My dad smirked, and Seraphiel—his halo glowed brighter.
Classic 'light-mode' attitude.
The headmistress had now gained full control with the help of Lady Caelira.
Poor woman, she cleared her throat and stepped forward, removing the scared mask she wore when the war was about to break out, and now replaced it with something serious—the one the students were used to seeing.
Her perfume had this delicious scent of fear and panic, although I was disgusted with the scent of lilacs laced in it.
"Now that...that's over, we will now proceed to the reason why I had you all summoned today."
Oh yes. How could I forget to mention that every post-apocalyptic event ended up getting wrapped up by a meeting, a speech, and maybe even a PowerP*int?
Before my brain could cook up an answer, it happened.
The courtyard began repairing itself.
Holographic sigils spun into place—the floor resealed, the banners reweaved, and now the scent of the area was smelling less of power and violence and more of disinfectant and disappointment.
"I'll take it from here, Athelia." Lady Caelira said, her hand on the headmistress's shoulders. The headmistress didn't even hesitate, she knew even breathing the same air as Lady Caelira was a privilege, what more her touch.
Lady Caelira stepped forward, and like a shadow, the headmistress disappeared into the walls.
Lady Caelira's voice was cold, divine, and firm—devoid of casualty but still had emotion in it.
"Students of Infernalis Academy," she began. "As of today, new rules, regulations, and restrictions have been put in place after the.... Cerberus Incident." She paused, her eyes sweeping over the crowd of students, and then she continued, "And also take note, they are all effective as of today."
Oh, wonderful, they gave it a name already, 'Cerberus Incident'. What next?
Maybe I'd carve a grave stone, or a memorial stone, later.
Would be the first time.
As expected, murmurs erupted from the students—some in approval, some in disgust, and others bastards didn't know where to stand.
Lady Caelira, however, raised her hand, and immediately the murmurs died out like an execution.
"From this night moving forward," she said, "The Night Veil Protocol will be enforced."
The name alone sent shivers down the spines of the students. Everyone, including me, knew what it meant—it was a supernatural curfew.
So if I'm decoding properly, it meant everyone would have to be in their dorms before the Twilight Chime.
It was a weird celestial clock that counted across realms—each passing second reminded us that time was 'fake' and rules were 'eternal' in our Academy.
Caelira purposely waited, like she wanted us to savour the news before she continued. Her voice was like silk over steel as it wrapped the entire hall.
"No Night Veil fissures after the Twilight Chime
No celestial should be seen near the Blood Sanctum
No Vampire passions in the library—your noises sound like the Grim Reapers in mating season
No unauthorized summoning in the garden. And for hell's sake, this isn't a marketplace. Stop trading angel feathers for demon blood vials."
I couldn't help but laugh. It made my mind travel back in time as to what happened last season. "Well, looks like someone's still upset they got outbid last season."
And because karma fucks—scratch that—karma loves drama, her eyes turned immediately to me.
Oh, fuck. She heard that.
Great. I forgot to add public implementation to today's schedule.
Figures.
Seraphiel seemed to have heard it too. He was someone who held Lady Caelira in high regard. She was neither an angel nor a demon, but he loved the way she behaved like an angel in some ways.
"Discipline your imp, Astaroth," Seraphiel said, his eyes locked violently with mine.
And for some reason, I didn't even cringe.
"Careful, Valanir. Your holiness is stripping like my—" my dad was shot a glance from Lady Caelira before he could finish.
I rolled my eyes like it could find my brain back there. "Please, someone get them both pacifiers before they burn us all in their little game of egos," I whispered, but it was to no one in particular.
But then, Lady Caelira's attention didn't shift to any of them—not to Astaroth or even Seraphiel but to me.
Oh, I knew I was in for an earful.
"You," she said, her voice was calm and soft—softer than the way she spoke earlier when she was addressing the students—including me, although it wasn't directly.
I blinked; I didn't know what trouble I was in now. I had counted them, and I planned to cause trouble the next day, so I didn't really know what I did.
"Uh...me?" I asked, my voice was low. I sounded like a man.
"Yes, you." She replied sweetly. It was almost too tempting.
The eyes of all the students pressed on me, but I wasn't surprised. I was used to it anyway.
"When the Cerberus got released, the only student whose energy and aura resonance matched was yours." She said, waiting for me to respond.
Yes, I knew what she meant, but I didn't really see the significance.
"The Cerberus responded to your energy signature." She finished.
What else did you expect? I'm literally from hell, and I owned one, but it wasn't as big as the one the school had.
This woman is gotta be sick.
She continued, her eyes read me like I was a scripture. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you're cursed."
Cursed? She's nuts.
The room went silent. Like dead silent—the kind of silent you'd only see in space, even the air refused to breathe.
"We'll speak again. Xavier Astaroth. Privately, that is." She said. Her voice was calm, smooth, and gentle—it was the type of gentle that sent a reminder to one's blood telling it 'hey, you can still fucking freeze'.
I couldn't even give my approval, she left no space for me to—as she vanished into the cosmos of twilight ribbons, and just like that, she was gone.
I exhaled slowly as my gaze was still fixed on the air space she had been in before she vanished.
Classic thing for a neutral S-rank being to do.
Ha. There's nothing like a personal invite from the principal of balance. Not ominous at all.