The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Dark blinked, looking at the motionless Principal Arte, and suddenly realized something.

　This clone originally possessed its own intelligence, and was not truly "one person playing two roles".

　Principal Arte's clone also needs to be "synchronized" with the original body in order to achieve information exchange.

　However, barring special circumstances, this "synchronization" can be done anytime, anywhere. In reality, it's not much different from instant communication.

　Sure enough, just a few seconds later, Principal Art's clone regained its vitality.

　Shortly afterward, she dismissed the twenty-six orcs in the office under some random pretext.

　The orcs who were suddenly sent out of the office were completely bewildered, but they all breathed a sigh of relief.

　Although Principal Arte wore a smile throughout, they still felt immense pressure. Especially a few of those who had done or intended to do wrong; they didn't want to stay in the office for even a second longer. However, after leaving the office, they didn't disperse but instead...

　At Prince Grace Leon's behest, they found an empty classroom nearby... and held a meeting!

　Why did Principal Art summon them all to his office, and why did he send them away without explaining anything?

　They must study this thoroughly!

　Inside the principal's office.

　The orcs had just left when Professor Sylph walked in. Although she didn't show herself, she was actually there the whole time.

　Dark also pushed open the door and walked out of the break room, but along with him, besides "Magical Beast: Goddess of the Mind's Eye," came Principal Arte's clone.

　— Seeing two Principals of Arte in the same room at the same time gives one a very strange feeling.

　Dark thought that Principal Art would turn the clone back into Law's original form, but that didn't happen.

　Not only that, she also instructed her clone to organize the data, while she reaped the benefits without lifting a finger.

　—That's truly enviable!

　【嫉妒+1】

　As Dark watched the system notification slowly drift by, he felt a strange sense of relief.

　Jealousy has finally risen to the occasion! "Therefore, the orcs are no longer a suspect."

　After reading the report, Professor Sylph frowned and asked a question.

　Principal Arte shook his head and said, "We can't say it's completely ruled out, we can only say that we haven't found anything yet."

　Professor Sylph frowned. "But if not an orc, then who could it be?" Headmaster Arte said, "That is indeed a good question. So Sarah, the answer to this question is left to you to investigate."

　Professor Sylph glanced at her, then sneered, "Don't forget your identity as the principal if you want to skip class."

　Principal Art said, "How could that be? What I mean is that we should deal with things here first before continuing the search for the murderer. We can't let one thing distract us from the other."

　Professor Sylph rolled her eyes and said, "Both things are equally important. But if the attack on the grassland elves has nothing to do with the orcs, then the trail to the killer is completely broken. The witch doctor's curse is not enough to identify the killer."

　Principal Art nodded and said, "If it has nothing to do with the orcs, then the so-called witch doctor's curse is very likely a clue deliberately released by the other side in order to draw our attention to the orcs. It is a framing move."

　Professor Sylph said, "But in that case, the killer might not be targeting Dylan, the grassland elf who is the victim, but rather the orc contestants from War Totem Academy."

　“Professor,” Darke sighed upon hearing this, “the search area has been expanded again.”

　Professor Sylph said, "It's just stating the facts." Dark nodded slightly.

　He certainly knew that this was the truth.

　However, if the inference is correct and the other party used the witch doctor's curse to frame the orcs, then the identity of the murderer is no longer limited to a single academy.

　Any college team participating in the "College Championship" could potentially do that.

　After all, the orcs are a formidable enemy, and no one would be unhappy if there were a chance to kick them out of the game.

　But for those investigating the truth, this is a very, very bad thing.

　After all, this means that the only clue will be meaningless.

　Furthermore, the search area for the suspect was not simply expanded, but was directly extended to "infinity".

　Even if the culprit isn't from another academy, it's not impossible. Therefore, as Principal Arte said, dealing with the orcs first, and then continuing the search for the culprit, is the correct choice under the current circumstances.

　Of course, when things are actually done, they can't really be divided into "order" and are basically parallel tasks.

　There are investigative methods when there are clues. There are also coping methods when there are no clues.

　However, in the latter case, there isn't much that Dak can participate in.

