The Academy’s Crude Pink-Haired Martial Artist

“Nice to meet you.”

As soon as I was dragged out of the illusion…

“I’m Adelia Baros, a special professor at the Academy affiliated with the Black Magic Tower. And I’m now the homeroom teacher for the class that Eliaernes is in.”

Standing alone in a pure white space was the Dark Mage who had cast the illusion magic. Her black hair seemed to absorb the very light, and her eyes glistened, red and sticky like blood, as she smiled alluringly—a sight that rivaled even the temptations of a nightmare.

“How was my welcoming illusion? Was it fun? Don’t worry about the other students; those who dropped out right away were given a much easier illusion by me. Hehe.”

Adelia stepped closer with a chuckle.

“Oh, if you’re worried about the students who were with you, it’s alright for them too. They’re probably having a chat with ‘me,’ just like Eliaernes.”

A sigh escapes me.

They suddenly cast an illusion on the freshmen without any explanation, and this insane Dark Mage is the homeroom teacher.

Even if the world has changed, isn’t it a bit much to make a Dark Mage a teacher for kids?

“By the way, Eliaernes, you really seem to dislike me?”

“Yes.”

“If you say no while making that face… Oh my? Did you just say ‘yes?’”

“Yes.”

“My goodness… you’re quite… quite the honest student, aren’t you?”

“Thank you.”

“Well… despite your appearance, you’re pretty rigid. Well, that’s fine. It’s my job as the homeroom teacher, Adelia Baros, to get to know my students. I’ll try my best!”

She raises her fists in determination, but the action is so mismatched with her looks that I can’t help but hold back a laugh.

“Now then, for the five students who overcame the first illusion, including Eliaernes, I’ll give you a shop. 15 points. The use of the shop is simple: you can offset penalty points. That’s it. What do you think? 15 points are an enormous amount capable of avoiding the disciplinary committee. Sounds good, right?”

I wonder how many penalty points one would get for hitting a professor.

I’m not even sure if I’ll be able to reach the professor in front of me.

Even though we’re face to face, the distance feels insurmountable. Plus, there’s no sense of a gap between us.

It’s proof that she resides in an overwhelming realm above mine.

And the place we were in was an illusion within an illusion. Even if I broke out of that illusion, I was still bound to be dragged into yet another illusion.

If I mess around, this may not be the end of the illusion.

That’s why I dislike illusion magic.

I’m already wary enough that my body might move in ways I don’t realize, and if I try to attack the caster after breaking an illusion, it’s often just another illusion, or the caster’s already fled.

Moreover, if you stay in an illusion for too long, the line between what is real and what is fake becomes so blurry you can’t even tell the difference anymore.

Because of that, 400 years ago, many soldiers were left covered in filth, devoured by Luxrina’s power.

“Also, I’ll allow Eliaernes to ask me questions for exactly 10 minutes starting now. You can ask anything you’re curious about. Of course, I won’t be able to answer things that are difficult to answer. It’s not that I don’t want to; I literally can’t.”

It’s not that she won’t answer; she just can’t.

She must have made a contract regarding the golden words.

Did she form a contract with at least a high-ranking demon?

“Do you take questions from the other students as well?”

“Well, of course. I’m an equal homeroom professor for everyone.”

Questions, questions.

What should I ask?

I have heaps of things I want to know.

However, if I ask those questions, I’ll have to reveal part of my cards, so I can’t go there.

“How many circles are you?”

“Oh my. Starting strong with questions, huh? Hehe. Well, since this one’s completely sensitive information, I’ll just say I’m above 7 circles.”

“Is this illusion magic unique to you?”

“‘You’ is a bit too casual. From now on, as a student of Karela Academy’s Signia Class, you should refer to me as Professor.”

Adelia’s lips curled upwards.

Her voice oozed with a tantalizing flavor that tickled the insides, and her red eyes seemed to ensnare every corner of my being.

This feels wrong.

“…Is this illusion magic your original magic?”

