Inside William's room, the sound of steady breathing could be heard.
Wendy's head was currently lying on Wililam's lap, while the latter gently brushed her hair. She had fallen asleep about half an hour ago and the Half-Elf was keeping watch over her.
'How is she?' William asked.
< She has ingested a good amount of candies. Fortunately, she's also a mage so her resistance slowed the invasion of her Sea of Consciousness. However, if she were to ingest more candies, the suggestion spell inside of her will strengthen to the point where the caster will be able to control her thoughts, and emotions, to a certain extent. >
'The suggestion spell isn't as powerful as the charm spell, right?'
< No. But, there is still a risk that the victim wouldn't know that the thoughts inside their head were not their own, but of the caster who has placed the spell inside their body. According to my estimate, the progression of the spell inside Wendy's body is at 25% >
'25%...,' William thought as she gazed down at the sleeping beauty on his lap. He was now faced with a difficult situation.
The first choice was to cure Wendy completely and start his investigation on the matter. The second was to investigate this incident while Wendy continued to consume candy and accumulate the spell inside of her.
The first choice was the ideal one, but it would also alert the Mastermind that someone had tinkered with their spell. This in turn would alarm them and would give them the opportunity to hide safely in the shadows.
Once this happened, William would have a hard time finding the culprit and the hidden danger would still be there.
The second option was more risky because it would endanger Wendy's safety. The more candy she ate, the more the caster's spell would accumulate until it reached a point where he could subtly order Wendy to do things, while the latter thought that it was the "right thing to do".
'System, do you have any suggestions?' William asked as he continued to brush Wendy's hair. If possible, he didn't want to endanger this girl who loved him so much.
< I will leave the decision to you, Host. >
William sighed internally. He knew what he had to do, but it still hurt him to do it.
He felt bitter.
He felt like scum.
He felt that he was no different from the nobles who used people as their chess pieces in order to gain more profit for them.
After thinking long and hard, William came to a decision.
'System, I want you to put a special tracker on Wendy. Place all the add-ons in it. See what she sees, hear what she hears. Also, monitor her emotional wavelengths. At the first sign of danger, alert me right away and we will go to rescue her immediately.'
< That will be 1,500 God Points all in all and it will last for two months. Are you sure of your decision, Host? >
< Yes / No >
'Do it,' William replied without batting an eye. For him, Wendy was more important than God Points.
< Special tracker successfully implanted! >
< Host, I have a suggestion. >
'What is it?'
< I can attach a special tracker to Wendy so that we can also put a tracker on the person that gives her the candy. I heard earlier that she mentioned a "Big Sister Charlotte" perhaps, this person is connected to the Mastermind pulling the strings from behind. >
'Or she could be another one of that bastard's victims,' William commented. 'Very well, use the God Points needed. I don't mind.'
< Understood. >
< Deducting 1,500 God Points from the Balance. >
< God Points Remaining: 2980 >
William held Wendy's hand firmly. He would do his best to protect her to the best of his abilities, but this was a gamble that he needed to take. The Half-Elf had a bad feeling that there was a bigger plot behind this incident. He hoped that he was wrong because if he was right then this didn't bode well for the students of the Hellan Royal Academy.
-----
Meanwhile, inside Carter's Room…
Carter was currently holding a communication crystal in his hand. He felt the familiar tug of his Lord's Magic which his superior often used to contact him if something important had come up.
"Master, I am here," Carter said respectfully as the communication crystal glowed red.
Soon, an image of a handsome man with two small horns protruding out of his head appeared on the surface of the crystal. He was Carter's direct superior, and one of the generals of the Demon Lord, Zagarl Rannath.
"There is a change of plans," Zagarl said with a serious expression. "I want you to massacre the students of the Hellan Academy. This must be done in less than two months. After your mission, immediately return to the Demon Continent and accept the rewards that the Demon Lord has promised you."
Carter frowned when he heard that his mission had changed. His original mission was to corrupt the talented students inside the Royal Academy and bring them back to the Demon Continent to be used as studs, and broodmares for the Demon Race.
Now, his mission changed to a massacre. Carter didn't know why the General suddenly had a change of heart, but he was in no position to question his orders.
Seeing the confusion on Carter's face, the general sighed and continued his explanations.
"Your original plan will still be carried out, but focus on bringing the girls to the Demon Continent," Zagarl stated. "As for the boys, use them as cannon fodders while you make your escape.
"I have already sent additional resources to you and it will arrive two to three days from now. Use those ingredients to strengthen the effect of your candies by tenfold. That way, you will not have to wait for a full month before your spell takes hold of their minds. At most, you will only need a week or two to completely put them all under your thumb."
Carter's expression immediately eased after hearing that additional resources would be sent to him. The lack of which had been the main problem he faced in wanting to make more candies in a short period of time.
"My Liege, the Academy is going to have an Inter-Division Battle a month from now," Carter reported. "That is the perfect opportunity to conduct a massacre. How about we do it on that day?"
"Good." Zagar pondered for a bit before nodding his head. "I will also send some demons to aid you in transporting the girls back to the Demon Continent. I will allow you to pick five of the girls from the academy for yourself. So, make sure to pick the best, understood?"
"Thank you for your generosity, My Liege," Carter bowed. He then pressed his fist over his chest. "Glory to the Demon Race!"
Zagarl, too, pressed his fist over his chest as he gave his reply, "Glory to the Demon Race!"
Carter ended the call and carefully deposited the communication crystal back into his storage ring. He had things to take care of, so he left the room in haste.
A few minutes after the professor left the room, a small black snake crawled out from under the bed. It then entered a small gap in the wall until it was safely out of the Teacher's Dormitory.
It slithered through the grass until it arrived at a small warehouse used to store the academy's tools and other supplies.
A few seconds later, the snake transformed into a man wearing a hood. The man glanced in the direction of the Teacher's dormitory once before turning into black a mist.
The chirping of a cicada echoed in the quiet afternoon. It was as if it was making a proclamation that the night would soon descend upon the lands of the Southern Continent.