Chapter 213: Ilio Arrives.

"Ilio!"

Shu Li wasn't the only one surprised. Gabri and Friton both shot to their feet, staring at him in disbelief.

"You... When did you get back?" Gabri unconsciously tightened her hold on the little monkey in her arms until its eyes rolled back.

Ilio was dressed in magnificent high-ranking mage robes, his smooth black hair hanging loose over his shoulders. A golden circlet rested on his brow, and a foxlike smile played across his handsome face. On his chest gleamed the magical badge of a Saint Mage, making him look every bit as impressive as his rank suggested.

Shu Li looked him up and down. This was the first time he'd seen Ilio openly appear before everyone while wearing Al's face.

Dixio and the other Little Fairies exchanged looks with Amanda.

They had never seen Ilio disguised as a human before, but after hearing Sperien call him "Ilio," then seeing that infuriating grin on his face, they knew immediately that it really was him.

Seeing Mr. Al again, Nasha instinctively covered her mouth, disbelief filling her violet eyes.

She had once heard the princess consort mention that Mr. Al, who traveled with Amo, was a Saint Mage. Now that she was seeing him in person, she found herself deeply impressed by his commanding presence.

Ace's eyes flickered, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Hey, Gabri. Long time no see. You're still as young and beautiful as ever." Ilio greeted Gabri with a beaming smile.

His irreverent greeting made Gabri laugh, and she loosened her hold on the little monkey. The moment it regained its freedom, it hurriedly wriggled away and fled into a corner to hide.

"There hadn't been a word from you in three hundred years. I thought something had happened to you and you'd disappeared," Gabri said with a sigh.

More than four hundred years ago, Ilio had entered St. Velia Magic Academy as a Senior Magic Instructor. He had arrived in a blaze of glory and thoroughly eclipsed countless magical geniuses. In a mere hundred years, he advanced from Magic Instructor to Saint Mage. His terrifying magical talent left everyone else hopelessly behind.

Then he left the academy and vanished without a trace.

"Friton's still alive and kicking. How could anything have happened to me?" Ilio raised one handsome eyebrow and turned toward the grim-faced Friton, scrutinizing him with a critical eye. "Oh? Friton, you finally became a Saint Mage? If I remember correctly, when I left the academy, you were only a Junior Grand Mage. Who would've thought that after three hundred years, you'd be a Saint Mage too? As expected of a magical genius from the Pros Empire. Impressive. Very impressive!"

A vein throbbed on Friton's forehead at the blatant mockery.

The black-haired young man who had suddenly barged into the office really was that hateful bastard who had always overshadowed him and cast a shadow over his entire life.

Once, Friton had been a celebrated magical genius, a future Saint Mage whom the Magic Tower had focused on cultivating. He had enjoyed every possible honor. When he became an instructor while still only a Grand Mage, Ilio appeared carrying a letter of recommendation from Mage Sovereign Danlov.

He was both a student and an instructor, and with his handsome looks and silver tongue, he stole the spotlight everywhere he went at the magic academy.

At first, Friton had looked down on someone who seemed to delight in showing off and attracting attention. But Ilio needed only one year to advance to Grand Mage, forcing Friton to take notice.

Then the class of Mage Apprentices Ilio taught began improving by leaps and bounds. In just ten years, every last one of them became a Mage.

Meanwhile, Friton's students were still struggling at the Initiate Mage level.

Over the next ninety years, Ilio's magical talent astounded the entire Central Court. The Magic Tower extended invitations to him time and again,

and he rejected every single one.

Only after becoming a Saint Mage did he take his diploma from St. Velia Magic Academy and leave on a whim. He was gone for more than three hundred years without another word.

A knot of resentment lodged in Friton's chest, making his breathing quicken.

Why?

Why had Ilio suddenly returned just when everyone was finally starting to forget him?

"Huh? Why aren't you saying anything?" Ilio deliberately leaned closer. "You were pretty talkative just now. I stood outside the door listening for quite a while. You were awfully imposing!"

Imitating Friton's tone, he turned and pointed at Bugari. "I don't care about anything else. I want an explanation from the headmaster!"

Zephyr covered his forehead, unable to watch.

"Pfft—"

The Little Fairies couldn't hold it in anymore and burst out laughing in unison.

Bugari kept shooting Ilio meaningful looks, urging him not to go too far and to at least leave Friton a shred of dignity.

Friton's chest heaved violently. He forced himself not to stoop to arguing with a scoundrel. Past experience had taught him that if he tried to quibble with Ilio over every little thing, he would be the one coughing up blood in the end.

After taking three deep breaths, he said stiffly, "Ilio, I don't have time to joke around with you right now."

