The bustling ballroom suddenly filled with music, its elegant melody floating above the crowd like a gentle breeze. The prelude of a minuet, soft and graceful, beckoned the dancers to the floor. Couples instinctively began stepping to the rhythm, their movements light and fluid.

  "Wait a second—where’s the orchestra? Where is that music coming from?"

  The young nobles craned their necks, scanning the room for the source of the sound.

  Meanwhile, the professors from the ten academies froze in place. Just moments ago, they’d been mocking Siria’s ball for its lack of music, only to be blindsided by the sudden melody.

  "What nonsense is Siria pulling now?" Chester grumbled, his tone sharp with embarrassment. "Hmph, they’re always playing cheap tricks like this."

  The other professors quickly chimed in, eager to mask their own discomfort.

  "Exactly! Siria never does anything worthwhile—it’s all smoke and mirrors!"

  "Who needs music when you can humiliate yourselves with gimmicks?"

  Their complaints made them feel slightly better, but curiosity soon got the better of them. Like the students, they scanned the room, their gazes eventually landing on the strange metal horn sitting on the stage.

  After staring at it for several long moments, they still couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Could that half-person-tall horn really be the source of the beautiful music?

  As Professor Moses and Professor Temple stepped down from the stage, murmurs rippled through the crowd.

  "Could it be some kind of magical artifact?"

  "What else could it be? But I’ve never seen one that plays music before."

  "How does it produce different sounds? I’ve already heard the flute, the lyre, and even the pipe organ!"

  "Maybe it works like a magic mirror—the orchestra plays somewhere else, and the horn transmits the sound here!"

  "That must be it! It’s the only explanation."

  The idea that the horn could record and replay sound didn’t even cross their minds. After all, nothing in this world had the ability to preserve sound—not even magic mirrors, which could only broadcast live scenes in real time.

  "I thought it was some rare magical artifact," Chester sneered, his tone dripping with disdain. "Turns out it’s just transmitting sound. Magic mirrors can do that too. Using magic power for something like this is such a waste!"

  Butterflye, the professor from Pengato, nodded in agreement. "They might as well have invited the orchestra into the hall. This is completely unnecessary."

  Professor Moses, who had just stepped off the stage, overheard their remarks. Her lips curved into a cold smile as she approached.

  "Too bad for you, our magic music device doesn’t need magic power. Sorry to disappoint."

  Chester barked out a laugh. "Doesn’t need magic power? Ha! That’s the funniest joke I’ve heard all year!"

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Moses’s gaze sharpened. "Then laugh all you want. Just don’t laugh so hard your dentures fall out. If everyone kicks them away, you’ll be crawling on all fours to find them."

  Chester’s mouth snapped shut, his face turning an ominous shade of gray. His eyes burned with fury as he glared at her.

  Damn it, how did she know he had false teeth?

  His dentures were made of white agate, carefully crafted and set far back in his mouth. She shouldn’t have been able to see them!

  Butterflye silently praised his own foresight. Good thing he’d closed his mouth the moment Moses approached—otherwise, he’d be the one suffering her venomous tongue.

  The air grew tense until a professor from Taslonte Academy stepped forward, eager to defuse the situation.

  "Professor Moses, does your magic music device truly not require magic power?"

  "Absolutely true," Moses replied with a slight nod. "Not only does it require no magic power, it can also record sound and play it back exactly as it was, as many times as you want."

  The Taslonte professor’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious? It can really record sound?"

  Moses gave him a pointed look. "What would I gain from lying to you?"

  Good heavens! So it was true! The professor’s excitement bubbled over as he asked, "Which mystical smith created this masterpiece? Professor Moses, would you mind sharing?"

  A magic device that could record and replay sound—he had to have one!

  Moses’s lips curved into a sly smile. "You know this mystical smith—it’s our own Professor Temple from Siria. If you want a magic music device, you can commission him to make one. Two hundred gold coins each, payment in full upfront."

  "Only two hundred gold coins?"

  Two hundred gold coins for a device that could record sound? The Taslonte professor thought it was a bargain.

  He waved his hand grandly. "I’ll take two! One for the academy and one for my home!"

  Moses raised an eyebrow, her tone dripping with praise. "As expected of a Taslonte Academy professor—so generous! With your academy’s apprentices’ outstanding performance in this year’s Magic Tournament, you truly deserve the title of first among the ten academies."

  "Not at all, not at all, Professor Moses, please don’t say that. Sneck Academy is the undisputed first among the ten academies." The Taslonte professor glanced at Chester, his tone humble but his smile triumphant.

  Chester’s face turned green. The professor from Ryan Academy, ranked second, also looked furious.

  Calling perennial third-place Taslonte the first academy was an insult to their pride!

  Hmph, a few hundred gold coins? Ryan Academy wasn’t short on money either!

  The Ryan professor gritted his teeth and waved his hand. "I’ll take three!"

  As expected, Moses’s smile grew even wider.

  "Ryan Academy has deep foundations. Buying three devices in one go—no wonder everyone says Ryan Academy is a fierce lion, nobility among nobility."

  The Ryan professor snorted. "Do you even need to say that?"

  Still, the praise he’d bought for six hundred gold coins felt surprisingly satisfying.

  Standing beside the top three academies, Butterflye from fourth-ranked Pengato was trembling.

  He didn’t want to buy that so-called magic music device. He thought the Siria professors were crafty and cunning—there had to be a catch.

  But second and third place had both bought some. If he didn’t buy, would Moses hold a grudge?

  And yet, first-place Sneck hadn’t said anything. If he bought now, would Sneck Academy suppress them later?

  Just as Butterflye hesitated, Moses’s gaze swept over him. Panicked, he made a snap decision.

  "I’ll buy! Pengato will buy one—no, two! Pengato will also buy two!"

  The Taslonte professor’s head whipped around, his eyes blazing. So Pengato wants to compete with Taslonte for ranking, huh? Hmph, I won’t let you have your way!

  "Professor Moses, Taslonte will add one more. I’ll take three!"

  Hearing this, the Ryan professor realized Taslonte was trying to outdo him. He immediately spoke up.

  "I’ll add two more. Ryan Academy will take five!"

  Moses opened her mouth to praise Ryan Academy again, but before she could speak, Chester’s voice cut through the air like a knife.

  "Sneck will take ten!"

  His fierce gaze swept over the other professors, daring them to challenge him.

  Hmph, as long as Sneck Academy stood, these people could forget about climbing over him!

  "Now that’s what you’d expect from Sneck Academy—the undisputed first among the ten academies. Buying ten magic music devices in one go shows your academy’s tremendous strength," Moses said smoothly, adjusting her pitch without missing a beat.

  Luo Wei, sitting in the lounge area and able to hear the commotion: ...

  Making money this ruthlessly—should she be collecting royalties?

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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