SEC Chapter 46
Chapter 46
Lin Feng's expression remained numb until he left the Yuanxing Chamber of Commerce.
He was clutching a small wooden box tightly in his arms, which contained Claire's life's work of mechanical alchemy manuscripts.
And that slightly cool, mechanical heart with gear-like patterns.
These things didn't belong to him; they belonged to that ugly, rigid old man.
He didn't want it at all, and he didn't want to see it at all. He wanted someone to break these things down and teach them to him.
The sky was unbelievably clear, and the warm sunshine shone down on us.
The laborers in the Chamber of Commerce carried goods back and forth, their shouts cheerful, while the little Locke children chased and played on the shopping street.
The ship's horn at the dock startled a flock of winter-feathered birds, who set sail to Locke's cheers.
Everything was exactly the same as usual: bustling, peaceful, and uneventful.
It's as if nothing has changed.
The only change was that he put on a new school uniform and started a new life.
"Yes... it's just a matter of continuing to learn with a different teacher."
Lin Feng forced a smile, but tears streamed down his face uncontrollably, splashing onto the edge of the wooden box and leaving a small wet patch.
"You old fool, why are you making such a sentimental scene... What 'last lesson'? Were you planning to die quietly if I hadn't come back today?"
"Tsk, what does the machinery ban have to do with me? You're the one who..."
"You damned old man."
He cursed under his breath, his voice choked with sobs, each word tinged with barely concealed tears.
Meanwhile, at the magic academy and the ecological park.
Ms. Cosette stood on the grass, surrounded by curious new students, but one person was missing.
Does anyone know where Lin Feng is?
Cosette gently flapped her wings and asked the new students.
The freshmen looked at each other and shook their heads.
"We didn't see him when we were walking around campus..."
"He's so famous, he'll definitely remember if he sees it."
A chubby boy raised his hand and whispered, "Teacher, none of us have seen Lin Feng."
"Could it be... that we've run into some kind of trouble?"
Cosette felt a slight tightness in her chest.
There shouldn't be any danger within the magic academy, but Lin Feng happens to be very close to Enzo, that genius magician who always likes to conduct some strange experiments.
Without asking any more questions, she immediately flapped her wings and flew towards Dean Griffin's tower.
After a long while, he flew back to his original spot with a complicated expression and sighed softly.
"Alright, let's not wait any longer, let's begin our first lesson today."
Lin Feng, who missed the first class of the new semester, has already been quietly labeled as "naughty" and "difficult to manage" in Ms. Cosette's mind.
At this moment, Lin Feng was not at the magic academy.
He sat alone beside the source of magic at Listening Wind Farm, with his back to the windmill tower, gazing at the distant rolling fields and lake.
The wind gently blows across the windmill, making a slow, leisurely turning sound.
Lin Feng felt somewhat lost; it seemed that he had nothing else to do besides completing system tasks.
He slowly stood up, brushed the grass clippings off his clothes, and erected a small stone tablet in the soil under the windmill.
He condensed alchemical runes at his fingertips and clumsily carved them, stroke by stroke.
Each rune he wrote contained a memory of what Claire had taught him.
Without fancy techniques or exquisite patterns, all that was left was an ugly cartoon image.
Claire, a slovenly old man with two tufts of hair resembling ram's horns, full of wrinkles, and a somewhat sleazy yet serious demeanor.
Lin Feng stared at the portrait and laughed.
"You're unlucky. If you hadn't met me, you probably would have lived a little longer."
"Next time, don't be so stubborn."
He tore up the letter Claire left behind. He didn't read it, assuming that the contents were the content of the first lesson Claire had taught him since the start of the magic academy.
A gentle breeze blew, and scraps of paper flew everywhere.
Goodbye, you ugly old man.
Martha, with heavy iron weights strapped to her legs, was jogging slowly in circles around the dock, her forehead covered in fine beads of sweat.
Upon seeing Lin Feng, she paused, startled, and stopped in her tracks.
"Lin Feng? Shouldn't you be at the magic academy right now? Why are you back in the shopping street?"
