In the evening, Su Li quietly ate his al while Cyril vividly recounted their afternoon adventure.
Well, perhaps “vividly” was an overstatent. Even though Cyril’s language skills had improved, he hadn’t yet learned how to artistically embellish conversations.
He simply used a steady tone to describe all of Su Li’s actions, while reasonably adding his own evolved understanding of Su Li.
If their previous relationship as bread-sharing companions was version 1.0, then this was version 2.0 – Su Li’s one-sided protection.
Cyril liked to emphasize things he considered important. For instance, he was now saying, “I never had even the slightest confidence in Su Li’s strength before.”
Compared to others who could kick down buildings, Su Li had to worry about his hand swelling if he slamd a door too hard.
He was so weak that one couldn’t help but worry that if left unattended, he might suddenly face a life-or-death crisis and quietly pass away.
“But now I realize that treating him as weak was wrong,” Cyril calmly expressed his thoughts. “Whether as guardians or protectors, anyone whose role is to protect Su Li shouldn’t view him as weak.”
“Because whether guarding or protecting, these are choices we make ourselves, not demands from Su Li. In this situation, we shouldn’t label him disrespectfully because of our actions.”
This was what Cyril suddenly realized today.
He now understood that occasionally teasing Su Li about his weakness was really inappropriate.
Even though Su Li never got angry about it and would even joke about being at the bottom of the food chain.
But others absolutely shouldn’t take such talk for granted.
Su Li was clearly soone terrifying even without power.
Any of those people who kidnapped Qi were much stronger than Cyril’s current strength.
If it had been Cyril alone there, he would have only watched helplessly as Qi got hurt, and at most reported it to the teacher.
He couldn’t do more, and had no reason to do more.
The people gathered around Su Li wouldn’t act just because of Cyril’s words.
And Cyril himself didn’t think Qi was important enough to sacrifice his life for.
But Su Li went.
Cyril didn’t really care whether Su Li had predicted the final outco from the start.
Because regardless of whether he predicted it or not, Su Li did what Cyril didn’t dare to do.
What Cyril kept focusing on was the fact that Su Li went.
Soone he had always considered weak and seemingly unable to change had accomplished sothing Cyril didn’t even dare to imagine, and achieved a perfect happy ending…
No matter how he thought about it, Cyril needed to adjust his perception.
Su Li wasn’t just soone who had once begged with him, shared hard tis, and experienced humiliation together.
He wasn’t just the friend who pulled him out of that abyss in Jisuo Town.
Su Li is just Su Li. Even if we can’t help putting various labels on him in the future, we must rember that he is simply himself, not just the sum of those labels.
Others had their own thoughts about these words.
But none expressed their personal opinions.
As for whether they had new plans deep in their hearts, well, no one would know until they took action.
That evening, while Su Li fell asleep in his room thinking about how to spend the upcoming holiday, everyone else had gathered in the hall. Cyril even set up a wind elent barrier to avoid waking him up.
“What do you think about those people?” Lan Zhe sat on one side of the sofa, elbows on his knees, leaning forward with a serious expression.
When asked, Cyril, who always felt an inexplicable sense of security in this small building as if nothing could break through his defenses, spoke his true thoughts without hesitation.
“I think those people have great potential value, but Su Li seems unwilling to control that value himself. He appears to only want to be a spiritual influence on Castor and the others, guiding them toward the right path, but without accepting the flowers and applause that co with it.”
Cyril explained.
“Su Li ntioned before that nobles had done quite a bit of research on elent affinity transfer, but they never produced any results…”
“Do you know what this ans?” Cyril’s expression grew grave.
Roy’s heart skipped a beat. “What have you realized?”
“Su Li didn’t actually grow up with as a beggar in the true sense,” Cyril recounted the past.
“He once said he’d been a beggar for ten years, but I actually hadn’t known him for very long. That’s why when we first ca to this city, I felt anxious and couldn’t believe the reality. Because from my perspective at that ti, Su Li and I… weren’t really close.”
Like a child grasping at spider silk, unwilling to let go of the last lifeline.
