The most shameless alchemist in history

"Hehehehe, it won't be long before, thanks to the great achievements of this group of freshmen, the best in the last ten years, that I've trained. I'll definitely become the first vice principal. And since the principal is in a state of long-term disappearance, the first vice principal is practically the de facto head. I'll manage this position for two or three years, train another group of outstanding students, and then use Maple Leaf Academy as a springboard to enter the Snow City Ministry of Education, become an official in the Ministry of Education, and successfully enter the political arena. What a perfect, what a great plan! Entering the cabinet and becoming a cabinet member in the future is not just wishful thinking. By the way, I need to start learning how to become a qualified minister in advance, like how about the Minister of Finance?" Teacher Charlotte was immersed in his fantasy world. For him, his future was bright and promising, and he would definitely not be limited to the corner of Maple Leaf Academy.

"Knock knock knock knock." Just then, there was a knock on the door of Ms. Charlotte's office, or rather, the office of Vice Principal Charlotte.

"Come in, what's the matter?" Vice Principal Charlotte asked without looking up.

"Hello, it's like this, I'd like to request a week's leave, and I hope you can approve it," Du Lei said respectfully as he entered the office.

"A leave of absence? A week? Hey, which class are you in? What kind of joke is this? It's not a holiday or weekend. You're a student, you're here to learn, not to go on vacation and waste your time!" Vice Principal Charlotte was furious. She slammed her hand on the table and shouted at the vice principal.

“Well… but Mr. Deer said you would approve it.” Dure hesitated. He had asked another teacher before coming, who told him to go directly to Vice Principal Sherlock and that Vice Principal Charlotte would definitely approve his leave application. But now that he had come to the vice principal’s office to apply, it seemed that this was not the case.

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671 Would you like some tea?

“Ms. Deer? If you said it was another teacher, I might believe you, but Ms. Deer is such an upright and rigorous person, how could she say such a thing? You must be trying to deceive me!” Charlotte looked at the boy in front of her suspiciously, feeling that the boy looked somewhat familiar.

“But that’s what Ms. Deer said. I hope you can approve it. If you don’t approve it, I will have to leave on my own.” Dure’s trip to Winter City was something he had already decided on, and no one could change it. Even if Charlotte did not agree to his leave application, he would still go.

"What did you say? You left on your own initiative? What do you take Maple Leaf Academy for? You think you can come and go as you please? Is this your backyard?" Vice Principal Charlotte was furious when she heard this, and she questioned him angrily.

“But Mr. Deer said this is a privilege I should enjoy.” Du Lei was taken aback, but he immediately explained.

"Privileges? Every student at Maple Leaf Academy is equal. No one is superior to anyone else, so the idea of ​​privileges is utter nonsense!" Charlotte categorically rejected this claim.

"Fine, in that case, you're not going to approve my leave application no matter what?" Dure knew he couldn't persuade Charlotte, so he had to prepare to give up.

“Of course, our college has a good school spirit and is very disciplined. We would never do anything that violates the rules, so don’t even think about it,” Charlotte said righteously.

“Professor Charlotte, your impartiality is truly admirable. In that case, I shall take my leave.” Dure did not want to waste any more time here, so he immediately left the office.

"What do you mean, 'Teacher Charlotte'? You should call me Vice Principal Charlotte or 'Vice Principal,' understand?" Charlotte was not satisfied with the boy's form of address and immediately corrected him.

"Understood, Vice Principal. I'll take my leave now." Du Lei corrected his form of address and retreated to the office door.

"That's more like it. By the way, what's your name?" Charlotte asked without looking up.

"Du Lei," Du Lei answered truthfully.

"Oh, Dure, you can step back... Wait, what did you say? What's your name again? Dure?" At first, Charlotte didn't take it seriously and didn't pay much attention, but soon she suddenly raised her head and stared blankly at the boy who had already walked to the office door.

“Yes, Vice Principal, do you have any other questions?” Du Lei paused and asked again. When he first entered Maple Leaf Academy, he had a conflict with Charlotte, who was then the head of the Academic Affairs Office.

