Lilith lay motionless in Wang Yue’s arms, her complexion sallow and the light in her eyes fading. She looked like a dying golden lark.
Wang Yue held her hand, trying to offer some warmth, but Lilith’s fingers were as cold as icicles. No matter how long she held them, they refused to warm up.
Lilith’s lips trembled, her voice barely a whisper. “Thank you…”
A heavy weight settled in Wang Yue’s chest. Beyond the immediate sorrow, she felt a nagging sense of dread. How was she supposed to face Lilith in three days?
The first day was the abandoned garden.
The second day was moving dorms and telling ghost stories.
The third day was… today.
This meant that after midnight, Lilith would…
I absolutely cannot let Lilith know the Headmaster and I are in cahoots, or there’s going to be a massive problem. It’s time to put my acting skills to the test…
Wang Yue felt a wave of trepidation. The day passed in an atmosphere of grief and internal conflict. When the hollow silver leaves of the Moon Clock reached full bloom, midnight arrived.
The golden-haired girl in her arms grew colder by the second. On the verge of passing, she spoke in broken fragments.
“If only… I could have kissed you sooner… wouldn’t have had to… wait so long… Wang Yue… I…”
The light of life dimmed, like a vivid painting losing its color, like the fading resonance of a dark dusk gradually dissolving into nothingness.
Lilith’s voice cut off abruptly.
Wang Yue’s heart sank. In her mind, she could almost hear the ticking of a time bomb.
However, the expected passing into the underworld did not occur. Instead, Lilith’s vision gradually cleared, and her fatigue and weakness receded like a falling tide.
Lilith stood up, swaying as if recovering from a hangover. She looked around, her expression filled with confusion.
“Huh?”
She clenched and unclenched her fists, realizing her strength had returned.
A realization seemed to strike her. Her pupils contracted, and her eyes narrowed into two dangerous, resentful slits. She whipped her head around and locked her gaze on Wang Yue!
Wang Yue feigned the perfect amount of surprise. “Eh? What’s happening?”
“The Principal lied to me. I wasn’t sick at all—she set me up!” Lilith gnashed her teeth, stomping her foot in a fit of rage. “A dignified Hush-Name Witch, bullying a student? What kind of skill is that?”
She let out a sharp cry. “Gwendolyn Elliot! I know you can hear me! I’m going to settle this score with you!”
After shouting, she turned back to glare at Wang Yue, questioning her sternly. “Are you two in this together?”
“Uh, ababa ababa…” Wang Yue played dumb, babbling incoherently.
“Tell the truth!” Lilith’s voice was icy, brimming with irritation and resentment.
Wang Yue hesitated. After a long silence, she nodded and answered honestly. “I only found out on the second day. The Principal told me to…”
“How cunning of you, Wang Yue,” Lilith said, her voice dripping with deep exhaustion and disappointment. “Even after I kissed you, you still weren’t willing to tell me the truth? Did you want to taste the despair I felt on the brink of death? Did you want to nourish yourself on my destruction?”
Every word was like a dagger to the heart. Wang Yue felt choked by the accusations. “I’m sorry…” she murmured.
Lilith suddenly reached out to her, opening her fingers to reveal the Kwaiken. She gritted her teeth. “Take it back. We’re finished!”
Wang Yue stood dazed, her chest heaving as she struggled to breathe. She raised her hand halfway, but her fingers trembled, resisting the urge to touch the weapon.
“What’s wrong? You don’t want to sever our bond of friendship?”
Lilith had reverted to her old, cold, and sharp persona. Her gaze carved into Wang Yue’s face as she demanded, “Speak!”
Wang Yue finally took a deep breath and said slowly, “When I was with you, I was truly happy.”
If I back down now, everything I’ve done will be for nothing. Not only will my previous words be wasted, but it will only incite Lilith’s desire to torment me further.
Wang Yue gritted her teeth and reached forward. Just as her fingertips were about to touch the Kwaiken…
A flash of panic flickered in Lilith’s eyes. With a magician’s “Snap Deal” flick of her fingers, the Kwaiken vanished. Then, her left hand swept through the air in a feint.
