Twilight was chatting with the other parents in the hall.
Many of them were wealthy and powerful. Though he could glean almost no useful information from them at the moment, he maintained a polite smile, laying a little more groundwork just in case.
His gaze occasionally swept toward the entrance. The Desmond Family, whom he most wanted to meet, still had not appeared. Only a smartly dressed butler was mingling politely with the crowd.
Still, Twilight showed no sign of impatience. Anya had successfully enrolled, and there was plenty of time. He would have an opportunity to meet Desmond eventually.
Just then, a stern-faced teacher hurried over and raised his voice to address the parents. "Guardians, the students have finished their orientation. Please head to the courtyard! Gather there for the photograph!"
Twilight found Yor in the crowd, and they walked toward the courtyard side by side.
At that moment, someone suddenly called from behind them. "Mr. Forger, I need to speak with you."
Twilight stopped and turned to see Mr. Karen standing there with a grave expression.
"Is it about my daughter?" Alarm bells rang in Twilight's head. A terrible premonition took hold, and unease surged through him once again.
"Yes." Karen's expression was rather dark, his brow slightly furrowed. "This is difficult to say, but I have to inform you."
He paused, then said heavily, "Your daughter Anya has gotten into trouble. She..."
Karen explained in detail how Anya had punched Damian. As he spoke, Twilight's face grew increasingly pale, and his once-straight back began to stoop, as though all his strength had been drained away.
"Anya... hit a boy, and the Desmond Family's son, at that..." Twilight murmured, his voice filled with shock and despair.
He could already hear two things shattering in his mind. Fighting would inevitably earn her a Tonitrus Bolt, blocking Plan A. And since the boy she had hit was Damian Desmond, Plan B was now dead in the water too.
Beside him, Yor looked deeply worried and asked anxiously, "Mr. Karen, what about our daughter? Is she all right? She wasn't hurt, was she?"
Karen shook his head. "Anya is with Mr. Henry right now, being disciplined. She isn't injured, but she doesn't look very well..."
"Ah... I understand. Please take me to Anya." With things having come to this, Twilight could only sigh helplessly, his eyes full of exhaustion.
Karen led them to Henry, who was sternly explaining the dangers of violence to Anya.
When he saw Twilight approach, he stopped speaking.
"Forger, you're here. Ordinarily, using violence on school grounds warrants a punishment of three Tonitrus Bolts. However, the other party was also at fault this time. After Mr. Karen and I considered the circumstances, we decided to issue only one."
Henry explained earnestly, "We cannot make any further concessions. I will also inform the other child's parents."
"Y-yes. Understood." Twilight felt utterly drained. They had barely begun, and things were already going badly. Could Operation Strix really succeed?
He was pessimistic about its chances.
All three members of the family were in much the same state. Even when they posed for the photograph in the courtyard, the sunlight falling over them could not dispel the gloom on their faces. They all looked miserable.
The new students had all gone home, and the campus gradually grew quiet. Only a gentle breeze stirred the treetops, making the leaves rustle.
Henry and Karen were tidying up the items left over from the entrance ceremony in the hall. The chairs squeaked against the floor as they moved them.
Walter came over and remarked, "I never expected something like this to happen on the first day. Anya Forger... I remember that girl. I had the impression she was very well-behaved."
As Henry bent down to arrange the chairs, he said, "She did not betray Forger's teachings. Standing up for a friend was very elegant."
"Was it?"
Karen silently tidied up beside them, occasionally glancing at the darkening sky outside the window and wondering what to have for dinner.
Watching the two of them chatting, he felt an urge to make a snarky remark.
"..." Karen had wanted to ask this for a long time. Mr. Henry, why can't you go three sentences without mentioning Forger whenever you see Anya?
Of course, he would never say it aloud.
Ring, ring, ring-
Karen's phone suddenly rang, the sound especially clear in the quiet hall. He picked it up and looked at the name on the screen. An almost imperceptible red gleam flashed in his eyes, vanishing in an instant.
Holding up his phone, he put on a professional smile and addressed Henry, who was still chatting. "Mr. Henry, something urgent has come up, so I'll be leaving now. Sorry for the trouble, but I'll have to leave this to you."
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