VIP Early Access
Eksklusif untuk member VIP
Password Protected
Chapter ini dikunci dengan kode khusus
Chapter 98 : Luther
“Hmm?” Winnie was surprised. He had been terribly unlucky these past couple of days. After finally crawling out of the mud and recovering from a serious illness, how could he possibly run into an acquaintance just when he was out for a stroll?
Moreover, within Carillian Academy, he didn't seem to have many acquaintances at all. Who on earth would come looking for him at a time like this?
Winnie turned around, his expression instantly turning odd.
Behind him stood the man who had tapped his shoulder, ordinary in appearance, the kind of person who blended into a crowd. Still, he knew how to present himself. His bangs were neatly styled, and his lightly powdered, subtly altered face gave a boost to features that would otherwise be forgettable.
He wore the standard male uniform of Carillian Academy and stood just a bit taller than Winnie.
Ӗ ǹ u m̊ а .ї_d
Well, just by looking at his appearance, Winnie could already guess the sort of person he was.
Anyone who went to such great lengths to make themselves appear more attractive clearly had their reasons. A little thought made it obvious, especially considering this person was male.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
Huh, never seen him before. Completely unfamiliar.
The moment he laid eyes on the guy, Winnie felt a strange sense of unease rise within him.
Generally speaking, strangers approaching him for unknown reasons rarely meant anything good.
“This friend, I believe we don't know each other, and we've never met before,” Winnie said, his expression distant and his tone cold.
W̃ е̃b̃ṅо v̇е l Е́ ǹ u ṁ â
Perhaps past experiences had taught him that such encounters usually ended poorly. Or perhaps his personality had been modified over time, he simply disliked being touched by strangers, especially shoulder pats and other physical contact.
“Haha, that's true. But I do know you, Winnie, and I've actually wanted to get to know you for a while now,” the boy laughed cheerfully, then attempted a very familiar gesture, reaching to sling his arm over Winnie's shoulder.
However, before he could complete the motion, Winnie casually brushed his hand away.
“Friend, we can talk, but please keep your hands to yourself. I don't think we're close enough for that,” Winnie said, frowning slightly.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
“Oh, of course! My apologies,” the boy's movement froze for a moment, but he quickly recovered, maintaining his cheerful demeanor.
“Let me introduce myself. My name is Luther Sylis. I'm the eldest son of the Sylis family, and as you can see, a student here at Carillian Academy.” He gave an elegant noble's bow.
Е́n ù m̄ а̃. і̊ ď
Hmm. He seemed to understand etiquette, but Winnie still felt something was off.
Perhaps it was because he had spent too much time with girls like Mirexia, Isatia and Aesphyra, true noble ladies, genuine royalty. Compared to them, this kind of forced, superficial courtesy felt jarring.
It was as if this person had only learned the form and surface gestures, but hadn't grasped the essence at all.
Clearly, this person wasn't a major noble, maybe not even a minor one.
Winnie didn't mean to look down on commoner students, but the way this guy dressed, the way he carried himself, and especially the way he proudly announced his surname, clearly indicated he saw himself as nobility.
But really? It would've been better not to try at all. Just accept your own status. Some things, when faked without true understanding, only look ridiculous to those who know better.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
The most embarrassing thing isn't being inadequate, it's being inadequate yet pretending to be great, only to be exposed by someone who sees through the act. That's true humiliation.
Still, Sylis?
Winnie felt like he'd heard that surname somewhere before, but couldn't quite recall. Where was it again?
“Oh, hello. What do you want from me?” Winnie asked, hands in his pockets. “I'm guessing you didn't come here just to make friends.”
“And how do you know that's not exactly why?” the boy smiled. “Anyway, this isn't the place to talk, Master Winnie. See?” He pointed toward a nearby cafe.
Winnie frowned. He really didn't want to drink coffee with a complete stranger.
Ӗ n ü m̄а.
“Of course, Master Winnie, since I'm the one initiating this friendship, I'll treat,” Luther grinned.
“Fine.” Winnie didn't refuse. When someone on the street offers to buy you a meal, why say no?
