“What do you think?”
“This… is definitely beyond what the Academy can produce on its own.”
“So what does that mean?”
“Yes. This is almost like…”
Eddi waited patiently for the continuation of the statement while gazing at the ghoul corpses laid out on the floor.
The ghoul corpses that the Leader had brought along just in case they might help.
Swoosh—
Eddi instinctively took a step back as the figure with blue hair gracefully moved, her locks swaying.
The blue-haired woman crouched in front of the ghoul corpse and began to carefully examine it.
This elegant and polished woman, who seemed far too refined to be dealing with undead corpses, touched various parts of the ghoul’s body with no hesitation.
Very few people within the Black Shadow Guild knew her true identity.
Leader of the 4th Division of the Black Shadow Guild, Yuria.
She was the type of leader who didn’t participate in guild activities under normal circumstances.
In fact, most members outside the leaders themselves didn’t even know there was a 4th Division.
The 4th Division only activated under special circumstances.
And right now, its leader—Yuria—had made a rare visit to Black Shadow Guild headquarters.
“Already at this level, huh…”
Yuria muttered to herself as her fingertips traced the ghoul’s body.
Eddi waited quietly until her observation was complete, noting how much more elegant Yuria seemed compared to her last encounter.
“Ah, sorry. This is definitely beyond the Academy’s capabilities. It’s likely there’s an external force at work, and the Academy is trying to cover it up.”
Realizing Eddi was waiting for an answer, Yuria spoke in a rush.
“Could this mean black magicians have appeared again on the continent?”
“99% sure it is. We had our suspicions, but it seems their power is stronger than we expected. What I don’t get is why the Academy is keeping this secret…”
Yuria stood up from the ghoul corpse, her puzzled expression clear.
There had been no news about the undead’s appearance during Crescent Academy’s inter-grade competition, despite the magnitude of the event. Even Eddi, who had weathered many challenges alongside Guild Leader Ryu Young, was surprised by the lack of attention to the matter.
Normally, such a significant issue would generate whispers in the underworld. But this time, the silence was absolute—like someone was deliberately blocking the information.
And in the backworld, where information equaled money, controlling it so completely suggested the involvement of a massive organization—perhaps even the Crescent Empire government.
“So where’s our rookie Leader? After that Sandglass incident, it’s been a while since we’ve met. We should chat.”
Yuria grinned playfully as she asked Eddi about Ryu Young’s whereabouts.
Her smile helped lighten the serious atmosphere, though Eddi could only respond with a bitter smile.
“I don’t know. After entering the Academy, I don’t even have access to his schedule.”
“Ho ho. He’s probably causing trouble somewhere again.”
The word ‘trouble’ reminded Eddi of that strange undead horse Ryu Young had proudly mentioned.
He gave it the name ‘Green’ and promised to show everyone its fiery green flames. Thinking about it, catching that thing might have been trouble itself.
“Yuria-sama, have you ever seen a skeletal horse?”
“A skeletal horse?”
“Yes. Just bones, but its legs are wrapped in green flames.”
“Is that one of the undead that showed up this time?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve never seen one like that before. Sounds difficult just from the description.”
“Exactly. It seems we’re dealing with an unprecedented type of undead. Sigh.”
“Why?”
“Our Leader caught it, intending to ride it.”
“Really? He caught it?”
“Yes. Please, when you see him, tell him it’s absolutely not okay to ride that thing outside. He refuses to listen to me.”
“Ho ho ho. Catching an undead, huh? Definitely something our Leader would do. I’d love to see it.”
“Right? He should be back by now; he normally makes an appearance around this time to at least say hi.”
Normally, Ryu Young would stop by the office around this time as a formality. Today, though, he was absent.
If he’d known Yuria was coming, he probably would’ve returned earlier. But Yuria’s visit was impromptu.
After Ryu Young handed over the ghoul corpse to Eddi for investigation, she had done her best to gather information about the undead. But finding someone who truly understood undead proved nearly impossible.
