Long Yifan shrugged nonchalantly.
"You worry too much. Gu Jin isn’t just any student. She’s capable of handling herself, no matter where she stays. As for the precedent? Well, let’s just say no one else would dare follow her example."
Seeing no room for negotiation, Principal Lan sighed heavily.
"Fine. I’ll grant her request, but only for a limited ti. She can stay off-campus after the military training ends, but she must return to the dorms after one month."
Long Yifan clapped his hands together, a triumphant smirk on his face.
"Now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?"
Principal Lan shot him a sharp look before reluctantly picking up the phone.
He dialed Gu Jin’s number and waited as it rang.
anwhile, Gu Jin was sitting quietly in her dorm room, her mind still replaying the conversation with Principal Lan.
When her phone buzzed, she picked it up, surprised to see the principal’s na on the screen.
"Miss Gu," Principal Lan said, his voice a little strained.
"I’ve reconsidered your request. You’ll be allowed to stay off-campus for one month after military training concludes. Please ensure this arrangent doesn’t affect your studies."
Gu Jin blinked in surprise. For a mont, she said nothing, and then a faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
"Thank you, Principal Lan. I appreciate your understanding."
As the call ended, Gu Jin placed her phone down, her expression turned thoughtful.
Why did the principal suddenly change his decision?
Anyways, she was thrilled that she could get 1 month with her family.
She started to pack her bags and midway through it when she rembered about the awakening stones.
"Now the shadow elental stone will take 1 week to arrive...I should
Just then soone knocked on her door. When Gu Jin opened the door, she saw Luo ng standing outside.
With a huge grin on his face, Luo ng gave her a cake box.
"Master this is for you."
"Thank you." Gu Jin took the cake box. "How are you now?"
"Much better. After eating your hand-cooked food, I instantly recovered." Luo ng said and patted his chest.
Gu Jin nodded, "Take care."
Luo ng agreed, his eyes went behind Gu Jin and he frowned,
"Master, are you going sowhere?"
Gu Jin didn’t hide anything from Luo ng and explained,
"Hm. I have got permission to leave the campus for one month after the military training."
The smile on Luo ng froze for a second before he regained his composure and asked in a cautious voice,
"Master, why did you suddenly think of leaving the dorm? Did soone instigate you to leave?"
His tone was nonchalant but his eyes were flashing with hidden aning.
Gu Jin who had returned to pack her bags, paused for a few seconds, before shaking her head,
"No."
Luo ng didn’t give up, and continued,
"Master, I asking you this question because I heard a conversation when I was passing by. I seed to have heard a voice similar to a Senior...
The senior was telling how, now he can keep, the campus belle away from the dorm and prevent her from eting her friend."
The words were ambiguous.
He didn’t ntion Long Yifan’s na, nor did he ntion himself, but only Senior, Luo ng was familiar with Long Yifan, and the campus belle was Gu Jin.
Gu Jin stood still for a mont, her mind running through what Luo ng had just said.
Soone had helped her? A senior? And they wanted her away from the dorm?
She narrowed her eyes slightly. "You’re sure about this?"
Luo ng nodded firmly.
"Yes, Master. I only told you what I heard. I didn’t see who it was, but the voice sounded familiar. I thought you should know."
Gu Jin thought carefully.
It wasn’t like her to believe rumors so easily, but Luo ng wasn’t the type to lie or exaggerate.
Still, she wasn’t sure what to make of it.
Is soone helping her without her knowing? And for a reason as strange as keeping her away from her friends?
"I’ll look into it," she said simply, her voice cool as ever. "Thank you for telling ."
Luo ng nodded, though a flicker of worry remained in his eyes.
"Master, just be careful. If soone has plans involving you, it might not be as simple as it seems."
Gu Jin gave him a small nod of acknowledgnt. "I’ll handle it."
"So master are you still going back to your family after the military training?" Luo ng asked tentatively.
"Yes." Gu Jin nodded her head.
