Chapter 138

“Thanks for the cookies.”

“Sure. Study hard.”

And with three bags of cookies in hand, the three headed back toward the library.

Crunch, crunch.

Jacqueline immediately popped one into her mouth.

Seeing her enjoy it so much, Rita asked,

“Jacqueline, want to eat mine too?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I had some ice cream yesterday, so I’m cutting out snacks for the rest of the week.”

“Wow, that’s some strict diet control.”

“I don’t move around as much as you do.”

“Well then, thanks…”

Jacqueline, now holding two bags of cookies, brought another one to her mouth.

Crunch.

Made with almond flour and butter, the cookie was rich and nutty, with a flavor so deep and addictive that it never got old.

While licking the crumbs from her lips, Jacqueline happened to meet Shannon’s eyes.

She nearly bit her tongue in surprise.

“Wh-Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I’ll give you mine too.”

Plop.

Shannon picked up one of her cookies and held it up to Jacqueline’s lips.

The gesture looked like she was feeding a pet.

Jacqueline stared down at the cookie with a puzzled expression, unsure whether to eat it or not.

“Rita, sure, but you too, Shannon… why?”

“It’s fun.”

“What’s fun about it?”

“Raising Jacqueline.”

“……”

She didn’t seem to realize it herself, but there was something strangely captivating about the way Jacqueline ate things so deliciously. It made people want to keep watching.

“It’s like giving treats to a pet or something.”

Rita agreed with Shannon’s observation.

“Oh, I think I get it. I used to raise a chick at home when I was little. It was so cute pecking at its feed…”

“No, Jacqueline’s more like a dog than a bird. A big, fluffy one.”

“Are you seriously comparing me to a dog?”

Jacqueline pouted like she was offended but still ended up taking the cookie and eating it.

After enthusiastically finishing all three bags of cookies, Jacqueline licked her fingers and said,

“By the way, did we really elect a new student council president? That senior earlier mentioned something like that.”

Rita, who knew a lot about academy affairs, answered.

“Yeah. For the first time since the Academy was founded, the student council president is from a commoner background. It’s a bit of a shame that the president came from the Knight Department instead of the Magic Department, but I guess it makes sense, since the Knight Department has the most students.”

“Whoever it is, they’ve got to be better than the last president.”

Jacqueline, remembering the misdeeds of the former president Bernard, was sure of that.

A person who mistreated their lover and abused commoner students had no business overseeing student welfare.

Surely, the academy would now be heading in a better direction.

But Rita stroked her chin and said,

“Hm… I wonder about that.”

“Huh? Do you think the new president has a bad personality too?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just… since it’s the first time in academy history, I think a lot of unexpected problems could come up.”

“Well, you won’t know until you try.”

Jacqueline replied cheerfully, and Rita nodded in agreement.

Chatting casually like that, the three finally arrived at their destination.

Maybe because exam season was approaching, the area in front of the library was packed with people.

“Wow, there are so many people. Are there even any seats left?”

“The entrance is narrow, that’s all. Once you get inside, there’s plenty of space.”

Since it was Rita who practically lived in the library saying this, it was probably true.

“But how are we supposed to get through this crowd?”

Jacqueline glanced at Shannon for help, just in case, but Shannon only shook her head.

After a brief moment of thought, Rita said,

“No choice, I’ll take you through the shortcut.”

“Shortcut? There’s such a thing?”

“Hehe, Jacqueline. At this point, you can pretty much say there’s nothing I don’t know about the academy. Do you have any idea why I’ve been meeting with seniors and professors all this time?”

Instead of taking the stairs that led to the library’s main entrance, Rita veered off to a path beside them.

After walking a short way down a gentle slope, the sounds of people quickly vanished from around them.

“There was a path like this? If we keep following it, does it lead to the library?”

“No, we’re heading to the print shop first. It’s connected to the library.”

“The print shop’s over here? How did I never know that?”

“Because they don’t tell regular students about it.”

“Ooh.”

Jacqueline’s eyes sparkled at the thought of a new adventure.

Rita pointed out something important.

“We have to stay quiet and avoid getting caught. If one of the print shop staff sees us, they’ll scold us and ask why students are snooping around here. The equipment here is really expensive.”

“So students aren’t allowed in?”

“They didn’t even officially ban it. If they made a rule, that would reveal the print shop’s location, right?”

The print shop was a three-story building made of red brick.

Its thick walls were built to prevent fires and stayed cool even during summer.

Behind the building was a large drying yard.

In the shaded drying yard, freshly printed papers were neatly hung up.

They dried slowly under the cool shadows, waiting to be bound.

