"Blacklade academy..."
The masked individual muttered those words under its breath. Joub flinched and covered his face as he expected the masked individual to come for him.
"Tell me more."
The masked individual grabbed Joub's collar and lifted him in the air. The spotlight in the air blinded Joub to the point that he had to cover his eyes.
"I'm a spy sent here to monitor this school. Please don't kill me, every school does espionage!"
Joub begged for his life. Like he had said, all the schools participate in espionage to monitor each other. It was not uncommon to find someone enrolled as a spy. In fact, there were also spies sent to Blacklade academy courtesy of Wolrath academy.
A spy's life could be unpredictable. If the spy was caught doing harmless stuff like normal canvassing, then they would be let off with their life. If a spy was caught doing malicious things to the school, their heads would be cut off and sent to the school where the spy came from.
As far as Joub knew, he had done nothing wrong. His mission was to lay low and observe his surroundings for abnormal things.
He had heard of the rumor that Hugh was hiding something, so he got tempted to come after Hugh. If he successfully brought back Hugh's information, he would be set for a life of luxury.
"What were you sent here for?"
The masked individual continued to question his mission. It seemed that it wanted to know everything about the spy.
"I'm just here for to survey the school, nothing more."
The masked individual heard Joub's response and it tightened the grip on his collar. Joub was surprised at the sudden aggression and made him flinch.
"Don't play with me. Who were here with you?"
Joub closed his eyes and flinched away from the aura that the masked individual was producing. It was too strong for him right now because he was severely injured.
"I don't know! I don't know! They don't tell us those things!"
*slap*
The masked individual slapped Joub right away as he gave the answer. It jolted him and made him fear for his life.
"There is no way that they sent you here just to survey the area. You spies have been strangely active lately. What are your plans?!"
The masked individual shook Joub's body, making him bleed more. Joub was starting to feel sleepy as his strength was fading away from him.
"What is Maverick planning?!"
At the mention of the name 'Maverick,' Joub was jolted awake. He did not think that the masked individual would know his superior's name nor his plans.
Joub's reaction was too obvious to tell that the masked individual hit the right mark. The masked individual seemed to know about the name of the perpetrator who sent the spies.
Joub tried his hardest to hide his reaction but it was too shocking. He put his hands on his mouth as he physically prevented himself from saying anything more stuff that could backfire on him.
Joub's life was now in danger. If he were to somehow survive this incident with the masked individual, Maverick would send someone to kill him in his sleep because he tattled. Maverick always knows.
"What are his plans?! Answer me!"
Joub was forced under the pressure. He did not know what to do, so as a last resort, he bit his own tongue to prevent himself from accidentally spilling out more information.
The masked individual gripped Joub's collar and twisted it hard. It seemed to be frustrated that Joub was not willing to tell it anything.
Joub body fell to the ground, dead. Biting one's tongue off is a skill that all spies learned in order to die peacefully.
The masked individual let Joub's body down with a thud. It knew that Joub could still live, so it pierced its hands towards Joub's belly.
The masked individual retracted its hands and revealed a heart on its palms. This was Joub's true heart, so Joub was now truly dead.
With the confirmation of Joub's death, the masked individual started to walk away from the scene and disappeared into the darkness. Joub's dead body was left in the spotlight.
After a few hours, some students who came back from the central area discovered Joub's dead body. Gasps were heard all around as they saw Joub's cold dead eyes tainted by blood.
First there was horror, as the students' knees buckled under the pressure. This was the first time they had seen someone dead, and with so much blood.
Their privileged lives had been filled with sparring that only led to injuries, but never deaths. This was their first encounter with death.
They were still freshmen, so it was natural that they had not yet seen gore. Some students had weak stomachs as they vomited on the ground.
Their previous happy demeanor had soured into something terrible. The academy had forbidden killing inside the school, so they were confused at why someone dared to disobey those rules.
They ran away from the body, fearing that they would get caught up in the crime. They entered the central area and spread the news that someone had died.
At first, some students did not believe them, but some went back to confirm their claims. It only took a couple of minutes until the rumor about someone's death spread throughout every student.
Of course, the Student Council was quick to act on this crime that happened in their watch. The scene of the crime was quarantined and only members of the Student Council could go near it.
The students who had first discovered the body were questioned thoroughly. Once Joub's body was identified, the Student Council asked his fellow classmates.
It was not long until the Student Council found the information they were looking for.
"I remember seeing him chase after that fat guy. You know, the one in Veer's pamphlet."
——————————
In a dimly lit office, a man had his elbows on the wooden table. The table was made of dark oak wood and was filled with holographic signs that contained various information about a school.
Upon closer inspection, the holographic sign displayed 'Wolrath Academy.'
The man had a rugged look with his beard. It complemented his sharp looks and brooding expression. He wore a suit laced with protective armor at the seams. He was physically fit, but his muscles were not buff.
*knock* *knock*
A knock was heard from the door opposite the desk. The man did not look up and continued to monitor the information on his desk. Instead, he spoke with a resolute voice.
"Come in."
The door slid open to reveal a woman in a business suit with violet hair. She was curvy in all the right places, which complemented her glasses to make her look booksmart.
Her footsteps were muffled under the red velvet flooring, yet it was the only sound in the room. It was eerily quiet until the woman spoke up.
"We have received word that one of our spies in Wolrath academy died of suicide."
The man did not respond as he looked like he was deep in thought. He tapped his fingers on his knuckles and waited for the time to pass. After a few moments, he spoke up.
"Did he say anything."
The woman stood up straight and looked at the tablet in her hands. She read the report again and confirmed its contents.
"He did not say anything, but it seems that someone became wise to your movements."
The man nodded and closed his eyes. He was calm the whole time as he received word of one of his spies dying. He did not even bat an eye as he spoke again.
"Replace him."
The woman clicked on her tablet and spoke up.
"Already done, Sir Maverick."
"Good."
Silence once again filled the whole room. The woman stood there silently until her curiosity got the best of her.
"Do I have to do something to the person who found out that you, sir, are behind the spies?"
She waited for the response with bated breaths. She was ready to do anything and everything to fulfill his wishes.
"No. It does not matter. It will not affect my plans."
"Understood sir."
The woman bowed towards Maverick and turned around towards the door. She was about to twist the door open when she remembered something.
She turned around again towards Maverick and spoke.
"Your son has requested your presence."
Maverick still had an expressionless face as he heard that his son was calling for him. He was not happy, nor sad, only indifference.
"Bring him in."
The woman nodded and went away. After a few minutes, the door twisted open without any knocking. Maverick knew that this was his son that came in the door.
"What do you want, Aric?"