"Alright, let's go inside," Miss Amanda said, motioning to Victor. He nodded a bit nervously.
'This is the first time I'm visiting the headmistress without it being because I was bullied… or getting punished because I was the one doing the bullying,' Victor swallowed hard.
In his previous world, he had been called to the headmistress's office many times and had grown somewhat familiar with her. Early on, it was because he'd been bullied and beaten. Later, after he grew stronger, it was because he had beaten up those who tried to bully him—or arrogant nobles and jealous students who challenged him recklessly. For him, walking into the office without either of those reasons felt strangely out of place.
"Headmistress, may we come in?" Amanda asked politely from outside the door. A voice soon replied from within.
Clank. Clank.
"Come in," a calm, feminine voice said, accompanied by the sound of objects being hastily arranged.
Creak.
Victor and Amanda stepped inside the room, and Victor's lips twitched when he took in the surroundings. The office was luxurious and modern, like the room of a wealthy aristocrat.
'Looks like she just cleaned the place before we entered… same as the headmistress in my old world,' Victor thought. From his memories, the headmistress was a bit lazy—rarely cleaning her office until someone important was expected. Even now, he could tell some things had only just been arranged as few items were placed upside down. The most obvious clue was the empty stack of chip packets crammed into the corner of the room.
Victor's eyes then fell on a beautiful woman seated at the desk, writing in a book.
"Headmistress Amber, I've brought Victor," Amanda announced, her eyebrow twitching slightly.
The moment Amber heard this, she raised her head and fixed her gaze on Victor. A crushing Ranker's pressure instantly filled the room.
'This headmistress… is even more terrifying,' Victor gulped nervously. The aura she exuded was far more overwhelming than that of the headmistress in his old world.
Thud
"Holy shit, it really is Victor!" With a loud thud, Amber shot to her feet and teleported in front of Victor. Without hesitation, she began pinching and poking every part of his body.
"Ouch, that's painful!" Victor grimaced, trying to step back, but he couldn't escape her grip—Amber's strength held him in place.
"Please, Headmistress Amber, calm down," Amanda intervened, stepping forward to pry Victor free. She placed herself between them as Victor quickly retreated, glaring at Amber warily. The headmistress only rolled her eyes in response.
"Jeez, I was just checking if you were a ghost or the real Victor," Amber said nonchalantly.
Amanda sighed and rolled her eyes. "I told you already—did you think I was lying?"
"Seeing is believing. But… I still can't believe it's really student Victor," the headmistress muttered in a daze as her eyes lingered on him.
"Take a seat," Headmistress Amber finally said, gesturing toward the chairs. Amanda and Victor both sat down across from her.
"So, they really found you unconscious, and you lost both your memories and your strength. Don't you remember anything about what happened while you were gone?" Amber asked with narrowed eyes as she studied Victor.
"I'm afraid not, Headmistress. My memory is completely blank from that time," Victor replied. He had been trying to recall what happened to this new body ever since he woke up in the hospital, but every attempt only assaulted him with a splitting headache.
"I see," Amber sighed at his words. Victor hesitated for a moment, then spoke up.
"Headmistress… did you really auction off my stuff?" Victor asked nervously. The expression on Amber's face froze, while Amanda's lips twitched.
"How rude! You can't pin the blame on me. It's been like this even before I became the headmistress. Every headmaster of this academy—and even other academies—follow the same norm," Amber said, spreading her hands helplessly.
"Hmm… then can I at least get a share of the money you got from selling my stuff?" Victor asked awkwardly. He was broke, after all. Amanda and Amber both gave him strange looks.
"Sigh, your personality has also changed with the loss of your memories," Amber said with a sigh.
"Personality?" Victor asked curiously.
"Yes. Before you lost your memories, you never asked for money. Moreover, you were pretty rich from hunting monsters and selling their cores. But now, seeing you act like a beggar is really ridiculous," Amanda said neutrally.
"Huh? Wait—did you say I was rich? That means I should have money in my bank account! Do you know how much I have?" Victor's eyes lit up at her words.
'Heck yeah, I might have a smooth start with the money I saved,' Victor thought gleefully, completely missing the strange, almost pitying looks Amber and Amanda exchanged.
"You don't have any money," Amanda said flatly, making Victor freeze in shock.
"What?! Don't tell me you also took all the money from my account when I 'died'!" Victor cried out, looking at them.
Smack!
"Don't be ridiculous," Amber said as she smacked the back of Victor's head and looked at him with disdain, making him shrink his neck.
"Then… what happened?" Victor asked nervously.
"It's your fault. You were the one who donated most of your earnings after buying the necessary stuff from each hunt. You hardly kept any money saved up. That's also one of the reasons why you're considered an idol. If you start being stingy in the future, your reputation will plummet," Amber said in a teasing voice.
Hearing this, Victor was dumbfounded. His eyes nearly popped out of his head.
'What the fuck? Damn, what the hell?! I'm destitute, and I was out here donating to others? How ridiculous! And more importantly—do you think I care about reputation?! Can you eat reputation? Can reputation buy things or make you stronger?! To hell with reputation!' Victor cried out inwardly, cursing himself.
"He's lost his strength, you know. He's going to get challenged sooner or later. Even if he avoids it, he can't run forever, and they won't stop until he beats them. For that, he needs to train. Are you going to take responsibility for his training? I mean, you are his guardian," Amber asked with a raised eyebrow. Victor also looked at Amanda expectantly.
"Yes, I will. And there's another thing I need to inform you of—Victor has reawakened, and he's now a Dual Bloodline user," Amanda said calmly, deliberately omitting the Primogenitor part as she watched for Amber's reaction.
Amber blinked several times, her eyes darting between Victor and Amanda.
Thud!
"What the hell?!" Amber slammed her desk, shot to her feet, and stared at them wide-eyed, her mouth hanging open.