Anna felt even more worse, she had just witnessed an Elder of the Infernal Judgement run away from a fight like a baby. This was the same man who was toying around with the four of the them just moments ago.
She was Just beginning to realize that even the entire nature sorcerers might not even be able to stand against Jeffery. If an Elder could run away like a child, that meant that the commoners of their factions wouldn't be much of a problem for Jeffery.
Richard couldn't still wrap his head around the fact that an elder ran away from a fight like a scared child. The elders were usually the strongest amongst the whole Infernal Judgement, so running away like he did made no sense at all. If one of the strongest amongst his clan ran away like this, then there was absolutely no hope for them if Jeffery ever decided to attack again. He knew Jeffery was powerful, but he hadn't expected him to be this dangerous, at least not to Elder level.
After witnessing everything, Richard had come to the conclusion that the Infernal Judgement had gotten weak. This Carlos of a person was a disgrace to not only the Elders, but the entire faction as well. He felt disappointed in his clan and also in himself.
He had trained all his life to become the leader of the Elders during his own turn, and bring back the glory that was once his family's. He was supposed to be role model for his generation and the youngsters of the Infernal Judgement, but here he was being weaker than the average sorcerer.
If Jeffery hadn't stepped in, he might as well be dead by now . Richard was disappointed in himself. He had not only failed his family, but his entire clan as well. He was just as weak and pathetic as Carlos in this situation, and he cursed himself for it.
Angus kept the fear he had inside of him bottled up. Even though he didn't show it, he couldn't lie that he wasn't afraid of Jeffery Bruce. Jeffery has given him nightmares, and seeing his face again made his heartbeat escalate beyond the normal rate.
Ever since Jeffery had declared him a target, Angus had trained to get stronger just for the purpose of defeating the man. But after seeing everything that had happened today, he was convinced that he was still too weak. The man's aura and malevolence was able to make an Elder of the Infernal Judgement run away like a scared child, while he and his friends struggled to keep up with the same man. The difference between them was immense and covering that gap would need more than just any regular training.
He was aware that this boost in power that Jeffery had acquired was certainly the work of the Maledictio Caelum et Infernium. But destroying the book meant getting past Jeffery and since he wasn't strong enough to do so yet. He would have to live with the awful reality that Jeffery's power wouldn't stop growing.
The gap between them would always keep growing and catching up seemed almost impossible. There was no way he was going to cover the gap between them as long as Jeffery had the book. All he could do was do his best to get stronger and hoped that someday, the combined effort of him and his friends would be able to bring the man down.
*
*
They had all arrived just beside the school and could see the crowd of students and staff gathered around the collapsed building. The police had already sorrounded the place and had began investigation, while the students stood aside, a safe distance away from the destruction.
The three of them snuck back into the crowd and blended in. They had already used magic to clean themselves up and they looked even neater and organized than the rest of the students that gathered round. The sorcerers amongst the crowd could already tell the cause of the collapse, and fire was due to magical causes. Their energy still lingered around the place, and it would take some hours for it to completely dissipate.
Anna and Richard raced off toeards the principal's office while Angus stayed behind listening to every thing the students had to say. His duty was to erase the memory of anyone who claimed to have seen them last in the arena. Even though they had teleported there and the possibility of them being seen was low, he still had to do this just to be sure.
Richard and Anna arrived at their destination and made quick assessment of their environment to make sure they were no staff or students around. Sneaking into the principal's office was a criminal offense and they could be expelled if they were caught.
They were probably camera's in the parking garage, and they needed to erase the evidence as soon as possible. This Carlos of a man had not only shamed them in battle, he had also left them with the stress of cleaning up his mess. If he hadn't put up a barrier around the school, they would have taken the fight elsewhere and saved themselves this stress. But the bastard thought it would be wise to have an open magic fight in a place that was crowded with humans. And he had done so despite the penalty that came with exposure of one's abilities to the ordinary world.
The coast was clear, and luckily there were no students around. Curiosity had sent all of them downstairs and the entire place was empty. They walked stealthily and carefully into the office, and snuck in successfully only to meet the staring red eyes of the man that owned the office.
"Impossible" Were the first words that escaped Richard's lips. He was sure that he had seen the man downstairs before he and Anna raced up to the school building. There was no way that this man could have gotten past them and beat them to his office. The only possible explanation for this was teleportation, which meant that their principal was a sorcerer.
'No, he's not' Richard conversed with himself. There was no trace of magical energy around this man which meant he was most certainly not a sorcerer. He could sense magic around them, but it wasn't coming from the man that stared down at them.
Anna had completely frozen up under the man's stare. The word Daniel had exclaimed was the exact same thing she had in mind. She didn't sense any magic from the principal, so him being here so fast was simply impossible. There was no getting past this, the only way they could escape expulsion and the principal's wrath was by erasing his memory.
She acted quickly and raised her hand towards the man's head to erase his memory. But the instance her hands went upwards, her entire body followed suite and soon she was lying on the floor.
"Haven't you used enough magic for the day ?" Principal Bumble questioned the girl on the floor before letting go of her hands.
'He's fast' Richard acknowledged in his head. He had thought of the same exact thing and was grateful he didn't attempt it. Everything had happened so fast and before he knew it, Anna was lying on her back on the floor. The man's movements were definitely above human capabilities, and since he knew they were sorcerers, it could only mean one thing, their principal was a Baxist.
"You're a... Baxist?" Richard questioned with a stutter which he had developed from shock and also the fear of questioning his principal.
"From the Blood Clan" Bumble made known.
Things were definitely making sense now. The faint magic he had sensed was probably from a teleportation rune the man must have used to get here, or from some magic imbued weapon that their principal probably had on him.
"We're so sorry Mr. Bumble" Richard apologized immediately. Since the man was a Baxist, he probably knew the reason why they were sneaking into his office. They might have broken the rules but it was for good cause.
Anna rose from the floor and dusted herself before genuflecting to show her apologies. She hadn't expected their principal to be a part of the sorcery world, but it also made sense that all the reckless magical activities that had been going on hadn't been exposed yet. It was definitely the doing of this man.
"Using magic in the school premises, setting your teachers cars ablaze, and bringing down an entire building. I must say I am very disappointed in you two, and where is Daniel Bruce?" Bumble scolded before his question. He had managed to give a reasonable explanation to the police and had stopped them from furthering any investigations. But that didn't mean that these kids were off the hook. They were paying for the damage they caused.
He couldn't deny that part of it was also his fault, from the footage it was obvious that the kids were being attacked, and it was from new student he had accepted. He could always tell that something was off with the man, but he never really did anything despite his instincts screaming for him to take action. He was the root of the problem and he was also going to take responsibility for his actions too.
"He's with his father" Richard replied the man with a hung head. He hoped that his remorseful act would fetch them a lesser punishment, but from Bumble's tone, it wasn't looking possible.
Bumble's once angry expression had suddenly changed at the mention of Jeffery. Nobody knew why, but their principal had suddenly gotten excited. The excitement was very much clear in his voice as he questioned, "Jeffery Bruce? Is he here?"