Chapter 66: Turn Around

Chapter 66: Chapter 66: Turn Around

An elegant, voluptuous lady sat at a desk near the window, her face buried in the research papers and books scattered across its surface. Through the first rays of the early morning sun, a paper bird landed in her hands and unfolded into a letter. A gentle smile curved her soft lips the moment she saw who it was from. She opened it at once.

Princess Cherie,

My lady, I beg your forgiveness for my delay. The rumors of your beauty are spread far and wide, and I was still lost in the joy of hearing the news of our betrothal when your letter reached me. I shall make no excuse for my delay. Instead, I shall make it up to you soon.

As for the Red Forest, I am delighted to hear of your concern for me. Yet fear not, my lady, for what you have heard of me shall not be proven false. I am more than capable of handling the Red Forests, and I shall return unharmed.

My days at the Academy have been going well. Everything here is most convenient, and the teachers have been both helpful and resourceful. My classmates have treated me kindly, even in the smallest of matters. Professor Lilith and Professor Nyxara, in particular, have shown me great kindness. My seniors have been equally welcoming.

Yet, amidst all this, I often find myself wondering about our first meeting. I confess I am eager to confirm the rumors surrounding your beauty.

Some say you have inherited the beauty of your mother, Her Imperial Majesty the Empress. Others say that you are even more charming.

I have had the pleasure of meeting Her Imperial Majesty at one of the Imperial events. She was, without doubt, the most beautiful woman I have ever seen—kind and gentle.

If you are truly even more beautiful than she, then I shall consider myself a man blessed by the gods.

Until then, please take care of your health. Do not spend too many hours buried in your research papers. Take care of yourself, my lady, and do not hesitate to write whenever you wish.

I shall be waiting for your letters.

Xavier Drakenfell

Eldest Son of Duke Drakenfell

The smile never left her rosy lips as she read. She looked at the letter one last time, let out a soft sigh, folded it neatly, and placed it in one of the drawers of her desk. Then she picked up her pen again and returned to her research.

Beyond the western gates of the Imperial Academy, the plaza was covered from shadow of the western walls as the sun began to rise.

The plaza was filled with five hundred freshmen standing in groups of one hundred, each group headed by a professor who kept the students organized. Every student carried a bag on their shoulder containing the supplies they would need.

Xavier stood in Group 3, carrying the prepacked bag Senior Tyson had provided. Fiona stood at his side—she had also been placed in Group 3. Elena was in Group 4. For the next full week he would not see her; their groups would go separate ways.

He was pleased to have Fiona beside him, but equally annoyed by the person standing on his other side.

"Let’s stay together and cover each other’s backs."

"Allen, did you pull some strings to get placed in Group 3?"

"Come on, Xavier. The list was prepared by the academy staff. How could I pull any strings? I don’t have that much influence."

Xavier did not believe a word of it, but he had no other options. He was stuck with Allen for the entire week.

Let’s not get frustrated. He had not expected Senior Tyson’s advice to prove useful this early—before the expedition had even begun.

A sudden pressure filled the air and silenced everyone. Fluctuations gathered near the far end of the plaza, and a circular portal opened. Through it stepped a tall, voluptuous figure with skin as fair as snow and deep crimson hair. She wore a tight dress with slits that revealed her long legs and plump thighs, each measured step sent a soft jiggle along her generous curves. A long cape trailed behind her feet. It was the dean of the academy—Imperial Archmage Milfias Frostborn. All five professors standing before their groups bowed, and the students followed.

"Group 1, step forward."

Milfias wasted no time. The first hundred students and their professor advanced.

"Each group will be escorted directly to a different location near the entrance of the Red Forest. From there you will spend seven days in the forest under your professor’s guidance. On the seventh day all of you are to return and gather at Foxbridge, the town nearest the Red Forest." Her voice amplified by magic carried clearly to every student.

The first group assembled before her, the professor at their head. Milfias raised her hand and a huge magical circle appeared beneath them, glowing with golden light.

Mass teleportation

Mass teleportation was an extremely advanced high-level spell that normally required at least ten mages at the sixth level of mana control. Milfias performed it alone.

The students standing on the circle stared down in disbelief and shock as the light rose, swallowed them, and they vanished in an instant.

"Group 2, come forth."

The remaining students kept staring at the empty space where Group 1 had stood only a second earlier. Group 2, led by Professor Draven, stepped forward. Milfias cast the spell again and sent another hundred students away.

"Let’s go."

Professor Freya Ashgrove’s voice rang out clear and firm. Freya was a beastkin,a wolf-girl like Fiona but with silver hair. She was older, in her mid-fifties, with a small scar across her nose. She was the professor assigned to Group 3, Xavier’s group. They walked forward and stood before Milfias. Her spell glowed beneath their feet. Light filled their vision, and the moment it faded Xavier found himself standing on soft green grass—a stark contrast to the stone plaza of an instant ago.

They stood in a vast grassland. Strong gusts of wind struck their faces and made their hair flutter.

"All right, gather up. I will now divide you into teams of ten, and then we will move forward into the Red Forests," Professor Freya said in a commanding tone.

"But Professor, where’s the forest?" one of the students called out.

"Turn around," Freya replied.

Every student turned. Stretching as wide as the grassland itself and going beyond was a wall of tall, dark trees, visible not far away. Already giving off an eerie presence just from the sight of it.

"Those are the Red Forests—the most deadly region on the entire continent, where beasts hunt not for food but for pleasure," Freya said, a cheerful smile on her face. "Now, who’s excited?"