A few hours later, in one of the classrooms…

Though Professor Wolfskopf is leading the lecture as usual, the few students that are well enough to attend the lecture are barely paying attention. Their focus is entirely on Straf and Cycelia. She is growing increasingly uncomfortable due to their gazes, and even Tisha is struggling to pay attention, half-covertly sneaking glances towards her.

Straf notices how distracting the students are to Cycelia, and turns his less-than-pleased face to the bulk of them.

「…What are you looking at?」

He growls at them with his arms crossed. A very brief shuffling noise sounds out as they slide their chairs further into their desks and turn their heads away.

Cycelia lets out a sigh of relief, and turns her emerald eyes back to the professor, but then realizes that Tisha is staring at her from the other side, past Neela's empty chair.

「…Lia, can I ask you something?」

She says, looking into her emerald eyes.

「Huh?… Um… Sure?…」

Cycelia blinks at her, a little surprised. Tisha glances at Straf's bored face, then returns her blue eyes back to Cycelia's.

「Lia… Are you really a princess?」

Tisha asks, tilting her head a little.

「H- Huh?」

Cycelia gains a nervous grin and snaps her gaze to Straf, but his bored eyes are of no help.

「…I just heard people are talking about some Redwing agents, and they're all saying it's Straf. Then you did that thing… That wasn't magic, was it?」

Tisha continues questioning her, glancing at Straf as well. Cycelia silently looks back at her with a tight-lipped expression, and says nothing.

「…Look, Lia, I don't care if you're not. As far as I'm concerned, I owe you a debt regardless. I was just wondering if there's more to you two than what you told us.」

She adds, and shrugs her shoulders, turning her blue eyes back to the professor and the blackboard. Cycelia's troubled gaze drifts down to the desk.

「…Maybe I will be able to tell you about it soon, Tisha. When Neela gets better.」

「…Alright.」

With her head propped up on her hand, Tisha side-glances at Cycelia, and nods.

Gonnnggggggggg… Donnnnnnngggggg… Gonnnnnnnggggggg…

The day's last bell tolls, and the students shuffle to the exit. The fact the classroom is mostly empty helps significantly.

「Ah… Remember, classes cancelled tomorrow! Don't slack off, and study on your own!」

Professor Wolfskopf turns to the class, and covers his mouth as he stifles a little cough. Straf and the girls leave the classroom into the mostly-empty hallway.

「Right, I'm going to take my notes to Neela and check on her. See you tomorrow.」

Tisha announces, and speeds off with her books under her arm. Cycelia nods, and another blonde woman suddenly approaches her from the side.

「Ah, dragon girl.」

Selafina says, looking at the two, though mostly focused on Cycelia. Her jaw drops, and she looks at the drill-haired woman.

「W-!? Wh-!? Wh-!? What!? I'm not a d- d- Dragon-!」

Cycelia stammers while staring at Selafina with her emerald eyes wide open in panic, grinning at her nervously.

The noblewoman tilts her head, and the drills framing her face jiggle lightly when they bob like springs. She furrows her brows at Cycelia while she's stumbling over her words.

「No? You're Lia Vindict, aren't you? Ah, my apologies, I don't mean it as an insult…」

Selafina asks, then raises her gloved hand as she apologizes.

「…I've just heard that your knowledge of dragons is good enough for you to be a dracology professor, so some people are jokingly calling you that. Dragon girl.」

She continues, explaining, and shrugs her mantled shoulders. The noblewoman glares at Straf's bored face, but then it quickly softens, and she apologetically glances aside.

「A- Ahh… Is that so?…」

Cycelia's shoulders slump as she lets out a relieved sigh.

「Yes. If you find it offensive, I will refrain from calling you that. I just found it impressive. So you two are the Redwing government agents?」

Selafina nods, and looks at Straf again as she asks.

「N- No-」「I am the government.」

Cycelia shakes her head, and Straf shrugs his shoulders as he nonchalantly replies over her feeble denial.

「Straf!」

With a tight-lipped pouty grimace, Cycelia shouts at him as the two look at each other. Selafina's brow rises in confusion.

「…Just so you know, I will be filing an official complaint regarding your actions. You may be handling the wraith problem, but that is not an appropriate way to treat a nobleman.」

She says, staring directly into Straf's eyes with her mouth lightly slanted.

「Yeah? Go on and send it directly to the Minister of War.」

Straf scoffs, grinning at her.