　The solution was quickly determined and implemented. Meanwhile, the beastmen over there also found the answer to their problem through a meeting. After gathering the beastmen's opinions, the twenty-second prince, Grace Leon, "Lionheart," concluded: "The murder of the grassland elf Dylan is the main reason we were summoned. However, Principal Arte showed no suspicion towards us during the conversation, and didn't even ask any related questions, not even basic questions like what we were doing at the time of the incident. This means she didn't treat us as suspects. Therefore, the reason for summoning us wasn't for investigation, but as a warning!"

　Warning, warning about what?

　This was, of course, a warning to the orc contestants of the War Totem Academy not to cause trouble unnecessarily.

　Grace Leon glared at the lion-like orc from the Knights Academy and rebuked, "I'm talking about you!"

　But before he could finish speaking, he suddenly changed the subject, saying, "I've already told you not to leave any loose ends. This isn't our territory, so be careful in everything you do. And you're still bragging and showing off everywhere, as if you're afraid people won't know you broke the rules."

　The lion-orc looked embarrassed and hesitated to utter a sound. Grace Leon then pointed at the rhinoceros-orc and continued, "And you, now that the grassland elves have been killed, everyone's eyes are on you. So whatever you want to do, don't do it in this situation, understand?"

　The rhinoceros-like beastman nodded with a gloomy face, indicating that he understood.

　—If you want to do anything, you should at least wait until this storm has passed.

　The orc meeting was adjourned after Grace Leon gave them repeated instructions. Some of them went to the canteen with Grace for lunch.

　The other group returned to the tower dormitory, preparing to keep a low profile as Grace had ordered.

　And then there were some people who, as they walked, suddenly disappeared! When the cat clan leader opened his eyes again, he suddenly found himself fixed to an iron chair, the four legs of which were welded directly to the ground, and he could not move at all no matter how he struggled.

　He initially showed little fear, even revealing his ferocity and displaying the fierce side of a feline.

　However, his cries and roars echoed repeatedly in the empty white room, but there was no response other than echoes.

　He struggled with all his might, only to find that the leather straps binding him would tighten as his body moved, soon constricting his skin painfully. He dared not move again.

　He tried to summon magic cards, but his card pack was naturally taken away. Even the magic cards or other items hidden in his sleeves and other places were no longer activated. Clearly, the person who brought him to this white room was terrifyingly professional.

　He stopped roaring and struggling, and the white room fell completely silent, a silence that only grew more terrifying.

　There were no clocks in sight, but he seemed to be able to hear the hour, minute, and second hands turning.

　As the hands of the clock ticked away, time passed slowly, but no one appeared.

　Panic is escalating.

　They are separated by only one wall.

　The other orc leader received the same treatment, but after he calmed down, about half an hour later, someone appeared silently behind him.

　After that, there was no emotional fluctuation in the interrogation process.

　……

　The orcs needed to deal with these two leaders as quickly as possible. Professor Sylph's actions were indeed swift.

　The moment they were separated from their companions, she acted swiftly, first knocking them unconscious, then imprisoning them, and finally interrogating them.

　The cat-orc will be imprisoned until the end of the "Academy Championship." There will be interrogations, but they will only be conducted after his mental endurance has reached its limit.

　The academy will record his confession as evidence and send it to the orcs when they discover he is missing.

　The other orc leader will be interrogated earlier. His fate will depend on his answers.

　If you harbor malicious intent, then you are no different from the cat leader.

　＂-

Chapter 1778 Darkdemon's Sins and Punishments (4k)

　The orc leader was brought back to life at dusk.

　He had a light yellow, shoulder-length hairstyle, a broad forehead, and drooping ears, making him look like a golden retriever—or rather, he was a canine beastman.

　He was in a daze as he stepped back onto the cold, hard castle floor, which gave him a sense of having survived a catastrophe.

　However, just as the afterglow of his rebirth was beginning to linger, he suddenly saw an orc student rushing towards him.

　The next second, the orc student was pounced on by a giant spider that fell from the sky. White silk spun from the spider's tail instantly bound the orc student like a dumpling and hung him up.

　—The Elven retaliation came with extraordinary ferocity!

　Almost simultaneously, several orcs were attacked.

　The only saving grace was that the elves' attacks were relatively restrained, and no serious bloodshed occurred.

　But compared to physical pain, the elves' true aim was to inflict mental humiliation.

