Wizards begin with Occlumency.

Recruiting is always a two-way street.

Those who are recruited can choose to accept or refuse outright.

Everything depends on the personal wishes of the person being recruited; the recruiter cannot force them.

This summons from the unfamiliar sage Fletcher Domingo came without any prior warning; it was a sudden event.

Link knew nothing about the Sage Fletcher Domingo or the recruitment mission, so he couldn't make a decision rashly.

Whether to accept or reject, one should be cautious and make a choice only after comprehensive consideration.

After reading the recruitment notice, Link pondered for a moment and decided to report the matter directly to Dean Forrest for guidance.

Instead of investigating information about Sage Fletcher Domingo and the intelligence on this recruitment mission through Sandra or other channels, and then making a decision on their own.

Fletcher Domingo was, after all, a level 5 sage. In Link's previous life in ancient times, he would have been a regional lord, unlike Sandra Diormand, whose status was more purely celibate.

If Link were to accept the summons without consulting Dean Forrest, it would be akin to Li Guang, a military general of the imperial court, accepting the appointment of a local vassal king, the King of Liang—a foolish act of blindly following the lead of powerful figures.

Loyalty that is not absolute is absolute disloyalty.

Which superior would dare to use such a subordinate with confidence?

Link is still young and needs Dean Forrest's protection.

I don't want to be seen as having ulterior motives, being indecisive, or having two relationships without even realizing it.

This meant that instead of being sheltered from the wind and rain by the big tree, they were instead whipped by its branches.

That would be such a loss!

Link pulled out his encrypted cross-border communicator and, regardless of whether the time was right, sent a communication request directly to Dean Forrest.

"What's the rush? Why are you calling me so late?"

The communication was connected, and Dean Forrest's voice came through the encrypted cross-border communicator.

His tone remained calm as always, without making people feel overwhelmed.

However, Link knew that if he couldn't give a solid reason, he didn't know about the other punishments, but he would lose a lot of top-quality tea.

"Dean, I have just received a summons from a Level 5 Sage named Fletcher Domingo, and I am unsure how to proceed. I would like to hear your advice."

Link quickly gave a truthful report.

"Fletcher Domingo?"

Dean Forrest asked in confusion, "Why did he think of recruiting you? How did he find out about you? What does he want you to do? Wait a moment, I'll check."

With that, Dean Forrest temporarily put aside the cross-border communication.

Then, through various channels, I learned about Fletcher Domingo's recent activities and plans for the near future.

As the dean of both the junior and senior colleges of Rivosos Academy, Forrest Diomand sometimes found himself on the mainland, which meant he wasn't always up-to-date with what was happening at the academy headquarters.

For example, Dean Forrest was unaware that Sage Fletcher Domingo, who had returned from the front lines to the academy headquarters for rest, was taking on the role of leader of the second extracurricular practical activity assessment team for advanced wizards.

Therefore, they were unaware that, under the guidance of Ms. Lisandra, the Sage Fletcher Domingo had paid more attention to Link Grand.

Little did they know that Link's many actions had successfully piqued the curiosity of the sage Fletcher Domingo.

This summons was issued to Link immediately after Fletcher officially received the mission from the Academy.

Before long, Dean Forrest had investigated the ins and outs of the sudden incident that Link had encountered, and was somewhat speechless.

The mission to snipe a team of pioneers returning from another world in Shadow City was issued by Forrest himself.

The purpose is simple: to release some smokescreens and confuse certain people and forces in line with a strategy he is currently leading.

The Shadow City's interdimensional pioneering team, apart from a Level 5 sage responsible for the team's safety, consisted entirely of Level 1 and Level 2 wizards.

There isn't even a single level three wizard, let alone a level four sage.

Due to the principle of fair competition, the Academy of Rivosos can only send one level wizard or two level wizards, apart from Fletcher Domingo, a level five sage.

The number of people must remain the same as the Shadow City's otherworldly pioneering team.

In this way, even if the incident of targeting the Shadow City interdimensional pioneer team is exposed, Rivosos Academy will not be put in a passive position in terms of public opinion.

Logically, as the one who issued the mission, Dean Forrest should have followed up on the entire process, even if it was just to check on the mission's progress.

However, he had many things to do, so he entrusted this not-so-important task to several departments at the academy headquarters.

Some things took a backseat today, and Dean Forrest hasn't yet checked the progress reports for each task.

Therefore, they did not learn in time that Sage Fletcher Domingo had been chosen to lead the Shadow City interdimensional pioneer team and that a recruitment notice had been directly issued to Link Grand.

As for why Sage Fletcher Domingo summoned Link Grand immediately, Dean Forrest also figured it out, and was even more speechless.

