## Chapter 181: Dekan’s Forbidden Gate
Dormitory 404 of the Knight Academy has gradually become a new campus legend at Hewenlit Academy.
The owner of this dormitory, Dekan, has stirred up a storm in the Kingdom Union within just one semester of enrollment.
Although information spreads slowly, it’s unlikely that Dekan will be known to commoners in every corner of the world as the thirteenth extraordinary card master of the present age.
Instead, he is more of a concern for the powerful figures of distant nations.
However, many people in the world have heard of the moniker “Mr. D”!
Even Morion, situated in the southern kingdoms, is aware of the dread associated with “Mr. D.”
The Rebirth Church hasn’t explicitly stated who Mr. D is, but their announcements come dangerously close to revealing Dekan’s name.
After all, there’s no one else who fits the bill.
Naturally, whether Mr. D truly exists, whether he is related to the new extraordinary card master, and whether the Rebirth Church is maligning Dekan become topics of public speculation.
When Dekan first rose to fame in the capital, many who were interested in him attempted to investigate.
However, now, no one desires to invite trouble with Dekan.
Even though most people know Dekan cannot possibly be the Bishop of Pain.
With the Destruction Archbishop Evans preceding him and Marquis Roderick following, they have reason to fear.
Although Dekan has not confronted these two eighth-tier adversaries directly, his performances have indeed been that of a supportive acrobat.
Undoubtedly, Dekan has successfully guided the enemies to their doom.
Students are worried that if they unwittingly offend Dekan, while it may not lead to direct annihilation by his hands, it is likely to leave them bewildered until their dying breath.
As such, anything related to Dekan has begun to evolve into something akin to a forbidden existence.
Students at the Knight Academy often pass the corridor outside Dekan’s door.
They fear him, yet at times are tempted to test their courage near his vicinity at night.
Many observant classmates have noticed that the door to dormitory 404 is slightly different.
Firstly, there is a small dent in the door.
From its height, it looks like someone knocked on Dekan’s door too forcefully.
However, this conjecture was quickly overturned.
Surely, no one would be foolish enough to provoke Dekan like that.
Upon further thought, it appears that the dent was likely made by Dekan himself.
Thus, students have begun to speculate about the meaning behind this dent on Dekan’s door.
Some believe it is Dekan’s abstract art titled “The Abyss on the Door.”
Others think it serves as a warning from Dekan to those who dare disturb him: do not knock recklessly, or you might find yourself embedded in the door.
When students inquired about this with Chloix, who seemed the most approachable in Dekan’s team, he simply stated he didn’t know how the dent came to be.
The door was already like that when he met Dekan.
This only made the students more curious about its backstory.
Another peculiar aspect is the lock on Dekan’s dormitory door.
While the handle appears fine, a closer inspection reveals it has been twisted and damaged.
The lock cylinder must be completely broken.
It can secure the door but cannot be locked from the inside.
Currently, it is in a state of having equipment without functionality.
Anyone who comes here can gently turn the handle to open Dekan’s door, allowing them to explore one of the school’s most dangerous places.
However, no one dares to attempt it.
Dekan’s unlocked door seems far more terrifying than a locked one.
It feels as if Dekan is using his favorite entrapment tactic to lure in enemies with ulterior motives.
Once someone enters this room, they would trigger a series of traps equivalent to “Destruction Archbishop level treatment.”
This door has gradually become an absolute taboo object in the eyes of the students!
And Dekan’s dormitory 404 has slowly turned into a unique spectacle attracting considerable attention.
Even students passing beneath the dormitory building can quickly locate which window belongs to room 404.
……
Since the last time he returned from Tristin City, Dekan had not let the janitors come to repair his lock.
At that time, he needed Cornelia’s help to transport a large stock of “Captain De’Erkan” stored in his dormitory to Tristin City.
Cornelia, lacking a key to Dekan’s dorm, was instructed by him to force open the door and move the “Captain De’Erkan” supplies.
After returning to the capital, Dekan intended to ask the janitors to fix it.
