House Arrest

The center of the reception hall had been cleared, reserving a large open space. The smooth marble floor reflected the light from the crystal chandelier above.

Aina glanced casually at the parchment in her hand for less than three seconds before tucking it away again.

With a gesture of her finger toward the ground, complex and precise lines of magical energy materialized out of thin air, stretching and twisting like living vines, intertwining and linking together. In just a dozen or so breaths, a massive magic circle nearly ten meters in diameter—intricate and dazzling in its complexity—was fully laid out before everyone’s eyes.

It was fortunate that the estate’s reception hall was spacious enough; otherwise, finding another suitable room would have been difficult.

“This magic circle is quite obscure, rarely used. Even I had forgotten how to draw it,” Aina remarked casually. “But fortunately, I make it a habit to record even the ones I never use.”

“Uh…”

To memorize such a complicated magic circle in such a short time… Others would likely get dizzy just looking at it, yet Aina had reproduced it perfectly. Xia Lun wasn’t sure if she had truly forgotten it at all.

“You, sit here, and you, over there.” Aina pointed to two opposing circles within the formation, surrounded by intricate magical circuits—only these two spots were empty.

Xia Lun stepped forward and sat down cross-legged in the designated circle, the surface cool and firm beneath him.

Mian sat opposite him, like two opponents on a chessboard.

Without even pulling out a staff, Aina lightly stamped her heel onto the magic circle below. The circle lit up instantly, as if infused with life. The patterns flared, radiating a steady, gentle blue glow that enveloped both Xia Lun and Mian inside the formation.

Once the magic circle activated, Mian experienced a strange, indescribable sensation—as if something was being stripped away from within.

As for Xia Lun, he felt nothing yet. The faint influx of magic posed no burden to him; it was like a gentle breeze passing over a mountain range.

With nothing to do, Xia Lun sat staring blankly at Mian across from him.

Liyana and Mo Lini watched with interest from the sidelines. After observing for nearly a minute, Liyana yawned, finding it somewhat dull.

Mo Lini, on the other hand, thought the glowing magic circle was beautiful.

Aina sat on a nearby sofa, pouring herself a cup of black tea. Wisps of steam blurred the delicate lines of her profile.

“Um… How long do we have to stay here?” After five minutes, Xia Lun finally couldn’t help but ask, turning to look at Aina as she sipped her tea leisurely.

“That’s an entire magical ore vein’s worth of energy. To transfer it all at this magic circle’s maximum power… it’ll take three days.” Aina raised three pale, slender fingers and waved them at Xia Lun.

“Three… three days?” Xia Lun’s eyes widened. He would have to sit still for three whole days? That would be sheer torture.

Across from him, Mian’s face also turned pale.

“Huh? You’re staying here for three days?” Liyana’s voice carried a hint of schadenfreude. “That’s rough! But don’t worry, Xia Lun—we’ll keep you company! Mo Lini can even play chess for you to watch…”

“You don’t have to stay rooted here the whole time—you can leave whenever you want,” Aina added slowly, raising her teacup again. Her gaze flickered subtly toward Xia Lun. “Just spend your free time here during the day. You still need to sleep properly at night.”

Her words seemed to carry a hidden meaning, but no one except Xia Lun picked up on it.

“Well, then I’ll try to stay here as much as possible during the day.” Xia Lun let out a small sigh of relief. Being able to move freely made things much easier.

And with others around, time probably wouldn’t be too hard to pass.

“Xia Lun, do you want to read a book? I can help hold it open for you and even turn the pages!” Liyana offered enthusiastically.

“Why not just hand him the book directly?” Aina tilted her head, puzzled by Liyana’s unnecessary display.

“Is that okay? Won’t a magic tome interfere with the circle’s operation?” Liyana had some basic knowledge—she knew that random movements during activation could disrupt a magic circle’s stability, especially stray magical fluctuations that might disturb the circuits.

“This magic circle’s structure is very stable. That won’t happen.” Aina shook her head, then took a light sip of her tea, a hint of confidence in her tone. “Besides, I built this circle.”

She pointed to the two circles, each nearly two meters in diameter, where Xia Lun and Mian sat. “As long as you don’t leave these two spots, you can do whatever you like.”

Xia Lun silently stood up, stretched, and gave Aina a look of mild reproach, as if blaming her for not saying so earlier.

Not knowing much about magic, he had been afraid of causing an accident and hadn’t dared to move a muscle.

“We can really do anything?” Mian looked rather delighted.

A moment later, unconcerned with the stares, Mian started doing handstands and push-ups right there on the spot.

Xia Lun wouldn’t bother with such basic exercises.

For him, they were utterly pointless—the stamina they consumed was less than what he recovered. Unless Aina added a hundred-fold gravity array to the magic circle, it might barely serve as a makeshift training ground.

He took a heavy magic tome and a low stool from Liyana, placed the book open on his knees, and began reading quietly, the rustle of pages a soft murmur in the air.

The scene inside the magic circle was bizarre: one person reading in silence, the other training with fervor. An onlooker might think a strange ritual was underway. The stark contrast in styles within the same circle was almost jarring.

For a moment, it was hard to tell who was the mage and who was the warrior.

“This is just too weird,” Liyana muttered to herself.

Mo Lini tore her gaze away from the magic circle’s dazzling patterns, feeling a bit dizzy.

Little Lan remained as always, perched atop her head, looking harmless and making soft “pop, pop, pop” sounds, adorable as ever. Beneath that façade, it was always on guard against Liyana.

Luo Lun stood by in silence, her mental resilience well-honed by now—whatever happened, she quickly adapted.

“Caw—” The blood bat on her shoulder let out a strange screech.

As for Liyana, who had so confidently promised to keep Xia Lun company through those three days—she was already getting restless.

“Mo Lini.” Liyana patted Mo Lini on the shoulder and sighed. “I’m so bored. Play a game of chess with me.”