There were signs that her own second sister, Ms. Lisandra, was getting involved.

What's going on here?

Are you bored?

Looking for trouble!

"You should accept the draft."

Dean Forrest resumed communication with Link and said, "Actually, even if Domingo didn't call you up, you were already on the sniper team's roster. Whether Domingo calls you up or not doesn't make much difference."

Think about it carefully, how could the departments at the main campus that were entrusted by Dean Forrest possibly overlook Link when selecting members for their sniper teams?

This is a prodigy whose combat power is comparable to that of a third-level wizard, as publicly recognized by more than one sage, including Dean Forrest.

Of course, we should make full use of it.

"Yes, Dean."

Link readily agreed, then asked, "The recruitment notice is somewhat vague about the mission details. Dean, would you mind revealing some inside information to me?"

Upon hearing this, Dean Forrest asked sternly, "Can you strictly keep this a secret?"

"I can!"

Link's heart skipped a beat, sensing something was wrong, but he still had to give a loud affirmative response.

"Really? I can do that too."

As expected, Dean Forrest replied casually with that one sentence and then hung up the cross-border communication.

Link put down the encrypted cross-border communicator, picked up his personal smart device, opened the recruitment notice again, and chose to accept.

Dean Forrest's refusal to reveal details of this recruitment mission does not mean that Link will stop his intelligence-gathering efforts.

He first looked up Fletcher Domingo's specific information through the college's publicly available materials, and roughly understood his personality, style, command ability and fighting style.

Afterwards, he contacted Sandra Diomand, hoping to learn more specific information about Fletcher Domingo through her connections and channels.

Sandra's reply was quick and concise, just one sentence:

Fletcher Domingo is straightforward, lacks social skills, is a fierce fighter, indifferent to others, but considerate of his subordinates.

This review isn't great, but it's not bad either.

If true, then getting along with Fletcher Domingo, the wise one, might not be difficult.

the other side.

After Dean Forrest hung up the call, he left his office, traversed the starry sky, and went directly to his leisurely second sister, Lissandra.

"What are you trying to do now? We've only been quiet for a few days, can you please stop causing trouble, Second Sister!"

Facing his second sister, who was always willful and capricious, Dean Forrest's expression revealed a deep sense of helplessness.

"What did I do now?"

Lissandra looked Forrest directly into the eyes and calmly asked, "What did I do wrong this time?"

Dean Forrest opened and closed his lips a few times, but was speechless.

Is this a matter of doing something right or wrong?

Was this matter necessary?

Taking a deep breath, Dean Forrest asked, "What did he do to upset you this time, making you want to mess with him again?"

"He didn't do anything to me!"

Lissandra curled her lip and said sullenly, "But why is Sandra only a branch manager and vice president? There's a president overshadowing her!"

"this……"

Dean Forrest was speechless, unsure of what to say.

The little ones' squabbles are fine, but let them be.

Why are you, a dignified Level 6 Sage, getting involved in this mess?

Dean Forrest had no choice but to leave directly, too lazy to continue "interrogating" him.

He thought his second sister was going to arrange another ambush, similar to the last one, so he rushed over to stop it.

In the end, it turned out that he just wanted to mess with people in this way to stand up for his daughter.

That's more than outrageous!

That's absolutely outrageous!

Ms. Lisandra ignored the little incident and continued to savor her Pu'er tea with dried tangerine peel.

Putting everything else aside, the tea and tea drinks developed by Link Grand are indeed quite good.

The world of the Academy's main campus.

Villa, study.

After Link agreed to be drafted, he received another notification.

Upon clicking, I found the team's meeting time and location.

The team was to assemble in ten days, but the mission was to be carried out two weeks later, which surprised Link.

Generally speaking, there is not much buffer time for such temporary conscription missions.

This time, however, there is plenty of time to prepare.

It didn't seem like a temporary mission at all; rather, it was more like a long-planned operation.

After reading the notice, Link stopped paying attention to the recruitment mission, left the study, and went back to his bedroom to rest.

The following week.

Link and Jasmine resumed their normal class schedule.

Until the weekend arrived.

The practical feedback for the first phase of the "Construction" project wasn't that quick, so there was no need to go to the fairy world.

Because he needed to dedicate time to his conscription mission, Link didn't conduct time-consuming research and experiments, so he didn't need to go to his own lab.

After learning that Link was going on a mission, Sage Seren reduced Link's workload and stopped him from going to the laboratory building.

So, when the weekend came, Link was surprised to find that he had gained two more days of free time.

After watching Jasmine drive away from the villa to her own laboratory to conduct research and experiments related to beast taming wizards.