However, after two days of living without a door lock, Dekan suddenly discovered—
Not having a lock is exceptionally convenient!
Not only does it save him the step of turning the key to lock the door every time he leaves, but it also eliminates the step of locking it from the inside when he returns!
Moreover, whenever his friends visit, Dekan doesn’t need to rush to open the door.
He just has to say “Come in!” and that’s enough.
Daily, he can save dozens of seconds!
Over time, this adds up to a significant change!
Thus, the lock remains broken.
As for security, Dekan is completely unperturbed.
In his interactions with Cornelia, he has come to realize a truth.
In this world, door locks, even entire doors, are merely ornamentation.
Those who respect boundaries will naturally not dare to provoke him.
And those who don’t, if they truly wish to enter, no amount of reinforcement on the door and lock will matter.
So, better to leave it as it is.
Displaying it is a form of great wisdom.
It has been two weeks since returning from the Shadow World’s [Holy Instrument Decline Secret].
The brief winter break is coming to an end, and there are only a few days left until classes start.
During this time, Chloix has been managing matters for the Happy Group.
The Happy Group is currently in its inception stage.
Despite having many talents introduced by Rampard, the feudal lord of Tristin City, it still requires a leader to oversee the organization.
In this regard, Chloix is naturally the best fit among the trio of beautiful minds.
After all, he is both a major shareholder and the president.
In the next semester, Chloix doesn’t have to select any required courses, as he has already completed them in the previous three years.
He also has enough elective credits.
This leaves Chloix with ample free time.
All he needs to do is complete one session in the Shadow World to graduate smoothly.
Chloix plans to stay on as a teacher after graduation.
Thus, graduating successfully is particularly important to him.
However, for at least the next six months, Chloix can focus on being the president.
Until they successfully lure Morion, the young commercial genius, back to become the CEO of the Happy Group, Chloix can sit back and relax.
During these two weeks, Cornelia has been the most free.
However, unlike when she first came to Hewenlit Academy, she can now communicate with others smoothly, even without Dekan acting as a translator.
She still stumbles a little when speaking about the Norton Kingdom, but she now has her own cat—Teacher Cat (shared with Dekan).
Additionally, she has a good friend of similar age and interests, Flora.
Cornelia often hugs Teacher Cat to watch Flora’s idol training routines at the Happy Group’s base.
Then, after Flora finishes her work, they play together.
Flora seems to have boundless energy.
As long as there’s time left after her dance practice, she will definitely explore the “capital city filled with new discoveries” with Cornelia.
After all, the Norton Kingdom is a nation of considerable strength.
Hewenlit City, with its long history, has many places worth exploring.
However, Cornelia has recently been worried about Dekan.
According to Teacher Cat, Dekan has not left his dormitory for two weeks.
It feels a bit obsessive.
If not for the fact that Cornelia often spends time with Teacher Cat, she might not have known Dekan’s current state—
He’s been locked away in his card-making workshop all day.
Even the door to the workshop has been sealed by Dekan with a barrier.
Dekan has never done this while crafting a card in the past.
Cornelia understands Dekan needs to focus on making this card, so she hasn’t interrupted him.
Only Teacher Cat has contact with Dekan.
Its daily task is to buy him Chinese food for lunch and dinner, leaving it at the workshop door.
Cornelia finds this quite odd.
It feels somewhat like a pet taking care of its owner.
But she quickly dismisses this thought.
If Teacher Cat finds out that both Dekan and Cornelia regard it as a house cat, it would become quite angry.
After returning to school with Flora, Cornelia has just said goodbye to her.
Hugging Teacher Cat, she heads toward the Knight Academy dormitory.
“It’s time to buy that guy dinner.”
“I’ll go too! Dekan said he can return the [Blood Investigation Book] to me today.”
After exiting the Shadow World, Dekan borrowed her murder book, promising to return it within two weeks.
It seems Dekan needs to study the [Blood Investigation Book] for his new card.
