75 Classic School (1/2)
A short while after they left uptown, a fancy carriage stopped before them.
The stallion pulling the carriage was as tall as a man, and its flame-like mane blew in the wind. The carvings on the carriage were decorated with gold and silver, shimmering under the setting sun.
The carriage door opened. The person inside looked at them and smiled, ”Good day, sirs. What a coincidence.”
Ye Qingxuan had thought that Edmund came to make trouble, but froze when he saw the person.
In the carriage was a youth, sitting on a sheepskin rug. His silver scepter was tossed casually onto the ground, the ruby at the top shining with a lonely glow. His golden locks fell to his waist and he looked like a girl, but not many girls were as pretty as him, nor did they have that heart-stopping handsomeness.
Before, Ye Qingxuan thought that Charles was attractive, but he was different from this face before him now. While Charles looked like a good-for-nothing guy, this man’s aura was like the eerie coldness from an ancient well or an icehouse, and refused to be overlooked. Plus, he had such an opulent carriage and fancy attire. Ye Qingxuan only knew one person like this in Avalon.
”Boss?” He stared at the man in shock, having never expected to meet him here.
Sir Hermes, the clock shop’s mysterious boss, and namesake of the famous artist from a few hundred years ago, smiled smugly when he heard the shock in Ye Qingxuan’s voice.
”Long time no see since you entered the Academy, Little Yezi!” He waved his hand affectionately. ”Come closer, a bit closer, that’s right. Is this your friend? He looks like a handsome youth. I’m happy that you have new friends.” Seeing two dazed faces, he smiled. ”Would you like to come and drink some coffee? The shop is going to reopen soon after its recent reconstruction. It’ll bring some liveliness if I have two guests. I just brought home some goods from Burgundy. You won’t find my coffee anywhere else in Avalon.”
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Half an hour later in the newly reconstructed clock shop, Ye Qingxuan and Charles sat at the table with coffee mugs in their hands like obedient children.
”Oh? That’s what happened? You’re doing well.” Hermes nodded after learning of the situation. ”Your professor is Mr. Abraham? I’ve heard of him. I think he’s retired from the army, right? It’s rare to see a musician with a military background. Yezi, don’t take this chance for granted.”
Ye Qingxuan could only nod. He always felt that he did not have enough brain power for this mysterious and weird boss. But after getting used to his strange thought process, he seemed like a good person.
For once in his lifetime, Charles was well-behaved. He just sat there, drooling at the antique clocks in the store.
Ye Qingxuan coughed awkwardly, and lowered his head to drink the coffee. For some reason, the coffee tasted weird to him. It tasted like cat. Was this how high grade coffee tasted? It did not seem right.
”I thought you wouldn’t be able to make it,” Hermes said casually. He sat in his big chair and propped his feet on the table, finding the most comfortable posture without a care for manners.
”The last time an Easterner entered the Royal Academy of Music was twenty years ago. But he was different from you. He was invited over to be a professor. It’s so interesting that a mysterious Easterner would come to the most prestigious music school in the heart of the Anglo Empire to become the vice principal…”
”Vice principal?!” Ye Qingxuan exclaimed, stunned.
”That’s right. But I left for a few years and when I came back, he had gone missing.” Hermes shook his head and sighed, ”Such a pity. I even missed his wedding. I heard that he quit right after his marriage to enjoy his two-person world. So envious, so envious!”
”Boss, do you still remember his name?” Ye Qingxuan asked carefully.
”Why should I remember a man’s name?” Hermes rolled his eyes. ”Worker one, don’t look down on your boss!”
”Uh, Boss, that would be a weird reason for you to be looked down upon.”
Hermes muttered something, then said, ”Well anyway, I think that Easterner caused some chaos in the end. Don’t be like him, Yezi.”
Ye Qingxuan sighed and asked, ”Do you have any details?”
”You’ll have to check your school’s records. Doesn’t the library have archives of most staff?”
The youth shook his head. ”The school’s library isn’t for students.”
”Actually, there’s a way if you really want to see,” Charles said from the side. ”If you’re the concertmaster of the grade, you can choose any one day to enter the library and read material with a secrecy level of four or lower. This includes beginner music scores from any School, notes and material under Resonance level. Of course, if you’re crazy enough to want to read people’s profiles, it’s okay too.”
Ye Qingxuan froze. ”Concertmaster? How do you do that?”
”See who’s most attractive. Just kidding.” Charles shrugged. ”Of course you win the title by fighting. If you beat everyone, then you’re the concertmaster!”
”Are there any rules?” Ye Qingxuan asked.
Charles rolled his eyes. ”You put down a flag in public if you want to challenge them. You must win ten rounds. Note that it’s ten continuous rounds. You have to fight as a musician. Yezi, don’t even think about it. You have no chance now, right? You should wait at least half a year!”
Ye Qingxuan thought for a long time and finally said softly, ”It doesn’t sound that hard. I can get rid of Edmund and his friends too.”
”…My friend, you’re so confident!” Charles did not know if Ye Qingxuan was dreaming or thought too highly of himself.
”Would they not fight me if I don’t challenge them?”
Charles was silent.
”Oh, it’s good for young people to have such a fighting spirit.” Hermes clapped. His eyes paused when they swept past Ye Qingxuan’s chest. Suddenly, he rose from the chair and somehow stood atop the table. Ye Qingxuan thought that he was hallucinating, but Hermes really was standing on the table. He stepped forward and swept a hand across Ye Qingxuan’s chest, his pinky hooking onto the pocket watch’s chain, and lifted it from the pocket. It was no wonder he was the boss. He was as elegant as an elite lady picking flowers, even as he stood on a table and took an object from someone else’s pocket…
Hermes studied the pocket watch and his expression changed. ”I miss this thing… Where did you get it from?”