Chapter 84: I Really Am Not a Member of the Red Moon Society

In the dormitory, Amelia took a cup of water and gulped it down, a cool sensation spreading through her throat.

Beside her, Eileen’s delicate brows were slightly furrowed. She said softly, “I never imagined the Red Moon Society would pursue us into White Maple Academy. It seems even here isn’t particularly safe. Miss Lily, please allow me to stay by your side from now on.”

“Maids and guards are not allowed inside the academic building,” Amelia said helplessly, setting down the cup.

“The academic building… a place so crowded and full of eyes, even the Red Moon Society can’t easily act there. I can wait outside the building. But everywhere else, please let me accompany you,” Eileen insisted.

“Eileen, regarding this man named Ron, I’ve already had Verna report him. You really don’t need to worry so much.”

“But who knows if the Red Moon Society really only sent one person? I still need to stay with you, Miss Lily.”

“Fine, fine.”

Seeing the look in Eileen’s eyes, Amelia knew she was being incredibly stubborn about this.

Come to think of it, was Eileen different now compared to when they had first left the castle in the Steele Kingdom? Back then, Eileen had followed her every order without question, no matter the command. Now, she had developed more of her own opinions.

Amelia didn’t find this a bad thing. After all, people should have their own thoughts.

Thinking this, Amelia smiled with satisfaction and patted Eileen on the shoulder. The gesture left Eileen utterly confused, unsure what had just happened.

==========

Ron sat in the teacher’s office, leisurely brewing himself a steaming pot of coffee and drinking it unhurriedly.

As he drank, he pondered his next move.

His private approach to Amelia had hit a slight snag, but that didn’t matter. As long as his identity remained uncompromised, he could stay at White Maple Academy for as long as he wished. He had plenty of time to accomplish his goals.

‘Heh, though my Red Moon Society is notorious, our methods are numerous. Even the people of the Luban Duchy wouldn’t dream that I’ve infiltrated White Maple Academy and become a teacher, right?’

He was filled with a touch of self-satisfaction, a feeling that everything was under his control.

Just then…

Boom!

The office door was slammed open, and a group of people marched directly inside.

The sudden intrusion made the other teachers in the office look up, their faces marked with confusion.

“This is a Security Office matter.”

The person leading the intruders was a woman with a purple side ponytail. She was none other than Daphne Melville, the head of the Security Office.

Behind Daphne followed individuals dressed in standardized red uniforms, a familiar sight that immediately identified them as Security Office personnel.

“What is the meaning of this? Even if you are from the Security Office, you can’t just barge in here. Is knocking not a thing? It’s basic common courtesy!” an elderly, white-haired man wearing glasses stood up and spoke indignantly.

“Hmm? Are you speaking to me?” Daphne’s gaze swept over the man, a cold aura naturally emanating from her body.

As the head of the Security Office and a High-Rank Apostle, her patron deity was the Hymn of Ice and Fire. She was currently proficient in ice and snow abilities, allowing her to radiate piercing cold at will.

As this cold aura spread, the elderly man instantly felt immense pressure and subconsciously retreated several steps.

The old man was the most respected teacher in the office. Seeing him react this way, the other teachers didn’t dare say a word, watching nervously as Daphne walked past.

Daphne came directly to a stop in front of Ron.

Seeing her walk straight toward him, Ron’s heart sank.

“You are Ron Jopar?” Daphne asked, a faint, unreadable smile on her face.

“This Constable, I think you must be mistaken. My name is Weber, not Ron,” Ron replied, doing his utmost to maintain a calm exterior.

But even if his face was calm, his heart was in turmoil.

He had no idea how he had been exposed. He had only just entered White Maple Academy, so how had the Security Office tracked him down so quickly?

Furthermore, was she absolutely certain of his identity, or was she not?

“Weber? Hmph, spare me the chatter. You’re coming to the Security Office for a talk.”

As Daphne spoke, she swiftly reached out and grabbed Ron’s arm, moving so fast he had no time to react.

The moment her hand closed around his arm, her expression changed. “This isn’t right. This isn’t a real person. This is a Corpse Golem, a death-type ability. You are definitely suspicious.”

Daphne’s eyes suddenly lit up.

In an instant, the cold aura surrounding her intensified dramatically, covering the surface of Ron’s body with a thin layer of frost.

But it was already too late.

In that moment, Ron’s expression became vacant, and the light in his eyes gradually faded.

Even his appearance began to change rapidly, transforming from a gentleman’s form into a stranger: a pale face, bloodless lips.

Standing before Daphne was no longer Ron, but a corpse.

“He escaped? Find him!”

Daphne snorted coldly, spun around, and barked orders to her constables.

==========

In the teacher’s dormitory at White Maple Academy, Ron, who was lying on his bed, shot upright, his face grim.

Within the branch of death-type abilities, there was a skill that allowed one to transform a corpse into a Corpse Golem. The golem would look exactly like the user, acting and speaking according to the user’s will, effectively serving as a body double.

Ron had mastered this ability.

After infiltrating White Maple Academy, he had never used his real body in the open, instead letting the Corpse Golem act in his stead.

Normally, it was very difficult for others to distinguish between the golem and the real person, but that constable had identified the difference so easily, leading to his complete exposure. This could only mean her rank was incredibly high.

That woman was definitely a High-Rank Apostle!

A sense of urgency filled Ron’s heart.

How he had been exposed was no longer important. What mattered was what he should do in this situation.

He severed his connection with the Corpse Golem so the Security Office couldn’t trace him, but time was running out. He had to leave White Maple Academy immediately. The academy would soon be under a strict lockdown by the Security Office.