She walked over to him, casually sat down on the beach next to him, wiped her sweat, and quietly stared at his face.
The warm breeze ruffled Lin Feng's gray hair, and the sorrowful aura made Martha's heart tremble. She didn't ask any more questions, but just stayed quietly by his side.
Lin Feng gazed at the swaying sunset on the lake's surface, remained silent for a long time, and then suddenly spoke.
"Martha".
"Um?"
"What you want to protect... is it Locke, or the kingdom?"
A breeze swept across the water, carrying a faint dampness.
Martha paused, then turned to look at Lin Feng's profile.
His eyes lacked their usual sharpness and indifference, only a hollow calm that made one's heart tighten.
She clenched her fist, looked at the distant horizon, and spoke in a serious and firm voice.
"I haven't thought that far ahead."
"What I want to protect are the people around me."
"It's Aunt Lorraine, it's you, it's every Locke in the shopping street—I just hope everyone around us can live safely and peacefully every day!"
"If you can't even protect the people who are important to you, then even the largest kingdom is meaningless."
Lin Feng chuckled lightly, "Really? It seems your goal is quite easy to achieve."
Lin Feng chuckled lightly, "Really? It seems your goal is quite easy to achieve."
"Hey! Don't make other people's ideals sound so easy, okay?"
He took out the Gulu Ball from the Holy Sword Max and checked its attributes.
"Holy Sword Max Type: Mechanical, Electric"
Level 74: 32700/67200
Growth: 4 stars, 10 rank
Life: 510(200+30)+100
Physical Attack: 326(200+30)+50
Magic Attack: 134(112)+50
Physical defense: 277(200+30)+50
Magic Defense: 258(200)+50
Speed: 64(44)+50
Nature: Adamant (Attack +18%, Special Attack -10%), Ability: Friendship
Skills: Mech combat, rest and recovery, gear torque, gear transmission, magic enhancement, defense, metallic noise, preemptive strike... Lightning strike.
Lin Feng laughed, then shook his head and said, "No, what I mean is, all of your pursuits seem very easy to achieve."
"what?"
Lin Feng stood up, stretched, and looked at the system panel, at the easiest task to complete.
[Defeat three magic academy teachers, reward: 1 water magic spell]
[Catch at least one Pokémon of each type. Reward: Type Modifier]
"Most of the world's problems stem from a lack of strength."
Lin Feng's hand, holding the Holy Sword Max's Gulu Ball, trembled slightly.
The most precious gift Claire left behind was this big guy who allowed him to have some of the strength of a kingdom mage at the age of 14.
With this thing, his improvement speed will only get faster and faster.
He looked at Martha and said, "Claire is dead, and she died with regrets."
Martha's body trembled, her pupils dilated, and her mouth gaped open. "You, why...?"
She was speechless. Claire had been perfectly fine not long ago, so how could she suddenly be like this?
Martha bit her lower lip, looking bewildered, and asked, "What happened?"
"Died of old age."
As soon as Lin Feng finished speaking, his vision blurred and he was pulled into Martha's arms. Her soft, smooth skin was covered in a mixture of sweat and the fresh scent of grass and soil.
He broke free, wiped the sweat from his face, and said somewhat awkwardly, "I'm not a child, what are you trying to do?"
Martha's eyes were red. In her eyes, Lin Feng was just a child who was putting on a brave face. Even his personality was influenced by Claire. How could he be so indifferent?
"I'm a little worried that you'll do what I did before..."
"Little Martha, sadness won't solve anything!"
Lin Feng flicked her forehead with his index finger and said, "The magic academy has started, and I may be going back to the shopping street less and less. So I'll teach you a lesson first."
Claire spent her entire life figuring this out, but I'm a genius; I only needed a second.
He grinned, raised his fist, and held it out in front of Martha.
"Protection isn't about words, it's about this."
Martha's pupils wavered slightly, while Lin Feng's youthful face displayed an indescribable tenacity and maturity.
In the sunlight, his silhouette seemed to overlap with many phantoms hidden in history.