Chapter 210: Who Has a Bigger Backing?

Ludwig glared viciously at the people who had laughed at him.

His attention had been entirely on Hector just now, so he had overlooked the people with him. Looking at them more closely now, he was surprised to find that both their bearing and appearance were a cut above the ordinary.

Could they be nobles?

Ludwig sneered.

So what if they were? Anyone who associated with Hector was probably from some declining noble family that wasn't worth mentioning.

Suppressing his anger, Ludwig swept his gaze over the magical badges pinned to their chests. Including Hector, there were only three Senior Mage Apprentices among them. The rest were either Intermediate or Junior. Nothing worth taking seriously.

What a bunch of clueless idiots!

Ludwig gave Hector a contemptuous look and clicked his tongue several times before mocking him. "Hector, you've really sunk low. Making friends with a bunch of beginners who barely know any magic? You're a disgrace to your father."

Fury flared in Hector's eyes. He strode up to Ludwig and seized him by the collar, his gaze murderous.

"Who gave you permission to mention my father?"

Ludwig grabbed his wrist, his expression arrogant. "I mentioned him. What are you going to do about it? Hit me?"

Hector closed his eyes briefly and forced down his anger. He shoved Ludwig away and growled, "Ludwig, I'm not in the mood to waste words on you. Get lost!"

"You're the ones who should get lost!" The lackey standing to Ludwig's left pointed at Shu Li and the others. "We're taking this table. Move!"

The other two lackeys chimed in and pulled out chairs, preparing to sit down.

"Hey, hold it." Sayah reached out to stop them. "Ever heard of first come, first served? We got here first, you came afterward, so this table is ours. I suggest you leave before you become even more of an eyesore."

Ludwig had already taken a dislike to her. He had let her earlier mockery slide, only for her to push her luck and insult him again.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked Sayah haughtily.

Sayah looked him up and down, shrugged, and asked, "Who are you?"

"Hehe, exactly! Who are you?" Dixio stepped forward with his arms folded, looking as though he were settling in to watch a show.

"If you don't tell us who you are, how are we supposed to know?" Budno spread his hands.

"Hector called him Lusiger just now," Shu Li said solemnly.

"No, it was Luvit," Angel corrected with a smile, starlight sparkling in his amber eyes.

"It's Vitsey," Kumandi said seriously.

"I think it was probably Sitri," Amanda said uncertainly, scratching his hair.

Nasha and Sayah exchanged smiles and joined in the nonsense.

"It was Tseyvi!"

"It was obviously Vitsey!"

"You're all wrong. His name is Lusit."

"It's clearly Sitlu!"

"Listen to me. His name is Teluvi—"

...

Before long, every member of the Light Squad except Ace and Hector was embroiled in a heated debate over Ludwig's name.

Hector was dumbfounded.

How could such a short name be mangled in so many different ways? They had already gone through more than a dozen variations without repeating a single one.

At a loss, he looked toward Ace. Ace gave him a gesture telling him to stay calm.

Helpless, Hector pinched the bridge of his nose as a headache began to form. This was a grudge between him and Ludwig. He didn't want his newly made friends dragged into it.

Amanda might have a powerful uncle, but Ludwig was an important heir of the Snowo family in the northern Pros Empire, and there was even a Saint Mage on his mother's side of the family who held a position in the Central Court's Magic Tower. If they offended Ludwig too badly, there was no telling whether he might run crying to that Saint Mage.

That Saint Mage was supposedly notorious for protecting his own. If he learned that a younger member of his family had been bullied, he would undoubtedly make things difficult for them.

That was why Hector had swallowed his anger again and again.

"Cotter."

"Telak."

"Crudo."

"Oh, stop arguing, all of you! Since we can't figure out what his name is, why don't we just pick one and all use it?" Angel suggested.

"Then let's call him Luviger!" Shu Li said.

"I still think Sitlu sounds better." Dixio spread his hands. "But if Sperien thinks Luviger is better, then Luviger it is."

"I agree." Budno raised his hand.

"Me too." Angel smiled.

Soon, the other members of the Light Squad raised their hands without objection.

As the person in question, Ludwig stood there with veins bulging on his forehead, fury blazing inside him like a volcano on the verge of eruption. Watching these people ignore his very existence while casually changing his name finally pushed him beyond endurance.

"ENOUGH!"

Having settled on a name, the Light Squad turned toward him in perfect unison, their eyes bright and attentive.

Ludwig was breathing hard with rage. He pulled a high-ranking magic staff from his storage ring and pointed it at Shu Li and the others, his expression twisted.

