Days as a Spiritual Mentor in American Comics-Chapter 4598 - 3679: Problems at the Magic Academy (Part 1)

The autumn in Massachusetts is marked by high skies and light clouds, with the unique colorful autumn scenery typical of northeastern American cities. Vast patches of beech, maple, and oak trees paint the distant mountains with layers of color. Amid the golden hues are vibrant reds, tranquil greens, and deep grays flowing together.

A Bentley car arrived at the entrance of the Graylock Nature Reserve. Dressed in suits, Strange and Shiller got out from either side of the car. Shiller took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air, adjusted his cuff with one hand, and stomped his foot.

"Let's go." Strange pointed in a direction. The two headed towards the interior of the reserve.

"We purchased a piece of land on the east side of the Graylock Nature Reserve, originally planned for a Respiratory Health Research Center, about 4,000 acres..."

"That large?" Shiller asked, somewhat surprised. He calculated in his mind, roughly 16 square kilometers. Then he asked with some confusion, "What were they originally planning to build here?"

"A research center aimed at improving the respiratory health of the human race."

"Does researching the respiratory health of humans require such a large place?"

"You've asked the right person," Strange turned and said to Shiller, "The last time I encountered any internal medicine knowledge about the respiratory system was during my undergrad."

Shiller sighed and said, "That just shows you must have excellent surgical skills."

Then he asked, "So why aren't they building it anymore?"

"I heard it was because it was too close to the nature reserve, thus violating certain provisions of an environmental law."

"That certainly can't be the reason." Shiller shook his head and said, "I guess they were counting on some big shot coming here to recuperate, but unfortunately they kicked the bucket prematurely. Have they started construction?"

"Not yet," Strange said, "If they had laid the foundations, I wouldn't have bought this land. We're not here to study the human respiratory system. A castle is something entirely different."

"It is indeed beneficial to human respiratory systems here." Shiller nodded saying, "The oxygen content should be quite high. I feel breathing is easy and my spirits are high."

"Exactly. I ask the magicians to stay in places with good natural environments whenever possible. It's not just for them to enjoy the natural scenery, but because high oxygen levels help them conduct continuous negotiations with devils, avoiding running out of breath."

"Then you built your headquarters in one of the least oxygen-rich places below the atmosphere?"

"That only highlights the strength of Karmatiji's mages. We can even engage in endless conversations with Demon Gods at 4,000 meters above sea level, making even them impressed by our willpower."

"Okay, you're right," Shiller could only nod and say.

The two walked to the reception center of the reserve. A balding man with a little mustache greeted them.

"Haverly Mont, director of the Graylock Mountain Nature Reserve, and also the environmental consultant responsible for the Berkshire region's ecological environment. If you have any questions, you can come to me."

Shiller stepped forward and shook his hand. Strange followed closely behind. Shiller stood in the center of the reception hall, his hands folded in front of him, and said, "Someone should have already contacted you before we came. This is a big project. We need to confirm every procedure before starting, especially on environmental issues. We don't want to bring any pollution that might cause damage to the natural resources of the nature reserve, so we need to know which construction methods are acceptable."

"Thank you for coming." Mont said, "We're actually a small place here, with the natural environment being our only claim to fame. Therefore, the local residents attach great importance to it."

"Yes, we do have such concerns." Strange said, "I heard you've experienced 13 protest activities in a month just because of an excessive use of mud and sand on a country road."

"In fact, this only applies to projects at the township level. But you two—I know, you may be big figures from New York or Washington. The project you want to build here is not something us country folks can stop."

"Don't complain, Mr. Mont. We're coming ahead of schedule because we want to know how to build what we need without damaging the natural environment. If we didn't care about the environment, we wouldn't have reached out to you."

Mont didn't show resentment, he just said somewhat helplessly, "I'm not an extreme environmentalist, but I must tell you, as long as the building you want to construct is modern architecture, it will surely cause a certain degree of damage to the local environment. This is completely unavoidable."

"Are you sure you know what kind of building we're planning to construct?" Strange asked.

"I heard it's some kind of school? Is it a community college?"

"Not even close." Strange said somewhat helplessly, "It's a magical school."

Mont was stunned and said, "What?"