In desperation, she contacted Yuria, one of the guild’s top mages.
And upon hearing the word ‘undead,’ Yuria made the journey within a day.
“At least this is somewhat reassuring.”
“About what?”
“That the rookie Leader is in Crescent Empire territory.”
“Hmm? Why’s that reassuring?”
“Well, just in case you can help out, Yuria-sama.”
“Come on. That’s old news. Besides, if anything serious happens, our Leader will likely escape on his own. There’s no way to hold him down.”
“Still, it’s comforting to know.”
Eddi calmly served Yuria a cup of tea.
Yuria smiled warmly as she accepted the cup.
The fact that Yuria was the leader of the Black Shadow Guild’s 4th Division was known by few, but what she kept hidden went beyond just that.
Her full name is Yuria Prisis.
Combine it, and you get Yuria Prisis.
She originated from one of the six great families of the Empire, though she now operated independently of them.
The Prisis family name still held immense influence over Crescent Empire despite her independent endeavors.
“Hehe. I once told the Leader something back in the day.”
“What was that?”
“When I was still with the family, I told him that if he ever got into trouble in Crescent, he could sell my name to get out of it pretty easily.”
“True enough.”
“He confidently claimed that would never be necessary.”
Yuria sipped her tea with a slight upturn of her lips.
She couldn’t help but smile, reminiscing about old memories.
“It’s uncertain if simply saying my name would even carry weight these days…”
Yuria’s smile faded slightly as she ended with a tinge of wistfulness.
Understanding her situation, Eddi chose to stay silent rather than add further comments.
‘Where is this guy anyway?’
While silently blaming Ryu Young for his absence…
*
“Yuria Prisis!”
“…”
“You know, from the Prisis family—one of the six great families.”
“Yuria…?”
Royce still stood ready with his sword, eyeing me suspiciously.
Attempting to assert my innocence against someone who had already uncovered—or suspected—the truth would be futile.
All of this was because I’d shown off too much. Between wanting to test spells and receive the “impregnable sword,” I let my strength run wild.
Naturally, Royce now viewed me as no ordinary student. Escape seemed impossible.
Then an idea flashed through my mind—it had been a while since I recalled this person.
Our 4th Division leader, Yuria. She might be the solution to this sticky situation.
“Absolutely. Yuria Prisis. I work under her.”
“Hmph?”
Royce frowned, glaring at me with increased intensity.
Thud.
“To prove how serious I am, you can cut me down right now if what I say isn’t true.”
I tossed my sword to the ground and raised my hands.
Despite this, Royce remained cautiously on guard.
He truly deserved his reputation as the “unyielding wall.”
“You work for the Prisis family?”
“Yes, yes. They discovered something suspicious within the academy and sent me as a student to investigate.”
“Hmm, I see. But…”
‘What’s the problem now?’
Even I, someone who usually stayed out of worldly affairs, knew the weight of the six great families’ names.
Within Crescent Empire, using one of the six great family’s names without permission brought nothing but trouble.
Even minor matters involving these names could never escape scrutiny.
Head of the St. Claire family, Royce, likely believed parts of the story simply due to this common knowledge.
“Isn’t Yuria the one who left her family?”
“Yeah, she did leave. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t work, right? Yuria-sama has her own operations outside the family.”
“…”
My fervent explanation seemed to be convincing Royce, slowly but surely.
For one, his white glowing bokken began to fade back into its darker brown hue.
As Royce pulled back mana from his weapon, he lowered his sword.
‘Whew.’
“This needs confirmation from her personally.”
“Absolutely. The moment you mention my name to Yuria-sama, I’m sure she’ll recognize me.”
Thankfully, I knew where Yuria lived.
No matter how fast Royce contacted her, my teleportation would surely get me there first.
“So many things are unclear here.”
“Hmm.”
At Royce’s muttered skepticism, I felt an involuntary cough escape.
“If you infiltrated as a student for investigation, why were you causing such a commotion?”
“…”
…Point taken.
