Phantom Form

It was already dark when they returned to the town of Ashmist Mountain.

However, the visibility on the snowy streets at night was still quite high. The two of them made their way to the police station and ran into Deputy Chief Gloria, who was just about to leave.

The academy's pink magic box car that suddenly stopped in front of her raised her suspicions. Seeing Lizer and Felina step out, she raised an eyebrow:

"Do you two need something?"

Her tone faintly expressed her lingering grudge against Felina. This was the first person to commit a crime right under her nose and get away with it since she became deputy chief.

Lizer stepped forward and chuckled awkwardly,

"We just came to find Deputy Chief Gloria to collect the spoils from our last mission."

Hearing this, Gloria complained fiercely,

"I'm already pissed off enough having to work on a rest day! Now I'm off the clock! And you come looking for me for this!"

Lizer explained helplessly, "For the academy's orders and tasks, buying land and equipment over the past two days has almost drained all my gold coins. I still have to pay the final balance tomorrow, so I really had no choice."

Hearing this, Gloria looked at Lizer and Felina in surprise:

"I didn't expect you to be so efficient, kid. What kind of weapons can your factory produce? The police station might purchase from you when the time comes. But you have to promise to give me the factory price!"

As she spoke, she turned back into the police station, took the gold coins from the safe, and handed them to the two. It was 7 gold and 20 silver coins per person, totaling 14 gold and 40 silver coins.

The group simply stayed at the police station and chatted for a while. Hearing that Lizer had bought two empty plots of land to the east of the academy, she also marveled at his extravagance.

Hearing that Lizer planned to invite Felina to clear out that abandoned mine, she thought about it and agreed to go with them.

Lizer also learned some news about the principality from Gloria that wasn't widely known outside:

It was said that the frequency of cross-border reconnaissance by the Feiting flight formations had been increasing recently, but the principality still had no strong counterattack other than issuing condemnations.

In addition, the prices of various basic materials were showing an upward trend, and the principality's police headquarters strictly ordered local police stations to pay close attention to potential local unrest.

Having just experienced the prosperity and liveliness of Gele City, hearing a completely different picture from Gloria's inside information made Lizer secretly take note.

After some conversation, Lizer and Felina bid farewell to Gloria and returned to the academy.

Felina's Apartment

The sound of splashing water came from the bathroom, and a graceful figure could be vaguely seen through the translucent floor-to-ceiling glass partition...

Lizer was flipping through the design blueprints for the energy storage and power core modules of the Little Magic Donkey and the three-wheeler on Felina's desk.

These runic characters belonged to basic knowledge, which Lizer mostly recognized. He could vaguely discern that when combined, these runes possessed the abilities to absorb, convert, store, and output energy.

Reading the design blueprint of Miniature Energy Gathering Witchcraft Array (Wind), consumes 200 energy points to analyze (temporarily unusable)

Lizer frowned. The Pay-to-Win superpower had its own set of calculation rules for the value of things.

Lizer hadn't mastered it yet, but analyzing this seemingly weak miniature array design blueprint into a skill actually required 200 energy points.

Compared to the previous common-sense level witchcraft Wizard's Hand, the price was a full four times more expensive. This was enough for him to buy 0.1 points of spiritual power.

Obviously, for the Pay-to-Win ability, knowledge on the witchcraft end was much more valuable than mere attributes.

However, on second thought, being able to directly analyze a witchcraft array into a skill for just 4 gold coins didn't seem that expensive after all.

But right now, without becoming an apprentice wizard, all of this was just an illusion. I need to become an apprentice wizard as soon as possible!

Splash.

The sound of water in the bathroom suddenly stopped. Lizer turned his head to look and was instantly stunned:

Gloria!!!???

What was going on? Wasn't it Felina just a moment ago?

Why was it Gloria, whom he had parted ways with not long ago, walking out from inside? Could the two girls have secretly planned this prank behind his back?

