Chapter 424 139 - Just a little showcase (part 1)

Chapter 424 139 - Just a little showcase (part 1)　　Zoemi didn't feel any better until the next day – where he was greeted at his door by an unexpected visitor.

"...what do I own the honor...?"

The black-haired boy asked the large man's abdomen before raising his head and glaring at his tanned face.

"Apparently you have been threatening me, boy."

Burdoff Mekhior Vereq, one of Aspakeony's corpse puppets serving as her Academy's current headmaster.

"Was that wrong?"

"..."

Zoemi smirked mockingly, making the corpse puppet squint his eyes and furrow his brows at such disrespectful behavior that Aspakeony never expected from the black-haired boy.

"You want to play a bad guy even in front of me?"

The necromancer asked through the mouth of her puppet – but Zoemi didn't budge at all at that comment.

"I'm only doing what is necessary."

The boy ended up shrugging his shoulders dismissively, supporting himself on the crystal cane while leaning to the side, away from the large-bodied man, in order to look at the hallway that was blocked by him...

"Many people came to me with complaints – it is slightly annoying but apparently a lot of people do not agree with the result of your mass duel from two days ago. They want a fair chance at you."

Aspakeony explained through Burdoff – which honestly made Zoemi relax a bit as he expected that she showed up in front of his room for a rather different reason than being a glorified messenger.

"That is pretty annoying – they went to bother you because they fear the repeat of the original duel then? They want to lose with an audience, huh, quite foolish if you ask me... although not particularly against my own wishes."

The boy nodded with an understanding expression before going back to a mocking smirk.

"Is this all? Sir?"

He added looking up at the corpse puppet who was far too big to be just called bulky anymore as if Aspakeony pumped him full of mana to enlarge him.

"To make the other students know what they are signing up for, there will be a little magic examination prepared just for you. Since I decided it would be the best way to deter other kids from getting hurt, today's there will be no lectures."

"..."

The corpse puppet revealed to which the black-haired boy reacted by lowering his head as if in an annoyed sigh...

|Connect me with her, please, little ones.|

"(Ay-ay!)"

Zoemi asked internally and his sentinel responded without a delay, connecting him directly to the gray-haired necromancer through the message spell.

|Aspy. There are three students and a teacher behind you, not even mentioning the five listening by the door, and you are making it really hard for me to play the role of a bad guy...! I am really grateful for all that you are doing for me, but if you go any further I will blush and ruin the performance, okay?|

"!!!"

Zoemi thought, which caused the corpse puppet, that the gray-haired girl was focusing her attention on, to flinch.

|Alright, I will continue being cheeky, but there's no need to butter me up, alright? I love you, but I am doing this to clear the first prince's name. I definitely didn't turn into a delinquent because of something you did, so let us move this show along.|

The boy added before taking a deep breath and straightening his back.

"Hmph. Good. I see those naive fools who can't see right from left are due to the little presentation. Then? When and where exactly should I show up for that examination?"

His acting was pretty much professional, with no trace of the warm feelings he conveyed in his thoughts becoming recognizable in his voice.

"...the same time that the second lecture would normally start, in the back of the dormitory, the same place that the magic examination for the first-year students takes place every year."

Aspakeony shook her head which translated to Burdoff shaking his and conveying the instructions after a moment of hesitation caused by the discord between what Zoemi spoke out loud and what she informed her through the message spell.

...not to mention that the gray-haired necromancer herself was deeply shocked that Zoemi's message spell could pass through the seal around her office. That alone should be possible only for her own magic and death attribute mana. The problem was that the message spell should not be possible to activate with death mana instead of wind one...

"Great. I hope you prepared a lot of ultra-long-range targets, or there might be some damage to the Academy's property."

Zoemi didn't wait for Aspakeony to figure out what exactly did he do, and moved past Burdoff's body slipping by what little space there was.

"I allow myself to leave now. Apparently, all the food you serve here is poisonous for me, so I might teleport back to my territory to grab a bite of something that doesn't want to kill me. But I will make sure to show up for the special magic examination."

He added raising his hand to wave goodbye without looking back at the figurehead headmaster and limped away supporting himself on his crystal cane.

"...wait, what...?!"

It took her embarrassingly long to realize that Zoemi wasn't actually joking or trying to be edgy, and only flinched and made Burdoff turn around when the flash of murky-black light announced the boy's disappearance.

------

"Sorry for the wait. On the bright side, you won't be late for the lectures because there won't be any today~!"

With a flash of a murky-black light, the black-haired boy showed up in the middle of the living room in the Banemor mansion and raised his hand towards the younger brown-haired girl who was nervously glancing towards the big grandfather clock by the wall.

"Big brother Zoemi!"

She cheered out and ran up to him for a hug which Zoemi return with a soft smile.

"Once again, sorry for shortening the tie you can spend with Horeo, but on the bright side, you will have the rest of the day free to hand out with him."

The black-haired boy nodded apologetically before affectionately tousling Patishi's hair.

"Don't apologize, big brother! I want to help you out! But... why are the lectures canceled...?"

Patishi shook her head while clinging to Zoemi and assured him, but then she tilted her head and asked curiously.

"Our good headmaster came up with an amazing idea to make others not pick fights with me – there will be an official magic examination just for me, free for everyone to see for themselves and decide whether it is worth challenging me to a duel~"

The boy explained while looking around the room curiously.

"By the way – did you have the chance to check on the food prepared here?"

He asked, picking on the noises of people approaching from behind the door leading to the kitchen that were unmistakably made by Burushi, Benevirau, and possibly even Arreta.

"Actually, I did."

"..."

Patishi nodded and her expression became serious to which Zoemi raised his brows and waited in silence for the continuation.

"You see, the difference between the ingredients and food, in general, that's available here and back in Aspakeony Academy is that I can't sense any intention from the food here..."

"...huh...?"

The younger girl explained lowering her head in embarrassment, making the black-haired boy let out a shocked voice.