ALL NOVEL Chapter 486.5, The Principles of a Philosopher Scenes 8, 9 (Split Part 5/6)
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Lina and Patty stepped out of the audience chamber, their footsteps echoing softly as they made their way down the corridor.
Lina took the lead, while Patty followed closely behind, not particularly displeased with this arrangement despite the persisting confusion.
Lina’s hand, warm and reassuring, held Patty’s with a gentle strength that enveloped her in a comforting presence.
As they walked, Patty stole glances at Lina’s face, observing a single bead of sweat trickling down her cheek.
“Phew, that was scary… I guess I’ll need to apologize to Miss Irene later,” she remarked.
It was evident to Patty that her actions had inadvertently disrespected her esteemed teacher.
Patty was unaware of the dynamics of their relationship, nor did she possess the means to even start unraveling its complexities. Yet despite this, she keenly sensed the tension emanating from Lina. In an attempt to offer reassurance, Patty gently squeezed Lina’s hand in return.
“…? Hehehe… Thank you,” said warmly, casting a bright smile in Patty’s direction. “Yes, I’m sure Miss Irene will understand. I just need to stay confident!”
“This reminds me of a line from ‘Chapter 330 – Analysis of War Potential’… Specifically, a quote attributed to Master Tūs: ‘You wanna be confident in me, then you start being confident!’ Sounds nice, don’t you think?”
As the daughter of Melchi and Gaspard, Patty was naturally well-acquainted with Tūs, a legendary figure from the Far East Wasteland where she had been raised. She felt a spark of joy at the mention of his name.
“That’s right — your encouragement has boosted my confidence. Thank you. Oh, and you know what? In that book, the Devil King himself also commented, ‘As I am a Philosopher, I make it a point to accept words of wisdom from anyone,'” Lina explained, chuckling as she got to a part of the story that amused her. “Hehehe… I wish it ended there, but then he wrote in a bunch of insults about Master Tūs, calling him names like ‘stupid Elf’… And he added ‘this is a personal opinion’ in the annotation. That’s so typical of the Devil King… Anyway, here we are.”
Finally, they arrived at the Devil King’s personal chamber.
Patty’s eyes were irresistibly drawn to the Teleportation Spell Circle set onto the floor at the room’s center.
As she moved towards the Circle, her hand and Lina’s slipped apart.
Patty turned to look back at Lina, who offered her a warm, encouraging smile.
“This is as far as I take you. Chappie is waiting for you on the other side… Now get going, all right?” Lina said, tilting her head slightly.
Patty nodded quietly. Stepping onto the Spell Circle, her body began to disappear.
Lina’s eyes remained fixed on the light as Patty gradually faded from view, after which she let out a shallow sigh.
“Feeling a bit tired, Lina?” a voice called.
“Oh, Sir Bruce… I knew you’d turn up sooner or later.”
Lina turned to find Bruce peering through the partially open door, his presence not at all a surprise to her.
Bruce, having followed Patty here, laughed as he proceeded to let himself into the room, prompting Lina to puff her cheeks.
“Well, I figured you’d notice me eventually, so I didn’t try too hard to hide. Besides, I’m paid to do this. It’s part of the job.”
“That girl has quite an unusual arcane energy aura… and more importantly, it is quite unstable. If she stayed in the Holy Demon Kingdom for long, she might have started attracting powerful monsters.”
“Well, yeah. She IS Melchi and Gaspard’s daughter, you know.”
“Wait, what!? Is that true!?”
“Yeah, I overheard it with Ryan before you and Ferris arrived,” Bruce said with a mischievous grin.
Lina narrowed her eyes at Bruce’s playful expression.
“This is something I’ll need to report to Miss Reyna later.”
“Wait wait wait… Hold on! If you do that, Ryan will find out everything I just told you!”
“And would that be a problem?”
“Damn it, you’re becoming more like the Devil King every day…” Bruce grumbled, though there was an underlying hint of amusement in his voice.
After their banter, both of them turned their attention back to the Teleportation Spell Circle where Patty had disappeared moments ago.
“Whatever it is, if he’s going to such lengths, it’s gotta be something important… right?”
“Yes, it must be — even Pochi doesn’t know what’s going on, after all.”
“Heh, now this is going to be a tough one to figure out.”
“But regardless of what it is–“
“–Yeah, we just have to believe him and wait. That’s all we can do.”
“Exactly!” Lina said, her smile mirrored by Bruce.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
Patty found herself whisked away to the middle of a dense forest. She had barely a moment to take in her surroundings before a deep, resonant voice reverberated through the trees above her.
“Hmm, I’ve been expecting you! A young maiden, hmm!?”
Looking up, what entered Patty’s eyes was a colossal figure, its dark purple form towering above her, wings spread out in a dramatic display.
“My Father once imparted these words of wisdom… to paraphrase an excerpt from the Principles of a Philosopher, in ‘Chapter 345 – Can’t Write This In The Book’: ‘The fragrance of a maiden can weaken even the most powerful of Philosophers!’ But I will never be defeated! Because I am not a Philosopher — I am Chappie Mask!”
Chappie Mask declared grandly, and then he proceeded to equip his usual pair of sunglasses with dramatic flair.
All Patty did in reaction, however, was to give a quizzical tilt of her head.
“…Hmph, it seems my renown has yet to reach your ears! NEVERTHELESS! The path of a superhero is fraught with trials and tribulations! To quote my Father’s words of wisdom — from ‘Chapter 356 – To the Scarlet Devil Wetlands’: ‘The time spent thinking also counts as training. It’s never a waste!’ Now, come forth and climb onto my back! Together, we shall go — to where my Father awaits!”
Understanding that Chappie Mask was to be her guide, Patty nodded resolutely and climbed onto his broad back.
Then, with a single powerful flap of Chappie’s wings, they ascended into the sky.
“Thank you for choosing Chappie Express! Today, you are our esteemed guest on a personalized voyage!” Chappie Mask proclaimed exuberantly, announcing their destination with gusto, “Our next and final stop is none other than… the Land of Beginnings! I repeat, the Land of Beginnings!”
Indeed, their path was set towards… the cave that marked the beginning of this adventure.
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