Yiertaya Academy held an emergency meeting last night regarding the incident on Wuxin Island and the deaths of several students. The members of the Board of Directors gathered around a long oval table, their expressions somber and their voices silenced.
The air inside the domed hall felt so heavy it was as if it had frozen solid.
In the center of the group stood Kaiya, the principal's assistant, silently enduring the judgment of the room.
After a long, agonizing wait, someone finally spoke. "Kaiya, Teacher Zephu and the others all say that when things went wrong on Wuxin Island, you were the one who blocked them from leaving?"
Kaiya frowned, but he didn't panic. "I did it to prevent the situation from escalating. I was worried that cultists were involved, so I didn't dare let anyone leave."
Bang!
Someone slammed their palm onto the table, pointing at Kaiya as they barked, "And now students are dead! Is this the result you wanted?"
"With students dead, their families will certainly come seeking trouble, and some of them have influences that won't be easily dismissed," another person added snidely from the side. "For instance, Qiongbi of the Trigo family; his family holds an ancestral title of count. If this isn't handled properly, the repercussions will be massive."
"Furthermore, Wuxin Island has suddenly vanished, and the Sacred Blessing Stone is gone without a trace. How exactly do we plan to handle this mountain of chaos?"
"I will take full responsibility," Kaiya stated.
"You? Do you really think that just because you're a member of the Kritov family, you can shoulder a disaster of this magnitude alone?"
"If the principal were here, he would never allow you to behave so recklessly!"
As the accusations and insults grew louder and more frequent, Kaiya felt a surge of irritation rising within him.
"Then what do the directors suggest we do?" he shouted back, sounding almost petty.
The hall fell silent. Almost everyone instinctively turned their gaze toward a single man—an elderly but richly dressed figure with deep, calculating eyes.
Manerbo Katar was a member of the Katar royal clan.
Since the principal was currently away from the academy, his opinion carried the most weight.
Seeing that everyone was looking at him, the old man slowly raised his eyes and gazed calmly at Kaiya.
"We will do our best to settle this incident and uncover the underlying cause. As for you, eldest son of the Kritov family, your impulsive and reckless behavior has brought shame upon your name. We are stripping you of your position as the principal's assistant.
Furthermore, I will report your failures to His Majesty. As for your subsequent punishment, I'm sure it won't disappoint you."
Buze froze where he stood, his lip twitching violently.
You old Katar fossil, how ruthless!
If the plan had gone smoothly, he wouldn't be here dealing with these old bastards; he would have been back in Rubite, watching the Katar Kingdom tear itself apart in civil war.
But everything was ruined!
Why on earth did a god appear on Wuxin Island and destroy all their plans?
Damn the Diao Cult, this was all their fault!
The expression on Kaiya's face was so grim it looked as if he were about to bleed.
...
Morning arrived, bringing with it another wonderful eight o'clock class.
Teacher Evan walked into the classroom clutching his textbooks, his face as expressionless as ever.
Though a world-shattering event had occurred yesterday, leaving deep psychological scars on these young men and women, the rule still applied—even if the sky falls, class must go on.
The moment he thought about facing that Calamity Child again, Evan felt as though his life was devoid of hope.
Nothing good ever happened when that Calamity Child was involved.
The students in the classroom looked mostly listless. Even Buze sat there rubbing his temples, his hand supporting his forehead.
"I'll take attendance," Evan said succinctly, pulling out the student roster.
"Buze Kritov."
"Here," Buze replied weakly.
...
"The last one, Grinya Loran." Evan looked at the final name on the list and let out a sorrowful sigh. He had memorized this name deeply.
Grinya Loran!
There was no response in the large classroom.
Evan frowned and raised his voice a few notches. "Grinya Loran!"
Still, there was no answer.
"What's going on? Where is she?" Evan looked up from his list.
Buze scanned the room but didn't see Grinya anywhere, his gaze turning slightly bewildered.
"Teacher, it seems Grinya isn't here," Buze called out.
At that moment, Evan wanted nothing more than to tear Grinya to pieces. How could this Calamity Child be such a constant source of worry?
"Does anyone know where Grinya went?" he asked.
A girl raised her hand timidly. "Teacher, Student Grinya never came back last night."
Her dorm room was right next to Grinya's. Having witnessed Grinya's prowess, she had a very strong impression of her and had been paying close attention to the room next door. However, an entire night had passed, and she hadn't seen Grinya return.
When Evan heard that Grinya hadn't returned all night, his heart went cold.
This was no small matter. If anything went wrong, the responsibility would fall entirely on him again. The urgent priority now was to report this to the Academic Affairs Office.
He was truly fed up with this Calamity Child!
"All of you, proceed with self-study for now."
Evan gave the instructions with a sense of helplessness and left the classroom, heading toward the Academic Affairs Office.
On his way, he happened to run into Teacher Zephu.
"Teacher Zephu, shouldn't you be in class right now?" Evan asked curiously.
Zephu sighed upon hearing his question. "I can't help it. I heard Princess Ruiya has been missing all night. I need to report this to the Academic Affairs Office immediately. That child is such a handful."
"By the way, Evan, what about you? Shouldn't you be in class as well?"
Evan's expression turned somewhat awkward.
"What a coincidence. I also have a student who didn't return last night."
Zephu's expression shifted slightly as she asked tentatively, "Is it... Grinya?"
Evan nodded.
Zephu fell silent.
The two of them immediately found a sense of shared misery, feeling a sudden bond of mutual sympathy.
They arrived at the Academic Affairs Office to find the head of the office, Teacher Ai'erlun, speaking into a communication screen box. He didn't seem surprised to see Evan and Zephu walk in.
"Yes, let's leave it at that. We'll send someone over shortly to identify them."
He ended the call and looked at the two teachers with a calm gaze.
"Let me guess. Did you both discover that a student didn't return last night and come here to report it to me?"
Zephu asked in surprise, "How did you guess that, Director?"
Ai'erlun replied, "Because the Sin Hunting Bureau just called me. They said they arrested someone yesterday wearing our academy's uniform. They suspect it's a student from Yiertaya Academy and asked me to go over and confirm their identity."
Zephu was speechless.
Evan was speechless.
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