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He wasn\'t overly strong, like someone who had trained since a young age, but his foundations were solid.

Similar to him, Ethan\'s style was honed through fighting real battles, not friendly spars that were usually done to train noble children.

Life and death battles—fights that could make someone lose their life in the blink of an eye or where one mistake could spell one\'s doom.

He could feel the rawness of Ethan\'s battle style, as well as his determination and will, when they were fighting.

Conall understood why the handsome young man hadn\'t escaped the academy in order to face him.

He was certain that Ethan wanted to prove that Lily didn\'t make the wrong choice in choosing him, so he fought tooth and nail against him.

Granted, Conall said something despicable, which forced the younger man to risk it all to stop him.

That moment was when he realized that the so-called Dud, whom he fought, was willing to risk his life for those that he held sacred in his life.

"I guess he\'s not too shabby," Conall muttered.

"You think so, too?"

A voice that made shivers run down Conall\'s spine reached his ears. Although he was being laid back and admiring the stars in the sky, that didn\'t mean that he had let his guard down.

In fact, it was in moments like this that his guard was at its highest, with his senses extending throughout his surroundings.

It was nearly impossible for someone to sneak up to him in this state, which made him frown.

Even his brothers were unable to do this, which only left one person in their family, and that was none other than his father, Seff.

"Tell me honestly," Seff said as he sat down beside his son. "What do you think of him?"

Conall pondered a bit and organized his thoughts.

Based on how Lily acted when she jumped into the arena to stand between Ethan and him, he knew that his sister was serious about the young man being her lifelong partner.

And, truth be told, after fighting him once, Conall no longer minded Ethan becoming his little sister\'s mate.

But this wasn\'t what his father was asking him.

Although Seff asked him the question "what do you think of him," the question wasn\'t meant to ask his opinion on whether Ethan was good or not.

His father wanted to know if Ethan was capable of protecting Lily and not the other way around.

"Perhaps after he graduates from the academy, he will truly be strong," Conall replied. "But right now, I could easily end his life if I wanted to."

"Mmm." Seff hummed as he gazed at the stars in the sky.

Truth be told, Seff didn\'t care who his sons married.

But when it came to his daughters, he cared a lot.

He wanted their partner to be strong and able to protect them, just like he had protected his family during the bloody conflicts within their tribe.

"Lyall seems smitten with him," Seff said with a faint smile on his face.

Conall snorted. "My sister only has two qualifications for her Mate. First, he must be handsome. Second, he must be strong. Perhaps she sensed Ethan\'s potential, so she wants him to be part of our family, either marriage through Lily or marriage through her."

"… She\'s really eccentric at times." Seff sighed. "Also, her hobby of collecting weird things is also a pain sometimes."

Conall chuckled. "Father, I have a feeling that if you do anything to that boy, Lily will cut ties with our family."

Seff nodded. "I can see that happening. It seems that being with him when they were transported back to time made him endearing in her eyes. Should I send your other brothers to pick him and Lily up during the academy\'s Winter Break?"

"No need." Conall shook his head. "Lyall and I will do it. If Vlad and Logan were to go, they would definitely challenge him on the spot. Lily won\'t like that."

"I guess you do have a point," Seff rubbed his chin. "After seeing your battle, I\'m sure they\'re itching to have a round with that boy."

"Yeah," Conall stated. "Those two will not miss an opportunity like this."

The father and son no longer talked and simply admired the stars in the sky.

———————————

Inside the Infirmary of Brynhildr Academy…

A handsome young man, who had been sleeping for nearly six days, opened his eyes.

The room around him was dimly lit, and only the faint light coming from the lantern beside his bed illuminated his surroundings.

Ethan slowly rose up from the bed, groaning due to how stiff his body was.

He then stood up from the bed and did a few light stretches to help blood circulate inside his body.

After some of the stiffness disappeared, he picked up a pen and a piece of paper. He wrote a short message and placed it on the pillow of his bed in order to inform those who would come to see him in the morning that he had already returned to Dud Manor.

Having finished this, Ethan left his room and walked down the dark hallways of the infirmary.

It was an hour before midnight, and almost everyone was asleep, including Professor Galena.

When he left the infirmary, Ethan looked up at the starry night sky and sighed.

The cold breeze that heralded the coming of winter blew past him. But instead of feeling cold, Ethan felt refreshed because the coldness somehow made him feel alive.

Half a minute later, he began to walk in the direction of Dud Manor.

He was still wearing the white patient robe of the Infirmary, but that was fine. He would just change when he returned to the Manor.

However, he was only able to walk for a minute when he noticed two people in the distance.

Both of them were walking in his direction, which made Ethan wonder if the two of them were taking a casual stroll in the middle of the night or if they sensed that he was already awake.

These two people were none other than Lily and Emma.

Ethan could understand why Emma would be there since she was a seer.

It was possible that she had gained a vision that he would be waking up today.

As for Lily…

"I sensed that you would be waking up tonight, so I waited," Lily said before giving Ethan a hug. "I\'m sorry for what happened. I promise I will not let my family challenge you again."

"It\'s okay," Ethan replied as he hugged her and lightly patted her head. "Next time your brother returns, I\'ll send him flying."

Lily would usually giggle after hearing him talk like this, but she wasn\'t in the mood to talk about her family right now, so she remained quiet and simply enjoyed Ethan\'s warm embrace.

"How are you feeling, Master?" Emma asked as she stood a meter away from Ethan and Lily, giving both of them some space.

"I\'m feeling stiff and maybe a little hungry," Ethan replied. "But, aside from that, my injuries have all healed."

Emma nodded. "Master, why don\'t you rest in my Tree House tonight? I have also prepared some midnight snacks for you."

Ethan pondered for a bit as he continued to hug the beautiful lady in his arms.

"Can Lily come too?" Ethan asked.

"Of course," Emma replied. "The Tree House is something I prepared for you, Master. You can treat it as your own secret base. I also made some modifications while you were recovering from your injuries. I was wondering if you could take a look and tell me if you want something to be revised."

Ethan wasn\'t really in a hurry to go to Dud Manor, and having a detour wouldn\'t be a bad idea.

Because of this, he agreed to go with Emma to the Tree House, which was hidden in the small cluster of trees behind the Academy\'s Library.