Prince Einol and Lan Qi stood shoulder to shoulder beside the grand glass curtain wall. The transparent floor-to-ceiling windows allowed them to admire the beautiful scenery of the pedestrian plaza below. Both wore relaxed smiles, enjoying their conversation.

"Actually, Your Highness Einol, it's not difficult to judge. According to the professor's presentation of the Demon Realm's artistic style at the time, the second painting, although appearing abstract, has several obvious flaws in its execution. These weren't intentional; they were purely caused by mistakes..."

Listening to Lan Qi explain his observations from the Demon Realm's painting class, Einol's eyes filled with approval, nodding continuously. He felt that if he looked at those paintings again, he could indeed distinguish between those painted by the professor and those by the students based on the key points Lan Qi mentioned.

Einol was also incredibly amazed that Lan Qi could analyze everything so thoroughly in that instant.

One must know that even being proficient in modern and classical art only applies to humans.

But Lan Qi could completely understand the artistic concepts of ancient demons the moment he arrived in the Demon Realm. This was both unbelievable and beyond what a human brain could accomplish!

Several minutes passed.

"Oh right, Lan Qi, are you and Hyperion here to buy some cards today? Sophia is a Silver-rank card maker; having her buy them for you will get you quite a few internal association discounts."

Reluctantly interrupting the topic of painting, Einol quickly asked them.

While happy, Einol also realized that his conversation with Lan Qi had left Hyperion unable to interject, simply waiting on the sidelines.

"Sophia..."

Lan Qi repeated the name Einol mentioned, slightly puzzled.

"Oh, oh, I forgot to introduce her to you. You're the only one here who doesn't know her. This is Sophia Vostok, Countess Vostok. Hyperion, Sophia, and I are all acquaintances."

Einol clapped his hands, feeling foolish, and finally turned to look at the purple-haired girl who had been watching him from the sofa.

He had almost forgotten about Sophia.

Upon hearing this, Lan Qi looked towards Countess Sophia, bowing his head slightly in greeting.

However, Sophia, who had been secretly paying attention to this side since just now, seemed to have no intention of responding to Lan Qi at all. She arrogantly turned her gaze away, pretending not to see him.

Focused on making cards, she didn't care how powerful Lan Qi was in the Shadow World.

She also never violated school rules and wouldn't deal with the student council.

When Einol and Lan Qi were chatting intimately, completely ignoring her because of Lan Qi, she already felt a little fiery inside.

Prince Einol had never paid so much attention to her, but in such a short amount of time, Einol had completely forgotten about her because of a man!

Beside the glass curtain wall on the third floor of the Card Makers Association.

Einol seemed accustomed to Sophia's temper, apologizing to Lan Qi without any princely airs:

"Lan Qi, don't mind her. Sophia is actually very kind."

"Of course not."

Lan Qi shook his head.

Since she was Hyperion's friend, she must be a good person, just a bit awkward.

Then, Lan Qi answered Einol's previous question: "I'm here to take the registered card maker exam. Hyperion wanted to see me make cards."

Instantly, Einol's expression became even more interested.

"As expected, you can also make cards, Lan Qi?"

Einol asked, his tone full of surprise, as if he had suspected that Lan Qi could also make cards.

"Yes, I've been working hard to practice."

Lan Qi admitted.

"If I may be so bold, the last time I saw someone so talented was Duke Mikaiah."

Einol's words were full of indescribable admiration, both for Mikaiah and for Lan Qi.

"Duke Mikaiah?"

"Yes, Duke Mikaiah is a Magic Crystal-rank card maker above Platinum-rank and one of the top card makers in the Southern Continent."

To Einol, Mikaiah was a mentor and friend. Since he was a child, he had admired and clung to Duke Mikaiah the most.

Now, seeing a younger version of Mikaiah in Lan Qi was one of the reasons why Einol favored Lan Qi so much.

Of course, Mikaiah was very kind, not as naïve as Lan Qi.

"But I'm also sure that you two are different in one aspect, which is that you wouldn't secretly hide a great demon like Duke Mikaiah, and even end up marrying a demon, shocking His Majesty the King. Hahaha, do you know what my father's expression was like back then?"

Einol laughed happily again, telling Lan Qi about the palace's past.

Lan Qi: "..."

"Oh right, Your Highness Einol, have you kept your companion waiting too long?"

Lan Qi asked, as if suddenly remembering something, trying to change the subject.

At the same time, he glanced at Countess Sophia sitting on the sofa in the distance.

