High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 754: Chapter 102 Professor’s Perplexity_1

In winter, it snows.

The grass should be withered, the trees should shed their leaves, and there is frost all around — everything returns to solitude.

But spring, that is the season of life restarting.

Wild grass sprouts new buds, and trees once again brim with life. The sun lingers in the sky for longer and longer, and hibernating creatures lazily stretch themselves, crawling out from their dens and nests.

Today is the 7th of December, the solar term for Big Snow. Undoubtedly, it belongs to the season of winter — Zheng Qing was very sure of this because just a few hours ago, he had been discussing the different classifications and features of snowmen with Nicolas.

But now, the young state-sponsored student who had just recently woken up was starting to question his memories.

Because around him, by Lakeside of Bell Lake, the originally desolate world had somehow burst with life.

The lake seemed to have become clearer, the bare shrubs had sprouted fresh green buds, and the dull wild grasslands had also brightened up with strokes of fresh color. Among the grass, there was a scattering of small white flowers, and a gentle breeze carried with it a faint sweet smell.

All of this was declaring to the young state-sponsored student a world vastly different from what he remembered.

”This...this...” Zheng Qing looked around, tongue-tied, and for a long while, unable to speak.

”This was an accident.” Professor Yao clearly knew why they were shocked, he shook his hand, retrieving a small bunch of golden tobacco from his pouch, stuffing it into his pipe while letting out a deep sigh: ”...you can understand it as an accident during a magic experiment.”

How could a magic experiment result in a world-changing, season-shaping effect?!

Zheng Qing did not know and could not imagine it.

Although he had witnessed the incredible wonders of a two-dimensional world in Su Shijun’s lab, those experiments very minimally influenced reality — like a springtime dream, a movie, a novel. No matter how bizarre, strange, and fantastical, these remained in his understanding and external to his world.

But now, within the world he lived in, this phenomenon near the point of being a miracle occurred, causing him to fear.

A spark suddenly emerges from the emptiness, slowly falling onto the tobacco in Professor Yao’s pipe. Wisps of smoke rose, accompanied by the hazy glow of fire, coiling around the professor.

”Puff...”

Professor Yao took a deep puff, showing a satisfied look on his face.

”Don’t worry, it’s just a small matter, it won’t affect much, and the school will quickly fix this bug.” The professor raised his hand, giving a nonchalant wave behind him.

Zheng Qing noticed that, standing around Professor Yao, and surrounding Lakeside of Bell Lake, there were numerous wizards in black robes, chanting from Law books in a disciplined manner. And with their chant, the soft feeling blending with earth and sky was quickly dissipating, along with the green in the grasslands, the fragrance of flowers in the breeze, etc. — all the colors of spring were fading away.

”...Compared to that, I am more curious, how did you two end up here?” He said, retracting his arm, crossing it over his chest, his tone turned somewhat serious, ”Also, what did you see just now?”

Listening to his serious tone, Zheng Qing also involuntarily became anxious.

He uneasily glanced at the gypsy witch.

Elena lowered her head perhaps due to shock, staring blankly at the bare lakeside. She did not appear to notice the professor’s questions.

The male wizard couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

”We just arrived not too long ago and didn’t witness anything strange,” Zheng Qing described his experiences by the lakeside in a stammering manner — the unmanned Ze Meng boat, the glowing white tower, the terrible magic fluctuations, and so on.

In the end, he asked somewhat confusedly, ”As for why we ended up here... isn’t this a public place in the school? When did it become forbidden to come lakeside in snowy weather? After dinner, we wanted to help with digestion by taking a walk by the lake.”

This answer seemed to choke Professor Yao.

Staring at the young student with his pitch-black eyes, it was a few minutes before he continued his line of questioning, ”So you just came here directly? I mean, after arriving here, didn’t you both remember anything urgent that had to be done immediately?”

”Urgent matters?” Zheng Qing raised an eyebrow, his expression somewhat odd and his tone firm as he emphasized, ”Today is a weekend. I’ve finished my homework, so there are no urgent matters.”

Professor Yao held onto his pipe, his face presenting an expression of discomfort.

”That shouldn’t be... how could there be such a loophole?” He muttered incoherently, his expression distressed as if dealing with a tough problem.

”Is there something wrong?” the young state-sponsored student finally couldn’t help but ask in a low voice.

”Wrong? It’s very wrong.” The professor stuffed the pipe into his mouth, explaining ambiguously, ”Have you not noticed that apart from you two, there’s no one else here by the lake today?... For safety reasons, the school has enforced a wide-ranging Expelling Charm near Bell Lake. From 2 p.m. until 6 p.m., those by the lake who remembered something extremely urgent, would hastily leave.”

”In theory, you guys should not have been able to approach the lakeside or leisurely stroll around.”

Hearing this, Zheng Qing’s face instantly scrunched — he has always disliked being ’special’, because it meant trouble. And he hated trouble.

”Perhaps for us, being able to stroll by the lakeside for a short while, is today’s most urgent matter.” The voice of the gypsy witch suddenly came from the side.

Zheng Qing, hearing this, was startled. His face then lit up with a brilliant smile, nodding his head vigorously, a look of complete agreement on his face.

He turned his head, and the witch was kneeling on her side in the withered grass, a fresh green blade of grass wrapped around her fingers. The rainbow cobra that had been coiled up now spread out next to her feet like harmless hemp rope. Unless you saw the traces of blood from the flower-skinned frog on the corner of its mouth, you might mistake it for a harmless long worm, even if you were Zheng Qing.

Upon hearing the witch’s explanation, Professor Yao showed a bitter smile on his face.

”It doesn’t make sense, it makes no sense at all.” He shook his head again and again, not accepting the witch’s explanation. However, when he looked at the young state-sponsored student again, his face suddenly showed signs of realization, ”Unless...”

Unless what — the professor didn’t finish.

And Zheng Qing’s attention had also shifted from the professor.

Because earlier when he was looking at the witch, she seemed to be startled by something. Her hands shook, and she accidentally tore the blade of grass that had been wrapped around her finger.