Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage Chapter 929: Master Sahira Nefaru I

CH0929 Master Sahira Nefaru I

***

Alex had received a message from Asta. Her teacher was around and had requested that Alex join them immediately. The woman wanted to see for herself the liege her student served.

As fortune would have it, Asta’s teacher had set the meeting in one of the meeting rooms of the Enclave city’s Artisan Tower.

Alex was in the tower’s lobby, waiting for Asta to come and pick him up.

As he looked around, he found that he didn’t know anyone passing by.

He smiled wryly to himself. Much less knowing anyone personally, he didn’t even know anyone by reputation.

Sure, he could have Orion pull up public records on the faces he was seeing, but what was the point of that?

’I really don’t socialise at all.’ Alex chuckled to himself.

"Young Master Alex."

Just then, he heard Asta call out to him.

The red-haired lady walked up to him with a smile, which he reciprocated.

"My teacher is waiting for you. Come along."

The young girl pulled on his arm and led him forward, something Alex allowed.

The two drew attention—particularly from the youths around them.

"Isn’t that Lady Nefaru’s student?"

"Yes, her name is Asta, I think. I thought she kept men at arm’s length. Why is she pulling a man?"

"Does the young man have a special identity?"

"I don’t know him."

"Wait. Silver-grey hair, red eyes—could he be from the House...?"

The sounds of gossip around them reached Alex’s ears as Asta pulled him away from the lobby towards a staircase at the end of a corridor.

’Looks like Asta is famous here—and amongst the young men, it seems.’ Alex smiled to himself. ’Well, that shouldn’t be a surprise. She has grown into quite a beauty.’

He chuckled to himself.

His old soul assessed his retainer like a middle-aged man watching a young girl on the street.

On the stairs, Asta let go of Alex’s hand as she ushered him up to the fifth floor.

"Young Master Alex, my teacher is from the Sphinx race, so she can be quite... different. Please don’t be offended," Asta said cautiously.

"Don’t worry. I have many different kinds of people. I am not one to be offended by anyone’s peculiarities," Alex said reassuringly.

"Okay." Asta nodded.

Asta and Alex walked into a modest private meeting room.

Inside, a middle-aged woman about 160 cm tall was seated, waiting for them. The woman wore her hair short, in a rounded, mane-like bob that neatly curved along the sides of her face—in a manner that reminded Alex of the nemes headdress of an ancient pharaoh from his past life.

’Sphinx, huh...’

Alex looked at Asta’s teacher, and information about the Sphinx race passed through his mind from Orion.

The Sphinx race was a subrace of the Cat or Lion Beastmen. Unlike their two kin, however, the Sphinx race was relatively short, reaching 170 cm at most (which was very rare), and had poor combat abilities.

In fact, their cultivation potential was also known to be quite poor, with almost no known record of a Sphinx reaching the Legendary rank.

However, the Sphinx were very highly respected within academic, artisan, and intellectual circles.

This was because what they lacked in cultivation and combat prowess, they made up for with their intellect.

Most Sphinx possessed relatively high intelligence, which made them well-known researchers.

While they were poor at executing the arcane, their research into the subject opened new realms and frontiers for many others.

And from the gossip Alex had picked up along the way, it seemed this teacher of Asta’s was no different.

"Young Master Alex, this is my teacher, Tier IV Master Space Magus, Sahira Nefaru," Asta introduced.

She turned to her teacher. "Teacher, this is—"

However, before she could introduce him, Alex cut in.

"I am Alex Fury. I am happy to make your acquaintance, Master Sahira," Alex introduced himself respectfully.

"Respectful... passable." Master Sahira Nefaru nodded, judgingly and seemingly emotionlessly.

Alex smiled.

He wasn’t offended by Sahira’s words or attitude. After all, Sphinx were known for their inability to display emotions, which often caused them to be misunderstood. There was also the fact that she was Asta’s teacher... someone who reportedly treated his retainer like her own daughter.

It was normal for any mother to carefully judge any man around their daughter. And this was no different from a liege to whom the daughter was pledging her servitude—or at least, that was how Alex looked at it.

Master Sahira motioned for him to take a seat opposite her. Asta sat to the side, slightly behind Alex, watching the two of them.

"What is your relationship with Asta?" Master Sahira asked.

"She is my retainer. The very first person to swear a vow of fealty to me, before I even claimed the position I enjoy today. Essentially, she is a custodian of my trust," Alex replied.

Asta felt a pang in her heart upon hearing Alex’s opening statement. However, a smile tugged at her lips, and she raised her head a little higher as he continued.

Asta stood outside Alex’s line of sight, so he couldn’t see her changing expressions, but Master Sahira could.

She almost wanted to shake her head.

’Foolish girl,’ she thought to herself.

"Asta tells me you are interested in Space Magic," Master Sahira commented.

"Yes, I am, Master Sahira," Alex admitted with a nod. "In fact, one could argue that I was the most excited when it was confirmed that Asta has talent for Space Magic.

"You see, my family is rather lacking when it comes to raising mages. It is no surprise that the situation is even more abysmal for Space Mages. I am hoping I can raise Asta as a Space Magus, so that she will, in the future, usher in a new generation of Space Mages for my family."

"You are ambitious, but surprisingly honest." Master Sahira gave her second judgement.

"I believe all relationships should be based on mutual benefit and respect. And in my experience, honesty is one of the best ways to foster this. No matter how tense the relationship is, as long as everyone knows what they are getting into beforehand and what they stand to benefit from it, I have found that it builds a stronger, more lasting relationship," Alex explained.

"I would rather not enter into a relationship that is unfavourable to myself and the other party than find out, manage, or repair it along the line. It is a waste of effort that could have best been avoided," he added.

"Efficient. I agree." Master Sahira nodded approvingly. "A relationship built on deception is bound to fail eventually."

She looked at Asta for a moment, and then back to Alex.

"I would rather not get involved with nobles—especially those of this Empire," Master Sahira said directly. "However, Asta never hid her relationship with you from the beginning, yet I chose her as my student nonetheless. So, I cannot pretend I am not already in this situation."

***