Link found himself somewhat idle.

After thinking it over, Link submitted an application to the academy, deciding to take this opportunity to return to the Wizarding World.

Christina's daughter has been entrusted to Link for quite some time now.

She was fostered by Asander Cornett and Renée Clark.

Link felt really bad that he hadn't seen it in person yet.

With the academy's approval, Link immediately drove to the interdimensional portal and returned to his home planet.

On the way, Link informed Asander that he was going to visit Christina's daughter.

"Link, why didn't you tell me you were coming back?"

Asander made a video call and asked a question.

Link explained, "I didn't know beforehand that I would have time this weekend. It was a last-minute decision, and I didn't make any travel plans."

"Alright, come straight to the headquarters. I've brought Garona here."

Asander did not delve further into Link's impromptu decision, and said this.

"Okay, I'll be there soon."

After hanging up the call, Link discovered something else that left him speechless.

He didn't even know whether Christina's daughter's name, Garona, was chosen by Christina or by Asander and Renee.

He and Renee were jointly responsible for the collaboration between the Serene Sage's Pharmacy Teaching and Research Group and the Paro Sage Legion, so they had plenty of time to communicate.

After mentally criticizing himself, Link arrived at the headquarters of "Freedom to Do Anything".

"Hello, boss!"

The welcoming party that Asander hastily organized was small in number, but its greetings and salutes were quite impressive.

"Okay, everyone's doing well!"

Link waved in response, and then, accompanied by Asander, chatted for a while with the members who had come to welcome him back.

After exchanging brief words with each person, making sure no one was left out and that everyone received his attention, Link finally dismissed the members so they could go about their own business.

"Why bother with all this? It's all so unrealistic!"

On the way to the general manager's office, Link couldn't help but offer a word of advice, "I think we shouldn't put on these kinds of shows anymore."

"OK."

Asander agreed readily.

He didn't actually want to get involved in all this fancy stuff.

However, before getting a clear statement from Link, we have to do it once or twice.

This was to test Link's views and attitudes on this matter.

"Where is Garona?"

Link didn't want to create an awkward atmosphere. After mentioning it briefly, he acted as if nothing had happened and instead asked, "How was she behaving? Did she show any unusual behavior?"

After learning that Asander and Renee had decided to adopt Christina's daughter, Link sent them all the details about Christina and her daughter, excluding anything involving privacy.

Asander naturally understood that the unusual behavior Link was asking about referred to the connection between Garona's soul and body, and whether her personality was influenced by the Serpent's bloodline.

He immediately replied, "No, everything is fine."

"Okay, that's good."

Link nodded.

We arrived at the general manager's office; the door was wide open.

As soon as Link entered, he saw Garona crawling around on the floor, moving around constantly.

Lifting head, rolling over, sitting, crawling, standing, walking: the sequence of an infant's motor development.

Garona has already climbed very smoothly, standing firmly for a short distance and walking not far.

"Oh dear! Oh dear!"

When Garona saw Link, she immediately opened her mouth and cried out.

His eyes also revealed a longing for closeness.

"Hmm?"

Link was puzzled.

What's going on? Why is Garona, who has never seen him before, behaving this way?

He had occasionally heard Jasmine mention that Asander and Renee had always felt that Garona was too quiet and not lively enough.

I tried many ways to tease Garona and unleash her true nature.

"Oh dear! Oh dear! Oh dear!"

Garona had already turned around and was crawling towards Link.

They quickly climbed to Link's feet.

"Oh dear! Oh dear!"

Garona cried out, tugging at Link's trouser leg with both hands, looking like she wanted a hug.

"Come!"

Link bent down and carefully picked up Garona.

"Oh!"

Garona immediately wrapped her arms tightly around Link's neck, rested her head on Link's shoulder, and smiled happily.

"Oh dear! My heart aches!"

Assande watched this scene, his voice tinged with bitterness, "I've cared for Garona for so long, yet it's not as valuable as you seeing her for the first time!"

"Oh dear! Oh dear!"

Before Link could react, Garona seemed to understand Asander's words.

She raised her head, released one hand, and waved at Asander.

It's as if it's saying, "Don't be jealous, Garona still loves you."

His greedy, wanting-it-all-in-one look successfully amused Asander.

What is Link doing at this moment?

He was carefully sensing the specifics of Garona's soul and body, and had already made a rather astonishing discovery.

To prevent himself from misjudging the situation, Link checked it several times.

"Link, what's wrong?"

Sensing the fluctuations in Link's mental and magical energy, Asander immediately asked, "Is there something wrong with Garona?"

"no problem."

Link shook his head. "Good news!"

"What good news?"

Asander pressed for more information.

