“You haven’t spoken in a long time, Professor Noxickle,” Arthur pointed out, sipping his coffee frivolously. He noticed the color drain from Henry’s face, and the beads of sweat that streamed down his face.
Arthur quietly wiped the top of his lips using a napkin. Due to the barrier, external noises were blocked, leaving the place eerily silent.
“What do you want me to say…” Professor Noxickle spoke.
“What’s your name?”
“Henry Noxickle.”
“Are you sure it’s not Jack Valentine?” Arthur asked as a deep, crimson gleam manifested in his eyes. “Will the Jester Organization verify it as Henry Noxickle? Or will they pretend not to know you at all?”
Silence descended inside the barrier, and Henry clicked his tongue. He bit his lip, causing blood to stream down his chin. The desperation and regret in his eyes were vivid. But Arthur knew they weren’t genuine.
“I have a wife… kids…”
“No, you don’t,” replied Arthur, revealing a vicious smile. “Jack Valentine, who always goes by the alias Henry Noxickle, is an orphan without a wife, kids, or successors to leave behind after his death.”
Silence.
“Even if you did have a wife and kids…” Arthur muttered, leaning in. He displayed the insanity in his eyes before letting out a playful chuckle. “I wouldn’t give a shit.”
“You’re a man, aren’t you?” Henry protested. Beads of sweat piled up on his forehead. Henry’s face reddened, and he clenched his fist so hard it leaked blood. It was a dire moment for him, something would decide his fate. “Don’t you know what desperation is?”
“I do,” replied Arthur. “I’ve felt it thousands of times, and I’ve committed acts way… way worse than you.”
“So… why don’t–”
“But as I said, I don’t give a shit,” Arthur whispered, yet the voice lingered in Henry’s mind as the voice of the devil. “If people could, they would rat on me, too. But they didn’t, and I’m in this situation. I knew how to hide my crimes.”
“Just listen–”
“But you don’t,” Arthur said, laughing in pure mockery. “You don’t know how to hide your crimes.”
“Liste–”
“Amateur.”
“Listen here, you little shit,” shouted Henry, slamming his palms onto the table before standing up in pure anger. His fiery eyes lingered on Arthur’s cheeky smirk. He wanted nothing more than to rip that expression off the man’s face.
But he couldn’t.
“Feisty,” Arthur commented, raising an eyebrow at Henry’s bravery. “But you don’t know when to give in, do you?”
Finally, Henry realized what the crimson-eyed man was attempting to do. Succumbing to his will, Henry collapsed on the ground. He sat on his knees before clasping his hands together. “I will do whatever you want.”
“Like a good little dog?”
“Like a good little… d–dog!”
“Good boy!” Arthur praised, patting Henry on his head. The latter suppressed the urge to murder the man, but he knew it wasn’t possible. “Oh, and just so you’re aware, I have Arcadia Academy on speed dial.”
Arthur displayed his communication device.
“Now, bark for me,” the crimson-eyed man ordered, resting his chin on his palm. His fangs were bared.
“Do you really have to go that far?”
“Bark, or else…”
“W–Woof,” barked Henry, gritting his teeth as veins bulged from his forehead.
“Nullify the barrier,” ordered Arthur. His crimson eyes were too intimidating for Henry to resist, so he bent immediately. Flicking his wrist, Henry dissolved the barrier before dispersing the used mana into the atmosphere.
“Now what?”
“Bark.”
Silence.
“Are you serious?” Henry asked in indignation. Barking when no one could see was vastly different from public humiliation. In fact, Henry wondered whether to allow his secret to be revealed.
His public image was something he’d crafted through sheer hard work and determination. It was his staple, and something that maintained his position in Arcadia Academy as one of the best and most-liked teachers.
It’s what smoothened his espionage.
But asking to utterly destroy that image? That was too much.
“Bark,” Arthur repeated. “I won’t say it again. Become a dog for me and lick my feet.”
“Fuck you,” Henry muttered under his breath before getting on his feet. He then approached Arthur’s feet with a hesitant expression on his face.
However, as he approached Arthur’s feet, the crimson-eyed man smacked him on his head before standing up in shock. “Professor Noxickle? Professor, why’re you bringing your tongue to my feet? Do you have a fetish?” ｂｎ𝚘ｖ𝚕．𝚘𝚛𝚐
By then, a crowd of people had flooded into the cafe. They all turned their attention towards the scene with widened eyes and flashing cameras. Some gasped while others let out laughter at the scene.
“Professor Noxickle has a feet fetish?”
“I mean, I do too.”
“But do you try to lick the feet of random people? That’s crazy.”
“Professor is weird.”
“He’s a degenerate. Who offered him a position at Arcadia Academy?”
“Are our children’s well-being decided by this man?”
Mothers, fathers, children, students… they all lined up and flashed pictures of Henry, who kneeled on the ground with his face close to Arthur’s feet. The crimson-eyed man removed his feet from the area in disgust.
“I didn’t know you were like that, Professor,” Arthur stated in disgust. “I hope I won’t be in your class in my first year in Arcadia Academy.”
“Wait!” Henry shouted, but the crimson-eyed man had already disappeared into the wind.
Murmurs, whispers, and shouts encompassed the cafe. Business was booming for the owners of the establishment, but in turn tarnishing Henry’s reputation.
‘Will I be able to retain my position at Arcadia Academy?’ Henry wondered, gritting his teeth. The chances were quite low, but they were never zero.
He couldn’t even reveal his indignation, as that would cause him to be labeled as someone with anger issues. Henry was always known to be calm-headed, and he couldn’t allow that trait to disappear, too.
As he watched the disgust on the faces of the spectators, Henry could simply shut his eyes and pray for the best.
But that boy…
He wanted revenge, but that wasn’t possible, otherwise he’d be killed by the Jester Organization.
‘I will get you… someday.’