A few moments later, at the ground level of the female dormitories…

With his hands in his pockets, Straf walks out of the stairwell, heading for the dwarf woman's key room. Partway there, Cycelia emerges from the corner ahead, and her head perks up in surprise when she sees Straf.

「Straf? Were you trying to get back to the room?」

She asks, approaching him.

「Nah, the headmaster wanted to waste my time again…」

Straf shrugs his shoulders as he walks past her. She immediately changes direction, and follows beside him.

「…At least you'll be happy to hear that it's not a ghost, but a wraith.」

He adds, glancing at her with a lightly amused smirk.

「Huh?」

She tilts her head, blinking at him with large, confused emerald eyes.

「The old man said it's a wraith. The thing causing the issues, that is.」

「You mean you found it?…」

Cycelia asks as Straf stops in front of Julva's door.

「Well, it tried to kill me, so I guess.」

He replies with a shrug, and walks in. Unsure what to say, Cycelia remains silent, and trails behind him into the cramped room.

「Hey… I was going to show up earlier, but a flashback kept me busy. Do you have that basement key yet?」

Straf shuts the door behind Cycelia, and explains himself as he approaches Julva's desk with his hands in his pockets.

「…No. You see, that key was never returned. It's unlikely we'll ever find it.」

Partially reclining in her chair, Julva lifts her eyes from book and returns a helpless shrug of her broad, thick shoulders.

「Never returned? Who fucking took it then? I'll kick his ass-」

「I'd like to see you try. It was taken in the early 50s of the second era.」

Julva nonchalantly smirks in response to Straf's frustration, and glances at them both.

「…But that predates the-」

「Memorandum of Understanding on the Autonomous Zone, yes. You're right, young lady.」

The dwarf woman cuts in, interrupting Cycelia's comment and surprising her with a smile.

「…But how can that be?」

Cycelia furrows her brows, tilting her head.

「Well… The memorandum was just an agreement to not be a thorn in each other's sides. Haven't you heard that mages impose their will on others? They didn't need the king's permission to start building…」

Julva explains, visibly amused.

「What? So the Academy was built before the agreement?」

「Correct. Why do you think the Academy needs a barrier?… Ahh… I was a young lady like you when they signed it. A few years later, I came to the late-late headmaster and asked to work here.」

The dwarf woman lets out a wistful sigh, though she remains smiling as her eyes drift up to the ceiling. After a moment, she quickly returns them to Cycelia.

「Young lady?… How old are you?」

「114 years old.」

Julva nonchalantly replies.

「Wha-!?」

Cycelia covers her mouth with her hand before she can fully blurt out her involuntary exclamation of surprise.

「Oh, don't act so surprised. Leila in the uniform storage probably remembers times without the Academy… Don't ask her about her age, though.」

The dwarf shrugs, and glances at Straf as Cycelia looks at him with shocked eyes as well. His face remains unimpressed and outright bored.

「…Is that like in dog years? How much you've got left in you, granny?」

「Straf!」

Cycelia pulls her hand away to quickly chide Straf for his casual question.

「How rude!… I may be old, but I don't like to be reminded of that fact!…」

Julva raises her voice, but her outrage remains very mild as she lets out a huff from her bulbous nose.

「…I'll be around for two decades or so longer, so don't put me into an early grave.」

She replies, looking down at her book as her face grows slightly sullen.

「…It's a shame I might see Corvus go before I do, but then again, what can Leila say?」

The dwarf woman adds, briefly looking at them both.

「…Anything else?」

「Nah… If you don't have the key, guess I'll just kick the fucking door in when it's time.」

Straf shrugs, and turns for the door.

「Ah! I heard that! If there's any damaged doors, the headmaster will hear of it!」

Julva exclaims, pointing her stubby finger at Straf's back as he's walking through the door.

「The headmaster will hear of it!…」

Straf repeats in a mocking tone as he leaves with Cycelia, and closes the door behind them, shaking his head…

…

Few minutes later, in the mostly-empty hallways in the main building…

「So… What happened to your ghost hunt?」

Straf asks as Cycelia silently is walking by his side in the quiet corridor.

「Ah… Damian and Neela weren't feeling too well… Tisha went to check on her, and Damian left to take a nap.」

She replies, briefly glancing at him before returning her gloomy eyes to the floor.

「A nap? What is he, an old man?」

Straf scoffs, smirking lightly at her. She looks at him again, and wordlessly turns her eyes back to the ground. Straf sighs, and the two walk alongside each other in silence for a moment.

「…I'll figure it out, Lia. Look, we went from being completely clueless to me being chased by a gh- Wraith. I just need to find the thing and figure out a way to kick its ass without fucking up the barrier.」

He says, shrugging his shoulders. His calm eyes look into her glum ones, and she returns a wordless nod. Straf sighs again, and they continue onward towards the auxiliary building…

…

In front of the demonologist's study, in the dim, empty hallway…

In silence, with only their footsteps echoing in the halls, Straf and Cycelia approach the two doors with plaques. The distant sounds of Academy life that could be heard here days before are now missing, and only eerie stillness remains. Surrounded by doors on both sides, the only source of light are the magic lamps above. Straf's and Cycelia's long shadows stretch along the walls and floors as they pass by.

