High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 1574: Chapter 318: Undercurrents at Dawn

The witch ultimately did not take out the Law book.

She stood at the doorway, light pouring in from behind her, leaving a narrow and dense shadow across the threshold, slanting sharply toward the elder wizard seated on one side of the room.

The elder wizard anxiously tugged at his beard.

Silence enveloped the conference room.

Except for the ticking of the clock, there was no other sound to be heard.

After a brief pause, the witch lifted her foot and stepped into the room.

Click, clack, click.

Her long gown dragged across the floor, resembling a surging tide, while the sharp sound of her heel striking the surface was akin to the drumbeat before the commencement of battle.

Without any extraneous words or gestures, the simple act of entering the room imposed enormous pressure upon those inside. At the same time, the witch’s overwhelming aura, unique to a Big Wizard, washed over the occupants like waves and drumbeats, leaving the young assistants behind the interrogation committee struggling to breathe.

Fortunately, the interrogating committee members were themselves of the Big Wizard tier. Merely sitting there, they exuded an unfaltering and resolute momentum, akin to towering cliffs against the stormy waves, effectively countering the oppressive aura emitted by the Moon Council’s Upper House Member.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.

On the conference table, inside the face of the clock, the second hand leapt from one tick mark to another without pause. This steadiness and persistence gradually dissipated the clashing energies within the quiet room.

Su Shijun lifted her chin slightly, revealing her long, ivory-white neck, arrogantly reining in her aura.

The round-faced witch seated behind the table directed her gaze toward the graceful figure entering the room. She felt as though the entire room had brightened significantly, prompting her to narrow her eyes slightly.

Finally, the elder wizard named James, seated to the round-faced witch’s left, took the initiative and spoke first.

”You’re late.”

James broke the awkward silence his presence had created with his dry and raspy voice.

Su Shijun removed her cloak and hat, handing them to a group of sprites dressed in gray-green uniforms. She did not directly reply to the elder wizard’s words but instead glanced at the clock placed on the table and smiled faintly:

”A very fine clock... Was it made by the Huck Brothers?”

Huck Brothers Watch Shop was the most famous clockmaker in The Magical World, virtually monopolizing the production and sale of high-end grandfather clocks and pocket watches.

”Not every exquisite clock belongs to the Huck Brothers,” the elder wizard quietly exhaled with relief for reasons unknown, yet his face remained stern as he replied stiffly:

”This is a piece from the Great Colonial Era of the ’Persian Revival’ style, produced in 1780, when the Huck Brothers were still learning how to make gears.”

”Impressive.” The witch uttered an insincere compliment before seating herself in a large armchair at the center of the conference room.

The armrests of the chair were entangled with several firm leather straps, each meticulously inscribed with interwoven golden and silver runes.

After settling in, Su Shijun straightened her posture, her arms naturally resting on the armrests. The leather straps twitched slightly as if longing to bind the witch’s arms. However, she raised her left index finger and tapped the wooden armrest.

Tap... tap.

The chair emitted a faint, pitiful creak, and the luminous runes woven onto the leather straps faded one by one, like melted snow dripping onto charcoal, leaving behind only a cold and lonely remnant.

The witch raised her head, her gaze fixed ahead, exuding the demeanor not of someone being interrogated for suspected violations of the Wizard’s Code, but of a queen receiving an audience with her subjects.

Yet, the interrogation committee seated behind the conference table were not ordinary wizards either.

They swiftly dispelled the aura advantage the witch had managed to assert. Realizing the conversation had been steered away, the white-haired elder wizard abandoned any further pleasantries, skipping even the basic identity verification and bluntly transitioned into interrogation mode:

”Thank you,” he first acknowledged the witch’s compliment toward the clock, then promptly launched his questioning: ”...but that’s not the point. The point is, in accordance with regulations, any Moon Council member entering First University’s M4 Level Magic Laboratory is required to sign a binding agreement under the Alliance’s supervision that prohibits dimension fluctuation experiments...”

”Yes,” Su Shijun interrupted the elder wizard decisively, giving her response with absolute certainty.

The elder wizard’s momentum momentarily faltered as he prepared to bolster his argument.

Then, in an instant, a trace of irritation flashed across his eyes, his voice slightly raised after a brief pause: ”...But you didn’t sign it! The M4 Level Magic Laboratory at the Institute of Applied Magic within First University’s Dimension Ascension Research Institute conducted dangerous dimension-related experiments seven hours and thirteen minutes ago, momentarily weakening space crystal walls in parts of Buji Island, causing extradimensional energy leakage. This constitutes a highly significant experimental accident...”

Su Shijun furrowed her brow slightly, her eyes betraying traces of annoyance.

This was precisely why she detested dealing with the old cronies of the Alliance—they always liked to make much ado about nothing, or rather, selectively escalate minor issues—like sharks drawn to a hint of blood. These elders, devoid of creativity and courage for exploration, occupied the top of the ’magical food chain,’ greedily seizing any benefit they could grasp.

”...There’s evidence suggesting this isn’t your first instance of dimension-related experiments.” The elder wizard seemed unaware of the subtle changes in the witch’s expression and pressed on with his resonant voice: ”Between October 30th and November 2nd of last year, during the Hunting Competition held at First University, Buji Island recorded an S-level threat-level magic incident, causing multiple registered researchers to sustain severe injuries, while an entire M4 Level Magic Laboratory was completely destroyed...”

”If I’m not mistaken,” Su Shijun interrupted James’ interrogation with restrained displeasure: ”That incident from last year has already been handled by the relevant departments at First University... All corresponding procedures adhered to requirements. Are you planning to enumerate every experimental accident of mine from the past?”

James lowered his eyelids, subtly moving his fingers as though rifling through the materials on the table.

”The ’relevant departments’ at First University showed signs of negligence and abuse of power during the handling of that case. The Alliance has already issued a misconduct concern letter to the school.” The elder wizard tapped his curved fingers against the tabletop: ”...Pending further explanation from the school, it doesn’t preclude merging the two cases for interrogation.”

”Do you have any objections to the interrogation points outlined above?” The round-faced witch interjected at an opportune moment, her tone gentle as she addressed the witch seated in the center of the room.

Su Shijun took a deep breath and sat even more upright.

”I do.” She remained uncertain of the Alliance’s true intentions, thus choosing her words cautiously: ”First, every experiment I conduct has undergone safety assessments by the School Works Committee and approvals from the Professor Joint Meeting. There are no violations regarding experimental protocols. Second, the recent crystal wall weakening, extradimensional energy intrusion, and several students going missing at the museum are unrelated to my experiments. Third, dimension-related experiments are not synonymous with dimension fluctuation experiments.”

”Ahem,” the gaunt wizard who had been silent thus far coughed twice, sighing: ”So what you’re saying is, the earlier disturbances also led to several students becoming lost in the interstitial seams of space-time?”