Wang Yue’s eyes didn’t track the feint for a second. Without being misled, she accurately grabbed the right hand where the blade was hidden. Her soft fingers slipped into Lilith’s palm, just touching the hard object…
Lilith quickly pressed her thumb, and the Kwaiken shot out of her palm. Her left hand swung back to snatch it out of the air.
The two of them went back and forth, frantically wrestling for the item.
“Hey! Didn’t you say you were giving it back to me?”
“Then come and take it!”
“You’re so tricky, Lilith!”
“Humph, you’re the one who’s the master of deception!”
…
Wang Yue failed to reclaim her Kwaiken and ended up exhausted.
Although Lilith held the upper hand, she couldn’t keep the game going forever. Eventually, the two parted on bad terms.
Wang Yue packed her things and moved back to Room 202.
Over the next few days, she worked on repairing Prima’s legs, continued her school curriculum, read in the library, and handled various mundane tasks.
Soon, the weekend arrived.
As usual, Wang Yue went to the Quicksand Lowlands to meet Ed-Bear and synchronize their memories for the week. By editing the footage—trimming the beginning and end and stitching together a fabricated narrative—she prepared the data to be transmitted to Bishop Elliot the following week.
However, her rare moment of leisure was interrupted by a small note from the Church.
Wang Yue quietly unfurled the slip of paper, her brow furrowed. Has the Church already planted agents right next to the school?
She headed to the location mentioned in the note. This time, her contact wasn’t Tarantula, but a small, thin individual.
The man wore an inconspicuous grey uniform, though his appearance was exceptionally tidy. His eyes held a dull, dim light, and his cheeks were deeply sunken, giving him an unsightly, leaden-grey complexion. His lips were pressed tightly together like a sealed zipper—he was clearly a man who kept his mouth shut.
Code name: “Ash.”
Wang Yue and Ash sat at two adjacent square tables, back-to-back, pretending to be strangers who had happened to sit near each other.
There were too many students around on the weekend, making it easy for their meeting to be spotted. Even with these precautions, it wasn’t entirely safe.
“Why come all the way here?” Wang Yue whispered.
“The situation has changed. We need to accelerate the operation… I brought the item.”
Ash’s voice was as unremarkable as his appearance. Even if one tried to memorize his face, the image would blur and dissipate like smoke within moments.
Wang Yue observed him for a while, concluding that this new guy was a hundred times more professional than Tarantula. He was definitely a master spy.
“Is it Special Grade?” she asked softly.
“Yes.”
An inconspicuous small paper bundle was placed on the stool beside Wang Yue.
“Then I won’t be polite.”
Wang Yue reached out, grabbed it, and stuffed it into her pocket, feeling delighted. She had leeched another Special Grade Relic for free.
Ash gave a low warning. “Do not let it be seen.”
Wang Yue nodded vigorously. That went without saying. The Church’s Special Grade Relics were items they had taken from the City of Enoch during the Great Schism, stained with the blood of their former comrades. The Church had used them ever since, and every single one had a traceable history.
If she were caught with it and couldn’t explain its origin, her cover would be blown instantly.
Through her pocket, her fingers felt the outline of a key. She wasn’t sure what it was yet.
Having secured the item, she became a bit distracted, wanting nothing more than to find a private place to “unboxing” her delivery.
“It will help you avoid prying eyes so you can uncover the truth and report back to us…” Ash began instructing her to investigate the academy’s secrets.
“I will not fail the mission,” Wang Yue replied perfunctorily before leaving.
Inside a private room at a post station, Wang Yue locked the door. She opened the paper bundle on the desk, revealing a strange-looking key.
The material appeared to be green glaze, with a vibrant luster. The handle curled like a chameleon’s tail, and the bit was twisted and grotesque, covered in prism-like scales.
She communicated with White Fish, describing its appearance. She soon identified it as a Special Grade Relic known as the “Chameleon Key.”
