Chapter 61: The Truth of the Academy

The principal’s office was located on the top floor of a separate office building at the very center of the academy. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over the entire campus. Sunlight streamed in, illuminating the dark oak desk.

At this moment, Su Wanqing sat on a sofa, holding a teacup.

Across from her was a woman with an elegant demeanor. She appeared to be in her early thirties, with long golden hair pinned up at the back of her head and a pair of light blue eyes that were both elegant and alluring.

Elizabeth.

The chairwoman of Alice Royal Academy.

“Wanqing, how many years has it been since we last met?” Elizabeth set down her teacup and asked with a smile.

Su Wanqing thought for a moment.

“Almost over ten years. Since you returned to your home country to take over family affairs.”

“Time flies,” Elizabeth sighed with emotion. “Back then we were still classmates, and now your daughter is already so grown up.”

Mentioning Su Qing, Su Wanqing let out a sigh.

“That girl… has caused me no small amount of worry.”

Elizabeth laughed.

“Young people are all like that. Mine is the same, always thinking about running off somewhere, unwilling to take on family responsibilities.” The two chatted a bit more about everyday matters.

The atmosphere was relaxed.

But Su Wanqing knew the main topic of today’s visit hadn’t yet begun.

Sure enough, Elizabeth set down her teacup and looked at her.

“Wanqing, you came this time for that boy, right?”

Su Wanqing nodded.

“Lin Mo. I mentioned him to you.”

Elizabeth leaned back into the sofa.

“Mhm, I’ve looked over his file. Gaokao score of 630, Ability Testing result of 0.1, judged as having No Dominant Ability.” She paused. “But there’s a note in the file: a 0.3-second System Delay occurred during the test.”

She looked at Su Wanqing.

“You suppressed it at the time.”

Su Wanqing didn’t deny it.

“Yes. I changed the conclusion to ‘routine negative’.”

Elizabeth was silent for a moment.

“Wanqing, tell me the truth. That boy… what exactly is his situation?”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“If I said I don’t know either, would you believe me?”

Elizabeth didn’t speak.

Su Wanqing continued.

“Lin Mo’s father, Lin Zhengguo, was my husband’s comrade-in-arms. That incident twenty years ago… you should know about it.”

Elizabeth’s expression turned serious.

“I know. That incident is also recorded in our family’s archives.”

Su Wanqing nodded.

“Lin Zhengguo died under unclear circumstances. My husband later also… Before he passed, he told me not to investigate, to just take good care of the two children.”

She looked out the window.

“I promised him. So all these years, I haven’t investigated anything.”

Elizabeth remained silent.

Su Wanqing withdrew her gaze.

“But that boy Lin Mo… whatever is going on with him. I don’t know what it is either, but it’s definitely related to his father and my Old Su.”

Elizabeth looked at her.

“So you sent him to me?”

Su Wanqing nodded.

“This school is the safest place for him.”

Elizabeth stood up and walked to the window.

Looking down at the campus below.

“Wanqing, do you know the true significance of this school?”

Su Wanqing also stood up, walking to stand beside her.

“I know. This is the cradle for Ability Users.”

Elizabeth nodded.

“Correct. The outside world thinks Alice Royal Academy is a noble girls’ school, only accepting girls, filled with young ladies and children from wealthy families, cultivating so-called ‘debutantes and gentlewomen’.”

She turned around.

“But in reality, this is a training base for Ability Users established by the Federation. All girls detected with C-level or above abilities during the Gaokao physical examination are forcibly enrolled here.”

Su Wanqing listened.

Of course she knew all this.

As the head of the Bureau of Supernatural Investigation, she was all too familiar with it.

Elizabeth continued.

“Have you noticed? Our school has a special major. One is ‘New Energy Research’.”

Su Wanqing nodded.

“‘New Energy Research’ is the major for Ability Users.”

“Correct,” Elizabeth said. “In the first semester, Ability Users and ordinary students attend classes together, studying the same foundational courses. But starting from the second semester, they are assigned to different mentors based on their respective ability types for specialized training.”

She paused.

“By their sophomore year, they will truly understand—why they are here.”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“When do you tell them the truth?”

Elizabeth smiled.

“The sophomore year opening ceremony. Every year.”

She walked back to the sofa and sat down again.

“Wanqing, do you know how many Ability Users graduate from here each year?”

Su Wanqing shook her head.

