"Why did you go quiet?"
"...I'll need to read a bit more before I can offer an objective assessment of this Miss Talia."
Just picturing Talia curled up in an armchair reading the paper, nibbling on snacks, and sipping tea made Lanqi afraid of shattering Zestira's illusions.
She truly was different from other demons. Her greatest desire was simply good food. It was only due to her dignity and restraint as a princess that no other demon had ever discovered this. As far as other demons were concerned, she was an unassailable holy demon who had completely eradicated all demonic weaknesses.
In reality, after coming to the Hutton royal capital and adopting the unknown human identity of "Tata," she had completely given up on trying.
Having found bliss here, she had no thoughts of home.
Oh boy. Whatever happened, Talia must never find out that he knew she was Talia.
Otherwise, the sheer social death would probably drive her to drag him down into the grave with her.
Still, as long as he didn't bring a few of her old great demon acquaintances back to the Southern Continent to gawk at her leisurely new life, her embarrassment shouldn't be entirely fatal.
"By the way... are you even allowed to say you admire the demon race out loud?" Lanqi asked, puzzled.
The Empire was currently on edge; public hostility toward other races had reached a peak unseen in recent years.
"Are you going to report me?"
Like Talia, Zestira rarely phrased her questions with an inquisitive tone.
"No."
Lanqi and Frey often chatted about dangerous topics as well.
"Then there's no problem."
In short, once she decided to trust Lanqi, she had no intention of hiding anything. Just like her father, if you trust someone, don't doubt them; if you doubt someone, don't trust them.
"I really do admire Talia. Sadly, no one knows whether she's still alive or where she went," Zestira remarked with rare regret.
"If she is alive and doing wonderfully right now, what would you want to do?" Lanqi rested his hand on the book cover, musing for a moment.
For some inexplicable reason, he felt that his trajectory since arriving on the Northern Continent was reenacting how Talia had first met him.
Clinging to a wealthy patron's coattails, becoming a private tutor, securing an identity, following a student to the Imperial Capital's magic academy...
However, he was different from Tata in one respect.
He was always talking about wanting to retire, but once his drive got going, he tended to see things through to the end. Talia, on the other hand, appeared ambitious on the surface, but all she truly wanted was to retire.
"I'd want to seek her guidance, learn from her how to become a truly rational demon. I dream of gaining her knowledge and teachings," Zestira answered without the slightest hesitation.
"You don't want to be human?" Lanqi asked in surprise.
After spending so much time around Hyperion, he had assumed that half-demons or ancestral demons raised in human nations, having suffered endless discrimination, would want to be accepted as human.
He hadn't expected Zestira to say such a thing.
"No. I want to become a great demon."
Zestira looked directly at Lanqi, perfectly composed.
Right and wrong could be argued, but prejudice offered no remedy. She might as well follow her heart and openly be a demon.
Yet she quickly realized she had said too much; she should have kept quiet.
Hearing something like that, even someone as gentle and friendly as Lanqi would surely feel a little wary of her.
After all, her stance was exceedingly radical.
Sitting across from her, Lanqi indeed fell silent for a moment.
"In that case, you'll first have to take back the ancestral lands of the demon race... Otherwise, there won't be a Demon King or ancestral spirits around to bestow the title upon you. A great demon isn't just an honorary title, after all; it's the supreme recognition among demons, not something granted by mere word of mouth. From my perspective, if you want to achieve this dream, your first step must be investigating and consolidating the remaining strength of the demon race, then preparing to reclaim their heritage..."
Lanqi rested his chin on his gloved hand, analyzing the matter with utter earnestness.
"..."
For the first time, Zestira felt that this man from the Southern Continent was a little terrifying.
Why did it feel like he wanted to restore the demon nation even more than she did...? For a fleeting second, she even wondered what kind of creature was hiding beneath Lanqi's human skin.
What was more, she had only been daydreaming, but this guy looked like the type who actually meant business.
On second thought, however, disguise magic could not pass the Empire's security checks. He shouldn't have any spell disguising him as a human.
Besides, humans generally didn't need to disguise themselves as humans. That was common sense.
"All right, let's talk about the rules and precautions at the academy instead."
Zestira raised a hand of her own accord, cutting Lanqi off.
Their discussion of the Holy War ended right there, because Zestira sensed that Lanqi's remarks were far more dangerous than the topic she had started.
Zestira looked out the window. Everything outside was quiet save for the train's low thrumming along the tracks. The silhouetted mountains against the horizon stood vast and varied, towering and solid, with scattered lights flickering among them like fireflies.
She pondered for a moment.
"Once you follow me into the academy, you must be careful. There are safe zones protected by barriers where no one is permitted to raise a hand. There are rule-bound zones where students of the same grade can fight. And there are completely unrestricted danger zones, where nothing carries legal liability. When I register your retainer paperwork later, you'll sign an agreement. I'm telling you this in advance: whatever you do, never wander into an unsafe zone, no matter how much you're provoked or tempted."
Zestira emphasized her warning.
Luoqi was weak. Since she had brought him along, she had a duty to protect him.
"Also, leaving the academy grounds is forbidden except on weekends. If a student doesn't return before Monday, they lose a substantial number of academic credits. And if a retainer isn't back by Monday, they won't be allowed back inside until the following weekend."
She added another rule.
These were the most basic academy regulations.
"Understood," Lanqi nodded in response.
Closed campus management. Excellent.
"Is it like this at schools in the Southern Continent too?" Zestira wondered why Lanqi accepted it so naturally, as if he didn't find such an academy stifling in the least.
She had heard that the Southern Continent didn't have much of a combative atmosphere, being exceptionally peaceful and friendly.
"Schools in the Southern Continent? The entire campus is a safe zone, and no student would ever fight on school grounds. Plus, you can leave whenever you want. One guy skipped class to hang out in a casino for a week before the dean finally caught him. And completing Shadow World challenges or public service activities earns you tons of vacation days. If you fail a course, you won't get expelled either; they just hold a hearing with the Department of Education, school administration, and student to discuss a study plan for the next semester. They might reduce your course load, delay your graduation, and so on."
Lanqi shared what he had observed during his half-year in Ikerite.
"Are you joking? How could a school like that even exist?" Zestira felt like Lanqi was teasing her.
"Indeed. I found it quite amazing myself—far too slack," Lanqi agreed, crossing his arms.
Purgatory Corridor Academy was truly the real deal.
Chapter 257