Chapter 391: A Failed Provocation

"Hoaam..."

Standing near the ship’s railing, Nolan yawned lazily. His gaze was fixed ahead, where the vast ocean stretched endlessly.

It had been three days since they left the port, and he had to admit, he was extremely bored.

There was nothing he could do except eat, sleep, look at the seascape, and repeat it over and over again.

His head ached so badly it made him want to vomit.

"What are you doing, Nolan? Are you getting seasick?" A curious voice came from behind him.

Without turning around, he knew it was his sister.

"Seasick?" Nolan chuckled and turned around, leaning his back against the ship’s railing. "No, sis. I’m just bored. There’s nothing to do here except look at the boring sea view."

From the imperial palace, he had brought forty books to prepare for his boredom during the trip.

What he didn’t expect was that he had already finished reading all of them during the land journey.

If he had known the land journey would be that long, he would have brought more books.

"Pfft! I knew it." Sharon giggled at his complaint.

She walked over and leaned her arms on the ship’s railing.

"Unfortunately, I can’t help you. These past few days, I’ve been very busy with my work," she said with a long sigh.

"Your work?" Nolan’s eyebrows rose slightly. "Is it studying spells for the Great Mage level?"

Sharon nodded weakly. Resting her chin on her arms, she replied, "It’s very difficult to learn. The magic formulas are so complicated that I’ve only managed to master four spells in the last two days."

Upon hearing this, the corners of Nolan’s mouth twitched slightly. He didn’t know if his sister was being arrogant or simply unaware of her own prowess.

It should be noted that newly leveled-up mages are required to master spells equivalent to their level.

By doing so, their combat power will increase, and only then will they be worthy of being called mages at that level.

Mastering magic spells is not easy. The structure of the formulas is extremely complicated and hard to memorize, let alone practice.

That’s why many newly leveled-up mages end up stagnating at their new level for dozens of years.

Yet his sister casually said she had mastered four magic spells in just two days—an achievement that should be impossible.

I just realized how humble my sister is,

he muttered helplessly.

Brushing the thought aside, he said, "You have Cassiopeia and Draco to ask about Great Mage-level spells. Have you asked them for help?"

"Not yet." Sharon shook her head. "Draco is very busy with his physical training, and I don’t want to disturb him. As for Cassiopeia, well... she’s also busy reading Edward Layard’s books. I don’t have the heart to interrupt her enjoyment."

What she didn’t tell Nolan was that she was indeed unable to learn anything from other people.

Her master had discovered this when she first enrolled at the Fallen Star Magic Academy.

For things to stick in her head, she had to figure out the spell formulas herself. Otherwise, it was difficult for her to understand.

Her master said it wasn’t a shortcoming but a very rare gift. She had to find her own way and method in order to grow stronger.

That was why her master rarely taught her directly, aside from giving her some basic understanding so she could find her own path.

"Hmmm..." Nolan rubbed his chin. Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. "Right, sister! How about we go fishing?"

Sharon was surprised and looked at him in wonder. "Fishing, you say?"

"Yeah." Nolan nodded casually. "Sometimes, when your mind is under pressure and forced to work constantly, it doesn’t produce the best results and can actually be dangerous."

"Since we’re in the middle of the ocean and don’t have any entertainment, fishing is the only way to relax our minds."

In truth, he had never been fishing before. When it came to fishing for anger and commotion, he did that often at the palace.

But when it came to fishing for actual fish, he had no experience at all.

Still, perhaps by fishing, he and his sister could relieve the anxiety within themselves.

Sharon pondered Nolan’s suggestion and felt it was worth trying. Coincidentally, she had never been fishing before, and it sounded like it could be fun.

"Okay, let’s go fishing!" Sharon nodded enthusiastically.

"Great! Then please ask Jack for two fishing rods. Meanwhile, I’ll get the bait."

After splitting up the tasks, the two of them separated to prepare their fishing gear.

But suddenly, a familiar voice echoed in Nolan’s head.

"Nolan, there’s some important news for you."

Nolan stopped in his tracks. He blinked curiously and asked suspiciously, "What is it? Has something happened to my sister?"

The voice—none other than Malverna—replied,

"No, but..."

She explained what had just happened. It was when Leonard came to Elina’s mansion in the town of Virella to discuss cooperation between the two towns.

However, Malverna deliberately emphasized her suspicion of Leonard by badmouthing him.

Of course, most of it was a complete lie. She just wanted to tease Nolan and scare him.

Unexpectedly, throughout her explanation, Nolan didn’t show any excessive reaction.

He only replied with "Oh," "So?," and "I see," and it left Malverna speechless.

She was forced to stop her story and asked hesitantly,

"Why are you so unresponsive? Aren’t you afraid your sister will fall in love with that man named Leonard?"

In her mind, Nolan should have been enraged by her story.

After all, she knew Nolan loved his sister dearly. There was no way he would let another man get close to Elina.

Nolan smiled slightly as he walked toward the inside of the ship.

"I want to ask you: is that man handsome?"

"Yes, he’s very handsome."

"Is he tall?"

"Yeah, he’s also very tall."

"Is he smart and good at talking?"

Malverna paused for a moment, then replied,

"Yes, he’s very smart. He communicates very well, like an educated person."

"One more thing." Nolan chuckled. "Is he strong?"

This time, Malverna didn’t answer right away. She had no idea whether the man was strong or not.

After all, the man hadn’t shown his strength at all.

But to make Nolan panic, she chose to lie anyway.

"Um... well, he’s very strong!"

Nolan immediately realized it was a lie, but he didn’t expose it.

"After everything you’ve told me about this man named Leonard, is he better than me?"

"Of course! He—"

Malverna answered enthusiastically, but her words stopped halfway.

Comparing Nolan to Leonard was absurd, wasn’t it?

Leonard was indeed incredibly handsome and tall, but he was still far inferior to Nolan.

By her estimation, Leonard was about 1.85 meters tall, while Nolan was almost two meters tall.

The comparison of their strength was even more ridiculous.

One was the Singularity of Chaos, and the other was just a minor baron—someone Malverna herself didn’t even know was strong or not.

Sensing her silence, Nolan simply smiled and teased, "Next time, if you want to make me panic and angry, do a better job, Your Honorable Demon Empress."

Malverna: "

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