32. Arrival

The sun shone brightly. Sulu got up, washed, and stretched languidly.

Ever since he'd witnessed the mastermind being taken down, he'd felt a weight lift off his shoulders. The night before, he'd slept soundly until dawn.

He stepped out of his bedroom and saw Sean again.

Sean was sitting on the sofa, eating a sandwich. When he saw Sulu, he immediately stood up. "Hey... Sulu, there's something I want to talk to you about!"

"What is it?"

Sulu glanced at him and sat down. Spotting another breakfast on the table, he dug in without a second thought.

"It's about our argument the other day. I've thought it over... and I might have been wrong. I want to apologize!" Sean said sincerely.

"Oh?"

Sulu stopped chewing and stared at Sean. His expression was genuine.

Had the suggestion—or whatever it was—worn off because the caster had died?

Sulu felt reassured and picked up his glass of milk. "Let's forget about the unpleasantness... So, what do you think of Catherine now?"

"I still like her!" Sean said firmly. "Oh... she's my Goddess!"

This guy was hopeless.

Sulu rolled his eyes and paid him no more attention.

Inside Donald's office at the Combat Club.

"Welcome, my dear friend!"

When Sulu came in, Donald warmly stepped forward and gave him a hug, then closed the door behind them. "There were a few unexpected complications... but the trouble's been dealt with!"

Sulu wondered whether Donald had sneaked over to watch yesterday. Yeah, there was a good chance he had.

After a moment, Sulu asked, "What complications?"

"There was another supernatural being by Catherine's side. The authorities suffered some losses because of it, but they'd made contingency plans and dealt with everything in the end... Unfortunately, both suspects died, so there were no statements!"

Donald sounded regretful.

"Another supernatural being?" Sulu feigned surprise. "Who?"

Donald gave Sulu a long look. "Professor Alanis from the Department of Ancient Languages! She and Catherine were close friends. They spent so much time together, and neither was married, so there were some unsavory rumors... We should have guessed."

"I'm sorry..."

Sulu nodded gravely. "What did we gain from this?"

"We did gain something! At Catherine's residence, they found a great deal of appalling evidence related to cult rituals. We suspect she was a cultist and connected to the disappearances of several girls..."

"A cultist? Young girls? Sacrifices?"

Sulu nodded, forming a rough guess.

Could Beatrice have been so important to Catherine because she was a high-quality sacrifice? The kind especially favored by Evil Gods?

That was bad news.

After all, most of the gods in this world were terrifyingly strange.

"Ahem... In any case, those rituals were evil and bloody. They're a serious crime in the Federation—punishable by death..." Donald clearly didn't want to say more about it, and quickly changed the subject. "Let's talk about what we gained instead! Never mind the Gold Dragon for now. According to Director Winch, Catherine's supernatural power was dark and evil, so they couldn't hand it over to us! We'll have to be cautious about Professor Alanis's, too!"

"So... after all that, we only get a scholarship?" Sulu's expression darkened.

He'd already guessed as much and wasn't all that angry, but the other side was being far too greedy.

"It's still a pretty generous scholarship. Twenty Gold Dragons, after all, and they're all yours!"

Donald looked somewhat guilty.

He really hadn't held back any supernatural inheritance, but Laim had clearly told him that all the merit he'd earned would be recorded and rewarded once he joined the Church.

By comparison, Sulu had indeed received less.

After a moment, Donald hurriedly added, "Mr. Winch's butler came to see me early this morning. He said we could copy part of their occult texts... harmless, neutral material."

"Such as...?"

It seemed the other side had still given up a little occult knowledge, though there was no chance it would include information about how to acquire a supernatural profession.

"No examples. There's only one book: Professor Alanis's notes on studying ancient languages! They'll let us copy the parts that pass their review!"

That means they'll definitely cut things out?

Sulu's mouth twitched. Besides, Gulam Language was simply a mysterious language, much like Ancient Hebraic.

Even if he learned it, without specific spells or rituals, he couldn't perform any ceremonies with it. That made it fairly neutral and safe knowledge.

"All right, I accept!"

Sulu nodded, but his thoughts turned to the few pieces of parchment he had.

They'd come from the mysterious corpse in the sewers and seemed to have some connection to Catherine.

But now everything was a mystery.

There might be experts on the supernatural side who could use Spirit Mediumship to make the dead speak or peer into the minds of the living, but they needed to have certain specialized professions or higher ranks.

The spiritual resurgence had only just begun. It was uncertain whether high-ranking supernatural beings like that even existed.

As for professionals who specialized in Spirit Mediumship, the Church might have some, but there couldn't be many.

The review will take time, and so will the redactions...

After leaving the Combat Club, Sulu squinted up at the bright sun. It wouldn't matter if they removed the rituals and other forbidden knowledge, but I absolutely have to get my hands on the Gulam Language research...

Thinking of Gulam Language reminded him of Molly.

Catherine's student couldn't possibly be uninvolved in the recent events.

But Donald had just told him that the girl had mysteriously disappeared after yesterday's attack.

It wasn't because the officers hadn't done their jobs. They simply hadn't thought of it.

After all, Catherine and Alanis had many students, some of whom came from influential families.

There was no reason to keep an eye on them just because their teachers were under suspicion.

So, after news of last night's raid on Catherine spread, Molly disappeared.

Sulu sighed, recalling the image of a timid young girl.

He couldn't have imagined that she'd been involved so deeply. Perhaps she was one of Catherine's Apprentices, trained in the occult!

No matter where Molly went, some things were finally over. What should I do next?

Sulu wandered aimlessly, and before he knew it, he'd arrived at the dormitory.

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed.

Downstairs stood a tall man holding a black briefcase. His deep blue eyes swept over the students passing by, a faintly dazed look in them.

His sharply defined features and resolute face instantly stirred memories in Sulu.

Perhaps noticing Sulu's gaze, the man turned around and strode over, giving him a hug. "Sulu... I hope I'm not too late!"