Chapter 232: Serie is Sleeping
She quickly stepped aside, subtly blocking Kurtz's path, and said in a slightly faster tone, "Teacher Kurtz, why don't we just have the maid bring it over later? There's no need to wake Teacher Serie."
Kurtz stopped and thought about it, then realized it made sense.
Knowing Serie's personality, if she's woken up without enough sleep, she'll probably be quite grumpy in the morning. "Yeah, let her sleep then."
Flamme secretly breathed a sigh of relief, her joy growing even stronger.
Success! The first step of the plan is complete!
She followed Kurtz cheerfully to the city lord's mansion restaurant. The morning light filtered through the tall windows as they entered.
The restaurant was quiet in the early morning, with several maids busy at work, and a sumptuous breakfast was being served one after another.
Flamme's gaze was precisely fixed on the long table.
Usually, Serie would naturally sit to Kurtz's left, but this time, without hesitation, almost as if making a declaration, she took the seat first.
This is a massive victory for her!
"Teacher, please sit here!" She patted the seat next to her.
Kurtz raised an eyebrow slightly, without giving it much thought, and sat down next to Flamme.
Throughout his long life, seating was never something he needed to care about.
The maid served breakfast to the two of them, but Flamme's mind was not on the food at all.
She ate in small bites while secretly observing Kurtz.
The opportunity has arrived!
Kurtz accidentally got a little jam on the corner of his lips.
Flamme's heart suddenly raced. She immediately pulled her handkerchief from her bosom, leaned seemingly naturally towards Kurtz, and reached out her hand.
She said in a low voice, "Teacher, you got a little bit on here."
Before Kurtz could react, she touched the corner of his lips with the handkerchief in her hand.
Kurtz paused for a moment.
The girl's fingers, through the silk handkerchief, felt warm to the touch.
She was very close, so close that Kurtz could clearly smell the scent emanating from her, a scent different from Serie's cool and elegant fragrance, but rather a youthful scent carrying sunshine and a faint floral fragrance.
Her breath brushed gently across his cheek, bringing a slightly itchy, unusual sensation.
Kurtz felt that something was not quite right.
This feeling is strange.
But he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong.
Spending so much time with the aloof Serie, Kurtz was momentarily taken aback by his apprentice's almost blunt tenderness.
Or perhaps Kurtz simply saw it as a gesture of affection from Flamme.
A close interaction between a master and his apprentice.
Just as he was slightly distracted, Flamme had already wiped away the jam, but instead of leaving immediately, she looked up at him from this very close distance and took the opportunity to start a conversation: "Teacher, what are our plans next? About that demon king?"
She successfully steered the conversation toward the main topic.
Kurtz suppressed his slight unease, nodded, and his expression became slightly more serious: "Yes, the other party is a big problem and must be dealt with as soon as possible."
He thought about it and felt that Flamme, as his disciple, also had the right to know these things, so he carefully explained the origin of the Demon King and the dilemma that killing her might lead to the destruction of the world.
Flamme listened attentively, but at least half of her attention was not on the content itself, but on the man in front of her.
As she listened, she subtly moved closer.
The distance that had already closed when she wiped his mouth was skillfully maintained and further shortened by her.
Kurtz was so engrossed in his explanation that he didn't notice until he finished a segment and subconsciously turned to check on Flamme's reaction that he suddenly realized what had happened.
Before he knew it, Flamme's face was right in front of him. The distance between them was so close that he could see his own reflection in Flamme's eyes and even feel the warmth of her breath on his neck.
This was the first time Kurtz had ever been so close to the girl, far exceeding the bounds of normal teacher-student conversation, much closer than that between many close friends, and carrying a certain oppressive feeling.
Kurtz's words came to an abrupt halt. He leaned back slightly, trying to create some distance, his brows furrowing noticeably as he looked at his disciple, who was standing almost touching him, his voice tinged with doubt: "Flamme? What are you doing standing so close?"
Flamme's brain immediately started working at high speed within 0.1 seconds!
Don't panic! Absolutely do not give yourself away!
In a flash, a perfect excuse was formed.
She had a fawning smile on her face, and her voice was soft.
"Teacher, I just feel really, really bad when I think about what we did without permission before, and how you and Teacher Serie had to come and rescue us."
She lowered her head slightly, then looked up at Kurtz with an apologetic gaze. "So I was thinking, could I take this opportunity to express my apologies... Did I make you uncomfortable, teacher?"
Her reasoning did sound somewhat reasonable, and her cautious yet slightly aggrieved expression was extremely deceptive.
Looking at her like this, Kurtz still harbored doubts, but he didn't say anything more.
Is it because of guilt that she wants to please him?
Humans do seem to have this kind of direct way of expressing emotions.
Compared to Serie's cold and disdainful attitude, Flamme's approach, while somewhat unfamiliar to him, didn't seem like a bad thing.
He smiled helplessly, and his tone softened: "There's no need to take it so seriously. You were trying to save people, so it's understandable."
The consequences were within a controllable range and did not cause irreparable damage, so there's no need to dwell on it.
He tried to restore the atmosphere to normal.
However, Flamme was delighted to hear Kurtz's words.
The teacher didn't suspect anything! He didn't even realize that the distance was clearly abnormal.
She suddenly felt grateful to Lady Serie.
Serie and Kurtz had spent so much time together that they had forgotten human emotions, and he hadn't even realized her intentions during this level of intimacy.
"Okay! Thank you, teacher!" She immediately seized the opportunity, a bright smile spreading across her face.
Although her body moved back slightly, it still remained within a range closer than the normal social distance.
She picked up her chopsticks, took out a piece of dessert, and placed it on the plate in front of Kurtz. "Teacher, try this! It's delicious!"
Her eyes were full of expectation, as if Kurtz eating the pastry meant he had truly forgiven her.
Looking at his disciple with pure eyes, Kurtz completely let go of the last trace of unease in his heart, shook his head with a smile, and picked up his chopsticks: "Okay, I'll try it."
[End of Chapter]
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