Mengtian answered without blinking.
Wait — there actually is something?
Were you Doraemon in a past life?
Under Li Fei's wide, sparkling eyes, Bai Mengtian toyed idly with her earlobe and said: "Tell her to come work as a maid at my estate for a month. I'll outfit her in a full divine-grade set — she can spam forbidden spells for fun."
Bestie, if our friendship ever accidentally crosses a line someday — it will one hundred percent be your fault.
Li Fei grumbled inwardly, then cupped Bai Mengtian's hand in both of hers and looked up with her most pitiful expression. "Tian-bao~ my friend is a very pure, virtuous girl…"
"Then give her this."
Bai Mengtian pulled out a pure-white lace garter. Li Fei accepted it curiously — it felt soft and yielding in her hand.
[Bai Mengtian's Handmade Garter]
Equipment Rating: Firefly
Attribute: Charisma +1
Enchantment Effect: Soul Burn (Lv10)
Soul Burn (Lv10): For 3–10 seconds, reduces all mana cost and spell cooldowns by 100%; duration scales with soul strength. Activation causes severe soul damage.
Gulp.
Li Fei quietly swallowed, opened the shop panel, and searched for soul-repair potions.
Even the cheapest option she could find was an astronomical sum by her standards.
"Your Appraisal Talent should be able to read its effects, yes?" Bai Mengtian said with a smile. "Consider it a gift for your friend — though soul repairs at my place do come with a service charge."
Classic. It's a car dealership that sells you a car and then owns your soul for maintenance.
Li Fei didn't even bother asking the price of soul repair. She slipped the garter onto her wrist on the spot — if it ever came to that, she'd have nothing left anyway. Let's see you leave me to die.
"Oh, one more thing."
Bai Mengtian added, "A good pair of full-body stockings can help you adjust to Sensitivity Aura a lot faster, by the way."
"I'll buy some the moment I'm out of here."
Li Fei's lips curved into a slow, knowing smile. "Can you do that thing again?"
"Which thing?"
Bai Mengtian tilted her head.
Li Fei crossed her arms, wearing the expression of someone who had the entire situation perfectly mapped out: "'Loxibrook has the surname Bai.'"
"Ahem, ahem — when you lead a big enough organization, there are always a few people who don't know their place…"
The individual who had once thumped her chest and promised Li Fei that a single photograph would let them strut through Loxibrook sideways — the very same individual who was now bailing said friend out of prison — suddenly found the ceiling extraordinarily interesting.
"I'll have a talk with her tonight."
"There's no need."
The curve at the corner of Li Fei's lips climbed a little higher. "I want to see exactly how long this constable can hold out."
____
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