Time flowed quietly within Aetherial Institute.
Days became weeks.
Weeks gradually blended together.
For the first time in many years, Kel experienced something resembling a normal life.
A life without territorial emergencies.
Without ancient monsters appearing every few days.
Without political conspiracies requiring immediate attention.
Without assassination attempts.
Mostly.
The academy remained surprisingly peaceful.
Every morning.
Kel attended classes.
Every afternoon.
He trained.
Studied.
Met friends.
Occasionally helped Luna with assignments when her pride allowed it.
The first-year routine gradually established itself.
Most importantly—
Kel stopped attracting attention.
Or at least he tried.
After the entrance examinations, the academy's curiosity toward Aedon Flinth had reached dangerous levels.
Fortunately.
His decision to seal ninety-nine percent of his power proved successful.
Very successful.
He no longer accidentally displayed absurd abilities.
No more orbit swords.
No more impossible spear throws.
No more examination incidents.
The instructors gradually relaxed.
The students gradually stopped paying attention.
Life became comfortable.
Inside his mind—
Seiren sounded impressed.
"Congratulations."
"What?"
"You managed to remain normal for almost a month."
Kel considered that.
Then nodded.
A respectable achievement.
The Guardian laughed.
"A historical record."
Naturally.
The peace could not last forever.
Because Kel eventually became bored.
Not dramatically bored.
Not enough to create international incidents.
Just enough to start a project.
And whenever Kel started projects—
Things happened.
It began on a free day.
No lectures.
No mandatory training.
No examinations.
Most students spent such days relaxing.
Exploring.
Socializing.
Sleeping.
Kel instead traveled into the island's downtown district.
The city surrounding Aetherial Institute had existed for centuries.
Ancient stone roads stretched between countless buildings.
Students.
Merchants.
Researchers.
Explorers.
Sailors.
Everyone moved through the streets.
The entire island economy revolved around the academy.
And because of that—
Opportunities existed everywhere.
Kel noticed something immediately.
A gap.
A very obvious gap.
The island possessed merchants.
Researchers.
Craftsmen.
Transport services.
Even private security companies.
Yet surprisingly—
No organization specialized in ocean-related requests.
Which was absurd.
The academy literally existed on an island.
An island surrounded by dangerous waters.
Ocean monsters.
Navigation requests.
Sea resource collection.
Maritime investigations.
Coastal security.
There should have been dozens of guilds.
Yet there weren't.
Inside his mind—
Seiren immediately understood.
"Oh no."
Kel ignored her.
"You found a problem."
"Yes."
The Guardian sighed.
"And now you're going to solve it."
"Probably."
"There goes your peaceful life."
Several hours later.
Kel stood inside the Guild Registration Office.
The clerk behind the counter adjusted her glasses.
Then looked at the application.
Then looked at Kel.
Then looked at the application again.
"You're registering a guild?"
"Yes."
The clerk seemed surprised.
Most first-year students lacked the money.
Or courage.
Or insanity.
To establish organizations.
Kel possessed all three.
The registration process proved straightforward.
Guild name.
Founder.
Purpose.
Operational scope.
Funding verification.
Everything completed efficiently.
Naturally.
The gold obtained from the mermaid tribe solved all financial requirements.
After all.
Even the small portion Kel accepted remained substantial.
Soon.
The registration became official.
A new organization appeared within the island records.
The Azure Horizon Guild.
A simple name.
Appropriate.
Ocean-related.
Exploration-related.
Flexible enough for future growth.
The guild would accept requests involving:
Ocean monsters.
Coastal patrols.
Sea navigation.
Resource gathering.
Marine research assistance.
Emergency rescues.
Anything related to the surrounding sea.
A practical niche.
A profitable niche.
Most importantly—
Someone else could run it.
Inside his mind—
Seiren immediately became suspicious.
"Who?"
Kel smiled slightly.
The answer was obvious.
Several hours later.
The silver-haired young man arrived at one of the academy gardens.
Students relaxed throughout the area.
Reading.
Studying.
Talking.
Enjoying the pleasant weather.
Near a fountain.
Seraphina sat beneath a tree.
Several female students surrounded her.
The former mermaid had adapted surprisingly well.
Her silver hair flowed down her back.
Academy uniform neat and orderly.
A book rested upon her lap.
At first glance.
She looked like any other academy student.
Until someone noticed her beauty.
