"Since we've already confirmed Linen's stance, the rest should be left to us, right?"
Elena glanced sideways at Hysteria.
"Hmph, obviously. That wild dog Ken should have prepared himself for death the moment he dared bare his fangs at this princess."
Hysteria narrowed her eyes dangerously.
Despite being an arrogant female AoTian archetype who typically excelled at face-slapping and flaunting her power, Hysteria rarely took anyone's life.
Crushing the weak, defeating the strong—such was the nature of Flame Rose royalty. They never bothered exterminating those weaker than themselves.
But there was an exception.
If someone persistently provoked the imperial family, again and again, their death became inevitable.
To Hysteria, Ken had already crossed that line, attempting twice to harm her and her friend Elena. He had chosen his own demise!
On rest days, to conserve magical power, the Arcane suppression formations within the teaching buildings were disabled.
That meant this ordinary, peaceful classroom by day would turn into a true battlefield tonight!
---
Inside his office, Ken waited in darkness until he received a magical messenger's brief transmission.
"What did you say? Their dormitory is empty? Fine. Thanks for your hard work. I'll settle your fee tomorrow."
Had the plan gone awry?
After ending the transmission, Ken grew anxious. He wanted to contact Linen, only then realizing he didn't even have Linen's contact information. He had no choice but to send another message to the dormitory supervisor—another Arcane Mage—in the gentlest voice possible:
"Miss Retia, it's me, Ren. I'd like to confirm if all the girls in my class are in their dorms. You know, these new girls always cause trouble without understanding the rules."
"Only Princess Hysteria and her roommate Elena are missing… You know where they've gone? The teaching building? Alright, understood. I'll handle it."
After disconnecting, Ken's expression was grim.
"Damn it. The plan really did go wrong. Could it have been leaked?"
Who could it be?
Ken panicked briefly but quickly dismissed the possibility of Linen betraying him.
After all, Linen had devised this plan; Ken himself was merely the executor.
Yet only two knew about it—if it wasn't Linen, could it have been himself?
Ken's panic didn't last long. He soon calmed down.
Thinking carefully, perhaps he was just being overly suspicious.
That Elena girl seemed to love studying. She was always the earliest to class in the mornings.
And as for that arrogant princess, accompanying her friend for some late-night studying wasn't completely impossible, right?
He had nothing to worry about. He was a Three-Ring Poison Arcane Mage. Facing a mere One-Ring mage and a girl without even a Ring—why should he fear? Even if poison magic wasn't suited for direct combat, losing wasn't possible.
Besides, he wasn't alone tonight.
Glancing at the deep darkness of the corridor, Ken relaxed further.
The advantage is mine!
Carrying a lantern, Ken strode through the hallway toward the classroom. When he saw the Arcane lamps brightly illuminating the room and heard occasional voices from within, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Reaching the doorway, he saw Elena frowning over a textbook at the front row while Hysteria laughed and chatted beside her.
Seeing Ken arrive, Hysteria frowned slightly.
"Teacher Ken, do you need something?"
"Shouldn't I be the one asking that, Princess Hysteria? Why aren't you resting in the dorm at this hour?"
"Nothing important. My roommate couldn't grasp some knowledge earlier today, so I'm accompanying her to study here."
Hysteria lowered her voice, pointing at Elena, who was still grimacing at her textbook.
"Oh? Is that so? Such diligence should be rewarded with extra credit."
Ken exaggeratedly wiggled his eyebrows.
"But as your teacher, perhaps I can help explain the issues troubling you."
"Well, suit yourself. Take a look then, Teacher Ken."
Hysteria casually shrugged.
Ken chuckled inwardly, Poison Arcane magic gathering silently at his fingertips. He reached toward Elena's hand holding the book.
"You're Elena, right? Let me see…"
Ken suddenly froze.
His fingers passed straight through the textbook. Elena herself distorted slightly upon contact, her figure wavering like an image from an Arcane projection.
After all, Arcane projections were inspired by a certain branch of Arcane magic—
"Illusion magic?"
Ken blurted out.
"Correct! Here's your reward!"
Hysteria abruptly raised her hand, releasing the Arcane magic she had prepared.
Second-Ring Spell—[Fire Tongue]!
BOOM!
Something shattered as the flames knocked Ken back. His hair stood on end, his face charred black—utterly pathetic, though unharmed.
"You damned little brat!"
Ken coughed violently, his curses scattering with the smoke.
He did use an Anti-Arcane artifact ahead of time!
Hysteria inwardly cursed.
When Ken had protected Linen from her [Combustion] spell on the the first day, she should've known better.
Arcane Mages might seem physically fragile, but they could use artifacts to reinforce themselves, with Anti-Arcane charms being the most common.
Fortunately, she was merely the decoy.
A hidden [Wind Blade] abruptly flew from a shadowy corner of the classroom, slicing directly toward Ken amidst the smoke.
"Ugh!"
A scream rang out as eerie green poison mist exploded in all directions. Hysteria quickly leaped back, moving toward the window to ventilate the area.
Suddenly, a fierce gust scattered the poison mist.
"Hysteria, you okay?"
Elena's voice echoed.
"I'm fine. That bastard definitely took a hit!"
Hysteria darted to the door, joining Elena. They saw bloodstains by the entrance and exchanged determined glances.
"After him!"
...
"Dammit! Damn those brats! Ambushing me!"
Ken clutched his abdomen, bleeding from the [Wind Blade] wound and cursing repeatedly.
First, they neutralized his artifact with a powerful Second-Ring fire spell, then struck sneakily with wind magic. Caught completely off guard, he'd had to unleash stored poison mist from his Weave Meditation and escape.
Fire, wind, illusion magic… Did they have a third person?!
Ken couldn't understand who else would be so bold. Still, he hadn't given up.
Tonight, he wasn't alone in this building!
"Making me look this pathetic—you won't die easily!"
Ken staggered along, clutching his injury, his eyes venomous.
"As long as I reach that place!"