Chapter 9: Hold Back, Don’t Laugh

Ailisi woke up in a confined space once again.

‘Why “again”?’ 

That wasn’t right—in her previous life, there hadn’t been this many incidents. 

The first person she had seen back then was Duente, not some confined space or some purple-haired mad scientist.

Ailisi stared at the black ceiling illuminated by a hanging Magic Crystal, lost in thought.

The silver-haired woman wearing an eyepatch and black robe sat beside the bed where Ailisi had been resting, holding a palm-sized book in her hands.

When she saw Ailisi open her eyes but not get up, she asked with concern, “Is there anywhere you feel unwell?”

The silver-haired woman’s voice was gentle and sounded intellectual, putting Ailisi somewhat at ease.

Ailisi sat up and discovered she was already wearing a white gauze nightgown, which surprisingly fit her perfectly.

The woman wore an eyepatch, making her face unreadable.

“These are my clothes. You can wear them for now.”

“How did I end up here?”

“Your magic went out of control. It must have been Fuermili’s experiment, but fortunately no major disaster occurred.”

“Who are you?”

“You can call me the Observer.”

“You don’t have a name?”

The silver-haired woman stood up, walked over to a nearby table, picked up a Colorful Crystal Ball from it, and infused it with magic.

The crystal ball immediately glowed, projecting an image of Duente being interrogated by Loyer in midair.

“Duente! How did he get captured? I have to save him!”

The silver-haired woman dismissed the spell, came over to comfort Ailisi, and said, “It’s fine. He’ll handle everything. As for you, you really need to rest now.”

“No… It must be because of me…” Ailisi tried to get off the bed, but found her legs weak and her arms lacking strength, nearly falling off.

The silver-haired woman steadied Ailisi and said patiently, “All you need to do is trust everything he does, and trust what I say.”

Ailisi sat up properly and thanked her, “Thank you…” 

Yet her eyes were filled with unease.

The silver-haired woman asked, “Do you care about him that much?”

After hesitating for a moment, Ailisi finally spoke, “Yes… I owe him.”

“But right now, the two of you have become enemies.” The Observer said in a regretful tone.

When Ailisi heard this, her heart suddenly tightened. 

The pain of her heartache stimulated her mind, and her guilt made the pain even worse.

“I have to go explain to him.”

“Stop. I don’t know why, but he has already decided to be your enemy, and he possesses power that doesn’t belong to the present.”

Ailisi looked at the silver-haired woman with slight surprise. 

She had a guess in her mind, but she didn’t dare to confirm it.

“I can see confusion in your eyes, Ailisi. Your power has been taken by him.”

A trace of desolation flickered in Ailisi’s eyes. 

She said in a self-deprecating tone, “Yeah, he should have done that…”

The Observer’s gaze turned serious. 

She said to Ailisi, “In the original future trajectory, he should have burned his life to protect you. But everything has deviated.”

“Can you predict the future?”

“You can think of it that way. That’s also why I brought you here.”

“Then… should I call you… Madam Observer?”

“Either is fine.”

“So, what do you want me to do?”

Ailisi had never met this person in her previous life. 

She could only judge based on experience. 

Even though Ailisi hadn’t awakened her magic perception yet, from this person’s speech and the abilities she could use—this wasn’t something an ordinary scholar could master.

“Eliminate Duente. In the future, he will become an obstacle to saving the world.”

“I refuse.” Ailisi answered without hesitation.

The Observer’s expression remained unchanged as she persuaded, “Keeping him around will be a great threat to you.”

“I’ll overcome it.”

The Observer looked into Ailisi’s eyes, never expecting this young girl to be so resolute.

“You’re very attached to him.”

“Yes. I won’t make the same mistake this time.”

The Observer sensed something was off, but had no evidence. 

She tested, “You’re not the current Ailisi.”

“No, I am Ailisi.”

The Observer smiled, feeling relieved. 

She said, “I suppose so. You’re not lying, and you’re not going against your true heart. Then there’s nothing for me to interfere with.”

After saying that, she cast a sleeping spell on Ailisi, tucked her in, then transformed into a silver flash and teleported to the Interrogation Room where Duente was being held.

Loyer was still waiting for Duente’s confession when suddenly a silver light flashed beside the table. 

The silver-haired woman who had kidnapped Ailisi appeared in the sealed interrogation room.

“I mean, even though this is just the Academy Protection Organization’s interrogation room, doesn’t walking in here so brazenly show a bit of disrespect?”

“Mr. Loyer, I’m only here to tell you that Ailisi is fine. You don’t need to be so hostile.”

“Is that so? Then bring her back, and we can put this aside for now?”

“That won’t do.” 

The Observer glanced at the steaming braised pork leg rice on the table and said meaningfully to Duente, “Aren’t you eating?”

Duente was also confused by this sudden development. 

For now, he decided to go along with the silver-haired woman’s words.

He forced a smile and said, “I’m not hungry. Please, go ahead.”

Just as the Observer reached for the food, Loyer was startled. 

He quickly slammed his hand on the table and commanded, “Stop! Who allowed you to touch the interrogation tools?”

“Loyer, don’t be so rigid. Food is meant for eating. I haven’t said anything, why are you so old-fashioned?”

“Shut up, you kidnapper! I must arrest you immediately!”

Loyer grabbed the Observer’s wrist, but she just smiled charmingly and teased, “Wasting your efforts. How cute.”

Then she transformed into a silver flash and disappeared again.

Once more, Loyer watched helplessly as the criminal escaped right before his eyes—and this time he had even caught her!

Loyer looked closely. 

The braised pork leg rice on the table was also gone.

He sighed, rubbed his forehead with his hand, and his mind was in chaos.

Duente could only watch, because saying anything at this moment would be inappropriate.

Loyer took a deep breath, gathered his thoughts, and sat back down.

“Sigh… Duente, do I look really stupid?”

“N-Not at all… That woman was just too cunning…”

“Right, you’re correct. It’s not that I wasn’t diligent enough, but her ability was too unexpected.”

“So… Captain Loyer, do you have any more questions for me?”

“One last question. Do you know where Ailisi went?”

“I don’t know.”

“Alright, the interrogation is over. It was all that woman’s fault… Go outside and wait for your female classmate.”

Loyer was holding back his anger, but he couldn’t lose his temper on the spot—that would leave a bad impression on the student.

“Captain Loyer, if you’re feeling upset, you can tell me. Whisper it. I won’t tell anyone.”

“Get out.”

“Yes sir.”

Duente walked out of the interrogation room and into the corridor, where Liweida happened to be coming out as well.

Both of them heard the ridiculous roar coming from Duente’s interrogation room…

“Ugh! Damn it! That wretched woman! I will definitely bring you to justice!”

“What happened in there?” Liweida asked curiously.

“A self-release from an elite who can’t tolerate work errors. Let him be.” Duente said calmly.

Liweida wanted to laugh but didn’t dare.

She looked at Duente and found him also holding back a laugh.

It seemed that person who went berserk was really furious.