Chapter 57
“Yes? Why??”
“It’s the Vice Principal’s orders. With the recent chaos from the inter-year competition, they want to avoid escalating the situation further.”
“But no matter what, when a student ends up like this…!”
“The Hover family has agreed to handle it quietly. The head of the Hover family wants to conceal the fact that his son lost control of his mana and caused a disturbance at the Academy.”
“…”
Amilion was left speechless by the investigator’s words.
Early in the morning, as soon as she arrived at her office, the head of the investigative team had come to inform her that yesterday’s incident was to be quietly buried.
“Is there any progress regarding the part I mentioned?”
“The suspicious potion? Unfortunately, nothing was found. We even used trace detection magic just in case, but there was no evidence.”
“…”
Amilion’s thoughts overlapped with Ryu Yeong’s confident statement from yesterday.
Sitting in the very same chair where the investigator now sat, Ryu had firmly claimed to have seen Kane drink the potion.
For some reason, Amilion found Ryu’s words more trustworthy than the investigator’s report.
“Then…”
“There’s no need to worry. Just submit a brief report on the incident, and it will be handled quietly.”
“What will happen to Kane Hover?”
“The Academy will provide as much support as possible. It’s unlikely, but there’s always that one-in-a-million chance.”
Even as Amilion threw out minor questions, clinging to any shred of hope, the conclusion remained unchanged.
Kane Hover’s rampage was ruled a personal failure, and the Academy and the Hover family agreed to conceal the matter.
It was, arguably, the cleanest and most rational resolution.
“Then, I’ll take my leave. Please submit the report as soon as it’s ready.”
“…Understood.”
Still, Amilion couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.
It didn’t feel like the incident was resolved cleanly; rather, it felt as if it had been made to appear so.
The forest fire aside, was this truly the kind of incident that could simply be swept under the rug?
“Just like the inter-year competition.”
Once doubt began to creep in, it quickly took hold.
From Amilion’s perspective, the undead incident during the competition was far too significant to be quietly buried.
Even though the professors who knew the details had remained silent, the level of information control was too thorough.
It was as if the Empire’s Intelligence Bureau had intervened.
“Sigh.”
Her thoughts naturally returned to the conversation from last night.
Ryu Yeong, who claimed to work under the Prisis family, investigating suspicious activities within the Academy.
Since Yuria Prisis herself had verified his identity, it was highly likely that even the Sinclair family head knew the truth.
“Is someone really infiltrating the Academy?”
Just as Ryu had infiltrated the Academy as a student, it wasn’t impossible for someone else to have done the same.
Although it would be more challenging for staff members, it wasn’t unthinkable if a family as powerful as Prisis was involved.
Tock, tock, tock.
Her pen tapped rhythmically against the table—a habit Amilion exhibited when lost in thought.
She hadn’t shared anything about Ryu with anyone yet.
Having heard the story late at night, she hadn’t found the right person to discuss it with, nor was it an easy topic to bring up.
Moreover, Ryu had claimed his reason for entering the Academy was to uncover the infiltrators hiding within.
Since his identity had been verified by Prisis, she didn’t want to risk jeopardizing the work of the Six Great Houses by meddling unnecessarily.
“I need to meet him again.”
Amilion tied her hair back and prepared to leave.
Their conversation had been abruptly cut short when Ryu ran off last night, but today, she intended to finish it.
***
“Yaaaawn.”
A yawn escaped my lips.
After staying up until the early hours discussing various matters with Yuria, I barely got any sleep.
As much as I wanted to skip the Academy and go back to bed, I couldn’t.
I needed to meet Professor Amilion as soon as possible to resolve the situation.
Only then could my life at the Academy continue.
So, instead of heading directly to the classroom, I was on my way to the professors’ quarters.
As usual, I teleported from my room to the dorms, then naturally walked out of the dorms toward the professors’ wing.
Despite the major incident yesterday, the Academy was eerily calm and peaceful.
It was still early, so there weren’t many people around, but everything seemed normal, as if nothing had happened.
“I hope we can reach an understanding.”
Seeing no one nearby, I was tempted to teleport directly to the professors’ wing, but I resisted.
As I breathed in the crisp morning air and approached the professors’ building, I was about to step inside when—
“You there.”
“Hmm?”
Someone called out to me from behind.
Though they hadn’t addressed me directly, I was the only person in the vicinity.
“Ryu, correct?”
“Yes?”
“The Vice Principal?”