"Who's joking?" Ilio folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. "Weren't you planning to make trouble for my little brother? As his big brother, how could I just stand by and watch?"

"What little brother?" Friton's eyes widened.

What the hell?

No one knew Ilio's true age, but mages who reached Saint Mage were generally at least seven or eight hundred years old. Where could he possibly have gotten a little brother?

Ilio reached out, hooked an arm around Shu Li, who had been enjoying the show, and vigorously ruffled his hair. "Allow me to formally introduce Sperien, my little brother."

Suddenly subjected to the hair-ruffling, Shu Li could only puff out his cheeks helplessly.

"Impossible!" Friton pointed at them. "How old is he, and how old are you?"

What kind of brothers were separated by a thousand years? Did he think everyone was an idiot?

"Why is it impossible?" Ilio grinned shamelessly. "He's a little brother I adopted while traveling the continent. Oh, right. Those guys over there are too."

He turned and beckoned. Dixio, Budno, and Angel bounded over and circled around him, while Kumandi approached at an unhurried pace and quietly stood to one side.

Back in the Elven Kingdom, the Little Fairies couldn't hide from him fast enough. Yet now, seeing him here was like seeing family, and they were exceptionally happy.

Seeing that the affection between them didn't seem fake, Friton ground his teeth. "Adopted little brothers?"

Fine. Very fine!

The five mountain villagers who should have been the easiest to push around turned out to be Ilio's "little brothers," making them the hardest people here to touch.

Ilio cheerfully patted each Little Fairy on the head, then raised his eyes and fixed Friton with a sharp stare. His voice turned cool. "I warned you before not to treat every piece of trash like a treasure. Fine, you didn't beat the brat when he made a mistake, but you're actually helping him bully people with your authority? As a fellow Saint Mage, I'm embarrassed for you. Has something gone wrong with Danlov's judgment? He raised someone like you, who can't even tell right from wrong, as one of his pillars. Isn't he afraid you'll drag the Magic Tower's reputation through the mud?"

Friton's face flushed scarlet with rage. "You—"

"You what?" Ilio cut him off. "Let Zephyr and Gabri judge whether anything I've said is wrong. You're an elder. Instead of setting an example, you're leading the charge in using your strength to bully the weak. Aren't you ashamed? You're already ancient, yet you're bullying a bunch of seventeen- and eighteen-year-old kids. I'm embarrassed for you!"

"Cough, cough, cough—!" Friton choked in fury. Coughing violently, he stumbled backward and dropped heavily onto the sofa.

"Great-Uncle, are... are you all right?" Ludwig hurried forward, patting him on the back to help him catch his breath.

By now, Ludwig was completely panicked.

Only minutes earlier, they had held the upper hand, ready to teach this group of Mage Apprentices a lesson. In the blink of an eye, a Saint Mage calling himself Ilio had appeared and unleashed a relentless barrage of words. His great-uncle was completely outmatched. The situation had reversed in an instant, leaving them suddenly at a disadvantage.

"Oh? This kid calls you Great-Uncle?" Ilio threw Friton's own question right back at him. "How old is he, and how old are you?"

A great-uncle was one's grandmother's brother.

For Ludwig, who was only in his early twenties, to call Friton, who was nearly a thousand years old, "Great-Uncle" was obviously absurd.

"Cough, cough, cough!" Friton had only just recovered when Ilio's question sent him into another violent coughing fit, as though he were about to cough up his lungs.

Zephyr gave him a sympathetic look.

"Ilio." Gabri shook her head, warning him to stop while he was ahead. If Friton actually died of rage, she wouldn't know how to explain it to the Mage Sovereign.

Ilio shrugged, closed his mouth, and watched coldly as Friton struggled to catch his breath.

Shu Li quietly gave him a thumbs-up.

Ilio's sharp tongue had grown even more vicious. He could practically anger someone to death without ever paying the price.

Shu Li had no idea why he'd suddenly appeared here, but seeing him drive Ludwig's Saint Mage relative into such a towering rage was immensely satisfying.

Seriu silently watched the black-haired young man whom the headmaster had called "Ilio," his emotions surging.

Eighteen years ago, he and Halis had entered the Faerie Forest hoping to meet the Elven King and retrieve the Sword of Carlos.

The Black Knights pursuing them had followed them into the Faerie Forest, grievously wounded them, and nearly killed them.

When Seriu awoke in a bed inside a wooden cabin, he saw a black-haired Elf who introduced himself as Ilio. The Elf told him that the Elven King had entrusted him with caring for Seriu and Halis.

That had been the first and only time in Seriu's life that he had seen one of the legendary Elves.

Just as the poems described, Elves were beautiful, elegant, noble, and sacred, truly deserving to be called the favored children of the Light God.

