Chapter 377: Going to Jail
The day after the amusement park crisis, despite it being the weekend, all Cromwell Academy dorm residents were placed under lockdown. No one was allowed to leave the campus. This caused some dissatisfaction among the vampire girls, but after receiving warnings from their families, they all quieted down and accepted reality.
Adele knew this was because of her…or rather, her and Xiao Ai. But as the victim, she didn’t think she was responsible. And staying home was easy and enjoyable for Adele, so this news was good for her. She also needed time to calm down and comfort Xiao Ai, who had been frightened (although it wasn’t apparent on the surface, Adele thought so).
Dorothy was still staying at Adele’s dorm, but she looked worried about her future. Fortunately, Adele’s gentle companionship and comfort were there, otherwise, Dorothy might have done something impulsive. But now she had calmed down, understanding that at this stage, she had to lie low, become stronger, secretly look for opportunities, and find reliable allies. That was what she, the last Vampire Queen, should do. As they said, adversity made one grow. Dorothy had become quite mature.
But this peaceful time didn’t last long. A rapid knock came from Adele’s dorm door in the afternoon, disrupting their rest. Adele frowned slightly, not knowing who would come looking for her at this time. But First Snow suddenly meowed as if her tail had been stepped on, and then she padded down the stairs.
Adele immediately realized who it was and shrank her neck. Dorothy looked at her curiously, and the girl whispered, “Headmistress Winona!” Saying this, Adele immediately chased after First Snow.
Dorothy’s eyes widened slightly, and she followed Adele.
Downstairs, First Snow had already opened the door and was being pinched on the cheeks by Winona. If you asked why, it was probably jealousy. Winona thought, If I let First Snow stay with Adele for a few more days, she’ll probably forget where she actually lives! And forget about me! This little cat who values beauty over friendship!
“Meow…!”
As the little cat-girl cried out, Adele arrived at the door and asked hesitantly, “Headmistress, what brings you here…?”
This was clearly asking the obvious. Winona, as one of the human high-ups, should have the highest level of access to information about the amusement park incident.
In other words, everything that Bureau Director Yashi witnessed and knew, Winona also learned last night through the emergency meeting. Currently, the humans had more information and were keeping it under wraps. The most crucial information was about Jormungandr’s existence, and of course, Adele gaining the power of a True Ancestor.
The Vampire Clan knew much less. The only confirmed news was bad news: the fall of True Ancestor Ron. However, since True Ancestor Ron broke the peace agreement and almost caused a devastating disaster for humans, the vampire high-ups could only choose to remain silent about his death for now, even though his fall meant a significant loss of high-level combat power for the Vampire Clan. And because of Ron’s death, the humans couldn’t demand compensation from the Vampire Clan.
Winona was tasked at the meeting with guiding and protecting Adele. The reason for this outcome, besides the Hell Queen Jormungandr factor, was firstly because Adele was True Ancestor Ron’s target, and the enemy of an enemy was a friend. Moreover, Adele was a half-blood vampire, with half human blood. Rounding up, she was one of their own. And as one of their own, as a girl whose mind wasn’t fully mature, suddenly gaining extraordinary power, her future achievements were limitless. The only problem was whether she would be misled and stand on the wrong side. So someone who was related to her and knew her to a certain extent was needed to “escort” her. Thus, Winona, as the girl’s Headmistress, became the best candidate.
What else could Winona do? It was the result of a meeting, a decision made for the sake of humanity, not for personal reasons. She couldn’t refuse, only accept. But secretly, she must have regretted becoming the Headmistress of Cromwell Academy many times. This girl Adele was truly a troublemaker!
“You should know why I’m here.” Of course, it was related to yesterday’s amusement park incident. Adele understood this perfectly.
“I won’t say anything unnecessary. In short, as long as you don’t use this power for evil, Adele,”
“Both I and humanity will always stand behind you.”
“Putting you in danger before was our negligence.”