　Just like that orc student who was tied up like a dumpling and hung up, surrounded by a crowd, that scene will inevitably become his nightmare for a long time to come.

　By the time the academy professors realized what had happened, several orc students had already been victimized.

　The Elven counterattack was planned and targeted. They accurately selected their targets and attacked in multiple groups at the same time. The selected orcs had no chance to resist and were successfully attacked.

　At this moment, team leader McMillan and "Elf Princess" Lucia Artemis hadn't even reacted yet. They had just warned the elven contestants that afternoon not to act rashly, and unexpectedly, someone had broken free of control so early in the evening.

　Although the attacked orc students were quickly rescued, news of the orcs being attacked by elves had already spread throughout the entire academy.

　Upon closer inquiry, it was discovered that the incident of the grassland spirits being attacked, which was explicitly prohibited from being disseminated this morning, has already spread to various corners of the world.

　There were even rumors that the grassland elves were cursed by witch doctors! And it seems that the elves' rampage was caused by the leak of this news. But how did this news leak out...?

　When he learned of the situation, Dark was in a secret laboratory observing the special usage of the "Dream Machine".

　The grassland spirit Dylan's memories are largely fragmented due to damage to his soul. If left unattended, he will suffer the pain of amnesia even if he awakens.

　Driven by a doctor's desire to save lives to the very end, the necromancer professor decided to use a "dream machine" to revive the patient's memories through dream deduction.

　This is something that almost everyone finds incredible.

　Without the vast amount of experience accumulated over the past year, and without this unreplicable "dream-making machine," even Professor Steven Harvey wouldn't have dared to attempt such a feat.

　While necromancers manipulate souls like puppets, their methods are actually quite brutal. Especially when it comes to the level of memory, they are only good at forcibly implanting simple memories they have constructed themselves. There is no one who can manipulate memories with fine precision.

　If Professor Harvey succeeds, it will be a groundbreaking achievement, putting him ahead of all his peers in the field of soul manipulation and making him an unparalleled figure.

　Of course, he didn't consider any of those things when he was performing the "memory surgery".

　"If we are lucky enough, we might be able to find some clues about the murderer in his memory."

　Among those waiting here, there might be others who share such thoughts. "Elf Princess" Lucia Artemis, aside from going out briefly around 2 or 3 PM and returning, remained here the entire time, demonstrating her extreme concern for her companion.

　After learning from Dark that the orc contestants had been temporarily cleared of suspicion, Robert became restless and left the laboratory around the same time as the elf princess.

　As for Witt, he was naturally dragged out as well.

　After instructing Witt to keep a close eye on Robert, Dak could only let them do as they pleased.

　After all, he couldn't possibly keep them here for no reason.

　Professor Mydia, who originally intended to stay and observe, was also asked by Principal Arte to help her.

　Only Professor Harvey, who was in charge of the "surgery," Professor Cazell, who was his assistant, Sister Kallian, and two bystanders, Dak and Lucia, remained in the laboratory.

　Over the course of that afternoon, Dark and the Elf Princess became even more familiar with each other.

　But unexpectedly, while the "surgery" was still in a critical stage, another accident occurred outside.

　The reason Dark was able to find out about the situation so quickly was because Professor Sylph came over to ask Lucia to leave—and that's how he overheard it.

　The elves did that, and after the successful attack, they didn't even bother to hide their identities... but that's the most troublesome part, because it means they don't think their actions were "wrong" at all.

　Right and wrong are fundamentally a matter of perspective.

　Professor Sylph was already dealing with the attack on the grassland elves, and now this unexpected incident has left her feeling overwhelmed.

　She immediately summoned McMillan, the leader of the Elf Magic Academy.

　But McMillan just kept a straight face and didn't respond. What kind of response could she possibly give?

　She was completely kept in the dark about the whole thing. Those elven students said one thing to her face and another behind her back. As their leader, she did her best, but what could she do when the students wouldn't listen to her?

　She knew the grassland elf's soul was cursed by the witch doctor. But she didn't tell her students, a fact she could swear to. As for giving the students who made the mistake the appropriate punishment...

　Did they make a mistake?

　McMillan almost laughed to himself, and was just short of praising them in person.

　Those lovely students, aren't they all doing a great job?

　The attack was planned and executed with precision and efficiency.