Chapter 283: The Arrival of Mage Roman

After the maid left, Shaoke sat in the chair, furrowing his brow, lost in thought. The White-robed Cleric looked at him with some concern and finally broke the silence, saying, "If things are really as she said, we should temporarily leave here first!"

"You have to face things head-on. Nobody can run from them." Shaoke rotated his staff, then took out some scrolls and handed them to the Cleric, saying, "If you're worried, take these and find your companion. I believe she will help you." With that, he said no more, picked up his staff, and quietly walked out of the room.

Seeing the mage's stubbornness, the White-robed Cleric sighed helplessly, then put away the scrolls and followed Shaoke outside. "She is no longer the person she used to be. I think there's no need for me to seek her out, because she doesn't have the ability to protect me either."

Shaoke and the Cleric stood quietly in the somewhat damaged manor. As time passed, Shaoke seemed to sense something and suddenly released his mental power. The mental probe, without any concealment or disguise, swept through the area around the manor without restraint. Some practitioners on the street immediately sensed the situation and quickly left the area.

The commotion among the practitioners soon led to panic among the ordinary people. Although Shaoke often killed ordinary people on the street, there were still many passersby every day. At least the owners of the surrounding manors and their servants frequently passed through here.

Seeing Shaoke's probing behavior that showed no change at all, the White-robed Cleric could only smile helplessly. She then quickly cast supportive spells on Shaoke and prepared to tear a protective scroll to shield herself.

"Some friends." Shaoke suddenly withdrew his mental power and stopped the White-robed Cleric's actions. "We all know them." With that, he quickly pulled off his cloak and adjusted his robe. "It's Mage Roman and some other mages from the Blizzard Legion."

"Mage Roman?" The White-robed Cleric's voice suddenly rose. As if to confirm, she quickly released her own mental power in the direction Shaoke indicated. A familiar mental fluctuation met hers in the air, and after a brief exchange through mental power, they each withdrew.

After withdrawing her mental probe, the White-robed Cleric suddenly blushed as she looked at Shaoke. Finally, she said in a low voice, "Should we go out? Mage Roman is almost here." She touched the golden spellbook in her hand uncomfortably. "Why didn't you tell me that you and Mage Roman had a child?" After saying this, the White-robed Cleric fell silent, the joy of the friend's arrival completely gone.

Faced with this situation, Shaoke simply explained to her, "I believe she will definitely become an outstanding spellcaster in the future." He then added, "I wonder how her studies are going now."

Hearing Shaoke's explanation, the White-robed Cleric let out a soft sigh of relief. She had felt some disappointment when she discovered the situation, but now she felt much better. "I believe Mage Roman will teach that child well." She seemed to recall something else and said, "I'm a bit worried that the child, spending all day with adults, might have her personality affected."

The two mages chatted casually like this. After just a bit more than half a magic hour, the people they had been waiting for arrived. There were sixty to seventy Black-robed Mages. Based on his earlier probe, Shaoke knew these mages were all Sixth Tier Mages who had been honed through long battles. Shaoke wondered if Roman would stay long this time and what mission she had.

"Xueye." A Black-robed Mage with a relatively small build suddenly removed her cloak and quickly rushed over to Shaoke, clutching him tightly. She gently kissed Shaoke, not caring about the others around. "I've been so worried since I heard you were here. I blame myself for not telling you the details of this place earlier."

"I haven't encountered any danger here." Shaoke glanced awkwardly at the other mages. Among them, he only recognized four or five. "How is Lan Wei'er?" To break the awkwardness, he changed the subject to shift Roman's attention.

Instead of answering, the female mage Roman simply bit his neck lightly, then ignored him and hugged the White-robed Cleric tightly, exchanging greetings, then whispering together.

"I think you should provide us with enough rooms to rest." A crisp female voice said to Shaoke in a dissatisfied tone, then pointed to a short figure wrapped in a cloak beside her. "You really should take a good look at your child. She has never had a conversation with you."

"Mage Yisier!" Shaoke quickly recognized the owner of that voice and walked over to her. But this time, the female mage did not embrace him; she just gave him a formal salute and gestured to the others behind her. She was married now and couldn't be as uninhibited as Mage Roman in showing affection.

"Lan Wei'er?" Shaoke nodded, then asked the Cleric to lead Mage Roman and Mage Yisier, among others, into the manor. As the female mage said, they needed to find enough rooms to rest, as the long journey had tired these mages.

Kneeling beside the figure wrapped in a small cloak, Shaoke used a puzzled tone to ask and sought her consent to remove the cloak so he could observe. Unfortunately, the child refused. She timidly moved toward Mage Roman, then tightly grabbed her cloak and stole a glance at Shaoke. When she saw him looking back, she nervously turned her head away.

Seeing this, Mage Roman smiled apologetically at Shaoke. She then patted the child's head, signaling her not to be nervous. The four or five mages who knew Shaoke all laughed without restraint. Even the usually shy White-robed Cleric laughed, because Lan Wei'er showed no resistance to her embrace, allowing her to kiss her tender little face.

"Mage Xueye, it seems your situation here isn't as bad as we imagined." A young-looking male mage gave Shaoke a kind smile. "At least you still have a manor. True, it's a bit worn out, but I believe it will soon be restored to its former state."

After a somewhat chaotic exchange, the mages dispersed according to a certain order into the few intact rooms of the manor. Shaoke patiently reassured the maids that these people meant no harm. Only then did the young maids relax. However, when they saw two more women by their master's side, their expressions soured, as they'd hoped for something more intimate with him.

All the maids were sent out to purchase food and other supplies. They had to prepare enough meals for the guests within a set time. The task was heavy, but the maids didn't mind—they'd done far harder work, and cooking was nothing.

Finally, the mages familiar to Shaoke, including Mage Roman, gathered in his room. There, they talked about what had happened since they parted. Shaoke did most of the talking, while Roman and the others listened. This continued until the food was ready, and the mages gathered outside to eat.

Nearly every table that could serve as a dining table in the rooms was brought outside and arranged haphazardly in the yard. Following Shaoke's instructions, the maids kept filling the guests' cups and replenishing food.

Mage Roman held the little girl's hand tightly and stayed close to Shaoke. It had been a long time since she had been this near to Shaoke. Following the dining etiquette of mages, no one spoke, and they finished their meal quickly. Afterwards, the maids started to clear the mess, but Shaoke stopped them. With these mages arriving, he had new plans. Still, after he left, the young maids diligently restored everything to order—except for the heavy tables and chairs, which were beyond their strength.

When the mages returned to Shaoke's room, only three female practitioners and the young girl with spellcasting talent that Shaoke had discovered years ago remained. Once inside, Mage Roman casually took off her boots and curled up on the bed with Mage Yisier. Then, at their request, the White-robed Cleric was pulled onto the bed as well. Meanwhile, the little girl, Lan Wei'er, after some persuasion from her mother, tried to respond to Shaoke's questions. Of course, she refused to answer some of them, which made the three women laugh softly.

"I can't tell you." Pulling off her cloak, the little girl pouted and answered. She then glanced at Mage Roman on the bed and touched her white hair, saying, "Don't you know? Every child is quite similar to their mother?" With that, she refused to look at Shaoke again, sat by the fireplace in a huff, and poked at the firewood.