She wore a form-fitting bright red uniform. The fabric was as vivid as the morning glow yet soft, tracing her light and graceful curves.

Her long, straight, and slender legs were wrapped in pink silk stockings as thin as cicada wings. Through the hazy fabric, the luster of her creamy skin peeked out, as supple as the stem of a freshly bloomed lotus.

A faint pink blush tinted her cheeks, as fresh as morning dew on a lotus petal after the rain. Her skin was fair and hydrated, looking as if a gentle touch would squeeze out water droplets.

Beneath her willow-leaf eyebrows, her eyes were as clear as a spring, brimming with tender affection. Her lips were like a newly blossoming lotus bud, carrying a natural, dewy sheen.

Her overall aura was as pure and soft as a lotus rising from the water. She possessed the touching shyness of a young maiden, yet exuded a trace of untainted freshness that made one forget worldly cares. She gazed affectionately at Lizer.

Lizer swallowed hard, his mouth dry, and asked:

G-Gloria...

What are you doing?

Where is Felina? Where did she go?

Gloria stepped forward, hooking her left arm around Lizer's neck and lifting his chin with her right hand:

Student Lizer, I now declare you under my arrest...

This voice clearly belonged to Felina!

She forcefully pushed Lizer onto the sofa and immediately pounced on him:

Hehe, do you like it, Student Lizer?

Although he couldn't figure out the situation, Lizer was certain this was Felina. He felt a faint sense of disappointment mixed with excitement, yet he also felt like a bit of a jerk for thinking that way.

As if she didn't sense Lizer's thoughts, Felina asked on her own:

Darling, do you like it?

This is the Lesser Illusion Transformation, a zero-circle spell of the Illusion faction. It uses light and shadow effects to conjure the appearance of someone familiar.

Lizer looked at the Gloria right in front of him; his naked eye simply couldn't tell the real from the fake.

Only when he reached out to touch her face did he feel something was off. This zero-circle Illusion spell could only deceive the eyes; touching it revealed the truth.

Lizer was slightly excited but still whispered:

This isn't very appropriate, is it?

Felina, sensing the physical changes in Lizer's body, teased:

Hmph! Darling, don't tell me you don't have any thoughts about Gloria?

Look at you, your body is very honest. I can satisfy you using this appearance, but you have to promise me one condition.

Lizer's breathing gradually grew heavy, and he asked in a hoarse voice:

What condition?

Sparkling tears flickered in Felina's eyes as she whispered:

Hmph! I know that maybe in the future you will have other women.

But we just got together, and I want a beautiful memory that belongs exclusively to me.

So, for the next half a year, you are not allowed to get too intimate with Gloria.

If...

Her cheeks flushed bright red, overcome with shyness. She turned her head away and said in a voice as quiet as a whisper:

If you ever want to...

I can use this appearance. Hmph! Lucky you.

Hearing this, Lizer was deeply moved. With such a wonderful woman, what more could a man ask for!

He lowered his head to kiss her, gently wiping away the tears welling in her eyes.

However, driven by a strange sense of excitement, he ultimately did not ask Felina to dispel the Lesser Polymorph spell. Slowly, the apartment was filled with the sound of... soft murmurs.

The next day, Lizer made arrangements with Felina and Gloria, planning to head out together that evening to clear the vacant lot intended for their new warehouse.

Looking at the familiar Gloria, Lizer felt a vague sense of awkwardness. Noticing his expression, Felina watched him with a teasing gaze from the side.

Although the police station had not cleared the area, this vacant lot used to be a mining zone. The old brick and stone walls remained mostly intact, so they did not have to worry about the undead monsters inside wandering out.

Due to their unique construction, the buildings in the wizarding world were generally more stable and durable than those on the Blue Planet. If this were an abandoned mine on the Blue Planet, the walls would have collapsed a long time ago.

From a distance, even through the walls, Felina could already sense the dense necromantic energy particles lingering there. She quickly warned Lizer and Gloria:

"There are quite a few undead creatures inside. Everyone, be careful."