“W-Well, I also let my guard down,” Adele murmured, her eyes flickering. Judging from Headmistress Winona’s words, it seemed like the humans were fully protecting her? As protagonists, she and Dorothy truly had opposite fates. But it wasn’t certain yet that Dorothy was being deceived and set up by all the True Ancestors. Perhaps only True Ancestor Ron was the bad guy, and the other True Ancestors were good people. The reason they didn’t tell Dorothy the truth about the Black Emperor’s fall was because she was too young to bear the consequences. After all, Adele didn’t know about Dorothy’s later experiences in the original story. The perspective was always on the protagonist “Adele,” and Dorothy was more like the final boss she faced after overcoming various obstacles. And by then, Dorothy already possessed the power of a True Ancestor.
First Snow twitched her ears, avoiding Winona’s hand. It hurts! It was just staying at Sister Adele’s dorm for one night. Why does Xiao Wei always bully me…? Actually, First Snow didn’t know that Winona’s current feelings were complicated, like seeing her “daughter” or “sister” living with other girls! It would be strange if Winona could remain calm.
But after missing her grab, Winona didn’t try to pull First Snow’s ears again, but looked at Adele and said, “Let’s talk more on the way.”
“On the way?” Adele asked in confusion.
“That’s right, Adele, come with me to the Eastern Capital Enforcement Bureau.”
“Ugh! Am I going to jail!?” Adele had never been to such a place before, so it was natural for her to be nervous. And Winona, wanting to tease her, said, “That’s right, the charge is having an improper relationship with a cat-girl, which constitutes a crime!”
Chapter 378: The Legendary Elf
Of course, Winona was joking. Adele wouldn’t be scared so easily. Only First Snow’s pupils trembled, truly believing that Adele was being taken to the Enforcement Bureau as a criminal because of her!
“Meow!” She immediately wanted to explain, It’s not Sister Adele’s fault…it’s mine! And if you really thought about it, Adele was actually the younger one. First Snow’s lifespan, compared to a human’s, was terrifyingly long. So if anyone should be arrested, it should be First Snow. This was probably something most people wouldn’t think of.
Adele sensed First Snow’s nervousness and her desire to defend her, so she reached out and patted her cat ears, saying, “Silly, the Headmistress is joking. I have other important business at the Enforcement Bureau.”
“R-Really, meow!?” First Snow instantly understood. No wonder Winona’s tone sounded like when she tricked her into believing that “eating too much fish would get you caught by a sea monster.” It was all lies! And as First Snow grew up and became braver, all kinds of strange fish were just meat in her eyes! If there really was a sea monster, Hmph, I’ll make sure it never returns, meow!
“Of course, don’t you trust your big sister, or Headmistress Winona?” Adele smiled and threw the question back at First Snow.
First Snow stammered, not daring to blame either of them!
Dorothy, who had already seen through everything, kept her gaze fixed on Adele’s smiling face before shifting it to Headmistress Winona. Coincidentally, as if anticipating Dorothy’s gaze, Winona also looked at her. Their eyes met, and many unspoken words were understood.
“Then please take care of my Adele, Headmistress Winona,” Dorothy blurted out.
If Adele had been drinking water, she would have choked. Winona sighed, thinking, These young people… But it was also enviable. When Winona was young, she pursued magic too intensely, missing many opportunities for romance. “Women will only affect my magic training speed.” As a result, she remained single until now, her status and power increasing, and no one dared to approach or confess to her. Let alone the trouble caused by Adele, keeping her busy.
“I’ll take good care of her, giving her all the warmth and care she needs~,” Winona said with a smile, her eyes narrowed. But Adele felt a chill down her spine.
“Also, Dorothy, we won’t interfere with your choices, nor will we restrict your freedom,” Winona added enigmatically. But one thing was certain: the “we” she referred to was undoubtedly humanity. Winona had the right to represent humanity.
Dorothy lowered her head and softly replied, “I understand.”
Adele stood on tiptoe and touched Dorothy’s drooping pink hair. She rarely tied her hair into twintails now, preferring the more mature, loose hairstyle. And besides comforting Dorothy, Adele also had to pet First Snow and Xiao Ai. After cuddling with everyone, she finally said goodbye and followed Headmistress Winona, whose lips were twitching, out of the dorm.