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
Still, Winnie didn't think he was charming enough to randomly have strangers treating him to meals.
They entered the cafe. Winnie ordered a few dishes and drinks he liked, then handed the menu back to Luther across the table.
“Winnie, that's too little. Why not order more?” Luther said, standing up and leaning over beside Winnie.
“No thanks. The farmers worked hard to grow this food. Ordering too much would be wasteful,” Winnie instinctively leaned back into the sofa, not wanting Luther to get too close.
Ĕn umа̂
He found this guy really slimy, his appearance, his manner of speaking, everything about him rubbed Winnie the wrong way. He didn't like people like this.
"Mr. Luther, ordering is ordering. Just sit back in your seat. I can see fine from here," Winnie said.
“Winnie, don't you think sitting across from each other puts a bit too much distance between us?” Luther gasped.
“Not at all. I think people need a little distance when interacting. After all, distance creates beauty, doesn't it?” Winnie flatly refused.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
It made him feel a bit nauseated.
Why were two grown men trying to squeeze together like this? And they weren't even close.
Ė n u mа̊
This was way too presumptuous.
“Alright, if that's what Winnie thinks,” Luther returned to his seat.
Winnie glanced at their location, it was tucked deep inside, a spot where people walking down the hallway couldn't possibly see what was happening within.
“I heard you've already advanced to the Warlock stage, making you the third first-year to achieve that. That's impressive. Everyone at the academy's been talking about you. When I was in first year, I was still only at the beginner Artisan stage. I could never compare to you, Winnie.”
“Not just back then, even now, I can't compare to you.”
“I didn't know you were an upperclassman. You flattered me. My soul armament quality is actually low, only one star. Reaching Warlock was pure luck. The difficulty was low, and luck played a big part.” Winnie simply repeated the rumors he'd overheard on the street.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
Anyway, the gossip was probably spreading already, right?
But he wasn't saying this to downplay his abilities, just to avoid continuing the conversation.
He was only here to eat. If someone hadn't invited him, he wouldn't have come at all. He simply had no desire to keep talking.
After that, Luther kept chatting casually. Winnie could tell this guy was quite talkative, a master at keeping conversations flowing, never letting a single sentence fall flat.
Winnie was only half-heartedly responding, yet Luther kept engaging actively and brilliantly. Winnie was actually shocked, how could someone be this good at conversation?
No denying it, every profession has its masters. Speaking well truly was an art.
Е̇ ňū m̆а̃
But even if speaking was an art, it was useless if the listener wasn't interested.
There was no other reason, Winnie just didn't like slimy people. So no matter how skillfully Luther spoke or how well he kept the conversation going, all he received from Winnie were monotonous “Hmm, yeah, uh-huh” replies.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
Soon, the food arrived.
Winnie ate while half-heartedly exchanging words with Luther.
“Senior Luther, just say what you want,” Winnie said mid-meal, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “Your time's running out. If you don't get to the point soon, I'll be finished eating.”
“Hahaha, Winnie, I've been talking about the point the whole time, I really just want us to become friends,” Luther still chuckled.
Ŵ е́ b ñо̇ vel̀ Е̌ n̊ ūm̀а̄
“Friends? Then why me specifically?” Winnie asked curiously.
“Winnie, you're practically a celebrity at Carillian Academy now. The more friends, the more paths open. Someone especially as promising as you.”
“But like I said earlier, it was all luck. I'm sure that's what everyone's saying too.” Winnie cuts off any chance for Luther to continue, closing the conversation down completely, saying as much as possible to close the topic. He wasn't good at talking anyway; this was just his normal self.
“Winnie, now you're being too modest. Anyone with eyes can see you're someone special. A golden-scaled dragon can't stay in a pond forever, it's destined to soar. People outside the academy must be lining up to flatter you already.”
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
“I'm just one of those ordinary people,” Luther laughed. “To be honest, my talent isn't strong. Getting into Carillian Academy was already a stroke of luck. My talent ceiling is capped, so naturally I want to make as many friends as possible here.”
