Chapter 82
Chapter 82
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 82 – Lan Qi’s Absolute Justice
At the far end of the black mist blanketing the botanical garden, a shadowy figure stood—like a sovereign upon a dark reef. Only the dazzling radiance of his body and his twin emerald eyes glowing faintly through the fog were vividly clear.
He sighed softly, and his gentle voice followed—
“Why must you make this Headmaster work overtime?”
In his hand was a book, as if he had simply come to substitute for a lesson.
“...!!”
Cultist Lilaite instantly forgot about Huperion. A crushing sense of danger crawled up from her toes to engulf her entire body, making the very air of the garden feel unbearably heavy.
Normally—
Even if one broke classroom rules, so long as the Headmaster did not patrol, there would be no issue.
And this Headmaster rarely ever patrolled such lower-tier classrooms!
Only earlier had a special mechanism been triggered that forced the Headmaster’s presence.
But now, with the mission target of this Shadow World already complete—
By the logic of most Shadow Worlds, a demon of this level should have no reason to act further!
Yet at this moment, Lilaite felt with icy certainty: it wasn’t just Huperion who had to escape this classroom.
Under the Headmaster’s hunt, survival meant enduring the last ten minutes of the Shadow World until returning alive to reality!
The silver monstrosity [Immortal Mercury], which had been blocking the door, was now locked in a violent clash with the demonic Director who had blasted open the gates moments ago.
And beside the Headmaster stood two more fifth-tier demon instructors.
Lilaite was confident she could break through those two.
But the true terror was that enigmatic demon Headmaster—the one even high-ranking professors bowed to.
His magic was controlled with terrifying precision: so faint and steady she could scarcely sense it.
Which left only two possibilities:
Either his magic was truly weak.
Or—he was so skilled at control that his power far surpassed hers.
It was obvious which answer fit this Headmaster.
The sacred yet eerie glow of his figure blocked the exit like a towering wall of despair, utterly insurmountable.
As Lilaite faltered, unsure how to proceed—Huperion, bloodied and desperate, sprinted full-force straight toward the Headmaster.
“Foolish…”
A reckless act of a cornered animal rushing to death—Lilaite naturally made no move to stop her.
She had already decided her priority was survival, perhaps abandoning her mission to kill the Duke’s daughter.
But now, if the Duke’s daughter rushed to her own death, it suited her all the better.
A demon wielding such absolute authority would not care who was truly at fault. All three students bore the marks of combat—it was enough grounds for erasure.
Yet—
Just as Lilaite expected the Headmaster or his teachers to strike Huperion down—
She watched in disbelief as the Headmaster allowed Huperion to approach without lifting a hand!
“?”
Shock tore through her as she stared at the glowing silhouette.
She remembered this Headmaster—back in his office, he had emanated the same harmless air.
And that was what unnerved her the most.
For the more a demon appeared kind, rational, and serene, the more likely they were to harbor humanly unfathomable extremes of madness.
From afar, seeing Huperion safe at the Headmaster’s side, Lan Qi finally flipped open his book again, reading as if nothing around him warranted attention.
His nonchalance made it seem as though the fifth-tier assassin before him was hardly worth acknowledging.
“Student, please describe what has happened in this classroom.”
Lan Qi spoke gently while still gazing at his book, his voice directed toward Huperion.
“…”
Huperion hesitated, then seemed to grasp his intent.
“They killed the demon instructor and all the students in this classroom.”
Her fearful eyes turned toward Lilaite and the shadow warlock at her side, her voice trembling as she spoke.
“You two—do you have anything to say?”
Lan Qi kept his eyes lowered, calmly turning a page as he questioned the cultists.
“...No!”
Lilaite instantly suppressed her urge to risk everything on a breakout. The Headmaster’s neutral tone was hope itself.
Of course, every Shadow World held its rules. Even with the Headmaster here, there must be a mechanism to survive—there was still a chance.
Her goal was now to stall—to last these final minutes until escape.
Even if she failed to trick the mechanism, dragging out the conversation might secure her survival.
“It was her—the one behind you! She broke the classroom rules, summoned that silver creature to murder the instructor, then sealed the door to kill us all and steal our credit coins!”
Lilaite spoke with righteous fury, as though she could not stand to see Huperion’s pitiful act.
“I see…”
Lan Qi’s voice was almost distracted, as though the book in his hands mattered far more than their lives.
From the moment he entered, the positioning of the combatants had indeed looked like a prolonged stalemate—Huperion and the silver abomination against Lilaite and the warlock.
“Do you have anything to refute?”
He asked Huperion next.
“They’re lying! That silver summon isn’t mine—I… I could never summon something like that.”
Tears streaked Huperion’s voice as she threw herself into the act.
It wasn’t her style.
But to match Lan Qi’s game, she had no choice but to play along.
She understood—Lan Qi had rushed here without enough time to summon more demon teachers.
Many were surely still on their way.
His leisurely air, his focus on his book—it was all theater, meant to buy time.
Meanwhile—
Lilaite secretly directed [Immortal Mercury] to feign escape attempts, choreographing a scene where it attacked her as though they were enemies.
Seeing Huperion flounder in panic, her confidence grew—she might just convince the Headmaster.
“Headmaster, you can have the Director stop restraining the silver familiar. Then we’ll see who it attacks first when free of command!”
She knew it might not fool him.
But compared to Huperion, she had overwhelming control of the stage. She had many ways to frame her foe.
“...Both sides tell different stories, and indeed there is no hard evidence. From what I hear, though, I lean toward the latter—it does seem you two have been locked in a two-on-two struggle for quite some time.”
Lan Qi spoke unhurriedly.
“In that case, I don’t wish to waste more time. Whoever helps the Director deal with this silver familiar—I’ll take their word as truth.”
His tone suggested mild fatigue, as though eager only to return to his reading.
At his words, Huperion froze.
The trap was finally revealed.
She knew it—Lan Qi was once again playing mind games!