“Ahem, you could say yes, or no. It could just be a unique magic completed at the 6th circle. In that case, since I’m above 7 circles, I wouldn’t consider it special magic.”

This can’t possibly be a 6th circle magic.
If it were, it wouldn’t be able to confine people with multiple layers of illusion like this.

Only Luxrina’s power could manage that.

“Is it a power?”

“Uhuhu. That, I’m afraid I won’t be able to answer.”

Discussing her contracted demon is off-limits due to the golden words.

If she made a contract with a legion commander, there wouldn’t be such a golden restriction. Those folks don’t hide behind something trivial like that.

So then, has she made a contract with some ordinary high-ranking demon? But that seems too strong.

It feels like she’s at least made a contract with a demon above the 7th circle, but if that’s the case, there would be no need for that.
At that level, she could probably kill an ordinary high-ranking demon, no problem.

What on earth is she?
I can’t figure it out.

This isn’t merely a gap of information from 400 years of being dead.
This woman is just bizarre in an extraordinarily strange way.

“If you stare at me like that, it’s scary.”

“My eyes have always looked like this.”

“Not at all when I saw you in the illusion. At least when looking at Yurasia, your gaze was so soft…”

“…Me?”

Am I that soft when looking at Yurasia?
Is it perhaps because she feels like a younger sister, or maybe because I just feel fond of her?

“Didn’t you know?”

How could I?

“Can’t you treat me like that too?”

“No.”

“Yikes. You’re so blunt.”

As if she anticipated my response, Adelia chuckled softly while rummaging through her pocket, pulling out a piece of candy.

“Want some?”

“I don’t like candy.”

“It’s peppermint.”

“…Hah.”

I glared at Adelia, who wore a peculiar smile.

“That sounds really unpleasant, uncomfortable, and suspicious. Am I hearing you right?”

“Would you believe me if I called it a coincidence?”

This Dark Mage is saying she has been watching me? Is she really mad?

“I never would have guessed a professor at the Academy, let alone a special professor, would take pleasure in voyeurism.”

“My eyesight is just that good; I can see things that even I don’t want to.”
Then I saw someone particularly interesting and couldn’t help but look closer.”

“Are you enjoying the pleasures of women?”

“As long as it tastes good, that’s all that matters.”

“I’m a minor.”

“Only three years left, right?”

“There’s no need to be so equitable about these things.”

“I’m an incredibly fair and unbiased homeroom professor to everyone.”

“But please restrain yourself when it comes to bathing and bathroom trips. It’s embarrassing.”

“Isn’t voyeurism meant for that kind of thing? If I close my eyes at crucial moments, that’d be a problem.”

“Well, that’s quite the conviction. So can you guess what color panties I’m wearing today?”

“White?”

“It’s a white background with sky-blue stripes.”

Adelia’s eyes widened.

“Eliaernes, you’re quite the adult.”

“Is sky-blue striped panties considered adult?”

“Oh my… Ahahaha! You’re quite the clever one, aren’t you? I heard rumors you haven’t left your house for seven years. Where could you have learned such social skills?”

“I learned it from books.”

“There must be a ton of books in Eustetia.”

“Because it’s Eustetia.”

click click– I sank back into the chair that had somehow formed beneath me. Adelia nodded gracefully as she took a seat beside me.

“At this point, I have a question I’d like to ask Eliaernes. Won’t you share it with me?”

A question she wants to ask?

“Oh my. You were just so clever a moment ago, how can you now act so innocent?”

“I have no questions.”

I rested my chin on the armrest and shot a glare at Adelia.

“Please let me out. I got lost for too long, and I’m starving—”

“Snake.”

At the same time, Adelia said, “You encountered a snake?”

Adelia’s face broke into a bright smile.
I narrowed my eyes at that smile.

“What do you mean by snake?”

“I told you, my eyesight is so good that I see everything, even the things I should keep secret.”

“Yet you couldn’t guess the color of my panties?”

“I’m a minor next to a guardian.”

Is she referring to Sara?
At this point, I’m more curious about the strengths of that Dark Mage than about her intentions.

“Hah.”