She was still secretly watching this side.

"!"

Prince Einol realized,

"Sorry, let's go to the meeting area first. Sophia might be able to give you some practical advice about the card maker exam."

After Lan Qi's reminder, Einol finally remembered that he had left Countess Sophia alone there for too long.

Immediately, Einol nodded apologetically towards Sophia and led Lan Qi and Hyperion in that direction.

Lan Qi and Hyperion naturally didn't reject Einol's kindness. There was still plenty of time before the exam started.

On the way, Hyperion couldn't help but glance at Sophia, then at Lan Qi.

Her eyes were full of doubt, trying to analyze something.

Hyperion was very grateful that Lan Qi had helped her attract the attention, but she was also worried that Lan Qi, because of Sophia's unwarranted gaze, was planning something good!

...

In the atrium hall on the third floor, the towering ceilings and pillars created an amazing sense of openness, intertwined with dark wood and textured stone.

Located on one side of the atrium hall, the meeting area was equipped with a luxurious sofa and a low coffee table, with high-quality materials and colors that complemented the surrounding decor. The few floor lamps by the table added a touch of quiet elegance.

Seeing that Prince Einol finally knew to come back, Sophia didn't stare at them in front of Einol anymore. Instead, she turned around, sat quietly on the sofa, and crossed her arms in front of her.

As the three approached along the corridor, Lan Qi smiled peacefully and suddenly asked Einol a question:

"Your Highness Einol, have you noticed that there's often a gentle girl quietly accompanying you, the one you want to see the most?"

Instantly, Sophia on the sofa moved noticeably.

She clenched her fists tightly, feeling her ears starting to burn.

She wanted to turn around and glare at Lan Qi for asking such meaningless questions, but she didn't dare to look at Einol's face, her heart pounding as she waited for Einol's answer.

"No."

Prince Einol replied with a puzzled look.

His voice was clear and definite, without the slightest hesitation.

This made Sophia stomp her feet on the sofa in frustration.

"..."

Lan Qi didn't seem to know what to say either.

The three arrived at the sofa, ready to sit down.

Lan Qi wanted to help again, subtly hinting:

"Well then, Your Highness Einol, I think that while you're focusing on artistic creation and appreciation, you should also pay more attention to the people around you and not keep her waiting too long."

Sophia, who had been planning to glare at Lan Qi and warn him not to talk nonsense, gradually softened her expression.

She realized that Lan Qi seemed to be a genuinely good person, trying his best to help her.

Unfortunately, Einol was just too dense.

Hyperion also sat down beside Sophia with peace of mind, because Einol and Lan Qi naturally sat on the opposite sofa like brothers.

But what neither Sophia nor Hyperion expected was...

Prince Einol suddenly had an epiphany.

He grabbed Lan Qi's shoulders tightly and said sincerely:

"I understand, Lan Qi. You are the irreplaceable treasure of our Hutton Kingdom. You mean I should have taken the initiative to find you sooner!"

"..."

Lan Qi was truly speechless, and could only give Sophia and Hyperion sitting across from him a helpless smile.

In that smile, there were seven parts regret and three parts apology.

It seemed that he sincerely wanted to help her, but he really couldn't, because Einol didn't notice her at all. On the other hand, even if Lan Qi did nothing, Einol's eyes were full of him.

The atmosphere of the entire atrium seemed to have changed subtly in that instant.

Beneath the silence, there was a hint of unspoken chill.

It was a prelude to gunpowder about to ignite, making people feel suppressed and tense.

Hyperion's eyelids were already twitching wildly.

Lan Qi looked pure and kind.

But...

This scene, combined with Lan Qi's words and actions, made Hyperion feel a strong "green tea" vibe if she imagined Lan Qi as a girl!

Hyperion couldn't figure out whether Lan Qi really wanted to help Sophia or if he was perfectly disguising his green tea nature!

The extreme of purity was like green tea, and the extreme of green tea would evolve into flawless purity. Hyperion once again saw duality in Lan Qi!

At this moment, Sophia, in this delicate situation, was gradually swaying towards the edge of explosion.

From her victim's perspective, she began to suspect whether Lan Qi had been planning this for a long time, disguising himself as innocent, winning Einol's unconditional trust, and actually teasing her!

If that were the case, this cunning bad man might even use this trust to play the sincere Einol in the palm of his hand!

"Lan Qi, I'm really looking forward to seeing what kind of card you can make today, and I hope to have the opportunity to admire your paintings in the future."

