Chapter 35 – The First Day of School

“A pleasure to meet you.”

As I emerged from the illusion, I found myself face-to-face with her.

“I’m Adelia Baros of the Black Tower, special instructor at the academy, and now your class’s homeroom teacher, Lady Eliaernes.”

The black magician who had cast the illusion stood alone in a pristine white space, her raven hair seeming to devour even light itself. Her blood-red eyes, sticky and viscous as gore, curved into a smile rivaling a succubus’s allure.

“Did you enjoy my welcome? Was it entertaining?” She tittered. “Don’t worry about the others—I gave them simpler illusions. They’re perfectly fine.”

Adelia took a step closer, chuckling.

“And if you’re concerned about your companions, they’re fine too. They’re all having similar conversations with ‘me’ right now.”

I couldn’t help but sigh.

This lunatic black magician throws illusion magic at new students without warning, and she’s our homeroom teacher?

However much the world has changed, making a black magician a homeroom teacher seems absurd.

“My, Lady Eliaernes really does hate me, doesn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“With that expression, I wouldn’t believe a denial, but… oh? Did you just say ‘yes’?”

“Yes.”

“My goodness… what an honest student.”

“Thank you.”

“Hmm… quite rigid, unlike your appearance. Well, that’s fine. As your homeroom teacher, it’s my job to bond with my students. I’ll work hard!”

She raised her fists to her chest—a gesture completely mismatched with her elegant appearance. It was so ridiculous I couldn’t even laugh.

“Now then, the five students who overcame the initial illusion, including you, Lady Eliaernes, will receive fifteen merit points. The system is simple: merit points offset demerits. That’s all. Fifteen points can even prevent a disciplinary committee hearing. Wonderful, isn’t it?”

I wonder how many demerits hitting a professor would earn.

Though I couldn’t even tell if I could reach her in combat.

Despite standing right before me, I couldn’t gauge the distance between us. No sense of the gap in our abilities.

A clear sign she dwelt in realms far beyond me.

The space we’d traversed was an illusion within an illusion. Even breaking free only led to another layer.

One wrong move might reveal this wasn’t the end.

This is why I despise illusion magic.

It’s unsettling enough that my physical body might move without my knowledge, but worse—when you try to kill the caster, you often find it’s another illusion, or they’ve already fled.

Stay too long in illusions, and reality blurs until you can’t distinguish truth from fantasy.

That’s how Luxurina’s authority devoured countless warriors four hundred years ago.

“For the next ten minutes, you may ask me anything, Lady Eliaernes. Any curiosity you have. Of course, some things I cannot answer—not won’t, but cannot. Please understand.”

Cannot answer—meaning she’s bound by a geis.

At least an upper-tier demon contract.

“Do all students get this opportunity?”

“Of course. I’m an equal-opportunity teacher.”

Questions.

What to ask?

Mountains of curiosities, but asking risks revealing too much about myself.

“What circle are you?”

“My, starting with the hard questions? Well, since I can’t fully disclose that, let’s say beyond the seventh circle.”

“Is this illusion magic your unique spell?”

“‘This’? As a Karela Academy Signia class student, you should address me as ‘Professor.’”

Adelia’s lips curled upward.

Her voice caressed like silk against skin, those blood-red eyes seeming to ensnare my entire being.

Disgusting.

“…Is this illusion magic your unique spell, Professor?”

“Hmm… yes and no. It could be a unique spell completed at the sixth circle. But being beyond the seventh circle now, I might not consider it ‘unique’ anymore.”

Not sixth-circle magic.

That level couldn’t layer illusions this intricately.

Only one thing could—

Luxurina’s authority.

“Is it an authority?”

“Hehe. I’m afraid I can’t answer that.”

A geis.

But demon commanders wouldn’t impose such petty restrictions.

A high-ranking demon contract? But someone beyond the seventh circle wouldn’t need that.

At that level, you could kill upper-tier demons, albeit with difficulty.

What is she?

This wasn’t just missing knowledge from my four-hundred-year death.

Something about this woman was fundamentally wrong.

“Such an intense stare—you’re frightening.”

“My eyes are naturally like this.”

“They weren’t in the illusion, especially when looking at Yurasia. So gentle then…”

“…I was?”

I look at Yurasia gently?

Maybe because she’s like a sister? Because I find her endearing?

“Oh? You didn’t notice?”

How would I?

“Won’t you look at me that way?”

“No.”

“How decisive.”

Laughing softly, she pulled a candy from her pocket.

“Would you like one?”

“I don’t like candy.”

“It’s peppermint.”

“…Hah.”

