Arthur was led to Melissa’s office, which was quite a mess and the total opposite of Vanessa’s exquisite and luxurious room.

The Dean neither served him tea nor acted courteously, instead, she was all grumpy and kept glaring at him menacingly.

“I believe I’ve tried my best in hiding my identity. How did you know?”

“Fuck you.”

“Are you really going to be like this? Why did you let me come here, then?”

Melissa muttered something under her breath before banging on the table.

“Old Arnold was a good person!”

“I never said he wasn’t. Also, I didn’t kill him.”

“That doesn’t excuse what you did, damn leech. If it were up to me, I would have ripped your sorry ass to shreds.”

She snorted and proceeded to ignore the parasite, who was still confused by her actions.

Seconds later, someone knocked on the door before entering.

“Pardon my lateness.”

Arthur glanced over and saw an elegant-looking young woman with eye-catching orange hair and a funny-looking wizardly hat.

Seeing the parasite, the woman performed a polite bow while introducing herself,

“I am Sonia Ma. Principal and Head of the Nemia Academy. It’s my first time meeting a parasite.”

“...”

“Do not be alarmed. As long as you do not act against us, we will not discriminate against your kind.”

Sonia approvingly nodded at the restrained Melissa before smiling across from Arthur with a sweet smile on her face.

‘She looks very young.’

The Principal looked no older than 25, which was a surprise. He had heard about the famed Archmagus known as Sonia Ma.

She was an unrivaled prodigy in Magic and possibly the strongest mage in all of Astria. Even the Tower Masters of North wasn’t her match, or so many claimed.

“To what do I the honor, Miss Sonia?”

“It’s fine to call me Sonia… or Ma. I don’t like formalities.”

She covered her mouth and giggled, but Arthur was disturbed by her nonchalance. She seemed calm and cutesy, but he didn’t forget that she was a frightening individual.

She was able to run the Nemia Academy for so many years, and her appearance was merely a facade.

Sonia Ma was, at the very least, 80 years of age. One wouldn’t be able to stand at the apex just by being ‘lovely’ and ‘welcoming’. As someone who was in a relatively similar position in the past, Arthur could kind of gauge Sonia’s character.

‘Shrewd and cunning. Not that it’s unexpected, though.’

“Alright, Sonia. Since, as the kind Dean has spared my life, how about you tell me what you want? Not that I don’t mind talking to you, but I’ve got things to do.”

“I don’t sense any fear from you. Is it perhaps a quality of the Parasite race? Or are you that confident in surviving?” Curiously asked Sonia as she scrutinized him.

“Fear? Should I fear you because you’re strong? The way I see it, Sonia, we are not enemies… nor should we be. A path of cooperation lies before us.”

“Indeed. We could use someone of your expertise, which is why I’m here.”

She snapped her fingers, causing papers to appear on the table. While sliding them toward Arthur, Sonia continued,

“This is a formal contract to work in my academy. Since I don’t know what you’re proficient at, I decided, after careful deliberation, to entrust with the job of teaching Close-quarter Combat. Ehmm… I’m going to fire the current teacher.”

“Finally! For fuck’s sake!” Exclaimed Melissa as she shouted in relief.

“That smelly freak keeps harassing the female students. Can I rough him up before he’s fired? Come on, Sonia… just a lil’ bit. A teeny-tiny beating.”

Sonia, still smiling, shook her head once as she responded, “He’s the cousin of High Scholar Khar Dinn. It’s better to part on good terms.”

“Ugh… always with politics and all that nonsense.” Bummed out, Melissa skulkingly lowered her head and kept mumbling to herself.

As for Arthur, he listened to them with intrigue. So far, everything had been proceeding smoothly but different from his expectations. He had yet to know how he was discovered, but since the Principal wasn’t being particularly forceful, he felt a bit relieved.

“You can read the contract. Excluding the usual stuff, there are, of course, some conditions and limitations.”

Arthur skimmed through the contract before muttering, “Party B cannot possess students or colleagues. Party B cannot attack his colleagues. Party B cannot get in a romantic relationship with a student. Party B cannot threaten the safety of the academy. Party B….”