"A magical school. Here, we will admit students from different countries and regions, even from different cosmos. They will study magic here to contribute to the safety of human civilization and the protection of Earth."

"Oh my God." Monte exclaimed, "You mean those news reports about magic on TV are true?"

"They have always been true." Strange said.

"Does the Church agree?" Monte asked again.

"We are not a heresy." Strange shook his head helplessly and said, "If it weren't for a junior senator from Massachusetts hinting at this week's Senate meeting that he intends to use his veto power against the establishment of the Magic Academy, we wouldn't have come here for an inspection in person."

"Sounds like you are really big shots."

"Let me put it this way, my status in the magic realm is equivalent to the Pope." Strange racked his brain to translate those professional terms in his mind into words that ordinary people could understand, "What we're building now is equivalent to the Vatican Theological College."

"Are you really not a heresy?"

"Of course not!"

"Then why won't the senator allow you to build the school?"

"That's what we'd like to know." Shiller said, "He argues there might be environmental concerns, so we came here and reached out to you to find out what those environmental issues might be."

"Again, it depends on what you intend to build here. However, no matter what you build, there will be environmental issues, it's just the size of the problem." Monte led them towards the backyard and said, "If someone seizes on it and doesn't let go, even a small issue becomes a big problem. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Of course. But we will not allow some people to make a fuss and interfere with our plans. If his environmental concerns are as trivial as us ruining a single blade of grass here, such ridiculous claims will not be accepted."

"How can you guarantee that?"

"Let me make it clear: we have people capable of ensuring that if he attempts to find a ridiculous reason to justify his veto, he will be booted out of the Senate by his second term."

They stopped at the corridor leading to the backyard. Monte folded his arms in front of him, legs apart, and said, "If you have such capability, then there's no need to come to me."

Shiller sighed, extending One Hand and said, "Listen, us coming to you has nothing to do with any political maneuvering. It's just that, as a resident of Massachusetts, he mentioned potential environmental issues, so we wanted to check if there really would be any. We don't want to harm the natural environment. Do you understand?" freёnovelkiss.com

"Oh." Monte suddenly realized, he said, "So you are really those who care about the environment."

"Exactly!" both of them said in unison.

"My perspective hasn't changed; whatever you plan to build here will definitely impact the natural environment. But this impact can be big or small and can be acceptable or unacceptable. If it's a chemical plant or something, it would certainly be hard for local residents to accept. However, if it's a school, it would be better."

They continued walking forward. As Monte walked, he looked out the window and then said, "The land you selected has over 1000 acres of forest resources and a small lake with an area of about 200 acres, connected to the Canadian waterways. These two are obviously the most important factors."

They entered the elevator, and after leaving the elevator, they arrived at the circular viewing room located in the corner of the building. Monte stood by the window, pointing outside, and said, "From here you can see a corner of Greylock Mountain. It looks pretty good, right? Your land is over there. Do you see that beautiful Forest? That belongs to you."

"I believe you don't need a 4000-acre school. So, don't touch the Forest and lake. There's a small hill to the south of this land, you can also see a corner of Greylock Mountain, I think you can build your structures there, as a semi-mountain building complex. Of course, it depends on your architectural style. If it's too modern, local residents might complain that you're ruining the view of Greylock Mountain."

"We are going to build a castle." Strange said.

"Sorry, what?"

"A castle." Strange waved his hand, and a drawing appeared in his hand, though it was not a professional architectural drawing, just a sketch of a castle.

Shiller had seen this drawing before. The castle in the sketch, like Hogwarts, was a Gothic Castle, but beyond that, there were no similarities. The castle in the drawing was more symmetrical, with purple spires that were more aligned with mysticism, and had more Gothic decorations than Hogwarts, along with many narrow yet splendid stained glass windows, less ancient but more glamorous.

It was apparent that this was not Strange's aesthetic. Strange wasn't fond of overly elaborate things, but to fit the public's stereotype and to provide a breathtaking first impression for those students from other cosmos, he chose this version from many drawings.

"God." Monte exclaimed, even looking at Strange like he was looking at a mental patient. He pointed at the drawing and said, "You're saying you plan to build a Colvin Castle here?"

"Much bigger than that." Strange nodded and said, "And I'm certain it won't be holding Dracula here."