When he heard the name "Ilio" just now, those distant memories had awakened, and the image of that black-haired Elf had surfaced vividly in his mind.

But the Saint Mage "Ilio" before him was not the Elf "Ilio."

Their faces were different. Their eye colors were different. Even their auras bore no resemblance whatsoever.

Seriu gazed at the handsome, upright black-haired young man, a trace of disappointment passing through his heart.

Friton finally caught his breath and glared darkly at Ilio, considering how he might regain the upper hand.

Ilio abruptly raised a finger and wagged it several times at him. "Hey, don't look at me like that. It's creepy."

Friton's breathing grew ragged again.

Gabri cleared her throat and tried to mediate. "I think we should... let this matter end here. Minor conflicts between students are inevitable. They can apologize to each other, and that'll be the end of it."

"Apologize? Absolutely not!" Ilio objected. "My little brother didn't do anything wrong. Why should he apologize?"

Provoked by him, Friton snapped, "This isn't over!"

Ilio raised an eyebrow. "Exactly. This isn't over."

Gabri asked with a headache, "Then how do the two esteemed Saint Mages propose we settle this?"

Ilio pushed Shu Li out in front of everyone and said with a smile, "Didn't I say it when I first walked in? Let them fight. Whoever loses kneels and apologizes to the winner."

Friton's sharp gaze swept over the magical badge on Shu Li's chest, and he frowned. "Are you sure?"

Had Ilio lost his mind? He actually wanted a Seven-Element Intermediate Mage Apprentice to fight a Senior Mage Apprentice specializing in fire magic.

"Sure." Ilio challenged him, "Scared?"

Friton sneered. "As long as you don't regret it."

Ilio lowered his head and asked Shu Li, "Confident you can win?"

"Of course!" Shu Li answered firmly.

Why would he refuse a perfectly legitimate chance to beat someone up?

Not only was he going to win, he was going to win beautifully and leave his opponent utterly convinced.

"Ilio, why don't you let me fight?" Kumandi said calmly. Sperien was young, and Kumandi was afraid he might not know when to stop and accidentally kill someone.

"Me, me, me—!" Dixio raised his hand. "Let me fight!"

How could he possibly miss out on something as wonderful as beating someone up?

"Let me do it. I know how to hold back." Angel smiled. He guaranteed he'd beat Ludwig until the boy cried and begged for mercy.

"I should do it! I love beating people up!" Budno shouted in his booming voice.

"I want to beat someone up too!" Amanda declared, unwilling to be left out.

Ludwig clenched his fists, viciousness flashing in his eyes.

These bastards... These bastards...

What did they think he was?

Damn them!

How could Shu Li let his friends steal his job?

"I'm the captain. What I say goes." His word was final.

Hector, who had also wanted to volunteer, opened his mouth before lowering his head dejectedly. The whole thing had started because of him, yet the captain was the one shouldering everything.

Guilt gnawed at him, and he hated himself for not being strong enough.

Seeing this, Ace told him, "You have to trust Sperien."

Zephyr clapped his hands and looked solemnly at Ilio and Friton. "Since you've both agreed, then this is how we'll settle it. Sperien will fight Ludwig. Whoever loses will kneel and apologize."

"No problem."

"Agreed."

Ilio and Friton answered one after the other.

"Then it's settled." Zephyr reached into his storage ring and took out a smooth sheet of paper and a quill. After swiftly writing a line on it, he flicked his finger, sending the paper flying toward Friton.

"Let's make it binding!"

Friton snorted and signed his name without another word.

The paper flew to Ilio next, and he signed just as decisively.

"Headmaster, please act as our witness," Zephyr said.

Gabri couldn't shake the feeling that something about this was strange, but things had already reached this point, and she couldn't think of a better solution than signing.

Soon, the signed paper returned to Zephyr's hand.

"No time like the present. I'll notify the entire academy. At two this afternoon, the academy arena will be fully opened for the first match before the start of term." Zephyr stood and stretched. "Oh, and while I'm at it, I'll notify the Mage Sovereign. If any of the other Saint Mages from the Magic Tower are free, they can come watch too."

Gabri's mouth twitched. "The Mage Sovereign and the Magic Tower... maybe we can leave them out of this?"

"Leave them out? Absolutely not!" Zephyr shook his head. "A wager between two Saint Mages is unprecedented. How could anyone miss something this exciting? If the arena didn't have limited seating, I'd sell tickets to every mage in the city."

Ilio gave Zephyr a meaningful look.

This dragon really did love stirring up trouble. Inviting Danlov and the Saint Mages from the Magic Tower to watch—was he planning to strip Friton of every last shred of dignity?

People always said Elves held grudges, but when dragons took revenge, they were even more ruthless.

Friton, you'd better pray for yourself!!