Chapter 9: Handing in the Mission and the Invitation After listening to Ethan's mission report...

After listening to Ethan's recount of the mission, Starfall pondered for a few seconds: "You, go and write down all the lessons learned from this mission, so that you can avoid similar situations in the future."

“Okay, but should we treat him first?” Ethan looked at William at his feet: “He looks like he’s about to die.”

The mission was to capture William alive, not kill him; he needed to be alive to stand trial.

“That’s easy, you go and write it first.” Starfall used magic to lift him up, not even wanting to touch him: “I’ll go stop the bleeding, as long as he’s not dead.”

Are you kidding me? Treatment? Stopping the bleeding is already a good thing; just making sure he doesn't die is enough. Dying would be too easy for him.

Ethan took out paper and pen and started writing as soon as he opened his eyes. Starfall led William to a room that even Ethan had never been to before.

The room was filled with bottles of all shapes and sizes. After the Starfall spell was dispelled, William fell to the ground with a thud.

"Troublesome." Xingyun clicked her tongue, casually cast a spell to stop the bleeding and maintain his vital signs, and then began rummaging through his bottles and jars.

“I remember it being over here… Oh, here it is.” Starfall successfully found the medicine he wanted from the corner, conjured a 5ml syringe in his right hand, and then drew 1ml of the medicine.

Xingyun turned the syringe upwards, expelling some air and leaving only a few air bubbles, since injecting too much air into an artery quickly could be fatal.

He brought the syringe close to William and plunged it into his artery, injecting all the medicine into the vein. The syringe disappeared the moment it was fully injected.

Whole-culture operation, don't be shy, you deserve it.

The drug took effect quickly, and William, who was initially unconscious, began to respond shortly afterward.

It hurts, it hurts so much, my whole body aches.

His blood vessels seemed to be dilating, carrying the pain and unbearable burning sensation throughout his body, jolting him awake. The pain was so intense that he couldn't make a sound, only weak gasps.

It's so hot, it hurts so much, is he already dead?

William's eyes were bloodshot, and his exposed skin had an unusual red tinge. He was in a daze, not even noticing that he had no magic power left in his body even after leaving the magic circle.

Starfall ignored him, and simply found another medicine bottle, the syringe condensed, and he drew out the liquid.

"Thank you so much for taking care of my child." Xingyun turned around, her smile forced. "I heard you enjoy experiments. I'm sure you wouldn't refuse an invitation to explore together."

William quickly realized that he was not dead and that his current terrible state was caused by the person in front of him. Looking at Xingyun, who was slowly approaching him with a syringe, he was terrified and could not even beg for mercy.

A new round of torment has begun.

It wasn't until noon the next day that Ethan saw the meteor again.

“This is the evidence against him.” Starfall, still holding the unconscious William with magic, handed Ethan a USB drive: “He confessed to everything; it contains his confession.”

Ethan didn't think William was the kind of person who would succumb to psychological pressure and confess overnight. The only possibility was that Starfall had done something to him.

Unlike his displeased expression when William was dragged away yesterday, Xingyun now looked quite calm, clearly having vented his anger.

"Thank you, Lord Starfall." So Ethan didn't ask any more questions, took the item, thanked Starfall, opened a portal, and took William to the Mage's Association.

Stepping through the portal, Ethan's clothes transformed back into a cloak.

He only wears other ordinary clothes in the alternate dimension created by the meteorite. When he goes out, he will cover his eyes with a cloak so that he can feel more comfortable.

Because it was daytime, there were many people. Ethan, who had just left Starfall, was overcome with social anxiety again. He even felt that it was very eye-catching to lift William up with magic like this. Then he lowered him down again and again until he was just a finger's width away from the ground.

He tried to ignore the stares he felt; social anxiety is the feeling that everyone is looking at you. He quickly led William to the service desk, where it was Bertha, just like last time.

Ethan tried his best, but he was too nervous to make a sound. He could only raise his index finger and use magic to condense words above it: "Hello, turn in the newbie quest."

Bertha smiled gently again, extended her left hand, and sent a detection spell towards William on the ground, sweeping him over to confirm his identity as William and that he was still alive.

"And this too." Ethan took out a USB drive and pushed it towards Bertha: "This is his statement."

Bertha paused for a moment: "Oh, okay, please wait a moment, I'll provide you with the materials needed to complete the mission."

Then he put away the USB drive, typed on the keyboard for a while, and at the same time, two big men appeared out of nowhere, grabbed William and left.

Ethan looked at Bertha, but Bertha remained unmoved. It seemed she was some kind of security guard?

Ethan didn't know how long he had been tapping on the corner of the table before he heard Bertha stop typing: "Okay, registration is complete. The points and reputation points for completing the task will be credited to your account within two hours. If there are any issues, please contact customer service."

Ethan had just breathed a sigh of relief and was about to leave when Bertha called out to him, "Wait a minute."