After witnessing Lan Qi's ability to appreciate art, Einol became extremely curious about how high his level of painting would be.

"..."

Sophia sat on the opposite sofa, bowing her head and clenching her hands tightly.

Listening to Einol's infatuated praise of Lan Qi again, as if he were obsessed with him, her mood became more and more agitated. Finally, she couldn't bear it anymore, and looked up at Lan Qi and Einol, lowering her voice and saying:

"Einol, I am the most outstanding card maker and the most talented painter by your side. You don't need to look up to this person so much!"

Sophia's breathing became a little rapid, almost shouting, "Look at me more!"

"Sophia..."

Einol seemed to be stunned as well, finally shifting his gaze from Lan Qi to Sophia.

He was actually just extremely envious of Lan Qi's aura in the Demon Academy, where he could act cool and imposing with every move, and wanted to ask him about the "art of acting cool."

But for some reason, Sophia's reaction was particularly excited, as if a demon was stirring her heartstrings, making her emotions so strong.

However, Einol looked at Lan Qi, and Lan Qi also had an innocent and confused expression.

Finally.

Between a woman and a good brother, Einol once again firmly chose to stand by his good brother's side.

"Sophia, look, you've scared Lan Qi... What if it affects his card maker exam today? He's a man who will definitely become a pillar of our Hutton Kingdom."

As Einol spoke, he couldn't help but praise Lan Qi again.

He completely failed to understand Sophia's mood at this time, and that these words were pouring oil on her fire of jealousy, still siding with Lan Qi.

And at this time, Lan Qi still had that gentle and helpless smile on his face.

This finally made the jealousy in Sophia's heart grow uncontrollably!

She looked at Einol and said unwillingly:

"I'm 17 years old and already a Silver-rank card maker."

Among the students in the entire Magic Engineering Academy who had just been promoted to the second grade, only a few had reached the Silver-rank!

"Why would you rather admire him, who hasn't even obtained registered card maker status yet, than pay more attention to me? I've worked so hard!"

The emotions Sophia had been suppressing in her heart for a long time finally burst out uncontrollably at this moment, telling Einol the truth.

Einol's expression was blank.

"Sophia, so that's what you think... I've always valued you..."

Einol had never seen Sophia express such straightforward feelings to him before. He was stunned and didn't know how to comfort her, even struggling to form his words.

When he spoke, he exhaled white mist, and he slowly felt the cold temperature.

"Your Highness, I should go."

Lan Qi secretly patted Einol's back, then signaled to him with his eyes that it was time to sit beside Sophia and comfort her.

"Your Highness Einol, Miss Sophia, I have to hurry to the fifth floor's exam hall."

Lan Qi looked at the time and quickly stood up to bid farewell to the two.

"Oh, okay."

Einol nodded, seeming to understand Lan Qi's meaning.

Soon, Hyperion also quickly left with Lan Qi.

She secretly looked back and found that Einol had sat down beside Sophia and was slowly chatting with her, and the atmosphere was gradually improving. It seemed that a strong dose of medicine was needed between the awkward Sophia and the straightforward Einol to push their romance forward.

"Lan Qi, did you foresee that only this way could they reveal their true feelings?"

Hyperion couldn't help but ask curiously.

At this point.

Lan Qi finally lowered his head, breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled faintly.

"No, I'm not a love master. Everything is just natural and comes to fruition on its own. That's all."

After saying that, he looked at Hyperion gently,

"It wasn't easy being stared at by Sophia, right? Hyperion, you've worked hard too."

However.

Hearing this, Hyperion suddenly felt scared and began to doubt what Lan Qi's smile just now meant.

Whether it was the pure thoughts of a little angel or the vengeful psychology of a little devil, she couldn't say!

Hyperion suddenly thought of a problem.

It wouldn't matter if Lan Qi didn't perform well in today's card maker exam.

But if Lan Qi really got a Silver-rank directly, then when Sophia recalled what she had said: "I'm 17 years old and already a Silver-rank card maker," and looked at Lan Qi.

Then Sophia would be terribly embarrassed in front of her favorite Prince Einol, because Lan Qi was only 16 years old.

And if, just if, Lan Qi accidentally overperformed today and got a Silver-rank or even...

Hyperion didn't dare to continue thinking!

I coded with all my strength today. More than 9,000 words took more than ten hours to burn out. The time spent revising the text was longer than the time spent coding... I will also try my best to add more updates tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)