After reciting close to twenty clauses, Arthur sighed and remarked,

“A lot of unnecessary things.”

“Precautionary measures. I like order and stability in my academy. The blank space at the bottom is where your condition will be written.”

“What do you hope to achieve from this, Sonia?”

Sonia softly chuckled and pointed at him, “You. I’m not like the aristocracy or the barbaric southerners. I find Parasites intriguing and highly… extremely valuable. Why would I make an enemy of you? You’re strong, so there’s no doubt you’ve obtained a lot of benefits. Such benefits could also be applied to teaching, which is what I desire of you. I know that with how abrupt my appearance was, coupled with the current circumstances, I might sound disingenuous to you. However, it is truly my wish to recruit you. I care not for your origin or nature.”

Sonia paused for a couple of seconds, her smile vanishing, “Additionally, there are things that you could do better than I. For example, purging this academy or any nuisances and pests. For various reasons, including political ones, if I act personally, then it could get complicated and, quite honestly, messy. Then you appeared, which made me re-evaluate my methods.”

“Why not rely on Miss Melissa?”

Sonia let out a fake cough as she snuck a glance at the pouting Dean.

“E-ehm… subterfuge is not Melissa’s specialty. Although there is no shortage of powerhouses in my academy, there are none but Melissa that I can trust. Especially in these tumultuous times.”

Hearing this, Arthur creased his eyebrow and coldly looked back at the young woman.

“What makes you think that I, a complete stranger, would adhere to your rules and not backstab you?”

“Nothing. I believe in sincerity and integrity. I give you what you want, and you do the same for me.”

“And do you know what I want?”

Sonia laughed and shrugged her shoulders, “That’s precisely why I’m here. Melissa is many things, but she’s not eloquent, so I had to personally talk to you.”

“Come on, kicking me when I’m down?!”

Melissa slid down from the chair and stomped the ground like a child throwing a tantrum.

“I’m listening. What are you here for?”

Arthur maintained a short silence as he closed his eyes and deliberated. It certainly was an enticing offer, which would make it less cumbersome to roam around the academy and investigate. However, he was unwilling to disclose his true objective because he didn’t trust her yet.

“Just so you know, the Alchemy Department has a decent amount of relatively intact corpses. There’s even a Black Drake, an Empyrean Wyvern, and Demon Wyrm. Of course, all three are highly-guarded and in a secret location.”

“So I will get one of my choosing if I sign the contract.”

As if hearing a joke, Sonia giggled and shook her head, “I’m not that foolish. When the time comes, you will get one of them.”

“I want all three… and a very good sword.”

“Two and a sword.”

“Deal!” Responded Arthur as he stretched his wrinkled hand.

Sonia was momentarily surprised before shaking his hand.

“Let us move to the ‘sensitive’ stuff now. You have been snooping around in my academy, so you must know about the spies from various secret organizations. In addition to teaching the younglings, I want those meddling pests to be removed. You can consider their ‘bodies’ as an advance payment. Last but not least, I want you to protect someone.”

With a signal from Sonia, Melissa retrieved a document from her drawer.

“His name is Joshua Boulard.”

“Boulard?”

“Yes. From the household of Historians and Scholars, the Royal family of the Scholar Kingdom. Boulard. The boy has an unusual interest in the secret organization and his father has asked me to take care of him. You just have to make sure he stays on the right path.”

Arthur looked at the picture of the boy while saying, “You do know I’m not going to stay here indefinitely, right?”

“The contract period will be two months. At the end of the semester, provided you fulfill my conditions, I’ll give you what you want.”

“It’s decided then.” While beaming at the Principal, Arthur signed the papers, seemingly in a very good mood.

“Ah… you’ll give me a suitable host to be a teacher, right?”

“...”

“I’d prefer someone a bit young. Handsome. I wouldn’t mind an allowance to take care of myself too. Much appreciated, Sonia!”

The young woman stared at him in disbelief, startled by his change of attitude and overbearing enthusiasm.