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A wave of mana burst out from Markus as an uncontrollable rage boiled over from within. Being only at the Late Stage of Mana Condensation realm, this wave couldn't have made it far, but Marie was much too close to Markus and had unwittingly taken a decent brunt of the damage. She started to sweat profusely as her mental sirens screamed out in fear. Jean, who happened to be next to Marie, also suffered a similar backlash. Fortunately, or unfortunately, her general detachment from her emotions had left her face sporting a rather calm expression. But the rest of her body wasn't inert, and her back was thus completely drenched in sweat.

But Markus wasn't completely lost in his outburst. He took an elongated breath and immediately retracted his inadvertently forceful mana projection. "Sorry," he said immediately.

"But Big Sis, do you realise what you're proposing is extremely disrespectful to Master?" Markus continued with a stern tone.

Marie breathed a sigh of relief following the reprieve and answered with a bitter smile, "I know that, Markus. I know that is an extremely presumptuous and shameless request. But I wouldn't do so if I didn't have any other choice."

Guy coughed to interject the conversation from heating up again and asked, "What do you mean by that, Marie?"

As he finished that question, he gazed deep into Marie's eyes with interest. He'd recognised this girl's character right at their first personal interaction.

'She isn't one to make half-hearted and miscalculated decisions,' Guy affirmed. That just wasn't her character. In many ways, she reminded him of his elder brother in his previous life.

"Goal-oriented and sharp" is what one interviewer published in a renowned annual business review magazine. Guy's brother never took risks. What people considered to be a shakey venture, his brother could turn into a sure shot through ingenious machinations and brain-frying calculations. In fact, Guy's brother was the sole reason why Larks Enterprises rose to such heights in his lifetime. His successes weren't free of jealous gazes and antagonistic relationships, though. But none that dared to oppose his brother stood a chance.

"Insects buzzing around a feast, but too cowardly to take a bite," was the exact phrase his brother had used to describe them.

But only Guy and his family knew the true face of the demon feared by everyone in the capitalist world. Deep down, his elder brother was the most selfless and family-oriented man he had ever met, barring his father of course. Every decision made, every investment, every move actioned within the enterprise was for the sole benefit, growth and safety of the family. The world could go to hell for all that mattered, as long as the family could hold on to the least ravaged section his elder brother would willingly sacrifice everything.

Yet, why did he always wear such an impassive face and hold such a cynical worldview? That was mainly because of the tragic loss his brother had faced in his youth when he tried to launch his start-up with a few of his University roommates. At first, everything was harmonious. The group had developed revolutionary software that tracked market trends and predicted an optimal investment spread offering the safest and greatest returns. The entire thing was built on his brother's algorithm and had a success rate of over 85%.

His brother wanted to start as a small trading and investment firm and organically grow by amassing a loyal client base looking for stable and long-term growth. His roommates agreed at first. When the big-hitters in the field came knocking and threw around their weight, the team held strong. That was until one specific company offered a ridiculous amount to buy out their entire firm.

Of course, Guy's brother refused. But the allure of wealth wasn't so easily averted. His so-called business partners didn't hesitate to stab him in the back, sell out and join the competition. It would have been fine if it was just that, but one of them stole the algorithm that his brother developed. The friends he'd shared a room and his dreams with had turned on him without an afterthought.

His brother filed a lawsuit for patent violation, but the competitor simply dragged out the court case using their connections till it became a cash sink.

His brother had started the venture with his own hard-earned money. Not a penny had been drawn from the family's accounts. Till the very end, his brother refused to involve his family and drag them through the mud in the process.

Yet once bitten twice shy - his brother had learned a valuable lesson which had unfortunately marred his entire outlook on society.

"Trust no one, but blood."

Those tied to you by blood would never, in good conscience, stab you in the back. It may be the byproduct of a loving family that cemented such a naive worldview in his brother's mind. In fact, Guy's eldest sister-in-law had the hardest time trying to break through his elder brother's near impervious outer casing. But after years of active pursuit and suffering the emotional distress of unrequited love, she had cracked through and forcefully tweaked Guy's brother's life philosophy.

"Trust no one, but blood... and my wife!"

It was the exact same impression Guy perceived when he conversed with Marie properly for the first time. The girl was boorish and cynical. She never trusted anything at face value. The worst part was that if someone told her the world was round, she would immediately assume the opposite end of the argument and reason her way towards the right answer through a series of anger-inducing and forcefully antagonising questions and debates. It wasn't that the girl was stupid. No! Her mind worked like Guy's brothers - unmatched in its efficiency. The way she crunched through numbers was akin to how a piano virtuoso's finger's danced on the keyboard, elegant and without dalliance. But she was argumentative by nature. She was the worst kind of student any teacher could ask for!

