Celia

"Good morning, Junior Sonia." Sonia turned her head and saw Senior Celia emerging from the meditation building, an eyebrow arching slightly. Though she claimed she didn't want anything to do with Felix, in reality it was hard to avoid him, because Felix was also a student of Professor Trozan. Only a genius of the blade could ever catch the eye of the "Hidden Hand Sword Saint." Having crossed paths with Felix more frequently, Sonia naturally got to know Celia as well. After just a few brief interactions, Sonia could tell that Celia was the exact same type of person as herself—the kind of huntress who would stop at nothing to climb to the top. Naturally, Celia harbored hostility toward Sonia. After all, Felix was her prey. Sonia's appearance now was like finally capturing a rare animal after endless painstaking effort, only to find a fully equipped master pet trainer lingering beside the trap. Anyone would be on their guard. While Sonia claimed she looked down on Felix, if this young master of the Voslodar clan was willing to be her simping lapdog, she wouldn't necessarily refuse him the chance. So she was somewhat undecided, intending to keep him on the hook for a bit and see how things played out. Celia looked Sonia up and down, then covered her nose and stepped back half a pace. "Junior, it seems you're quite excited after entering the Void Realm for the first time." *Are you serious with that half-step back?* Granted, Sonia hadn't showered after her training session last night, but she had wiped herself down with a towel and changed into fresh clothes. There was no way she smelled. Still, she had just come out of the meditation room, her hair unwashed and face bare of makeup. Compared to Celia's meticulously styled "natural look," she looked as disheveled as a stray dog by the roadside. One glance told Sonia that Celia's "bare face" had taken at least an hour to paint on. "Good morning, Senior Celia." Sonia nodded slightly. "Did you come to the meditation building just to borrow the washroom, Senior?" Sonia was never one to take a hit without hitting back. Her jab implying Celia had come here to do her makeup rather than meditate was seamless—an insult without a single vulgar word. "I came to meditate and enter the Void Realm, of course." Celia forced a smile and held out her hand. "This is the inheritance sorcery spirit I found last night. What do you think of it, Junior?" A boyish sorcery spirit clutching a scabbard materialized in Celia's palm. Sonia took one look and her eyebrows shot up as the details of this spirit surfaced in her memory. [Scabbard] [One-winged sorcery spirit] [Restriction: The sorcerer must wield a sword.] [Basic Effect: Combines with other sword sorcery spirits; for every ten seconds, the first activation of the paired spirit will produce 150% effect.] For a sword sorcerer, Scabbard was an immensely practical sorcery spirit—it could even give rise to a distinct sword branch: the Assassin Sword Sorcerer. Through burst miracles like "Scabbard Gleam," "Poised to Strike," and "Sky-Cleaving Sword Qi," a sword sorcerer could unleash a single strike of armor-breaking sword qi capable of piercing all defenses of the same tier. Its lethality reigned supreme among all sorcerer factions; anyone hit was dead. For a split second, Sonia even considered offering her Torrent spirit to trade with Celia. Although Torrent was listed for a higher price than Scabbard on the trading platform, sorcery spirits were usually priced without market supply. Suitable sword sorcery spirits were exceedingly rare to come across, and even if one appeared, snatching it up was far from guaranteed. Yet seeing the playful, teasing glint in Celia's eyes, Sonia understood everything—this lady had come purely to show off. "So, do you think Felix will like it?" A sudden twinge of guilt pricked Sonia's heart—the way she had acted in the dorm last night must have looked just as punchable as Celia's smug expression right now. Truly, she owed her roommates endless thanks for not murdering her on the spot. "I really envy your boyfriend," Sonia said, squeezing out a strained smile. "For a sword sorcerer, that's an exceptionally precious sorcery spirit." "Is that so? Since you say so, Junior, then I'll believe it." Celia chuckled behind her hand, though she remained on guard. After the sword match two nights ago, Celia had assumed Felix would dump her to chase after Sonia. To her surprise, Felix had shown no such inclination; he still treated her well and merely wanted another match with Sonia. Celia didn't think Felix was trying to two-time them. He wasn't the kind of person who could hide his feelings. If he wanted to stray, he would break up outright rather than string her along. Therefore, Celia believed Felix truly had no romantic