「Oh, I will, believe me. You think you are beyond consequences? Queen Redwing will hear of it too, mark my words.」

Selafina declares with a frigid expression, and storms away in the general direction of the foyer.

「Queen Redwing will hear of it too.」

Straf mockingly repeats, and lets out an amused huff. He walks past Cycelia towards the dormitories, and gestures his head for her to follow…

…

A few moments later, in Cycelia's bedroom…

Cycelia slips her boots off and covers herself with her blanket, then turns onto her side to Straf while he's reclining on his own bed.

「…Straf, since there's no lectures tomorrow, can I come with you and help you?」

She asks, and her large emeralds stare at him as he side-glances towards her.

「Are you not going with pants-shitter and the girls?」

「Damian and Neela are not feeling well… And I don't think he'll want to go on more searches if we tell him what's behind the curse.」

Cycelia replies, shrugging her shoulders beneath her blanket while the oil lamp's light pulses gently.

「…Yeah, fair point. I wouldn't want you to run into that thing alone, either… But shouldn't you study in that case? You still have the final exams coming up, no?」

He idly nods at the ceiling as he replies, then snaps his eyes back to her.

「Straf, that can wait… Between graduating from the Academy and saving over a thousand people, many of whom are my subjects, I think I'll pick coming with you.」

Cycelia replies, smiling a little, though her face is far from happy. There is a strong flame of determination in her green eyes as she stares at him.

「…What about your promise?」

Straf asks, neither smiling nor appearing bored, simply looking at her with a serious expression. Cycelia's gaze drifts down to the floor in response.

「…He'd understand.」

She replies after a long moment of thought, looking straight into his eyes. Straf nods, and faces the ceiling again.

「Well, on the bright side, those two have a high chance of flunking it too, so you might as well try again in a few months with them.」

He says as he stands up from his bed, and heads for the door.

「Where are you going, Straf?」

Cycelia asks, jumping up in her bed.

「While you were crying into blondie's boobs, that old pest told me to see him in the evening, so I suppose now would be the time. Go ahead and sleep, Lia, it's been a pretty long day.」

Straf smiles at her over his shoulder with the corner of his mouth as he grabs the door handle, and leaves…

…

A few minutes later, in the headmaster's office.

Sitting at the desk, Corvus waits with his fingers interlocked, and Straf nonchalantly enters without knocking.

「Straf. I was expecting you.」

Corvus nods his head to greet him as Straf approaches.

「Really? I might have to fix that soon.」

Straf grins, spreading his arms. Corvus opens his mouth to speak, but then a coughing fit takes him. He continues coughing for at least a minute straight, wheezing as he draws breaths only to cough more. With his hands in his pockets, Straf stands right in front of his desk, waiting for him to recover, but he keeps coughing.

「…Old man, did you call me just to drop dead right in front of me?」

He asks, and Corvus lifts his free hand up, covering his mouth with his other one. After a few moments, his coughs become less frequent, and he slowly begins to catch his breath.

「Akhem… Ahem. I am fine, Straf, but time is running out. As you may already know, tomorrow's lectures are cancelled for the students' safety.」

Corvus clears his throat, adjusts his glasses, and interlocks his fingers again.

「I've heard.」

Straf shrugs his shoulders, looking around the room.

「I have also ordered all stock of charged magic gems and crystals to be turned into magic lamps. Perhaps you have seen the notice requesting students to volunteer to charge them.」

「Yeah. What else?」

「Now, to get to the point…」

Corvus nods, and rests his mouth on his interlocked fingers.

「…This isn't a normal wraith, Straf. Far from it. I have heard of cases where a wraith would act like an eternal battlefield and play out segments of its memories, but not like this.」

「Like this, being?…」

Straf asks, briefly spreading his hands before returning them back to his pockets.

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「…I've spent this whole time rereading everything on wraiths. Not one source ever mentioned a wraith communicating with someone else.」

Corvus replies, looking at Straf with a gravely serious face.

「No? I thought it was just a thing they do.」

「No, of course not, Straf. More than that, wraiths should not be able to take a physical form for this long. Wraiths should not be able to enter sunlight for even a second…」

The headmaster shakes his head, and adjusts his glasses.

「…No matter how you look at it, this is not normal. This wraith is aberrant in every aspect of its being. A single wraith usually averages four victims a year.」

He adds, and briefly spreads his hands.

