Ellaria’s mood had been like a rollercoaster, fluctuating wildly for the past nine days, making it impossible to find peace.
It was manageable when she was alone or in her dormitory, but whenever she saw her teacher, images of that day in the bedroom would uncontrollably flood her mind — of her kneeling over Teacher Sefina.
Even a distant glimpse was enough to trigger a replay of that scene: her leaning over her teacher’s side, their breaths mingling, and the moment their lips had almost touched…
‘Ugh…’
Ellaria let out a silent groan of agony. Just the memory made her toes curl in embarrassment and her cheeks burn.
‘How could I… how could I have been so possessed as to do something like that?! It was so shameless! A total desecration of my teacher’s dignity!’
What made her even more mortified was that during those brief moments when Teacher Sefina regained her senses, she seemed to have keenly sensed Ellaria’s true feelings and had even tried to press for answers…
That was undoubtedly like pouring a bucket of oil onto her blazing furnace of shame.
Although Teacher Sefina seemed to have set the matter aside for the past few days and hadn’t mentioned it again — likely out of consideration for her student’s pride and intense embarrassment, considering everyone has impulsive lapses in judgment — still…
But! Teacher Sefina already knew! She knew that Ellaria harbored those… those inappropriate, forbidden thoughts about her!
In that case, wasn’t her image in her teacher’s heart completely shattered? She had gone from being a well-behaved, hardworking student to… a lustful girl who easily lost her head and fantasized about her teacher.
This thought haunted Ellaria like a nightmare, making it impossible for her to face Teacher Sefina directly these past few days.
Whether she ran into her in the hallways or during class, the moment she sensed her teacher’s gaze might sweep over her, she would instinctively lower her head or pretend to look elsewhere. She even went as far as taking long detours to avoid any possible contact.
In today’s elemental magic class, her attention had spent most of its time drifting out the window or tangled in her inner turmoil. The profound theories Teacher Sefina explained regarding mana forms went in one ear and out the other.
It wasn’t until her teacher announced the words “pop quiz” that the sound struck like a gavel, jolting Ellaria out of her chaotic thoughts and back to reality, forcing her to scramble for an answer.
…Today… should end like this too, right?
Ellaria prayed the quiz questions wouldn’t be too difficult while secretly wishing for this agonizing day to end as quickly as possible.
***
That afternoon, Sefina finished all her scheduled classes, and her pile of documents and student assignments had been graded.
Instead of returning to the Teacher’s Villa to rest, she changed into casual clothes that were easy to move in and quietly left the academy. Her destination was the familiar clothing store in the royal capital commercial district.
Sefina entered the shop with practiced ease, exchanging a knowing glance with Lisika, who was lazily yawning behind the counter, and walked straight toward the hidden entrance leading to the underground chamber.
Inside the Underground Base, the maid Flovi was dressed in a sharp training outfit, performing her daily, unwavering physical exercise in the cleared space.
Her combat style was a fusion of martial arts and unique mana manipulation, which was fundamentally different from that of a traditional Mage.
Therefore, maintaining high-intensity physical training was vital. Her movements were precise and fluid, and though fine beads of sweat formed on her forehead, her breathing remained steady.
At a workbench in the corner, Nona was fully concentrated on fiddling with precision instruments and colorful potion materials. The tonic for Campbell occupied the vast majority of her energy.
When she saw Sefina come down, she merely called out “Boss” without lifting her head before immersing herself back into her world of Magic potions.
On the sofa in the living room sat another figure — Feliel.
To facilitate the exchange of intelligence while avoiding the academy’s prying eyes, they had agreed to meet here periodically once a week.
At this moment, Feliel had shed her student disguise, her loose black hair making the lines of her profile look somewhat cold and sharp.
She was rubbing the surface of a cup of coffee that had long since gone cold, her gaze slightly vacant. She seemed to be thinking about something, or perhaps she was simply bored.
Hearing footsteps, she lifted her eyelids. Seeing it was Sefina, she only said faintly, “You’re here.”