interest in Sonia, being obsessed only with victory and defeat. Even so, Sonia remained a formidable rival in Celia's mind. After all, sparks between men and women often flared from friction. Felix had no thoughts right now, but what about the next second? Tomorrow? Next week? As long as Felix drew breath, the possibility of a change of heart existed. Thus, Celia had to keep a tight rein on her boyfriend, denying him any chance of private contact with Sonia—like right now. Not only that, but she also had to bolster her own leverage and intimidate Sonia as much as possible to nip any trouble in the bud. "You should work hard too, Junior," Celia encouraged with patronizing cheer. "I heard your family background isn't that great. Compared to locals like us here in Jialesi, someone who managed to pass the national examination into Sword Flower University is far more capable than we are. You'll definitely be able to stay in Jialesi after graduation and bring your family to live in the big city." Here it was: the wealthy looking down on the poor with superiority veiled as encouragement... Sonia offered a pleasant smile. "Thank you for the concern, Senior." "Sigh, you were a bird that could have soared higher, but your family is holding you back." There was half pretense and half sincerity in Celia's words; she genuinely felt a bit of pity for Sonia. Forget noble houses—if Sonia had merely been born into a middle-class family in Jialesi, she would certainly have had far better prospects. What a shame that she was just a country girl from an impoverished agricultural town on the border. She failed to notice that the look in Sonia's eyes had shifted. "Senior is quite right." Sonia paused, wearing a helpless smile. "Often, where a person starts determines where they end up. Birth is our first lottery ticket, and I only drew the consolation prize." Celia wondered if she had spoken too harshly and shattered the girl's composure, and began considering what words of comfort to offer her junior. "Someone from an impoverished place like me ultimately can't shed her vulgarity. Look at that, chatting with you for so long, I forgot I haven't even washed my face. Chatting with Senior with such a messy face, I've really been terribly impolite." "You don't need to put it like that..." Just as Celia was about to offer some comforting words, she saw Sonia summon a sorcery spirit. A cluster of water surged from Sonia's hand and splashed directly onto her face. "Washing my face makes me feel much refreshed." Celia stared fixedly at the sorcery spirit in Sonia's hand. "This is..." "Huh?" Sonia started slightly, her eyes darting about as she stammered, "Th-this is... a fortuitous encounter I got in the Void Realm last night! Yes, it's the Torrent sorcery spirit I obtained from a fortuitous encounter islet! Don't you think my luck is pretty good?" Celia uttered an "Oh," her forehead practically screaming three words: *I! DON'T! BUY IT!* How could anyone stumble upon a fortuitous encounter islet on their very first day in the Void Realm? And obtain one of the water sorcery faction's most precious sorcery spirits, the Torrent water spirit?! Are you taking me for an absolute fool? Could she have bought it? But how could a country bumpkin afford such an expensive spirit? Besides, Torrent was priced with zero market supply; Celia had wanted to buy one for ages and couldn't find a single seller! Since she hadn't bought it, someone must have given it to her. At Sword Flower University, not many people could casually hand out a Torrent spirit... Celia barely managed to compose her expression, tugging at the corners of her mouth. "That is a very crucial sorcery spirit in the water sorcery faction. Are you planning to switch your path to water sorcery, Junior?" "Well, although I have talent in sword arts, I'm also interested in the water faction..." Catching sight of Felix stepping out of the meditation building, Sonia hurriedly waved goodbye. "Senior, I have things to do, so I'll be taking my leave. See you!" Puzzled by Sonia's sudden haste, Celia turned her head, only to see Felix just exiting the building. "Senior, were you waiting for me?" Felix asked with a smile. "The Void Realm is truly a fascinating place... I want to visit the library to look through more materials on the Void Realm. Senior, do you want to come along?" Celia glanced in the direction Sonia had left, then looked back at Felix. Feeling as if she understood everything, she ground her teeth in jealousy. Yet the thousand words surging in her throat melted into a single sweet reply. "Of course." She smiled, extending her hand. "This is the Scabbard sorcery spirit I obtained from the Void Realm last night, but I don't study swordsmanship... Junior, how do you think I should handle this spirit?"