Chapter 1341: 99. Surprise

"How do I look right now?"

"Move the bow tie two millimeters to the left."

"Understood."

Muen adjusted his bow tie.

"What about me, what about me?"

"Move the bow one centimeter to the right. Cuter that way."

"Got it."

Ariel shifted her bow.

After giving each other precise instructions and confirming that they had reached an absolutely perfect state, the two exchanged a glance, each seeing the other's readiness for battle and barely suppressed excitement.

"Let's go!"

"Mm!"

Hand in hand, the two strode forward and entered the corridor entrance radiating endless light.

Enhancement School, your emperor has returned......

Hm?

The light on the other side of the corridor dazzled Muen's eyes..

But only for an instant. His powerful body quickly adapted to the environment at the other end of the corridor, allowing him to clearly see everything around him.

Then he froze.

——Dense vegetation covered almost the entire space, and the soil made this place feel nothing like an interior at all. Muen could even see a stream running through the trees, dividing the glaring sea of green.

Hiss.......

What was going on?

Why was the scene so different from what he'd imagined?

Was the Enhancement School's style really this wild?

Or could it be......

"This...... As expected of the Enhancement School. Even the landscaping is done this well?"

After thinking for a moment, Muen slapped his palm and suddenly understood.

A major school feared and respected by everyone really was different. Look at how extravagantly they spent their money. This landscaping looked as if they'd directly moved an entire primeval jungle indoors.

Tsk, tsk, tsk. Look at this moss, look at these weeds. Without even a shred of artistic talent, how could anyone possibly make it look this close to the real thing?

Out of the corner of his eye, Muen caught sight of an enormous hole in the wall and became even more impressed......

This indoor landscaping even used fucking natural light. How extravagant. Natural was, of course, always the best!

"Landscaping...... is it?" Ariel looked suspicious: "Why does it look to me like......"

"It is landscaping!"

Muen spoke decisively, "This is the Enhancement School. What's wrong with having a little landscaping?"

"......That makes sense."

Ariel thought about it seriously and nodded as well, "After all, it's a major school. Perhaps this kind of decorating style that ordinary people like us can't understand is also proof of their profound foundation."

"Let's keep going."

The two continued forward.

A path this close to nature was naturally extremely difficult to walk. After all, Muen still had to maintain his appearance and give the members of the school a good impression, so he could only rely on his powerful bodily control to perfectly avoid every dirty spot.

Fortunately, with his abilities, something this minor was simply......

"Hey, Muen......"

"Call me Teacher. How many times have I told you!"

"Teacher, look over there!"

Ariel's voice was somewhat stiff. She tugged on the corner of Muen's clothes, temporarily forgetting even her gentle and adorable persona.

"What's there to look at? Are you shocked by the landscaping style here again?"

Muen sighed softly.

See, this was where Ariel still fell short.

How could a disguise that only existed on the surface ever reach perfection?

What mattered more was cultivation that came genuinely from within!

Like him. Forget about any other unexpected event— even if a living lion suddenly appeared right in front of him, he wouldn't so much as blink......

"Roar......"

A foul wind blasted directly into his face.

It blew Muen's meticulously arranged hair and bow tie completely crooked.

Under his ghost-seeing stare, an enormous demonic beast slowly strode out from the depths of the dense forest.

The demonic beast had a ferocious face and sharp fangs, possessing the characteristics of a lion, yet its oppressive presence far surpassed that of any ordinary lion. Its entire body was covered in cold scales that emitted a faint chilling gleam beneath that excellent natural light, making it terrifying to behold.

"No way, there really is a lion? A demonic beast?"

Muen was dumbfounded again: "And such a vicious demonic beast at this level?"

"T-Teacher, this scene...... how should we explain this one......"

"Don't panic, don't panic, don't panic. Let me think."

Muen tapped his mithril staff. At this crucial moment, he fully demonstrated the calmness and composure expected of the number-one figure of the Enhancement School.

He thought seriously for a moment, then slapped his palm again: "I understand. This is...... a watchdog!"

"But that's a giant cat......" Ariel complained.

"Whether it's a cat or not, whether it's a dog or not, none of that matters!"

Muen once again spoke decisively: "What matters is that the purpose of this demonic beast is probably to specifically guard the school. It's a reassuring existence just like a watchdog!“

"I-Is that so?"

"Of course. Other than that, what other possibility could there be?"

Muen took out the crest, poured magic power into it, released the aura contained within, then showed it to the lion-like demonic beast: "Come, good doggy. I'm the new head of the Enhancement School. From now on, we're colleagues."