"Did Renee mention to you that I created the 'Construct'?"

Link didn't answer directly, but instead asked a question in return.

"I took the initiative to learn about it in detail myself."

Asander responded with rather cautious wording.

Link smiled and said, "Garona is naturally suited for implanting 'constructs,' and her overall capacity to bear weight far exceeds that of others."

"So young, yet?"

Asander exclaimed in surprise, then said solemnly, "Let's not."

It's not a good thing for a child to wield a large sword.

Garona herself has already developed problems due to the influence of the Shadow Serpent bloodline.

If it weren't for the joint research of Link and the sage Celine, it's hard to say whether it would have been born at all, let alone survived and thrived.

Currently, in order to suppress the negative influence of the Shadow Serpent bloodline on her soul, Garona's connection between her soul and body is very special.

The soul is like a kite that has been released high and far away, and the connection between it and the body is like a thin string that can break if something goes wrong.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything reckless."

Link explained, "First, we need to design one or more sets of armor suitable for Garona. Second, I have a feeling that after the armor sets are implanted, Garona's soul will no longer have to worry about being affected by the Shadow Serpent bloodline."

Are you confident? How confident are you?

Concern leads to confusion.

Asander has only been raising Garona for a short time, but he truly loves the little girl.

At this moment, he even lost his composure a little and asked a rather basic question.

Yes, and it's very big.

Upon seeing this, Link gave a very affirmative answer.

Taking a deep breath, Asander calmed his chaotic emotions, forcing himself to regain his composure, and sighed, "Oh dear! I said something stupid!"

"fine."

Link then offered some words of comfort to Asander.

"Oh dear! Oh dear! Oh dear!"

Perhaps sensing Asander's sudden emotional ups and downs, Garona called out as she opened her arms to him.

She leaned forward, wanting Asander to hug her.

Asander immediately reached out and took Garona from Link's arms.

"Oh!"

Garona embraced Asander, reached out her right hand, and gently touched and wiped Asander's eyes.

I have no idea what she was wiping.

"Good."

Seeing this, Link sighed.

Christina entrusted her daughter Garona to him, and he "re-handed over" her to Assange and Renee for adoption, ultimately not betraying Christina's trust.

Ok.

He stayed in the general manager's office and played with Garona for a while until Garona yawned and slowly fell asleep.

Link had just left to chat with the core members of the Brotherhood, the Social Anxiety Group, and the Third Echelon.

Link's return to the Wizarding World was prompted by his desire to see Christina's daughter.

After watching it, it's only natural to take the opportunity to strengthen your bond with your closest relatives.

We chatted for a long time, answered some questions, and then I treated you to lunch at my villa in the North District. It was a very thoughtful and considerate meal.

It was a spontaneous team-building activity, but it turned out to be quite successful.

After the meal, the core members of the third team wisely took their leave, leaving the space to Link, his group of friends, and the socially anxious group.

"Hey boss, what do you think of them?"

After the key personnel left, Buck couldn't contain himself and immediately asked a question.

"Very good, very good."

Link didn't hold back his praise, then changed the subject, asking, "Are your resources sufficient in all aspects?"

Without a second thought, Buck opened his mouth to answer.

Lynn, sitting next to him, reached out to cover Buck's mouth to stop him from speaking, then asked seriously, "Is the boss short-staffed at headquarters?"

Link didn't hide anything and said directly, "I hope to move the headquarters of 'Freedom to Do Anything' there as soon as possible."

"Understood."

With a serious expression, Lynn solemnly said, "Don't worry, Boss, we won't fall behind in our cultivation progress. We will definitely advance to the second level wizard as soon as possible."

Link waved his hand and smiled, "I didn't mean to rush you. Cultivation should be done steadily and surely; you can't be too hasty."

After a pause, Link emphasized, "I'm just asking if you have enough resources. If not, just ask your leader; I'll take some from my magic stones."

"Thank you for your concern, we have enough resources."

They exchanged glances and the "brotherhood" and "social anxiety" groups replied in unison.

Over the years, they have benefited greatly from the big boss's influence, and have earned a lot of magic stones by relying on their relationship with him.

They also know that as the business expands, despite the increased income of the big boss, the economic pressure is actually greater.

How dare they still try to take magic stones from the big boss?

They had overheard the eldest sister mention what the boss's most frequent remark was during a certain period of time.

Therefore, both the Brotherhood and the Social Anxiety Group are well aware of one fact.

That is, even though the big boss has opened up three sources of income—potions, tea, and tea leaves—and magic stones are flowing into his pockets in droves.

In reality, while the tycoon is very wealthy...

Extremely poor! (End of Chapter)