"Mom." Lyra, still in her cute little girl form, called softly again and smiled.

  Her small face was full of attachment. She clearly liked calling her"mom" and felt especially close to Evelyn, who held her.

  "You are not allowed to call me mom. I am not your mom," Evelyn said deliberately, looking down at Lyra in her arms.

  "Mom…" Lyra was startled by the sudden change in attitude.

  Her small body trembled slightly. A layer of moisture quickly gathered in her large eyes. She called out again timidly, her voice quivering with the beginnings of tears.

  She could not understand why. Mom had been fine just moments ago. When holding her, Lyra had clearly sensed her previous joy.

  So why had she suddenly become so cold?

  Lyra could not comprehend the twists and turns of human hearts. All she knew was that Evelyn's icy gaze made her anxious and unsettled.

  She carefully shifted her small body and moved out of Evelyn's arms, standing in place. Tears welled up in her eyes but she forced them back.

  At that moment, steady footsteps came from behind.

  Lyra whipped around and saw Ryan entering. A wave of grievance swept over her, and she looked at him pitifully. Her small mouth quivered, and she looked on the verge of crying.

  "What's wrong?" Ryan saw the scene as soon as he entered the room.

  Lyra stood beside Evelyn, her eyes red, her little mouth pouting, looking as if she had suffered a great injustice.

  He immediately crouched down and scooped Lyra into his arms. He affectionately pinched her soft little cheeks and spoke in a gentle, soothing tone.

  "Dad… Mom…" Lyra leaned against Ryan, her eyes even redder, unsure how to describe what had just happened.

  All she could do was alternate between the words dad and mom, her voice choked with emotion.

  "It's alright. Don't cry. Here, take this to eat." Ryan comforted her softly as he raised his right arm. A magical crystal appeared in the palm of his hand.

  Lyra smelled the rich aura of the crystal. With her eyes still red, she obediently stopped crying and reached out with her small hands to carefully hold the magical crystal.

  She began nibbling on it in tiny bites. Magical energy flowed down her throat into her body, and her little face soon showed a look of satisfaction.

  The onlookers outside, who had not yet dispersed, were wide-eyed at the scene.

  They were not mistaken. That was clearly a magical crystal radiating pure energy! What child would eat a magical crystal like a snack?

  Those with some magical knowledge were even more shocked into silence: that was a high-grade magical crystal!

  Even an Archmage would only use one at critical moments. And yet here it was, casually given to a little girl to eat?

  Indeed, he was a powerful mage! Not only were his own magical abilities and power level beyond measure, even the things he gave a child to eat were outrageous!

  The onlookers silently marveled, their awe of Ryan growing several degrees.

  Inside, Ryan held Lyra, who nibbled on the magical crystal, and crouched next to Evelyn again. He spoke softly:"Evelyn, why are you bullying a child?"

  His tone sounded like a reproach, but if one listened carefully, there was little blame in it.

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  Lyra blinked her big watery eyes and continued nibbling the crystal in small bites. She remained timidly glancing at Evelyn while snug in Ryan's arms, her small body still slightly tense.

  "No, it's just that she and your apprentice have similar temperaments," Evelyn said softly, turning her face to explain.

  "Isn't calling you mom a good thing?" Ryan responded.

  Then he slowly crouched in front of Evelyn, his face inching closer to hers.

  Evelyn refused to back down, meeting his steadily approaching gaze without flinching.

  "No." She looked Ryan directly in the eyes, their pupils locked across the small space between them, breaths gradually intertwining.

  Ryan's face continued to move closer until their noses gently touched.

  Warm breath brushed their skin, and Evelyn could not hold herself any longer. She abruptly turned her head, her ears flushing red, heart racing uncontrollably.

  She felt that Ryan was becoming bolder, testing her limits at every moment, as if he might kiss her the next second.

  "Step back." Evelyn felt the lingering warmth on her cheek, her voice trembling slightly as she softly scolded him.

  Ryan was already immune to this level of scolding.

  He chuckled softly twice, slowly drawing back his head. His gaze fell on her flushed ears, eyes full of gentle amusement.

