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She had her arms crossed over her chest, her slender arms forming a perfect curve. Her eyes were sharp, like those of an eagle, locked intently onto Dean Bruce, as if she could burst into action and attack at any moment, emitting a palpable sense of pressure.

At the very least, Nicholas William felt the intensity of her gaze, and his legs were trembling uncontrollably.

Before Dean Bruce could say anything, the woman suddenly flashed a brilliant smile and spoke, "Nicholas, who is this? He must be someone significant for you to greet him like this. Won\'t you introduce us?"

"S-sister… he\'s my teacher. Could you… could you show some respect?"

Nicholas William\'s voice grew increasingly weaker, until it was barely audible, like the buzzing of a mosquito. Even though Dean Bruce was standing nearby, he struggled to hear clearly.

However, he had learned enough.

This woman was Nicholas\'s sister! That explained why Nicholas was so terrified.

What puzzled Dean Bruce, though, was that Nicholas was known as the only child of the city lord. Where did this sister come from?

If she was a cousin, her pressure on Nicholas shouldn\'t have been so overwhelming.

Although filled with doubt, Dean Bruce maintained a composed demeanor, hands clasped behind his back, calmly observing the woman.

"Your teacher?" The woman narrowed her eyes slightly and chuckled, "Since he\'s an esteemed guest, why is he leaving in such a rush? He just arrived at our estate, hasn\'t even had a cup of tea yet, and now he\'s leaving? If word gets out, won\'t it seem like the William family doesn\'t know how to treat guests?"

Nicholas William\'s face turned pale, and he seemed on the verge of speaking, but stopped.

Seeing this, Dean Bruce understood Nicholas\'s fear of the woman before them. Without waiting for him to respond, he spoke calmly, "Hospitality isn\'t just about serving tea. Now that I\'ve seen my student, whether I stay or leave is none of your concern. Even if the city lord himself were here, he wouldn\'t force a guest to stay against their will."

"…"

The woman narrowed her eyes, the smile in her gaze fading. She could hear the sarcasm in Dean Bruce\'s words.

Just as she was about to respond, Nicholas William finally snapped out of his daze. As a disciple, how could he let his teacher be treated like this in his own home?

In an instant, Nicholas William, who rarely stood his ground, mustered up some courage and whispered, "Sister, this man is my mentor. Even Father knows about him. You\'re being way too aggressive!"

"Father knows about him too?"

Hearing this, the woman raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. She then nodded slightly toward Dean Bruce and said, "I was rather reckless earlier. I hope you won\'t take offense, sir."

Dean Bruce, only interested in leaving as quickly as possible, saw her offering an apology and didn\'t want to linger on the matter. He slightly tilted his head, signaling Nicholas William to lead the way out.

It wasn\'t until they had left the city lord\'s mansion that Nicholas William let out a long sigh of relief. He awkwardly said, "Teacher, please don\'t take it personally. My sister\'s always been that way—very headstrong. It wasn\'t aimed at you."

Dean Bruce wasn\'t bothered by her attitude. Instead, he was curious and asked, "Aren\'t you the city lord\'s only son? Where did this sister come from?"

"Huh? Why can\'t I have a sister if I\'m the only son?" Nicholas William looked utterly bewildered. "She\'s a daughter, I\'m a son. What\'s so strange about that?"

Hearing this, Dean Bruce couldn\'t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

The "only son" usually means the only child, right?

Who would\'ve thought that in this world, sons and daughters are counted separately!

However, this wasn\'t something worth dwelling on. Dean Bruce pressed on with another question, "Your sister has quite an imposing presence. What\'s her status?"

Nicholas William sighed, "People always say I have good talent, but in truth, my sister, Jennier William, is the real genius. She reached the level of Sword King by the age of twenty-five, drawing the attention of several Sword Saints across empires…"

As Nicholas William rambled on, Dean Bruce found himself stopping in his tracks. He turned slightly and gazed at Nicholas.

Sensing his teacher\'s stare, Nicholas realized he was talking too much. He coughed awkwardly and spoke in a quieter voice, "My sister is currently one of the elders of the Nine Provinces Alliance Judgement Hall. Her status is extraordinary."

Hearing this, Dean Bruce became even more intrigued. He couldn\'t resist asking, "If your sister has such remarkable talent, why isn\'t she the one to succeed as the city lord?"

Nicholas William shook his head, "It\'s a family rule. Each generation\'s city lord must be male. Besides… my sister doesn\'t like being tied down by too many obligations. Even now, she only took the elder position in the Nine Provinces Alliance to gain benefits from it! So, even with my weaker talent, I\'m still the one who has to inherit the role of city lord.

