"Tom, you're going the wrong way. It's this way."
Li Wade's voice snapped Tom out of his spiraling thoughts. He hadn't noticed when Li Wade had turned back and was now standing in front of him.
"Sorry, I... I was just distracted," Tom stammered.
"Tom, you're overacting. If you want to appear obedient, it needs to look natural..." Li Wade patted Tom's shoulder meaningfully before turning away again.
Tom stood frozen. Li Wade's words struck him like thunder.
I'm naive! Presumptuous! My shift was so abrupt—how could he not guess my intentions?
He's warning me! Telling me not to harbor treacherous thoughts!
He knows I'll turn on him, yet he doesn't care... Does he think I'm not even worthy of being a threat?
Damn this arrogant bastard! How dare he look down on me?!
Pale with humiliation, veins bulging in his neck, Tom understood Li Wade's mindset all too well—because it mirrored his own before their encounter. He'd seen others as useless fools, incapable of threatening someone as extraordinary as himself. Now, he was the dismissed "fool." The irony was a vicious blow.
Ding! Host inflicted severe psychological damage on future Dark Lord! Reward: 50 Virtue Points!
Ah, Tom... I'm starting to like you.
---
Mrs. Cole was a gaunt, weary woman.
War clouds darkened Europe, and donations to the orphanage had dwindled. She wasn't sure Wool's could survive another few months. Managing dozens of children on dwindling resources exhausted her.
"Eric's been poorly all day—God forbid it's chickenpox again... We're stretched thin as it is. Billy seems better; remember the iodine tonight..." She handed out meager suppers, speaking to a girl in a ragged apron.
She spotted the latecomers. "Wade, settling in all right? Tom—I trust you haven't bullied Wade? Or it's back to the cupboard!"
Who's bullying whom?!
Tom pressed his lips shut, staring at his plate: a spoonful of baked beans, lumpy mashed potatoes, a hard bread roll, and thin, murky soup.
"I'm very comfortable, Mrs. Cole," Li Wade said earnestly. "Compared to children still starving on the streets, I'm fortunate. If you hadn't brought me in... I don't know what I'd have done. I'm truly grateful."
"You sweet boy... Bringing you here was the right decision. You've been such a help." A tired smile touched her lips as she slipped a boiled egg into his coat pocket.
Tom glanced at his sparse meal, then at Li Wade's identical plate—plus an apple and an egg. The disparity stung.
---
Watching Li Wade calmly peel his egg in a corner, Tom carried his plate and sat opposite him.
"What did you do for her? Why the special treatment?"
Li Wade carefully scooped out the yolk. "Maybe it is just my pretty face?"
Tom gripped his spoon, fury warring with fear.
"Kidding. Half the yolk's yours." Under Tom's disgusted stare, Li Wade deposited half the yolk onto his plate with his own spoon.
"I just helped with small tasks... Tasks she values. You could do them too. You just think yourself above it."
Tom pushed the yolk aside. "I wouldn't stoop to flattery..."
"Oh? Who was bowing and scraping to me earlier?" Li Wade chuckled.
"I—" Tom's pale face flushed crimson. "You were stronger! I had no choice—"
"True, true. Tom, I'm not saying you're wrong. Sometimes, a few kind words or small favors are necessary to achieve a goal."
Li Wade watched Tom squirm, then added lightly, "Like me pleasing Mrs. Cole to get a private room for practice... Or you pleasing me to learn how to grow stronger—so you can take revenge."
Tom's breath hitched. He loathed this feeling of naked vulnerability.
Ding...
Another 10 Virtue Points rewarded.
---
Back in his room, Li Wade faced the cracked door lock.
"Reparo! (Repair!)"
He flicked his wrist in the precise gesture described in the Comprehensive Guide to Basic Spells.
A faint metallic scrape echoed as the fractures vanished from the lock.
Perfect.
The Guide was invaluable. It detailed not only each spell's evolution but also the exact wandless gestures. His progress had accelerated a hundredfold.
After spending 5 VP on the Essence of Dittany, he now had 65 points left.
He looked forward to the shop's refresh at midnight. Thank Merlin for the item lock feature—65 VP might not be enough otherwise.