"You are asking why I gave you the golden ticket to the academy. Well, I had thought you would ask this," Elizabeth said with a faint, knowing smile.

"Of course," Amon replied with a slightly puzzled expression. "I mean, you gave it to me out of nowhere. It’s weird. So, can you tell me the reason behind it?"

"Yes, of course I will tell you," she said, leaning back against the couch comfortably.

Then she pointed toward her eyes.

"You see these eyes?" Her sky-blue eyes began to glow softly, and a beautiful, intricate pattern appeared within her irises.

The glow faded after a moment.

"These eyes can see what others cannot see. Amon, you could say I can even perceive someone’s talent. That day, I saw yours as well. Purely by chance. And boy, after seeing it, how could I let such a gem be wasted in some tavern?"

"So that’s why you gave it to me," Amon nodded, but then his brows furrowed slightly.

’What is she talking about? My talent is supposed to be bad... but her eyes do look special. In that case... maybe I do have talent... some hidden potential.’

"Okay, thank you for telling me that," he said politely. "But what exactly do your eyes do? Of course, only if you want to tell me."

Elizabeth laughed lightly. "Haha! Well, my eyes have many uses. For example, they help me see distant things, understand mana pathways better, and identify individuals with great talent, among a few other things."

"Wow, that’s pretty useful," Amon said with genuine amazement. "So, is it your ability?"

"Yes," she replied simply. "It is my ability."

"Alright, that answers my question," he said with a satisfied smile. "I don’t have anything more to ask."

’I don’t think she’s lying... but she’s not telling the whole truth either,’ Amon thought quietly as he looked at her.

However, he didn’t bother asking further.

"Alright then," Elizabeth said casually. "Our ship will leave for the Valmoria Kingdom in the evening. We will be going to Marivelle City Port, a coastal city. From there, you are free, you can either go with those people from the island or return to the academy. Wherever you wish."

Amon nodded happily. "Yes, I want to go to the capital city."

"Oh? Sure, sure," Elizabeth replied with a cheerful smile.

She then pulled out a large pouch from her storage bracelet.

"Take this. It has five thousand gold coins. They will be helpful for you on your journey."

Amon’s eyes widened in shock. "W-wait... this much? Why?" He looked at her in disbelief. "Why are you giving me so much money?"

Elizabeth smiled widely. "Come on~ it’s only natural for me to provide you with money. You are a student sent by me. Basically, I sponsored you by giving you that ticket. So naturally, I should also support you financially. I was even thinking of visiting you after your first semester ended."

Then she sighed lightly.

"But well... you disappeared. As for why I didn’t meet you earlier... I was quite busy, so I couldn’t meet you after giving you the golden ticket."

"It’s alright, Lady Elizabeth," Amon said sincerely. "You have already done so much for me that I don’t know how to repay your kindness."

"Oh, come on, don’t say that," she replied with a playful wave of her hand. "You are a promising talent. So think of it as an investment. Maybe you can work for me after you graduate."

"Wait... really?" Amon asked, surprised.

"Yes, really," she replied confidently. "For now, you should focus on your academy."

"I will give it my best!" he said with determination.

"That’s the spirit."

"Then I will gladly accept your gift," Amon said as he took the heavy pouch and stored it inside his storage ring.

"So, may I take my leave now?"

"Wait! You do have pager right? The one provided by academy?"

"Yes. I have it."

"Then let’s exchange our contacts. So, in future if you need anything, or need more money. Just contact me." She said thoughtfully.

"Wow..thanks for that.. But right now...it don’t have any battery. I need to charge it."

"Well in that case, you may go," Elizabeth replied with a light smile. "We will see each other on the ship anyway. At that time we will exchange it. For now bye~. Go take some rest now."

Amon stood up, bowed respectfully, and left the room.

---

Amon stepped outside the building and walked along the port.

"Haha! I’m rich for a while, at least," he said with a grin.

Then he pulled out his pager. A smartphone-like device he had received from the academy.

He began channeling mana into it to charge its battery.

"Hopefully, I can contact someone from the island... though it’s still far from the human continent. I hope it works."

After a while, it gained a bit of charge. He still continued to charge it.

’Who should I contact first? Since I want to visit Senior Selena, I should try calling her.’

Amon initiated the call.

To his surprise, it actually connected.

"Yes! Senior, please answer the call... please," he muttered anxiously.

He waited, holding the pager against his ear.

Seconds passed.

’Man... no answer. Seems like she won’t pick up. She must be busy.’

Just as he was about to cut the call. A voice came from the other side.

"Hello? Is it... really Amon?"

---

Meanwhile, back inside the room where Amon had been speaking with Elizabeth,

Elizabeth remained seated on the couch, deep in thought.

Sophie, her loyal maid, broke the silence with a calm and composed expression.

"Was that really the reason you gave him the golden ticket?" she asked politely.

Elizabeth tilted her head slightly. "Are you curious?"

Sophie replied honestly, "If I say no, it would be a lie. When you gave him that golden ticket, I thought you did it while drunk, on a whim. Because you tend to do such unpredictable things. But now that I’ve heard what that boy has gone through... how he survived... I feel there is something special about him."

Elizabeth did not respond immediately.

Her expression was unreadable.

Sophie couldn’t see her face clearly since she stood behind the couch.

After a moment, Elizabeth finally spoke.

"Actually, what I told him was not a lie. Everything I said was true. Going to that tavern was just on a whim. It’s not like I go there regularly. It just happened to be there at the right time when I wanted to drink."

"We had visited that city to meet with the city lord... and also to investigate those cultists. And I met that boy at the tavern by coincidence."

She paused briefly.

"When I saw him... I felt something from him. Something very strange, mysterious, and different. I couldn’t pinpoint what it was. So I used my special ability to observe him..."

Sophie leaned forward slightly, curiosity finally visible in her eyes. "And what did you find? What did you see in him?"

Elizabeth’s expression grew serious.

"I don’t know how to describe it..." she said slowly. "I didn’t see anything in him..."

She paused.

"...But after observing him with my ability... I understood what I was feeling." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Sophie asked quietly, "What?"

Elizabeth looked ahead, her voice calm yet heavy.

"Death."