"Oh dear, don't call me Vice Principal, just call me Teacher Charlotte or Teacher Xia. I was wondering why the weather was so nice today. It turns out it's you, Du Lei. Come on, sit down." Vice Principal Charlotte immediately changed her tune. She hurriedly got up and pulled Du Lei to a chair, her attitude very friendly.

"But Vice Principal, it's about to rain outside," Du Lei could only say, pointing out the window. Such gloomy weather was hardly pleasant.

"Rain is great! The weather is cool and the air is fresh after the rain. It's wonderful weather. By the way, Xiao Lei, what brings you here?" Charlotte said kindly, holding Du Lei's hand.

"Little Lei?" Du Lei repeated the address, which made him feel very uncomfortable, especially since it came from Charlotte's mouth.

“Yes, Xiao Lei, I have a nephew who’s about your age, so it shouldn’t be a problem for me to call you down, right?” Charlotte explained with a smile.

"As long as you're happy, Vice Principal." Du Lei really couldn't figure out what Charlotte was up to, because in his memory, Charlotte was always making things difficult for him. He hadn't had high hopes for getting leave this time; it was just a routine procedure. In fact, Charlotte hadn't given him a friendly look just now, but for some reason, her attitude had suddenly made a complete 180-degree turn, which really puzzled him.

"Xiao Lei already said not to call me Vice Principal, just call me Teacher Xia or Uncle Xia, don't be so formal. Where's the tea? Why hasn't the tea been brought over yet? Can't you see I'm entertaining VIPs? These people are really something, they can't even handle such a small thing." Charlotte shouted outside.

"I imagine you must be quite busy with work, so I think it would be inappropriate to disturb you here." Du Lei stood up, intending to leave again.

"Not busy, not busy at all. Oh right, Xiao Lei, what did you just say? I was so excited that I forgot. You know how forgetful people get as they get older, right? Hahahaha." Charlotte explained with a smile.

"I originally wanted to ask for a week's leave, but since you, Vice Principal, are so impartial and fair, I gave up on that plan," Du Lei said with some helplessness.

"Why didn't you say you wanted to take leave sooner? A week isn't enough. How about I approve a month's leave?" Charlotte said with a smile, rubbing her hands together.

"But isn't this against the academy's rules? This might not be a good idea." Dure looked at Charlotte with surprise, feeling that this guy was strange. In his memory, Charlotte was a stingy person who regarded him as a thorn in his side, but now her attitude was really too peculiar.

"No, no, no, this doesn't violate any rules, absolutely not. Xiao Lei, you're a student who has made outstanding contributions to the academy, so we should make an exception for you," Charlotte said with a smile.

"So, is this leave of absence settled then?" Dure was still a little uneasy, always suspecting that Charlotte might secretly sabotage him.

“No problem, I’ll take care of it. Little Lei, would you like to sit for a while longer?” Charlotte patted her chest and readily agreed.

"No need for a seat, I'll pack up and get ready to leave." Du Lei waved his hand and got up to leave.

"You haven't even had a sip of tea yet, and you're already leaving? Well, have a good trip, Little Lei. Don't hesitate to ask me if you need anything." Charlotte stood up and escorted Dure to the office door, watching his figure until it completely disappeared.

"Little Lei, remember to come visit me when you get back!" Charlotte called out from afar, by which time Du Lei's figure had completely disappeared.

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672 Sets Off Again

"Teacher Charlotte, oh no, I mean Vice Principal Charlotte, why are you acting so strangely? This is completely different from how you used to be." Dure was a little puzzled. Just then, someone jogged towards him from not far away.

"Du Lei, I heard you're leaving again?" the person who came asked breathlessly. She was running very fast and looked very anxious. It was Messiah, Kelly's classmate.

“Yes, I’m planning to go to Winter City. Did Kelly tell you that?” Dure stopped and nodded.

"Du Lei has only been back for a short time, and now he's leaving again?" Messiah asked softly, looking somewhat disappointed.