I shook my head and set aside my distractions for a moment.
Eating peppermint candy is something that could easily be understood if she’d been watching me a few times at the Academy.

But a snake.
The fact that I met the Dark Mage who had been eaten by a snake is information that can only be found out if she had truly been observing me.

I don’t think Stella’s the puppet here.
Sara is the same.

Tap tap– I drummed my fingers on the armrest as I pondered.
I can’t tell if she truly knows or is just testing my reactions.

As if reading the suspicion in my gaze, Adelia chuckled.
“How about you trust your homeroom professor a little more, since you’re going to have to see my face for the next three years?”

Trust? Yeah right.

“What do you know?”

“I know that Eliaernes pierced a tanghulu skewer through someone’s neck and stuffed them into a drum.”

“That’s all?”

“But I don’t know what happened afterward. What became of the corpse? Did the snake eat it?”

“Why didn’t you take care of it before it got a hole in its thigh?”

“That’s a question I can’t answer.”

Golden words.
But that gives me an answer nonetheless.
First, it’s clear that Adelia Baros and the snake can’t interfere with each other.
They can’t meddle in each other’s matters.

And that Dark Mage is aiming for Stella.

Stella, Stella Behrhaigen.
Behrhaigen. Dark Mage.

She wasn’t trying to kill her; she was trying to kidnap her.
Does Stella hold something of value?
A sacrifice? An offering? Or is it her very body?

Does something run in the blood of the Behrhaigen family?

If that’s the case, why now, after all this time, is she trying to take her?

There must have been plenty of time.
She was flitting about the demon realm with those skills, so surviving up until now probably means she didn’t need her before.

Then why?

“Time is running out.”

“Was it set to 10 minutes to prevent any information from leaking ‘outside’?”

“Uhuhu, that’s because there are other students waiting outside. Eliaernes was the last to arrive.”

Outside. It seems this space was created in consideration of potential eavesdropping or the idea that her demonic master might overhear.
“Why create such a place?”

This isn’t just a simple question-and-answer session.
It’s a setup to give me information and gauge how strong I am.
And it’s a way to say they’re always watching and can help me if something goes awry.

But why share information with me?
Is she trying to move the Eustetia Knight Order?
Or make Muyeong move?

None of those seem likely.
Then what, just to say I should be careful going after that snake?
Because it’s dangerous?

Bullcrap.
The woman before me is a Dark Mage.
There’s surely another reason for this.

“Because Eliaernes is pretty.”

Seems she’s not inclined to tell me.
“I don’t like it.”

“Being so firm makes me really sad.”

“I said that on purpose to make you sad.”

“But since I’ll be seeing you every day as your homeroom instructor, wouldn’t it be better to be a little nicer? What if I get a mean streak and start tormenting you?”

“I don’t think a special professor at Karela Academy would act so petty.”

Adelia kicked back with a giggle and stood up.

“Now that you mention it, I don’t want to be seen as petty, so I’ll do my best.”

“But I’d stay the same.”

“I’ll make more effort.”

With a sigh, I stood up from my seat.
“By the way, why are you here in person? Didn’t you send your avatar to the other students?”

Adelia’s eyes widened in surprise.
“You caught on quite well, didn’t you?”

“I read a lot, so my knowledge is decent.”

“The reason is… it’s the same. I wanted to see the pretty Eliaernes in person. Now, time’s up—”

“Just one last question. If I were to hit the professor, how many penalty points would I get?”

“Oh my! According to Karela Academy’s rules, it’s 30 points.”

“30 points for one hit?”

“One hit? Ahahaha! I don’t know the details about that! But if you need it, I could find out for you. Should I do that?”

“No need for that. I think I won’t be able to gather the 30 points.”

Adelia’s face broke into a cheerful smile.
“Then, congratulations on becoming a student of Karela Academy’s Signia Class.”

Adelia snapped her fingers.
“With that, my welcome is over.”

The light of the world went out.
“Please be careful. Snakes are incredibly cunning creatures and possess very terrible poison.”

Finally, that damn welcome is over.

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