"Let me think where to start..." Atbolde reached out to feel the temperature of the griddle and placed a steak on it, pausing before continuing,
"Yasi used to call me Uncle Rudolph a long time ago."
Colin nodded slightly, he already knew about Atbolde's talented son from years ago—Pulan, who had been good friends with Yasi.
So it made sense for him to be called uncle.
The fat from the steak sizzled on the hot iron, filling the air with its aroma.
"Well... I'll keep it short. These are all old stories from the past, you probably already know most of it." Atbolde smiled, flipped the steak, paused, and continued,
"My son Pulan and Yasi were very close friends back in the day... a Half-Elf and a Pureblood Wizard. Even now, I find their friendship somewhat incredible."
"But they indeed became true friends and could even venture together into the dangerous yet opportunity-filled ruins of the Secret Realm.
You should know that in such places, unreliable companions could be more dangerous than the ruins themselves!"
"Regrettably, that relationship soon changed," Atbolde sighed, uttering an Elf's name in a low voice,
"Octavia… This High Level Elf appeared."
"She captured Pulan's heart, as well as Yasi's."
Colin nodded slightly, remembering the name—it was the name of Lillian's High Level Elf mother.
"But given the relationship between Yasi and Pulan, they wouldn't have taken up arms against each other," continued Atbolde. "However, something later changed Yasi—that was Pulan's rapidly improving abilities."
"Yasi thought Pulan had gained some advantages in the ruins that he hadn't shared, but in fact, I know Pulan was just working harder to pursue that Second Rank High Level Elf.
He was a genius, the School had already issued him a Silver Feather Token early on, of course, Yasi was also a Silver Feather... but even between Silver Feathers, there's a vast chasm."
"After all, after the School issued the Silver Feather Token to him, Pulan relaxed his efforts, claiming he preferred being one of the many in the middle rather than being the first. A Silver Feather was enough for him.
But in reality, if he had tried, he would have gotten the Golden Feather Token much sooner, not having to wait a full eight years."
"Perhaps it was exactly for this reason that Yasi couldn't accept the reality, which led him to firmly believe Pulan had hoarded some kind of advantage, compounded by the fact that Pulan ultimately won Octavia's affections, slowly fermenting jealousy into hatred."
"This hatred drove Yasi to make an irrational decision, using Pulan's trust, he set a trap...
As for what happened next, you probably know... In that incident, the Hidosh Family lost two Second Rank Wizards, Pulan died untreated, and Yasi became marginalized within the Hidosh Family."
Atbolde let out a gentle sigh, Octavia was just a catalyst, what truly changed Yasi... was his jealousy.
"Alright, the story is done. Now I should give you your spoils of victory."
Regaining his composure, Atbolde smiled and took out some crystals, continuing,
"Yasi's Storage Ring was returned to the Hidosh Family during the interrogation, but I still managed to retain some spoils for you, mainly witchcraft and knowledge."
"Knowledge, for a Wizard, is the most precious thing. Take these and see."
Colin nodded slightly, unhesitatingly taking the crystals, yet feeling a bit of regret that Atbolde hadn't managed to keep some Magic Stones.
For him, in a way, Magic Stones were equivalent to knowledge.
He could guess from his perspective that Yasi, coming from a Pureblood Family, likely had a considerable fortune.
But no matter, he wasn't in urgent need of Magic Stones at the moment.
Regathering his thoughts, Colin began to examine the crystals he had received.