Water Mage in the Flame Realm

"Alright, for now, let's leave it at that. That should be enough."

Andrew looked at the prisoners starting their labor and exhaled slowly.

Although he had disregarded Ivan's opposition, he had still initiated the labor reform project.

However, in his heart, Andrew didn't hold out much hope.

To be honest, in the grand blueprint for the construction of Wildfire Territory, as well as in his own career plans as the Water Magic Lord, this labor reform facility wasn't a high priority; in fact, it was one of the lowest.

Andrew didn't expect to turn the Flame Warriors or Earth Fire Mages back into ordinary people, he just wished that at least some of them would no longer kill the innocent indiscriminately, which would be a merit in itself.

He truly didn't have many high expectations for this project.

He didn't even subconsciously regard it as part of the "Fire Extinguishing Upgrade Method" because the benefits were not only unstable but completely unpredictable.

But what Andrew didn't realize at that moment was that sometimes, actions taken without expecting much and without excessive ambition could eventually yield unexpectedly delightful surprises in the future...

"Hmm? What is that—"

Andrew's gaze suddenly fixed on a figure in the corner.

It was Fleur.

Fleur was an Earth Fire Professional born from the Scholar's Fortress. Her strength far surpassed that of the strongest captive, Cook, before she was captured.

Cook was merely an Advanced Magic Apprentice, while Fleur was a real Tier Three Flame Warrior, and she had mastered Dragon Transformation.

During the past Dual Fire Battle, Fleur had teamed up with Rose to attack Wildfire Territory, full of ambition at that time.

Now, however, Fleur was inconspicuous among the prisoners, silent.

Andrew even saw a few female prisoners shove her, yet she didn't respond.

Fleur, like the other prisoners, quietly stepped forward, putting on the magic handcuffs and shackles herself, and started working.

There was no expression on her face, very wooden.

"...Is this the 'weight of truth'?"

Seeing this, Andrew sighed inwardly, not feeling sympathy but still somewhat emotional, "This Fleur still can't fully accept that the Desolate Beasts were once Flame Warriors and that the Ancestor's Mountain and Sea also turned into Desolate Beasts—such truths."

Seeing Fleur in her current state made Andrew realize once again how deep the foundation of the Magic Guild was. Because one could only imagine the reaction of the many other Flame Warriors upon learning of the connection between Desolate Beasts and Flame Warriors. Despite the situation, the Magic Guild had temporarily held back, but there were no signs of chaos, no news of unrest within the guild. Instead, the guild still had the energy to send scouts and spies into Wildfire Territory to gather intelligence. What kind of strength does that show?

"However, this makes it all the more interesting." Andrew dared not underestimate the Magic Guild yet felt no fear, "I'm only at Tier Three now, but as I grow stronger, someday, I will uproot this malignant Magic Guild completely!"

Fleur suddenly looked up in his direction.

So did Andrew, meeting her gaze mid-air.

Andrew nodded slightly, said nothing, and turned to leave.

Fleur watched in the direction Andrew left.

She was silent for a moment.

Then she continued with her simple manual work.

Sally was still loudly scolding Cook for his lack of resolve.

Not far from Fleur, a few prisoners were whispering, "Hey, what does this mean exactly?" "Can participating in labor really lead to freedom? Is that true?" "Sigh, thinking back, who would've thought Andrew could rise to such heights..."

All these whispers, Sally's scolding... all the sounds gradually faded into silence for Fleur.

Expressionless, she diligently worked, and gradually, she immersed herself in it.

Cook was also very immersed.

Because of a promise Andrew had made earlier: "Work hard, and one day, you'll be free again."

Fleur, however, soon became more immersed than Cook.

The degree of investment for her and Cook was different.

Because the reasons they chose to follow Andrew's arrangements and participate in the labor were different.

Cook was thinking of regaining his freedom and seeing the light of day once more.

Fleur, on the other hand, immersed herself wholly in the labor and work at hand simply because—

It kept her from having the time to think about the things that brought her pain.

...

...

When stepping out of the labor camp's gate, it was already evening.

As he exited, Andrew immediately pushed the "labor prisoners" issue to the back of his mind.

The current focus was naturally on the exchange and cooperation with the Warm Fire Commerce Association.

The bottled Farmer's Spring water brought out during the day was more of a gesture of goodwill, an opening gambit.

Further plans and ideas about cooperation were brewing in Andrew's mind!

To say nothing of the fact that, right after the Dual Fire Battle, there were bound to be many injured, right?

"In these past few days, I've already used the 'Enchanting Finger' paired with the 'Water Priestess Series' to produce more than one type of healing potion," Andrew thought to himself, "But there's no need to rush to bring them out; once I reach Warm Fire City and understand the post-war situation, I'll find an appropriate time to introduce them."

"Good day, Lord Andrew!" a group of young girls bounded over from afar.

"Where are you all going?" Andrew asked with a smile.

"To the campfire party!" a lively girl ran back and pulled Andrew's arm, leading him along, "Come join us, my lord!"

"Campfire... party?" Surrounded by a flock of chirping, youthful girls, Andrew was a bit puzzled.

Fortunately, after quickly deploying "Water Spirit Sensing," Andrew immediately grasped the situation—

The Wildfire Territory was transformed into an entirely different scene compared to the day.

To welcome the arrival of Falk and the others from the Warm Fire Commerce Association, the territory's residents organized a campfire party to celebrate after a day's work!

Enthusiastically, they pulled Falk, Leia, and the Crimson Knights to join them in dancing!

In the residents' pure hearts, Barbara, like Andrew, was someone who had saved their lives once.

And since Barbara was with Warm Fire Commerce,

Then, anyone from the Warm Fire Commerce was a friend of Wildfire Territory!

Moreover, the residents no longer carried the subconscious belief that "you're a mage, above me, a superior being, so I'm afraid to invite you to dance."

Nor was it the reverse: "It's an honor for you to be invited by me to dance."

Instead, it was the simplest notion between people: Let's celebrate! Let's all have fun together!

Sometimes, this atmosphere, this emotional contagion, had an even more profound effect, bridging distances more than the shock Andrew brought to Falk and the others with the Farmer's Spring earlier that day.

Seeing Falk, Leia, and the knights quickly adapt despite their initial discomfort and join in the singing and dancing,

Andrew, pulled to the party site by the girls, smiled knowingly: "Isn't this wonderful."

It seemed there was nothing urgent left to do before the morning departure. For now, he could relax a bit.

Maybe, take the chance to showcase some top-tier dance skills as the Asian (awkward) dance king?

Upon consideration, he thought better of it and opted out of dancing in public...

Just enjoying the beautiful atmosphere of the moment was enough!

More and more people arrived at the campfire party, singing and dancing together.

The only one firmly refusing to participate was Havier.