Chapter 82: Compensation Terms

Albert stood in front of the two of them, dressed in a fitted black suit. At this moment, she had already entered her half-dragon form.

Her pupils glowed with a blue light, and a few blue scales had appeared on her cheeks. A long black horn had sprouted from her forehead, and both of her hands had transformed into massive blue dragon claws.

Her gaze was filled with an overwhelming pressure as she stared unblinkingly at Lorabelle. The dragon claw on her right hand had already extended its sharp talons, as if she could shred the person before her into pieces in an instant.

“You destroyed this teaching building and even kidnapped our Magic Consultant. Did you really think I would let you leave so easily?”

As she spoke, the teeth revealed in her mouth were exceptionally sharp. The rather thick blue dragon tail behind her slammed heavily against the ground in apparent displeasure, letting out a deep thud.

Lorabelle shielded Aurora behind her, deliberately displaying the Holy Sword in her hand.

She said calmly, “I will compensate the academy for all the losses here. As for this witch, she harmed innocent people and deserves to be punished.”

“Punished?”

Albert didn’t seem to be giving up. Her tone was tinged with anger as she spoke, “Even if there is to be punishment, it is for our academy to decide before you can intervene.”

“As a Holy Knight, you came to the academy under the pretense of applying for a teaching position, yet you acted without consulting us and almost harmed innocent teachers and students.”

“By doing this, where do you place the dignity of our academy?”

Lorabelle was silent for a moment, then finally spoke, “I had no other choice.”

She had originally planned to wait a few days after entering the academy, to act only when the opportunity arose, but she hadn’t expected to be forcibly pulled into a different space by Beatrice during the very first class, and a fight broke out.

During that time, it was also the perfect moment to protect Aurora in her own space, so as she was pulled into the space, she quietly released her spatial magic and brought Aurora in with her.

“Do you think a single sentence of ‘I had no other choice’ can absolve you of responsibility?!”

Albert was instantly infuriated, her outstretched claw growing even longer, and the unique sharp grinding sound of a dragon’s teeth rang in both their ears.

Lorabelle felt no fear in her heart, because she had already fought this dragonkin before coming here, and she was certain of her victory.

There was always an unwritten rule when the academy hired teachers: besides various large-scale magic assessments, one also had to have a fight with Albert.

Only after receiving her approval could a teacher be considered to have truly passed all assessments.

Beatrice was one such example. She met Albert by chance, and that day, Albert happened to be in a particularly bad mood. When she heard Albert’s rather brusque tone, she started a fight with her.

In the end, Albert was convinced by her strength and skipped the other assessments, hiring Beatrice directly as the Magic Consultant.

What set Lorabelle apart from Beatrice was that one was a chance encounter, while the other had come seeking her out on her own initiative.

“I absolutely will not hand the witch over to the academy. Besides that, is there any other way for the academy to compromise?”

“Witches of Beatrice’s caliber are rare. She has contributed greatly to the academy, and many of the academy’s current spells rely on her to function.”

“If you take her away, you’ll have to find someone with equal ability for the academy.”

What Albert cared about was not Beatrice herself, but the benefits she brought to the academy.

If the academy lost her, the resulting losses could not be compensated for with money alone.

This matter was entirely Lorabelle’s doing. If her actions caused the relationship between the kingdom and the academy to deteriorate, she would definitely be punished.

If only she herself were to be punished, that would be fine—her body could not be injured no matter how much she was beaten. What she feared was that it would implicate Aurora. If that happened, she’d have to turn against the kingdom directly.

She had already investigated before coming. The headmaster of the academy was still away on her annual journey, so she needed to resolve this matter quickly before the headmaster returned.

“Someone with equal ability…”

The first person Lorabelle thought of was Misha. Although she didn’t possess the same overwhelming power as Beatrice, and only knew how to research magic and curses—if it really came to a fight, she was probably no stronger than a child—but her knowledge was certainly extraordinary, perhaps even comparable to Beatrice.

However, Misha would definitely be unwilling to come. After all, she had a dedicated research institute in the kingdom, and the kingdom provided her with a huge sum of money every year for her research. Why would she come to a place like this?

Just as she was thinking this, Albert suddenly spoke again, “Of course, if someone can take her place, there will be no lack of reward, and all the academy’s forbidden books will be open to them.”

“Forbidden books… If that’s the case, maybe…”

Ophelia Academy’s collection of forbidden books far exceeded that of the kingdom. That was an irresistible lure for Misha. If that was the case, Misha might really agree.

“I understand. I think I have a suitable candidate.”

“Oh?”

Upon hearing her words, Albert immediately withdrew her sharp claws.

She blinked her blue vertical pupils and asked curiously, “Who? I have to spar with them first to judge if they’re suitable to be a teacher here.”

“She is a researcher from the First Kingdom. Her knowledge of magic and curses is not much less than Beatrice’s, but her only flaw is… she can’t fight. If she were to spar with you, she might die a horrible death.”

“Can’t fight?”

Albert crossed her arms over her chest and, after thinking for a moment, said, “If her knowledge is outstanding enough to make up for that, then it’s not impossible.”

“Then I’ll go back and tell her about this.”

With that, she took Aurora’s hand, ready to leave directly.

“Wait a moment.”

Albert instantly flashed in front of them, blocking their way.

She spoke angrily, “Do you take me for a fool? How do I know if what you’re saying is true?”

She glanced at Aurora beside her, then pointed a dragon claw at her and then at the Holy Sword in Lorabelle’s hand, saying, “Leave her and your sword behind.”

“If you don’t return, I’ll release Beatrice. At that time, I won’t care if you’ve completed your mission or whether she’s harmed anyone.”

“The academy only cares about two things: dignity and profit.”

Leaving Aurora behind was also to prevent Beatrice, once released, from running out to look for this girl. Otherwise, they might end up with nothing at all.