The person who had called me was none other than Crescent Academy’s Vice Principal, Randgar Bayel.
With a gentle smile, he was looking straight at me.
“Oh, good morning.”
“Ha ha, what a coincidence to run into you at this hour. Where are you headed?”
“I’m on my way to see Professor Amilion.”
“Ah, I see.”
This was my first time speaking directly with Vice Principal Randgar Bayel.
During the inter-year competition awards ceremony, I had seen him seated behind the podium, but this was my first one-on-one conversation.
One of the people Yuria had pointed out as suspicious.
On the surface, there was nothing suspicious about him at all.
“The way you performed during the inter-year competition was truly impressive.”
“…Thank you.”
Randgar continued to praise me with his usual smiling face.
I also smiled back at him and made direct eye contact.
‘…This man.’
The moment I looked into Randgar’s eyes, I realized something.
Though he was smiling and praising me, his eyes weren’t smiling.
What I sensed in Randgar’s gaze was a deep and lingering curiosity.
Not innocent curiosity, but curiosity laced with hostility.
‘Did he catch on to something?’
“I’ve been wanting to meet you, and here we are.”
Grinning—
Randgar continued to smile as he extended his hand for a handshake.
“Oh.”
Without much thought, I reached out to shake Randgar’s offered hand.
And at that moment—
Whoosh!
A strong gust of wind blew directly into my face, forcing my eyes shut.
It was so powerful that not just my hair but even my entire body felt like it could be swept away.
I reflexively closed my eyes in response to the sudden whirlwind, and when the wind died down, I opened them again.
‘This is…’
When I opened my eyes, what I saw was a fox.
Its yellow eyes gleamed in the darkness behind the vice principal’s silhouette, glaring at me.
The giant fox’s eyes were fixed squarely on me.
Its intent was clear—it would devour me if I showed even a moment of weakness.
From the fox emanated an intense energy and unmistakable hostility.
The creature snarled, baring its teeth as it continued to stare at me.
‘…’
It didn’t take long to realize that the fox I was seeing was an illusion created by Randgar.
I hesitated briefly.
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have backed down in such a battle of wills.
After all, there was no reason to let it slide when the other person was provoking me.
But what made me pause was my current situation.
Professor Amilion had already discovered my identity, and now the person confronting me was none other than the vice principal Randgar, whom Yuria had deemed suspicious.
If I escalated things here, giving Randgar more reason to doubt me, my entire plan could unravel.
‘At least now I’m certain.’
Although I really wanted to punch that fox in the face, I restrained myself.
Instead, I decided to act.
I feigned struggling under the weight of Randgar’s illusion and pressure, playing the part of a flustered student.
I pretended to tremble, unable to withstand the overwhelming mana emanating from the vice principal.
‘Why a fox, though? Is it some kind of symbol for Randgar?’
As I studied the snarling fox behind Randgar, I noticed something.
Though the orange, mana-infused fox growled fiercely, it looked rather cute if you focused on its details.
Whoosh!
After what felt like a while, another gust of wind blew, and the surroundings changed in an instant.
“Haha, it was a pleasure meeting you.”
“Oh.”
“Let’s meet again sometime. I wish you the best in your life at the Academy.”
Randgar spoke as if nothing had happened, addressing me calmly before walking away.
‘Ha, my acting was flawless.’
I deliberately stayed rooted in place until the vice principal was completely out of sight, maintaining the act of a frozen, intimidated student.
“…Is he gone?”
I only moved when I could no longer hear Randgar’s footsteps.
By then, he was far enough away to be out of view.
‘No need to retrieve the mana analyzer.’
The unexpected encounter with Vice Principal Randgar had cemented my suspicions.
Out of the three suspects Yuria had mentioned, Randgar was undoubtedly the one to watch.
Who would’ve thought that the vice principal of Crescent Academy was the one orchestrating something behind the scenes?
“Sigh, I held back well.”
I didn’t know why Randgar had suddenly decided to test me, but it worked in my favor.
‘Now I just need to handle things with Professor Amilion.’
With my steps feeling much lighter, I headed inside the building.
The fact that I now had more evidence to present to Professor Amilion put me in an even better mood.
“Oh, Ryu st—Ryu.”
“Oh, you’re here already?”
“What brings you here so early in the morning?”
“I need to discuss something with you. Quickly.”
“…”
Fortunately, as soon as I entered, I ran into Professor Amilion.
Judging by her puzzled expression, I felt an even stronger conviction.
I was confident that I could bring Professor Amilion to my side.
—
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