Sneaky Nanako

After leaving the ruins beneath the volcano, we stayed in Lakeside Town for a few more days.

Strangely enough, starting from the second night, no one was turned into a pig anymore, and we didn’t suddenly fall asleep at night either.

So, the night before last, after midnight, we quietly investigated the town under the cover of darkness.

The situation suggested that everything seemed to have returned to normal.

However, what was peculiar was that Lady Nanako and Mr. Lynn didn’t seem particularly concerned about our nighttime investigation.

It was as if they already knew the curse had been lifted.

At the table, under the dim light, Elina held a quill and gently wrote in her diary.

Her expression was soft and tender.

The quill cast a long shadow in the flickering light.

“Lady Nanako and Mr. Lynn seem to have a really good relationship. They don’t seem like master and disciple at all—more like a couple!”

“But neither of them seems willing to address it, maintaining their current dynamic. They laugh and joke, and sometimes Mr. Lynn says something foolish, which makes Lady Nanako angry. Other times, even when he says nothing, she still gets upset…”

“Though I don’t fully understand it, I can tell that Lady Nanako isn’t really angry!”

“Many times, Elina has noticed that when Lady Nanako gets upset, she secretly glances at Mr. Lynn’s reaction, as if saying, ‘Come and comfort me, or your beloved master will really be mad!’”

At this point, Elina couldn’t help but giggle.

She rested her cheek on her hand, her eyes filled with a hint of envy.

She continued writing.

“But Elina feels that Mr. Lynn is quite special. Even though he often claims he doesn’t know or understand things, making him seem clueless, Elina senses that he’s not quite what he appears to be.”

“Especially when she looks into his eyes, Elina feels that beneath that playful gaze lies a depth of experience and knowledge, as if he’s a thick, unread book…”

She paused, lifted her head, and looked up at the sky outside with a puzzled expression.

Then she shook her head and continued writing, her strokes becoming especially gentle.

“Though I don’t fully understand it, traveling with Mr. Lynn always brings a sense of security. It’s strange—even though he’s only a second-tier mage, when I’m with him…”

“It feels like there’s nothing to worry about. Perhaps Lady Nanako feels the same way…”

After a while, she put down her quill.

Then she gently closed her diary.

“Oh God, please bless Lady Nanako and Mr. Lynn. Elina prays for them.”

She clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and softly prayed under the moonlight.

…

Achoo—

In Lynn’s room.

Lynn rubbed his nose and looked around suspiciously.

“Strange, why do I feel like someone’s cursing me?”

Shaking his head, he decided not to dwell on it.

Without lighting a candle, Lynn sat at his desk, scribbling away on a piece of parchment.

He smirked.

Looking at the list he had written, he was quite satisfied.

“With this large sum of money, I can finally renovate the mage tower properly!”

【Luxury Peach Wood Table and Chairs Set: 400 gold coins】

【Pure Crystal Chandelier + 2-Year Warranty: 2000 gold coins】

【Complete Set of Pure Silver Tableware and Kitchenware: 200 gold coins】

【Double Luxury Silk Mattresses x2: 400 gold coins】

The list in Lynn’s hand was filled with various items and their prices, covering almost every aspect of the household.

After selling the sacred crystals through a special channel, they had suddenly become wealthy mages.

“First, I’ll pay off all the debts my master has accumulated, and there’ll still be a hefty sum of gold coins left to save.”

Lynn clicked his tongue in admiration as he recorded the expenses.

As Nanako’s disciple, he naturally had to oversee and manage all aspects of the mage tower.

Given his loli master’s careless nature and her impressive ability to mismanage finances, it was likely that after spending most of the gold, her ledger would somehow show more than before.

Before Lynn arrived, Nanako had always been the poorest among all the stewards.

This was definitely not without reason.

“Hmm, what should I do with the remaining gold coins?” Lynn leaned back, crossing his legs with a smug expression.

Although the box of sacred crystals, divided into nine shares, didn’t amount to an astronomical sum, it was still worth around 100,000 gold coins.

In the past, 100,000 gold coins would have been nothing to him.

But now, with his loli master in tow, he had to be more frugal.

“Never mind, I’ll figure it out when we get back to Winter Spring Valley,” Lynn decided, preparing to go to bed.

“Given my loli master’s frugal nature, she’s probably lying in bed every night, clutching her gold coins and unable to sleep.”

Lynn closed his eyes, a smirk on his face, as he approached his bed.

But just then.

Suddenly.

His ears perked up.

He faintly heard the sound of a door opening from the direction of his loli master’s room on the second floor.

Lynn’s heart skipped a beat.

In an instant, his figure vanished and reappeared in a dark corner on the second floor.

He gazed in the direction of the sound, his eyes filled with curiosity.

There, at Nanako’s door, was a black-clad, masked loli with twin tails, quietly closing the door and tiptoeing out of the room.

Her twin tails swayed, and her blue eyes darted around cautiously. She carried a large bag on her back, looking rather suspicious.

Lynn couldn’t help but chuckle.

What on earth is this outfit, loli master?

Come on, if you’re going to disguise yourself, at least do it properly! Your twin tails have already given you away!

And who else has a chest as flat as yours, master?

Lynn covered his forehead, almost bursting into laughter.

But he didn’t get too close.

Instead, he observed from a distance of about a hundred meters.

So, where is my loli master heading at this hour?

Nanako looked left and right, and after confirming that no one was around, she darted to the end of the second-floor hallway like a cat sneaking for food.

She quietly pushed open the window leading outside.

With a graceful leap, her small body jumped out.

“Nanako has successfully landed,” Nanako whispered, her voice full of caution, like a martial heroine.

“And the foolish disciple hasn’t noticed.”