But when it came to her family, the girl would immediately bend over backwards. It was the sole reason why she even deigned to obey Guy with a partly open mind - because Guy was Markus' Master. Guy knew that it would be near impossible for anyone else to enjoy the same benefits. 'So who in their right mind is willing to take this girl as their apprentice?' Guy wondered with a low snort.

Marie's expression faltered with a trace of distress at Guy's piercing gaze. She was a little fearful of the man due to the power he held as a mage. But something inside her actively suppressed this feeling and washed her with a sense of comfort. Her gut told her that Guy wouldn't be offended, he wasn't that kind of a man. Yet she was apologetic to Guy for bringing it up, however, she HAD no other options.

'Rather than becoming preoccupied with the what, evaluate the why,' Is what that man told her. And it was by following this vague thread that Marie found her true calling.

"I want to become a mage to keep my family safe," Marie affirmed.

"Like Markus?" Guy inquired.

"Not exactly," She corrected. "Going through dark and unknown woods, you take a wrong turn and come face to face with a ferocious beast. To protect is to defend against the beast through superior strength or cunning defence. To keep safe is to avoid taking the wrong turn altogether."

"Foresight, is it?" Guy asked as clarification.

Marie hummed in affirmation and expounded with an unwavering tone, "I don't seek power. All I care for is to keep this small world of mine safe and unaffected. In fact, this has been my drive since the very beginning. But I recognised that such a farfetched ambition was beyond my reach. In planning contingencies for everything that might take place, I will inevitably miss the opportunity to take action. And that does not even take into consideration the events that are vaguely connected which can sometimes interfere with the outcome."

She paused, and then declared with a resolute expression, "But that was until the possibility was presented before me. So that is why I am putting forth such this request, Teacher Larks."

"Although you are still a teenager, you are mature beyond your years, Marie. Once you've set your mind to something, you won't ever let it go, so what reason is there to ask me for permission?" Marie blushed in embarrassment in hearing such an apt evaluation of her psyche.

"So I won't deny you right away. But I am interested to know just why you wish to continue studying under me as well? I figured that you would completely transfer your tutelage to your new Master?" Guy asked.

"One is means to an end, the other is something I enjoy from the bottom of my heart," Marie replied with a bright smile. "To gain the ability to protect my family, I need to pursue discipleship. Yet I am selfish and do not wish to drop what I enjoy, which is learning under you, Teacher Larks."

Guy clicked his tongue and waved his hand aggressively, "I don't know where you learned to talk so sweetly."

He then added, "I almost forgot to address the massive elephant in the room!"

Guy leaned forward and narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "Who is this Master you're so eager to follow anyways? Before you do anything irreversible, I want to meet this person as well!"

Marie nodded vehemently and answered, "It's great master Krish Nara."

"Big Sis, are you talking about the travelling soothsayer living in the village?" Markus interjected.

"Yes."

Guy coughed loudly to mask a disdainful snort that was about to escape him. In his past life, Guy had heard of many individuals who practised arcane pseudo-sciences such as astrology, numerology, palmistry, and so on. While he respected those that practised these rites as some form of religious or traditional ritual, he was generally averse to those that shilled the less informed of their wealth in the form of false pretences. Be that as it may, Guy didn't use to properly believe in those pseudo-sciences. He firmly believed that one was the driver of their own fate.

However, that was all before he passed away at a young age and met a being equivalent to a god and was transmigrated to a world filled with unbelievable phenomena, like magic. So, Guy quickly suppressed his scorn. 'Who knows? In this world of magic, those pseudo-sciences may actually be effective!'

"That's it, it's decided!" Guy declared as she sprang up from his seat. "We're going to meet this person and discuss your discipleship. If I am not satisfied then I will have to put my foot down."

"W-What?" Marie muttered in disbelief.

"That's right. If I find anything suspicious the I will also inform Grace."

"But you can't do that!" Marie exclaimed immediately. It was one thing to argue against Teacher Larks, it was a whole other battlefield in contending against Matron Reva!

"Why not? It's my duty as your guardian to protect the misinformed minors under my protection."

"You can't do that!" Marie tried to rebuke again, yet right as the words left her mouth Guy had already walked out with Markus and Jean in tow, the former wearing a light smile while trying to suppress his laughter.

"W-Wait for me!" Marie cried out as he hurriedly followed the group with a brisk jog.