Free Web Novel"Naclis?"
"......"
Naclis didn't speak. She just looked at Loren with teary, big eyes, her golden gaze filled with grievance.
But even so, she didn't resist at all.
Loren stopped what he was doing, helped Naclis pull her pants back up, and set her down from his lap.
The moment Naclis's bottom touched the bed, the pain made her jolt upright. In that instant, Loren felt even more guilty.
Loren was utterly mortified. He began to pray that this Naclis was actually Reflection in disguise, but soon, that hope was shattered.
"Hello there, original. Why are you standing? Sit down."
Reflection Naclis emerged from Naclis's shadow. In that moment, Loren understood exactly what had just happened—Reflection Naclis had burst in, shoved the book into Naclis's hands, then hid inside her shadow.
Loren knew all too well how awful it felt to be wrongly accused, especially by the person you loved most.
But Loren wasn't one of those stubborn adults who treated apologizing to a child as some immense disgrace, preferring to let the child carry a lifelong scar rather than admit fault.
"I'll deal with you later!"
Loren shot Reflection Naclis a vicious glare. She seemed to realize she'd messed up, instantly shutting her mouth and obediently kneeling before Loren.
"I'm sorry. I was wrong. Your reflection did something bad and framed you for it..."
Loren pulled out a handkerchief, wiped away Naclis's tears, and stroked her hair.
Only after Loren apologized did Naclis's grievances truly flood out. She had always behaved perfectly since childhood, wanting to be an ideal child—the complete opposite of the mischievous and troublesome Anna.
That was precisely why being spanked by Loren had felt so unfair.
"It's okay..."
Naclis's tears flowed uncontrollably. She threw herself into Loren's arms, soaking his shoulder with her crying.
"Was that pleasant, original?"
Reflection Naclis whispered softly, but Loren's ears caught it. Once Naclis had calmed down, Loren turned his attention to disciplining Reflection Naclis.
"Get up!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, truly sorry! Don't hit me! Let's talk this out... Agh!"
Loren grabbed Reflection Naclis's hand, pulled her up, and bent her over his lap. Instantly, the house echoed with Reflection Naclis's screams of agony:
"I'm wrong... Oww... I'll never do it again... Oww... I'll be obedient from now on... Agh..."
Hearing Reflection Naclis's cries of pain, Naclis suddenly cracked a smile.
Reflection Naclis had always loved showing off in front of her, and now she was finally getting her comeuppance.
In truth, Reflection Naclis was laughing inside.
Seeing Naclis smile, Loren breathed a sigh of relief. But even if Naclis had forgiven him, Loren himself wasn't satisfied yet—he struck harder.
With Loren's skill, he could inflict pain without causing real injury, so he had no hesitation.
Just then, Naclis suddenly recalled Reflection's earlier words. She instinctively covered her own bottom, remembering the feeling of the spanking... It really did seem to have a peculiar quality to it.
"Waaah... I'll never do it again..."
By now, Reflection Naclis's bottom was swollen and tender, and she had cried herself out. Only then did Loren finally feel appeased.
"There better not be a next time!"
When Loren helped Reflection Naclis up, he noticed not only his own clothes were wet, but even the floor was soaked.
"......"
Loren instinctively thought Reflection Naclis had lost control from the pain. But he didn't feel much sympathy—framing another family member like that was truly excessive.
"I'm leaving. Clean up the floor."
"Yes..."
Reflection Naclis looked utterly terrified, acting completely submissive.
Once Loren had left, Naclis coldly asked her reflection:
"This is what you deserved."
"It truly is the reward I deserved."
Reflection Naclis instantly regained her smile, even her cheeks flushing slightly. Under Naclis's confused gaze, she hopped and skipped to find cleaning tools to wipe the floor.
......
"What kind of exams do you guys usually take? Is there some big academy tournament where you fight on stage?"
Having left Naclis's room, Loren found Paqina and asked her about the exams. He had studied here once before, but that was countless years ago, and things might be different now.
If it was interesting enough, Loren might consider being a proctor for fun.
"There are written tests, practical experiments, and hands-on demonstrations. But for the practical part, we just cast spells under the proctor's supervision—they don't actually let us fight."
"I see..."
That was pretty much what Loren remembered—quite boring.
The Bountiful Magic Academy didn't emphasize practical combat, and there was no need for it. The God of Bountiful Harvest treated believers like livestock: just provide faith and reproduction, combat prowess wasn't necessary.
Giving believers knowledge and strength would only undermine their faith in the Orthodox Gods. Gods didn't need their followers to be powerful, but kings and churches did.
So this was the result: magic was taught, but with restrictions to prevent self-study, and practical combat was never instructed.
It was a rather twisted system, but it managed to coexist somehow.
The God of Light and Fire was an exception—the only deity who actively empowered believers to fight, the better to invade other gods' territories.
As for faith, He controlled it with an iron fist; any betrayer would be burned to ashes.
"Then I might as well go take a look. It's not like I have anything better to do."
In the end, Loren decided to go, if only to cheer Paqina on.
Even without Loren's guidance, Paqina could easily ace the exams with her own intelligence and witch talents.
"By the way, what are your plans for summer vacation?"
After finals came summer vacation—just like in Loren's world before his transmigration.
"Hmm... I'll probably stay at the academy. The academy provides meals even during vacation, and there are quite a few commoner students here."
Eating at the academy saved her family money, and she could also avoid travel expenses. Many commoner students chose to stay on campus during breaks.
"Do you want to come with us? After vacation, we'll likely return to the Gedlan Kingdom, or maybe go somewhere else. How about a sea voyage?"
Most of this world's events revolved around the Gedlan Kingdom. Loren hadn't forgotten that—his sole purpose in coming to the royal capital was to obtain the Dawn Princess's diary.
Besides, the merfolk were also searching for the Angler's trail. If they found it, Loren would deal with it personally, though mostly he just wanted to have fun at sea.
With the ghost ship, sea voyages would be much safer—at least along known routes.