Honestly, I don\'t want it either—it\'s too hard and exhausting!"

"I see," Dean Bruce finally relaxed upon realizing that Jennier William was unlikely to be an enemy. In fact, she might even serve as a point of contact for gathering intel on the Nine Provinces Alliance\'s activities.

Not asking any more questions, Dean Bruce ignored Nicholas William\'s subtle bragging. Instead, he simply urged him to focus on mastering magic, which instantly made Nicholas look embarrassed.

Before long, they had left the city and arrived at a military camp situated in the countryside.

In this world, the city lord was essentially the highest ruler of a city. Although they were nominally under the rule of the empire or duchy and had to obey the king, the city was mostly under the control of the city lord.

The army wasn\'t under the jurisdiction of the empire or duchy either—it was directly under the city lord\'s command. So with Nicholas William, the future city lord, present, the soldiers encountered no obstacles in helping Dean Bruce select a fine warhorse. The warhorse they chose had a striking, fiery red coat, and when it ran, it looked as though flames were surging along its body.

The horse had a wild temperament, though. When Dean Bruce first mounted it, it neighed loudly and reared up repeatedly, causing the soldiers nearby to shout in alarm, worried that Dean Bruce might get injured.

But Dean Bruce had faced life-and-death battles before, and having eaten beast meat the day before—though he hadn\'t fully absorbed its power—he let out a slight aura of killing intent. The warhorse immediately calmed down, standing still and docile as a lamb, no longer daring to act up.

This scene amazed the soldiers. After all, breaking in a warhorse was usually far more troublesome than this!

Nicholas William, on the other hand, wasn\'t the least bit surprised. In his mind, Dean Bruce was powerful enough to casually teach him high-level spells, so taming a warhorse in an instant didn\'t seem like much of a feat.

Dean Bruce galloped around the military camp on the warhorse for a couple of laps and was quite satisfied. Not only was the horse fast and enduring, but it was also the most handsome of all the warhorses in the camp.

If Dean Bruce hadn\'t been Nicholas William\'s teacher, the soldiers would never have been willing to part with such a magnificent steed!

Nicholas William clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Teacher, you are truly mighty! This warhorse is lucky to have you as its rider!"

As they say, flattery always works, and Dean Bruce was no exception. Especially after receiving such a splendid horse, he couldn\'t help but smile.

Nicholas William moved closer to Dean Bruce, his curiosity evident. "Teacher, with this warhorse at your side, you\'re sure to build quite the reputation on the battlefield. Why don\'t you give it a name?"

As soon as Nicholas said this, the soldiers in the camp exchanged glances, and their expressions toward Nicholas turned a bit strange. For the first time, they realized that their young lord was quite the sycophant!

Typically, a warhorse was just a warhorse. Who would bother giving them names?

Once a rider becomes familiar with their horse, a slight squeeze of the legs is all it takes for the horse to know what to do. After all, there aren\'t that many commands a warhorse needs to follow in the heat of battle.

But Dean Bruce loved this suggestion. In his previous life, while reading novels or watching anime, he always admired the protagonists with their cool, majestic steeds. How he had envied them!

Now, he finally had his own magnificent warhorse. There was no way he\'d turn down Nicholas William\'s offer. Nodding, he said, "Since it runs like blazing fire and is swift as lightning, I\'ll call it \'Firebolt.\'"

"Firebolt?"

Nicholas William\'s eyes widened in surprise, and the soldiers around them seemed equally puzzled by the name\'s meaning.

It couldn\'t be helped. No matter how long Dean Bruce had been in this world, his mindset was still different from the people of Meze Star.

Dean Bruce liked the name, so he didn\'t care about their reactions. He stroked Firebolt\'s head for a moment before saying softly, "Alright, you should head back now. I\'ve got to continue my journey to Stanlow City, so I won\'t be returning to town with you."

Having already received a travel permit from the city guards, Dean Bruce didn\'t need anything else.

"Understood. Please be safe on your journey, Teacher. As for the matter with the Magic Guild, I\'ll handle it with Father. We\'ll make sure not to disappoint you!" Nicholas William responded respectfully, knowing Dean Bruce was speaking to him. His tightly clenched heart finally relaxed.

He had been terrified that Dean Bruce would decide to stay in the city.

Now that representatives from the Magic Guild headquarters had arrived, if something went wrong, it could spell disaster for the entire William family. Even though Dean Bruce was a top-tier powerhouse in his eyes, Nicholas William wasn\'t willing to take that risk.