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At the Oblex Bridge of Zerion Academy, a carriage came to a stop, and a woman stepped out.

Her blue hair fluttered in the wind, and beneath it, her blue eyes gleamed.

Her appearance was not just delicate but also carried an air of cold precision.

The unyielding azure flame.

It was Eve.

Waiting to greet her stood an assistant professor from the martial arts department.

His name was Barkov Deblije.

He was the second-year martial arts assistant professor.

With his plump, trembling face, he greeted her with a broad, foolish grin.

He had a habit of instinctively smiling whenever he saw a beautiful woman.

Though his smile was unpleasant, Eve did not spare him even a glance.

Because there was someone else who irritated her far more than Barkov’s unsettling grin.

The man who had put her in an awkward position by framing her with a confession at the International Individual Tournament meeting.

The man who had provoked her endlessly during the tournament, only to unleash an ancient dragon’s magic and get himself captured.

Hannon Irey.

Just thinking of him made Eve grit her teeth in frustration.

Because of this transfer, she was now being followed by a ridiculous label.

A love-struck fool who went abroad for love.

Love?

She had never once experienced such a thing in her life.

Eve did not particularly favor men.

To be precise, she didn’t particularly favor people in general, regardless of gender.

Eve was a commoner.

In an academy filled with nobles with superiority complexes,

It was obvious how she would be treated.

She had lost count of how many times she had been insulted simply for having a pretty face.

There was nothing more absurd than being judged for her looks rather than her skills.

‘Of course, there were good people too.’

But Eve had received far more jealousy than recognition.

And she, of all people, was supposed to fall in love with someone?

Sorry, but she had no intention of living so naively.

For someone like her to be labeled a "love-struck fool"—it was the ultimate humiliation.

A sigh escaped from Eve’s lips.

‘Was this a rash decision?’

Of course, she couldn’t say that Hannon had no influence on her decision to transfer.

Her impulsive choice to move academies was largely due to him.

But he wasn’t the only reason.

The main reason Eve had transferred—

Was Iris.

The day she clashed swords with Iris,

Eve saw the ominous presence lurking beyond her.

For now, it was only a premonition, but even that was enough for Eve to act.

And so, she willingly transferred to Zerion Academy.

‘Honestly, I thought Ordo Academy would try harder to hold me back.’

Surprisingly, Ordo Academy let her go without much resistance.

This was largely due to the influence of her martial arts professor.

「Eve, as you know, Frelliz is falling into decline. Because of that, even Ordo Academy is receiving less support.」

The martial arts professor at Ordo Academy was someone Eve personally respected.

Though he often lacked authority and was ignored, he always worked hard for his students.

「Before long, Ordo will merge with Zerion Academy anyway. So rather than staying here as the sun sets, I’d rather see you spread your wings in Zerion.」

He had always wished for Eve to step into a wider world.

The kingdom of Frelliz was too small for her.

And so, he willingly helped process her transfer.

Eve had expressed her gratitude to him countless times.

‘The only disappointing thing is…’

None of the students she had spent time with at Ordo seemed to care that she was leaving.

Instead, they seemed relieved, as if a burden had been lifted.

That fact left Eve with mixed feelings.

She had tried, in her own way, to get along with them,

But it seemed her efforts had been in vain.

‘Will things be different at Zerion?’

She worried that the experience had left her with a lingering trauma.

Would she really be able to get along with the students at Zerion?

But Eve soon shook off the thought.

She had never lived a life where human relationships were her priority.

She reminded herself to focus on why she had come to Zerion in the first place.

"Wow, I can’t believe I get to see the Unyielding Azure Flame in person! Nice to meet you! I’m Barkov Deblije, the best assistant-professor of the martial arts department!"

Lost in thought, Eve was brought back to reality by Barkov,

who suddenly thrust his thick hand toward her.

Even though his hand was greasy, Eve did not avoid it and took it firmly.

Barkov grinned widely and subtly tried to hold onto her hand for longer.

Eve immediately pulled her hand away and shot him a cold glare.

"Ah, right."

Before she was a swordsman, she was a woman.

And she was sensitive to the lustful gaze of men.

She had hoped that, as a martial arts professor, he would be different,

But Barkov’s eyes were blatant.

"Hahaha! I have complete control over the martial arts department, so just make sure to stay on my good side!"

He laughed boisterously, giving Eve a suggestive glance.

Her mood was beginning to sour when—

In the distance, she spotted a boy kicking up dust as he ran toward them.

As she slowly realized why his figure seemed so familiar,

The boy suddenly leaped into the air.

He was flying.

Eve stared blankly as the boy’s feet slammed straight into Barkov’s face.

"Guh!?"

With a scream, Barkov was sent flying and crashed into the ground.

The boy landed right on top of him.

He casually lifted his foot.

"Wow, Professor Barkov. I didn’t take you for the type to go around spreading rumors about me everywhere."

The boy smiled brightly and pressed down harder with his foot.

"But I wonder—did you ever think about the consequences?"

Then, without a hint of hesitation, he stomped down on Barkov’s head.

Boom!

