Do ratmen dream of the sacred tree of spirits?

Chapter 107 Extra: Viktor Zaitsev

That evening, in the guest room of Lorraine Castle, Bishop Andrei and Victor chatted.

"Viscount Lorraine is too kind—to treat us to such a sumptuous dinner is something I rarely get to eat at school." Victor was still quite pleased with Viscount Lorraine's hospitality today; he loved good food, as does everyone.

"It's the local custom," Bishop Andrei added. "Since we're taking office today, the welcome dinner should be quite grand, and there will definitely be a farewell dinner in a few days."

"By the way, Victor, what's the matter we discussed before going on? —" Bishop Andrei forced a rather unpleasant smile; he was really bad at making that kind of expression.

"Teacher, may I ask what this matter is about?" Victor asked, puzzled.

"Ahem," Bishop Andrei said slowly, "Well—that countess from the family I introduced to you last week, what do you think of her? You two are a good match—"

“I refused you back then,” Victor shook his head. “I just graduated and just took office. I’ll consider these things later.”

“You’re not young anymore,” Bishop Andrei said solemnly. “At twenty-seven, you’re young in terms of academic age, having just graduated with a doctorate in spiritual studies. But in terms of starting a family, it’s quite late. The children of nobles your age are already starting grammar school, not to mention those illegitimate children.”

"No, of course I'm still young, and even you're not old. You know the lifespan of a messenger elf—" Victor immediately retorted.

"Alright, alright, then how about I call you Little Victor, just like I did more than ten years ago?"

"You too—" Victor felt embarrassed and speechless at Bishop Andrei's words.

"This was mainly at the behest of Count Zaitsev. He commands the Knights at court and is usually too busy to keep track of your life," Bishop Andrei explained.

"Tch." Victor curled his lip, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. I just saw a little guy in the hallway. He seemed quite intelligent, and my intuition tells me that he should be of decent character as well. Also, I didn't expect him to be a rat-man."

"Haha, even you say he has good spirituality, then I need to take a good look at him. Besides, the Rat Man and I have a lot of affinity, for example, my spiritual cycle is based on them."

"If they don't recommend us when selecting volunteers for the grammar school, we'll find a reason to ask them to come on our own initiative," Bishop Andrei said after thinking for a moment.

"By the way, teacher, are ratmen rare these days? I've hardly seen any since I was born," Victor asked.

"That's right, that was almost thirty years ago—nowadays, a small portion of the ratmen are distributed in the Narns Empire, and most are probably in the Demon Realm, but most of them were exiled there."

"I see."

Early this morning, Victor arrived at the square of Lorraine Manor fully armed and waited. He was not wearing a priest's robe, but rather the full armor of the Holy Knights, with his prized creation, a modified sword called "Resonance," hanging at his waist. This attire was a habit he had not yet broken. Victor was selected into the Knights when he was in university.

The three children were led out first; they didn't seem to be students.

Victor activated his spiritual vision and immediately saw the conspicuous rat-man bloodline. "Oh, quite a talent," he thought, "but I wonder if he'll be a good kid."

The messenger could see a more complex inner structure through the faint spiritual glow on the surface. This little guy's spiritual perception was quite good. Victor was very happy. He originally thought that there wouldn't be many talented people in these small places, but he didn't expect to see one on the first day he arrived. That's great. If he is a kind and hardworking child, he must take good care of him.

Beneath the heavy armor, Victor couldn't help but recall his time at university. From childhood to adulthood, he had never encountered students from impoverished families, or even those from ordinary families.

As the assistant to the regional bishop, vice-president of the council, and chief judge of the joint inquisition, Victor naturally had his own carriage waiting for him. However, he deliberately got into the carriage with the three of them. He wanted to have a good chat with this little fellow. After getting into the carriage and closing the door behind him, Victor sat down next to the rat-man. "Haha, children, hello. Don't be nervous. What is it you're talking about?"

Victor said cheerfully, "Didn't I tell you five to share a car? Why aren't you sitting with the other kids?"

Then I'll have to take this bus with extra seats.

1

Fafnir's personality was alright. Victor reminisced about the scene in the carriage where he had helped the rat-woman girl by using the spirit realm to travel through the space. Of course, he still couldn't use third-tier magic casually, not only because it was illegal, but mainly because his teacher had just been a bit angry—

.

Upon arriving at the grammar school, Victor first led the regular students to the dormitory building and explained some things to them.

At noon, he wandered around outside, thought for a moment, went into a tavern, bought some food, and went to check on Fafnir at the dormitory. Sure enough, he and his two companions hadn't eaten.

"By the way, Mr. Victor, how much is lunch? I'll pay you now."

"Haha, of course it's on you guys," Victor said, finding it somewhat amusing. "It's no big deal. By the way, if you have time, return these lunchboxes to the 'Old Mud Pit' tavern next to the cafeteria."

Haha, what an interesting and polite child. Victor thought for a moment. He didn't intend to tell the little guy that he was the heir to the Zaitsev family, the court counts. To him, the gold pound was just a string of numbers.

It was Victor's first time teaching, and he was both nervous and excited. He had prepared thoroughly before class, even though the knowledge was a piece of cake for him. Well, the students didn't seem to enjoy the lesson.

Victor felt somewhat helpless, but then he thought back to his own past. He hadn't really liked going to class back then, and often skipped it.

In the second lesson of "Introduction to Spells," Victor saw the little fellow. Little Fafnir had also come to audit the class. He perked up; he had to show off his skills.

"I don't think this is normal. How did a ratman manage to climb to this position? Don't you think you're just a pet kept by Bishop Victor?"

Uh—how come the Viscount Lorraine's daughter is causing trouble in class?

Victor, standing to the side, suppressed his laughter. He stood quietly and watched, not caring whether the viscount's heir would affect young Fafnir's future.

Haha, Fafner Beckett is my student, Viktor Zaitsev!

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