Entering Hugo's office, Isabella released a deep sigh.
"I suppose the damage was much more aggravating than expected," Hugo deduced from Isabella's exhausted complexion.
"Don't even start, old man," retorted Isabella with anger in her eyes.
"What were you even thinking by turning a blind eye to this?!" Isabella raised her voice, the aftermath of Ace's and Emilia's fight etched deeply in her mind. "Do you even realize that Windsor was on the verge of death?"
"Yes," Hugo clutched his hands together, his expression calm yet grave. "But as you have probably witnessed, that is no longer a concern as she is still alive."
Electric blue sparks started flickering around Isabella.
"Still alive?" Isabella's tone was full of irritation. "Are you even hearing what you are saying right now?"
"They're students yet they were really trying to kill each other," Isabella continued. "Especially Blakelord. He really was trying to kill her, and you're saying it's fine?"
"Have you finally lost your goddamn mind?" Isabella glared at him with contempt.
"I assure you I'm still sound of mind," Hugo replied, his gaze unwavering. "As concerning as it is, it was something that had to be done."
"Hah!" Isabella smirked. "Something that had to be done? Are you fucking with me? No matter what you say, it doesn't justify your inaction in this matter."
"We are educators," Isabella clenched her fist while gritting her teeth. "We are supposed to nurture our students and protect them. And yet, when it comes to Blakelord, you always seem to do the opposite."
"I…" Hugo started before being interrupted by Isabella.
"Shut up!" Isabella's electric aura started to flare up around her. "You were the one who taught me all that I know, and I'll always respect you for that. But I'll ask you one last time, why the hell did you bring that kid into the academy?"
Hugo pondered for a short moment.
"You must have seen it for yourself," he started, his gaze contemplative. "The power he possesses."
Isabella's mind replayed what happened when she arrived on the scene.
The hidden expression Ace had which made her shiver from the sheer fear it inspired in her. Emilia's lifeless body lay on the ground, barely holding on to life. And what happened afterwards, making her question what she had allowed to sit in her classroom.
"His power has nothing to do with magic," Hugo cut through the silence, bringing her back from the memories of her mind. "Even the shadow manipulation abilities he showcased were far from what his real power can do. The unique ability to manipulate and turn any form of power within and or outside the body into a desired phenomenon… Energy Transmutation."
'Yeah, he's right. I witnessed it myself. That power…' Isabella's mind replayed the last scene she witnessed.
The scene where the remnants of Ace's and Emilia's battle faded into mist and converged into Ace's body, and after that, he used his blade to let his blood flow from his tongue before placing his hand on Emilia's chest and channeled that energy into her body while forcing her to drink his blood with a mouth-to-mouth.
Unsure of what to do, Isabella had remained stunned in wonder. But before she could think of an action to do, Emilia's wounds had started to heal at an impressive speed.
And it didn't stop there.
The freezing cold that filled the air had dissipated into nothingness. The remnants of ice had faded from sight. It was as if the discharged mana that had been released during their fight was returning to where they came from.
And at the end of it all, with the setting sun giving way to the starlit night, Emilia's face that seemed as pale as a corpse, had regained its colors.
Without uttering a single word, Ace took Emilia in his arms into a princess carry, and with those cold, dark and empty eyes of his, he glanced back at Isabella with a gaze that seemed to tell her to not get involved.
'Even as I'm fully conscious that I could probably overpower him if I wanted to, it felt as if it would be futile to even try,' Isabella thought as the scene faded from her mind. 'It felt as if that if I even twitched a little bit, I would die on the spot.'
With a resolute voice, Isabella's gaze locked onto Hugo. "I request this as the Homeroom Professor of the Second Year's Class 1. Please expel Ace Blakelord from the Academy."
Hugo's eyes didn't flinch, his gaze didn't waver, and his expression remained unchanging. The only thing he did was say but a single response.
"I'll consider it."
Isabella simply turned her back on him, now facing the door as she left only one single statement: "I hope you'll take the right decision."
As the door closed, Hugo released a sigh.
'Unfortunately, it'd be difficult to do something that's already inevitable.'
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"Mmm~" Emilia moaned, the scene of her fight with Ace replaying in her mind as her eyes fluttered open.
'Where am I?' her gaze landed on the sight of her and Ace's dorm room.
With a gasp, she abruptly rose from the bed, noticing that Ace seemed to lay asleep on their foldable couch.
Before even uttering a word, Emilia noticed that she felt no pain. Her fight with Ace was brutal one, and yet, she had no injuries albeit the small scar on the left side of her abdomen which she noticed by checking if she had any injuries at all.
"What?" she muttered under her breath.
"You really are an idiot, aren't you?" Ace's voice came out. "If you had fired that spell with the intent to kill, I'd probably be dead by now."
"But instead of that, you only fired it to incapacitate me using the cold and ice," added Ace, recalling his final clash with Emilia. "Until the very end, you didn't even consider the option of killing me. What an idiot you are."
Emilia, clenching her jaw with her head held down, clutched her bed sheets tightly. And as she reflected on Ace's words, his action, his behavior, she unknowingly asked him a question that left her in disbelief of what was coming out of her mouth.
"Ace, do you…" Emilia hesitated, the words stuck in her throat. "Do you want to die?"