Lost

Era of Order, Year 1138.

Mian stood before the familiar door, his fingertips brushing against the wood grain.

Usually at this time, Professor Enlaisi would be in the classroom teaching history, his students bursting into laughter at his humorous lectures. But for the past week, all of the professor's classes had been suspended without any explanation.

His knuckles rapped against the wooden door, producing a dull thud.

The door opened, and Professor Enlaisi stood inside.

"Mian, it's you. Come in."

"Professor Enlaisi, why haven't you been coming to class lately?"

Mian sat on the sofa, looking at Enlaisi across from him, and asked directly right off the bat.

He noticed that the professor was wearing a loose, dark gray house robe today, instead of his usual meticulously ironed professor's robes.

This wasn't Mian's first time visiting here, either.

But somehow, things felt different this time... Was it the atmosphere? It felt as if someone was watching him from the shadows... Mian wasn't entirely sure.

"Well... I've caught a minor illness, so it's not very convenient for me to go to class. Don't worry about it, Mian." Enlaisi smiled and waved his hand dismissively. He then placed both hands on the armrests of the sofa as if preparing to stand up and grab some jars and bottles from the nearby cabinet. "Would you like something to drink?"

"I'll get it, Professor." Mian jumped up from the sofa first, as if the seat were burning his bottom.

"I'll have the usual, then." Enlaisi's bottom never left the sofa; he hadn't actually planned on getting up at all.

"Professor, brewing coffee is a hassle," Mian sighed, taking a jar of coffee beans out of the cabinet.

Enlaisi had a whole coffee-brewing setup in his home that had completely dazzled Mian the first time he saw it...

"So, are you going to drink it or not?"

"I am."

Mian didn't stand on ceremony.

Enlaisi was very particular about these things. They were all premium goods that Mian usually never got the chance to taste.

Rumor had it that a good portion of them were won through bets with Principal Wolund.

"Oh... there's a new bottle of liquor." Mian suddenly noticed an unfamiliar glass bottle sitting out. Just the ornate crystal carvings on it made it look incredibly expensive at first glance.

However, the amber liquid inside was already a third empty.

"Ah, then don't bother making coffee. Let's just drink that," Enlaisi suddenly changed his tune. "I almost forgot about this bottle. It's already open, so if we don't drink it, it'll go bad sitting around."

"A gift from Principal Wolund?" Mian put the coffee beans back.

"Yeah, the guy suddenly got generous."

"But Professor Enlaisi, it's best not to drink when you're sick, isn't it?" Mian said with some concern. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Don't worry, the illness I have allows for drinking." Enlaisi had already taken out some glasses from another cabinet.

"Are you really sick, Professor?" Mian looked at Enlaisi suspiciously.

Given Enlaisi's personality, he did like to tease Mian sometimes... but he wouldn't go so far as to skip classes just for a joke.

"I really am sick."

"You don't look unwell at all."

"I have a sickness of the heart." Enlaisi poured himself a glass of liquor and downed it in one gulp. "Besides, this isn't alcohol; it's medicine."

Mian: ...

Enlaisi's joking tone made it impossible for Mian to take him seriously.

Mian also picked up his glass and took a sip.

It didn't seem to have much flavor at first, but then an intense, spicy heat bloomed in his mouth, burning all the way down to his chest and stomach.

Mian's face immediately contorted in discomfort.

"Hahaha, still just a kid after all." Enlaisi chuckled mercilessly.

Mian furrowed his brows and forced himself to finish the liquor in his glass, feeling the burning sensation spread through his body. He set the glass down, deciding not to press the matter further.

This liquor was far too strong; Mian wasn't used to it.

"I'll be going now, Professor. Try to drink less."

"Mm, come by and visit more often when you're free... it's pretty boring staying cooped up in this house." Enlaisi swirled the glass in his hand, the amber liquid leaving fleeting trails on the sides.

"Aren't you going to go out for a walk?"

"Aren't I sick?" Enlaisi shook his head. "I'm serious, come hang out more. I'm bored to death at home; I don't even feel like reading."

"Alright, I understand." Mian had no idea which of Enlaisi's words were actually true.

Mian turned and walked toward the door. The moment he grasped the doorknob, he suddenly felt an indescribable sense of oppression again.

He glanced back. Enlaisi was still sitting on the sofa, his silhouette in the sunlight looking inexplicably lonely.

Mian left.

"Professor Enlaisi..." In the room that now held only Enlaisi, another person's voice suddenly rang out.

"You saw it yourself, he doesn't know anything. I just had him come over to chat with me." Enlaisi set his glass down and sighed. "You're not going to deny me even this small request, are you?"

"Cough, it's not like that..." the other person coughed lightly. "If you're bored, I can chat with you too. Honestly, I'm pretty bored myself..."

"No need. There's probably nothing for us to talk about."

...

Mian walked away from Enlaisi's house.

That bizarre atmosphere gradually faded. Mian looked back once, then quickened his pace.

Professor Enlaisi was definitely hiding something from him.

But since Professor Enlaisi didn't say anything, not even giving a single hint, it meant it wasn't something he needed to worry about.

Mian shook his head, clearing the thoughts from his mind.

A figure up ahead caught Mian's attention.

Anana stood at a fork in the road, looking back and forth at the different paths leading in various directions. Her fingers nervously twirled the hem of her clothes, her face full of confusion.

"Are you lost?" Mian smiled and stepped forward to greet her.

"Senior Mian!" Anana instantly broke into a smile, like a lost traveler who had finally found a guide.

"How did you end up here? This area is the residential district for professors and their families. Are you looking for someone?" Mian asked.

"I was trying to find the library..." Anana smiled sheepishly. "I ended up wandering here without realizing it..."

"But the library is several kilometers away from here." Mian looked at his junior in disbelief.

Anana stuck out her tongue, looking a bit embarrassed.

Anana had grown up in the snowfields... Back in the snowfields, their entire Lake Village wasn't even as big as a single building complex here.

"Forget it, I don't have anything going on right now, so I'll take you there." Mian sighed. This junior really made it hard not to worry about her.

"Thank you so much, Senior Mian!"

However, Mian could tell that her talent in magic was actually quite impressive. Even Delyan wanted to recruit her into their academy.

Once she learned how to use magic to travel later on, she wouldn't get lost anymore, right? Probably?