Chapter 90 ： The Assignment
Back in the headmaster's study, everyone gathered with coffee. Ortlando watched his guests drink and did his best to keep his expression neutral.
He failed internally. That coffee had come from Bawang Island by special arrangement, and Roland and Evan were treating it like water — half a cup gone in a single swallow. Meanwhile Mason and Elloran were doing it properly, small careful sips, letting the flavor develop. That was how you drank good coffee. That was the entire point of good coffee.
He was genuinely considering whether the faculty needed an etiquette seminar.
"Thank you all for your help," Mason said, with visible satisfaction. "The prince is doing remarkably well. He was already a knight before this — with a portion of the Oomani's abilities added to that, he can hold his own against even a Great Knight. The first and fourth princes rather miscalculated."
"Don't thank me," Roland said. He wasn't being modest — he simply found the phenomenon more interesting than the political implications. "This has given me considerable material to work with."
"Gratitude is still owed," Elloran said. "I'd like to extend a formal invitation — to visit the Norma National Theological Academy at a suitable time next year. I hope you'll accept."
Ortlando considered briefly, then agreed with a gracious smile. He escorted the group out, and as they left, his eyes found Evan and Roland for just a moment — a look with some weight in it.
Evan didn't understand it. Roland, falling into step beside him, explained under his breath: "He's mourning his coffee."
Evan understood.
Roland glanced around, then lowered his voice further. "Your companions are interesting. The flower fairy and that unicorn summoning — come by my tower sometime. I'd like to run some tests."
His eyes had a quality that Evan found immediately alarming.
"Stay away from Shuang and Small Ling," Evan said.
"Small Ling — is that the flower fairy or the unicorn?"
"The unicorn."
"Of course. Don't worry, I wouldn't dissect them. Just some observational work — how they respond to infernal presences, that sort of thing." Roland sounded entirely reasonable, which made it worse.
Evan had no intention of visiting Roland's tower. People who spent every waking hour on research and described it as just observational were not people whose definition of boundaries he trusted.
......
He walked back to his quarters. Students in grey robes moved aside as he passed, with a few in the red-and-black robes of those who had advanced to Mage rank mixed among them. One student was riding a bicycle and dismounted when he spotted Evan, calling out a respectful greeting. Evan nodded back.
Shuang had vanished somewhere. He spotted Emma Watson ahead, standing outside his door with a young woman he didn't recognize — light brown hair, clean-featured, roughly Emma's age.
"Hey. Emma. Something you need?"
"Do you have a few minutes?" Emma asked.
"What's this about?"
"A friend of mine — she graduated from Hollingburton a few years ago. Roslyn Sidney, a wind-school mage. Something's happened in her area and she's come back to look for help. I mentioned you because you're a death mage and currently not teaching." Emma gestured to the young woman beside her. "Roslyn — this is Professor Wang."
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Evan extended his hand. "Good to meet you, Miss Sidney. What's the situation?"
Roslyn shook it. "Good to meet you, Professor. It's a bit embarrassing to bring to you, honestly. My hometown is Wilson County — it's not far from here. There have been some strange incidents. Two local residents died. Their bodies were found completely desiccated, as if something had drained all the vital fluid from them. The town is frightened."
"That kind of death has several possible causes. Vampires, certain dark creatures — any of them could produce that result. Has the local mage association looked into it?"
"They did. They didn't find anything. Their senior people are around fifth tier. I was considered one of the stronger students there." She paused. "I know it sounds odd that we'd be so underserved this close to Hollingburton, but that's actually part of the problem. Most mages who graduate from here go to the major cities. Being adjacent to the academy creates a sort of blind spot — people assume the area is covered and don't bother to settle there. For years nothing happened, so the two older mages we have seemed like enough. And then this."
"Does the school know about this yet?"
"Not officially. I came to ask Emma first, and she suggested I speak with you."
Evan thought it over. He had no pending obligations. "I'll help. But I should inform the school first — just as a courtesy, even if it's a minor matter."
Emma nodded. "That's sensible. You're the only death mage on faculty right now, and honestly you're well-suited for this. Death mages are good at crime scenes."
"It's more that we know how bodies work," Evan said. "A good forensic examination requires sharp observation and methodical reasoning, not just anatomy. But yes, there's some natural overlap."
They notified the school. The matter was small enough that it didn't reach Ortlando's desk. What did happen was that Professor Marshall, apparently already aware of the situation through Emma, handed Evan two third-tier Magic Apprentice students who had expressed interest in the case — Shel Melen, an earth-school apprentice, and Carpenter Marcus, a wind-and-lightning dual-school apprentice.
Evan left Shuang behind. Dead bodies were not her idea of a worthwhile outing, and he saw no reason to drag her along. The five of them set off by carriage — a good four-wheeled model pulled by two Cerulean Flame Horses, a low-tier magical breed, with thick Boyalar long-fur on the seats and runic arrays etched into the frame, currently inactive.
The journey would take a day and a half.
The two students were visibly nervous at first, which made sense — this was their first field assignment. Hollingburton didn't require students to spend all their time in classrooms. Field tasks were available throughout the year, earning credit that could be exchanged for magical materials, private laboratory access, or specialized tutoring. The school kept inventory of rare components that were difficult to source elsewhere, which made these credits genuinely useful.
Evan opened a window and watched the countryside pass. The landscape here was undisturbed — no industrial residue, no pollution, the air carrying the particular quality of somewhere that hadn't been heavily settled. He let the students settle before speaking.
"Shel. Carpenter. What made you want this particular assignment? We hadn't posted it as a public task."
"Professor Marshall recommended us," Shel said. "We'd told him we were working as a team — I tend toward defense, Carpenter toward offense. We mentioned an interest in investigative work, and he said there was something that might suit us."
"I told Professor Marshall about the situation," Emma added. "Tasks like this come through two channels at Hollingburton. Open postings go on the board and students take them independently — especially capstone field work before graduation. But informal tasks like this one are handled differently, where an instructor recruits student assistants directly."
Evan nodded, then glanced at Carpenter. "You have elven ancestry, don't you?" The ears were only slightly pointed — easy to miss.
"My grandmother was half-elven," Carpenter said.
"That would explain being able to attune to both wind and lightning. Have you been to Goling Island?"
"Never. I've heard of it — the ancestral homeland, supposedly. Have you, Professor?"
Evan laughed a little. "I'm a death mage. Elves are not particularly fond of the school. If I showed up on that island, I'd be fortunate to leave under my own power. I was just curious."
Emma smiled. "Slave traders have been trying to find Goling Island for years. No one's managed it. There are stories — that it's surrounded by permanent turbulent currents in open ocean, or that it doesn't maintain a fixed location and only appears at certain times."
"So only the elves know where it is?"
"Elves aren't only on Goling Island," Roslyn said. "There's a woodland community in the northern forests of Nabos. They're not especially reclusive — Hollingburton has a handful of their students in the advanced program."