"Sniff, sniff......" The lion-like demonic beast cautiously approached and sniffed the crest in Muen's hand. As though sensing something, a peculiar light unexpectedly flashed in its cold vertical pupils.

Muen was delighted: "See, see? I guessed correctly, didn't I? This demonic beast only looks vicious. In reality, as the school's watchdog, it's extremely docile toward members of the school......"

"Crunch."

The lion-like demonic beast opened its bloody maw and, without the slightest hesitation, swallowed Muen's entire arm in one bite.

"Ah......"

The two softly exclaimed at the same time and stared blankly as the scene unfolded.

It was...... different from what they'd imagined again.

"Roar......"

The lion-like demonic beast seemed to have gone insane. It shook its head violently and tore at him again and again, as though it desperately wanted to rip Muen into pieces.

"Guessed wrong. So it wasn't a watchdog after all?"

Muen slapped the lion-like demonic beast into meat paste, elegantly wiped the crest clean, and murmured: "If it isn't guarding the place, then why is this demonic beast here? Don't tell me it escaped from the Summoning School or somewhere like that, and because nobody bothered managing this place......"

"I understand!"

This time, it was Ariel who suddenly realized the answer: "This demonic beast must be material used for magic experiments! You know...... that classic setup from those kinds of stories. A faction raises demonic beasts and uses them as whetstones for its students' growth!"

"Exactly!" Muen immediately reacted as well, hurriedly driving that completely impossible idea out of his mind: "If that's the case, then this wild and natural landscaping and interior design make sense too!"

The two exchanged another glance and once again sensed the other's barely suppressed excitement and admiration.

As expected of the Enhancement School!

They actually had enough resources to build the trial grounds indoors! Their own students didn't even have to leave the building to receive the greatest possible amount of tempering and growth!

What incredible wealth! What boundless imagination! What incredible creativity!

"I'm getting more and more impatient to meet the people of the school."

Muen's emotions surged: "I feel like I can learn a lot from them!"

"Me too!"

Ariel planted her hands on her hips and swept her gaze around: "But...... there's something I'm a little confused about. We've been walking for so long, so why haven't we seen anyone else?"

"Maybe today isn't a study day, so most of the school's people aren't here?"

"That doesn't seem right. We arrived in such a high-profile way. Even if the Enhancement School's people didn't see us, surely someone else would have informed them."

"That's true......"

Muen rubbed his chin. After Ariel's reminder, he also noticed that the surroundings were strangely quiet.

The two passed the demonic beast from earlier. By now, they had basically crossed the entire "trial grounds" and could even see rooms resembling classrooms, yet even now, they still hadn't seen a single person.

"It's so quiet it's almost like everyone's hiding. Could it be......"

Muen's eyes lit up: "They want to give me, their newly arrived number-one figure, a surprise?"

"Really?"

"What other possibility could there be? As a student, you need to trust your teacher's judgment!"

Creating a good first impression was something that worked both ways.

He wanted to give the people of the school a good impression, so naturally the people of the school would want the same.

So......

"Master Enmu...... You are Master Enmu, aren't you!"

Like clear springwater dripping onto bluestone.

The silence of the entire world was suddenly broken.

It was merely an ordinary greeting, yet Muen felt as though he'd waited hundreds or thousands of years to hear it. Without the slightest hesitation, he abruptly turned toward the source of the voice:

"That's right. I am Master Enmu."

"Wonderful! I heard long ago that you were coming. I was even planning to tidy things up first...... I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly. A lot of the preparations haven't been completed yet!"

"It's fine."

Muen maintained his masterly bearing and reservedly waved a hand.

But once he clearly saw the appearance of the speaker, he still couldn't help being slightly startled.

This person...... was peculiar.

He was an old man who looked to be over fifty. A messy beard covered half his face, though since he was a mage, his actual age might have been even greater.

Yet he possessed none of the steadiness or aged air one would expect of an old man. Instead, his eyes gleamed brightly, and whenever he spoke, all four of his limbs moved along with him, giving anyone who looked at him the immediate impression that he had an excess of energy.

"Hello, Master Enmu. I'm Ide. You can just call me Old Ide."

"Hello, Ide. I am Enmu, and this is my most outstanding student, Alice."

Ariel pinched the edge of her skirt and gave an excessively feminine curtsy: "Hello, Mr. Ide."

"Oh, oh, oh, far too polite, far too polite. How could I possibly deserve such formality from you?"

