Chapter 60: Draven achieves his goal, or so it seems.

Chapter 60: Chapter 60: Draven achieves his goal, or so it seems.

Draven lingered on something Ari had said.

"They found enough remains to fill several boxes."

Until that moment, Draven had assumed Elfin had probably destroyed a large part of the mercenaries’ equipment during the clash.

However, some items had survived, which increased his chances of finding information.

"I suppose they’ll be trying to analyze them."

"Of course..."

Ari reached for the bottle.

"But those researchers take forever..."

Draven watched her pour another small amount.

"Where do they run those analyses?"

"In the research facilities..."

"Shouldn’t they take the items somewhere special?"

Ari let out a laugh.

"They’re not legendary relics either!"

"I meant they might be dangerous."

"Ah, that..."

The professor tilted her head slightly.

"First... they catalog everything they find and then... they store it in the confiscated materials warehouse."

Draven kept a calm expression.

’There it is.’

"The academy has a warehouse for that sort of thing?"

"Of course..."

"And where is it?"

Ari raised her hand.

"In the... administrative building..."

Draven looked at her.

"The main one?"

"No... no..."

The professor shook her head.

"In the annex building... the one behind the research laboratories..."

Draven immediately recalled the place; he had passed near it during his first days at the academy.

’So that’s where it is.’

"I suppose it must have quite a bit of security."

"Of course..."

Ari smiled.

"We don’t want students sneaking in to steal dangerous objects...!"

Draven gave a small laugh.

"That would be pretty troublesome."

"Exactly!"

The professor kept talking.

"Besides... items related to important investigations are stored separately... no one can take them without authorization."

"I understand."

"Especially the ones from the forest..."

Draven raised his eyebrows slightly.

"Why?"

"Because we’re still investigating what happened..."

The answer was obvious, but Draven preferred not to show too much interest.

"I suppose that makes sense."

Ari nodded and then took another sip.

"Though honestly I hope they finish soon! I’m tired of so many reports."

Draven smiled.

"They’ll probably find something."

"That... I hope..."

The professor set the glass on the table.

"And if I find out who sent those guys..."

Her smile faded.

"...I’ll have a rather unpleasant conversation with that person."

Draven briefly observed her expression and, despite the alcohol, Ari still retained part of her usual authority.

’I wouldn’t want to be present for that conversation.’

The professor smiled again.

"But enough about work!"

She lifted the bottle.

"Let’s talk about something more interesting!"

"Like what?"

"Little Taliah!"

"..."

Draven sighed.

"Again?"

"I still have plenty of stories from when she was little!"

When Draven finally left the room, the sun was beginning to set while Ari remained seated at her desk, enjoying the liquor she had received.

"Come back whenever you want, Draven!"

"Thank you very much, Professor."

"And if you manage to get... another bottle... don’t hesitate to bring it...!"

"I’ll keep that in mind."

Draven closed the door and then began walking down the hallway as his expression slowly changed.

’Administrative annex building.’

He had gotten what he needed and now knew where the mercenaries’ belongings were stored.

’That’s enough for now.’

However, several problems still remained, since the warehouse was protected and the items related to important investigations had additional security measures.

Besides, the academy was still investigating the attack, so he couldn’t simply walk in during the day and start going through the boxes.

’I’ll need to do it when no one’s around.’

Draven recalled the general layout of the academy.

The administrative buildings were connected by several hallways and interior courtyards.

During the day, professors, staff, and students constantly moved through that area, but at night the situation was different.

’First I’ll have to find out what security measures they use.’

If he tried to enter without preparation, he could end up triggering some alarm, which would bring him face to face with the academy’s guards, and that would be hard to explain.

Especially after having survived an assassination attempt, at which Draven let out a small sigh.

’Taliah will kill me if she finds out what I’m planning.’

He remembered the promise he had made to her in the infirmary not to get into trouble, and he had tried to keep it, at least during the first few days.

’I guess that was too optimistic.’

He continued walking toward the exit while feeling he had made progress in his investigation.

He still didn’t know who had hired the mercenaries and didn’t know if he would find useful information among their belongings, but now he had a place to start.

’I have to get those items.’

Draven paused briefly in front of a window.

From there he could make out part of the administrative annex building, located behind the research laboratories.

He observed its windows, the main doors, and the paths leading to it, then continued on.

’I can’t involve the authorities.’

For now, he preferred to act on his own, but there was something else he had to consider.

Even if he managed to get into the warehouse, he needed instruments capable of analyzing the magical properties of the recovered items.

Common devices probably wouldn’t be enough, and he couldn’t use the academy’s laboratories without drawing attention.

Draven remained thoughtful and then remembered a certain demonic heiress.

’Zenash...’

A small smile appeared on his face.

’I think I’ll have to ask you for another favor.’

Meanwhile, in the professors’ room, Ari continued enjoying her gift, which was about halfway gone.

The professor looked at the documents piled on her desk and then let out a sigh.

"What a pain..."

She took another sip, but when she recalled the conversation she had had with Draven, she raised an eyebrow slightly.

"..."

She remained thoughtful for a few seconds.

"What a curious student."

She set the glass on the table and began to smile.

"Draven Dunvyr..."

She pronounced his name slowly.

"I hope you’re not thinking of doing something stupid."

Then she looked at the bottle.

"..."

Her smile widened.

"Though I have to admit you have excellent taste!"

The professor poured herself a little more liquor, but before drinking, she directed her gaze toward the documents related to the forest incident.

There was something she still didn’t fully understand.

The mercenaries’ corpses bore wounds caused by extraordinarily powerful magical techniques.

None of them matched the abilities Draven had demonstrated during his evaluation, and according to the reports, the concentration of mana that had appeared in that area had been completely abnormal.

Ari stopped smiling.

"..."

She recalled the boy’s expression when she asked him about what had happened and then picked up the document closest to her.

"Definitely..."

Her eyes went over the report again.

"...that kid is hiding something."

Ari set the paper on the desk, and the truth was she didn’t have enough evidence to accuse him of anything.

Besides, Draven had been the victim of the attack, but she was convinced that important pieces of that story were still missing.

Finally, she picked up her glass again.

"Well..."

A small smile appeared once more on her face.

"I suppose I’ll have to keep an eye on him a little."

Draven’s next objective was to enter the warehouse and examine the mercenaries’ belongings, but to achieve that, he would first have to find a way to bypass the academy’s security measures.