“That's actually one of my goals for joining this academy. After all, anyone who graduates successfully from here is bound to be extraordinary.”
Е̂n̈ ù mа̇. і d̄
In the past, Winnie might have believed him. But now?
“Oh, well, if that's the case, Senior Luther, your goal's been achieved. I'm full. I'll be leaving now.” Winnie stood up to leave.
“Winnie, I still have a cake here that hasn't been touched. Want to try it?” Luther suddenly said.
“Cake? No thanks. Too greasy. I'm probably full already. Senior Luther, you enjoy it yourself.” Winnie waved his hand.
“Hey, hey, Winnie, don't go yet, don't go. Honestly, there is something I'd like to ask of you,” Luther finally spoke up.
Hearing this, Winnie merely curved the corner of his lips, returned to his seat, and calmly stared at Luther.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
For some reason, seeing this expression made Luther feel like whatever he was about to say wouldn't work.
Wasn't it just earlier that his boss said Winnie was just some talentless, lucky brat?
Then why did he feel so different from the description?
As a genuine social butterfly, Luther had interacted with many third and fourth-year seniors. From them, he'd sensed a calm, steady demeanor forged through blood and fire, a composure that nothing could shake.
Now, Winnie gave him a similar feeling, like those battle-hardened upperclassmen. This aura of stability, as if tempered by hundreds of real combat experiences.
When Winnie's presence radiated outward, Luther actually felt speechless.
È ñ u m̆a
A veteran socialite, Luther had extremely limited magical talent and no powerful family or faction to rely on. The fact that he'd entered Carillian Academy with such mediocre talent meant he'd invested every possible skill point into reading people.
He could already faintly sense Winnie wasn't at all like the person described, someone who advanced to Warlock purely by luck and low-quality soul armament.
Dilarang mengopy novel dari Enuma.id.
This Winnie might truly be extraordinary in the future.
Of course, students at Carillian Academy were already exceptional to begin with. But what he meant by “extraordinary” was standing out even among Carillian's other students.
Honestly, absolutely unless necessary, he really didn't want to get involved with someone like this.
But he had no choice.
Еnum a . і̆d
“Here's the thing, Winnie. Earlier I mentioned my surname is Sylis, right?” Luther said with an apologetic smile.
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Well then, Winnie, do you remember a certain Wood Sylis?”
“Wood Sylis.” Winnie's brows furrowed, suddenly falling silent.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
Then, under Luther's tense gaze, after a long pause, Winnie tilted his head and suddenly said, “Who's Wood Sylis?”
“Cough, my younger brother. Sigh, to be honest, our family discipline has been lacking. Recently, that reckless kid had some strange idea and secretly switched your token, only to get caught by you and handed over to the student council.” Luther, realizing Winnie didn't even remember who Wood was, sighed and explained.
Ẃ еḃñ о v ēl̊ Е̂n um̄ ā
As he spoke, he carefully observed Winnie's facial expressions.
“Oh, I remember now. That guy. You're his brother?” Winnie tilted his head.
“Yes, exactly. He's my foolish younger brother.” Luther watched Winnie's reaction, surprised that his expression hadn't soured at all upon hearing their relation. He remained completely unchanged.
This baffled Luther. After all, Wood had clearly tried to endanger Winnie's life. How could Winnie show no change in expression when learning he was Wood's real brother?
“Winnie, please don't misunderstand. I had no idea what my brother was doing back then, ”
“I know. No need to explain,” Winnie said indifferently.
Baca cerita ini hanya di situs resmi Enuma.id!
“So... Winnie, you're not bothered by this?” Luther was truly surprised.
“Me? Why should I care?” Winnie smiled slightly. "You're you, he's he. Isn't that how it is?"
Luther fell silent. He realized Winnie's words were just polite formalities on the surface.
From Winnie's eyes, he understood the true meaning behind them.
It was a sense of ease.
Neither him nor his brother Wood mattered to Winnie.
Ē nü m.а
Winnie didn't believe they posed any threat to him at all.
Konten Bab Belum Tersedia
Bab ini belum memiliki konten teks atau sedang dalam proses penyuntingan.
