Ronald had a very harmonious discussion with these Wizards.
As a newcor to Barrier Mountain, he would readily accept their terms, provided they were not too excessive. Perhaps it was Ronald’s cooperative attitude that pleased everyone, for Augustus promised him quite a few benefits.
Half an hour passed, and the eting that took place at night was drawing to a close.
Finally, after greeting Ronald, the elderly Wizard Augustus said to Catherine standing beside him:
"Catherine, I have to go back to work at the watchtower. Mr. Drake’s needs will be left to you. Is that okay?"
Catherine did not directly answer but instead looked toward Ronald with an inquiring gaze:
"I don’t particularly mind, but as for him..."
Ronald responded decisively:
"I have no issues with that."
"Great!" No sooner had Ronald spoken than Catherine stood up from her chair. The head of the Astronomy Departnt took two steps towards Ronald and, without any formality, reached out and pulled him to his feet, "I like decisive guys like you!"
"Let’s go down to the Cryptography Departnt for now and get you the basic divine text materials. Leave room cleaning to them."
From the actions of this female Wizard.
Ronald roughly understood what kind of status a departnt head held.
At least, after such rash actions, none of the other Wizards in the eting room had any objections to Catherine.
Ronald followed Catherine out.
Their route was completely different from the one Ronald had taken when he had arrived.
It was after they descended over a hundred ters down the spiral staircase around the Well of Judgent that they re-entered the safe interior of the mountain from another entrance. During so narrower parts, the guards respectfully bowed to Catherine.
After zigzagging inside Barrier Mountain for a few minutes, Catherine suddenly spoke:
"Hey, Drake."
Ronald’s tone paused:
"Yes... what is it?"
"Nothing much, just a bit bored. Tell a joke."
"..."
Ronald was montarily unable to follow Catherine’s train of thought.
But when the red-haired woman turned and looked at him with a teasing gaze, Ronald realized sothing—this fellow had quite a nasty personality.
Faced with a ’companion’ like this.
Ronald prudently thought that it wouldn’t be wise to indulge her.
Although a bit stiff, Ronald decisively changed the topic to business:
"How much further is the Cryptography Departnt from our current location?"
"..."
"Boring man."
Catherine seed indifferent and pursed her lips.
Then, without insisting that Ronald tell her a joke, she simply answered:
"There’s a corridor ahead that connects different areas. After we get there, it’ll be about a quarter of an hour’s walk."
After explaining, she continued to lead the way.
Just as Catherine had said, they soon arrived in a space filled with various entrances and connected by complex staircase structures. From any entrance, one could reach any exit within the vast, several tens of ters high space.
However, if soone were to lose their footing and fall below, those tens of ters would certainly pose a danger.
Ronald looked around.
Within his field of vision, almost everyone was honestly using the corridors, step by step, heading towards their intended destinations.
But Catherine was not one to follow the rules.
In front of Ronald, she flipped over the railing of the corridor in front of her and left a streak of red hair in the air as she descended. She landed firmly on her feet about twenty ters below, then looked up and provocatively waved at Ronald:
"Co on over."
"I don’t mind waiting for a slow-walking man, but a guy who is late just can’t win a girl’s heart."
...
After finishing her words, Catherine crossed her arms and leaned on the railing of the corridor.
In a leisurely pose, she waited for Ronald to navigate the complicated spiral staircase and finally reach her.
Looking down at the female Wizard, Ronald raised an eyebrow.
He didn’t want to always back down in front of her. To prove that ’he wasn’t a slow-walking man’, Ronald followed Catherine’s example and flipped down.
Ronald’s physical abilities had indeed approached the level of fantasy.
He didn’t need the assistance of a Flying Spell.
He easily adjusted his balance in mid-air and landed in just the right spot in front of Catherine.
Even his landing posture was much more stable than Catherine’s.
"Whoa~~"
Catherine’s eyes widened, revealing an unprecedented expression.
Based on her impression of Ronald from the eting, she hadn’t expected this man to make such a move.
She let out a sound of surprise.
Without any restraint, Catherine bent down and took a closer look at the man before her, reassessing him thoroughly.
A few seconds passed, and as if to summarize, she said:
"You, you do have so likable aspects."
...
The simple reflection ended.
Catherine turned her head and continued to lead the way in front.
In the last quarter-hour or so of the tour, she spoke to Ronald with a noticeably different attitude:
"Drake, what do you think about Augustus’s side of things?"
Ronald asked indifferently,
"Which aspects are you referring to?"
"His outdated views, for one," Catherine waved her hand dismissively and then added with a hint of irony, "Do you know why he had give you a tour?"
"Because in Augustus’s eyes, a young and beautiful girl always makes a man form a better impression and at the sa ti, enhances the feeling of identification with the group."
...
"I think he shouldn’t have chosen you for this."
Ronald stated his direct feelings bluntly.
After hearing this, Catherine fell silent for a few seconds, then bent over clutching her abdon, stopping even the act of guiding:
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha—"
"Right, who would have guide soone?"
"It’s just that I’m the only girl available today, so—please bear with , Mr. Drake."
Ronald walked to Catherine’s side.
He thought for a mont and then responded with a phrase Catherine had used in the eting room:
"I don’t really mind, but you..."
At Ronald’s query, Catherine stopped laughing.
She straightened up and looked at Ronald with a smile:
"? I certainly don’t have a problem."
"Rather, I’m starting to like you a little bit now."
Ronald shrugged his shoulders:
"If companions can have a decent relationship, I suppose it’s probably a good thing."
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