Luo ng’s eyes lowered to the floor. A dark look appeared in his eyes, which he quickly hid.
After Luo ng left, Gu Jin returned to packing, her mind still lingering on his words. Who would go out of their way to help her like this? And why?
A na flashed in her mind, but Gu Jin shook her head.
...................
In the vast, snow-covered expanse of the Snow Valley, the howling wind carried the faint sound of roaring and shouting.
Ten mages, dressed in pitch-black cloaks, were engaged in a desperate battle against a colossal Snow Bear with two enormous wings.
The beast’s frosty white fur glead under the pale light, and its wings, speckled with shards of ice, flapped furiously, creating snowstorms with every beat.
"Hold your positions!" one of the mages shouted, his voice trembling as he barely dodged the bear’s icy breath, which turned the ground into jagged shards of ice.
"We’re trying!" another mage yelled back, his face pale with exhaustion.
His hands trembled as he ford another fireball, throwing it toward the Snow Bear.
It exploded on impact, creating a puff of steam as the heat t the bear’s icy aura, but the beast barely flinched.
The Snow Bear roared, its voice shaking the valley.
It swung its massive paw, knocking two mages off their feet.
"This is hopeless! It’s too strong for us!" cried one of the mages, clutching his bleeding arm.
"Just a little longer!" the leader of the group, a tall woman with a sharp voice, shouted. "We’ve almost led it to the trap. Stay focused!"
The mages, despite their injuries and fatigue, gritted their teeth and pressed on, carefully luring the beast toward a circular area marked with strange glowing symbols.
The symbols pulsed faintly, their energy radiating through the snowy ground.
"Now!" the leader yelled as the bear stepped onto the marked area.
The mages imdiately stopped attacking and raised their hands in unison, chanting an ancient spell.
The symbols on the ground began to glow brighter, and the air crackled with energy.
A portal, swirling with a mix of blue and black energy, began to form beneath the bear.
The Snow Bear roared in fury, thrashing and flapping its wings as the portal began to pull it in.
The suction grew stronger, and the mages struggled to keep their footing.
"Hold it down!" the leader commanded, her voice strained as she used her magic to bind the bear’s wings.
Finally, with a deafening roar, the beast was sucked into the portal.
Its massive form disappeared into the swirling void, leaving only silence behind.
"We did it!" one mage gasped, collapsing to the ground.
But their relief was short-lived. The portal’s suction had not ceased.
"Run! The portal is pulling us in!" one of the mages shouted in panic.
The group scrambled, running as fast as they could to escape the portal’s pull.
Snow swirled around them, and the wind roared louder as the portal tried to consu everything in its radius.
In their frantic escape, none of the mages noticed a small creature crawling out of the portal.
It was a tiny blue caterpillar, no larger than a human hand. Its body shimred like ice, and it moved with surprising determination.
The caterpillar muttered in a tiny, rasping voice,
"All this struggle... and it’s not over yet. I have to find her. If they find her before ..." Its small eyes glinted with resolve.
"No. I won’t let that happen. I can’t fail now."
Despite its size, the caterpillar resisted the portal’s pull with ease.
It turned away from the swirling void and quickly scurried across the snow, leaving faint trails behind.
Its movents were quick and deliberate as if it knew exactly where it needed to go.
A minute later, the portal collapsed with a final whoosh, and the valley fell silent once more.
The mages, who had managed to escape the portal’s reach, sat in the snow, panting heavily. One of them, a young man with a deep gash on his cheek, laughed weakly.
"We did it... I can’t believe we did it."
"Barely," another mage muttered, holding his injured arm.
"That thing almost killed us. If the trap hadn’t worked..."
"It doesn’t matter," the leader interrupted, her voice firm.
"The Two-Winged Snow Bear is gone, and the Snow Valley is safe. That’s all that matters."
One of the younger mages, still trembling from the ordeal, asked,
"But... do you think sending it to the Forgotten Elental World was the right choice? What if—"
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