Chapter 44: Shadows in the Night
After the attempted abduction of Aisha last night, I wasted no time reporting the incident to Amelia von Braveheart once classes ended.
Amelia listened intently as I recounted what had happened. We pieced together a troubling pattern: six students had vanished over six months, with one disappearing each month. The intervals between the incidents were precise, suggesting deliberate planning. However, the motive and the fate of the victims remained shrouded in mystery, leaving us with nothing but questions and mounting tension.
Amelia clenched her fists in frustration. "This can’t go on," she said, her voice steely. "We’ll patrol every night for the rest of the month. We need to stop this and catch whoever is behind it."
I nodded, sharing her resolve. "I also suspect Instructor Morgan. His presence... it doesn’t feel right. I’ll focus on him while we patrol."
"And Aisha?" Amelia asked.
I hesitated but replied firmly, "I’m convinced she’s innocent. There’s no sign of Dark Magic around her."
Thus, our plan for nightly patrols began.
For the next week, Amelia and I continued our nightly patrols around the academy grounds. To any onlookers, we must have seemed like two friends enjoying the cool evening air, but in truth, we were hyper-alert, our senses tuned to the slightest disturbance. We scoured every corner of the gardens, circled the dormitories, and navigated the winding paths of the academy buildings. Yet, night after night, there was no sign of anything amiss. The shadows remained undisturbed, as if mocking our efforts.
During the day, I pursued my investigation of Instructor Morgan. Despite my initial suspicions, his activities were maddeningly ordinary. He spent his days teaching swordsmanship to academy students, a subject he clearly excelled in. His movements at night were equally unremarkable—he typically stayed in his quarters, and on rare occasions, he stepped out to have drinks with Professor Alden. The two seemed to share a bond, perhaps forged through years of shared experiences at the academy. I watched from a distance, but their conversations appeared casual and mundane.
"Hey, Envi, wake up! Stop lazing around and keep me company while I stand guard!" I scolded Envi, sitting under the shadow of an oak tree just outside Morgan’s residence.
"Curse you! I was having a great nap!" Envi snapped back, his tone irritated. "What’s your problem? Do you want to pick a fight with me?!"