054: Still Eating You for a Lifetime, and the Wind Breathing

Over the past two days, Susan had also made some discreet inquiries through her own channels regarding the Military Intelligence Department of the Imperial Inquisition.

Its reputation was appalling.

More than one person had told Susan that the Military Intelligence Department was packed with cold-blooded executioners who showed no mercy to anyone, even their own kin. They warned her that unless she had absolutely no other choice, she should never get involved with such ruthless individuals.

Susan was an aristocrat, and the majority of her social circle consisted of aristocrats as well.

From Susan's perspective, the nobility's attitude toward the Military Intelligence Department was evenly split between disgust and fear.

During their last meeting, Lee Tea had seemed like nothing more than a low-ranking officer in Military Intelligence, but now... he had been promoted, and not in any ordinary way.

"However..."

"Even though the incident with the Saint's Relic has concluded, because of that accursed artifact, one sergeant lost his life and another was forced into suspension."

"I was merely acting within the scope of my duties, and you already know the outcome."

"But if they ever find out that this matter was connected to anyone else, they will hunt it down to the very end."

Susan: "..."

"Furthermore, that Saint's Relic is far more bizarre than you described. It's likely of great importance to the Black Fog Church as well."

"If anyone from the Black Fog Church ever questions you, make sure you deny knowing anything about it. Those lunatics are all completely unhinged; they wouldn't hesitate to throw their lives away just to drag an opponent down with them."

"..."

"Please rest assured, I won't say a word."

Lee Tea lowered his hand, opened his eyes, and sat up.

Gently pinching the young woman's chin, Doctor Lee Tea said, "Actually, it's nothing major. Just as I mentioned before, this matter means I have you hooked for the rest of your life."

More than an hour later, Charlie's Psychological Clinic reopened for business.

Lee Tea returned to his seat downstairs, sipping tea and reading the newspaper.

Nurse Susan tidied up the bed and went out to buy lunch.

Must admit, employing a young woman as a nurse had one distinct advantage: she was fresh and tender.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the second patron of Charlie's Clinic left happily.

Since Lee Tea had only utilized his conversational skills, the consultation fee was a mere two silver coins.

By this time, Nurse Susan should have finished her shift.

Lee Tea could also tell that as time passed, the frequency with which the young woman glanced toward the grandfather clock was increasing.

Trading list: [Susan's Fear], valued at 3.5 silver coins.

Putting the system's valuation criteria aside for a moment, her fear of Lee Tea was genuine.

Lee Tea had her sit down, then spoke in as amiable a tone as possible: "Susan, I am in urgent need of some money right now."

Hearing this, Susan immediately straightened her back and assumed a listening posture.

Intimidation in the morning followed by demanding money in the afternoon fit their relationship and logic quite well.

Lee Tea told her not to be alarmed: "I'm borrowing money, not robbing you. I will pay it back."

Susan: "Yes."

Lee Tea said, "I need two hundred gold coins."

Susan: "..."

The young woman desperately wanted to say that her brain was already racing to scrape together funds, but two hundred gold coins was an astronomical sum she simply did not possess!

Knowing that a young aristocrat with virtually no claim to any family inheritance had limited financial resources, Lee Tea added, "How much do you have?"

The young woman lowered her head. "Twenty or thirty gold coins..."

"So little?"

"I'm sorry, Doctor. I've never managed my finances. This money is just the rental income from a shop in the inner city that my father gave me during my coming-of-age ceremony."

Fearing that Lee Tea would be displeased, she added, "I can earn money! Father said that if I manage to marry into an Earl's estate, he will give me a huge dowry!"

The moment she said it, Susan regretted it.

Setting aside the sheer difficulty of a baron's daughter marrying into an Earl's family, a girl like Susan who couldn't even finish a single lunch would probably find it hard enough to get married at all under normal circumstances.

Besides,

Marriage.

What on earth was she trying to achieve by bringing up marriage in front of Lee Tea?

Susan: "I'm sorry, I'm so foolish, I didn't mean to..."

Lee Tea waved his hand.

To be honest, even if he and Susan were on proper friendly terms, it was impossible for him to touch someone else's dowry.

This wasn't a matter of morality; it was simply too volatile to mess with.

What fun was a bare stash of two hundred gold coins?

Lord Kevin would most likely convert the wealth into tangible assets—cattle, sheep, slaves, and so on.

If Lee Tea took those and sold them,

was he planning to go to war with the Baron's family, or the Earl's family?

Lee Tea asked, "Is there a more reliable method? Ideally one that would make Lord Kevin willingly part with his money of his own accord."

It was quite something for a daughter to scheme against her own father's property alongside another man.

Yet Susan was indeed racking her brains, thinking as hard as she could.

She didn't know if she could come up with a good solution.

However, if she dared to be perfunctory, the man beside her would undoubtedly fly into a rage.

And Lee Tea's wrath was certainly not something she could endure.

Suddenly,

the young woman's large eyes lit up: "Doctor, I've thought of a brilliant idea—the Magic Academy!"

The Magic Academy?

Lee Tea was quite familiar with the term, given that he had an ice mage who had failed the four-plus-four right by his side.

Susan explained, "When I was young, both of my older brothers and I were tested for magical talent. I had the best aptitude among us, but my talent wasn't exceptional, and since I was a girl, my father gave up on investing in my cultivation."

"However, if I can obtain an admission letter to a Magic Academy—it doesn't even have to be a top-tier institution—my father would be willing to pay for it."

Buying a diploma?

This was even more hardcore than Old Chuck's two-and-a-half-year study duration.

If an aristocratic girl with magical talent entered a Magic Academy for advanced studies and returned home after two or three years, she could easily secure the title of a First-Tier Mage.

By then, the difficulty of an aristocratic magical maiden marrying into an Earl's family would drop by at least half.

Mages were likewise considered high-end professionals within aristocratic circles, regardless of gender.

The children of mages also had a much higher probability of possessing magical talent than the children of ordinary people.

Lee Tea stood up.

He walked in a circle around Susan, who was still attired in her nurse's uniform.

He smiled quite heartily.

"Miss Susan, if I haven't misunderstood, it goes like this:

Behind me stands the Military Intelligence Department; you acquire the admission letter through me, I get the money I want, and you leave Saint Andrew City to go to school, thereby regaining your freedom from this moment on..."

Susan hurriedly dropped to her knees: "I didn't, I didn't think like that, truly, Doctor Lee Tea!"

Lee Tea said, "No, this idea of yours is wonderful. Give me a minute."

With that,

Lee Tea opened the trading system and purchased one hour of [Susan's Time].

"Ding-dong"~

Prompt: Transaction successful, -50 copper coins!

...

A noble young lady's time was still quite valuable.

Current status——

[Name: Lee Tea]

[Occupation: None]

[Level: 12 (--)]

[Attack Power: 105]

[First-Tier Adventurer, Baron's Daughter, Agility Enhancement LV1, Resilience LV1, Water Affinity LV1, Wind Breath LV3 (Unawakened)]

...

[Wind Breath LV3 (Unawakened)]: Rare wind magic talent. All things possess breath; feel the beauty of nature, the rhythm of the gentle breeze, the romance of the howling gale... You have heard the echo of the wind.

After awakening: Wind magic/skill damage +30%, wind magic/skill learning speed +30%, casting speed +10%, with a chance to comprehend [Cast on the Move].