Looking in that direction, Jacqueline said,

“Do you think the final exam papers we’re taking are hanging up over there?”

“Jacqueline, you…”

“Oh come on, I was obviously joking. I told you….I’ve decided to take studying seriously now. Hmph, what kind of person do you think I am?”

Rita let out a sigh.

“Alright, let’s just get to the library. Once we pass through that arch, there’s a path under the library that….wait. Hide!”

Just as they were about to step out from behind the drying yard, Rita quickly pulled herself back.

Jacqueline asked,

“Why?”

“There’s someone there. That’s the way we need to go…”

Someone was standing under the archway that led out of the print shop.

It was a man and a woman.

Jacqueline, who had been following right behind, also peeked out and saw the same scene as Rita.

“Isn’t that a professor?”

“You’re right. That’s Professor Winslet. And the person next to him… is that the dorm supervisor?”

“What?”

Shannon, who had been in the back, caught up.

Her eyes were blazing.

***

“You’re so cruel, Professor. You chose to meet in broad daylight like this? My skin is delicate, you know. Even a little sunlight makes it break out in a rash.”

“Still faking it, I see. But for an old vampire like you, this much shade should be more than enough.”

The reason I chose the academy’s print shop as the meeting place was because it’s the most secluded spot on campus and it also provides plenty of shadow for someone like her.

To prove the point, Trisha smiled and pulled down her hood.

Her dark blue hair blended into the shadow.

“Still, wouldn’t it have been easier for you to just come to the dorm supervisor’s office?”

In terms of distance and convenience, she was right. But I wasn’t going anywhere near the dorms again.

Both times I went, I was seen with Trisha by students. It was only natural to find a more remote spot before pointless rumors reached Josephine’s ears.

Surely, no students would come all the way out here.

“The Lord is very pleased with how you handled the matter this time, Professor.”

With that, Trisha got to the point.

What followed was a confirmation of past events.

“As a result of your efforts at the Bluefields harbor, it’s been confirmed that five out of the nine high priests of the Cult of the Unholy Gaze, led by Nerico Resolu, have been killed. Their activities will be greatly reduced until they can replenish their strength. It was a greater success than we had hoped.”

All traces of her earlier playfulness vanished. Trisha bowed her head, now filled with reverence and respect.

Part of me wanted to ask why they hadn’t warned me in advance that five Seer monsters would appear.

But Trisha was just a messenger sent by Keith D’Alembert.

There’s no point in demanding a formal apology from someone so far down the chain.

“I take it this means our deal is over.”

“This deal, yes.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“The Lord sees this transaction as the beginning of a full-scale partnership with you, Professor.”

“A partnership?”

“He was wondering if you’d be willing to help expand the blood donation program at the academy…”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Of course, I was only joking.”

Trisha gave a little smile with her eyes, then continued.

“The power you displayed during this operation was truly impressive. My Lord himself was astonished. He said the magic you used that day contained a level of wisdom rarely seen even in Karaf, as well as traces of a long-forgotten past.”

She was likely referring to arcane magic.

Vampires, after all, are mages who have refined their craft over the centuries they’ve lived.

Arcane magic is a secret art that can only be created by mages who’ve reached the peak of their discipline by pouring a lifetime of experience and insight into it.

Naturally, any mage would be drawn to it.

“So, he wants the magic I possess?”

Trisha shook her head.

“My Lord has lived for thousands of years. The blood magic system he built rivals the knowledge held by all the schools in Karaf combined. He did say it would be a fun pastime to compare his knowledge with yours, Professor, but… that’s not what he truly wants.”

“Then stop dragging it out and just say it.”

“What he wants is the ally under your command.”

“Ally?”

“The one who helped you defeat the Seers at the harbor. The woman known at the academy as Professor Monastrell. My Lord believes she may be as powerful as he is…perhaps even more so. When did you manage to recruit an ally like that, Professor?”

“An ally, huh.”

I let out a laugh, dumbfounded.

That bitch Monastrell is practically obsessed with killing me, but I guess to these vampires, she looked like an ally.

Admittedly, the situation could have given that impression.

The truth is, Monastrell was keeping an eye on me and lost her mind when she saw the demon worshippers. She joined in on her own without warning.

“To outsiders, it looked like the two of you were always clashing inside the academy… But wow. To think you went that far just to keep up the act. I can’t say I don’t understand. If I had a trump card like that, I wouldn’t want anyone else to know either.”

That’s not it.

We were actually trying to kill each other for real.

Honestly, it was almost touching how perfectly the vampires had misunderstood the situation all on their own.