"Teacher, you are amazing!" Mokonoka's eyes were wide, her face filled with astonishment, as she watched the wound on Setsuna's shoulder vanish without a trace the moment Lin Luo iǎned it. It was truly miraculous.

"Why doesn't it work when I iǎn it?" After the shock, Mokonoka felt a pang of disappointment. If only she could heal wounds just by iǎning them, that would be wonderful. It seemed the path to mastering magic was still long for her.

"Well, how should I put this..." Mokonoka's words made Lin Luo feel a bit embarrassed. He had only meant to tease Setsuna, not cause such a massive "reaction" from Mokonoka. He wasn't relying on magic; it was Divine Healing—wherever he intended to heal, contact was all it took to mō away the ailment.

As for the healed Setsuna, she was currently a bit dazed, her eyes wide open, completely speechless. It wasn't until Lin Luo produced the Kamimei-ryū sword manual that her consciousness began to clear slightly.

"Is this the supreme sword technique of Kamimei-ryū?!" Setsuna looked at Lin Luo in disbelief, seemingly unable to fathom how he possessed such a manual.

Lin Luo relayed what Konoe Eiin had told her, then smiled, "That's wonderful! This makes you a direct disciple of the main house. From now on, you can fully use the Commemoration Blade merged with Big Sister."

"Teacher Lin Luo, stop joking!" Setsuna was mortified again. Although she had managed to utter that name under Lin Luo's guidance last time, the memory brought waves of extreme shame afterward, making her want to crawl into a hole.

"What about me? Is there anything I can learn?" Seeing Setsuna receive the sword manual, Mokonoka also clamored.

"Uh, well... I'll try to find something for you next time," Lin Luo felt awkward. Mokonoka was a mage, a modern mage at that. With her current abilities, mastering ancient magic was impossible, yet he didn't understand the magic of this era well enough to teach her. He tried to soothe her, "Focus on solidifying your foundation for now. I promise I will find suitable magic for you in the future."

Hearing this, a trace of disappointment flickered across Mokonoka’s face, but she said nothing more, only nodding.

...

Lin Luo and the others were criminals for exposing magic, and a verdict was inevitable. However, the process could not be swift. If it had merely been their mistake in guarding against magical exposure, they would have simply been turned into ferrets for three years. But now, this wasn't about dereliction of duty; it was about the principal instigators.

These were two entirely different matters. Therefore, both the Senate and other factions felt the need for a complete reassessment, demanding a much harsher sentence. However, they also needed to thoroughly investigate the purpose behind exposing the magic, as the repercussions were too immense. If mishandled, it could easily spark conflict between the mundane world and the magical world, potentially leading to catastrophic consequences.

The vicinity of the residence was already bristling with layers of defense—three thousand elite Magic Cavalry alone, supplemented by various mechanized armaments. A naval fleet was positioned outside the city walls not far away. While this deployment might seem excessive for guarding prisoners, the Senate high command deemed it necessary and planned further reinforcement.

This was because they held a member of the Red Wings' elite guard, Konoe Eiin, within. Although the identities of the four main culprits remained unknown, anyone capable of defeating all the mages of Mahora Academy certainly possessed a significant power level and could not be underestimated.

What puzzled them was why those four willingly came to the magical world. If they possessed the strength to overturn all of Mahora, they shouldn't have been captured by the mages sent to retrieve them; there seemed to be an underlying secret.

The Senators were all seasoned veterans. Faced with this situation, they dared not engage the four until the truth was uncovered. They still vividly remembered the conflict with the Red Wings over a decade ago, where merely a handful of them had sent their elite troops fleeing in disarray. They would not risk that again.

Before the formal sentencing, they had notified all other concerned parties, bringing the most powerful forces into Neo-Ostia. This meant that nearly the entirety of the magical world's elite was now gathered. At that point, even if the captured individuals were truly connected to the Red Wings, they had nothing to fear.

"It seems our first step has succeeded," the next morning, Lin Luo, Evangeline, Sakuya Izayoi, Al, Konoe Eiin, and the Academy Head—those with the highest power levels or closely tied to the incident—had gathered in a certain room.

"According to the intelligence we've gathered, those Senators have prepared the first stage for us. Once the elites from all factions arrive, we can proceed with our second step," Al said with a chuckle.

