Chapter Forty-Five
The moment I opened the door, a noble aura spread throughout the entire hallway, followed by the faint scent of herbs.
As soon as I looked at the woman sitting on the chair, gently sipping her tea, I felt an overwhelming sense of suppression.
She was sitting there, behind a luxurious desk steeped in the scent of old books and royal perfumes, flipping through papers stamped with an imperial seal without even glancing in my direction.
The Headmistress of the Academy—Eleanora Darkvan.
The woman everyone whispers about, whom no one dares mention by name aloud without glancing behind them.
Her shiny white hair wasn't a sign of aging, but of lineage. A pureblood lineage of mages with royal blood, who had lived for decades without aging. Her hair was neatly tied back, exposing her elegant neck as if daring the world to misjudge her dignity.
Once you reach the stage she had attained, you can easily maintain your youth without a single wrinkle—but there was only one reason behind it.
Her eyes were a dark color—the color of mystery and nobility. A single glance from her could knock a knight off his horse… or make a mythical beast kneel. She wore a black robe laced with silver threads, void of ornaments yet terrifyingly elegant, radiating an unquestionable authority
She wasn't just beautiful… she was a venomous kind of beauty. A beauty that didn't inspire love, but planted fear.
The room was completely silent… except for something strange.
Shadows… moving.
In the far right corner of the room, I thought I saw a shadow crawling along the wall. A slight movement, more like a slow creep, as if darkness itself was melting off the walls.
I stared at it… but it vanished.
I closed my eyes and opened them again… and there, standing right behind the Headmistress—it was there.
A tall, unnatural shadow…
It didn't follow the laws of light, nor did it match the Headmistress's body—it seemed to have a life of its own. Its ends trembled slowly, then… began to gather, shrinking and twisting in on themselves like black mist coiling into itself.
Then…
Poof.
A soft sound escaped… and the shadow turned into a cat.
A pitch-black cat, with fur that shimmered as if the night itself clung to it, and glowing yellow eyes that gleamed like twin gems in the darkness of the room.
Honestly, I don't know why, but… does the author of this world really love cats that much? It's ridiculous that both Sylvia and the Headmistress own similar creatures. The only difference was the color of their eyes.
The cat spoke with its eyes, glancing at the Headmistress, then at me…
Before it moved quietly.
With light steps, as if it didn't even touch the ground, it approached me slowly… then began rubbing its head against my leg.
"Huh?" I muttered in surprise.
I don't remember it ever approaching anyone at the academy before—back when we were playing the game, we even had trouble dealing with this thing when we needed to meet the Headmistress.
I stared at it in disbelief as it nuzzled my leg like we were old friends, then lay directly on my feet as if saying, "Pet me."
"Um, Madam Headmistress… may I know why I was summoned?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the strange creature rubbing its face against my thigh as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
The Headmistress said calmly:
"To be honest... there are many things I want you to know," she said quietly.
"Sorry, but I don't understand anything!" Did I do something wrong?
The cat suddenly lifted its head and looked at me with half-lidded eyes, then meowed softly… as if mocking me.
I took a small step back and asked cautiously:
"Can I know what happened?" I asked, confused, as I reached out to pet the cat beside me. I didn't know what it felt like to pet a cat—especially since I could never own one myself.
"Well, I'll tell you. But I advise you not to pet him—he's quite moody," the Headmistress said.
But it was already too late.
My hand froze as I petted the little cat beside me, but nothing happened. Instead, the little creature continued rubbing its head against my hand.
"Strange… he doesn't even let me pet him. It
seems he really likes you," the Headmistress said, clearly surprised.
She laughed—a short but sharp laugh—then closed the file in her hands.
"Sit. We have a long talk ahead."
To be continued…
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I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I know it was a little short, but I couldn't write much due to being sick.
Honestly, I don't even know how I managed to finish this chapter, but I did—somehow. So thank you, and please donate Power Stones and leave your comments on the novel.
Also I couldn't edit Sylvia's photo I'll try tomorrow.
…Goodbye.