Zheng Qing was grabbed by Thomas on Saturday night.

He was back at school by Sunday.

Aside from some level of psychological shock, there was nothing much wrong with his body—losing a bit of blood and a few taels of flesh was practically negligible damage for a Wizard.

Although from a health perspective, the healers suggested the boy stay in the hospital a few more days to observe whether there were any other aftereffects. But considering that every extra day in the hospital meant missing fifteen hours of classes, plus the pressing pressure of graduation, Zheng Qing ultimately declined the suggestion and was discharged that very night.

The next day was Monday.

It was also the tenth week of the second semester of sophomore year; the calendar had already reached late April.

For most students at First University, the tenth week was equivalent to the start of a whole new cycle, because they had just taken their midterm exams the previous week. But for Zheng Qing, the tenth week was nothing more than another milestone marker in this semester’s long marathon, not even a supply station.

Considering that they would be entering May this weekend, counting carefully, there was less than two months left until the final week at the end of June.

Looking at the calendar, Zheng Qing felt an inexplicable flutter of panic.

In daily life, this panic manifested as him being a bit absentminded in class.

—Pop!

"Snap out of it!"

While they were eating lunch, Xin Fat Man snapped his fingers in front of Zheng Qing’s eyes, reminding the young teaching assistant: "You were already kind of out of it in class today... You’re not in the Crow’s lab anymore, it’s lunchtime now!"

Because the incident involved a school teaching assistant defecting, according to standard procedure, Zheng Qing was supposed to sign a series of Silence Contracts.

But perhaps realizing that ordinary contracts had limited binding power on a certain someone, or perhaps getting a headache from seeing that thick stack of historical contracts he had already signed, after the final investigation interview, the School Works Committee didn’t give Zheng Qing any new contracts. They just simply reminded him not to tell too many people about the incident.

So, when he came back to the dorm on Sunday night, Xiao Xiao only casually asked why he hadn’t gone to the class meeting, and Zheng Qing couldn’t wait to dump the previous night’s experience on his two roommates in one go.

He desperately needed other people to share that mental pressure with him.

"—Creamy chicken sandwich, coleslaw, yogurt, thanks." Xiao Xiao, standing beside him, politely thanked the Sprite holding the menu, then turned his head to Zheng Qing: "What are you eating?"

Zheng Qing let out a sigh.

"Spinach salad with dressing... that’s it."

He really didn’t have much of an appetite.

Even though he’d spent less than half a day in the school hospital, he felt as exhausted as if he’d been hospitalized for a month last summer. Nikita’s bloody appearance after tearing off her skin and her standing naked in front of the dressing mirror kept weaving together in his dreams last night, leaving him unsure whether what he’d had were nightmares or pleasant dreams.

The good news was, when he got up in the morning, the Nightmare Doll under his pillow hadn’t lost its head.

The bad news was, he’d felt drained all morning, a bit sickly.

Fortunately, the two classes on Monday morning—Old Yao from Magic Spell class knew what he’d gone through over the weekend, so he was very tolerant of the boy’s tendency to zone out, and even allowed him to skip the homework this week; and since Ancient Magic Arts Study was a class you attended invisible, as long as he didn’t snore in class, Professor Xihua wouldn’t have much else to demand of him.

"—Don’t you feel awkward when you order?" Xin Fat Man boomed, mocking Zheng Qing’s appetite: "You eat so little, how did you even survive in the Crow’s lab! ... Excuse me, I’ll have a small roast chicken, one portion of stir-fried green okra, two pieces of salt-and-pepper ribs, one portion of leafy kale with vinaigrette, blanched wormwood, a spicy claypot rice, an apple, and an extra serving of cottage cheese. For drinks, a cup of bitter tea, my internal heat’s been high lately, no appetite at all."

Zheng Qing looked at the Sprite scrambling to take the Fat Wizard’s order, and kept his silence.

Not until the spinach salad was served.

He dipped a ball of spinach in the dressing and shoved it into his mouth, then weakly responded to the Fat Wizard’s mocking: "I survived on sheer good luck... You don’t feel awkward being that fat, why should I feel awkward?"

Now that was getting personal.

Xiao Xiao immediately noticed the way the Fat Wizard’s eyes went wide, and promptly cut in, interrupting the buildup to his roar: "—Let’s not talk about this useless crap. Speaking of yesterday, why didn’t you ask Furry Bean for help, have him run and tip someone off for you? And that Little Green Snake in your ear, it’s pretty amazing, right? Why didn’t you ask it to help?"

When he mentioned the ’Little Green Snake’, the PhD student instinctively lowered his voice. As if if he spoke a bit louder, a gigantic head would pop out of the void and swallow him whole.

Xin Fat Man had always been very interested in Zheng Qing’s Green Snake—especially after that accident during the Anti-Magic Festival—so he immediately abandoned his post-mockery rant about his figure, stuffed his mouth full of roast chicken, and quietly waited for Zheng Qing’s answer.

Hearing the words ’Little Green Snake’, Zheng Qing couldn’t help scratching his ear.

"I called, but it was no use."

Chewing the spinach ball, he only felt the taste in his mouth getting blander and blander: "That grandpa in my ear—you guys know how fierce it is. If it doesn’t want to move, what can I do... As for Furry Bean, I’m guessing there was something off about that lab. I called him several times, but the dog never came."

Meow?

Something furry brushed against his feet.

Zheng Qing lowered his head; the Gouzi who hadn’t come no matter how he called on Saturday night was now squatting by his feet, tongue lolling, tail wagging, staring up at him like an idiot.

"You don’t show up when you’re actually needed." He shook his head.

The dog’s eyes were all innocence, and its tail wagged even more vigorously.

"Yo, Furry Bean’s here, long time no see!" The Fat Wizard greeted the dog, took out a small plate, and gave it a piece of salt-and-pepper rib.

The dog happily gnawed away.

Zheng Qing shrugged, pulled his gaze back, and looked at Xiao Xiao: "—This guy here, it’s a good thing I didn’t manage to call him over back then. Otherwise, Thomas or Nikita wouldn’t have needed to lift a finger, that Faceless Demon alone could’ve swallowed him whole."

At the mention of those two names.

The atmosphere at the table immediately grew heavier.

Xiao Xiao finished the last bite of his sandwich, licked the bread crumbs off his fingertips, and let out a long breath: "...A lot of people’s lives are like a quagmire. If they just lie flat and let themselves go, they can hang on for quite a while; the more they struggle and flail, the faster they sink."

"That actually makes sense."

The Fat Wizard’s eyes lit up; he instantly tossed aside the half-eaten roast chicken, took out his notebook, and scribbled it down quickly. Then he looked expectantly at Zheng Qing: "—When are you going to sit for an interview with me and talk about your experience of being kidnapped by a Black Wizard? Don’t worry, I won’t use the real names of anyone involved in the article!"

"Experience? What experience... When you’re lying on a lab table, completely unable to move, the only thing you actually become aware of is that the most important thing in the World is Magic Power. Then your mind gets extremely sensitive, because you can feel the Magic Power right there within reach, but you can’t touch it... that feeling sucks."

"Alpha People might have a different opinion."

Xiao Xiao raised the yogurt in his hand and lazily quipped: "If they were tied to a lab table, they’d probably think, ’So, freedom really is the most important thing in the World.’"

The motto of Alpha Academy was "Freedom and Justice," so from that perspective, the PhD student’s speculation was indeed quite reasonable.

Xin Fat Man scratched his nose with his Feather Pen, putting on the standard attitude of a Jiuyou People when it came to this topic: "Tsk... the school really ought to let every Alpha student experience that hunger you feel when you’re Bind."