Cold mist rolled in, quickly swallowing up Rafael.
In a flash, he disappeared beneath the surface.
He coughed up a stream of bubbles and went under. Craig kept count, then hauled him out.
“That’s better than before. Sixty seconds, twenty more than last time,” Craig said.
Rafael lay sprawled on the ground with his eyes rolled back, silent.
E55 vouchers
Linda took one look at him and completely gave up on the idea of asking about fivefold affinities techniques.
Right now, Rafael was nowhere near the powerhouse he’d become in the future.
She’d braced herself for this.
But seeing just how wide the gap was, Linda still couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
She couldn’t help but wonder what Rafael had gone through to become the man he was in the future, cold, silent, and meticulously calculating.
Right now, he was just obsessed with money.
‘Could this guy really become the king of intel a hundred years in the next life?‘ Linda wondered.
She figured his name would definitely be on the list of the crew running things at the village gate.
“Linda, come over here,” Craig beckoned, his smile gentle and inviting.
But after witnessing the way he’d booted Rafael, Linda knew better than to underestimate him.
His kicks were deadly accurate.
Craig spoke softly, “This is the Cleansing Basin. It can refine your channels and cleanse your core, but everyone reacts differently depending on their constitution.
“Since it’s your first time, you don’t need to stay in too long. Just step in and feel it.
“If you start feeling uncomfortable, just let me know, and I’ll come help you myself.”
As he spoke, Craig handed Linda a clean set of clothes.
And a signature purple hairband for First Unity Coven mages.
“You’re a girl. So, I’ll be waiting for you at the bottom of the steps. If you need anything, just holler. I’ll hear you,” Craig said. Then he hauled Rafael off by the collar and left.
Rafael didn’t even have time to change his soaked clothes.
“Come on. You’re at tier five of the Mana–Stoking Phase. You should at least know how to use a spell to dry your clothes off,” Craig teased.
Rafael whimpered.
1/5
4:33 pm
Chapter 10
“Why aren’t you talking?” Craig asked.
Rafael groaned.
“Did the soak fry your brain or something?” Craig teased.
Linda thought to herself, ‘Should I remind him about the pill he just gave Rafael? Did he already forget?‘
The two of them left the Hoarfrost Basin and headed down the stone steps, one after another.
Linda watched until their figures disappeared from view.
She set the clean clothes down on the ground.
In the next moment, a stone platform rose up, gently lifting her clothes off the ground.
55 vouchers
Soft veils drifted down around her, shielding the area from view. Even the chill from the Cleansing Basin seemed to lose its
bite.
Linda’s expression shifted slightly. “A formation?”
She was getting the VIP treatment compared to Rafael.
She slipped off her outer robe, left in just her inner clothes, and barefoot, she stepped right into the basin.
The cold mist from the Cleansing Basin curled around her skin. Linda braced herself for a freezing shock, but what she felt was gentle warmth instead.
A soft, comforting heat spread through her.
The warmth swirled around her ankles, winding its way upward. Linda didn’t feel any discomfort. Instead, it was gentle and soothing.
She tried it, and it wasn’t uncomfortable at all.
So she simply jumped right in.
Warmth. That was Linda’s very first impression.
The warmth from the Cleansing Basin melted away the early winter chill, and that lost, lonely feeling of having nowhere to belong after being kicked out.
Linda felt every last bit of tension leave her body and mind, relaxing deeper than she’d thought possible.
She almost suspected Craig was playing a prank; this didn’t feel like some legendary Cleansing Basin, it was more like soaking in a hot spring.
But those strands of energy slipping into her spell circuits were quietly patching up the damage she’d done when she ruined her own spell circuits.
They knitted together every little fracture.
Her spell circuits opened up wide, letting her mana run wild before it all rushed straight into her core.
The five elemental energies swirling in her core swelled with power.
2/5
4:33 pm
Chapter 10
55 vouchers
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Byron and Kermit were deep in conversation. “Hand this kid over to me,” Byron said, his tone firm.
Kermit, who was usually all smiles, actually looked a bit troubled. “Byron, it’s not that I don’t want to help. This is the first time you’ve ever asked me for a student, and of course, I’d want to help you out. But this kid… you’re not the right person to teach her.”
