Haina was stunned for a moment, then realized with a shiver of fear what she had said.
Fortunately, she had asked Sherlock, not Director Kent!
"As for why I didn't join the Surveillance Bureau…"
Sherlock said calmly, "Because I am similar to you, yet different. I also cannot go far this world isn't one where the more talented or excellent a person is, the higher they can rise. I understood this when I graduated."
"…What do you mean?"
"It means I am like you. Compared to The Path of Authority, I lean more towards other Paths."
The black-haired youth said frankly, without fear, "What I asked from Mr. Kent was precisely a mystical book on the Path of Wisdom. I help him deal with problems, and he gives me forbidden books in his private capacity this is a fair exchange of mutual benefit. Now, my Second Path is already close to reaching the Second Circle…Compared to The Path of Authority, the Path of Wisdom is the Path I truly aspire to."
"But…"
Haina still wanted to say something.
But her intuition was suddenly triggered. So she immediately looked wary and closed her mouth.
After the two stood in silence facing each other for five or six seconds, a breathless middle-aged man finally ran around the corner.
"Haina I finally found you, I've been looking for you all morning! Oh, Consultant Sherlock is here too! Excellent, the Director is looking for you both!"
"Does Mr. Kent need something?"
Sherlock asked impolitely, "I have other things to do right now."
"He didn't say…but I think you should go see him. It won't take long, will it?"
The middle-aged man said with a chuckle, "You know, Mr. Sherlock if it were something uninteresting, the Director wouldn't specifically invite you, right?"
"Alright then."
Sherlock nodded in agreement.
After he finished speaking, he looked at Haina beside him: "This is another reason.
"I am an active person. If I have nothing to do, I become restless…but if I'm made to do mundane, repetitive work, I get bored. I need challenges and strong opponents to excite me.
"Your daily patrols are too boring. With that time, I'd rather read a few more books or do some experiments. Even traveling alone like a wandering monk is far more meaningful than those repetitive days.
"I don't want fame, nor do I want achievements. I only want work that allows me to utilize my wisdom, to vent my boundless energy and incidentally satisfy my curiosity. This is why I cooperate with you."
"Alright, Mr. Sherlock."
The middle-aged man said with a wry smile, "You should get going quickly the sooner you hear the Director's task, the sooner you can do your own things, right?"
Sherlock remained noncommittal and walked towards Director Kent's office.
On the other side.
At the center of Glass Island, the capital of Avalon, was a clear, transparent lake, like a sapphire.
The Royal Family of Avalon Kingdom resided on the island within the island the very center of the lake island within the capital's Glass Island. That was the Silver and Tin Palace, blessed by the Silver Crown Dragon, with glass steps. Under the sunny sky, it would shine with brilliant light, and even on cloudy days, it would emit a dreamlike soft glow.
In the Silver and Tin Palace, a girl who looked fourteen or fifteen, with golden hair and blue eyes, was quietly reading today's Glass Staircase News.
She seemed to have elven blood, making her appear younger than her actual age. Her appearance was gentle, her back straight, and the smooth nape of her neck, exposed by her dress, reflected the sun's light along with the Silver and Tin Palace she was in. She had the quiet demeanor of a literary girl, her eyes as calm as water.
And an elf who looked to be in her twenties or thirties, possessing both the mature charm of a woman and the innocent sense of a girl, was sitting opposite the girl, smiling with her hands propped on her chin. She had a distinct Artist temperament that was not an illusion, but an influence from the Way of Beauty.
"I didn't lie to you, my Princess?"
The elf Artist said with a smile, "I told you yesterday that I saw a very handsome person. This time, I specifically left him a full twelve seconds, just to preserve that crucial backward glance and smile.
"My aesthetic judgment is absolutely fine that smile is the key, it maximizes his charm. Honestly, I even want to paint a portrait of him. But I don't feel the need to rush, I'm sure there will be an opportunity to get to know him later."
"…Indeed."