"Get this through your thick skulls. My name is Ludwig Snowo, designated heir to Grand Lord Snowo of the northern Pros Empire! Commoners like you aren't even worthy of speaking my noble name!"

"Apologize to Young Master Ludwig!"

The three lackeys promptly pulled magic staffs from their storage pouches.

"A fight?" Amanda's eyes widened.

"They seem really angry," Angel observed.

"A fight? I like fights!" Dixio immediately whipped out his magic staff, visibly eager to get started.

"We probably shouldn't fight in the dining hall, should we?" Budno said, even as his right hand produced his magic staff and raised it high.

"There are only four of them, and there are ten of us. So no one can accuse us of ganging up on them, let's send out four too!" Shu Li said. "Who else wants in?"

"Me, me, me—"

Amanda, Sayah, and Nasha all gripped their magic staffs and assumed combat stances, ready to cast.

Hector reached out to stop them. "Don't—"

This was bad. The situation was getting out of control!

It was all his fault. He shouldn't have gotten carried away by the thought of attaching himself to powerful people and forgotten his current circumstances. He had insisted on joining the Light Squad, and now he had brought trouble down on his teammates for no reason.

Ever since his father and mother died, he should have stopped hoping for anything more.

Ace placed a hand on his shoulder and said calmly, "It's fine. You have to trust Sperien."

Hector involuntarily looked toward the black-haired youth at the front.

Although Shu Li hadn't drawn his magic staff, his entire body was poised for combat, as though astonishing power might erupt from him at any moment.

Ludwig had never suffered this kind of humiliation in his entire life. Everyone who learned his identity invariably fawned over him. Unlike these reckless fools in front of him, who actually dared point magic staffs at him.

"I'll make every last one of you kneel and beg for mercy!" He raised his magic staff and rapidly began chanting, "O great God of Water—"

Clang!

The sudden ringing of a sword was so piercing that everyone's ears buzzed. Pain stabbed through Ludwig's ears, instantly breaking his incantation.

When he recovered, he was stunned to discover a golden longsword pressing down on his magic staff.

"Who are you?" he snarled, glaring furiously at the owner of the golden sword.

The next second, his pupils contracted.

The newcomer was a young man who appeared to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight. He had brown hair, black eyes, handsome features, and a tall build. His presence was imposing, carrying both the aura of magic and the sharp edge of a swordsman. Although he wore a high-ranking mage's robe, an ornate, jewel-encrusted scabbard hung at his waist.

He held his sword one-handed, his expression cold and his gaze razor-sharp. With only a little pressure, he effortlessly forced Ludwig's magic staff downward.

Unwilling to concede, Ludwig swept his gaze toward the man's left breast, wanting to see what rank of magical badge was pinned there.

...Senior Mage.

Tch. And here he'd thought this man was someone impressive. He was only a Senior Mage.

"Who are you?" Ludwig demanded through gritted teeth.

The lackey standing to his left saw the newcomer and immediately shuddered. Hurriedly putting away his magic staff, he tugged at Ludwig's robe.

"Young Master Ludwig, put your staff away. Quickly."

If Ludwig were the sort to listen, he wouldn't be Ludwig.

He sneered. "I won't."

A cold glint flashed through the brown-haired young man's eyes. He exerted a little more force, and Ludwig's fingers suddenly went numb.

Clatter!

The magic staff slipped from his hand and hit the floor.

"What?" Ludwig stared in disbelief.

The brown-haired young man gave him an indifferent glance, smoothly sheathed his golden sword, then turned toward Shu Li and the others.

The moment he had appeared, Shu Li and his companions had put away their magic staffs with remarkable mutual understanding. When he looked at them, they simultaneously flashed him bright, harmless smiles.

The brown-haired young man's eyes flickered.

Without changing expression, he said, "St. Velia Magic Academy prohibits students from fighting among themselves. Since you're new students and unfamiliar with the academy rules, I'll let you off with a verbal warning this time."

"Sorry. We'll be more careful from now on," Shu Li said obediently.

Dixio, Angel, Budno, and Amanda immediately followed suit.

"Sorry. We'll be more careful from now on."

Kumandi and Ace said nothing.

Hector said guiltily, "I'm sorry. This was all my fault. They had nothing to do with it."

Sayah bristled. "Why are you apologizing? They're the ones who should be saying sorry!"

Nasha nodded in agreement. "They deliberately tried to steal our seats and insulted us. When they couldn't win the argument, they tried to threaten us with force. They're awful."

Ludwig trembled all over with rage. Pointing at the brown-haired young man, he demanded, "Who the hell are you to interfere in my affairs?"

The young man remained unmoved by his anger.

"Anyone who violates academy rules will be expelled."

