There was a small click, and the three turned to the door to see it swing open.

Professor Raoul held the door open as he smiled reassuringly at them,

"We're ready for you now."

Caius shared a look with Delia, and his gaze was imploring her to remember what they had talked about as they all rose and walked to the door, feeling the peaceful aura carried by the wonderful wind blow over their forms. They walked into the office and Raoul closed the door behind them.

The office was massive. In size, it was at least four times larger than any of the Professor Offices that Caius had been graced to see. It had sections all over and tier levels of floor heights with each tier serving some purpose.

There was a spiral staircase off to the far side of the office that led to a higher level above which proved why it was essential that the office's dome ceiling was so high, the office might as well be two stories.

There were shelves all over with various books and tomes and scrolls. Some of them looked mundane but deliberately set down and others teeming with magic. As Caius watched, he could have sworn he saw some tomes palpitate like a beating heart.

Besides the books that spoke of academic pursuits, there were pretty impressive silver and gold decorations with ornaments, magic items, and tools all over the office that showed that while the inhabitant of the office was a seeker of knowledge, they also weren't averse to material possessions.

With Raoul at the lead, Caius and the others stepped forward and downward as they descended the tiers to arrive at the lowest and most central point of the office which was itself a massive space.

There was a grand desk, impressively and ornately designed. Caius unconsciously paid attention to the designs and realized they were Arcane Symbols. Only as he tried to read what they meant, he got a splitting headache. He winced and drew his mind away from the intent of understanding and the headache waned even though he was still looking at the symbols.

The phenomenon was peculiar. As a Vampire, Caius should not have been affected by Arcane Symbols. The last time he experienced this was when he first gazed on Athenodora's tattoos.

Behind the desk was a high-backed chair, almost like a throne, and seated in that chair, her elbows placed on top of the desk so she could place her chin above the top of the interlocked fingers of her hand, was a face Caius had only seen once since he had arrived in this world.

"Headmistress," Raoul said with a bow toward the woman seated in the chair.

Delia and Aurelius were quicker to follow Raoul's lead and bow. With a glance at his sides, Caius realized he was the only one left with a straight back among his group and rectified that.

"Please," Headmistress Elvira Lennox said in a sonorous voice as she waved her hand, "Stand children. You've been through so much."

As she spoke, a current of wind took hold of Caius, Delia, and Aurelius's bodies, assisting them to stand upright.

Caius couldn't take his eyes off Elvira. Granted she was a very beautiful woman. That long white hair of hers that undulated like each strand was being moved by its own wind current and the baby-blue eyes that gave her a youthful and inquisitive look. Her smile was also very kind. Warm and inviting.

But all that was not why Caius stared— though it would probably be enough reason. He stared because this was the first time he was really seeing the Headmistress. First time he was seeing all that falsity of hers where she pretended not to be a nutjob.

When Caius first arrived in this world, things hadn't really set in. He saw Elvira and he was simply carried away by her beauty. The same thing happened with Arlette who he only realized what she was up to after she had led him to her office.

But Elvira Lennox was so much worse than Arlette Louvene. At least the Arlette Louvene in the original canon.

You see, Elvira is just like many in this world; She seeks power. Ultimate power—the 12th Circle—and apparent Ascension. Her so-called Academic retreats aren't just to gobble up knowledge, but also to progress her plans to reach the 12th Circle.

Everything about her, the bleach-white color of her hair, the strange twinkle in her baby-blue eyes, was because of the things she had done for power. How much she had pushed herself to certain limits.

The fact that she still looked so beautiful, despite all she had done to acquire power and how much she had pushed herself, was because she wanted to look beautiful. Because Elvira Lennox is also incredibly vain. And really, there's nothing wrong with that.

There's nothing wrong with any of it.

This world doesn't punish the desire to become strong. Especially not when the one trying to be strong/stronger is already pretty powerful. Elvira could show herself to be as powerful-hungry as she was on the inside and she'll be respected for it. Even feared.

And yet, she hid it.

That never quite sat well with Caius.

As a reader, he had always been drawn to selfish, ambitious, and even villainous characters but Elvira was just a strange one.

She's like a wolf in sheep's clothing. Her sweetness, compassion, and kindness were all for one simple reason; To draw people in.

Because at the core of it all, Elvira Lennox is a user. Part of her path to power has been to use those who have it. It's why she took on the post of Headmistress; To find those with the best potential that could serve her purpose.

And in Centuries, there has been no one as useful to Elvira's goal as Aurelius Du Aristide.

In the original timeline, Elvira Lennox becomes a villain. One of the worst Aurelius faced. She had stockpiles of knowledge turned into power that Aurelius, with all his gains and abilities at the time, struggled to defeat. Just thinking about it caused Caius to shiver.

And that was why he stared at Elvira. [To Kill A Demon Lord…] had described her very well. It had described her incredible looks that scream sexy-and-wise and naturally drew in her prey. It had described her sweet smiles hiding insidious power-hungry desires. And somehow, the descriptions paled in comparison to how Caius was feeling looking at that face.

So he looked away at the other faces in the office. Professor Melvin was standing quite close to the Headmistress's seat and addressing the students with a mixture of dislike—toward Caius—and urgency toward the grave matter at hand.

And besides Raoul who was standing close to the students, there were the other two Professors in charge of Tests that just happened within the Lochxen Forest; Lea Gilligan and Cynthia Kragsten.

Lea looked glad to see Caius well and she was trying really hard not to react the way her body was practically begging her to react. She had been right behind Cynthia to venture into the Forest and by the time she arrived, Caius had already been taken by Arlette.

Cynthia Kragsten, on the other hand, didn't seem quite sure what expression to wear. She was certainly glad for the well-being of the trio. Aurelius was a prize student of hers. Delia was her stubborn sister whom she surely still cared for. And Caius… was the real cause of her confusion.

"Please, students," the Headmistress said, "Sit."

Delia opened her mouth to ask 'where'. As furnished as the office was, there were very few chairs besides the one the Headmistress was sitting in. And there was none on the tier they were all standing on.

As though she had read Delia's mind, Elvira cut in with a sweet smile.

"My apologies. I try to keep things uncluttered," she said and waved her hand, causing Arcane symbols to glow on the ground as a three-sitter couch was practically woven into appearance.

She gestured toward it,

"That should suffice."

Without a word, the three shared looks and took their seat as the inquiry began.

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