「Is there something you need from Professor Arkeis, Straf? Damian had a bad feeling about this place yesterday…」

Cycelia asks, a little confused.

「He had a bad feeling about a place called demonology? No shit…」

Straf scoffs in response, amused and grinning slightly as he glances at her.

「…I need to deliver a letter to this prick. It's on the way to another place I want to check out, anyhow, so I might as well.」

He adds, and approaches the demonology study. He pushes on the handle, and nonchalantly walks in with Cycelia. As usual, the elderly man inside jumps startled again.

「You again!… Why do you keep-!?」

The old man angrily exclaims, but he goes silent when he sees Cycelia's face pop out from behind Straf. His anger dissipates, and he stares at the two with a tight-lipped long face.

「Man, shut up, I brought you a letter…」

Straf rolls his eyes, and pulls the headmaster's letter out of his [Portable Storage]. He hesitates to take it from Straf, but does so with a reluctant, shaky hand.

「…Are you feeling alright, old man? Not going to drop dead?」

Straf asks, looking at the envelope in the man's hand.

「…Are you threatening me?」

The old man asks, warily glaring into Straf's eyes.

「That's a fucking reach, old-timer. You're shaking, so I thought you might drop dead of a fever, you know?」

Straf scoffs, spreading his arms with a grin. The elderly mage doesn't reply, only narrowing his eyes in poorly veiled anger.

「If that's all, leave.」

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

He demands as he steps into Cycelia's way while she's looking around the room.

「Sure… The headmaster says he's sorry, but I'm not. I know you did it… Prick.」

Straf turns to leave, and Cycelia follows. As he's walking towards the door, he points at the old man, and reiterates his accusation with a growl.

Clack.

In the dim corridor, the door latches loudly as Straf shuts it behind them, and walks up to the door across.

「…But you said the wraith-?」

「Never back out, always double down, Lia.」

With his index finger extended and leaning in towards her, Straf cuts Cycelia off.

「…Eh?」

She tilts her head, and blinks at him with her eyes narrowed in confusion.

「If I gaslight him enough, he might confess to something. Eventually. Probably.」

「…What?」

「It's an interrogation technique, Lia. Next time we pay him a visit, you should ask him all sorts of incriminating questions while being nauseatingly sweet, and I'll be a dick to him.」

「…Why?」

Even more confused, Cycelia shakes her head with her brows heavily furrowed as she looks at Straf.

「Good cop, bad cop, Lia. It's what you do when you're not allowed to do even the weakest interrogation stuff, like waterboarding.」

「…Huh?」

She utters out, staring at his face while he's focused on the plaque hanging off the door.

「…I just resisted a really strong urge to kick this door in, Lia. Am I going to get any praise for this?」

Straf casually announces with his hands in his pockets as he turns to Cycelia.

「Eh?」

She blinks at him with confused emerald eyes, then slowly stretches out her hand towards Straf's head. He lowers it a little for her ease of access.

「…Good Straf. Control your destructive impulses…」

Cycelia quietly says, petting Straf's head. After a few moments, she retracts her hand, and they look at each other in awkward silence. Cycelia breaks eye contact, and looks aside at the floor.

「Alright, let's go.」

Straf shrugs, and heads back the dim hallway…

…

A few minutes later, at a junction of hallways in the auxiliary building…

「Ah.」

Tisha lets out a loud noise of surprise, or rather, the silence makes it louder than it really is.

「Tisha?」

Cycelia turns her head towards her, and they stop in their tracks with Straf as she hastily approaches.

「I thought I saw you… I was looking for you around here. You weren't at the Cursefire, so I figured you were walking around with Damian, but turns out here's Straf.」

Tisha says, looking at the two with her brows raised.

「Damian had a headache, so he went to take a nap.」

「Ah, I see… So the search is called off for today?」

She nods at Cycelia, and asks.

「He said he wants to continue after classes, but… Maybe we should let him rest for today? Straf says he found a clue.」

Cycelia replies, nodding back, and looks towards Straf's bored face.

「Not a clue, I outright solved this-」

「…Straf?」

Cycelia furrows her brows as Straf's bored face turns gravely serious, and his eyes snap towards a dark corner to the side.

「…It's here. You two go tell the headmaster to haul ass to the foyer. I'll keep it busy.」

He instructs the girls, and gently nudges Cycelia towards the main building.

「What is here? Keep what busy?」

Tisha asks, furrowing her brows as her blue eyes jump between the two.

「Tisha… We should go. Now.」

Cycelia says with her emerald eyes wide open, grabbing onto Tisha's wrist with a grave, tight-lipped grimace on her face. Straf turns his back towards the girls, looking at the ominous corner. A blurry, wispy dark shape vaguely resembling a human slides out from beyond it.

「…What is that?-」

「Now!」

Cycelia exclaims, cutting Tisha off as she pulls her towards the main building by her wrist. The two run in the general direction of the dormitories as fast as their legs can take them there.