Byron’s brows shot up. “Not the right person?”
‘It was not that Kermit wouldn’t let me have the kid, but that I’m not the right person to teach her, he fumed inwardly.
That was basically a dare.
Kermit shrugged. “Yeah, you just can’t.”
Byron crossed his arms, clearly annoyed. “Come on, Kermit, if you wanted to make excuses, you could’ve picked a better one. But this? Now I really want to hear why I can’t teach the kid?”
Kermit stroked his chin. “Didn’t you notice how unusual this kid’s magical affinities are?”
“Celestial Affinity,” Byron said, arms folded. “I caught that right away.”
That was exactly why he wanted to take her under his wing.
‘A prodigy like this? You almost never see one; it’s one in a million. And that kind of foundation and grit? Even rarer,‘ he thought.
Byron was honestly shocked that none of the other covens out there had noticed a genius like this.
But now that this kid had landed in First Unity Coven’s lap, there was no way he was letting her become just another face in the crowd.
“It’s a Celestial Affinity,” Kermit said, his voice heavy with meaning. “But not just one, she’s got fivefold affinities.”
Byron was stunned.
“Most people would be lucky to have a single Celestial Affinity. But this girl? She’s got five,” Kermit explained.
Byron didn’t say a word for ages, just stared at Kermit with shock. He knew Kermit never misjudged anyone.
“I can’t teach her, yeah,” Byron admitted. He wasn’t upset, just confused. “But how did you agree to let Laura take her in?”
A Celestial affinity was the absolute top tier of elemental bonds.
But Celestial fivefold affinities? That was a whole different story. It was called a Dormant–Tier Affinity. No matter how hard one trained, they’d never break through to the Astral Sovereign Form stage.
They’d be stuck at the Condensation of the Primal Core for the rest of your life, unless they destroy four of the magical affinities and keep just one.
But that kind of thing was strictly forbidden among the covens.
No one knew if the remaining magical affinity would even be able to cultivate after destroying the other four.
And even if it could, whether it could still keep its original rank was still to be seen.
3/5
4:33 pm
Chapter 10
No one’d ever tried it.
No one’d ever had the guts to risk it.
EX 55 vouchers
And the First Unity Coven would never do something like that. It would be destroying her talent, going against the natural order.
Kermit just grinned. “True, neither of us can teach her. But there is someone who can.”
Byron instantly knew who Kermit meant, giving him a knowing look. “Let it go, Kermit. He’s sworn he’ll never take a student, not in this lifetime.”
Kermit grinned. “Who knows, maybe he’ll make an exception.”
Byron arched a brow, folding his arms. “Wanna bet?”
“Deal,” Kermit said, thinking it over for a second. “If you lose, you’ll have to take Rafael under your wing.”
“That’s just evil,” Byron groaned.
Kermit grinned. “Ready to admit defeat, Byron?”
“I’ll take that bet. I just don’t buy that he’ll ever take a student,” Byron said, getting up and heading out of the hall.
After a few steps, he tossed over his shoulder, “I’m heading down the mountain for a few days. Take care of things up here for me, will you?”
Kermit asked, “Is something wrong?”
Byron said, “The kitchen’s only got enough food for three more days. I’m heading down the mountain to earn some cash.”
“Appreciate it, Byron,” Kermit said.
Byron shot back, “Why don’t you ask Laurence when he’s finally going to get those crops growing? If he doesn’t hurry up, we won’t be able to afford to buy food anymore.”
Kermit looked embarrassed. “Having abstained from earthly food for so long, we’ve totally forgotten how to grow regular
crops.
“Laurence has been trying for over ten years, though. I’ll do my best, too.”
Byron didn’t even bother to look back as he walked away.
Taking care of bunch of kids was no joke.
entors had ever taken in students before. After years holed up in seclusion, grinding away at their y suddenly realized that if they didn’t start recruiting students now, the First Unity Coven would really be
he 101st generation was totally empty; no one was left at all.
To think, after all that, this was the reason the elder mages of First Unity Coven were driven out of seclusion.
4/5
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
