Evelyn did not recognize the group in front of her, but they all wore the emblem of Luminara Magic Academy.

  She frowned slightly and asked,"Are you apprentices from Luminara Magic Academy? What do you want with me?"

  Kaelor wore a fake smile and spoke in a deliberately warm tone."We are indeed apprentices of Luminara Magic Academy."

  "And we are all friends of Allen. In this academy, there is almost no one who does not know Allen's name."

  Evelyn's confusion deepened. Her gaze swept over them, and their magic levels were all quite strong.

  She clearly remembered that Allen had only been at Luminara Magic Academy for three months. How could he already know so many powerful friends?

  She pressed down the doubt in her heart and did not ask further. Instead, she said directly,"Since you know Allen, have you seen him? I am looking for him on urgent business."

  Kaelor smiled."Allen? We just saw him a moment ago, but he is tied up with important matters and cannot leave right now."

  "After all, Allen is a prominent figure at our Luminara Magic Academy. As Headmaster Berton's core apprentice, he is usually very busy."

  "If you have something to tell him, you might as well tell us. We can pass it along to Allen for you and save you from waiting here for nothing."

  Evelyn frowned, and her sense of caution grew even stronger.

  Although these people seemed very warm on the surface and mentioned Allen at every turn, she still keenly sensed a trace of malice.

  "No need. Thank you for your kindness," Evelyn shook her head."I will wait for him here. I will not trouble you."

  As she spoke, Evelyn slowly turned around and faced the gates of Luminara Magic Academy again, no longer paying attention to Kaelor and his group behind her.

  Seeing her give them no courtesy at all, the smile on Kaelor's face instantly faded, and a trace of gloom flashed in his eyes.

  He quietly signaled to the woman beside him. She immediately understood. Her figure blurred, and in the next second she appeared right in front of Evelyn.

  Evelyn's heart jolted. She instinctively tried to step back to create distance, but found that her body seemed to be bound by an invisible force, her movements becoming extremely slow.

  "You are an Archmage!" Evelyn's expression changed.

  The woman smiled and nodded."That is right. You have a good eye."

  "Although the academy has rules against taking action here, using a bit of magical pressure to restrain you does not count as a violation."

  As she spoke, her slender fingers reached forward.

  Before Evelyn could react, her fingers had already grabbed the storage pouch hanging at Evelyn's waist. With a light tug, she pulled it free.

  In fact, Kaelor and his group had noticed the pouch at Evelyn's waist long ago.

  They had already guessed that Evelyn was most likely here to deliver something to Allen.

  The woman's figure blurred again, and in the next second she appeared beside Kaelor.

  She respectfully handed the storage pouch in her hand to Kaelor.

  Kaelor smiled and reached out to take it.

  "Give it back!" Evelyn trembled with rage, gritting her teeth as she shouted.

  She tried to forcibly break through the magical pressure and rush forward to seize the pouch.

  But as soon as she took a step, the woman once again blocked her path, tightly restraining Evelyn and leaving her unable to move.

  Evelyn's magic level at this moment was only that of a Fifth-tier Senior Mage.

  She had no way to resist the Archmage woman in front of her. Bound by her pressure, even the slightest movement was extremely difficult.

  Kaelor smiled and waved his hand, signaling the woman to step aside.

  He weighed the storage pouch in his hand and raised an eyebrow, smiling."What is in here that has you so nervous? Why not let us have a look?"

  Before Evelyn could respond, Kaelor casually opened the pouch and gently parted the velvet lining inside.

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  When he saw the bottle of mana potion within the pouch, Kaelor froze for a moment, then could not help but burst into loud laughter.

  "So this is the precious gift you went through all that trouble to deliver? A Mana Crown Elixir?"

  The noble youths behind him leaned in to take a look and soon joined in the laughter. Their voices were shrill, full of scorn.

  "I thought it was some rare treasure, turns out it's just this trash!"

  "You people from Radiant Magic Academy really have no sense of the world!"

  "This is a low-tier potion that only relieves minor mana loss, and you actually dare to send it to Luminara Magic Academy?"

  "Exactly! Any one of us could find a bunch of these in our own pouches!"

  Seeing their disdainful mockery, Evelyn's chest heaved violently with anger. Her face flushed deep red, and a layer of tears formed in her eyes.

  But she knew clearly that the academy forbade taking action in front of its gates, and even if she did act, with her current strength, she was no match for Kaelor and his group.

  She could only clench her fists tightly, suppressing her anger and humiliation.

  Kaelor glanced at Evelyn, trembling with rage, a cold sneer curling at the corner of his mouth, and spoke sharply:

  "All the way from Radiant Magic Academy to Aetherlan City, just to deliver this useless trash?"

  "You probably do not realize it, but Allen is now Headmaster Berton's core apprentice, a person of high status."

  "He has seen all sorts of high-level mana potions and rare treasures. He does not need your kind of garbage!"

  "Do you think Allen is still that weakling who could barely enter Luminara Magic Academy with a recommendation letter?"