“So even when he later talked about being a beggar for ten years and wanting to change careers, I didn’t argue.”
Because Cyril’s reason for being here stemd from Su Li.
Under these circumstances, Cyril wouldn’t contradict anything Su Li said.
Even when he gradually revealed his true nature later, it was only after discovering how deep Su Li’s bottom line went that he beca less restrained and petty.
But the truth was the truth.
“The day Egbert took us away was the first ti I truly interacted with Su Li since gaining consciousness. Before that, I seed to only know his na and that his elent affinity was zero, nothing else.”
“Even these mories ca from rumors, not from Su Li himself…”
“Tracing back to the source, he only appeared in Jisuo Town for a very brief period before we were both taken away.”
And now, if one tried to return to that town to investigate the origin of everything, Cyril was certain they wouldn’t find a single trace.
The Crystal Winged Dragon incident in Jisuo Town didn’t just result in the town’s destruction and reconstruction – it completely erased all previously existing information without leaving a trace.
Cyril finally closed his eyes and spoke of the possibility that others had already conceived but were unwilling to acknowledge.
“He might have been a test subject in the elent affinity transfer research experints.”
At that mont, the air grew stagnant.
“Otherwise, I can’t understand why he knows so much.”
“I also don’t understand how soone can exist with absolutely zero elent affinity.”
“In past history, even those with the worst elent affinity still had 0.1%, didn’t they?”
This was a world composed of elents.
Just as carbon-based life forms are fundantally based on carbon and cannot separate from this organic substance.
Complete zero would only be possible for soone who doesn’t exist in this world…
But Su Li was right there, so how could he not exist?
Thus, the only possibility seed to be that Su Li had experienced those experints.
“I’d rather bla my own ignorance, unable to think of other possibilities, than accept this as fact…”
Cyril opened his eyes.
If, if they used Su Li’s past as a test subject as the baseline, then what was everything that happened in the past built upon?
Being teased for having no talent, having to rely on wisdom alone while others could easily solve problems with elental powers…
Even that high fever during their first encounter with Roy in Jisuo Town, when recalled now, carried sothing indescribable.
Death had been very, very close to Su Li.
Within arm’s reach.
“Were those words that Brother Eg over-interpreted really completely aningless?”
“When Holy Son Diz said he was fortunate to glimpse into Su Li’s realm of thought, was that really just him being abnormal?”
Cyril couldn’t be sure.
He only felt countless needles piercing his heart.
In this small building, Su Li was the youngest.
But Su Li himself had never considered attending Asa Academy. Both before and after he could earn money, his focus was always on sending Cyril to school to make him better.
While he himself worked at the academy.
Egbert, Euphia, the rcenary Alliance Guild Master, the Lion’s Club leader, Dean Asa, Roy, Lan Zhe, Na’an, Diz…
It seed everyone had glimpsed the truth from Su Li.
Except Cyril.
Except for him, who should have known Su Li best, remained completely ignorant for so long.
The scales on Cyril’s cheeks changed from barely visible to fully manifest, and even his blue pupils transford into beast-like vertical slits.
Roy pressed down on his head.
“Calm down.”
“Things might not be as bad as you imagine, at least not for the little master himself.”
But even as Roy said these words, just thinking about how Su Li, who had never really possessed childlike qualities, might have beco this way after enduring things he should never have had to endure, made his heart swell and ache with an uncontrollable urge to destroy sothing.
“But as you said, that’s only from Su Li’s perspective,” Lan Zhe said. The hand that had been supporting his chin now dug into his palm.
As blood began to spread, he continued speaking as if he couldn’t feel the pain. “Would Su Li, that child, be willing to take back his talent?”
“Whether he’s willing or not, Lord Su Li has never considered himself incapable just because he lacks power,” Mark, though typically reserved, hit the core of the matter with these words.
“Let’s contact Egbert,” Lan Zhe made the decision. “At least he should know about this.”
The night dispersed as dawn approached.
Su Li, who had slept soundly through the night, could never have imagined that in just one evening, the entire world would beco so absurd.
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