Ethan turned around, looking at Bertha with a mixture of unease and confusion, wondering what was going on.

“Mr. Nix, we’re having a welcome party for our newly joined magicians today.” Bertha tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Can you be there on time at four o’clock this afternoon?”

Upon hearing this, Ethan shook his head frantically, his entire body radiating resistance.

“You can’t not come.” Bertha pretended to be serious: “Every new mage is a new friend. Even if we can’t hold a welcome party for each new friend, we have to have a get-together. No new mage can be absent.”

No, she just wanted to introduce the socially anxious person to some people. Socially anxious people need to gradually accept social interaction; constantly refusing social interaction will only make things worse.

Bertha hesitated at first about whether to invite him, because she had just discovered that William's magic was completely undetectable, making him no different from an ordinary person. It was strictly forbidden for someone to completely destroy a person's magic.

Thinking back, the socially anxious guy didn't seem like that kind of person. He was timid and submissive, and Bertha was more inclined to suspect that it was the will of the Starfall City than him.

A mysterious city will that has lived for countless years and whose personality remains unknown.

A socially awkward, tragically born underage little magician who is barely a fraction of her size.

Anyone would feel sorry for the latter. Although appearances can be deceiving, the two interactions were enough for Bertha, who is good at judging people, to understand some of Ethan's personality.

Ethan Nix felt like a younger member of her family, still a child, and looked so young, not even 18 yet, below the legal drinking age.

Most importantly, the most crucial condition for selecting guardians is that they must have impeccable character and conduct. If someone's character and conduct are not up to par, they cannot become a guardian, no matter how outstanding they are in other aspects.

Therefore, everyone knows that the guardians are kind heroes with impeccable character.

Furthermore, Bertha didn't think that Ethan, having only been a magician for a short time, could possibly research a method to destroy a magician's magical veins. It wasn't that she looked down on him; Bertha simply felt that the city's will, which had lived for an unknown amount of time, was more likely to be the solution.

Seeing Ethan's socially awkward behavior, where he couldn't even make eye contact with anyone, Bertha didn't think he could interrogate the stranger William alone in a room.

It's not that I look down on you, but what is social anxiety?

He is in a negative cognitive pattern for a long time, feeling that others are laughing at him, that if he makes even the slightest mistake, everything will be over, and that everyone is watching him. In fact, it doesn't matter whether it is or not, the problem is that he thinks that way.

They are perfectionists, always anxious and reflecting on how they could have done something more perfect and liked by others.

A few words won't change his negative situation; he'll remain in this state of low self-esteem and might even blush in front of many people.

Social anxiety might mutate to a certain extent, becoming radical. People might think, "I'm already so socially anxious, can it get any worse?" And then they might go all out.

No... now that you mention it, a radical approach isn't impossible.

However, Bertha held the view that "it shouldn't have been Ethan who did it," trusting her intuition.

So she invited and coaxed Ethan to join, imagining that someone as socially anxious as Ethan probably wouldn't have any friends. She hoped he could have at least one friend, even just one new one, to at least fit into the group, otherwise he wouldn't know anyone.

"It's true what they say, getting older makes you more soft-hearted," Bertha sighed. No, wait, she's forever 18!

To be honest, Ethan didn't want to go. He was really afraid of socializing and dreading being in groups of more than three people.

But Bertha made it sound so serious, saying that no one could be absent, and he was afraid of the consequences if he didn't go.

At this moment, Ethan was unaware that the consequences of not going would be like losing his biological father—it wouldn't have any real impact. However, it would be the beginning of his social interactions within the Wizarding Association, even though he was tricked by Bertha.

Ethan wanted to refuse, but after thinking it over, he couldn't come up with a reason not to go. Oh wait, maybe he should just say his biological father is dead.

He was already dead, so what's wrong with dying again for him? Ethan wouldn't feel the slightest discomfort at all that Ethan used his failure to fulfill his fatherly responsibilities as an excuse.

“…I, I…” Ethan managed to squeeze out, “My father…”

Bertha: Stare—

Ethan: ...

Well, he can't even bring himself to say the word "father." He hates people so much that he feels disgusted just thinking about the word and associating it with scum. He deserves it.

Feeling Bertha's burning gaze, Ethan could no longer find an excuse and could only nod mechanically, hoping that Bertha would stop looking at him with such a terrible look, that it was burning him.

Seeing that Ethan agreed, Bertha was satisfied and didn't press him any further. She gave him a set of coordinates: "We'll meet at this location, at the entrance."

Ethan nodded vigorously, turned around and disappeared into the portal, as if he were fleeing for his life, making Bertha wonder what kind of monster she was.

In fact, people with social anxiety see everyone the same way.

A note from the author:

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No spare items available [crying emoji] Social anxiety not only makes me blush, but I also pinch myself to relieve tension.