Uncle

His eyes quickly but politely scanned around Victoria’s room.

Soon, Sphinx’s gaze settled on a letter on Victoria’s bedside table.

Victoria blocked Sphinx’s line of sight.

Sphinx showed an apologetic expression for being rude, but his mouth still spoke some words.

“Senior, Collins said you haven’t had dinner yet. For a girl, dinner is actually quite important. It’s not just about the skin, but also about more critical endocrine issues.”

Sphinx opened the box of the small cake halfway, revealing its incredibly tempting interior.

A sweet fragrance spread out, and Victoria swallowed a mouthful of saliva uncontrollably.

“This is the dinner I prepared for you. The sugar content of this cake is very low, and the cream is also fat-free. It’s a low-sugar, low-fat healthy food. Even girls who are dieting can occasionally eat some.”

Victoria sat down in front of Sphinx.

Under the temptation of the food, her expression finally relaxed a little.

\============

Collins glanced toward the distant laboratory, his face showing some unwillingness.

The man walking ahead, dressed in a high-ranking mage’s robe, noticed Collins’ subtle movements.

He also turned his head following Collins’ gaze, and when their eyes both fell on the same spot, the man couldn’t help but laugh.

“It’s not like you’re never coming back. Collins, why do you look like this is a life-and-death farewell?”

Collins turned his head and said with obvious reluctance:

“Uncle, you don’t understand. My experiment is almost a success.”

Slok stroked his beard and said disdainfully:

“If you want to do experiments, just come to my lab. Those instruments you’re using are all civilian-grade equipment. In terms of precision, they’re far worse. How can they compare to the high-precision magical instruments developed by the military in my lab?”

Slok—Collins’ father’s elder brother—was a Ninth-Tier High Mage.

He had his own magical laboratory and was also the deputy director of the government’s Magic Research Institute.

Because he had a high chance of advancing to Grand Mage, he had always been one of the top candidates for the position of director of the Institute.

And the current official head of the Institute was Collins’ grandfather, the Grand Mage Entis.

The Collins family’s direct bloodline had always held immense power and resources within the government’s magical system.

However, that was the direct line.

Collins’ father, though also a son of Entis, had broken off relations with him long ago.

He now worked as the head of the research department in a high-level magic corporation.

Collins always felt that, as an Eighth-Tier High Mage, his father was overqualified for the job, though the company offered extremely generous pay and benefits.

His father never talked much about family matters when Collins was young.

Only after Collins awakened his family’s bloodline did his father start cautiously explaining things:

Once you awaken the family bloodline, the family will definitely take over the education of the next generation.

Even though he had severed ties with his own father, he couldn’t protect Collins for long.

But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Having multiple choices in life is better than having none.

From that moment on, Collins began receiving both the family’s training and the freedom to study the magic he wanted.

However, according to the old rules, now shouldn’t be the time for family training.

“Um… Uncle Slok?”

“Yes?”

“I remember the next special training is during summer vacation, right?”

“No. I’m not taking you for special training this time. It’s because my father—your grandfather—has something important. He’s summoning all the capable juniors of the family to attend an event, sort of like an auction meeting.”

Collins looked completely puzzled.

An auction? What was he supposed to do there?

Slok smiled.

“Alright, you’ll understand when we get there. At worst, what do you think your grandfather would do to you?”

Slok led Collins out of the school.

Outside the gate, a seemingly ordinary vehicle was parked on the side.

But the moment Collins laid eyes on it, something stirred in his heart.

Slok smiled warmly at him.

“Lofen, John, and Diana are all inside. Father is there too.”

This was the Grand Mage Entis’ personal vehicle.

Unlike ordinary means of transport, which mostly relied on mechanical technology (even with some magical components), this vehicle was entirely constructed from magic.

Everything—from starting it to controlling it—had to be operated by a mage.

And most importantly—

Slok led Collins into the car.

From the outside, it didn’t look large, but the moment they entered, the space expanded dramatically.

Inside, the interior was as large as an ordinary football field.

At the level of a Grand Mage, controlling space was already possible.

Spatial folding magic was no longer unreachable for a Grand Mage.

Still, to Collins, these mystical space-control techniques were nothing short of divine.

“Let’s go. Father is waiting for us.”