But his foot was stopped by a sword.

The boy’s crimson eyes flickered, and reflected in them was—Eve.

She had intervened, her eyes twisted in frustration.

"Hannon Irey."

The reason she had been so infuriated that she transferred to Zerion Academy.

"What’s with the sudden violence?"

The person she had been waiting to see again was now standing right in front of her.

* * *

At the entrance of Zerion Academy,

I found myself stopped by Eve as I was about to punish Barkov.

I had expected Eve to transfer soon,

But I didn’t expect it to be today.

So, I gave her a friendly smile.

After all, I needed to build a good relationship with her from now on.

"Eve, it’s been a while. Since we’re now fellow students at the same academy, can we drop the formalities?"

"Do as you like."

She had given me permission to speak casually.

It seemed like we were off to a good start.

"More importantly, I’d like you to explain this situation to me."

Eve asked me to explain why I had crushed Barkov.

I understood the situation.

To Eve, I must have looked like someone who had used violence against an innocent person for no reason.

"Attacking an innocent person like this isn’t right."

"I agree. I felt completely wronged when I was attacked at the party."

I had previously been attacked because of an ancient dragon’s magic.

Eve’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

"Still, Assistant Professor Barkov is far from innocent."

My eyes landed on the unconscious Barkov.

"If anything, he’s better off being punished by me. Otherwise, he might end up getting killed soon."

Vinesha had discovered the source of the rumors spreading throughout the academy.

She is the kind of woman who would devote her entire life to only me.

For someone like her, hearing that I had another lover was the greatest humiliation imaginable.

She’s coming to kill him.

If it’s Vinesha, she will definitely come to kill him.

That’s why I came here first—to take care of Barkov before she stained her hands with blood.

He was going to be expelled from Zerion Academy anyway, so I figured I’d make sure he was kicked out for good.

"Killed? What do you mean?"

Eve, who was unaware of the situation, couldn’t understand my words.

But as I stepped away from her sword, I clenched my fist.

"I’ll explain in a moment. I need to wrap this up quickly before she gets here."

Just as I was about to finish Barkov off again, a azure flame ignited on Eve’s sword.

I quickly stepped back, avoiding the flame just in time.

Then I looked at her in disbelief.

"Eve?"

"Hannon Irey, you’ve been lying to me constantly."

Her sword, engulfed in azure flames, was now pointed directly at me.

"You have too many past misdeeds for me to believe you so easily, don’t you think?"

Somehow, it had turned into Eve protecting Barkov.

What she really meant was that I needed to clarify the facts before taking action.

But even so, I couldn’t just say, Alright, I understand and back down.

"This time, I’m telling the truth."

"I can’t stand how shameless you are."

"Assistant Professor Barkov spread nasty rumors about me simply because the woman he likes happens to have feelings for me."

With no other choice, I explained the situation.

Eve’s eyes flicked to Barkov.

She still wasn’t convinced, but she seemed to recall his reputation.

She hesitated, biting her lip.

Even in her eyes, Barkov must not have been an upstanding person.

"Hey! Hey, hey, hey! Lightning bastard, it’s coming! It’s coming!"

At that moment, I heard Dorara’s urgent voice in my ear.

I turned and saw him sprinting toward us on the wind.

And behind him—

A pitch-black entity was charging toward us at full speed.

Its long arms dangled grotesquely.

From beneath its long, flowing black hair, hundreds of red eyes gleamed from its face.

Just one look at those eyes was enough to tell how much rage and malice this spirit carried.

It was a vengeful spirit sent by Vinesha to kill Barkov.

"Too late, huh?"

I let out a sigh.

Eve, seeing the ghostly figure, widened her eyes in shock.

"A g-ghost?"

Her face went pale.

Despite her tough exterior, she seemed weak against supernatural things like this.

"Ugh… Ughhh…"

At that moment, Barkov regained consciousness.

With his swollen face, he shakily lifted his arms.

Then, he reached out and grabbed Eve’s pale ankle.

"S-Save me…"

"Kyaah!"

Still startled by the spirit, Eve reflexively swung her sword at him.

Whoosh!*

"KWIIIEEEEEEEK!"

With a pig-like scream, Barkov burst into azure flames.

He flailed and rolled across the ground.

Eve, shocked by what she had just done, quickly sheathed her sword.

The azure flames on Barkov’s body vanished.

Now, he lay on the ground, completely charred black, his eyes rolled back as he fainted once more.

He was well-done.

The vengeful spirit, which had been charging toward us at full speed, suddenly came to a halt.

It stared at Barkov for a long moment.

Then, it silently faded into black smoke and disappeared.

"Whew… D-Did we… get rid of it?"

Dorara wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking exhausted.

That idiot always says the worst possible things.

Still, he had come all this way to protect someone, even a scumbag like Barkov.

As a student of Zerion Academy, he still held a sense of duty to protect human lives.

Ignoring Dorara, I turned to Eve.

She stood frozen, staring at Barkov with a dazed expression.

I smiled at her with an easygoing grin.

"We’re accomplices now."

Her face crumpled as if she were about to cry.