Ambrose couldn’t help but smile at the system’s unexpected display of academic integrity, properly citing his grandmother’s words. Now he could consider himself a filial grandson for protecting his grandmother’s intellectual property.1
His amusent quickly faded as he studied his newly acquired skill with growing concern. The na "Fragile Beauty" and its description gave him pause – while using charm as a defensive chanism seed clever in theory, he couldn’t help but consider the darker implications. Yes, the chard wouldn’t attack him directly, but their "protection" might prove far worse when he was vulnerable.
"I’ll need to be more careful about how I appear," he mused, realizing that seeming too vulnerable could invite unwanted attention of an entirely different nature. What would he do if soone "attacked" him?
Having finished processing the system notifications, Ambrose finally took stock of his surroundings. He had been feeling quite comfortable fo a while now but he hadn’t noticed where he was. He found himself enclosed in what appeared to be a glass structure, his reflection revealing an almost ghostly pallor – sohow even more pronounced than his usual fair complexion. Through the glass walls, he could hear what sounded like Hualing’s voice, but he couldn’t locate any obvious exit.
The comfortable environnt suddenly felt oppressive as a disturbing thought struck him. "Did they think I was dead?" he wondered, taking in the coffin-like structure. "Have I been asleep so long they decided to bury ?"
With his limited strength, he managed a gentle knock against the glass, not expecting much response – after all, with his frail constitution, he risked injuring himself if he knocked any harder. To his surprise, the sound of hurried footsteps imdiately followed, and the structure’s top swung open, revealing not a grave but a familiar room in his estate.
"Young Master, you’re awake!" Hualing exclaid, rushing forward. Ambrose instinctively backed away, raising his hands defensively.
"Don’t touch !" he warned, maintaining his distance. "Why did you put in this?"
"Um- Well-" Hualing stamred, her eyes darting about as if searching for the right words. "It’s to prevent the effect! Yeah, that’s it!"
"What effect?" Ambrose wondered aloud, examining the glass enclosure more carefully. Understanding dawned as he realized its intended purpose. "Oh! The charm effect." He found himself wondering if Hualing’s ancestor had devised this solution.
"It’s a good idea," he admitted, "but you built it wrong. It’s a one-way mirror with the non-transparent side facing inward," he explained, noting how clearly visible the interior was from outside. "What’s the point if people can still see the person inside?"
Inside Hualing’s consciousness, Minghua facepald at her obvious oversight. "So thats why it wasn’t working"
Turning his attention to Marcus, who stood nearby, Ambrose activated his Mind’s Eye skill, revealing his companion’s updated status window:
Na: Marcus Turner]
[Level: C]
[Talent: Sword Intent (Top Level)]
[Authority: Light Fragnt (Virtue: Kindness)]
[Health: 4000/4000]
[Mana: 400/400]
[Strength: 40]
[Stamina: 40]
[Agility: 45]
…
Ambrose studied Marcus’s status display with a mixture of pride and lancholy. "As expected of the main character," he mused silently. "I was rely unconscious for a short while, yet he’s already advanced so significantly." Though their acquaintance was relatively brief, Ambrose felt like a parent watching their child grow – along with the bittersweet knowledge that it wouldn’t be long before Marcus spread his wings and flew from the nest. The sentint caught him off guard with its unexpected intensity.
"What brings you here?" Ambrose asked, noticing Marcus’s nervous deanor under his contemplative gaze.
Marcus cleared his throat awkwardly, extending his hand toward Ambrose. "I ca to see if the young master’s condition had improved," he explained, presenting the collar he’d been holding. Thankfully, the item was light enough for Ambrose’s frail constitution to manage. Ambrose examined it carefully, waiting for further explanation.
A slight blush colored Marcus’s cheeks as he elaborated, "Thi-this is a treasure I found. T-To thank you for saving in the dungeon." He added in what he thought was an undertone, though Ambrose’s keen hearing caught it clearly, "both tis."
Ambrose’s lips curved into a warm smile. "You actually brought a treasure," he thought. "It seems all those embarrassing things I said weren’t in vain." Coming from a regressor, he was certain this must be sothing truly valuable – likely sothing even his family’s vast influence couldn’t easily acquire, at least not at present. He suspected Marcus had raided an unregistered dungeon to obtain it, and the thought touched him deeply. "To go to such lengths for ... I raised you well," he thought with pride.
Lifting the collar, Ambrose found himself puzzling over its chanism. He glanced at Hualing, who seed to be experiencing a complete neural shutdown at the mont, then turned back to Marcus with an expectant look.
Marcus fidgeted nervously, interpreting Ambrose’s silence as disappointnt. His anxiety mounted until Ambrose extended the collar back to him with a simple request: "Help put it on."
Relief flooded through Marcus. The young master wasn’t disappointed – he simply didn’t know how to wear it. The realization made him smile internally; for soone who typically appeared as if he knows everything, to the point of making Marcus himself nervous, Ambrose could be surprisingly endearing in monts like this.
Moving closer, Marcus carefully opened the collar and brought it toward Ambrose’s neck. Just as it was about to make contact, the item suddenly animated, practically leaping from his hands to wrap itself around Ambrose’s neck. Before he could react, Hualing had him pinned to the ground with frightening speed.
"What did you do?" she demanded, but Ambrose’s calm voice interrupted any further action.
"It’s okay, I’m fine," he assured them. The bulky collar had transford into an elegant dark choker that seed to ld with his skin. Although it looked quite tight, it was far from being uncomfortable, it felt natural, as if it had always been a part of him.
Approaching the large mirror in the closet, Ambrose examined his reflection with interest, Hualing and Marcus following close behind. "It looks quite cute," he declared, admiring the accessory.
Marcus watched him with fond exasperation. "As expected of the young master," he thought, "he just cares about how it looks."
As Ambrose tilted his head to examine the choker from various angles, a thought struck him – this was a gift from a regressor, which ant it must possess hidden properties. Without hesitation, he activated his Mind’s Eye skill to uncover its true nature...
A/N - If you haven’t gotten it yet, this is about those who are pirating the novel lol (ig its good that my work is gaining recognition, am I even allowed to say that?) anyway…
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