Chapter 64: Dark Demon Promotes Truth, Goodness, and Beauty
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
Sister Carian's three sharp coughs punctuated the air, revealing her shock.
She lowered her head for a closer look.
The girl lying on the sickbed did possess somewhat masculine features, but she clearly lacked an Adam's apple, and her physical development was quite advanced, almost precocious.
If the student beside her hadn't pointed out the truth, Sister Carian would never have guessed she was actually a boy.
"Are you sure?"
She couldn't help but turn to ask.
Dark's expression was one of pity as he nodded. "Probably."
It wasn't as if Robert had a twin sister who'd suddenly appeared among the first-year students, right?
"This is a problem!" Sister Carian sighed, taking a deep breath. "In the past two years, even the wildest pranks only turned people into pigs. I never imagined anything more outrageous than that."
"Turning someone into a pig?!"
Dark wasn't sure which was worse: being turned into a pig or being transformed into the opposite sex.
Sister Carian clearly considered the latter more extreme.
Still, if turning someone into a pig could be cured, turning someone into a woman should be a piece of cake, right?
With that thought, Dark inquired, "Can it be reversed?"
Sister Carian pulled a pair of crumpled white rubber gloves from her pocket and put them on, her expression serious. "Gender transformation is fundamentally a type of transformation magic. It shares similarities with turning someone into a pig, a sheep, or a toad. In theory, none of these effects are permanent. Even without treatment, they will automatically revert after a certain period. Of course, we can't make any definitive judgments without a proper diagnosis. Sarah, tracing the root cause isn't my area of expertise."
"Professor Sarah…?"
A gentle breeze rustled, and Dark turned to see Professor Sarah standing silently behind him.
When something like this happened, the professors naturally wouldn't just stand by.
Professor Sarah said sternly, "You go to class first. I've already informed Jones."
"Yes, Professor."
Dark gave a slight bow and then left the infirmary.
Professional matters were best left to the professionals.
There was no need for him to worry any further.
...
"Hey, Dark."
"Good morning, Virt."
On his way to class, Dark bumped into Virt.
Virt looked dejected, his face downcast as he greeted Dark.
Without much hope, he asked casually, "Dark, have you seen Robert? I mean, Broheim."
Dark replied calmly, "If you're looking for Broheim, you can check the infirmary. Though, I wouldn't recommend going now, since class is about to start."
Virt immediately brightened. "He's in the infirmary? Is he alright? Did he get a stomachache? I've been looking everywhere for that guy!"
Dark gave him an odd look. "Maybe."
It was better to keep such an embarrassing situation quiet.
"Well, that's a relief," Virt said. "By the way, Dark… Dark? Hey, slow down! I'm exhausted, and I haven't even had breakfast yet!"
...
By the time Dark reached the classroom, news of a girl being pranked had already spread.
Fortunately, no one yet knew that the "girl" in question was actually Robert. Otherwise, the young mages would have been in an uproar.
The students hadn't noticed Robert's absence, and Professor Jones arrived for class as usual.
She didn't mention it either and simply began the lesson.
This class focused on the elemental affinities between magic spirits.
There were a total of twenty attributes, with light and dark being distinct from the other eighteen.
"Every substance has both light and dark aspects. They don't interact with the other attributes but only counteract each other. Of course, some ghost-type magic spirits dislike light, but that's more of a biological aversion rather than an energy-based counter."
"What we mean by energy-based counters refers to a relationship that, to some extent, transcends physical connections. It's a purely energy-based victory or defeat, summarized through empirical science."
"For example, ice counters dragon."
Professor Jones shrugged.
"Who knows why ice counters dragon? Is it because dragons are cold-blooded creatures?"
...
The class was quite engaging.
Professor Jones frequently called on students to summon their magic spirits for demonstrations, leading to some amusing moments.
But when she assigned the class to copy the elemental affinity chart ten times and memorize it for a quiz next class, it became much less appealing.
Even by the end of class, no one had noticed Robert's absence.
...
"Ding-dong."
As soon as the bell rang, Virt rushed out of the classroom.
Dark figured Robert probably didn't want Virt visiting him, but he had no reason to stop him.
The second class was arithmetic.
Professor Lily appeared at the back door and gestured for Dark to follow her.
Dark put down his textbook and left with the professor.
They moved to a secluded corner, where Professor Lily patted Dark on the shoulder with a satisfied look. "Well done. You've lived up to my expectations."
Dark: "..."
Professor Lily continued excitedly, "I've already heard about it. You handled the situation excellently. Broheim might be a troublemaker, but it would be too cruel for him to carry such a burden from his first year. Now, no one knows his true identity, and we'll treat the whole incident as a simple prank."
Dark asked with concern, "What about the culprit… I mean, who did it?"
Professor Lily replied, "Broheim has woken up. He said he was knocked out last night while wandering around and didn't see anything."
She then changed the subject. "But don't worry about it. The professors will handle it properly. Also, Professor Caziel asked me to pass on a message. He said the matter you asked him about has been settled. By the way, what did you ask him?"
Dark hesitated for a moment before saying, "It's nothing, just a small experiment I needed verified."
It seemed Professor Caziel hadn't told the other professors about the flower cards?
But if he didn't want others to know, why did he ask someone to pass on the message?
Dark was still pondering this as he returned to the classroom.
...
Just before class started.
Virt returned in high spirits, accompanied by a fully recovered Robert.
"Robert, I'm glad you're okay."
"Just a stomachache, keep it down…"
Dark glanced over and happened to meet Robert's gaze.
Robert immediately gave him a pleading look.
Dark subtly made an okay 👌 gesture and winked.
Robert nodded gratefully.
Virt noticed something was off. "Robert, what's wrong?"
Robert: "Nothing, just a mosquito bite near my eye."
Virt: "A mosquito? Why didn't I get bitten?"
Robert: "Maybe my flesh is tastier?"
Virt: "Haha."
...
During this class, Professor Lily taught the multiplication table she had extracted from Dark.
Of course, multiplication existed in this world, but due to the lack of widespread education in the past, a systematic approach hadn't been developed. Convenient methods like "vertical multiplication" or "multiplication tables" hadn't been invented.
After this class, even while walking around, Dark could hear young mages reciting, "One times one is one, one times two is two…"
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