Versatile Mage

Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

Zhao Manyan noticed Sancha was a very talkative woman, and knowledgeable in a variety of fields, whether it was music or traveling. They had a lot of common interests.

Zhao Manyan did not have to fawn over Sancha on purpose. The two walked along the sandy white beach. They knew the pleasant time would end when they reached the place where the lecturers of the Aorus Sacred Institute were staying, but they still enjoyed the process.

She combed her hair and said with a smile, “Nice to have met you. It’s been a long time since I met an interesting guy like you,” while standing in front of her unit’s door.

Normally, Zhao Manyan would definitely request a cup of coffee or borrow the washroom after walking a girl back home. Seriously, everyone had been working so hard on their cultivation. It would be disrespectful if he did not go with her into her bedroom or her living room to have some relaxing moments together.

However, Zhao Manyan did not ask to go to her room. It was not because she might be his future sister-in-law, but he realized the person whom he had approached was far more interesting than he had thought. It was just as Sancha had said; it had been a while since she had last met an interesting guy like him. He had the same thought!

“There’s a concert the day after tomorrow. Why don’t we attend it together, instead of arguing whether the pianist Dale is skillful or not? We’ll be able to tell if we listen to him live. That being said, my opinions still hold,” Zhao Manyan offered.

“How did you know I was planning to go to the concert?” Sancha asked suspiciously.

“Huh? Perhaps I’ve been planning to approach you from the very beginning. Are you afraid?” Zhao Manyan answered easily.

Sancha did not answer the question, turning and going into her apartment.

Zhao Manyan smiled. They both already knew the truth. Either way, he just needed to suit up and wait here three hours before the concert. They would grab dinner together before entering the hall to enjoy the feeling of their souls being cleansed by the pleasant music.

——

Zhao Manyan went back to his own room. Their buildings were only a street apart. Zhao Manyan was humming pleasantly when he stumbled into Mo Fan, who had just came back from the training ground.

“How did it go?” Zhao Manyan asked him.

“Not too bad, Lily recalled another place. I’ll investigate it during the next few days to see if it has any useful clues. What about you?” Mo Fan asked in turn.

“It’s great, I wasn’t exposed yet,” Zhao Manyan answered easily.

“For some reason, I can see a coquettish grin on your face. Are you sure you are following your lead?” Mo Fan was suspicious.

They had been housemates for quite a while. Mo Fan could easily tell what Zhao Manyan was up to as soon as he smelled his cologne, let alone observing his expression.

“I’ll be going to the city the day after tomorrow,” Zhao Manyan said and went back to his room.

“Be careful, don’t poke around too deep. The Black Vatican fights back very fiercely,” Mo Fan warned him.

“I will be fine.”

—

—

Zhao Manyan prepared in advance for the weekend. He was waiting in front of Sancha’s building when it was still early for dinner.

Sancha came out in a beautiful white dress. She was not surprised to see Zhao Manyan, and greeted him with a smile.

Zhao Manyan had already booked their seats in a restaurant. It was in Banlo City, which was around a hundred kilometers away from the Aorus Sacred Institute.

Banlo City was an important city in the Andes Federation. It might become the Andes Federation’s capital once the federation was truly established. The city itself was modern and huge, a central point between many countries and the main junction for railways, sea transportation, roads, and flight paths leading to other cities in the Andes Federation.

Zhao Manyan and Sancha arrived at Banlo City soon enough. The Aorus Sacred Institute was only a school despite its luxurious grounds, incomparable to a modern city. The towering buildings of different heights were glowing magnificently under the orange sky in the evening. It was a familiar sight to Zhao Manyan, who was used to living in Shanghai. He felt a little uneasy living in the more open Aorus Sacred Institute.

The city was congested, but not because there were a lot of vehicles on the road. Many of the roads were sealed because a huge protest was taking place.

Protests were very common in foreign countries. Whenever some organizations’ interests were affected by a new policy, lots of people would hold a protest on the streets, as if it was going to make any difference.

“Has Banlo City always been this lively?” It was Zhao Manyan’s first time here, and they were traveling by road. He felt it would be quicker to just fly to their destination.

“It has been like this since the countries decided to establish the Andes Federations. Two different people will have conflicts and contradicting views, not to mention merging different countries with over a hundred million people,” Sancha said helplessly.

“That’s true, I heard the Andes Federation has a few factions. The competition is quite fierce between them,” Zhao Manyan agreed thoughtfully.

“There are two main parties currently. One is the Greens, which used to be the old government. Their flag is green, hence their name. They are hoping each country will retain their jurisdiction. In simpler words, they are against the idea of forming a federation. They think some of the countries can’t adapt to the new laws, which will also greatly restrict the operations of their own countries.

“The other party is the Yellows. The new flag for the Andes Federation is yellow. They are hoping every country will sign the agreement to establish the federation they can form a superpower country that dominates South America, like the United States does North America…” Sancha said.

“The ideas are good,” Zhao Manyan observed.

“The Andes Mountains have a lot of mines. Many mines have had clear boundaries in the past to decide their ownership, but there was a huge fight over the ownership of a Lightning Pentagons mine on the Sun-Gathering Peak recently. The policymakers have rushed the decision to form the federation because of the invasion of sea monsters, but they need to consider a lot of other aspects, or its society will have a lot of problems.” Sancha was visibly worried about the future of the federation.

Zhao Manyan could not have cared less about other countries’ business. Not every country was as peaceful as his. It was very common for countries in South American and Africa to turn over a new government.

“We went from discussing musicians to policymakers. We are worried about a lot of things,” Zhao Manyan switched the topic adroitly. He did not want to waste too much time on the Andes Federations’ problems. It would only slow his progress of establishing a closer relationship with this woman!