Chapter 548: Simple or Flamboyant?

Avin’s face darkened at Isaac’s words. He desperately wanted to retort… but…

‘He had a point…’

‘It’s a known fact that Legendary Mages need three rituals to advance each tier. Isaac is now Tier Four, which means… I’ve brought at least six potential Evil God invasion crises upon this world!’

After a quick mental calculation, Avin’s vision went dark, and he nearly fainted. But in that moment, he wished he *could* pass out, just so he wouldn’t have to feel his colleagues’ astonished stares…

Yes, he wasn’t alone. This was the information processing center for the Mage Tower’s external monitoring and data collection facility. His job was to manage the Golem guards and reception, while the others handled data collection.

That was why the others hadn’t responded when Isaac spoke up, but it didn’t mean they couldn’t hear the conversation between him and Avin…

Isaac Solomon was, without a doubt, the most famous Mad Witch of the last few decades—and possibly even the most famous in history!

Because in this day and age, the words “Mad Witch” had practically become his title!

As everyone knows, you can be given the wrong name, but you can’t be given the wrong nickname.

Thus, his nickname alone was a testament to his ferocity. And now they were hearing that this mad, ferocious man was someone Avin had taught?

‘So the quiet, honest-looking one was hiding this the whole time?’

In an instant, the looks everyone gave Avin were a mixture of shock and profound fear. The slow-witted were already racking their brains, wondering if they’d ever done anything to offend him. Meanwhile, the quick-witted—those who were prone to wild speculation—were already connecting Avin to every unlucky person and unfortunate incident that had happened recently.

It was as if they had discovered a fundamental Truth of the universe; suddenly, it all made sense!

‘Avin… you’re a dangerous man! You’ve been hiding it deeper than anyone!’

His colleagues said nothing, but their expressions said it all. Avin’s mouth twitched. He sighed and submitted the notification of Isaac’s visit up the chain of command.

He wasn’t doing it to single out Isaac. The Association’s research here was important, and anyone who visited had to file an application first—even other Grand Arcanists from the Association were no exception.

At the camp entrance, Isaac raised an eyebrow when Avin didn’t reply, but he said nothing. He was well aware of his own reputation. ‘Besides,’ he thought, ‘what if Avin is just trying to avoid showing favoritism?’

But regardless of how Avin saw him, Isaac considered Avin a dear and important friend. His earlier words might have been a slight exaggeration, but only a slight one. Although he had already been leaning toward those ideas, without Avin’s pointers, he might have taken a much more roundabout path.

That’s how research was. Sometimes, a single spark of inspiration was more important than endless effort.

Isaac’s application to enter the research camp was quickly approved. After all, while the work here was important, it wasn’t as if they were conducting shady research that had to be hidden from view. Arcanists weren’t Mad Witches like Isaac, after all.

On the contrary, they actually welcomed a genius like Isaac—especially a Wizard who, despite treading an unconventional path, possessed equally outstanding research capabilities. With such a vast difference in approach, combined with peerless talent on both sides, they hoped some unique sparks might fly.

In fact, many Arcanist experiments nowadays were outsourced to Mad Witches. The Association would provide the funds and materials, and the Mad Witches would conduct the research. If the project yielded results, the Association only required the data; the Mad Witches were even allowed to keep the resulting technology for themselves.

Of course, if a Mad Witch didn’t want to keep the tech, the Association could also buy it back. In short, the Association had a comprehensive system in place for these kinds of collaborations.

It was worth noting that, appended to the approval notice, the camp’s director, Grand Arcanist Moens, had added a personal, gossipy message for Avin, asking if it was true that he had mentored Isaac. This made Avin’s expression darken all over again.

What made him feel even more miserable was that Master Moens had assigned him to be Isaac’s guide. He was now responsible for introducing Isaac to the camp’s various research projects and their future applications…

Avin sighed. Honestly, he didn’t want the job, but it was a direct order from Master Moens. He was just a humble Tier Two Arcanist; he had no right to object.

If anything, this was actually a reward for him. Although he worked at the camp, his duties were limited to basic tasks like controlling Golems and gathering peripheral data. As for the camp’s core research, he knew only the general direction, not any of the specifics.

But as Isaac’s guide, there was a high chance he would get to see that core data!

This would be incredibly beneficial for his future advancement!

Accessing that core data was one of the main reasons he’d come here in the first place!

In a way, he had now accomplished his goal ahead of schedule. The only fly in the ointment was that this opportunity had come only because he knew, and had supposedly “mentored,” Isaac…

Avin had complicated feelings about it…

But despite his mixed feelings, his hands moved without pause. He deftly opened the Barrier at the camp’s main gate to let Isaac in. At the same time, he transferred control of the Golems to the Tower Spirit and left his workstation. Someone else would naturally come to take over his shift.

Though it was only a temporary Tower Spirit, it was intelligent enough to cover his shift for a while without any issues.

Soon, Avin saw Isaac strolling leisurely toward him from the end of the path. It had been years, but the man was as confident and unfathomable as ever…