“Wha, Wha, did you see the combat practice? I saw it!”
“Uh, uh, yeah?”
I gave a vague answer while quickly surveying the surroundings.
In order to find a way to escape from this situation.
If this person, who has a direct connection to a god, is a saint, she might be able to identify Reeti.
I needed to get out of here as soon as possible.
“That’s an amazing summon!”
Clana leaned her head towards Reeti in my arms,
but,
Shh-
there was no way I could show Reeti in a situation where her true identity might be revealed.
I pulled Reeti further into my arms and quickened my steps.
“I want to become a great summoner like you, Senior!”
“Yeah, yeah. Work hard and… huh?”
I suddenly stopped in my tracks.
At that moment, I felt a faint presence on my back.
“Ow!”
Clana, who had suddenly bumped her head into my back, started rubbing her forehead with a frown.
‘-Why did you stop, Arthur?’
Clana asked, questioning the reason for my pause.
‘-Isn’t something… off?’
‘-What?’
‘-I thought you were a candidate for a saint. Why would you say you want to become a summoner?’
Being a candidate for a saint should mean aiming to be a saint, right?
‘-Hmm… Could it be a disguise?’
‘-If she’s going to disguise herself, it would be much easier to pretend to be a regular magician. But saying she wants to become a summoner out loud like that…’
Means she already has a summon.
A saint candidate with a summon?
I turned to Clana and asked.
“Speaking of which, what is your summon?”
“Ah… My… summon…?”
The saint quickly reverted to her cautious personality.
Her eyes darting around made her look like a small animal.
“Um… A… bird?”
“Bird?”
“…A bird, I think?”
No, if you ask in a questioning tone, what am I supposed to do?
It doesn’t answer anything.
Feeling exasperated, I sent her a look, and Clana started waving her arms.
“Uh… Well, it has wings, so… Anyway, it’s a bird!”
So, does having wings mean it’s all birds?
Then, are flying fish birds too?
Is the dragon, known as the dream of summoners, also a bird?
It became even more suspicious.
What on earth are you hiding?
“Hmm…”
Clana, who was being stared at piercingly, started blushing and fidgeting.
“Urgh, well, what kind of creature is your summon, Senior?”
“Mine? A cat.”
“That’s a lie! Don’t lie to me!!”
I didn’t know she could shout that loudly.
‘My ears hurt…’
‘-Arthur.’
‘-What?’
‘-Are you going to keep talking?’
‘-Uh…’
I missedpoke while being curious.
At Lily’s words, I turned my body and hurried towards the dormitory-
Thud.
“How do you manage to handle your summon so well?”
Persistent!
Why are you clinging on like this!
If this continues, not only will my identity be exposed, but Lily might dislike it.
‘Please, any random saint, just take her away…’
“Whirrr!”
“Eep!”
“Yow!”
A sudden whistle startled Clana and me, causing me to cry out in surprise.
Looking around to find the source of the sound,
“Whirrr!”
The sound came again, this time from a precise direction.
It was right above my head.
“Whirrr!”
A blue pigeon floating in the sky.
The pigeon, looking at me with red eyes, was clearly no ordinary pigeon at first glance.
Its size was about 1.5 times that of a regular pigeon, and it was wearing a uniform and a hat.
It had a crossbody bag with many letters stacked inside.
This pigeon was, in fact, a means of communication for the Academy, a kind of telegraph bird.
Its name was ‘Tweety.’
Despite its cute appearance, it’s quite popular among female students… but that’s not the point right now.
The pigeon took a letter from its beak and handed it to me.
“…Is this mine?”
“Whirr!”
The pigeon nodded and tossed the envelope towards me.
I caught it awkwardly as the pigeon whistled and disappeared.
Its hurriedly flying away in some direction looked rather pitiful.
‘To me, a letter… surely?’
‘-Why? What kind of letter is that?’
‘-Ah, well… Can I open it later?’
‘-Why? Is there something you can’t show me?’
If this letter is from Lucas…
No, I absolutely cannot show it to Lily. The messy handwriting alone looks atrocious.
‘-…Why can’t you speak? Could it be… ‘
Lily looked at me with a suspicious eye.
Of course, the current situation would seem quite suspicious from Lily’s perspective.
How should I explain this?
At that moment,
“Hey, isn’t that the Chancellor’s seal?”
I turned the envelope over upon hearing Clana’s words.
Sure enough, stamped in the center of the back of the envelope was unmistakably the Chancellor’s seal.
‘Phew… So it’s not from Lucas…’
However, if the content of this letter is about Outer Gods…
I glanced at Clana and quickly turned my back to her.
Opening the envelope, I found a small piece of paper.
After flipping the envelope, I took out the paper, which had hastily scrawled text on it.
“To the Chancellor’s office.”
I blankly stared at the brief message for a moment, but realized this was a great opportunity to get rid of Clana.
“Chancellor has called me. See you later.”
I quickly waved to Clana and quickly headed towards the Chancellor’s office, fearing that she might grab me again.
—
The entrance to the Chancellor’s office, considering its owner, was surprisingly modest.