Then chaos usually followed.
Seraphina noticed Kel first.
A small smile appeared.
Several nearby girls immediately became curious.
Because everyone knew these two.
The strange explorer.
And the beautiful mermaid.
A combination responsible for endless rumors.
Kel ignored the rumors.
As usual.
He stopped before them.
Then spoke directly.
"I have a proposal."
Immediately.
Every girl became interested.
Very interested.
Seraphina blinked.
"A proposal?"
Kel nodded.
Then placed guild registration documents upon the table.
The girls leaned forward.
Seraphina examined them.
Then blinked again.
Guild.
Guild Master.
Azure Horizon Guild.
Several moments passed.
Then—
"You want me to become Guild Master?"
"Yes."
Silence followed.
Every girl stared.
Seraphina stared.
The fountain continued flowing peacefully.
Then—
"Why?"
A reasonable question.
Kel answered immediately.
"Because you need money."
The girls blinked.
The response felt brutally practical.
Kel continued.
"You need a source of income."
Still reasonable.
"You know the ocean better than I do."
Also true.
"The guild specializes in ocean-related requests."
Logical.
Then—
"And I don't want to work myself to death."
Silence.
Complete silence.
The girls stared.
Seraphina stared.
Inside his mind—
Seiren laughed so hard she nearly lost the telepathic connection.
"At least you're honest."
One of the girls finally recovered.
She possessed long blonde hair.
Sharp blue eyes.
And enough confidence to challenge people directly.
She had become one of Seraphina's closest friends since the ship voyage.
The blonde girl crossed her arms.
Then looked directly at Kel.
"So that's your reason?"
"Yes."
The answer arrived instantly.
The girl stared.
Then sighed.
Because somehow.
She believed him.
Several moments later.
The blonde girl stepped forward.
"Then make me Vice Guild Master."
Kel looked at her.
The girl maintained eye contact.
Confident.
Determined.
The kind of person who disliked standing on the sidelines.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Meanwhile.
The surrounding girls immediately became excited.
Seraphina looked confused.
Naturally.
Inside his mind—
Seiren sounded entertained.
"Here we go."
Kel folded his arms.
Then calmly asked:
"What abilities do you have?"
The blonde girl blinked.
"What?"
"What abilities qualify you for Vice Guild Master?"
The question struck directly.
No hesitation.
No politeness.
Straight to the point.
The surrounding girls suddenly became quiet.
Because it was a reasonable question.
A very reasonable question.
The blonde girl opened her mouth.
Then paused.
Then paused again.
Clearly.
She hadn't expected an interview.
Kel continued calmly.
"Can you manage finances?"
Silence.
"Handle logistics?"
More silence.
"Organize operations?"
The girl frowned.
"Lead teams?"
A pause.
Then—
"Negotiate contracts?"
The confidence gradually disappeared.
Not completely.
But noticeably.
Meanwhile—
Seraphina watched curiously.
Because she realized something.
Kel wasn't rejecting the idea.
He was evaluating it.
The blonde girl eventually crossed her arms again.
Thinking carefully.
This time seriously.
Not emotionally.
Not impulsively.
Seriously.
Then she answered honestly.
"I don't know."
The response surprised everyone.
Including Kel.
The girl sighed.
"I've never done those things before."
Honesty.
A rare quality.
Kel appreciated it.
Very much.
Then she continued.
"But I can learn."
The confidence returned.
Different this time.
More mature.
Less arrogant.
"I learn fast."
A pause.
Then—
"And if Seraphina becomes Guild Master, someone needs to help her."
The former mermaid immediately pointed toward herself.
"Me?"
The blonde girl nodded.
"Yes."
Seraphina looked genuinely alarmed.
Which only strengthened the blonde girl's argument.
Inside his mind—
Seiren laughed.
"She has a point."
Unfortunately.
She absolutely did.
Kel studied the blonde girl quietly.
Then looked toward Seraphina.
Then toward the guild documents.
The fountain continued flowing.
The afternoon breeze moved gently through the trees.
Students passed nearby.
Unaware.
Meanwhile.
The foundation of something new quietly formed.
A guild.
An opportunity.
And perhaps—
The beginning of another unexpected chapter within academy life.
One that Kel had absolutely no intention of managing personally.
If he could avoid it.
Which meant.
Someone would inevitably force him to manage it anyway.
Because destiny apparently found that funny.