Chapter 102: Restlessness

Upon hearing the question, Vienne’s face was filled with confusion. She recalled and said, “Well... I honestly don’t know. When I was the primary soul, although my spiritual power was very weak and I had little magical talent, I did know that the element I was most attuned to was ‘wind.’ But for some reason, my sister never practiced light magic. Not to mention wind magic, she rarely used any magic outside of water.”

“That is... rather strange,” Ling Mo frowned. Though he didn’t understand magic, he had fought many mages. Generally, unless one was a pure ‘elemental body,’ mages would specialize in one discipline and learn key spells from a few others as a backup. Someone like that, stuck on a single path, was extremely rare. Reaching the rank of Martial Saint while confined to one branch was almost unheard of—Viese might be the only one on the entire continent.

“Forget it. I’ll ask your sister about it when she comes out,” Ling Mo quickly gave up on the topic. “But what about you? Are you planning to follow in her footsteps and continue practicing ice magic? Although your affinity for ice is low, your body retains a trace of Martial Saint-level casting memory, so progressing in ice martial arts should be the fastest path.”

Vienne shook her head vigorously, her expression tinged with clear disdain when speaking of ice magic. “I used to think ice magic was useful, especially for cooling my equipment during experiments to reduce explosions. But after trying a few magic devices that employed ice energy, I realized using ice to cool things down is just asking for trouble. If not controlled at the Magister level or above, ice energy is utterly useless in fine manipulation—it causes more explosions rather than fewer.”

“But isn’t ice energy supposed to be the easiest to control among all elements, since it forms a solid energy body so conveniently?” Ling Mo said. “If ice magic can’t help your experiments, other elements are even less likely to.”

“It’s fine. I’ve already made up my mind,” Vienne smiled, flashing bright white teeth. “Master, which martial art is the toughest to endure hits?”

Ling Mo was momentarily lost, responding with a monosyllable, “Huh?”

“I mean, which martial art has the strongest defense and fastest recovery?” Vienne explained. “Since explosions are inevitable, I might as well strengthen myself—preferably something that can get me back to full health even when I’m on the brink of death. That way, I can conduct dangerous experiments without any worries!”

Ling Mo was silent for a moment, then handed Vienne a small white pamphlet. “Based on what you want, light-based martial arts are practically tailor-made for you. They inherit some traits of light magic and even some properties of holy priest spells. Although they are somewhat slower and less offensive, their endurance and healing capabilities are top-notch, especially for surviving tough situations. Combined with the strong physical foundation of martial arts, once you reach the advanced warrior level, as long as your upper body isn’t completely obliterated, you can forcefully heal yourself back.”

“That’s the one!” Vienne’s eyes lit up. She quickly took the pamphlet from Ling Mo and began flipping through it. Though it was thin, she read very slowly, spending nearly an hour just on the first page. Soon, like Katherine, she became completely absorbed, practicing according to the guide as if lost in another world. Ling Mo did not rush her; he stood quietly, watching Vienne and Katherine engrossed in their studies.

After an unknown length of time, Vienne suddenly snapped out of her trance. Looking up, she noticed the sky was already turning pale with dawn’s first light. Hadn’t she teleported to the Beast Rainforest at dusk? How had time passed so quickly?

Turning her head, she saw her junior sister holding a small red pamphlet, now asleep with her head on the table. In her dreams, her brow was relaxed, and a blissful, almost foolish smile adorned her face as if all worries had vanished. Seeing this, Vienne’s heart burned with a mischievous urge to give her a playful knock on the head.

But clearly, she wasn’t bored enough for that. She stretched luxuriously, loosening her body, then looked up at Ling Mo with a complex, inscrutable expression. “Master, have your studies of the human body reached this level of depth?”

“That’s a much nicer way to say it than ‘dear master,’” Ling Mo chuckled. “This should be the first time you’ve sincerely called me master, right?”

A faint blush flickered across Vienne’s face, barely noticeable, then she regained composure. “Though I’ve only read three pages, the explanation of the human body there feels at least two hundred years ahead of modern magical pharmacology! Such a systematic, era-defying insight—I don’t believe one person could have developed this alone. Master, you must have a large team or have inherited knowledge from lost ruins.”

Her tone was certain, but she quickly added with a smile, “You don’t have to answer that. It’s not really my concern. I just have a small favor I hope you can help me with.”

“Go ahead.”

“Since you understand the human body so well, could you help me with the internal structure when I build my next magical automaton? I often feel my design of the transmission mechanism is flawed, and the automaton’s movements differ greatly from what I envision.”

“If your martial arts progress satisfies me, I might consider that request.”

“Don’t worry, I’m a genius! The kind who’s destined to save the world!” Vienne’s expression grew increasingly confident, almost adorably so. Ling Mo smiled and said, “Then I’ll be waiting to see. It’s just dawn now. We’ll set off around two in the afternoon. You can rest a bit first.”

-----------------------------------The long-awaited break in the narrative-----------------------------------

When Katherine awoke, her whole body was sore and soft. Though she had slept face down, the rest had been very comfortable. Since practicing martial arts, she found that after eating well, her sleep was incredibly pleasant—a warm, cozy feeling she had come to love. Stretching, Katherine was about to get up when she suddenly noticed something on her leg. Looking down, she was startled.

Vienne had somehow curled up on her lap, slightly turned to the side, sleeping soundly. One hand rested on Katherine’s leg, the other wrapped around her waist, her face pressed tightly against Katherine’s stomach. From Katherine’s angle, only half of Vienne’s profile was visible. In sleep, Vienne’s usual mischievous aura vanished, replaced by a deep tranquility.

Katherine gently stroked Vienne’s back, her heart skipping a beat uncontrollably. So Lady Viese’s body was so petite? She hadn’t noticed during their earlier fight. Viese seemed even shorter than herself, and the skin, enhanced by martial arts training, made her appear even younger. This was unbearable—how could she be so adorable?

After gazing at Vienne’s sleeping face for a long moment, Katherine finally gave in to the impulse, bending down and impulsively planting a quick peck on Vienne’s cheek.