In a mysterious place where dim-colored lights surrounded the area, giving the atmosphere a sense of gloom and mystery.
Inside this place were three people wearing black robes, and the atmosphere between them was extremely tense.
One of them had their head lowered while half-kneeling on the ground nervously. The small hand visible from beneath the robe could be seen trembling. The hand was adorned with beautiful black nail polish.
Standing before the woman was a tall man wearing a robe embroidered with a crown in golden threads. His black mask, different from the masks of the other two people, distinguished him from them. However, the aura surrounding this man was extremely dangerous.
The kneeling woman was so afraid of him that she did not dare raise her head and look at him.
The person wearing a white mask similar to the seated woman's looked at her for a moment before speaking to the man with the black mask.
"...Leader, I ask that you control your anger."
Suddenly, a black hand made of demonic power appeared, extending at incredible speed and grabbing the neck of the man who had just spoken.
The man felt his throat being crushed and began gasping desperately for air, trying to breathe, but to no avail.
The man with the black mask spoke in a voice that sent shivers down the bodies of anyone who heard it.
"Don't speak nonsense, Cipher. That whore should have protected the Third Pillar with her worthless life."
Suddenly, Vinia raised her head and looked worriedly at Cipher before speaking to the person wearing the black mask.
"Leader, I was the one at fault. Please spare Cipher's life."
The leader with the black mask looked at her with a gaze that made her freeze in place, yet she still tried her best to speak again.
"It's all because of that man, Black Crow... I don't know how he obtained information about the altar and came to rescue the students."
The hand made of demonic mana disappeared from around Cipher's neck, and he fell to the ground, taking deep breaths.
The leader with the black mask asked,
"Black Crow again?"
Then suddenly, his voice turned icy.
"A bunch of trash that can't even kill a single insect."
The leader looked at Cipher and spoke threateningly.
"If you don't find a way to kill him within three months, then you'd better find a way to preserve your worthless lives."
The two quickly nodded their heads. After they did so, the person wearing the black mask disappeared from the place.
"...."
"...."
After Vinia was sure he had left, she quickly stood up and approached Cipher.
"Are you alright?"
When she extended her hand to help Cipher stand, he pushed her hand away and rose by himself.
"You're incredibly foolish. How dare you speak to him like that?"
"If he hadn't spared you this time, I'd be cleaning up your corpse right now."
Vinia's hand froze in the air. Then she clenched her fist and spoke to him.
"If I hadn't done that, I'd be cleaning up your corpse, and that would be extremely disgusting."
Cipher looked at her small hand for a moment and thought,
"...That's true. My corpse would stain her small hand. It might even ruin her nail polish."
When Vinia saw Cipher remain silent, she felt annoyed and then spoke.
"I'll go as a spy."
Cipher looked at her for a moment.
"Huh?!"
.....
Stephen returned to the academy and found it extremely busy, as the students who had suddenly disappeared had now suddenly returned.
The academy dealt with the chaos that had occurred in the museum. That strange ring was sealed and taken away to be placed in a highly secure location.
Meanwhile, the testimonies of Ira, Nathan, and David against the student who turned out to be a demonic servant were taken, and he was arrested and detained.
The academy issued a notice stating that classes would continue normally without disrupting school life.
The students returned to their rooms to sleep for a while before classes began. Only six hours remained before the first lesson, which greatly irritated and upset many students.
This incident had occurred because of the academy's inability to protect the students, but there was nothing anyone could do now except continue with their day as the academy had instructed.
Stephen returned to his shared apartment and found the lights on. This wasn't strange to Stephen, since Nathan couldn't sleep with the lights off, so Stephen had become accustomed to leaving them on.
Stephen entered the apartment, took off his shoes, and walked inside, where Nathan, who was sitting on his bed with that blue diary beside him, greeted him.
Stephen's gaze shifted toward the pile of clothes on Nathan's bed and the mess around it as well. He frowned slightly but made no comment about it.
Then suddenly, Stephen asked Nathan,
"How did you discover my identity?"
Nathan looked at Stephen, smiled, and pointed toward the black eye patch covering his right eye.
"I have a skill here, so I discovered your identity by accident."
Stephen frowned upon hearing that and then asked Nathan,
"...Can you see information about the people you look at?"
Nathan tilted his head thoughtfully.
"Hmm... Well, that's correct too, I suppose."
Stephen thought,
"'I suppose'? So it has something to do with seeing information."
Stephen wanted to ask more about Nathan's skill, but suddenly he froze in place and felt discomfort gripping his chest.
"I feel like... I shouldn't ask any more about this."
After a brief silence, Stephen decided to trust his instincts and not ask further about Nathan's skill. Even though he was sure Nathan would answer honestly if asked, his instincts were telling him not to.
Stephen changed the subject.
"Where did you get that potion from?"
Nathan looked at Stephen for a moment, then gave a small smile unlike his usually exaggerated grin.
"I stole it from some guy."
After hearing that, Stephen stared blankly at the face smiling with such innocent warmth, as if he had just said the most normal thing in the world.
"...."
After a short silence, Stephen looked away from Nathan and spoke calmly.
"Good night."
Then he turned around, went to take a shower, and went to sleep without saying another word.
(Author: Stephen will never forget taking a shower for the rest of his life 😂)
The next day...
Stephen woke up early as usual and continued training in mana manipulation. He gathered the mana around him, began circulating it, and directed it into his bones.
After finishing his training, Stephen changed his clothes and walked over to Nathan's bed to wake him up.
When Stephen extended his hand toward Nathan, he suddenly felt unexpected movement, and a mouth lunged forward and bit his hand.
Stephen froze in place in shock. Then, with a swift motion, he slapped Nathan across the face and woke him up.
Stephen raised his hand and looked at the saliva smeared across it. All he felt was his hand and body trembling in disgust.
Stephen hurried to the bathroom and washed his hand repeatedly with hand soap until his skin began peeling slightly, yet he still felt disgusted.
Nathan, who had awakened because of the slap, looked around in confusion.
"Was that meat just a dream?"
Nathan felt a stinging sensation on his cheek. He raised his hand and touched it.
"Why does my cheek hurt?"
Stephen emerged from the bathroom with a gloomy aura surrounding him. When his eyes met Nathan's—
Stephen glared sharply at Nathan, then turned around and left the apartment without even looking at him again.
Nathan looked at Stephen's behavior in confusion.
"What's wrong with him?"
Nathan yawned, then headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth and put on his academy uniform.
When Nathan entered the bathroom and looked into the mirror, he became confused by the red mark on his cheek.
"Huh? Why is my cheek red?"
Nathan didn't understand what had just happened, especially since he had only just woken up and his thoughts were still muddled.
After Nathan finished changing, he left and followed Stephen to class.