Lu Li didn't stay long at the Academy of Giant Trees and didn't return to his room, though he was still formally enrolled as a student.
Before they parted, Vice-Dean Kris tossed Lu Li a set of keys: it was for a house gifted by the academy, located in the inner city.
A few dozen minutes later, the elevator descended slowly into the inner city camp of Midnicht.
Vice-Dean Kris's house was not far from the academy's camp, a three-story building painted a snow-white color.
It wasn't as neglected as one might think—though only ashes remained in the fireplace, the furniture and other items weren't covered in dust.
Midnicht was located underground, and the dust was a serious problem; usually, if a house wasn't cleaned for a few days, a layer of dust would accumulate.
It was unclear whether soone had been cleaning it from ti to ti or if it was the work of so alchemical art.
Lu Li inspected each room in turn: there was a storage room filled with belongings, a study cramd with books, empty guest rooms, and also the rooms belonging to Kris and her daughter.
Since there were no strangers around, their rooms were unlocked.
Vice-Dean Kris's bedroom resembled her study in its layout: an alchemy table replaced the writing desk, and an entire wall was taken up by a bookshelf. Claire's room was far more modest, with only a simple bed and a desk—even plainer than the guest room.
In the end, Lu Li chose the attic room with a west-facing window.
Like the attic at the inn near Fast Avenue, it offered a wide view and was relatively quiet.
The only problem was the dust and cobwebs everywhere.
A bucket filled with cool water was lifted by a hand with a rolled-up sleeve and carried to the attic.
Lu Li, wearing an apron he found in the kitchen, poured so water onto the floor. Droplets mixed with dust skittered across the surface.
He soaked the mop in the bucket, and Lu Li began to clean the attic room where he would be living for so ti.
Bucket after bucket of filthy black water was poured down the toilet, and the floor gradually revealed its true dark brown, natural wood color.
After cleaning the floor, Lu Li opened the window to air out the room, took a cloth, and wiped the murky, blurred glass, then the bedside table, the surface of the fireplace, and the ceiling.
Abandoned, dust-covered cobwebs hung from the sloped ceiling. Many of the webs were deserted, serving no purpose other than to emphasize the attic's neglect.
However, a small creature still lived in one corner, refusing to leave despite Lu Li's approach, clinging tightly to the center of its web.
Seeing that the spider had no intention of leaving, Lu Li worked around it and its web.
An hour later, Lu Li finished cleaning. Although the attic wasn't exactly brand new, it was perfectly habitable.
Finally, Lu Li filled a basket with firewood and carried it to the attic, then took off the apron and returned it to the kitchen.
It was still afternoon, with so ti to go before evening.
Lu Li left for a while to order dinner at a restaurant a few hundred ters away, and then returned ho.
After finishing his al in quiet solitude at the restaurant, Lu Li went up to the study on the second floor.
Lu Li's thoughts returned to his recent conversation with Kris.
"Dear, what do you plan to do next?"
"Nothing much. I'll read."
"Read?"
"Silver Cross Elephant told
to."
"It seems they've convinced you to participate in the March Tournant of Supremacy."
"What does that have to do with the March Tournant of Supremacy?"
"If those esteed gentlen who follow you around like servants haven't told you anything, then I must keep it a secret as well."
"Professor Haig respected , too."
"That's different... dear."
Lu Li's thoughts drifted from their last conversation as he pulled the first book from the shelf: "A Guide to Alchemy."
Opening it to a random page, he found the knowledge within was basic, only level-1 alchemy, and its yellowed pages testified to its age.
At the end of each paragraph were childish-looking notes. It was hard to tell if they were Claire's clumsy jottings from her alchemy studies or if Vice-Dean Kris had left them in her youth.
Clearly, one of the perks of living here was that there was no shortage of books.
Although most of them were on alchemy, the remaining books on mysticism were enough to pass the ti until the start of the March Tournant of Supremacy.
As evening approached, Lu Li took the book he was reading and returned to the attic, where he lit an oil lamp and the fireplace.
In the central district, the sphere of light at the top of the tower dimd and turned yellow. Streetlights took over its function, illuminating the street outside his window.
Night fell, and the number of pedestrians on the streets dwindled, but many had not yet returned ho, and the shops had not closed—the "City That Never Sleeps" was a tradition of Midnicht and its predecessor.
Lu Li sat by the window, listening to the noise and occasional conversations drifting up from below. The warm fireplace would periodically interrupt the atmosphere with the crackle of burning wood.
At ten o'clock, Lu Li went to bed a little later than usual, for the first ti in a long while. He closed the window to shut out the street noise, lay down, and before sleeping, absorbed the gift left by the "Lord of Equilibrium" after it had received its sacrifices.
It was sothing indescribable, a vaguely perceived truth containing the genuine understanding of equilibrium. He just didn't know why the "Church of Equilibrium" had been twisted into a narrow doctrine by the Distorted Figure.
Lu Li had no intention of believing in equilibrium and becoming a follower. However, this gift allowed him to deeply comprehend its truth and principle.
Though it granted him not the slightest bit of power.
As perilous as Lu Li's adventures had been that day, his night's rest was equally peaceful.
Lu Li woke to a new morning.
Opening the window, the cool morning air and street sounds broke the solitary tranquility.
Lu Li took out the eyeball and went to the bathroom downstairs to wash up. Anthony the rchant arrived soon after, bringing the morning paper and news from the Academy of Giant Trees.
"The academy has already found a replacent for Spit Haig as the professor of junior-level mysticism."
The professor's betrayal and death were regrettable, but the consequences didn't vanish with him. Those who had associated with Professor Haig, those he had valued.
Among them was Dogat, an acquaintance of Lu Li's.
However, as the gatekeeper delved deeper into the investigation, the erging news proved beneficial to Professor Haig—or rather, to the academy.
"Spit Haig was very clever... He didn't spread his teachings, not to a single soul. He concealed his faith deeply, acting just like the other professors, which is why we never discovered he had a church."
But the cleverer a person is, the more foolish their conceit. Spit Haig was a pri example: although tragedy had forced him into his beliefs, which might have seed pitiable, he then twisted that pity into hatred, ultimately dying from his insatiable desires.
Though he had co so close to succeeding.
Covering the nearly extinguished fireplace with ash, Lu Li took the book he had read yesterday and went to the study on the second floor, exchanging it for a geographical atlas.
For the next few days, Lu Li maintained this tranquil routine of reading and resting.
After a search of Professor Haig's residence, his luggage and flowerpot were returned. Due to Lu Li's absence, the sprout, less than three centiters tall, had withered and dried up, but it would revive in ti.
On the afternoon of the fourth day, Lu Li entered Vice-Dean Kris's bedroom to select so advanced books that weren't in the study.
Click—
Footsteps sounded from downstairs, ascending the staircase.
Lu Li lifted his dark eyes and glanced at the half-open door, but instead of stepping into the hallway, he retreated to the window, opened it, and waited quietly as the approaching footsteps grew softer—
The wooden door was suddenly thrown open.
"Lu Li?"
Claire, standing tensely in the hallway outside, looked stunned. She quietly surveyed the room, an expression on her face that seed to say, "Did I interrupt sothing?":
"You and Mother are already..."
"I'm staying here temporarily," Lu Li interrupted.
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