Dorothy, Xiao Ai, and First Snow didn’t retract their gazes until Adele and Winona disappeared around the corner. They weren’t worried that Adele would be harmed by Headmistress Winona. They only cared about when Adele would return.
………………
Flying and using magic were forbidden in human territory. This applied to Winona as well. Otherwise, like when Teacher Victoria suddenly teleported to the museum, it would attract the attention of many Enforcement Bureau agents. She brought Adele to the academy’s parking lot and then into her car. Although Winona’s salary was high, or rather, money was just disposable paper to her, the car she bought wasn’t luxurious, but a practical model with good performance and cost-effectiveness, fitting Adele’s image of a powerful figure focused on education and magic.
Although Winona looked quite young, at most like a homeroom teacher in her thirties, she wouldn’t be happy if she knew Adele’s thoughts. Because the term “homeroom teacher” sounded like a middle-aged woman.
“Fasten your seatbelt, we’re leaving.”
“Okay.”
The car started, and after a smooth twenty-minute drive, Winona parked in the Enforcement Bureau’s underground garage. Then, together with Adele, they took the elevator to the top floor of the building.
There, they could clearly feel the difference between the personnel and ordinary people. Many people in protective suits or uniforms similar to police uniforms were coming and going. There were even foreign races! Like beast-eared girls with dog ears and tails, and another race with obvious bat wings, but they didn’t seem to be vampires. Were they recruited and assimilated foreign races? This journey truly opened Adele’s eyes. And she clung closely to Headmistress Winona, acting obediently like a student being brought to a formal occasion for the first time, like a thesis defense.
Many of the people passing by showed great respect to Headmistress Winona, while looking at Adele with an inquisitive gaze.
Soon, they arrived at a conference room with multiple security doors that required identity verification. Adele, taking advantage of Winona’s privileges, also successfully entered. Winona asked Adele to wait at the door for a moment, then she entered the room. The girl could faintly hear conversations inside, some laughter and some serious inquiries, but they were distorted by some kind of force, making it impossible to distinguish the content even if the voices were loud. Is it for confidentiality, so there’s a special magic array interfering with our senses…? Perhaps. Adele gradually accepted this. After all, when in doubt, blame it on magic.
Finally, when everything quieted down, Headmistress Winona came out again.
“Now, come in with me, Adele.”
“…Yes, Headmistress Winona.” Due to her innate respect for authority, Adele acted very obediently.
She followed Winona into the conference room, which could almost decide the fate of the entire city, even a small part of humanity, in an instant. Nine human high-ups, besides Headmistress Winona, were sitting around the oval conference table. Yashi, the Bureau Director, was among them. But to Adele, she was also a stranger.
Adele stood nervously before them. Although the air conditioning was on full blast, an inexplicable pressure still made her teeth chatter slightly. Winona patted her shoulder before taking her seat, seemingly casting a calming spell. Adele instantly felt much more at ease and looked at Headmistress Winona gratefully.
It was worth mentioning that the seating arrangement of the ten high-ups in the conference room clearly followed a strict order. Winona’s seat was the third, which meant that her influence in the Eastern Capital was probably among the top three? Thinking of this, Adele suddenly recalled her past actions before Headmistress Winona. It’s fortunate that the Headmistress is so magnanimous…
Director Yashi’s seat was the fourth. The second seat was occupied by a man with a resolute and firm appearance. And in the center of the round table sat a blonde woman whose mere presence exuded sanctity and elegance. Adele didn’t dare to look directly at this behind-the-scenes power holder of the Eastern Capital, but even just a glimpse from the corner of her eye made her feel the woman’s unparalleled beauty. But beauty alone wasn’t enough to surprise the girl so much. What truly shocked Adele was a unique feature of the woman’s appearance: her pointed, slender ears.
This elegant feature…Adele could only think of one race: the legendary…elves!?