The office door of the Chancellor of the Academy, known as the Archmage and Sage, was not much larger than those of the other professors.
Perhaps the only difference was the golden plaque.
Arthur glanced at the plaque.
“The Chancellor’s Office.”
‘-I wonder what it’s about?’
‘I don’t know. Anyway, when they call us, must we go? Do they think we’re their slaves?’
Annoyed at having our privacy stolen, Lily grumbled in a rude tone.
‘-Still, we should listen since they have helped us, right?’
‘……You’re too kind-hearted.’
With a deep sigh, Lily.
Arthur understood this as agreement and knocked on the door of the Chancellor’s office.
Knock knock.
“Chancellor? It’s Arthur-”
The door swung open suddenly.
“Come in.”
The interior of the Chancellor’s office was as neatly organized as always.
The Chancellor was standing by the window holding a paper in one hand and a cup of tea in the other.
Turning to Arthur, the Chancellor began to speak.
“You can revert to your true form.”
As soon as this was said, Lily quickly transformed back into her human form. With the change, she inadvertently embraced Arthur, seemingly protecting him from the Chancellor.
The Chancellor’s eyebrows twitched slightly at this.
Taking a sip from the cup, the Chancellor put it down on the windowsill and approached them.
“You’ve made quite an impressive scene, didn’t you?”
The Chancellor showed them the paper he had been reading. It contained…
“Ah…”
A photo of Dennis with his head plunged into Arthur’s excrement, unconscious.
“Are you even trying to keep your identity a secret?”
“It… It was mandatory attendance-”
“Damn cowardice competition… Why did I even allow it?”
The Chancellor clicked his tongue and stared hard at Arthur.
“…”
“…”
“….?”
‘What is it? Why is he staring at me like that?’
The Chancellor hesitated for a moment and then struggled to speak.
“…Arthur.”
“Yes.”
“…”
‘What is it?’
Why call me and then not say anything?
“Why did you call me and not talk?”
“Li, Lily!”
“Why? You were uncomfortable too, weren’t you?”
“Well, even so, you don’t need to say it directly…”
As if reading Arthur’s innermost thoughts, Lily boldly spoke out.
“There are two ways to irritate someone: the first is to start talking and then stop-”
“Alright, I get it. So, you two… stop it.”
“Why?”
“…In the East, there’s a saying—men and women should not share the same sleeping mat after they turn seven—”
“We aren’t in the East, are we? And according to Eastern standards, Arthur is already an adult. He can do whatever he wants.”
Suddenly, Lily tightened her grip around Arthur’s arms.
Lily’s lips brushed against Arthur’s earlobe as she whispered in a sticky sweet tone.
“So, whatever that means…”
A shiver of Goosebumps ran across Arthur’s body from the seductive whisper close to his ear.
“Lily, stop-”
“Stop!”
At the Chancellor’s sudden outburst, both Lily and Arthur immediately turned to look at him.
The Chancellor, who had shouted himself, was startled and blinked in surprise.
“…Are you two just going to keep clinging like this?”
“Of course. If everything goes as it should, we would have been rolling around in bed by now.”
“L, Lily! You didn’t have to say that-”
“Rolling around in bed? Wait, just how far has your… progress gone?”
“What does it matter to you, Southern House, what we do?”
“It does……”
The Chancellor stopped, closed his mouth, and returned to his windowsill to lift his teacup. In one gulp, he finished the contents.
“Hmph…”
The Chancellor let out a deep sigh.
“…First, about the foot cannon incident with Dennis.”
“I’m sorry…”
Arthur had no words to say, even if he had ten mouths. No matter how much Dennis pissed him off, the punishment for turning him human-shaped was too much—
“It’s fine. I’ll take care of that.”
“…”
Confused by the unexpected response, Arthur abruptly lifted his bowed head and looked at the Chancellor.
The Chancellor made another paper appear in mid-air and handed it to Arthur. It was a document. The very top of it clearly said…
“Suspension Notice”
“Suspension? For Dennis?”
“Yes, a one-month suspension. Considering the overall situation, I thought it was the most appropriate punishment. He’s probably in no condition right now to return to classes anyway.”
That’s true, after all, Dennis… completely lost it in front of many students.
Arthur nodded in agreement.
“It’s a fair punishment. The first month is the most important for newly admitted students. All their relationships solidify during that time. Taking away that one month is indeed a big punishment.”
Arthur internally agreed.
After all, during his first month, he was buried in the library, making only a few friends despite being a commoner. Fortunately, meeting Reeti who was always looking for uncommon books was a stroke of luck.
Taking that month away is certainly a significant punishment.
But the one thing that was…
“Why are you going this far to help me?”
“What?”
“Even without this much help, I would’ve been fine. What exactly is Dennis guilty of?”
“Guilty…?”
After thinking hard and stroking his chin, the Chancellor answered:
“…Petty offense?”
“…?”
The Chancellor himself seemed awkward about what he just said, cleared his throat, and waved his hand.
“Anyway, let it be that.”
“But-”
“Then, shall we not punish you instead?”
