It seemed like the cub had become an abridged version of a back-up mate.

Aresia shook her head at Amos’s behavior.

Amos reluctantly let go of the cub and turned to Duru, who was still shocked. “Shouldn’t we thank your teacher? Is Isis available? We should express our gratitude.”

While comforting the cub, Amos took the opportunity to insert a comment, “We should thank her. Aresia, can we give the Gryphon leader to Isis as a gift?”

They had discussed the reward for a long time yesterday. After finally getting close to the Gryphon leader, Amos felt that gifting it to Isis would be appropriate. After all, she had caught it, and it was intended for her in the first place.

Aresia shook her head. “The teacher doesn’t need a mount. She has always been accustomed to using teleportation magic.”

Upon hearing this, Amos realized that it made sense. Although it was a bit disappointing, he felt somewhat relieved to let go of the idea of having a mount.

He pondered, “How should we repay her then?”

Aresia waved her hand dismissively. “The teacher doesn’t expect any reward. It’s true. Don’t worry about it. We should focus on other matters, and I will handle the rest.”

Amos knew that Aresia had it under control, so he no longer worried about the issue.

“Should we still thank her?” Amos asked.

Aresia shook her head. “The teacher is a bit aloof and doesn’t like meeting people. Besides, she is busy in the laboratory. We can thank her after she finishes her work. You all must be tired from the journey. Rest for now, and I’ll return to the laboratory.”

After saying that, Aresia left. Amos and Duru looked at each other for a long time, then sighed in resignation.

It was indeed not easy to ask a high-level mage for help, and they couldn’t even thank her properly.

After enjoying the food prepared by the kitchen, they noticed a piece of meat that the magical beasts ate. Amos asked Aresia about it, and only then did he confirm that Isis truly didn’t need a seventh-level magical beast as a mount. Helping them capture the Gryphon pack was indeed a favor.

Amos couldn’t help but think about the local specialties brought by the ruler of the sea. Had they arrived yet?

Aresia returned to the laboratory and immersed herself in her work. The materials that the mages had helped process were already delivered. Aresia was now focusing on the next step of the experiment. The construction of the teleportation circle base had reached an early stage, and they had to make two bases this time. One would be placed in the Duke’s territory, and the other in the Duke’s Mansion in Holy Lotean City.

The materials for both bases required a ton of preparation. Fortunately, they had suitable equipment for mechanical integration. Although the volume of each integration was not too large, it still required a considerable amount of time to gather all the materials. It would take at least another twenty days to complete the bases.

After that, they would build the teleportation circle and continue with the enchantments and other subsequent tasks. It seemed that it would take another ten or so days to complete everything. They would be working overtime during the remaining time of the summer vacation.

It was a pity that they couldn’t ask other mages to help. It was difficult to find someone as reliable as the shopkeeper.

Aresia was truly busy. When Amos and the others returned, they hardly saw her in the laboratory. Due to the influence of the monsoon, the temperature during the summer wasn’t too high, but the power of the lingering summer heat was still intimidating. They couldn’t bear to be outside in the scorching sun.

Fortunately, the situation in the Duke’s territory remained stable. However, the appearance of the castle’s defensive towers hadn’t changed much, except for the modifications made to some windows to make the interior more bright. Other than that, the towers still looked like abandoned structures. But the external changes weren’t important. It was to prevent other mages from knowing about it. Aresia believed that the mage guild wouldn’t care much about these matters.

The preparations should have been made earlier, not just relying on Father’s connections. They should have known already.

The interior of the Mage Tower was being renovated at a faster pace than the Alchemy Workshop. It would be completed in about a week or so. After finishing the teleportation circle, they planned to make some slight modifications to the interior of the Mage Tower to make it feel more familiar.

The winter break was approaching, but with no school activities, they still had only two weeks of vacation. Time was tight.

For now, the pressure was temporarily relieved, and Aresia finally returned to the laboratory.

However, she didn’t come back as herself. She disguised herself as Isis, using the appearance to cover Aresia’s identity. The two of them walked around the castle’s spacious courtyard, discussing matters in various places. From an outsider’s perspective, it seemed like a normal conversation between a teacher and her student, with Isis taking the lead.

This was what Aresia had arranged.

The research on long-distance teleportation circles was not led by Aresia. It was the domain of the renowned mage, Isis. No one would doubt the power of an eighth-level mage or try to uncover the secrets of a young noblewoman, even if she was a Duke’s daughter.

Aresia believed that it was safer to present herself as a student learning from her teacher and who needed guidance.

As soon as they left the laboratory, the news quickly spread to the rest of the castle. Charlie was already waiting for them.

Charlie, the actual person in charge of the castle, was well-informed about the castle’s affairs. Even though Amos had requested others to keep Isis’ identity secret, Charlie didn’t hide anything from him. It wasn’t because he wanted to conceal Isis’ identity, but rather because Charlie was loyal to the Rogest family. Amos trusted him.

In fact, Charlie had already sensed something when Aresia brought a bunch of seafood as a gift. He placed the seafood in the cold storage. Although it had been processed, with skin and bones removed, anyone familiar with seafood could easily distinguish the original sea creature from the pieces of meat. The characteristics of the meat couldn’t be concealed. With some knowledge of the subject, one could determine the creature’s level.

Charlie sensed that the level of the sea creature meat ranged from level five to even level six or seven. He confirmed this by giving some of the meat to three level six mages for their assessment.

Although Charlie himself couldn’t determine the exact type of sea creature, he could at least understand that the meat came from sea creatures of a certain level. This made him realize how formidable Isis was.

The meat of sea creatures, which required significant sacrifices to defeat, was being sliced and given as a gift. It wasn’t just a small amount; there were over ten liters of meat from sea creatures. This was something that a seventh-level mage couldn’t achieve easily. Isis had effortlessly accomplished it. What level was she?

Amos wasn’t sure, but Charlie had already figured it out.

“Is there anything I can assist you with, Lady Isis, Lady Aresia?”