This trust warmed Felina's heart, and she said with a smile:
"Actually, you could wait until you become a wizard apprentice to perfect it yourself. I believe with your current abilities, you will definitely become one."
Lizer shook his head:
"It's a pity we simply can't afford to wait now.
On one hand, war is approaching, and we need to increase our strength quickly; otherwise, it will be hard to protect ourselves. On the other, I still remember your sister's treatment needs eighty gold coins, Mentor."
Upon hearing this, Felina felt a surge of emotion. Her bright, large eyes seemed to glisten. Seeing no one around, she mustered her courage, leaned in, and kissed Lizer's lips. The soft touch sent an electric-like sensation through both their bodies.
That moment felt like an eternity. Overwhelmed with shyness, Felina wanted to pull away, but was held fast by a pair of strong hands.
Lizer was utterly lost in the intoxicating softness and warmth. His hands grew bold, seeking to explore further, but were firmly stopped by Felina.
"N...no... huff, huff... Can you give me a little more time?"
Lizer raised his head, gazing at Felina, his eyes filled with fervor and infatuation. He shook his head:
"Life is short. If you have feelings for me, please don't refuse!"
Felina felt both flustered and annoyed, wanting to refuse outright, yet fearing it would sever their connection. She considered silently giving in but felt everything was moving too fast. As she was inwardly troubled, she felt those exploring hands becoming increasingly audacious.
With a startled cry, she quickly broke free, her cheeks flushed, and whispered:
"Not here! Tonight... at my... apartment."
Immediately feeling shy again, she turned her head away as if she had said nothing, closing her eyes and falling silent. Only the rise and fall of her chest betrayed her inner turmoil.
Lizer felt a slight regret, quietly savoring his mentor's fragrance. A silence fell between them....
After a long while, Lizer finally calmed down and spoke:
"Mentor, I'll leave the energy storage and power module designs for the 'Little Wizard Donkey' and the 'Three-Wheeler' to you."
Only then did Felina open her slightly squinted eyes. She stole a glance at Lizer and, seeing he seemed normal, quickly turned her head to the side again and nodded in reply:
"No problem. It's actually not very complicated. I expect to have the design drawings completed by tomorrow night."
Seeing this, Lizer took Felina's left hand. When she didn't resist, he gently moved to stand in front of her and continued outlining his plan:
"Good. Then, we'll need to apply for invention ownership in your name. We'll list both of us as owners, with you as the primary and me as the assistant in name. How about 20% of the profits going to you, Mentor?"
Upon hearing this, Felina initially thought 20% was too high, as the main idea came from Lizer.
The design work she provided could largely be done by most wizard apprentices. But then she remembered everything that had just happened, feeling that what was hers and his were now one and the same, essentially no different. A sweet feeling welled up in her heart.
She lowered her head and agreed softly, then said:
"The Duchy's approval process for similar inventions and creations is inherently quite fast. Plus, the Academy is a primary institution for technical research.
We have our own green channel for this. I estimate one month for initial review, half a month for re-examination, and another half-month for public notice, and it'll be done.
I just don't know how the Ministry of Education will grade these two inventions. In my opinion, if they can be rated as standard inventions, enjoying 20-50 years of monopoly protection, that would be enough for us to capture the entire Duchy's market."
Lizer gently patted Felina's fair, crystalline hand, reassuring her:
"It doesn't matter. Even if we only get five years of protection, it's enough for us to make a fortune. It will cover the money for your sister's treatment and allow us to establish ourselves in this war. That's sufficient."
"Mmm."
Felina responded with her head lowered, then immediately became like a protective lioness, wrinkling her delicate nose and saying with a humph:
"No, we also need to hire an international lawyer. This invention must be filed simultaneously in the Fedin Federation. We mustn't let anyone exploit a loophole."
Lizer found this somewhat amusing; he hadn't expected Felina to have such an international perspective....
Academy mentors were all wizard apprentices, the most respected people in the town. Therefore, they all lived in standalone apartments similar to Wilson's, clustered together behind the Academy's teaching area.
In the snowy night, streetlights danced with snowflakes, weaving a dreamlike, romantic scene. Under a streetlight, a shadowy figure slipped quietly into the Academy's mentor apartment district.
"Mentor! It's me!"
Lizer gently knocked on Felina's door. Moments later, Felina, dressed in a light green semi-transparent gauze nightgown, shyly opened the door and let Lizer into her apartment.
The semi-transparent gauze was tantalizingly revealing, hinting at Felina's fair skin, like the finest mutton-fat jade, perfectly outlining her figure and inviting the imagination....
At this moment, both were silent. Lizer quietly uncorked the bottle of red wine he had specially prepared.
The night was long. Over fine wine, they confided in each other. As emotions deepened, they nestled together like lovers, and everything unfolded naturally....
Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, and having plucked the blossom, cherish it all the more....
Early the next morning, Lizer, who had battled through the night, was still lazing in bed when Felina chased him out, exclaiming:
"Hurry up and go. It won't be good if other mentors see you."
Hearing this, Lizer chuckled:
"What's there to fear? We're above board. It's not like we did anything shameful."
Felina shook her head shyly, pushing the still-unclothed Lizer toward the door, grumbling as she went:
"Oh, come on! Hurry up! It's all your fault! You're still my student, you know. If anyone sees, it'll be so embarrassing...."
Hearing this, Lizer didn't insist. Perhaps Felina needed a little space of her own at this moment. He then left to begin another day of Academy studies; the knowledge at this stage was still necessary for him.
Soon it was evening. Having tasted the sweetness, Lizer wanted to linger at Felina's place again, but Jackson found him. With serious business at hand, Lizer had no choice but to give up.
It turned out that during their last duel, Lizer had stipulated that if Jackson lost, he would have to do something for Lizer.
Jackson, being a wizard apprentice candidate and one of the best among the common folk, wasn't completely useless.
Last time, he had been momentarily hot-headed, stirred up by little George, and thought he knew everything about Lizer, making it a sure-win situation. He hadn't expected to be proven wrong, which served as a lesson for the overconfident Jackson, making him more down-to-earth and steady.
Although angry, Jackson wasn't one to be a sore loser.
A few days ago, while waiting for Rice, Lizer had asked him to help arrange a meeting with his father—Slav, the Director of the Grey Mist Mountain Town Land Bureau. Today, he finally got a reply:
His father agreed to meet Lizer.
And what was the purpose of meeting Slav?
To purchase land, of course.
Currently, Lizer needed to buy two sufficiently large plots of land. It would be even better if there were existing warehouses or buildings that could be converted into factories.
One plot was for expanding the weapons factory to produce the equipment and weapons ordered by the Academy and the Fedin Federation's 'Lurkers,' with future space reserved for expanding factories for the 'Little Wizard Donkey' and the 'Three-Wheeler.' The other plot was for storing the weapons produced for the Fedin Federation.
For Lizer to seek out suitable land himself would clearly be a complex task, whereas finding the person most familiar with the land situation throughout all of Greymist Mountain Town would take merely a few words of inquiry.
Who knew the lands of Greymist Mountain Town best?