But leaving just like that… it wouldn’t be easy to infiltrate again later. Even as a Mid-Rank Apostle, a place like White Maple Academy wasn’t somewhere he could come and go as he pleased.

‘All current clues point to this person, Lily Hicks. If I leave now, investigating her further will be difficult. If she truly is suspicious, she won’t easily leave White Maple Academy… In that case.’

His mind raced, and he quickly came to a decision.

Acting without having clarified everything posed a significant risk, but he didn’t have the luxury of time.

Sometimes in life, taking a gamble was unavoidable.

==========

In the dormitory.

Amelia sat before the vanity, tugging at her long hair. Seeing that the hair dye hadn’t faded in the slightest even after all this time, she had to marvel at the miraculous nature of the alchemy potion.

Knock, knock, knock.

A knock came at the door.

Before Amelia could get up, Eileen had already gone to open it.

Outside, as expected, was Verna.

“Verna, what brings you here again? Didn’t we just see each other not too long ago?” Amelia asked, slightly surprised.

“I came, naturally, to update you on the progress,” Verna said as she walked in, her low red ponytail swaying behind her.

“Progress?”

“Yes, I had someone report Ron. The Security Office has even arrived at White Maple Academy. How’s that for efficiency?”

Verna spoke with a touch of pride.

She had always marveled at the efficiency Amelia displayed, genuinely approving of it, believing that the speed of getting things done determined success.

So this time, she had also focused on efficiency, completing her task in a very short time.

“That’s surprisingly fast. How did you manage it?” Amelia was indeed a bit surprised.

Verna, gratified by Amelia’s expression, smiled and said, “I simply had someone go directly to the Security Office and report that they had accidentally overheard Ron mentioning key terms related to the Red Moon Society. Simple and blunt.”

One had to know, the words “Red Moon Society” were extremely sensitive in the Luban Duchy right now. So while the method seemed crude, its effect was remarkably potent.

“You had one of your people make the report? Could that draw the Security Office’s attention to you?” Amelia asked after thinking for a moment.

“Relax, the person who made the report isn’t strictly one of my people.”

“Not strictly?”

“That fellow is just someone whose handle I have a grip on. He doesn’t even know my true identity. I simply used what I know to coerce him into making the report.”

Verna offered a brief explanation.

This way, even if the Security Office traced the report back to that person, they would only discover he was ordered to report Ron by a mysterious individual. Who that mysterious person was, they would never know.

Amelia nodded in understanding. “I see. So, it looks like all we need to do now is wait for the results?”

Amelia relaxed.

But just as she did, she noticed the number of bullet comments before her eyes suddenly increase. Her attention involuntarily focused on them.

[A Corpse Golem? This ability always grosses me out. Controlling a corpse and making it look like you… doesn’t it creep him out?]

[For someone from the Red Moon Society, that’s standard operating procedure.]

[Daphne’s actually quite good-looking. She has a real presence about her, hehehe.]

[Ron just got away like that? Isn’t he going to cause more trouble?]

[Is this Ron guy trying to scheme against Amelia?]

[Oh no, Ron is heading towards the dormitory. The teacher’s dorm and the student dorm aren’t that far apart.]

[Don’t worry, Eileen is there. What’s Ron to her?]

[But if a fight suddenly breaks out, it might expose Amelia’s identity. Wouldn’t that be a much bigger threat than Ron himself?]

Watching the barrage of comments fly past her eyes, Amelia’s heart tightened.

Ron had escaped from the Security Office?

And this guy was coming for her? Planning to capture her before making his escape?

Without a moment’s hesitation, Amelia spoke. “Eileen, Verna, let’s go out.”

“Are you going to class? With the issue regarding Ron, the Harp Class should be temporarily suspended. But going there makes sense; after all, you shouldn’t have known in advance that classes are canceled.”

Verna didn’t think much of it.

Amelia, Eileen, and Verna then left the student dormitory.

However, Amelia didn’t head toward the academic building. Instead, she walked in another direction, toward the White Maple Forest.

The forest was dense with branches and leaves, layers of white maple leaves overlapping. From a distance, one might even mistake it for a blanket of snow—chillingly beautiful.

Usually, many people came to the White Maple Forest to admire the scenery, but so close to class time, it was naturally deserted.

“Amelia, what are you planning?” Seeing Amelia heading for the forest, Verna immediately sensed something was off.

“I’m taking precautions.”

“Precautions?”

Verna seemed slightly confused.

“Yes,” Amelia said calmly. “Although we reported Ron and got the Security Office on his trail, we can’t be certain that Ron is the only person the Red Moon Society sent, can we? What if the Society has others? If they discover Ron has been compromised, might they not take a desperate risk and come after me? So, I think staying in the dormitory or going to class isn’t safe. It’s better to change locations for a while.”

This was an excuse Amelia concocted to placate Verna.

But to Verna’s ears, it actually sounded quite reasonable.

“You’re right. In that case…”

“Something’s wrong.”

Before Verna could finish, Eileen suddenly interrupted her.

Amelia and Verna both looked at Eileen.

Eileen lowered her head and said softly, “I sense that someone is watching us. They’ve been watching since we left the dormitory. The level of threat in that gaze suggests a Mid-Rank Apostle.”

“Pretend nothing’s wrong,” Amelia said unhurriedly. “Then, a surprise attack. Take them out quickly.”

Verna looked at the two girls in astonishment.

Eileen could actually gauge the strength of their stalker just by the sensation of their gaze?

And Amelia’s calm composure also amazed her. It was as if she had known someone was targeting them all along.

Amelia continued unhurriedly, “Whoever it is, since they have malicious intent, they need to be dealt with first. Verna, we’ll need you to set up a barrier so our fight isn’t detected.”

“Understood.” Verna nodded.