One-Eyed Monster

Teacher Hadi looked at Igor: ”What do you want to verify, you little rascal? You’re not bringing me another headache, are you? Let me tell you upfront, if you steal from the cook again this time, don’t expect any nice words from me.”

”Teacher Hadi, listen to yourself. Wasn’t it your idea to steal from the head chef last time...?”

”You can’t make baseless accusations. The whole academy was watching. You can’t just slander me.” Teacher Hadi quickly cut off Igor. That incident was long over, and he didn’t want to bring it up again.

Perkins watched these two guys bicker endlessly, absolutely astonished. He even wondered if the person Igor found was reliable. He seemed a bit too laid-back, with not an ounce of seriousness.

”So, Teacher Hadi, are you still hung up on that old incident? Maybe I should go clarify things with Dean Hoffman...” Igor was anxious, clearly because it was Teacher Hadi’s idea back then. Now he was pretending it never happened.

”No, no, just kidding, just kidding, don’t take it seriously!” Teacher Hadi instantly changed his expression back, leaving Perkins dumbfounded.

Igor shrugged, and then pointed to Perkins: ”Forget it, let’s discuss this with Teacher later. Let’s talk about his matter first.”

”Him? Which one are you talking about?” Russef Hadi wasn’t looking at Igor; his attention was entirely fixed on those boxes.

”Perkins! Who else!” Igor felt like Teacher Hadi was becoming hard to communicate with.

”I don’t know Perkins.” Teacher Hadi earnestly replied.

”You’ve never met him, of course you don’t know him.”

Not only Igor, but even Perkins felt Teacher Hadi’s logic was a bit off. What was he up to?

”You need to understand, Igor, I’m always cautious about outsiders. It’s not by choice; some things force me to be this way.”

”Uh...” Igor scratched his head, genuinely unsure about what was going on.

In fact, Igor didn’t really know Teacher Hadi well. Apart from receiving a lot of help from this elder, he didn’t actually know much about him...

So now, when Teacher Hadi suddenly said such a thing to him, he was caught off guard and felt a bit ashamed.

After all, bringing a few people directly to Teacher Hadi seemed a bit impolite...

”Teacher, well, I really didn’t know that...”

”Alright, you don’t have to say anything. I know what kind of person you are, Igor. It’s just you’re still a kid, easily deceived.”

Perkins felt a bit uncomfortable hearing this. Was this a roundabout way of saying he was a liar? He couldn’t tolerate that kind of thinking, so he turned to Hadi and said, ”I’m not a liar. Igor is honest with me, and I’m honest with him. I wish I could share all my years of traveling experiences with him...”

”Oh, haha, I knew Igor wouldn’t bring just anyone sketchy here.” Russef Hadi’s expression changed again, leaving Igor and Perkins a bit awkward.

Perkins nudged Igor and whispered, ”Your mentor’s style changes really fast. How do you usually keep up?”

”I don’t know either. Anyway, I just follow along, doing whatever he says. It’s normal like that!” Igor said.

”Oh, if that’s the case, it makes sense.” Perkins figured it out. In front of Teacher Hadi, Igor was a good, obedient kid, never questioning...

”That’s really something.” Teacher Hadi suddenly sat on the cabin’s doorstep, not inviting Igor and the others inside, still muttering words no one could understand: ”Why do I smell the scent of a Tree Spirit and flames here? The scent is quite strong. How did these two things suddenly appear here? Looks like some goofy kid brought them.”

Igor scratched his head, not quite getting it, while Perkins seemed to understand a bit.

”Teacher, are you saying the Tree Spirit scent is from me?” Perkins bravely walked over and sat on the doorstep too.

”Ha-haa, you’re indeed an honest guy, admitting it just like that.”

Perkins thought to himself, what admission? I’m just making a guess, and you admitted it yourself. But he couldn’t say that aloud, as Hadi was someone Igor respected, even if he could be annoying at times, one mustn’t be rude.

”So, Teacher, is the flame scent coming from that silent fellow over there?” Perkins pointed at Stan Sol, attempting further communication with Teacher Hadi.

”Smart, well, Igor doesn’t have that scent on him...”

”Teacher, am I an Adventurer with Class or not?” Perkins directly asked, not wanting to beat around the bush.

”What a joke. You have the scent of a Tree Spirit; how can you still be an Adventurer with Class? It’s hilarious. Your question is like a Tree Spirit claiming to be a human. How would you answer that?”

Perkins was baffled, feeling more and more like Teacher Hadi was just insulting people...

”Then, Teacher, what’s with that silent guy over there?” Perkins was unwilling to give up, wanting to find some balance on Stan Sol, who wouldn’t object anyway.

”Oh, are you testing me? You think I don’t know there’s fire in that guy? You think this old bone hasn’t seen burning flames? Let me tell you, I’ve seen flowing water, caught roaming wind, and even fought with roaming thunder...”

These words immediately put Stan Sol on alert. He walked towards Teacher Hadi, eyes wide: ”You, have seen, Spirit Entity’s, thunder...”

Stan Sol’s difficult words made Teacher Hadi pause, then calmly observed him before speaking slowly: ”Yes, I’ve seen Spirit Entity’s thunder. Although it’s been quite a while, the memory is still vivid. You, Sol Family, have mastered the art of Spirit hunting. Truly admirable!”

Igor kept scratching his head, as if Teacher Hadi already knew the characteristics of the people who came here. He spoke cryptically, leaving Igor in awe.

”Teacher Hadi, please don’t be like this. We really have some questions to ask you.” Igor quickly interjected.

”Yes, yes, Teacher, please stop teasing us. I see your mind is as clear as a mirror...” Perkins followed up.

”Hmm, when did I tease you? I’ve been very serious!”