Not long after they sat down, the calm atmosphere in the academy suddenly turned tense.
The arrest process began.
In another corridor, the sound of firm footsteps from iron boots was heard approaching Class 1-B. The classroom door was thrown open roughly without knocking.
King Nalvon, in his magnificent royal robes, stepped in accompanied by Claus, the Academy Dean whose face was pale, and his seven elite soldiers.
The atmosphere in Class 1-B froze instantly. The teacher who was teaching dropped his chalk in shock. All the students in that class were scared half to death by the arrival of a King into their cramped classroom.
King Nalvon's gaze swept across the room sharply, until finally stopping at one figure of a girl sitting in the back row, in the right corner near the window.
"Marina Delfilian!" called the King with a booming voice.
Marina jolted. Her heart seemed to stop beating seeing who was calling her. However, with the remaining courage and pretense she had, she stood up slowly and put on a confused face.
"Yes, that is me! What is the matter, Your Majesty the King?" Marina responded with a feigned innocent tone, trying to look like a confused innocent girl.
King Nalvon looked at her with disgust. There were no pleasantries.
"You are arrested for attempted premeditated murder of a noble by hiring an assassin organization!"
The King's voice echoed throughout the room, making other students hold their breath. Marina's face turned pale instantly.
"For this grave crime..." continued King Nalvon in a final tone that could not be disputed. "You and your entire family are sentenced to death in public!"
Marina jolted violently. Her body tensed up, as if lightning had struck right above her head. She was rendered speechless after hearing the King's words, directly pronouncing her arrest. A suffocating silence swept through Class 1-B. Dozens of pairs of eyes from her classmates now stared at her with a mixture of fear and disgust.
However, Marina's ego as a noble made her reluctant to surrender just like that. With trembling remnants of courage, she tried to evade the heavy accusations levied against her. She put on the most pitiful face she could muster.
"I never did that, Your Majesty!" Marina shrieked, crocodile tears beginning to pool in her eyes. "This must be a vile slander aimed at me! Someone is jealous of my family and trying to frame me!"
King Nalvon remained unmoved. His gaze was cold, devoid of mercy. With a calm motion, he then displayed an important document in front of everyone, holding it high so Marina could see it clearly.
"Slander, you say?" King Nalvon's voice dropped low but was full of menace. "In this contract document, your name and signature are clearly written, along with the name and signature of your father, Carger Delfilian! You hired the Shadow Hand organization, didn't you?"
Marina paled. That document... how could that secret document be in the King's hands?
"And you need to know." continued King Nalvon, "The assassins you paid failed miserably in last night's attack. Almost all of them were killed on the spot! And the survivors have confessed everything about who hired their services."
The King took a step forward, making Marina even more terrified.
"One more thing that makes your stupidity unforgivable. The house you attacked is the residence of a Central Guild Master, who is also a former S-Rank adventurer! You tried to kill one of the pillars of this kingdom's strength!"
Like being hit by a sledgehammer, Marina's knees went weak. She truly hadn't expected that the luxurious mansion opposite the academy, where her three targets lived, was owned by a Guild Master.
Damn it! Marina screamed inwardly in frustration. Why didn't anyone tell me about the Guild Master's residence? Why was such important information missed? Bastards! All this time I was deceived by the three of them! They deliberately lived there to trap me!
Before Marina could finish processing her shock, King Nalvon dropped the next bombshell.
"And regarding your target... That Elf, Alvin, is a Prince from a kingdom! Your foolish act of planning that assassination could trigger a massive war between kingdoms! Marina Delfilian, do you wish to declare war on another kingdom and destroy this land with your selfish actions?"
Marina fell even more silent. Her tongue was tied. The accusations were too heavy. Not just murder, but also treason and triggering an international war. Her face turned pale as a sheet, whiter than paper, with cold sweat pouring down her forehead and neck.
The fear of death began to creep up her spine. Panic seized her common sense.
I don't want to die! I don't want to die!
Without thinking, her survival instinct took over.
"Haaaaa!" Marina screamed hysterically.
Marina aimed her hand at the classroom window. Wind mana gathered in her palm.
Crash!
She shattered the thick glass window with a burst of wind and water magic. Shards of glass scattered in all directions, causing other students to scream in fear.
Ignoring the glass shards that might cut her, Marina jumped out the window toward the field. With wind magic accelerating her steps, she ran as fast as lightning, hoping to reach the academy gates.
However, bad luck seemed to be hugging her tight today. Coincidentally, in the corridor where she landed, Orlando, a royal mage and also a magic teacher at the academy, was walking nearby.
Seeing the chaos, Dean Claus, who was inside the classroom, immediately shouted.
"Orlando! Catch that woman! She is a dangerous criminal!" Claus ordered in a very loud and urgent tone.
Hearing the Dean's shout, Orlando swiftly took action to stop Marina's escape. He pointed his magic staff at Marina's back.
"AirPressure!" chanted Orlando.
Instantly, the air pressure around Marina's body became thousands of times heavier.
Thud!
The woman's body slammed hard onto the corridor floor, pressed down by the incredibly strong wind force from above. Her face kissed the cold stone floor.
"Argh!"
Marina couldn't move. Her body was immobilized as if an invisible giant were sitting on her. There was nothing more she could do after being trapped in that high-level wind pressure magic.
"Let me go! I'm innocent! Don't punish me!" roared Marina while trying to lift her heavy head. "I'm innocent! Let me go!"
Two elite royal soldiers immediately ran over and took over the handling from Orlando. They pulled Marina's hands behind her back roughly.
Marina continued to struggle, kicking at the air. She didn't want to be arrested. Tears flowed heavily, wetting her cheeks dirty with the field dust.
Damn it! Why did I end up like this? she lamented inwardly. I didn't expect that elf to be a noble from another kingdom. I thought he was just an ordinary elf! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!
The commotion caused by Marina Delfilian's arrest had caused an uproar throughout the academy. Students and teachers poured out of their respective classrooms to see what was happening.
All eyes were on the humiliating arrest process. The sound of Marina's hysterical screams echoed through the school hallway.
"Let me go! I don't want to die! Let me go!"
In the distance, Dania, the homeroom teacher of Class 1-D, watched the scene with a pale face but full of understanding. She immediately believed everything Kazien had whispered to her earlier.
And in her heart, she vowed to keep her promise to conceal the identity of her student who had a direct connection with the King.