Later that evening, Melrose sat alone in the Student Council President’s Office, her legs crossed as she idly toyed with the Crystal Ball in her hand.
Although she hadn’t locked the door, she wasn’t worried about anyone seeing her like this. No student would dare enter her office without knocking, and with classes nearly over, anyone with any sense wouldn’t come looking for her at this hour.
Yes, Melrose made a point of staying in the Student Council President’s Office until the end of the day every day outside of classes. To outsiders, it looked like she was dedicated and responsible—no one would suspect she was just putting on a show… but she knew the truth.
There was no helping it; she had to maintain the flawless image of an Imperial Princess in front of everyone. It wasn’t troublesome once she got used to it, but deep down, Melrose knew that the face she showed the world wasn’t her real self.
To put it simply, Princess Her Highness had quite the wild side in private.
Whatever. She decided to head out early anyway. She’d specifically chosen a free afternoon slot to audit Ximo’s class, but this little maidservant still hadn’t come looking for her. Was she deliberately avoiding her?
Just then, the sound of the door latch clicking made Melrose snap to attention on reflex. With lightning speed, she shoved the Crystal Ball into her usual drawer and straightened her posture.
Tch, who was this fool barging in without knocking… Oh, Ximo?
Ximo, panting heavily, only realized after pushing the door open that she should have knocked. It was all because she’d been in such a rush.
“Ah, Senior Melrose, sorry. I actually wanted to come find you this afternoon, but Instructor Shasta called me away for a long scolding. By the time I got out, classes were almost over. I was afraid you’d left already, and I didn’t know where the Student Council President’s Office was, so…”
“It’s fine. Find a seat wherever, Ximo.”
Melrose smiled warmly, but inwardly, she let out a quiet sigh of relief… That was close. She really needed to lock the door next time—students really did barge in recklessly.
“Senior Melrose, um…”
“You’re wondering why I wanted to see you, right?” Melrose straightened her back and leaned forward. “You know I didn’t tell the full truth about what happened in the Mist Forest, don’t you, Ximo?”
Ximo pondered inwardly. As expected, Melrose had summoned her about that. Did she have her eye on the Crystal Ball and want to keep it for herself…?
That was one of the possibilities Xiliya had suggested. If that was the case, Ximo thought it would be tricky—she had no leverage to refuse Melrose.
“Uh…” Ximo mumbled evasively. “I didn’t look into it much, so I’m not really sure. Is there a problem with that, Senior?”
“Your Crystal Ball is here with me right now. Do you know why I didn’t tell anyone about it?”
Melrose cut straight to the point. Ximo figured the next words out of her mouth would be about buying the Crystal Ball for some price, so she didn’t respond. But Melrose just sighed.
“You’re sometimes so innocently cute, Ximo. Surely you know the saying about not flaunting your wealth?”
“Not every student in the Academy is friendly. If some noble kid heard about it and got greedy for your Magitool, that would be trouble. You’ve heard the saying ‘an innocent man dies because of his priceless jade’—a famous quote from the Great Sage Gandalf.”
“But if I said I defeated the Forest Lord using a secret treasure given to me by the royals for self-defense, no one in the Academy would dare press me on the details… Sorry, I didn’t mean to steal your credit, Ximo.”
“I’ve been holding onto the Magitool for you until you had time to pick it up. I didn’t expect you to ghost me for so long.”
Melrose’s friendly attitude and words left Ximo momentarily stunned… So Melrose planned to just give it back to her? That meant she wasn’t behind Jackson’s rumors either?
“Ah, uh… Thanks so much, Senior Melrose…”
Melrose could tell Ximo was surprised. The corners of her mouth curved into a faint, imperceptible smile. Perfect. She needed to build the image of a gentle, caring senior in Ximo’s mind. That way, when Ximo eventually saw her true colors and realized she couldn’t escape, it would be all the more fun.
Ximo must have gained quite a bit of favorable impression toward her now… Melrose reached into the earlier drawer for the Crystal Ball, then suddenly pulled her hand back.
“Hm? What’s wrong, Senior Melrose?”
Ximo blinked. Melrose had just pulled out something round, but she hadn’t gotten a clear look. That didn’t seem like her Crystal Ball, though…?
“Ahem, nothing.”
Melrose quickly stuffed the item back into the drawer. That was close—her carefully crafted image as a good senior nearly crumbled in front of her junior. It was Ximo’s fault for bursting in like that, making her shove the Crystal Ball into the wrong drawer. She’d grabbed something that felt similar by mistake.
“Are you okay, Senior Melrose? Do you feel unwell?”
Guided by the principle of returning kindness tenfold, Ximo started to step forward to check on her, but Melrose stopped her.
“I’m fine! Really, you don’t need to move, Ximo. Just give me a second to find it.”
Damn it. In her panic earlier, the Crystal Ball had gotten tangled in a big bundle of thick ropes. She couldn’t make big movements with Ximo watching, so she had to tease it out bit by bit.
She shouldn’t have hidden so many little toys in the drawer! Normally, no one dared rummage through the Student Council President’s drawer, so it was actually pretty safe.
“Ahem, here you go, Ximo.”
In the end, she managed to hand over the Crystal Ball without further incident. Melrose breathed a quiet sigh of relief. They exchanged a few more pleasantries, and Ximo left.
Before leaving, Ximo had almost asked about Jackson, but she thought better of it. It probably had nothing to do with Melrose, and it wasn’t right to bother her with something like that, so she kept it to herself.
All in all, Melrose seemed like a decent person. There had been a weird vibe about her earlier, but she’d handed over the Crystal Ball without hesitation.
As Ximo pushed the door open and left… Could there be some misunderstanding between Xiliya and Melrose? Xiliya hadn’t gone into detail about what Melrose had done to her in their past life…
Once Ximo was far enough away that she wouldn’t return, Melrose finally relaxed and pulled out something resembling a Surveillance Monitor. She looked at the screen, where a small red dot was steadily moving, and nodded in satisfaction.
Perfect. The magic detection function was working fine too. Now she could track Ximo’s situation through the Crystal Ball she’d tampered with.