“Alright, let me think about what Dekan wants for dinner… This guy is really odd. His preferences for lunch and dinner are completely different. If it weren’t for the fact that he only needs one meal, I would suspect two people live in that workshop…”
Teacher Cat raises its front paw to cover its head, seemingly quite reluctant to remember Dekan’s meal orders each time.
“I remember it being like that too.”
Cornelia often shares meals with Dekan, so she’s also noticed his peculiar food preferences.
However, she doesn’t mind.
In fact, she sometimes enjoys guessing what meal Dekan would like today.
Thus, the duo of one person and one cat chat as Cornelia prepares dinner for Dekan, eventually arriving at his dormitory door.
She gently pushes the door open.
The living room looks as tidy as ever.
Although Dekan hasn’t gone out, it is evident that he isn’t disheartened.
If it weren’t for the slight glow peeking under the workshop door, Cornelia might have been led to believe Dekan had been absent for several days.
Walking to the workshop door, Cornelia hesitates slightly and knocks.
However, before she could say anything, it seems Dekan in the workshop already knew who had arrived.
He puts down his work and walks briskly to open the door.
As the door opens, Dekan appears slightly fatigued.
Behind him, the workshop, once tidy, is now filled with various blueprints pinned to the walls.
The workbench is also cluttered with a variety of materials and failed card prototypes.
Upon seeing Cornelia, a spark of light returns to Dekan’s eyes, pronto replaced by a smile.
“Cornelia, I’m sorry. I initially intended for Teacher Cat to bring you the [Blood Investigation Book] tonight.”
“No, it’s fine. You must be hungry, right?”
Cornelia hurriedly hands Dekan his dinner.
Dekan smiles contentedly, accepting the meal.
They both move to the living room.
Dekan enjoys his dinner while Cornelia sits on the sofa across from him.
“How’s the new card production going?”
“By tomorrow at the latest, I should be able to attempt completing the product.”
“Are you really going to make that ghostly thing you mentioned to me last time?!”
Teacher Cat thought Dekan would take a long time to finish it.
Last time at Tristine Magic Academy, the Ice Snow Princess informed Dekan that some characters in the Kingdom Union wanted to target him.
Dekan immediately expressed his unwillingness to endure such humiliation, vowing to take those who persecuted him in the Kingdom Union to task once he reached fourth-tier.
Curious, Teacher Cat begged Dekan to reveal his plan.
What it heard was simple—
Dekan plans to create a card that will make even enemies feel happy every day.
Also referred to as Dekan’s “masterpiece.”
Teacher Cat initially thought it would be a while before Dekan could craft this hellish card.
But it seems he’s already nearing completion.
“Isn’t making that card going to be very dangerous?”
After all, Dekan wants to create a wildly outlandish card; a failure during production could potentially blow up his dormitory.
Teacher Cat has heard that during Dekan’s attempt to create [Purification of Blood], he almost turned it into a bomb.
“Tonight, you’ll go home with Cornelia; I don’t want to scare you.”
“Dekan……”
Cornelia, overhearing Dekan’s conversation with Teacher Cat, pulls at his sleeve with concern.
However, Dekan only smiles lightly and reassures her.
“Don’t worry, I’ve asked Chloix to help cast a protective barrier around the workshop. Even if there’s an explosion, it won’t harm the neighbors, and I’ll ensure I wear a safety helmet.”
Dekan’s safety helmet is, of course, the Thorn Crown, which has inherent blood-locking effects.
The card he intends to create this time is indeed quite dangerous.
If it truly explodes, while it won’t lead to death, the triple pain sensation from the Thorn Crown would surely knock Dekan out cold.
He can only wait for Chloix to come rescue him in the morning.
“Then I’ll see you tomorrow. Good luck!”
Cornelia knows Dekan is busy and doesn’t linger, bidding farewell while hugging Teacher Cat.
“Okay, see you tomorrow; I will succeed.”
After sending off Cornelia, Dekan’s relaxed demeanor becomes serious once more.
“It’s about time to challenge the realm of… orange epic and above.”
He steps into the workshop and looks at the preparations he has made over the past two weeks, muttering to himself.