「Four? That doesn't sound like much. This one could rip apart half the school by itself.」

Straf squints and furrows his brows in surprise, gesturing at the door with his head.

「Exactly. Do you know why only four, Straf?… Because wraiths expend mana to remain partially corporeal. They are not alive, so they must absorb loose mana from the environment…」

Corvus nods in response, and continues explaining.

「…The Academy may be a place rich in loose residual mana, but such a thing should not be possible. The wraith must have a way of drawing mana from somewhere else.」

「Where? Any ideas?」

Straf asks, shrugging his shoulders.

「No… And I'm at loss as to how it may even be possible. 」

The old mage shakes his head, lowering it with a troubled expression on his wrinkled face.

「…I have so many questions, and so little answers, Straf. I feel my strength waning, too. Potions are barely helping Professor Reise as well. You must find it again, and decisively destroy its physical form.」

「How? Nothing I tried worked.」

Straf spreads his arms, and Corvus silently nods.

「I have seen the damage in the foyer. You threw a gem at it, haven't you?」

The headmaster asks, looking up into Straf's eyes.

「Yeah, and it didn't do shit. It's like it's invincible. Lia gave it a good thwack, and only that worked.」

Straf throws his hands up, scrunches his mouth to the side, and lets out a frustrated sigh as his hands return to his pockets. Corvus lowers his head, and thinks in silence for a few seconds.

「…That is worrying. But at the same time, Ms. Redwing has proven it can be done. I have seen his form. The wraith's real form.」

「From when he was alive?」

「Yes. A normal, ordinary young man just like you. A striking resemblance, in fact. If I saw you both in the halls, I'd have to squint to check if I'm not seeing double…」

Corvus nods, smiling a little, but then lets out a gloomy sigh as his eyes drift down to his desk.

「…Being alive once, he probably remembers what's it like to be hit with something, but since the memories are not strongly associated with anything negative, it wasn't enough.」

He adds, and shrugs his robed shoulders in resignation.

「So… The most reliable way so far is to quite literally just fucking hit it.」

Straf lets out another frustrated sigh, and looks at the headmaster's window past the desk.

「Remember what I've told you, Straf. You've seen for yourself how dangerous it is. Do not take unnecessary risks.」

Corvus warns, looking at his face with serious eyes beneath his bushy brows.

「Right now, being forced to dodge his fucking swings is a risk. Look at this!」

Thud!

Straf slams his boot on top of the desk, and shows Corvus the cut in his pantleg. The old man squints heavily, looking at it with his mouth slightly open.

「Fucker can just wormhole from shadow to shadow, too! At this point, I just want to beat the shit out of him for being a fucking pest! Tsk…」

Heavily frustrated, Straf pulls his boot back down to the ground, and clicks his tongue.

「I will ask Professor Aria about spells that are primarily composed of mana tomorrow… But she's not feeling well either. So far, only Professor Welz and the youngest of students are holding up well still.」

「Oh yeah, there's kids here too, huh?」

Straf's brows rise, and he nods as he's looking aside at the bookshelves.

「Yes… But it's only a matter of time. The curse spares no one.」

Corvus nods as well, grimacing with a greatly troubled expression. A brief silence begins as he rests his mouth on his interlocked fingers, and pensively stares at his desk.

「…But there's one thing bothering me still, Straf.」

He says, turning his eyes to Straf as the two lock gazes.

「What?」

「…Why now?」

The headmaster asks, staring at him. Straf's eyes escape upward towards nowhere in particular as he thinks.

「I saw his uniform, too. I didn't recognize it, or, at the very least, I don't remember it. This leads me to believe that this wraith has been here longer than I have…」

Corvus continues, and his gaze drifts back down to the desk.

「…So why now? What changed? Have we done something to anger it? If so, what was it? I have felt its presence for a long time, why has it reared its head only now?」

He asks, and the two look at each other again.

「…Probably because it'd be boring otherwise.」「Pft.」

Straf nonchalantly replies with a bored expression on his face, and shrugs. Corvus sputters, covering his mouth and stifling his grin.

「…Yes, it'd be quite peaceful if not for the sudden disturbance. That's all, Straf. Please keep the students safe, you're the only one I can count on at this point.」

The headmaster says, smiling a little. He bows his head as he makes his request, and looks into Straf's eyes.

