Chapter 169: You’re Rather Talkative For A First-Year

Lancet stared at her.

Not at her face alone, though that was the first thing that caught him, but at the entire shape of her presence, the exact shape he had assembled in his head and then written into being. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Her elegant physique, her dark long hair with shades of pink, even the smooth line of her mouth that barely frowned a frown or a smile.

She wore the gear he had designed for her; the form-fitting white and gold mage’s regalia. Class Group-S students were the only ones not required to wear the academy uniform.

Espel noticed him looking and her eyes narrowed just a little.

"Are you going to speak," she asked coolly, "or are you going to keep staring at me?"

Lancet blinked, then forced himself to stop admiring his handiwork. He dragged his mind back into place with effort and took a step back, crossing his arms in a weak attempt to look casual.

"I— I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Espel did not look convinced.

She studied him in silence for a moment, and the longer she looked, the more it felt like she was peeling something back layer by layer. It felt like she could see right through his face and into the shape of his thoughts, the tension in his posture, and the too-careful way he was standing in front of her.

"You know something," she said.

Lancet let out a small breath and spread one hand slightly. "Know what? Look, what you’re saying sounds like a personal problem. Like how am I supposed to explain why you think I’m in your head?"

That earned a small change in Espel’s expression. Her gaze became a little more direct.

"You’re rather talkative for a first-year."

Lancet gave a tiny shrug. "I can’t help it."

There was silence for a while. Then, Espel took a step forward.

The distance between them shrank too quickly, and Lancet had to resist the instinct to step back. She stopped just close enough to make her next words feel sharper.

"You still haven’t answered my question," she said. "Who are you?"

Lancet cleared his throat. "I’m Lancet Leogardt."

Espel’s gaze sharpened instantly. She recognized the name. "You? The boy who killed the Second Demon Head in Hebthej."

Lancet looked at her for a beat. "That’s me."

Espel paused. Though her head tilted slightly, her expression remained completely apathetic. "Vernon doesn’t like you very much."

Lancet shrugged one shoulder. "Seeing as I stole his spotlight, I don’t see why he should."

Espel said nothing after that. She just continued to study him, her silence thickening the air in between them.

"It is a strange coincidence though," Espel said slowly, taking another step. "I only started seeing you in my head, and then you appear today."

Her eyes sharpened further, the suspicion in them growing colder. "Why are you here?"

Lancet went still.

That was the problem, wasn’t it? How exactly was he supposed to say this? ’Even though you’re a real living person who has her own life to live, you’re my Summon.’

That was not a sentence that belonged in any sane conversation, especially not with the person standing in front of him.

"There are many reasons someone would come to a Year-Five faculty building," Lancet said sheepishly

"Then tell me yours," Espel pressed.

"I told the guard already," Lancet deployed his previous lie. "Instructor Estelle Nightingale sent me to deliver a message to her sister."

Espel’s expression didn’t change at the slightest..

"The Nightingale Family created a personal mental conduit that they use to communicate telepathically with one another without anyone else knowing. Everyone knows this."

Lancet’s stomach dropped. Damn it.

Espel took another step, closing the distance until she was just a few feet away. "You came here to find me. Now you have. So I will ask you one last time, Lancet Leogardt: Why are you in my head?"

Lancet exhaled through his nose and looked away for a second, then back at her. There was no point pretending anymore. Not really.

The way she was watching him made it clear she would not let this go, and if he kept dodging her forever, she would only become more suspicious. He had wanted to do this in his way, but she had pushed him to a corner.

Finally out of lies, Lancet let out a long, heavy sigh. He dropped his arms and looked her dead in the eyes. "What do you think?"

Espel studied his face, her expression still deeply apathetic, yet a subtle tension tightened her jaw. "You are quickly becoming annoying. And yet..." She frowned, a deeply uncharacteristic look of confusion fracturing her perfect serenity. "Despite my frustration, I cannot bring myself to fully despise you. There is this thing... It’s like..."

"You’re drawn to me?" Lancet guessed.

Her eyes widened a fraction.

It was a microscopic break in her armor, but for a girl who viewed human emotion as a chaotic disease, it was massive.

Espel stared at him with a sudden sharpness, dropping the temperature in the hallway. "What have you done to me?"

Lancet frowned. "What? I didn’t—"

"What are you, really?" she asked, her voice lower now. More dangerous. Do you possess some kind of power that twists the mental and emotional state of a person?"

"I’m only a Summoner," Lancet said, holding his hands up defensively. "Where would I get that kind of power?"

Espel’s stare tightened. "Don’t play games with me," she snapped. "I have heard about you before today, which is why seeing you in my mind makes no sense at all. I have never cared for you before. But you..."

Lancet stared at her, feeling a rush of excitement he couldn’t explain as he watched her try to understand.

Espel went on, more slowly. "You can summon heroines and villainesses from the past."

Lancet’s expression remained carefully neutral.

"And perhaps," she said, "you have one who can do something like this."

"None of my Summons can do that," Lancet replied calmly. "And you know that’s true, because you know all four of them, and none of them have powers like that."

Espel was silent for a moment, recalling all four of Lancet’s controversial Summons.

Then she said, "And how can I be sure you haven’t gained another one?"

Lancet smiled. It wasn’t a boastful smile, but rather one of profound, inevitable surrender. He realized right then that he couldn’t hide it from her. And honestly? He didn’t want to.

Now was as good a chance as any.

"You know, I have no choice but to agree with you, Senior Espel," he said. "I do have another Summon."

Espel slightly creased her brows. Her eyes stayed on him, her expression still guarded, but she was listening now with all of her focus.

Lancet let the pause stretch, making it unbearable to wait. Then he looked at her and said, very softly, "You."

Espel’s eyes widened.