Old Ide was thin and withered, but his movements were as agile as a monkey's as he bounced around within Muen's field of vision.

"I don't deserve it, I don't deserve it...... But it's good, good. Everyone getting along peacefully is very good, excellent! Right, the two of you have had a tiring journey. Would you like to rest first? Although things haven't been fully tidied up yet, there's still somewhere you can settle down."

"That won't be necessary."

Muen coughed dryly: "Rather than resting, right now I'd prefer to meet the other members of the school. You know, I haven't returned for decades, so everything here is unfamiliar to me, especially the people. I want to become familiar with everyone as quickly as possible."

"This......"

The originally energetic Old Ide suddenly froze in place. He looked at Muen, then at Ariel, before finally scratching his head:

"Now?"

"Yes, now."

"Right now...... isn't a very good time. Nothing's been prepared yet...... Why don't the two of you rest first?"

"There's no need."

Seeing Old Ide frantically trying to hide something, Muen almost failed to suppress his smile: "Don't worry. No matter what kind of 'accident' it is, we've already mentally prepared ourselves for it."

After saying that, Muen secretly shot Ariel a look.

'See? Just like I said. These people are acting all sneaky, so they must be preparing a surprise!'

Naturally, all he received was an equally secretive eye roll.

"You want to meet the other members...... All right. Although it's not very good, it's still good. After all, Master Enmu is the new school head. There's no way I can disobey the school head's orders, otherwise it would be bad if I were forbidden from opening a classroom......"

Old Ide rambled on, yet his movements were extremely fast as he swiftly made his way through the indoor jungle.

Muen was confused.

Why weren't they heading toward the classrooms? Why were they instead going in the opposite direction? Could it be......

He understood!

Muen slapped his palm.

A surprise naturally had to be prepared somewhere unexpected!

Judging from everything he'd seen so far, the people of this school really were quite creative!

Muen became increasingly delighted and even deliberately suppressed the perception that he had already restrained ever since entering this place.

A surprise had to actually surprise him, after all!

As the future number-one figure of the Enhancement School, the person who would lead them onward to continued greatness, he naturally needed at least this much emotional intelligence!

'Remember. No matter what calm and ordinary thing you see later, you need to act extremely shocked!'

Muen once again signaled Ariel with his eyes.

The response was still an eye roll.

"We're here!"

While the two were battling with their eyes, Old Ide had already stopped.

"This is where the other members of the school are?"

"Mm!"

"Let me see...... Huh?"

Muen turned his head and looked around, only to discover that there was no one here, nor was there obviously any place capable of hiding a large number of people.

In fact, if the voices of the three of them were removed, this place was even quieter than before.

"Where are they?"

"Over there." Old Ide pointed: "On that crooked-neck tree!"

"On the tree?"

Muen pointed at Old Ide and smiled helplessly: "You, really. You and all of them actually hid in a tree. This setup surprises me every single time."

Fine.

Muen looked up.

Let me see exactly what kind of surprise you've prepared for me.

......

Creak...... creak......

There really was a crooked-neck tree where Old Ide had pointed.

And on the tree, there really was someone wearing the special mage robes that made it obvious at a glance that he belonged to the Enhancement School.

But......

Creak...... creak......

As a gentle breeze blew in through the opening that provided natural light, that body also swayed back and forth.

Moving......

In a posture that looked nothing like that of a normal person.

Yet in another sense, this scene also looked completely reasonable.

Because the rope wrapped around that neck was creaking as well.

"......Eh?"

There was no need for deliberate acting.

Muen's expression instantly stiffened.

His eyes stared at the scene, yet his brain took a very long time before it finally fully understood what he was looking at.

At that moment, accompanied by that faint creaking sound, Muen felt as though some beautiful fantasy inside his heart was also creaking, creaking, creaking...... until at last it could no longer withstand the blow of reality and shattered completely.

This wasn't right.

This scene was completely wrong......

It wasn't supposed to be like this......

"T-Teacher......"

Ariel tugged on Muen's sleeve: "Was this surprise...... also within your expectations?"

"......"

Muen did not answer.

That's right. Without question, this really was the member of the Enhancement School Muen had been longing to meet.

It was just that he appeared to have suffered one tiny little accident.

"Allow me to introduce him!"

Old Ide grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth:

"The person on the tree is our Enhancement School's previous boss, Yates Alva. Without question, he was an outstanding man just like you, Master Enmu. He once made countless tireless efforts toward the revival of the Enhancement School."

"But what's slightly unfortunate is...... three years ago, he hung himself from this tree and committed suicide."