Chapter 258
Haina’s Gryphon
Upon hearing that she would receive a pure-blooded White Feather Gryphon, Haina immediately perked up. The resentment she harbored from waiting for the gryphon for so long vanished instantly.
“What’s going on,” she mused, “so the reason you delayed delivery was to prepare a better one for me. If that’s the case, you should have said so earlier! How would I have known if you didn’t tell me?”
“It’s just a pity,” Haina sighed, “that I can’t bring the gryphon home with me this time. If I could bring it back—especially the White Gryphon—how prestigious would that be! Even the supervisors in our village don’t have gryphons.”
For her small hometown, even becoming a supervisor was a considerable honor. And even they knew that riding a gryphon was far more impressive than riding a horse, and a white gryphon was more impressive than a brown one.
Eagle Cape Village did have supervisors. However, there was no Inspection Bureau there; the nearest one was located in Windpipe Town, Shepherd’s Bay Country. The village only had one supervisor and one priest stationed there. In such a small place, it was impossible to afford a gryphon. Even a mass-produced gryphon with a lifespan of thirty years required five pounds of fresh meat daily. Due to the numerous affairs of the Inspection Bureau, the one in Windpipe Town alone had over forty supervisors. If each were assigned a gryphon, the daily fresh meat consumption would be astonishing.
But according to regulations, supervisors were required to be assigned gryphons. This was not just a matter of prestige but also a symbol of authority. Therefore, their solution was to assign only seven or eight gryphons to the highest-ranking supervisors, and then several dozen horses—mimicking the Star Antimony people and Iris people by using mounted police to replace gryphons.
“On Glass Island, even supervisors who have just graduated can receive their own gryphons after working for six months to a year. As fellow Third Tier individuals, in Shepherd’s Bay Country, you might only get to ride a horse.”
“And the old supervisor in our village doesn’t even have a horse.” Haina described vividly, “He doesn’t even work at the Inspection Bureau but lives in a wooden hut by the lake. He usually sits outside fishing for the entire day. If we needed him for something, we’d send someone to call him from the hut. Then, the old man would slowly pack up his fishing rod, dawdle over, and sometimes, if it was too late, he’d say he’d come tomorrow.”
After all, it didn’t take long to walk from one end of the village to the other. It was, ultimately, a small village with fewer than a thousand residents. More than half of them were middle-aged or elderly, and everyone had lived there for decades—their parents and grandparents had also lived there. They saw each other every day, and there were generally no severe incidents requiring a supervisor’s intervention. In contrast, the permanent residents within the Royal Law University alone—including students, lecturers, residents, and merchants—easily exceeded fifty thousand. While the Third to Sixth Departments were uncertain, the First and Second Departments, where Ordinary Persons studied, admitted several times the population of Eagle Cape Village in new students each year.
Supervisors working in such places were generally too old to hope for further promotion.
“…But I feel like the old man should be quite happy.” Eivass said with some envy, “I hope that after I retire, I’ll have the opportunity to go fishing every day.” He wondered if he would still have such leisure time after saving the world.
“I think the old man is too slow,” Haina said, clearly more energetic. Her eyes seemed to sparkle, “In a place like that, life feels like it’s frozen. I want to stay in Avalon, encounter major cases, and become famous! The cases I handle in a month here are more than what Shepherd’s Bay Country sees in a year. During this time, I’ve been dealing with all sorts of vicious incidents. Last week alone, I handled three murder cases… but unfortunately, they were all cases that couldn’t be interviewed, requiring confidentiality. Otherwise, I could have brought back more newspapers. But the director and my seniors in the Inspection Bureau also said that Glass Island isn’t usually this chaotic; it’s only recently started to become so. I think it might be because of that traitorous minister. Or perhaps there are other spies who have infiltrated.”
“Probably,” Eivass replied casually, “but not necessarily. Maybe some Extraordinary person is causing trouble.”
“That’s indeed possible…” Haina lamented, slumping onto the table powerlessly. The compressed mounds of flesh on her chest momentarily caught Eivass’s attention.
“This is so annoying,” Haina wailed, “This is my last long holiday, and I feel happy, yet I also feel pain… Ah, it’s so painful…”
“Indeed. Starting next year, your annual leave will only be three days. Supervisors are all like that.” Eivass added with a smile, twisting the knife, “And you’ll likely have to work overtime during the New Year’s holiday, so you’ll have to take it before or after the holiday.”
“What?! No way—” Haina let out a weak groan, barely able to wail, “Damn it, doesn’t that mean I won’t be able to go back and show off once I get my gryphon… By then, I’ll probably be exhausted. If I only have three days off, I’ll probably collapse at home and sleep for three days straight…”
“Young Master is just joking,” Lily, who was quietly drinking tea nearby, said with a sigh, holding her teacup. “Senior, you won’t be staying at the Inspection Bureau until next year. Once you get promoted again, you’ll be transferred to the Arbitration Hall.” Although Lily was a bit older than Haina, she and Eivass were currently first-year university students. Haina, having just graduated, was still her senior. What she said was true—Haina was already at Third Tier. When she was promoted again, she would become an “Arbitrator.” There was no reason for an Arbitrator to work at the Inspection Bureau.
“What! I’m about to be promoted, probably this month or by the end of the month… My teacher has already taught me how to transition to an Arbitrator!” Haina’s eyes lit up, and she excitedly pushed herself up from the table, “Then, how long is the holiday at the Arbitration Hall?”
“About half a month,” Eivass said casually, “sometimes three weeks.”