「You're lucky this problem has a healthbar, old man… I've got experience solving those.」

「Hm? Healthbar?…」

Corvus tilts his head and furrows his brows as Straf walks away, and leaves. He scratches his temple, shrugs, then feebly gets up from his desk, shaking as he props himself up on it with his hand…

…

The next morning, in Damian's room…

Thud thud thud!

A loud noise at the door wakes Damian up, and he opens his eyes.

「Tsk… Ahhhhh…」

He clicks his tongue in frustration, and immediately groans in pain as he clutches onto his forehead, wincing heavily.

Thudthudthudthudthud!

「…I'm coming! Good grief…」

Damian shouts at the door, and groggily sits up, wobbling a little and almost falling over. Bracing himself on the wall, he stands up, and shambles to the door.

He fumbles for a few seconds while searching for his pocket, and finally pulls the key out, unlocking the door.

Cla-clack.

「Hey, pants-shitter.」

Tisha says, looking at him with arms crossed, and her mouth scrunched to the side.

「Stop calling- Ahh, I don't feel like dealing with this…」

He attempts to get a shout out, but immediately gives up before he can even raise his voice. He rubs his face with his palm, and sighs in frustration.

「How's your head?-」

「Awful.」

Damian replies without a second's hesitation. Tisha nods.

「Good to hear that.」

She shrugs, and sighs.

「What do you want?… And what hour is it?」

He asks quietly, squinting heavily at her face, visibly pained.

「It's still early.」

Tisha shrugs again.

「Ah, good… I thought it was morning for a moment.」

He sighs, slowly nodding his head.

「It is.」

She nonchalantly replies with he brows raised. His head perks up, and he stares at her face in shock.

「I slept through the classes!?-」

Damian asks, panicked, but Tisha holds her hand up and stops him.

「Relax, I'll let you have my notes too… A lot of stuff happened yesterday. Lia isn't coming with us, and neither is Neela. She's still sick.」

「…So it's just the two of us? We might as well call it off-」

「Oh, that's not all of it yet…」

Tisha cuts in, and interrupts Damian.

「…Classes have been cancelled today.」

「What?… Why?」

Damian asks, leaning onto the door with his brows heavily furrowed.

「Turns out the thing we've been looking for is a wraith, so they-」

「We're never going to look for it again.」

Damian declares with wide-open eyes, and grabs the door in preparation to slam it shut.

Thud.

「Hold it! I'm not done yet!」

Tisha rams her foot in the way, blocking the door from even moving.

「I'm not going out there looking for a wraith! You'd have to be insane! Let some professor handle it, like Aria!」

He shouts with his clenched teeth bared, feebly wrestling with the door in an attempt to shut it, but Tisha effortlessly keeps it where it is.

「Aria is sick as well. Things will not get better if you just hide in your room. Besides, I'm not saying we should look for the wraith. I froze up when it came for me.」

Tisha replies, and shrugs, throwing her hands up in defeat.

「…Then what?」

Damian hesitantly asks with a nervous grimace

「…We do the same as usual. Look for suspicious people, and let Straf handle the wraith. If he deals with it, and the barrier returns to normal, all is well, right?」

「…Right.」

「And what if it doesn't?」

Tisha asks, leaning with her arm onto the wall leading to Damian's room. He rubs his chin, looking down at the ground deep in thought.

「…Yes. Now that I think about it, it's unlikely the wraith is behind the barrier. But how did it curse everyone? That shouldn't be possible-」

He says, and his eyes open wider.

「…Unless it burned itself as the grudge. But that shouldn't be possible either. The fire might be cursed, but it still acts like a normal fire. Its light should make it impossible for the wraith to even get close.」

Damian adds, looking into Tisha's blue eyes.

「Why?」

She tilts her head, blinking.

「Unlike mana lamps, the Cursefire's light is real. If you don't know, I can't be bothered to give you an explanation with this headache. Many evil beings abhor flames and sunlight.」

He explains, and rubs his eyebrow with his fingers, wincing.

「…So, are you coming with me, or not? I can't go alone because that won't help with anything, and nothing good will come out of you sitting here.」

Tisha asks, crossing her arms again as she looks at him with her mouth lightly slanted. Damian rubs his neck, and looks over his shoulder towards the room, then lets out a long sigh.

「…Let me get my shoes…」

He grumbles out, and Tisha pulls her foot away from the door. Damian closes it, and with her arms crossed, she leans onto the nearby wall with her back…