The Red Wings were heroes of the magical world. Although the Senate constantly smeared their reputation politically, the populace cared little for politics; the fact that the Red Wings had saved this world was undeniable. No amount of slander could change that.

Indeed, even within the armies under the Senate's command, many were fans of the Red Wings, making it relatively easy for them to acquire certain intelligence. Of course, even without such spies, obtaining information sources was not difficult given their own capabilities.

Lin Luo and the others' first plan was to gather all the prominent elites of the magical world into Neo-Ostia. Those forces weren't just Senate personnel; more than half of them maintained close ties with the Red Wings, such as the Hecate Empire and Ariadne's Magic Knights—old comrades of the Red Wings. Even within the Senate itself, several individuals had once been closely associated with the group.

The Senate was aware of this, of course, but firstly, they were unsure if the Red Wings were behind this incident, and secondly, those two factions were beyond the Senate's direct command. In such a critical event, the Senate lacked the authority to stop them even if they wished to.

Although the Senate wielded the greatest power in the magical world, it was far too early to claim they ruled it entirely.

"So, before executing our second step, is there anything else we need to do?" Lin Luo asked, leaning his chin on his hand.

"Nothing else too crucial, but..." Al smiled faintly, "That person has already arrived in Neo-Ostia. We need to send someone to inform him."

"That plump fellow," Evangeline remarked. For this group to place such importance on someone, there was only one individual in the magical world they referred to. Except for Sakuya, everyone else knew exactly who they meant.

"Who should go? My father-in-law and I are currently inconvenient to reveal ourselves," Konoe Eiin said. Although he and the Academy Head were detained there, nominally, he was just accompanying his father-in-law. The Senate might suspect something, but until confirmed, all speculation was invalid. If he revealed himself, the Senate might alter their plans.

"Indeed, Katie and I cannot go out either. The town must be crawling with Senate spies right now," Al agreed. He and Evangeline were also famous figures in the magical world. Even after more than a decade, ordinary citizens might not recognize them, but the Senate certainly remembered them clearly.

Their identities hadn't been exposed yet because of Al's Oblivion Magic; all records had been erased. But stepping out into the town would certainly blow their cover, which would be beneficial for their ultimate plan.

"Speaking of which, Miss Izayoi's abilities are the most suitable, and no one here knows her..." Al turned his gaze toward Sakuya.

Sakuya shrugged faintly. "I don't mind. It would be nice to get out and stretch my legs, but I don't know the person you are referring to."

"Should we send those young ones? But they haven't met him either," the Academy Head sighed.

"Then let me go. It's a good chance to see what the magical world is actually like," Lin Luo stood up from his seat, smiling. His abilities made leaving here unnoticed very easy, and he knew Lakan, making him the perfect candidate.

"It's fine if you go, but..."

Al seemed about to say something, but Lin Luo waved his hand. "Don't worry, I won't cause a major disturbance. And even if the Senate personnel are here, they won't discover I've left, because..."

Swish-Rattle!

Before he finished speaking, Lin Luo had split into two, two identical Lin Luos standing before the group.

Everyone except Evangeline was slightly startled. Then, a smile touched Sakuya's lips; she had been fooled by this clone of Lin Luo back in the library. Al also suddenly realized the bizarre scene from the Martial Arts Tournament.

Then, without waiting for anyone else to speak, one of the Lin Luos stepped out, instantly vanishing from the room, while the other Lin Luo remained seated, sipping tea and chatting.

"I see. You possess this ability; it's beyond the level of mere clones," Al sighed. Even the densest clone technique limits the distance between the clone and the original, but Lin Luo's original and clone... they were fundamentally like two separate people.

"And this barrier has no effect on you," Konoe Eiin was also somewhat surprised. The magical array barrier surrounding this house was capable of trapping first-rate masters. With their power, they could pass through, but it would inevitably create some minor disturbance—fundamentally different from Lin Luo's effortless passage.

"Yeah, that's how it is," the Lin Luo seated in the chair looked up and gave a faint smile.

...

In an open-air tavern in the town, an exceedingly burly middle-aged man was drinking and chatting with his drinking companion, occasionally flirting with the waitresses passing by.

Suddenly, a hand pressed down on his shoulder from behind. "Yo, are you the Wolfish Mercenary Swordsman?"

The middle-aged man instinctively turned around, and then a fist struck his face with terrifying speed.

Bang!

He was instantly sent flying back over ten meters.