“Hooray—”
“But don’t get too excited, Senior. Miss Lixia will probably give you intensive training, which will likely take up your vacation time.” Eivass took a sip of tea and a bite of pastry, “At least for the first few years, you won’t be able to think about such things.”
“…How mean.” Haina slumped down softly again. After lying there for a while, she couldn’t help but get up again, “Why only the first few years? Can I relax after a few years?”
“Because you’ll get used to it after a few years,” Lily mimicked Eivass’s smile and playfully quipped beside him. Watching Haina be defeated by Lily once more, Eivass simply smiled. What he truly wanted to say was—in a few years, the world would descend into chaos. When the Heavenly Envoys started appearing en masse, she naturally wouldn’t have any chances for leave either. Haina felt that her life was very busy now, but she would surely miss the work routine of not having to think about anything or worry about anything at this time.
For an Ordinary Extraordinary, being personally guided by the Grand Arbitrator was undoubtedly an honor. But Haina merely wanted to live a good life. Furthermore, she wanted to become famous and a prominent figure. However, her desire for money and power was not strong, nor was her interest in the Path of Authority particularly high. She studied diligently simply because the profession of a supervisor was the most stable in terms of income and the highest in social status among the stable professions available to commoners.
“I’ll state this in advance,” Eivass said after some thought, “even if you are assigned a White Gryphon, it will currently be at most a young or even juvenile gryphon with mixed brown and white feathers at most. You’ll have to raise it yourself. Those pure white, ownerless gryphons are impossible for you to get.” Those pure white, large gryphons that glowed like jade were their predecessors. It wasn’t just Eivass and Haina. Even the Grand Guardian George would likely respectfully bow and greet these White Gryphons. A considerable number of them had watched George and even Meg grow up—back when they were still in university, these gryphons were already squatting on the Gryphon Bridge at the entrance of the Silver and Tin Hall, idly watching the scenery. All the wars Avalon had participated in over the past few hundred years, the most dangerous and critical battlefields, had seen these White Gryphons turn the tide. Haina wasn’t even part of the Military System—her profession was a supervisor, not a light cavalry, and she hadn’t received lance or air force training. The reason she could be assigned a pure-blooded gryphon was partly due to Meg, but more importantly, it was because she was outstanding. Although Haina came from a completely commoner background, her aptitude meant she could reach at least Fourth Tier. If she wasn’t held back by the Ascension Ritual, she could even touch Fifth Tier. Then, she would no longer be a commoner—but a future prominent figure. That was the Fifth Tier of the Path of Authority! Moreover, her relationship with Eivass and Isabel was very good… Therefore, she didn’t need to become a second-generation figure. She was a future “first-generation” figure herself, and even the Gryphon Minister would have to take Haina seriously.
“How about this?” Eivass thought for a moment and decided to give Haina a “green light,” “By the time we return from our holiday, your gryphon will surely be ready. In other words, it’s about a month away. How about I find someone to make an exception—you take the gryphon first, and then they’ll complete the procedures later?”
“Huh? Can it be done like that?” Haina’s eyes widened immediately. But she quickly felt trepidation, “Wouldn’t that be against regulations… Gryphons transferred from the ranch usually take a long time to process, right?”
“What do you think the procedures are for? Shipping gryphons back and forth between places?” Eivass chuckled, “You don’t have to go through the transfer process. Once the final documents are completed, an adult gryphon will fly over with its young, and it will arrive in less than half an hour.”
“…Then why does it take so long?”
“That’s the concern of those civil officials,” Eivass shrugged, “Then it’s settled—I’ll go and handle the procedures for you, and get your gryphon first. When is your ticket for?”
“But my ticket is for tonight… I’ve already packed my luggage and submitted my leave request. Are you and Mr. Sherlock also going?” Haina asked, sounding a bit hesitant, “When are your tickets for? Should I cancel mine and go with you?”
“No need, we don’t buy tickets.” Eivass lightly chuckled, “We’ll go by gryphon then. Your gryphon will also be delivered to you at that time… If nothing unexpected happens, it should arrive tomorrow evening. You should go back and see your family first.”
“Are you returning to the Silver and Tin Hall tonight, Young Master?” Lily asked.
“I have already said goodbye to Yulia and Isabel. I will return before the end of the month and before the New Year’s Eve,” Eivass replied, “I’ll stay here tonight… I happen to have some things to tell Sherlock. Can you help me pack my things and bring them tomorrow?”
“Okay,” Lily responded. The matter he needed to discuss with Sherlock was simple. Wasn’t Sherlock feeling lost about the future of his Path of Wisdom? Essentially, it was because he felt that the “Mage” profession had “no future.” It wasn’t as strong as his talent for the Path of Authority, and Avalon had no inheritance for advanced professions in the Path of Wisdom. Sherlock was reluctant to directly advance his Mage profession to Fourth Tier. Eivass had previously planned to provide Sherlock with a rare job transition for the Path of Wisdom. Now, this could solve the problem. Meg’s experiments had proven that even if the version hadn’t arrived and the profession wasn’t theoretically unlocked, as long as the transition ritual was correct, one could still transition. Just like with Arbitrators… Sherlock’s transition and advancement ritual would also need to start preparations at least half a month in advance.
Update complete! The monthly ticket goal was set too low!!! The ten-day goal of ten thousand tickets reached 60% in less than half a day, am I that strong (shocked)? I thought I was just a weak cat, but it turns out I’m a strong cat… Thank you, Ze Ze, for the three “Alliance Leader” donations! Thank you, Stu Ka Ruifeng, for the “Alliance Leader” donation!