Sefina nodded and sat down on a single-seat sofa near her, asking directly, “How have things been lately?”
“The same as always, nothing special.” Feliel’s answer was brief and flat, devoid of any particular emotion.
To her, academy life was merely a layer of camouflage; her true focus had long since shifted.
Sefina gave a slight nod and skipped the pleasantries, getting straight to the point.
“There were too many things going on before, so I didn’t have the chance to ask in detail. Regarding the other cadres in **The Organization**, how much do you know?”
This was one of Sefina’s primary concerns. To thoroughly dismantle **Black Utopia**, she had to start with its core members.
Feliel shook her head slightly, her tone tinged with a hint of helplessness.
“Between the cadres, everyone is out for their own gain and constantly on guard. Identities and whereabouts are top secrets; no one reveals them easily. My understanding of the others isn’t much more than yours.”
This was the norm for **The Organization** — using individual greed to bind them together while keeping them isolated from one another.
Sefina’s brow furrowed slightly. Being in the dark about the other cadres was like groping in the shadows.
Trying to thoroughly investigate the depths of **The Organization** would undoubtedly be difficult and inefficient.
“However…” Feliel’s tone shifted as she set down her coffee cup and looked at Sefina. “There is one exception. The Eighth Seat joined **The Organization** after I did.”
“I happened to learn that he is currently stationed in the Western Continent, seemingly responsible for establishing the intelligence network and handling liaison work there.”
“The Western Continent… establishing an intelligence network and handling liaison work…”
Sefina murmured to herself, a complex light flashing through her burgundy eyes.
It seemed that whether it was because her Deputy was active there or to track down this Eighth Seat, her plan to return to the Western Continent would have to be moved up on the agenda.
That land, which held so many of her past entanglements, seemed destined to be closely linked to her fate once again.
***
Far away on the other side, in the central region of an empire on the Western Continent, stood a luxurious ducal mansion.
It was mid-afternoon, and sunlight filtered through stained-glass windows, casting mottled shadows across the polished floor.
A young girl who looked to be about 18 or 19 years old sat lazily in a soft chair by the window.
She rested her cheek on one hand while holding an exquisite teacup in the other, seemingly enjoying a quiet afternoon tea.
She possessed long, ice-blue hair that looked as though it had been frozen in the depths of a glacier, draped smoothly over her shoulders and making her skin appear even fairer.
The girl had a well-proportioned figure and wore a tailored noble dress, her posture elegant yet carrying a hint of aloofness.
Notably, her only hair ornament was a cross-shaped star hairclip, which didn’t look like a style popular among the nobility.
This girl was the ice-element specialist enemy Sefina had mentioned before.
However, the afternoon tranquility was shattered by a maid who hurried inside. The maid bowed respectfully and whispered a report.
“Miss, regarding the clues about Lady Holmes that you’ve been tracking… there is news.”
The girl’s previously indifferent gaze suddenly lit up, like a fire ignited on a frozen plain.
She slowly set down her teacup, the corners of her mouth curling into a faint but meaningful arc. She spoke softly, her voice cool like jade beads falling on a plate. “Let’s hear it.”
“Yes. According to the news sent back by our intelligence network, it seems that in the Eastern Continent, within the Oselenka Magic Academy of the Ayrean Empire, someone spotted a person whose appearance very closely matches that of Lady Holmes.”
“Oh?”
The girl raised a brow slightly, the interest in her eyes deepening.
She slowly rose from the soft chair and walked with light steps to the window, gazing at the vast, boundless sky to the east as if she could pierce through the layers of clouds and the distance between continents to see that far-off academy.
The girl’s ice-blue hair fluttered gently in the breeze, and her eyes, the same color as her hair, were like a cold lake rippling slightly.
“Holmes… Teacher…” she whispered the title, her tone carrying a mixture of obsession and a sense of “inevitability.”
“It seems I’ll have to personally go to the Eastern Continent to find you.”