  Seeing him retreat, Evelyn breathed a small sigh of relief. Blushing, she first glanced toward the street outside, then back at Ryan."This time, killing… you're not afraid?"

  Ryan noticed the traces of blood still on her cheek, making her look even more striking. He paused, then realized what she meant.

  Evelyn was referring to the last time in the Eryndor Empire palace, when he had slain the thief carrying the Grimoire and had shown a hint of hesitation.

  "Just because I've killed once doesn't mean I'm not afraid," Ryan said, scratching his head awkwardly under Evelyn's steady gaze, letting out a dry laugh.

  Is that really the correct way to say it? Evelyn thought to herself.

  Earlier, she had glimpsed the magical circle outside and vaguely guessed the brutal scene inside. Yet Ryan's tone lacked the fear he had shown last time.

  "Carry me," Evelyn said.

  Ryan froze, wondering if he had misheard. Evelyn was actually asking him to carry her?

  Carry her! The thought echoed in his mind, leaving him momentarily flustered.

  "Wait a moment. I need to finish dealing with the situation outside first," Ryan quickly recovered, but he could not let Evelyn witness the filthy scene within the magical circle.

  Evelyn cast a glance at the glowing barrier outside, said nothing, and leaned quietly against the corner of the wall.

  "Are you sure you want to watch?" Ryan asked teasingly.

  Even if Evelyn said she wanted to, he would never let her see the scene inside the magical circle. He knew she would not truly want to see it.

  Sure enough, Evelyn remained silent, still leaning against the wall with her eyes half-lowered, lost in thought.

  Ryan instructed Lyra to stay with Evelyn, then turned and went outside. He found a thick piece of linen and carefully covered the broken doorway.

  He did not want the two inside to be disturbed by whatever filthy sights might appear outside.

  The couple who had previously hidden under the bed had long since blended into the watching crowd.

  The room became quiet again.

  Lyra sat obediently beside Evelyn, her big watery eyes scanning the sparse furnishings.

  In her hands, she held a magical crystal larger than her small face, nibbling at it in tiny bites. Her cheeks puffed out adorably as they moved slightly with each chew.

  At that moment, Evelyn suddenly coughed lightly twice, breaking the silence.

  Lyra immediately stopped chewing, her eyes curiously fixed on Evelyn, her cheeks still puffed.

  This time, she did not dare call Evelyn"mom." She simply maintained her doll-like expression, tilting her small head and gazing at Evelyn with curiosity.

  Then she lowered her head, resuming her tiny bites of the magical crystal, the faint sounds of chewing filling the quiet room.

  Evelyn watched her, gradually forming a guess. This Drake hatchling was likely just recently found by Ryan. She had not yet learned complex words and her mind was as simple as a human child's.

  Yet she could understand some simple speech, which was unexpected. Normally, young magical beasts required extensive guidance to comprehend human language.

  Unless, while still in the egg, someone constantly spoke to her, using magic to guide her perception of human language.

  But who would casually talk to a dragon egg for no reason? Evelyn's curiosity flickered briefly before she suppressed it.

  "You were just picked up by your dad?" Evelyn asked, intending to learn her connection with Ryan, instinctively using the familiar term Lyra had used.

  "Dad…" Lyra froze upon hearing the familiar word. Her mouth still stuffed with crystal fragments, she stammered, her eyes a little confused.

  Then she nodded. But immediately after, she shook her head, her small head swaying, leaving Evelyn puzzled, unsure whether it was affirmation or denial.

  Lyra looked at the remaining crystal, swallowed the fragments with a gulp, and held the small piece left, nibbling it in tiny bites again.

  Silence returned to the room, broken only by the faint sound of Lyra chewing.

  Soon, she had eaten the crystal down to a piece the size of her fist.

  She looked down at it, then up at Evelyn, noticing that this mom had not eaten anything.

  Hesitating for a moment, Lyra raised the tiny remaining crystal to Evelyn, offering it to her with eyes full of innocent generosity and a hint of reluctance.