“…”
There was no word left for Arthur with that comeback.
Satisfied upon seeing Arthur closing his mouth, the Chancellor nodded slightly.
“Anyway, that’s settled. So, unlike last time with Louis, you don’t have to worry about revenge.”
Arthur let out a sigh of relief.
‘Ah, this was something I secretly worried about.’
Being attacked again would definitely not be something he would want.
Arthur bowed sincerely towards the Chancellor.
“Thank you so much for your help, Chancellor.”
“…”
With no response from the Chancellor, Arthur peeked slightly up to see a different atmosphere in the Chancellor’s eyes.
In the Chancellor’s gaze on Arthur was a strangely distant light, as if seeing through Arthur’s face to reflect something else.
Caught in that gaze, Arthur stood there dazed, until…
“Then, is that all?”
Lily pulled Arthur’s upper body up from his bow and firmly embraced him.
The Chancellor’s eyebrows twitched again.
‘Why is he reacting like this?’
Caught between Arthur’s puzzlement and the Chancellor’s and Lily’s gazes, if eyes could attack, this room would have been a bloody battlefield by now.
‘…These people are scary when they’re serious… Beams actually coming out of their eyes…’
“Anyway, that’s all I need to convey to Arthur.”
“Then it’s settled. Let’s go, Arthur. We need to eat lunch.”
Lily immediately turned to lead Arthur out of the Chancellor’s office.
However—
“Hold on, there’s more.”
“What? Didn’t you just say it was over?”
“I said what I had to convey to Arthur is done. Now it’s your turn.”
The Chancellor pointed at Lily.
“There’s something to say to me?”
“Yes, something important. Sit down.”
Lily glanced at the clock on the wall and pouted.
“Arthur has to eat lunch.”
“It’ll be quick. Sit down.”
Lily showed no intention of moving, and Arthur had to speak up.
“Lily,”
Arthur gently placed his hand on Lily’s cheek and whispered.
“You can endure the hunger for now; just listen for a moment.”
Only then did Lily head to the seat.
Arthur, who was still embraced by Lily, naturally followed—
“Wait, Arthur, you shouldn’t hear this.”
“Huh?” / “What?”
Arthur and Lily asked simultaneously.
The Chancellor, with a tired voice, replied,
“This is something only Lily needs to hear.”
“Such…”
“I don’t want to hear it without Arthur.”
“Hmph…”
Taking a deep sigh, the Chancellor suddenly…
“…”
Moved his lips but made no sound.
Arthur tried to guess from the lip movements but had no clue.
It seemed like a whole new language entirely unfamiliar to him.
However,
“…What?”
Lily’s eyes widened in surprise.
Lily understood the Chancellor’s lip movements.
“Lily?”
At Arthur’s bewildered gaze looking up at her, Lily bit her lips.
“Arthur, can you give us a moment to talk privately?”
“Huh?”
“Sorry, it’s really important.”
The urgency was clear in Lily’s eyes.
Seeing this, Arthur slowly nodded.
“…Alright. I’ll wait outside then.”
Click.
After kissing Arthur’s forehead, Lily softly patted his head.
“Thank you.”
When Arthur closed the door to the Chancellor’s office, Lily’s eyes began to glow red.
“You… You were serious just now?”
Quietly enduring the Chancellor’s gaze, Lily finally spoke.
“Let’s set a barrier first.”
“Barrier?”
“The strongest possible one. So no one can eavesdrop on our conversation.”
“…Is it that important a topic?”
“Yes, it is very important.”
Lily hesitated for a moment, sending a wary look towards the Chancellor, but decided not to prolong the time further and began setting the barrier silently.
A transparent membrane resonated through the air, and finally, the barrier was set.
“Done.”
“How strong?”
“Strong enough that a Prince can’t penetrate it.”
Satisfied with Lily’s answer, the Chancellor nodded.
“Good, that strength is sufficient.”
Sitting back down, the Chancellor gestured for Lily to sit opposite him.
The red-eyed Lily glared at the Chancellor.
“Explain now. Did I understand correctly?”
“Right, it was in ancient R’lyeh language. I thought you could understand it, and you did.”
Lily was shaken by the words.
“Then… really…”
“Yes, we found it.”
The Chancellor gestured toward the office door with his finger.
“About Arthur’s bloodline.”
“!!!”
Lily’s eyes instantly grew.
The Chancellor had just mouthed:
“I found information about Arthur’s bloodline.”
Although Lily had planned to visit the orphanage a number of times, she hesitated, wondering what would happen if Arthur dislikes finding the truth.
She never expected to have this opportunity come to her like this.
“You need to know this at least.”
Even with the barrier set, the Chancellor leaned forward and lowered his voice.
“Arthur’s last name is Caphendle.”
“…Caphendle? Arthur Caphendle?”
The name struck Lily as familiar, and upon recalling it, shock spread across her face.
“No way!”
“I thought the same at first, but turns out it’s true.”
The Chancellor sighed with the revelation.
“Arthur is the last surviving member of Caphendle.”
“That is…”
“Meaning, my direct descendant.”