"I have some important things to take care of, but I won't be gone for too long. I'll be back in a week at most," Du Lei said after thinking for a moment, since he had only taken a week off.

"A week...that's alright, not too long. But Du Lei, please take good care of yourself on the road." Messiah nodded gently and said with a word of advice.

"Don't worry, I'm a grown man, what could possibly happen to me? Well, if Messiah, you don't have anything else to say, then I'll be going now." Dure smiled easily. Compared to his previous journey to the Mountain Kingdom, this trip to the Winter City should be much easier, since the Winter City is within the Snow Kingdom's territory, and it would only take a day to get there by train.

"Well then, Du Lei, please take care. Goodbye, and we'll see you when you come back!" Messiah said with a smile, her hands clasped together.

"Okay, take care." Du Lei nodded and left the academy gates. He was just in time to catch the train two hours later.

Thanks to the teleportation array, although Maple Leaf Academy is quite a long distance from Maple City, it only takes a blink of an eye to get there.

"I remember the first time I used the teleportation array, I felt dizzy and lightheaded, but I don't feel that discomfort anymore." Du Lei walked out of the academy's reception building. It had been four months since he first came here. At that time, he was a complete novice, not only in magical energy but also in alchemy.

But now, four months later, he has made great strides in both of them, which makes him feel a little unreal.

"I feel like time has flown by. It was early spring when I came here, and now it's the height of summer. I wonder when I'll be able to get back to the village, and how Black Wind and Copper Mountain are doing." Du Lei sighed softly. He recalled everything that had happened in the village, and how the three brothers had teamed up to outwit and outfight the mercenaries. Those scenes seemed like they happened just yesterday.

“Life in the village…life outside the village…when I was still in the village, I always envied the outside world and always wanted to leave the village as soon as possible to venture out into the world. But after being in the outside world, I want to go back. People are really strange.” Du Lei sighed softly.

But this didn't stop him from walking toward the train station. The sky over Maple City in the height of summer was filled with dark clouds, which was not good weather. It was going to rain heavily soon, and the street vendors were also packing up their things to leave.

The last time he left Maple City, he left with Winry, but now Winry has returned to Frost City.

"I wonder how Winry is doing now. Frost City? I should have a chance to go there someday, right?" Dure looked at the northern sky. He still remembered the promise he made with Winry, but when would their promise be fulfilled?

"Passengers who need to go to Winter City, please buy your tickets and board the train. We will depart in ten minutes." A uniformed staff member loudly reminded passengers on the train platform, where a large number of passengers had already gathered.

As a major commercial town and transportation hub in the southern part of the Snow Country, Maple City has more than a dozen trains coming and going every day, including domestic routes within the Snow Country and international routes outside the Snow Country, serving thousands of passengers daily.

Du Lei went to the station ticket office and bought a ticket to Winter City. He used the Maple Leaf Academy's crystal card to buy the ticket. The crystal card was a reward for completing a mission. He only learned after returning to the academy that his previous trip to the Mountain Kingdom had been rewarded, and the reward was quite substantial. This was an unexpected gain for him.

"Please board the train with your tickets. The train to Winter City is about to depart." The staff reminded them again. At this moment, all the passengers formed a long queue and boarded the train carriage one by one to find their seats.

"Hello, this is my ticket, thank you." People were checking their tickets one after another in front of Du Lei.

"Tickets checked. Have a pleasant journey." The staff checked the train tickets one by one.

“This is my train ticket.” In front of Dure was a short young man wearing a hat, half a head shorter than Dure.

He placed the suitcase on the ground and handed over the train ticket with both hands, his attitude clearly very solemn.

"Your train ticket... is not for today's train, it's from yesterday, and it's an invalid ticket."

After carefully checking the tickets, the ticket inspector raised an objection and offered a friendly reminder.

"What? Yesterday's train ticket? This... you must have made a mistake?" The young man was taken aback and said somewhat flusteredly.

"There's no mistake. Please go over there to buy your train ticket for today's train. We're about to depart." The ticket inspector pointed to the other side.

"Well... okay, I understand." The young man lowered his head, picked up the box, and walked out of the line.