I glared at her mysterious smile.

“That was an extremely unpleasant and suspicious comment. Did I hear correctly?”

“Would you believe it was coincidence?”

This black magician’s saying she’s been watching me. Is she insane?

“I didn’t expect a special instructor to enjoy voyeurism.”

“My eyes are too good—I see things whether I want to or not. Then I found someone interesting.”

“You enjoy watching women?”

“If it’s enjoyable, why not?”

“I’m underage.”

“Only three more years.”

“Your equality doesn’t need to extend this far.”

“I’m a completely unbiased teacher.”

“Please refrain from bathroom and bath observations. It’s uncomfortable.”

“Isn’t that the point of voyeurism? Closing my eyes at crucial moments would defeat the purpose.”

“What remarkable conviction. Care to guess my underwear color today?”

“White?”

“White with sky-blue stripes.”

Adelia’s eyes widened.

“My, how mature.”

“Sky-blue stripes are mature?”

“Oh… hahaha! Such clever deflection. I heard you hadn’t left home in seven years—where did you learn such wit?”

“From books.”

“Eustetia must have quite the library.”

“Because it’s Eustetia.”

Clicking my tongue, I sank into a suddenly-present chair. Adelia sat gracefully, nodding.

“There’s something I’d like you to ask. Won’t you?”

A question she wants?

“My, playing innocent after being so sly moments ago?”

“No questions.”

I rested my chin on the armrest, side-eyeing her.

“Just release me. After all that wandering, I’m hungry—”

“Snake.”

Adelia cut in.

“You met one, didn’t you?”

A smile spread across her face. I narrowed my eyes.

“What snake?”

“I told you—my eyes see even what they shouldn’t.”

“Yet missed my underwear color?”

“You had a guardian present.”

Guardian—meaning Sarah? At this point, Sarah’s abilities interest me more than this woman’s intentions…

“Hah.”

I pushed the thoughts aside.

Knowing about my peppermint candy preference was simple observation.

But the snake—

Knowing about the black magician who’d been eaten meant she truly watched me.

Stella couldn’t be her informant. Neither could Sarah.

I drummed the armrest, thinking.

Was she bluffing or truly knowledgeable?

Reading my expression, Adelia chuckled.

“Why not trust your homeroom teacher? We’ll be together three years.”

Trust? Like hell.

“How much do you know?”

“I know you skewered someone with tanghulu and stuffed them in a barrel.”

“That’s all.”

“But what happened after? Did the snake eat them?”

“Weren’t your eyes supposedly good?”

“I’m squeamish. Raised delicately—I avoid unpleasant things like snakes.”

“Sounds familiar.”

“It’s quite the excuse, isn’t it? Hehehe.”

Our mismatched conversation flowed smoothly. Why dance around it?

“So you watched Stella nearly die?”

“I knew you were following.”

“Couldn’t prevent her thigh injury?”

“I can’t answer that.”

A geis.

But that itself answered plenty.

Adelia and the snake couldn’t interfere with each other.

And that black magician targeted Stella.

Stella Verheigen. Verheigen. Black magic.

Not murder—kidnapping. Did Stella have something? Sacrifice? Payment? Her body itself? Something in Verheigen blood?

Why now, though?

They’d had time. If they’d needed her, why wait?

“Time’s almost up.”

“Was the ten-minute limit to prevent information leaks?”

“No, others are waiting outside. You were last.”

Outside. This space prevents eavesdropping—or hides from her demon master.

“Why arrange this meeting?”

Not simple Q&A. She’s giving information, showing her strength. Saying she watches and can help.

Why tell me?

To move Eustetia’s knights? The Nameless?

Neither felt right.

Warning me not to chase the snake alone?

Nonsense.

She’s a black magician. There’s another reason.

“Because you’re lovely, Lady Eliaernes.”

She won’t tell truth.

“I dislike you.”

“Such harshness hurts.”

“That was intended.”

“Shouldn’t you be nicer to your three-year teacher? What if I become mean?”

“A Karela Academy special instructor wouldn’t be so petty.”

Adelia rose, laughing.

“Now I can’t be petty without losing face.”

“I won’t change regardless.”

“Then I’ll try harder.”

I sighed, standing.

“Why come in person? Others got projections, right?”

Adelia’s eyes widened.

“You noticed?”

“I read a lot. Knowledge accumulates.”

“The reason’s simple—I wanted to see the real you.” Her smile turned playful.

She snapped her fingers.

“Welcome ceremony complete.”

The world darkened.

“Be careful. Snakes are cunning, their venom more terrible than imagined.”

Finally, this cursed welcome ended.