"Quick, follow! Hurry up!"
"That's definitely Sylvia, no mistake about it. My nose is sharp!"
"Are you a puppy? And keep your voice down!"
"Isn't this… kind of like peeking on her…?"
"This is a legitimate investigation—we're just being a little discreet."
The constant whispers coming from the bushes were impossible to ignore, even if Elise and the others didn't want to pay attention.
Not to mention, they kept calling out Sylvia's name!
"Are those people you know?" Elise turned toward Sylvia, only to see the same troubled look on her face.
"Could those be the juniors you mentioned earlier?"
"Yes, Ely…" Sylvia sighed and continued, "Could I ask you all to wait a moment? I'll handle this and come right back."
"It's fine, Sylvia. We don't mind waiting."
Meanwhile, over in the bushes—
"Hey, look! Sylvia's walking this way!"
"Did she notice us?"
"No way! Our disguise is flawless!"
"Uu… what if Sylvia scolds us…"
The girls hiding in the bushes didn't move away as Sylvia approached. Instead, their voices only got louder.
They're really bad at hiding… Sylvia couldn't help but sigh. Having such cute juniors was a source of happiness, but sometimes, they also caused this kind of trouble.
"What business do you have with me, Miluse?"
Her question didn't succeed in drawing the group out. Instead, they went completely quiet.
With no other choice, Sylvia used her Strega power, softly humming a song.
The leaves on the bush scattered like dandelions blown into the air, revealing the five girls crouched behind them in strange poses.
All five were students of Queenvail Girls' Academy, and also members of the world-famous rock band Rusalka. In terms of popularity, they were second only to Sylvia and Elise.
Sylvia looked to their leader—the vocalist and guitarist of Rusalka.
Miluse.
"What exactly are you all doing…?"
"Hmph! Obviously, we're investigating you, Sylvia!" Miluse, caught red-handed, showed not a trace of shame. Instead, she arrogantly put her hands on her hips.
"If we can find your weakness here, then the title of world's number one will be ours!"
"…."
Hearing the same words as before, Sylvia felt even more exasperated.
She knew these juniors meant no harm. In truth, they admired her deeply, only wanting her recognition before surpassing her.
They'd done plenty of laughable things before, but Sylvia knew it was just because they were naïve.
And because they were naïve, reasoning with them was pointless!
Since her friends were still waiting, Sylvia didn't intend to waste time here. She immediately pulled out her trump card—
She dialed a certain person's video call!
"Huh? What are you doing?" Miluse was puzzled, but soon burst into laughter. "Don't tell me you're calling for reinforcements because you can't handle us? Hahaha—huh?"
As she laughed, Miluse froze the moment she saw the person on screen.
The… Director? The Director herself…?
That's right—the person Sylvia called was none other than Queenvail's Director, Petra!
"What is it, Sylvia? Did you need something from me?" Petra asked from the video, seemingly still busy with paperwork.
Without a word, Sylvia simply turned her camera toward the five members of Rusalka.
At once, all of them instinctively stepped back half a pace, intimidated by the Director's overwhelming presence.
"Hm?"
Seeing the frightened looks of the five Rusalka girls on screen, then Sylvia's helpless expression, Petra instantly understood the situation. Her gaze sharpened immediately.
"Miluse! What are you all doing?"
Petra's stern words made the five girls straighten up at once, standing at rigid attention.
"Yes! We're sorry!"
"It's the academy festival right now—don't you have anything better to do?"
"But… today was supposed to be our rest day…" (muttering)
"Talking back?" Petra's intimidating tone silenced them completely.
"Now! Immediately! Report to my office at once! Since you've got nothing to do, I'll assign you something myself! And if you're late… hmph!"
With that, Petra hung up the call. The five Rusalka girls instantly wilted, their spirits deflated.
"Well, that's that. Go on to Petra now," Sylvia told them with a small wave before leaving.
The five were left sitting like ducks, completely defeated. The meekest, Mahulena, even squeezed out a few tears.
To outsiders, it might have looked like they were about to face some terrible punishment.
With that settled, Sylvia led the others on a tour of Queenvail. Naturally, nothing serious happened, and the group of girls enjoyed themselves.
But Laetitia's hostility toward Sylvia didn't lessen—in fact, it grew even stronger.
...
Beep beep!
A sudden chime reached Elise's ears—she had received an email from someone.
Strangely, the others had as well.
Whether Orphelia, Sylvia, or Laetitia—all of them had received a message almost at the exact same time.
Exchanging glances, they opened their emails together.
[To Elise:
This old one has thought of a very interesting activity. I've arranged for it to take place on the final day of the academy festival, at the Sirius Dome. Please make sure to sign up!
If you don't show up, I might secretly cause you some trouble. Maybe I'll even have a little chat with your academy's higher-ups!
Signed,
Banyuu Tenra, Fan Xinglou!]
What the hell was this supposed to be?
Elise was speechless. She knew Fan Xinglou could be willful, but wasn't this letter practically laced with threats?
Looking at the others around her, Elise realized—
Good! We're all wearing the same expression!
Clearly, they had each received the same kind of message from Fan Xinglou.
But… what exactly was this event Fan Xinglou wanted them to sign up for?
Elise couldn't help but feel a surge of curiosity.
It sounds kind of interesting… Maybe we should join?
"Looks like there's no way around it this time," Sylvia decided. As someone familiar with Fan Xinglou, she knew better than to resist.
"But since it's Xinglou hosting… odds are, most of it will be her twisted sense of fun."
"I wonder what it will be this time?"