Liam stepped into the director’s office right behind Pyra, feeling the door click shut behind them.
The room slled faintly of old books and coffee. Director Elena was already seated behind her wide desk, facing them.
She looked exhausted, shoulders slumped, eyes tired. As soon as they sat down, she let out a long sigh.
"A high-ranking succubus general just barged straight into Ark Academy," she said, almost to herself.
"How in the world am I supposed to explain this to the elders without them losing their minds?"
Liam t her gaze. "Director... thank you. For what you did back there. For saving ."
She gave a small, weary smile. "I did my duty, Liam. That’s all." Then the smile faded.
"Enough with the formalities and good words. Let’s talk about the real problem.
How the hell did a succubus stay inside these walls for so long without anyone noticing?"
Liam’s stomach twisted. He knew the answer, or at least part of it. V’s voice echoed in his head, casual and smug:
*I’m not the only one hiding here. There are others.* He clenched his jaw, debating whether to keep it to himself.
But hiding it felt worse now. He gritted his teeth and forced the words out.
"She told herself. Casually, like it was nothing. Said she isn’t the only succubus in the academy. There are more. Multiple."
Elena’s face hardened instantly. The friendly lines disappeared. She leaned forward, elbows on the desk.
"I don’t have ti to assemble a proper investigation team. Not with everything else going on."
Her eyes moved between Pyra and him. "Right now, the only two people in this room I can actually trust are you two."
Pyra stiffened next to him.
"I’m asking you to form a small duo," the director continued. "Just the two of you.
Watch for anything suspicious, students, staff, anyone who seems off. Investigate quietly. Report back only to ."
"No way," Pyra snapped imdiately. "I have actual academic studies to keep up with. Exams, projects, I don’t have ti to play detective."
Liam stayed quiet, but his mind was already racing in a different direction. He still needed to farm SP with Olivia and Beatrix.
Especially now. If V was telling the truth, and he believed she was, then she probably had her eyes on him more than anyone else.
The last thing he wanted was to run around chasing shadows when he could be getting stronger instead.
He shook his head slightly. "I... don’t know."
The director rubbed her forehead with two fingers, clearly fighting a headache. After a few seconds she looked up again.
"Alright. How about a compromise? If you do this, I’ll exempt you from one class of your choice. Any class."
Pyra’s eyebrow shot up. "Any class? You’re serious?"
Elena nodded. "One. That’s the limit."
Pyra chewed her lip for a second, then gave a short nod. "Fine. I can manage that."
The director turned to him. "And you, Liam?"
He thought about it. Exemption from a class sounded nice on paper, but honestly?
He didn’t care that much about skipping lectures. Most of them he could catch up on anyway.
"No," he said quietly.
Elena gave a small nod, like she’d expected it. "Too bad."
Then he felt Pyra’s hand tug his sleeve under the desk. She leaned in close, voice barely above a whisper. "Say yes, idiot."
He frowned and whispered back. "What’s in it for ? I don’t need the exemption."
She rolled her eyes, still keeping her voice low. "We can watch each other’s backs.
You really want to be out there alone with who-knows-how-many succubi running around? Especially after what V did to you?"
That hit harder than he wanted to admit. She had a point. He needed information, real information, about who else might be hiding here.
If there really were more of them, staying blind wasn’t going to keep him alive.
And having soone competent watching his back... yeah. That mattered.
He let out a slow breath and looked back at the director. "Fine. I’ll join the duo team."
Elena clapped her hands together once, sharp and relieved. "Great. That’s settled."
Pyra and he stood up. As they headed for the door, she glanced over at him. "Don’t forget, physical exam tomorrow."
He nodded. "Yeah. I rember."
They stepped outside the building. The afternoon air felt cooler than inside.
His body still ached in places he didn’t want to think about.
The mory of Rax and his little group smirking at him during the last physical flashed through his head, they’d loved seeing him struggle.
Tomorrow was probably going to be miserable.
Pyra gave him a quick nod. "See you then." Then she turned and headed off in the opposite direction.
He walked back to his dorm alone, legs heavy. Once inside, he dropped straight onto the bed without even kicking off his shoes.
He pulled up the skill interface in his vision and scrolled through it slowly.
Three SP. All from that night with V, making her co over and over until she finally broke.
Weird way to earn points, but he wasn’t complaining about the results.
His eyes stopped on one listing: **Minor Passive Strengthening**. The description was simple:
*Host’s body gradually strengthens the more they think critically and use their brain. Effect scales with ntal activity.*
Sounded harmless. Useful, even. Especially since he already had that old passive reading skill from before the entrance exam. Maybe they’d stack.
He hit purchase without thinking too hard. Three SP gone. Worth it, hopefully.
He rolled onto his side, pulled the blanket up, and closed his eyes. Sleep ca fast.
The next morning he woke up feeling... different. Not dramatically, but noticeably. He sat up, clenched his fist, then unclenched it.
His forearm looked the sa, but when he squeezed, the muscle felt denser. Firr. Like soone had turned the volu up just a little.
He flexed his hand again, testing it. A small grin tugged at his mouth despite everything.
Little did he know how much weirder that combination of skills was about to get.
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