Free Web NovelChapter 238: A Warning From An Old Friend
Arveth gave a small bow before lifting his head again.
There was respect in his posture, though not the stiff kind shown by most instructors. Having worked beside the Chancellor for many years, he knew better than anyone that formalities beyond what was needed only wasted time.
"I did not expect to find you watching the first year examination yourself," he said with a faint smile. "It is not often you take interest in an event like this. I believe this is the second time in many years, is it not?"
Ophelia regarded him in silence, her tranquil gaze betraying not the slightest ripple of emotion.
"Indeed," she answered. "It has been many years."
Then, she offered no further explanation; she had neither the habit nor the desire to indulge in needless conversation.
"I assume that is not why you came," she said. "Tell me what you have to report."
Arveth inclined his head before the trace of a smile upon his face quietly vanished. Reaching beneath his cloak, he carefully retrieved a sealed envelope, handling it with unusual caution.
"Earlier today, an anonymous enchanted letter attempted to pass through the vessel’s protective barrier," he said. "The spell concealing it was impressive, but it was not enough to escape detection."
He lowered his gaze to the envelope for a moment.
"It was intercepted by the Grand Warden of the Magic Barrier, who oversees the vessel’s magical defenses. After examining the enchantment, he discovered that the letter was intended for you."
Taking a step forward, Arveth presented the envelope with both hands. "Judging the matter to be beyond his authority, he entrusted it to me so I could deliver it to you personally."
An anonymous enchanted letter addressed to her?
That alone narrowed the list of possible senders.
There were scarcely any individuals capable of delivering an enchanted letter directly to her, and even fewer who would deliberately shroud their identity behind anonymity.
Such a peculiar habit was, in truth, rather familiar.
One name soon came to mind.
’Haa... it must be from him.’
If her guess was right, then the letter had come from someone she had not heard from in many years.
Because of that, it piqued her interest.
Without a word, she lightly flicked a finger.
The envelope slipped from Arveth’s hands before gliding across the room and landing gently upon her desk.
"Thank you," Ophelia said.
"There is no need for thanks," Arveth replied with a respectful nod. "If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave."
Ophelia gave a slight nod.
Without another word, Arveth turned toward the door.
Ophelia watched the door close behind Arveth before her attention gradually returned to the envelope resting upon her desk.
’I wonder... what nonsense has that fool written this time?’
Calmly, she made her way to the desk before settling into her chair. Before breaking the seal, she extended her perception across the parchment once more.
Every layer of the enchantment unfolded clearly beneath her senses. No curse had been woven into its fibers. No hidden spell lingered beneath the seal, nor was there the slightest trace of a concealed trap.
Aside from the familiar mana sustaining the delivery enchantment, the envelope appeared entirely innocuous.
Only after satisfying herself did Ophelia unseal the envelope and withdraw the letter within.
Her violet eyes lowered to the page as she began to read.
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To Ophelia Dumblelore,
Well, well... it has been quite some time, hasn’t it?
I wonder if you still wear that same grumpy face wherever you go. I swear, if someone carved a statue of you a hundred years ago, I doubt anyone could tell the difference today.
So, tell me, how has life treated you as Chancellor? Have those troublesome scholars managed to give you a headache? Ah, though knowing you, I imagine you are the one who’s giving them headaches. I almost feel sorry for them.
===============
The moment she read the first few lines, Ophelia let out a resigned sigh.
She no longer needed to guess who had written the letter — only one person would greet her in such an infuriating manner.
’That fool still hasn’t changed.’
Shaking her head, she continued reading.
===============
Anyway, you have never been fond of listening to me ramble. Therefore, I’ll spare you the nonsense. So first and foremost, FUCK you!
I was damn right!
The damn demon still exists, you ignorant fool.
For fucking years, I have chased one clue after another, hoping I was wrong and you were right. Unfortunately for both of us, the prophecy was right!
The demon will return. And I am not fucking joking this time, or ever was BEFORE!
Believe me, I wish I were crazy!
But the old prophecy is turning out to be annoyingly true now, which means you owe me an apology. I know you will never say it, so I shall graciously accept your silence as an admission that I was right.
Now, before your grumpy self decides to burn this letter because I called you an ignorant fool, keep reading.
This letter has only been sent to the handful of people I still trust. That list keeps shrinking every months, which is honestly depressing and scary.
Some of our people and friends have already been replaced.
We still have no idea how they are doing it, but somehow Demons can steal another person’s identity so perfectly that even those who have lived beside them for decades cannot notice a thing.
Creepy, isn’t it?
I have started questioning whether half the people I know are actually themselves.
But not you, Ophelia.
Not you.
There is simply no way a demon could ever replace The Grumpy Ophelia Dumblelore. They might copy your ugly face, your infuriating voice, and even your tyrannical mana. But the disguise would fall apart instantly. You are far too unbearable to imitate, my dearest friend, and I mean that as the highest compliment I can give.
That is exactly why I am telling you all of this.
Be careful.
The Demons may have already slipped into your academy without anyone realizing it. Perhaps someone among your staff has been replaced. Perhaps one of your scholars too.
But I know you are not the type to panic, so don’t.
Just stop taking things at face value. Until we discover how they perform this little trick, doubt everything that seems too ordinary.
Oh, and before this old fool forgets again, there is another matter.
We recently stumbled across a secret organization calling itself the Cleansing Flames. They also seem to be searching for the truth behind the demon’s existence.
We are keeping an eye on them for now. If they prove trustworthy, perhaps we will have new allies. If not... well, at least that will answer one question.
That should be everything I wanted to say.
Take care of yourself, granny.
I would hate to discover that my friend has disappeared before I get the chance to annoy her again.
Your Great Gorgeous Handsome Friend,
Lukas Chavolet
==============
Ophelia’s eyes lingered upon the final line of the letter.
Not a single change appeared upon her face. Even the hand holding the letter did not tremble in the slightest.
’The demon still exist...’
She repeated that in her mind.
Lukas rarely joked about matters of this magnitude.
If he had gone so far as to send an enchanted letter after years without contact, then he must have exhausted every other possibility before arriving at this conclusion.
Her fingers gently folded the letter before setting it neatly upon the desk.
Only then did she rise from her chair and walk back toward the great window overlooking the endless darkness.
The same boundless blackness stretched before her, hiding the island beneath its veil.
Somewhere below, hundreds of scholars continued their examination, blissfully unaware that a danger far greater than the test itself might already be moving among them.
Ophelia quietly narrowed her eyes.
"If your warning is true..." she murmured.
"...then the fate of humanity is about to change once again."
Ophelia withdrew her gaze from the endless darkness beyond the window before slowly invoking a spell.
[Warped]
The space around her distorted without a sound. In the blink of an eye, her figure faded from the chamber.
Only the folded letter remained upon the desk.
The next moment, Ophelia stepped out from a distortion of space elsewhere within the colossal vessel.
She had arrived before the Control Chamber, the place where the instructors gathered throughout the examination to observe every scholar upon Vazrun Island.
Without slowing her pace, Ophelia walked toward the entrance.
The heavy doors parted on their own the moment she approached, and the quiet discussions inside gradually gave way to silence as those within noticed the chancellor’s unexpected arrival.
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[Chapter 238: A Warning From An Old Friend
