Precedence System: I Take My Rewards In Advance

They left for the Olmost Registry not long after.

Elinox did not bother arranging a carriage for the two of them. Wind Mana gathered around her body before she wrapped one arm around Zishan’s waist and lifted both of them into the air.

Zishan barely reacted to it.

He simply adjusted his position once they were high enough and looked down at the capital below.

From here, the streets seemed smaller than he remembered. Carriages moved between rows of buildings, people crowded around the larger markets, and the noble district stretched farther than he had realized when he first arrived in the capital.

He had already flown with Elinox a few times before, so being carried around the waist no longer seemed strange enough for him to think about.

His mind was somewhere else.

’Ollie’s registration should be easy enough. Then, I probably need to think about the Walker Family too... and those Stat Points.’

He had accumulated Distributable Stat Points again, though he had no intention of spending them yet. Allocating them now seemed pointless when he had no idea what kind of situation he would encounter next.

’If I dump everything into Perception and then suddenly I’d need Strength during a fight, I’m definitely going to regret it.’

The same applied to the rest of his Stats.

Unless he reached a point where adding several dozen points somewhere barely mattered anymore, keeping them unallocated gave him more choices. If he suddenly needed more VIT to survive something, he could use them. If speed became the problem, AGI was there. If an opponent forced him to rely on Mana, INT could become more important.

’Basically, emergency savings.’ Zishan nodded to himself. ’Except instead of money, it’s my body.’

Elinox glanced down at him after feeling the movement. ”Why are you nodding?”

”Just ignore me. I’m just nodding my head to see if it still works,” he replied, and she did not bother asking him again. She doubted she’d get something good out of this guy.

Several minutes later, the Olmost Registry came into view.

The building was far larger than Zishan expected for something called a Registry. Several sections were connected into one enormous structure, with people constantly entering and leaving through the front grounds. Some carried documents while others were accompanied by servants, children, or officials.

Elinox descended in front of the entrance.

The moment the people nearby noticed her uniform, conversations began dying down. Several immediately recognized the insignia of a High General.

Others recognized the woman herself.

People stepped aside without needing to be told, leaving a clear path toward the entrance as Elinox landed with Zishan beside her.

Then, she released him. Zishan dropped straight onto the ground. His ass hit the stone. And for several seconds, he remained there.

”What was that for?!” he blurted.

The entire entrance became silent.

Zishan’s irritation disappeared as he slowly looked around.

People were staring at him.

Some looked shocked that someone had just shouted at Elinox Holmes. Others seemed more interested in the fact that he was sitting on the ground right beside her as though this were somehow normal.

A man near the entrance whispered to the person beside him. ”Who is that? He dared to shout at High General Holmes? Does he have a death wish?”

Zishan’s mouth twitched. ’Great. I’ve just been here for five seconds...’

Before Elinox could answer him, a man dressed in gray stepped out from the crowd.

He appeared to be somewhere around their age, perhaps slightly older, with neatly arranged dark hair and the type of face that made it obvious he had spent his entire life receiving compliments from people around him.

The man glanced at Zishan on the ground before turning toward Elinox.

”Hello, Lady Elinox.” He straightened his posture and offered her a practiced smile. ”May I have the pleasure of knowing why you are here today?”

Elinox had been about to say something to Zishan when the man suddenly approached them.

Zishan looked up at him. ’Damn, who is this handsome dude?’

His eyes moved between the man and Elinox.

Then, something clicked inside his head. ’Wait...’

He stared at the man’s clothes, posture, and the way his gaze remained almost entirely on Elinox.

’This is so familiar...’ A grin slowly appeared on his face. ’This trope! A man jealous of another man because the woman he likes is pouring all her attention onto someone else. That’s gotta be it!’

Zishan almost laughed.

’Hahahahaha! I know this one!’

Elinox, meanwhile, stared at the man for several seconds, and asked, ”Who are you again?”

The smile on his face froze.

Zishan’s amusement became significantly harder to hide.

The man looked as though he had expected many possible responses from Elinox. That had clearly not been one of them.

”Ouch!”

Everyone turned toward Zishan again.

He clutched one leg while trying to push himself up from the ground.

”It hurts so much...” He reached one hand toward Elinox with a pained expression. ”Can you help me up here?”

The man in gray was still recovering from Elinox’s question.

’Who are you again?’

How could she ask him that?

He was Frank Einstein, one of the better-known young nobles in the capital and the son of a Duke. Their families had crossed paths many times, and he had even trained with Elinox several times when they were younger.

How could she forget him?

Elinox, however, had already returned her attention to Zishan. Her eyes moved toward the leg he was clutching.

She knew he was acting. His leg was clearly fine, and his acting was not even convincing. Still, she was curious to see what exactly he was trying to do.

”I’m sorry for dropping you so suddenly,” Elinox said while crouching beside him. ”Let me help you up.”

Gasps came from several directions.

Zishan heard them. And so did Frank.

”Damn! Did I hear that right?! Lady Elinox actually apologized to that man?!”

”Who is he?”

”Wait! Wait! Isn’t that man familiar?!”

Several people began studying Zishan more carefully.

One of them suddenly pointed. ”Isn’t he that infamous ever-quiet, nonchalant, uninspired noble of the Kingdom?!”

Zishan almost looked behind himself. ’Who the fuck are they talking about?’

Then, another voice answered. ”Oh, shit! You’re actually right!”

”That’s him! That’s definitely Zishan Walker!”

Zishan’s face stiffened. ’Oh.’

”What?! I thought he was already dead!”

”Didn’t the Walker Family already declare him dead after he was sent to the battlefield?!”

”Oh yeah! I also heard about that news! Why is he alive right now?! And he’s even somehow acquainted with the one and only High General Holmes!”

The whispers became louder.

”And it seems their relationship isn’t that simple!”

Frank’s expression changed.

Another person lowered his voice, though not nearly enough.

”That Duke’s son definitely won’t let this go. We all know Frank Einstein holds grudges, and Zishan Walker just embarrassed him without even doing anything.”

Zishan heard that.

His eyes shifted toward Frank. ’Holds grudges?’

He thought about Ethan. Then, the Walker Family. And then, the people who might already want him dead for reasons he did not even understand.

’Okay. Maybe I shouldn’t add another enemy to the collection.’

He was about to abandon whatever stupid idea had begun forming in his head, when he noticed how Frank was looking at him.

Zishan groaned again. ”Ahhh...”

Elinox’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Zishan stretched one arm toward her.

She could already tell he was doing something stupid.

”Does your leg hurt that much?” Elinox asked as she crouched lower. Light Mana gathered around her hand. ”Let me heal it for you.”

Zishan looked over her shoulder.

Frank was staring directly at them.

A tiny smirk appeared on Zishan’s face. ’What? Give it up, dude. You’re definitely not her type...’

Elinox noticed the smirk. She now understood even less. And before she could ask him what he was doing, Zishan suddenly pushed himself onto his feet.

”No, thanks! I’m all right now!” He stretched his leg once as though testing a miraculous recovery before looking at Elinox with a bright smile. ”Thanks, Noxi!”