To Circe, being able to go somewhere beyond Colchis Island with Alaric was truly something worth looking forward to.
As a result, preparing her personal belongings and magical tools didn't take much time, or rather, although she usually shared the same bad habits as ordinary girls, dragging things out by spending ages on makeup and choosing clothes before going out, this time she was surprisingly quick.
Seeing the cheerful witch bounce up to him, Alaric thought they could finally set off. Who would have thought that Circe would stir up more mischief?
"Hey, Headmaster," she began sweetly.
"Didn't you say that your latest research made a new breakthrough, and that this year you were going to give me a very special magical tool as a birthday present?
Um, could you give it to me now?"
"Why?" Alaric asked, puzzled.
"Your birthday's still a long way off. It wouldn't mean much if I gave it to you early. Or are you just trying to trick me into giving you an extra birthday gift?"
"You, you guessed it… No, that's not it!" Circe huffed, cheeks puffed up.
"It's because you insisted on inviting me out to travel with you. But without a powerful magical tool for protection, wouldn't poor little me be an easy target for bullies?"
"When did I invite you?" Alaric muttered.
"Besides, knowing you, I'm more worried that the people we meet might end up being turned into animals by you again…
Ugh, there are so many things wrong with this I don't even know where to start."
But Circe paid him no mind and began to act spoiled.
"I don't care! I want to bring the Headmaster's gift with me when we go out together.
The goddess already told me in secret that it's something super convenient for traveling."
"Hecate… she really spoils you," Alaric sighed helplessly at the goddess of magic's meddling.
"Fine. Since she already spilled the secret, I might as well hand it over now."
With that, he took out something from his pocket, a pair of wings resembling those of an eagle.
"Eh? Eh? This magical tool… is it these wings?" Circe asked curiously, running her fingers along the feathers. "So, it's a pair of wings for flying? That's too simple!"
"Do you really think I'd make something so crude?" Alaric shook his head.
"This is the 'Magitech Wing Suit, Final Prototype,' crafted by Daedalus and me.
Each pair possesses its own functions. It's an artificial set of wings, extremely powerful. You're getting the first one."
Circe didn't buy it for a second.
"Wow, Headmaster, you're amazing! I just love this gift, did you really think I'd say that? Obviously, you're just using me as a test subject. You're so mean."
Despite her words, she still accepted the gift.
"Since it's from you, even if it's a prototype that might malfunction and make poor Circe fall from the sky at any moment, I'll still accept it. So, what else can these wings do?"
"There's no such thing as 'malfunctioning and making people fall out of the sky,'" Alaric retorted weakly.
"At least give me a little faith… Anyway, let me explain. Unlike ordinary wings, these magitech ones are more like an implanted organ."
"Implanted? Organ?" Circe tilted her head.
"Meaning, once you attach these wings, they'll become a part of your body, as if you truly grew them yourself. You'll feel them and control them just like real wings."
"Eh? Wouldn't that be hard to control?" Circe pointed out cleverly.
"Normal people don't even have the concept of controlling wings. If they can't fly automatically, how are you supposed to control them?
It's like suddenly growing an extra arm!"
"That's because they weren't made for ordinary people," Alaric explained matter-of-factly.
"These magitech wings were originally developed for the 'Angel Project' in the production of intelligent war machines.
In other words, they were meant for the materialized life forms I created. For them, controlling wings just requires a preset system."
"What about me, huh? What about me?" Circe pouted angrily. "I'm just an ordinary beautiful girl, not some intelligent weapon. Why give them to me?"
"Sigh…" Alaric let out a disappointed breath. "But you're not ordinary, are you? Haven't you used transformation magic to turn into birds before? You should already know how to fly."
"Uh…" His words left Circe speechless for a long while before she gave a silly little laugh.
"Heh, heh, sorry. I was being stupid. I'm supposed to be a genius witch, and I didn't even think of that… Ugh, I'm such an idiot."
Ignoring her self-mockery, Alaric continued explaining.
"Since it's a magical device similar to an implanted organ, we engraved a large number of artificial magic circuits inside.
They can connect directly with the user's own circuits, greatly enhancing spell-casting efficiency.
Also, the wing suit has modular interfaces, while I didn't add many extra functions, you can craft your own and install them through those interfaces."
"Ohh, that's amazing! Being able to add functions freely is awesome," Circe said admiringly.
For ordinary people or average mages, such a feature might be difficult to handle, but for someone like Circe, already a high-level mage, it was a tremendous advantage.
At that level, she could easily perform custom enchantments and craft her own magical tools.
But Alaric wasn't done with surprises.
"The key point," he continued, "is that these wings can evolve. The more you use them, the more they'll adapt and grow to match your needs."
"Wow, that's wonderful!" Circe exclaimed excitedly. "I can't wait to put them on. Come on, come on, attach them to my back!"
As she spoke, she turned around, lifting her hair to reveal her fair, delicate back.
"By the way, I'm wearing a backless dress today! Hmm~ Headmaster, don't tell me you gave me this gift just because you wanted to see me wear things like this every day."
"Of course not. Besides, once the magitech wings are attached, you won't even see your back anymore."
Looking at the girl's soft, pale skin before him, Alaric suddenly felt as if he had brought this trouble upon himself.
Wasn't this practically tempting him to sin?
'No, I'm not the kind of man who'd lose control just because of a bare back.'
Still, after a moment's hesitation, Alaric finally reached out his hand.