「…You're shit out of luck because I know all your weaknesses.」

With a grin on his face, Straf announces to the dark shape. Multiple bright, shining orbs of light appear right above Straf's head, erratically circling him in slow orbits. Their light stretches right in front of the humanoid shadow, but Straf can sense its attention is focused solely on him, and him alone.

「What? If you're too scared to come to me, I'll just-」

Grinning even wider, Straf taunts the wispy being. It abruptly slides towards him, ignoring the blindingly bright light shining at it and sliding right across it. It seemingly absorbs the light, as its form has no tells of any visible gloss, reflection, or material. It simply soundlessly slides across the stone floor at an uncanny speed in a relaxed A-pose, beelining for Straf.

「…Alright then!」

Straf exclaims, narrowly evading its arm-spike. Directly after side-stepping, Straf leaps backwards an inhumanly long distance. Still soaring through the hallway, shimmering air extends from Straf towards the speeding wraith.

「Tsk… Shit.」

He clicks his tongue when the shimmering air engulfs it to no visible effect. His feet descend to the ground, and he slides backwards with the dark shape in close pursuit.

With his [Contextual Time Perception] active, he leans out of another stab, and takes off towards the foyer at an inhuman speed. The black shape is gaining on him.

「Oh for fuck's sake!… Deja vu!」

Straf exclaims, and feels his ability activate again. He ducks his head on a reflex, and time returns to normal. As he runs out of the auxiliary building through a connecting hallway, he spots a group of students in the distance. Among them are Aurelius Adalor, his two aides, and Selafina Abelstroff.

「Hey! Out of the fucking building if you don't want to die!」

Straf shouts a warning, but their expressions sour in response. Selafina grabs onto her sword's hilt, and the two blondes briefly glance at each other.

「Tsk… Fuckin' dipshits!」

Sliding to a halt at a junction, Straf turns his head towards the wraith. As soon as his eyes turn to it, [Contextual Time Perception] activates once again, and he sees a dark, blade-like shape in a rapid swoop for his upper torso. Making an instantaneous decision, he leaps sideways towards the longer path to the foyer with his arms outstretched. When his feet just barely clear the arm-blade, time abruptly returns to normal.

KRRRACK!

The wraith cleaves apart the stone floor with its missed slash, gouging out the stone at least knee-deep. To avoid smashing his face into the ground, Straf is forced to bounce himself off with his hands. He performs an incredible feat of acrobatics, front-flipping onto his feet without skipping a beat, and continues sprinting towards the alternate path to the foyer.

Aurelius and Selafina shiver when they feel the vague, distant shape focus on them, but it then slides into the side hallway after Straf. All visibly frightened, the group of students takes off towards the Academy entrance.

Donnnnnnnggggggg… Gonnnnnnnnngggggggg… Gonnnnnnnngggggg…

The heavy bell tolls, signaling the end of free period while the wraith pursues Straf.

「Oh yeah, that's a fucking recap! Reuse animation frames while you're at it! Episode 19.5!」

Straf shouts, crossing the long hallway in the blink of an eye. He runs into a junction leading back to the auxiliary building, and the exposed balcony-like path from before above the foyer.

「Has anyone ever told you that you've got personality issues!?」

He adds, facing the dark shape as it's closing in. It crosses its spike-like arms, and they shift into barely coherent, wispy, cutlass-like blades. In a burst of surprising speed, it slides towards Straf.

Wincing in frustration from the mental fatigue of being on the defensive, Straf leaps towards the exposed foyer balcony. His legs once again clear the blades just in time, mostly because of the wraith's choice of the lead slashing arm. Its blade-like arms rake across the wall where Straf had been standing, creating a small gap to the outside of the building in the center of the carved-out cross.

Thud!

Straf rolls across the ground and takes off running for the foyer. Briefly glancing over his shoulder to check the distance between his pursuer, he leaps over the railing downwards.

「Why so slow!?」

He asks, shouting at the wraith as it stands at the balcony. He senses its eyeless gaze, and grins at it as he's plummeting down.

「Wait, shit-」

With a tight-lipped expression, Straf turns his eyes towards the rapidly approaching ground.

《…What about the landing!?》

He grins nervously as he crosses nearly the entire height of the foyer stairs to the Cursefire in mere moments while his mind is racing.

《Ugh, I don't want to blow my [Translocation] early…》

Straf thinks, wincing as he prepares to land…

THUD!

「Ungghhh!… Shit!…」

He grunts out in pain as he clumsily lands on his feet, bending his knees and clenching his fists with his face twisted in anguish. Through the pain, he looks at the wraith and finds it missing.

「Agh… Where did it go?-」

Straf grunts out, walking the fall off. He turns his eyes forward, and finds the dark shape standing in the narrow passage beside the stairs.

「Ahhh… Yeah, figures…」

He rolls his eyes and sighs, throwing his hands up in frustration. He then walks to the center of the foyer, and off to its side. The shadowy form emerges from the darkness, taking a mirrored position.

「…Yeah, come to think of it, this whole mess started because you lost a duel, didn't it?… Want to have a revenge match?」

Straf spreads his arms, grinning at the wraith, before returning his hands to his pockets…