Li Meng slipped furtively across the little square in front of Book Mountain Hall toward the grove behind it, like a thief. A small pink handbag hung across her shoulder, and she was not carrying her Plush Bear.
Linzhong Lake lay a short distance beyond the grove.
The groves near the lakeshore harbored many magical creatures that posed a danger to Li Meng.
Zheng Qing craned his neck, watching the Little Witch's retreating figure as he wavered—should he keep sitting idly in the library, anxiously waiting for the witch who seemed destined never to arrive, or head into the grove and haul back the Little Witch who had sneaked out?
Yes, Zheng Qing would bet a Jade Coin that Li Meng had slipped away while Jiang Yu was not looking.
Normally, at this hour, Li Meng should have been finishing her homework under Jiang Yu's supervision—if she had finished, Jiang Yu would have assigned a few extra exercises for practice—not heading into the grove with a handbag to explore.
Especially not late at night, with no one there to look after the Little Witch.
Especially when the Faceless Monster that had murdered Little White Cat was still lurking somewhere on campus. Having spent more than six months tracking the killer, Jiang Yu would never make a mistake over something so simple.
At the thought of the Faceless Monster, Zheng Qing finally could not sit still any longer.
He had no desire to see news of some reckless Little Spirit Witch dying in the lakeside woods on the front page of tomorrow's school newspaper. That really would be the worst possible outcome.
The young scholarship student laid The Philosophy of Magic facedown on the desk. He had held it open for ages without reading a single word. Then he felt the