"Please show your train ticket." When it was Du Lei's turn, the ticket inspector asked politely.

“This is my train ticket.” Duredo glanced at the short young man and handed him his train ticket.

"The inspection is complete. Have a pleasant journey." The ticket inspector gestured for Du Lei to board the train.

"Thank you." Du Lei looked to his right and noticed that the young man who was supposed to buy a new ticket was gone.

"The train is about to depart, where did he go?" Dure asked, somewhat puzzled.

Before boarding the carriage, he looked around but couldn't find him.

"Have they given up on taking this train?" This was the only possibility that Du Lei could think of.

He frowned, looked away, and quickly went to find his own seat.

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673 Strange People

After boarding the train, Du Lei quickly found his seat in the carriage. It was a window seat, and the carriage was almost empty with many seats remaining. This was because there were several stops along the way from Maple City to Winter City, and many passengers boarded from other stations, so these seats were still empty.

He took out a book from his briefcase, a book about alchemy that he had borrowed from the library. After all, he would be on the train for a day and a night, and he needed to do something to pass the time.

The train sounded a long whistle, a sign that it was about to depart. At this time, all the passengers who had been checking their tickets and boarding outside had boarded the train, and the ticket inspectors had closed the doors and returned to the station. The train began to sway gently and slowly move forward.

Another journey is about to begin. This is not Du Lei's first time taking the train; it's his third time. The first time was from Snow Eagle Town to Maple City, and the second time was from Rock City to Maple City. Looking at the scenery rushing past the train window, Du Lei finds that his mood is completely different each time he takes the train.

Just then, he suddenly noticed a figure moving quickly outside the window. At first, he thought he was seeing things because the figure was moving very fast, even faster than the train itself, since the train was still running and hadn't fully picked up speed yet. But after observing carefully, Du Lei confirmed that the shadow moving outside the window was indeed a person, and someone he had seen before.

The figure drew closer and closer, and after the train pulled out of the station, he gently tapped on the window, clearly indicating that he wanted Du Lei to open the window.

Du Lei felt a little strange, but he did not refuse the other party's request. He rolled up the window, and soon the other party put one hand on the edge of the window and jumped up. His movements were very agile. It seemed that he was going to flip into the carriage. But at this moment, the train suddenly accelerated. Caught off guard, he lost his center of gravity and was about to be thrown out of the train.

Du Lei felt a little strange, but he did not refuse the other party's request. He rolled up the window, and soon the other party put one hand on the edge of the window and jumped up. His movements were very agile. It seemed that he was going to flip into the carriage. But at this moment, the train suddenly accelerated. Caught off guard, he lost his center of gravity and was about to be thrown out of the train.

"I'm saved! Brother, if it weren't for your help, I would have been done for!" The young man, who had been pulled into the carriage, was still shaken. He looked at Du Lei gratefully. Du Lei had big, bright, and very intelligent eyes.

"It's just a small favor. Are you the one whose ticket had expired?" Du Lei frowned. He recognized the young man as the one who had been turned away by the ticket inspector earlier because his ticket had expired.

"Yes, there was a little mishap just now, which almost made me miss the bus. But it's all right now. Thanks to your help, brother, I was able to get on the bus in time. Otherwise, I would have had to wait until tomorrow to leave. By the way, my name is Liata. Brother, what's your name?" The young man took off his hat and sat down next to Dure. He seemed to be very outgoing, but after a closer look, Dure realized that he was about the same age as him, maybe even younger.

“Liata? My name is Redu.” Dure pondered his name, feeling that there was something somewhat out of place about this boy.

"Oh, it's Brother Redu. Brother Redu, where are you going?" Liata was very talkative and asked casually.

"I'm going to Winter City to take care of some business. What about you?" Dure didn't hide his destination. After all, he and Liata were just strangers who had met by chance, and they wouldn't have much interaction.

Just like the White Night he met on his first train ride, he remembered that White Night's destination seemed to be the Land of Time. Now, four months have passed, and he wonders how White Night is doing.