Frilian: This Demon Isn't So Cold

Lately, Sylvia seems to be enjoying this kind of life.

Apart from Carlos, no one knows him, so he can let loose and enjoy the freedom of being unrestrained.

It's mainly at night, where you can experience things you couldn't have imagined before.

How could simply being in the same space have such a powerful effect?

She didn't quite understand.

In short, every day felt like being immersed in honey, very enjoyable.

"It seems like something's happened on the mountain lately."

"Have you heard? Some people went up there and never came back, and some people claim to have seen their deceased relatives. How is that possible?"

"It feels a bit eerie. I think we shouldn't go there anytime soon."

"That's what I think too."

One day, as Sylvia finished teaching her student and marveled at his rapid progress, at which point she overheard a conversation nearby.

As a disciple of Vlamé and a grand-disciple of Selene, Sylvia learned about the characteristics of many monsters through her daily life.

She paused briefly to memorize the information before continuing on her way to the dinner location.

"What's wrong? You seem to want to tell me something?"

Reading between the lines is a basic skill, and Carlos knew from the expression on Sylvia's face that she had something to say to him.

"Yes, I overheard something interesting on the way here," Sylvia relayed their conversation to Carlos.

"There are indeed monsters active over there."

"How did you know?" Sylvia asked curiously, hearing Carlos's confident words.

"I just used magical energy to probe the nearby mountains, and it seems there are some monsters roaming around," Carlos said, taking a sip of water. "They're not particularly aggressive, and their range is quite small. Are you planning to go and eliminate them?"

"Hmm, and if possible, I'd like to take them out tomorrow for some practice, to see real monsters. There shouldn't be any danger, right?" Sylvia rested her chin on her hands, looking at him with a glint in her eyes. "If there is, then forget it."

"Although they are extremely talented, they have only been exposed to magic for two or three weeks. It is still too early for them to face real monsters directly."

Carlos paused, then chuckled, "But with me here, there won't be any problems. Getting to know monsters sooner might actually be a good thing."

Establishing a common enemy in their minds early on should somewhat prevent them from using magic for internal strife.

"Speaking of which, I'm a little curious, Sylvia, what were you like when you first encountered a monster?"

"Don't ask!" Sylvia's face immediately turned red, clearly indicating that this was a past event she was ashamed to mention.

"Really? I seem to remember you just telling me that you wouldn't hide things from me?" Carlos stroked his chin, speaking meaningfully with a slight smile on his face.

"Gulp..." Sylvia was speechless, unable to process the words she had once uttered. "I'll tell you later, when we're in the room..."

The reply was so faint it was barely audible unless you listened carefully.

"Actually, I'm not that curious," Carlos said, stopping short of truly angering Sylvia. "But are you letting them come into contact with monsters so early to see them make a fool of themselves?"

Judging from Sylvia's reaction, he could roughly guess what it would be like for an ordinary person to see a monster for the first time. It's very likely that Sylvia made quite a few laughable mistakes at the time, and might even have run away when faced with the monster.

"No way! Besides, it's not like they're going to directly confront the monster; they're just observing!" Sylvia said angrily, seemingly getting even angrier for some reason. "And as long as that monster doesn't get close, there's absolutely no danger!"

"Really?" Carlos didn't understand what was wrong with what he said, but he had just heard something interesting. "It seems you know quite a bit about what kind of monster that is on the mountain."

Oh no, I accidentally revealed what I was trying to hide.

Sylvia tapped her head lightly with her fist, looking somewhat annoyed. "You found out."

"What do you think? I don't want to be seen as someone who doesn't care about students' lives." Carlos stopped talking for a moment because the food they had just ordered had arrived.

He ordered an omelet rice dish with sauce on top, and Carlos quite liked the dish, mainly because the sauce tasted good.

As for Sylvia, she ordered three steaks.

"Come to think of it, it's been a long time since I've had a headache over money." Sylvia cut a small piece of beef from her steak and fed it to the other person, feeling distressed about her own downward spiral.

"It's alright, someone always has to enjoy the good fortune, it just so happens that it's you right now," Carlos said with a smile as he chewed and swallowed the small piece of beef she had given him.

"So, how much money do you have left?" Sylvia had never asked this question before.

"According to Vlamé, it's roughly the combined assets of five or six nobles. Besides, I don't actually feel like I've spent much money so far," Carlos said truthfully.

"I'm a little envious, but the source of this money... doesn't seem very clean, does it?" Sylvia was a little embarrassed to say the word "ill-gotten gains" directly.

"It's normal to be envious. As for the question that comes later, you don't need to worry about it." Carlos had no psychological burden. "In the end, we successfully got this money back into circulation in the market, which is a good thing. You don't need to feel any moral pressure. If there is any, it should be me who bears it."

"Do you really want me to become a truly bad woman?" Sylvia asked, listening to him say that he would bear all the pressure.

If I really follow the other party's logic, I'm afraid I'll really be spoiled and turned into a useless person.

Although she was happy, she didn't want it to be like this.

"No, that's not true." Carlos added, as if he could read her thoughts. "What you've done for Vlamé is more than enough to earn you this reward. Don't underestimate yourself; you deserve it."

Then he continued, "Otherwise, if you just rely on working, how long would it take to save even one gold coin? Don't you think about why some people have so much money? Besides, we're not using the money to do anything bad."

This was the first time Sylvia had received such a baptism of values.

Previously, through listening to the discussions of her neighbors, she had formed the impression in her mind that one silver coin was roughly equivalent to a day's work.

But now, after hearing Carlos's words, Sylvia thought about it carefully. Yes, if she could only earn this much money a day, it would be unrealistic to save so much money, because just covering daily living expenses would already cost a lot.

"Is this not just to comfort me?" Even though that's what she thought, Sylvia still couldn't quite accept it for a moment.

"How could that be? I just wanted to put you under pressure. Thinking too much about this kind of thing won't do you any good." Carlos secretly used magic to cut the steak on her plate, then gently took the girl's left hand, forked a small piece, and put it into her mouth.

"Eat your food and stop thinking about these things," Carlos said softly.

"Um."

Sylvia's pretty face flushed slightly, and in a moment of confusion, all the thoughts she had been having vanished.

She enjoyed the dinner very much, then walked hand in hand with Carlos back to the hotel.

Tomorrow will be another day full of hope.