Riemann suddenly remembered something and said,
"Oh, right. Professor Shafiq said she wanted to give us remedial lessons. She probably thinks the Alchemy level here at Beauxbatons is too high and plans to give us a temporary boost?"
Lucien was indeed a little surprised that the lazy Professor who loved to slack off would actually take the initiative to work overtime.
They had arrived at Beauxbatons early, and the exchange competition had not officially begun yet.
The first round of written examinations would take place the day after tomorrow, so it was quite normal for Professor Shafiq to want to give them some last-minute preparation. Short-term memorisation was still useful.
After dinner, Riemann glanced at the surrounding students, then suddenly chuckled.
"Before I came, someone told me that Beauxbatons has many beautiful girls. It certainly seems true."
Lucien smiled wryly, remembering that Nicolas had told him something similar.
"I remember you have a fiancée, don't you?"
Some young masters and young ladies in Muggle society considered marriage early, let alone Pure-blood families, who highly valued lineage and were relatively conservative.
For both the continuation of bloodlines and the protection of family interests, Wizards of Pure-blood origin like Riemann often had their marriages arranged very early. Marrying immediately after graduating from school was also common.
Hearing this, Riemann's expression became serious, and he spread his hands helplessly.
"That's why I'm only feasting my eyes. When I go back to Hogwarts, I'll have to prepare for Valentine's Day again, even though it's already passed several times..."
As he spoke, the slightly frivolous smile that had vanished from Riemann's face reappeared. He looked at Lucien with a grin and said,
"Speaking of Hogwarts' popular figure, the handsome and charming Lucien, do you have any plans for Valentine's Day?"
"There are quite a few girls in Ravenclaw, and even in Slytherin, where I am, there seem to be some young ladies who can't forget you, you know."
Lucien had intended to brush him off casually, but a system prompt suddenly sounded in his mind, making his gaze turn strange.
What did "Valentine's Day Operation" mean?
...
The night wind was cold and biting.
While strolling through the Beauxbatons campus, Lucien checked the newly triggered loan.
[Loan: Advanced Fire Element Magic Pattern]
[Repayment Period: 30 Days]
[Loan Content: Obtain the Advanced Fire Element Magic Pattern. Increases the host's affinity for the fire element, speeds up the learning of fire magic, and increases the power of fire spells by 50%.]
Recent loans were basically all linked to Elemental Magic Patterns. This was something Lucien had requested from the system, but what he truly cared about was the loan mission.
[Loan Mission: Operation Valentine's Day.]
[Use a series of magical means, such as Alchemy, Potions, and Transfiguration, to enrich the festive atmosphere and allow those young men and women who long for love, or who have already found their partners, to spend the day joyfully.]
Lucien couldn't help frowning.
He really wanted the Fire Element Magic Pattern. With that, only the Wind Element would remain.
But this mission...
The requirements were very vague.
Enrich the festive atmosphere on Valentine's Day?
His first reaction was to think of the original story, where Lockhart had pulled stunts on Valentine's Day.
This included, but was not limited to, hiring Dwarves to wear wings and carry harps as a form of cosplay, having them help students deliver love letters and greeting cards, causing chaos throughout Hogwarts, and making the other Professors, especially Snape, wish they could poison Lockhart...
Lucien communicated with the system through his consciousness.
"System, is this mission like the improvement of the Fountain of Beauty, where you'll be the one judging it in the end?"
[Correct! Looking forward to the host's performance.]
Great. Another job catering to the client.
Why am I doing the work of the previous smiling DADA professor?
Oh no, I'm going to actually make the day good and not ruin it like Lockhart, so it should fall under Cupid's jurisdiction, right?
How about making some Alchemical dolls in the image of golden-haired little angels like Cupid?
The idea of delivering love letters could actually be tried, but it would need some improvement.
Lucien thought about how he happened to be developing some Potions and Alchemical products for beauty and skincare, which also fit the Valentine's Day theme.
Valentine's Day, hmm, February 14th.
By then, they would already have returned to Hogwarts.
Heh. At least it was a home game.
Lucien could only comfort himself this way. If this loan mission had to be completed at Beauxbatons, it would be too inconvenient and somewhat socially embarrassing.
[Ding! Loan application successful!]
[Evaluation: Love is like a blazing fire. So, will Cupid, who shoots the arrows of love, have love of his own?]
...
The next morning.
Walking through the snow-capped Pyrenees Mountains, Lucien couldn't help yawning, the white mist he exhaled quickly dispersing.
The chill of ice and snow couldn't dispel his sleepiness.
Last night, Professor Shafiq had given extra lessons to him and Riemann, but after she explained everything once, Riemann was still somewhat confused.
As a result, Professor Shafiq had suddenly thrown in the towel, just like during the last preliminary selection, and let Lucien take over the teaching.
Lucien was already very used to teaching others. He simply felt as though he had been conscripted again.
He pulled a bottle of Ox-Horse Potion from his pocket and unscrewed the cap.
Glug, glug, glug.
With the dual boost of the Potion and the cold, Lucien woke up completely. With a slight surge of Magic, the falling snowflakes automatically avoided him.
After exploring the mountains for a while, Lucien soon found his target.
In a clearing in the distance, several giant horses about the size of elephants were gathered together.
They had golden coats, silver manes, and eyes as bright red as fire.
Faint flames covered their backs and tails, and the heat they radiated melted all the surrounding snow.
Lucien observed these unique local magical creatures: Abraxans.
He took out two wine barrels and walked toward the herd.
Two barrels of wine floated beside Lucien as he slowly walked toward the Abraxans, the swirling snow avoiding the hem of his clothes.
Sensing a stranger nearby, the herd of Abraxans looked in Lucien's direction. Their fiery red eyes instinctively filled with wariness, and hot breath sprayed from their nostrils, carrying fine sparks.
________
(^///^) Please support this fic and also read 12 chapters ahead at Patreon.com/DrakDevil1