“Roughly two hundred people each year,” Elizabeth said. “After graduation, some of these children enter the Bureau of Supernatural Investigation or related research institutions. Some of the relatively more outstanding ones… the things they do, ordinary people will never know. Sometimes, the children who are too outstanding end up bearing more responsibility. Every year I receive many notifications of student deaths. I sometimes wonder, what exactly have I brought them? Glory, honor, power? Or just a decent university life?”

She picked up her teacup.

“But without them, the peace of this world… would have collapsed and been destroyed long ago.”

Su Wanqing was silent. She certainly knew.

As the head of the Bureau of Supernatural Investigation, she had personally witnessed too many things unimaginable to ordinary people.

Those threats hidden in the shadows, and some things that cannot be let known to ordinary people.

Those existences that only Ability Users can oppose.

Those…

Things that cannot be spoken of.

“Wanqing,” Elizabeth looked at her. “You sent Lin Mo here, are you planning for him to take the path of ability research?”

Su Wanqing shook her head.

“I don’t know. I just feel… he bears traces left by his father. Perhaps here, he can find answers. He can also learn some truths. More importantly, only your place can guarantee his safety. Before, I always kept the two children by my side, but given the current situation, as you know…”

Elizabeth was silent for a while.

Then she said:

“Do you know why our school started recruiting boys this year?”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“Isn’t it because of social pressure?”

Elizabeth laughed.

“That’s just an excuse. The real reason is, we discovered that something seems to be… off.”

Su Wanqing was stunned.

“What?”

Elizabeth nodded.

“In recent years, special cases have been appearing one after another in various places. Although the numbers are extremely small, they indeed exist. The Federation believes it’s necessary to cultivate strength in this area in advance. While there are no cases of males awakening abilities yet, many males have been detected with ability values. The highest among them is this year’s freshman, Zhang Yang. Zhang Yang’s ability test value is 0.5. Do you know what that represents?”

She looked at Su Wanqing.

“So this year we recruited four boys. All were strictly screened.”

Su Wanqing remained silent.

Elizabeth continued.

“Lin Mo was recommended by you. But to be honest, his file… is very special.”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“Special in what way?”

Elizabeth shook her head.

“I can’t quite put my finger on it. But his test data is completely different from the other three boys.”

She paused.

“Those three children all genuinely have detectable ability values. Although the levels aren’t high, the fluctuations are stable between 0.3-0.5. Lin Mo… his data is 0.1, but that 0.3-second delay…” She looked at Su Wanqing. “Wanqing, are you sure he really isn’t special in any way?”

Su Wanqing was silent for a long time.

Then she said:

“I’m not sure.”

Elizabeth looked at her.

Su Wanqing continued.

“But what I am sure of is that the project his father was researching back then was related to abilities.”

Elizabeth’s expression turned grave. The office was quiet for a long time.

The sunlight was good.

Students walked along the paths in twos and threes.

Some chatting, some reading books, some laughing.

It looked no different from an ordinary university.

But Elizabeth knew.

Among these children, a small portion would walk a completely different path in the future.

“Wanqing,” she spoke.

Su Wanqing looked at her. Elizabeth turned around.

“I will take good care of Lin Mo. But you must promise me one thing.”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“I know.”

Elizabeth nodded.

“Good then.”

She walked to the desk and picked up a file.

“By the way, your daughter is also at our school, right?”

Su Wanqing was taken aback.

“How do you know?”

Elizabeth smiled.

“You think I don’t know anything?”

She opened the file.

“Su Qing, ability level B, Mental Type. Excellent entrance exam results. Currently… should still be at school. Su Qianqian, correct?”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“What are you trying to say?”

Elizabeth closed the file. “Wanqing, your daughter’s feelings towards that boy Lin Mo… seem rather unusual.”

Su Wanqing was silent for a moment.

Then she sighed.

“That girl… has liked him since childhood. Maybe a bit… excessively.”

Elizabeth laughed.

“Young people, it’s normal.”

She paused.

“But I must remind you, in this school, some competition might get intense. Especially for a boy like Lin Mo.”

Su Wanqing looked at her.

“What do you mean?”

Elizabeth shrugged.

“Our school’s male-to-female ratio is 3000:1. What do you think?”

—

Su Wanqing fell silent.

That girl Su Qing…

She wouldn’t cause some trouble at school, would she?