  "He is completely different now. Backed by a powerful family, his wealth, connections, and influence are far beyond what you can imagine. This one lousy potion of yours will only make people laugh!"

  "So touching. You probably worried he would be bullied at the academy, and you ran all this way to deliver such a useless thing."

  "This low-tier potion might be considered a decent treasure at your Radiant Magic Academy,"

  "But here at Luminara Magic Academy, even a dog would not touch it!"

  Kaelor spoke with contempt, then casually threw the storage pouch toward Evelyn.

  But his hand slipped slightly, and the pouch flew out of his grip. The Mana Crown Elixir inside fell to the ground.

  The noble youths behind him immediately stepped forward, feigning concern:

  "This is the precious gift you went through all that trouble to deliver! Pick it up! Don't get it dirty!"

  "You traveled all this way to deliver it. If it breaks, that would be terrible!"

  Their words promised to retrieve the potion, but their feet deliberately trampled on it, the sound of leather shoes crushing it sharp and grating.

  In moments, the bottle was smashed to pieces, its liquid mixed with dust, becoming filthy and worthless. The faint mana within it vanished instantly.

  Kaelor looked at the crushed Mana Crown Elixir on the ground and shrugged, pretending to be apologetic.

  "Sorry about that. Our people are used to handling things roughly. Sometimes we are careless and accidentally ruin someone's treasure. I hope you don't mind."

  Watching Evelyn, furious and helpless, clenching her fists so tightly, Kaelor felt all his frustration vanish and let out several hearty laughs.

  "Seems like we are not cut out for picking things up."

  He raised his hand, pointing at the scattered shards on the ground and the potion residue mixed with dust, now unrecognizable.

  "Then I'll leave it to you to clean up. After all, this is the precious thing you went through all that trouble to bring. Can't let it go to waste."

  With that, Kaelor waved to the group of noble youths behind him, his face full of smug satisfaction, and led them arrogantly through the gates of Luminara Magic Academy.

  Evelyn slowly lowered her head, her eyes red, suppressing the tears in her eyes. Without a word, she crouched down and extended her slender fingers.

  Carefully, she picked up the crushed shards and potion residue bit by bit, placing them back into the storage pouch.

  From start to finish, she did not utter a single word. Only the slight trembling of her shoulders betrayed the anger boiling within her.

  This was the best she could offer, yet it had been so trampled and mocked.

  ...

  After separating from Keller, Allen and the others had nothing to do for the moment and planned to return to Luminara Magic Academy to see if Headmaster Berton needed anything from him.

  A few apprentices hurried up to him. Allen knew all of them, as they were students at the academy who had a good relationship with him.

  "Allen, a young lady from Radiant Magic Academy is here to see you!"

  "She said her name is Evelyn. She was waiting at the academy gates to meet you, but by chance ran into Kaelor and his group!"

  As they hurriedly explained to Allen what had just happened, including the provocations from Kaelor's group, how they snatched the storage pouch, and how they trampled the potion, they pulled Allen toward Luminara Magic Academy, fearing that if they arrived late, Evelyn might be further mistreated.

  Along the way, Allen listened to the full account of events. A flash of anger crossed his eyes, his pace growing faster, almost breaking into a run.

  He did not pause for a moment, rushing back to Luminara Magic Academy. From a distance, just in front of the gates, he saw the familiar figure he had not seen for days.

  Evelyn was crouched on the cold ground, head lowered, carefully placing the potion fragments back into the storage pouch.

  Kaelor and his group had already walked into the academy, triumphant and proud.

  Allen forced himself to suppress the anger in his heart, adjusting his emotions to keep his tone gentle.

  He stepped forward quickly, crouched down beside Evelyn, and helped her gather the potion shards.

  "Evelyn, I'm sorry you had to go through that," he said.

  At the sound of Allen's voice, Evelyn's body trembled slightly, and the tears in her eyes could no longer be held back.

  Allen reached out and carefully placed the last fragment into the pouch. Then he looked up at Evelyn's face.

  He said sincerely,"Don't listen to Kaelor and the others. This is not trash at all. I'm still only a Fifth-tier Senior Mage."

  "The thing I need most is the Mana Crown Elixir. To me, it is incredibly important."

  Evelyn lifted her head and looked at Allen, forcing a smile. Her breathtaking face was still streaked with tears.

  "Stop fooling me. Kaelor and the others said that you are Headmaster Berton's core apprentice, backed by a powerful family, and that you have no shortage of high-level mana potions."

  Allen gently took the pouch from Evelyn's hands and looked earnestly into her eyes. With utmost seriousness, he said,"No matter how good those high-level potions are, they are not the same as what you brought."

  "What you give is always the best…"

  Just like the things she risked her life to find on the Godfall Battlefield, which were perhaps not the rarest resources but were the best she could offer.

  Seeing Allen's sincere gaze, most of the frustration and hurt in Evelyn's heart melted away instantly.