The girl nodded quietly: "Teacher Agnes is right. Mr. Aiwass's smile makes one think of the sun.
"The same age as me, the same Path level, yet able to personally lead people to capture a Demon Scholar much stronger than himself…the reconnaissance, judgment, and deduction during the process were all flawless. Very impressive, and very brave."
She said softly, "I can't do that. Because I'm very timid."
The girl's face showed a mix of longing and despondency.
That was the longing evoked from deep within a clear-headed, kind person upon seeing a peer much stronger than themselves; and the despondency of honestly recognizing one's own inferiority to the other, without jealousy or self-deception, when faced with that reality.
"He's so amazing."
The girl repeated.
"Ah"
Looking at her like this, Agnes, with affectionate and slightly mad sounds like teasing a puppy, pulled the girl into her embrace and vigorously ruffled her hair a few times: "Little Isha, you are just too cute!"
"Please call me Isabelle, Teacher Agnes."
Isabelle let out a muffled sound, covering her hair with her hand and saying earnestly, "Also, please don't mess up my hair
"And, I don't know why I'm cute. I'm just stating the truth."
"Your cuteness lies precisely in this kind of serious explanation of things that don't need explaining."
"That sounds too stupid. I'm a fool."
Isabelle was a little annoyed, and a little disappointed: "I can't even draw well."
"You are already very talented, Isabelle."
When this topic came up, Agnes became serious: "It's just that the people you've met are even more talented than you.
"Isn't your Way of Beauty also about to advance? Being able to reach the Second Circle at this age is already remarkable…and when I taught you, I used a more solid foundation, so you started a little later, but you can go much further later."
"I think that's just because my father is Prince Albert."
Isabelle lowered her head, and said softly: "I myself am nothing remarkable.
"If Mr. Aiwass were also a prince, he would also go earlier and further than me."
"Aiwass is an exception. You don't need to think too much. Even Her Majesty the Queen said he was a remarkable young man after reading the newspaper…You don't need to compare yourself to such a person."
"…Grandma too?!"
Isabelle was astonished: "Grandma rarely praises people…Is that Demon Scholar really that amazing?"
"It's not about combat, nor even about search capabilities. What Her Majesty the Queen values is his decisiveness when he fired those two shots. In terms of outcome, although those two shots only killed a Second Circle Demon Scholar, what they actually demonstrated was his outstanding and swift judgment, his absolute confidence in his own judgment, and his stable execution.
"Her Majesty the Queen said it herself, he has the demeanor of a great general. You also have to consider, it must have been her old self who nodded in approval for me to dare put him on the front page, with such a large layout. It's because Her Majesty the Queen said that the young people of the Kingdom should learn from him although I think they definitely won't learn it, it's still good for everyone to see a handsome young man."
Agnes shook her head helplessly: "You need to change this habit of only comparing yourself to the strongest, but immediately feeling inferior and retreating when you can't measure up."
"I believe that if one is to compare oneself with peers, one must compare with the strongest among them."
Princess Isabel said earnestly, "Because I have enjoyed the best resources, if I don't become the best, it's a waste of resources. They should be given to those who need them more."
"…Oh, you."
Agnes sighed, feeling that Princess Isabel was astonishingly stubborn.
"Oh, by the way, Teacher Agnes."
Isabelle suddenly asked, "What did Mr. Aiwass see at that time? What was he waving at?"
"Actually, I wasn't there either."
Agnes shook her head: "But I asked the cameraman. He said it was a little flower girl nearby.
"That girl called him 'a very gentle big brother'. I think he must have politely bought a bouquet of flowers from her before. Aiwass is indeed a very polite young man if there's an opportunity, we can invite him to sit in the Silver and Tin Palace. To talk about what happened at the time, and how he thought and judged…I think that would be very interesting. And Her Majesty the Queen should allow it.
You must be looking forward to it too, Isabelle?"
Isabelle did not reply, but only clenched her small fists slightly, widening her beautiful, emerald-like eyes with a childlike longing.