'That damned skill maniac. Does she have a cognitive problem? How did she end up becoming such a skill maniac? What's the reason?' Van thought.
Van calmed himself and looked at Headmistress Valentina with his usual blank expression.
"I believe you already know about [101 Shadows] from history books. I only developed this skill based on those books," Van said calmly.
"Aren't you interested in developing it further? You know, this is a legendary and extremely rare skill," Headmistress Valentina asked, her tone uneasy.
"Develop it further? I might consider it, but not right now. I'm still too young and I don't want to suffer any serious injuries that could affect my future," Van said flatly, as if he had thought through the answer carefully.
"What a pity," Headmistress Valentina muttered despondently.
"Is there anything else?" Van asked as he sipped his tea.
"What about your eyes? You have the Aurelius bloodline from your mother, don't you?" Headmistress Valentina asked curiously.
"Yes, I have a unique eye ability from the Aurelius bloodline," Van said without hiding it.
"What kind of ability do your eyes have?" Headmistress Valentina asked, her eyes sparkling like a child given candy.
"I don't really know. This ability only appears occasionally, and I still can't control it," Van said calmly.
Hearing Van's reply, Headmistress Valentina's expression changed 180 degrees, from excited to dejected.
"Can you tell me what abilities you've experienced when using those eyes?" Headmistress Valentina asked.
"Sure. My eyes can make someone lose the ability to use [Mana]. Other than that, I once pierced the barrier at the [Colosseum]," Van said calmly.
"I see," Headmistress Valentina muttered, bowing her head, clearly deep in thought about something no one could guess.
After a moment, Headmistress Valentina lifted her head, her eyes shining as if she had just had a revelation. But this time, her gaze was no longer on Van—it was on Arthur.
Arthur shuddered all over as Headmistress Valentina stared at him.
'What does this crazy woman want?' Arthur thought, wary.
"Student Arthur, I'm a little curious about your nickname as the [Nightmare Knight]. What exactly are the illusions that everyone who fights you experiences?" Headmistress Valentina asked.
"Illusions? What's that?" Arthur asked, confused, glancing at Van as if asking for an explanation.
"Don't ask me. I never experienced any illusions when I fought you," Van said, shrugging his shoulders.
"What's with these illusions? Maybe they're just weak and got so scared they imagined strange things," Arthur said.
"Is that so?" Headmistress Valentina asked, a little doubtful.
"This world is unique, Headmistress Valentina," Van said calmly.
"Yes, you're right, student Van. You're lucky to have such a strong companion," Headmistress Valentina said, glancing at Arthur.
"That's thanks to both of our hard work," Van said calmly.
"By the way, whose swordsmanship is better?" Headmistress Valentina asked, curious.
Hearing her question, Van and Arthur looked at each other.
'This woman definitely has something bad in mind,' Van and Arthur thought.
"Him," Van and Arthur said at the same time, each pointing at the other.
Headmistress Valentina narrowed her eyes when she heard their answer.
"Master comes from the Black Family, famous for their swordsmanship talent. So Master is stronger than me," Arthur said.
"Even though I'm from the Black Family, I rarely developed my swordsmanship. I focused more on developing my skills, while Arthur always focused on swordsmanship. So Arthur is stronger," Van countered.
"What do you mean, Master? Didn't we have a duel before, and you won that time?"
"That was when you were just a beginner who had only held a sword for a few months. That's why I won. But you've been developing your swordsmanship all this time, while I've barely touched a sword lately."
Hearing their argument, Headmistress Valentina's curiosity vanished, replaced by annoyance.
"Enough! I don't want to know anymore," Headmistress Valentina cut them off.
Hearing Headmistress Valentina's words, Van and Arthur finally stopped arguing.
Unbeknownst to Headmistress Valentina, that debate was deliberately arranged by the two of them so she wouldn't know who was actually better at swordsmanship.
Van and Arthur exchanged glances, and for a moment it felt like sparks flew between their gazes, though inwardly they were laughing at Headmistress Valentina.
"Alright. I suppose I have no more reason to stay here," Headmistress Valentina said, rising to her feet.
"Shall I walk you out?" Van asked, standing up as well.
"No need. I know you're busy," Headmistress Valentina said.
"Alright," Van replied.
"By the way, are you really not interested in the [Academy Committee]?" Headmistress Valentina asked.
"Not interested," Van said, short and clear.
"Alright. I'll be going now," Headmistress Valentina said, heading towards the villa door, followed by several of Arthur's [Doppelgangers].
Just a few steps away, she suddenly turned around and said, "By the way, just call me Sister Valentina. I already consider you part of my family. Besides, your father and I dated when we were at the Academy."
Hearing that, Van froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.
'What? What did I just hear? I never added a detail like this in the novel,' Van thought, stunned.
*THUCK
Van finally snapped out of it when he heard the sound of the villa door closing. He turned to the side and saw Arthur still standing there with a shocked, disbelieving expression on his face.
Van swung his leg and kicked Arthur in the stomach.
Arthur's instincts suddenly sensed danger and he snapped out of it—but too late. Van's kick landed on his face, making him stagger back a few steps.
"Are you back to your senses?" Van asked calmly.
"Yeah. I was just shocked hearing that," Arthur said, still sounding a little disbelieving.
"At least we gained one advantage from that," Van said evenly.
"What's that?" Arthur asked, curious.
"We have insider privileges at the Academy," Van said.
Hearing that, Arthur realized the upside to the revelation.
"I guess only you would be able to think of something like that," Arthur said, looking at Van with a bit of admiration.
Hearing Arthur's praise, Van rolled his eyes and said, "That's why you need to learn to think with your brain, not your muscles."
"Sorry, all my nutrients went to my muscles—none reached my brain," Arthur retorted.