Ludwig was accustomed to running wild at home. There was no way he could swallow this humiliation. He picked up his magic staff and aimed it at the brown-haired young man.

His three lackeys nearly had heart attacks. All three lunged forward at once and grabbed him.

"Young Master Ludwig, put your staff away!"

"That's Senior Seriu! He trains in both magic and swordsmanship, and he also helps enforce discipline at the academy."

"Exactly! He's only a Senior Mage, but his combat strength is comparable to an Intermediate Magic Instructor."

Ludwig frowned when he heard them and was finally forced to rein in his temper.

His rage had overwhelmed his reason just now, nearly making him lose control. His lackeys' words restored some of his rationality.

As one of the heirs to a great family, he wasn't stupid.

There was no way he could allow something as humiliating as expulsion to happen to him.

He shot Hector a vicious glare and left him with a single threat.

"Just you wait!"

Ludwig swept his magic cloak behind him and stalked away with his lackeys, his head held high.

Shu Li spread his hands.

He genuinely couldn't understand how the minds of spoiled young noblemen like Ludwig worked. This wasn't the Pros Empire. No one here was obligated to tolerate his arrogance. If he had any sense, he'd put that young-master temper of his away.

Otherwise, once he caused real trouble, his family's influence wouldn't reach far enough to save him.

Then he could sit back and wait to get wrecked!

Having settled the dispute between the new students, Seriu turned away indifferently. As he passed one of the dining tables, he picked up the tray he had left there earlier with one hand, found an empty seat, sat down, and leisurely resumed eating breakfast.

"That annoying guy is finally gone." Budno rubbed his stomach. "I'm starving. Can we eat now?"

"I'm hungry too," Amanda said pitifully.

As a young dragon, he had an astonishing appetite. But to maintain his disguise as a human, he ate very little at each meal and secretly supplemented his diet in the middle of the night with sea fish from his storage ring.

Unfortunately, they had spent a month traveling to the magic academy, and his supplies were running low.

"Let's take turns ordering!" Shu Li said.

They had to keep someone at the table so another group of students wouldn't take it while they were all gone.

As for him and Ace, they would find a way to scrounge up another two chairs and squeeze in with everyone else.

The Light Squad quickly sprang into action. Half went to order breakfast while the other half stayed behind to hold the table.

Five minutes later, all ten of them were enjoying a fragrant breakfast.

Shu Li had gotten lucky and found two unused chairs, allowing him and Ace to sit with their companions.

The food at St. Velia Magic Academy was fantastic. The fruits and vegetables were fresh, the meat had been cleaned meticulously, and whether roasted, stewed, or fried, every dish looked and smelled delicious. The milk was rich and sweet, the bread soft and fluffy, and the wheat cakes crisp enough to make it difficult to stop eating.

"Mmm! So good!"

The two food lovers, Budno and Amanda, ate with obvious delight.

Shu Li took several bites of his wheat cake and made a thoughtful sound.

This texture...

It wasn't any worse than what the Fairies made. The flour in particular was astonishingly good.

Could it be... wheat exported from the Elven Kingdom to the Central Court?

It was possible!

Danlov was the Elven King's eldest disciple. Perhaps the two sides had already been cooperating in secret for a long time.

"Hector, what's the story between you and that Ludwig guy?" Shu Li asked the human youth sitting across from him.

The other members of the Light Squad all slowed their eating and looked toward Hector.

Hector lowered the bread in his hand and froze for a moment.

He actually got the name right this time?

Shu Li blinked and flashed him a toothy grin.

He was all grown up now. He had mastered more than ten languages. He was no longer that Fairy cub who constantly mangled people's names.

Of course, when he got flustered, his tongue still occasionally betrayed him.

Hector sighed and lowered his head.

"First, I owe all of you an apology."

"Huh? Why?" Budno asked through bulging cheeks.

Hector smiled bitterly. "I've brought trouble down on you."

Before he had grown strong enough to protect himself, he shouldn't have tried to make more friends. Otherwise, all he would do was bring disaster upon them.

"One of Ludwig's elders is a Saint Mage at the Magic Tower." Hector clenched his fists, regret filling his voice. "Now that he's left, there's no way he'll simply let this go."

Kumandi frowned. "The Magic Tower?"

Shu Li tilted his head. "A Saint Mage?"

"That sounds pretty powerful!" Angel said.

But Danlov was a Mage Sovereign.

He was even more powerful!

"So..." Hector continued, "I'm sorry. I never should have dragged all of you into the grudge between Ludwig and me."

Sayah took another bite of her wheat cake and said indistinctly, "Don't rush to apologize. Tell us what happened between you two first!"