Chapter 78: The Poet of Boundless Love is Rotten to Her Bones

In the basement level of Purgatory Corridor Academy, the group came to a halt before a massive mithril gate. This was a shortcut to the second level of the corridors. The gate was etched with ancient runes that looked enigmatic and mysterious in the flickering candlelight.

As the deputy headmaster gave it a gentle push, a deep rumble echoed between the ancient stone walls, and a breath of fresh, candle-scented air wafted toward them.

Stepping into the grand transitional corridor, they saw towering demon statues standing several meters high along both sides of the passageway, like a dark forest. The interplay of dark golden light and shadow seemed to recount the long history of the academy since its founding.

As they walked, the footsteps and quiet chatter of the vampire envoy, the officers from the Inspectorate, and the academy's senior instructors mingled, creating a series of deep, resonant echoes.

Suddenly, at the head of the procession, Baron Sanchez stopped in his tracks. "Wait."

The rest of the group slowed to a stop behind him, and all eyes turned toward him. The Poet of Boundless Love turned to look at Sanchez with a puzzled expression. "What is the matter?"

Sanchez raised a hand, signaling the demon officer responsible for his security to hand him a map. After unfolding the map and confirming his suspicions, his expression grew noticeably colder, and he stared fixedly at the Poet and the deputy headmaster. "Headmaster Lana, why are we skipping Corridor No. 24?"

Although the academy's layout was complex and the connections between corridors shifted constantly, Sanchez had memorized the school's general structure beforehand. On the basement level, they had passed numerous classrooms, yet, despite all the twists and turns, they had notably avoided entering Corridor No. 24.

As someone who possessed the True Eyes of the Blood, he was gifted with extraordinary powers of observation. A single pass-through had been enough for him to clearly memorize the entire layout of the basement level's corridors.

The route taken by the headmaster's party of demons had seemed flawless. However, there were several points where they could have turned into Corridor No. 24 at a fork in the path, yet the acting headmaster and deputy headmaster had skillfully navigated the route to lead Sanchez into a completely different corridor instead.

They had managed this so deftly that Sanchez never once felt the sense of unease that came from walking in circles through a corridor he had already traversed.

The Poet replied with unruffled composure, "I assure you, you're looking too much into this. Corridor No. 24 is currently closed off, and I can promise you that the student you are looking for is not inside there."

This prompted Sanchez to study her more closely, his gaze lingering as if trying to peer deep into her eyes. His voice then shattered the brief silence once more as a flash of sharp intuition flickered in his blood-red eyes, "Take me there."

Though the Poet maintained a composed exterior, a subtle ripple stirred within her soul for some reason. Her expression was utterly serene as she said calmly, "I would suggest you accompany us to a different corridor first..."

Sanchez's voice rose, tinged with irritation. "Take me there. Right. Now."

His patience had been all but exhausted by the Poet's meaningless stalling. The more the acting headmaster tried to prevent him from going, the stronger his intuition became. Something fishy was definitely going on there.

The Poet pursed her lips and remained silent. No one knew what she was thinking. Yet, it was obvious to anyone watching that she was feeling uneasy after being seen through by Sanchez.

Sensing the hostility radiating from the school's senior faculty, the officer behind Sanchez stepped forward. The atmosphere between the teachers and the inspectorate grew increasingly tense. "If you won't lead the way, we'll go there ourselves."

The Poet's voice finally trembled with the sound of resignation, as if she had weighed the consequences and decided against escalating the situation further. "I'll take you there."

Meanwhile, the deputy headmaster and the other instructors exchanged glances filled with hesitation and worry. They clearly wanted to dissuade her but didn't know how to speak up in the current situation.

Sanchez remained expressionless, though he scoffed inwardly. He found the female demon's petty tricks laughable. Under his gaze, even the slightest flaw would be instantly exposed.

And so, the entire group turned around and swiftly headed back toward the corridors of the basement level. A few minutes later, without taking any detours, they arrived at a corridor they had never visited before.

A massive gate stood against the wall ahead, guarding the interior like a silent, giant sentinel, and it was shielded by a soundproofing barrier. The Poet and the deputy headmaster walked in front, looking as if they intended to push the door open and step inside first.

Sanchez called out, "Wait."

Upon reaching this spot, he had sensed, however faintly, that there were numerous demon students attending class inside, and among them, there was a soul that appeared to be human! Sanchez was now convinced. This classroom, which appeared to be conducting a normal lesson, was indeed highly likely to be harboring humans!

No wonder the academy had remained so composed at first. It turned out they had been playing games, using the maze-like layout to lead everyone on a wild goose chase. Sanchez issued a command coldly, "Make them leave."

A demon officer brusquely ordered the Poet, who looked to be attempting a last-ditch effort to pull a fast one, to step aside. He then commanded his elite squad to join him in entering the classroom to carry out the arrest. "Fall back! No one is to step anywhere near this classroom until the inspection is complete!"

Shortly thereafter, Sanchez and his accompanying officers entered the classroom. Because the classroom was shielded by a soundproofing barrier, the corridor remained utterly silent, save for the sounds of nervous heartbeats and shallow breathing.

Ten seconds passed.

Thirty seconds passed.

Two minutes passed.

No one knew exactly what was happening inside the classroom. Perhaps they had successfully apprehended the human infiltrators, spelling disaster for the school's leadership, or perhaps Sanchez would return empty-handed this time.

However, there was still no movement whatsoever. Sanchez and the officers showed no signs of coming back out. All of the demons from the Demon Kingdom's Inspectorate who were waiting outside wore puzzled expressions, unable to fathom what was transpiring within.

Just as the corridor began to grow noisy with the sound of murmuring voices, the Poet, who had previously been slumped over with hollow eyes and an air of utter defeat, suddenly gritted her teeth and let out a soft chuckle. Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, she sank to the floor as if her legs had given way, clutching her stomach and bursting into raucous laughter.

The Poet used her fingertips to wipe away a tear from the corner of her eye as she addressed the surrounding demons with sheer delight and a triumphant grin. "W-well, you can't blame me for this, right? He was the one who insisted on barging into that classroom. I tried to stop him, but I just couldn't!"

That classroom was the very same disaster zone where Lance had triggered the never-ending hellish sound of doom. Even now, the phenomenon continued to loop and cycle endlessly.

Aside from demons like the head of the Music Department, who possessed exceptionally high resistance to sonic magic, any other living being who stepped inside could forget about ever getting out on their own!