Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 306 Bird Beak
"Huh? The reason we're in this cycle of reincarnation is because Xiao Li keeps dying?"

Faced with Millie's guess, the Bath Goddess was taken aback.

However, upon closer reflection, all the information they had since arriving in this world was based on their own speculation. Indeed, no one had explained or tested any mechanisms or similar systems.

The death of the goddess of bathing herself can indeed trigger reincarnation. But perhaps, that is only one of the conditions that trigger reincarnation.

In the following time, Millie briefly recounted what she had seen in the previous two late nights.

Simply put, at a certain point in time, even if neither of the two people were actually harmed, the Golden Apple will suddenly enter an "activated" state.

Millie's speculation that Ritas was constantly being murdered stemmed from two main reasons. Firstly, she realized that the start of their cycle of reincarnation had been delayed compared to their initial arrival at the Little Garden. This likely meant that subsequent reincarnations did not revolve around the Bathing Goddess as their "core."

On the other hand, it was because on the day of the third reincarnation, which was the day before, she was free to move around since the goddess of bathing was not there, and she secretly slipped out of the small garden, which was not heavily guarded.

However, Elson's mansion was more spacious than she had imagined, and she couldn't find Ritas's location for a while.

It wasn't until the Golden Apple suddenly began to reshape itself that she faintly heard what sounded like Ritas's screams, and saw a dark shadow flying out from the direction of the sound.

"Such a thing really happens?"

Listening to Millie's story, the Bath Goddess marveled.

Although the two seemed to have wasted precious golden apples in their first two loops, it could also be argued that they eliminated other options. Now, the cause can be largely pinpointed to Little Ritas.

"But Millie, why are you still able to see so many things after the cycle of reincarnation began?"

The goddess of bathing asked, somewhat puzzled.

She lost consciousness the instant the golden apple began to take effect. When she regained consciousness, she was already under the golden apple tree.

"That might be because..."

Millie hesitated for a moment.

Traditionally, she wanted to keep it a secret. However, facing the goddess of bathing, she felt that she shouldn't hide it, and couldn't bring herself to say it.

"...because I've touched upon the realm of 'soul magic'."

"Ok?"

Seeing that the goddess of the bath still seemed somewhat confused, Millie took a deep breath and began to briefly explain the basic principles of soul magic.

If we simply divide soul magic into several stages, the initial stage is naturally to recognize and become aware of the existence of one's own soul through a near-death experience similar to actual death.

After this stage, one gains a certain degree of control over one's own soul.

Only by doing this can the next step of "changing the soul form" be carried out.

"So, it's roughly the feeling that even when the body is dormant, my soul can still move for a short while. Sometimes, the two can be separated."

"Wow!"

Millie's explanation left the Bath Goddess stunned.

At the same time, she also felt it was very unfair.

Why is it that, despite both having experienced multiple "near-death experiences," Millie could access soul magic, while the other could only access various psychological traumas?
"How should I put it, is this soul magic alright? I heard from Xiao Li before that it's a form of magic that the magic community has long since eliminated, right? And the organization that mainly uses that kind of magic now is a particularly bad organization. The people who attacked you in the maze last semester were high-ranking members of that organization."

Thinking back to the beginning of the third playthrough, Millie's expression was incredibly heavy.

Besides the guilt of wasting the golden apple due to a wrong judgment, Millie also felt uneasy about the "soul magic" that was getting closer and closer to her.

"As long as you don't easily manipulate your soul, it should be fine, right?"

Or perhaps the maze incident had such an inside story?
Millie once again felt that she and her fellow students had been treated like children by the Bath Goddess and Ritas for two semesters.

Also, since it seems only that particularly troublesome organization is using soul magic right now, and Professor Seren, who's at the seminar, appears to be highly skilled in soul magic.
no problem?

"Since you've said so, I'll assume you know what's going on. But be careful, we don't even know what the Golden Apple is yet. So, if the soul gets sick, it might not be able to restore it to its original state."

The goddess of bathing gave Millie a long and earnest pep talk.

Millie readily accepted the Bath Goddess's nagging.

To be fair, although Millie developed some interest in soul magic after being saved by Serenity, she never actually considered mastering or learning it to gain power.

The frustrating thing is that even without her actively seeking knowledge, she still unknowingly mastered the basics; it was unstoppable.
After studying magic systematically for almost a year in a strange way, Millie had almost forgotten that she was actually a "feel-based" apprentice mage. In the past, she had basically learned many things by just watching.

"So what should we do next? Tell Xiaoli that he might be killed tonight and shouldn't die so easily?"

After returning to their guest room from the small garden, the Bath Goddess and Millie began their strategic meeting.

"This might be a last resort. Even if we warn the young professor, he might not take any action. Or even if he does, he might not escape the attacks."

Recalling the shadowy black mist in Prista Town, a place where victory seemed impossible and death was a guaranteed mechanism, Millie didn't think Ritas, at his age, could protect himself.

"Therefore, it would be best to keep the young professor with us. That way, we can determine whether the reason for the cycle lies with him. Otherwise, if he continues to die somewhere we can't see, our cycle will not only be meaningless, but we won't even be able to gather any relevant information."

"That's true. Xiao Li is actually quite principled. Even if you follow him around all the time, sometimes you still don't know what he's doing, and you can't predict his actions."

"Could the goddess of the bath find a way to keep the young professor here? Like the first time, could she stall until late at night by telling the truth?"

Millie thought about it.

I talked to Ritas from almost dusk until late at night, and even at a slow pace, it seemed to be quite difficult.

"Tch tch tch, that just shows you don't understand Millie. If you just want to keep him, you don't need such a complicated plan. Come closer, let me teach you!"

Although she didn't know why the Bath Goddess was whispering in this space where only the two of them were, Millie, who had moved closer anyway, couldn't help but show a surprised expression as she listened to the Bath Goddess's "plan".

"Is...is it really okay to do this?"

"The bag is fine! And even if there's a problem, it won't be a big deal. After all, we have a margin for error."

As the goddess of the bath produced the golden apple, boosting Millie's confidence, her "plan" officially began.

In the afternoon.

As in the second playthrough, Little Ritas comes to check on the Bath Goddess and Millie's condition.

The two, no longer performing, began to recount stories about the "future," just as they had in the first playthrough. As Little Ritas became increasingly interested in the Bathing Goddess's tales, he began to fulfill some of her small requests, preparing food and snacks for the two of them.

After chatting and eating and drinking to their hearts' content.

As night fell, a little later than evening, Little Ritas, wanting to process and judge this information, decided to leave.

It was at this moment that the Goddess of Bath shouted, "Do it!"

It can only be said that truly effective strategies are often very simple.

Millie quickly subdued Little Ritas, while the Goddess of Bath skillfully used a rope made of woven cloth strips that she had prepared beforehand to bind him tightly.

Because everything went so smoothly, Millie couldn't help but remark, "So weak," when she subdued Little Ritas.

"W-What do you want to do!?"

"Tsk, Millie, that's unprofessional of you. Quickly gag him! What if he shouts for help? If he shouts loud enough, people around will hear him. I don't want to go back to jail!"

At the request of the goddess of bathing, Millie quickly stuffed a wad of cloth into Little Ritas's mouth.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"

"Do you understand, Millie? The best way to deal with Little Lee, no matter what, is to just pin him to the ground!"

"Bullying a defenseless boy requires the bathing of a fake Miwei goddess," she said smugly, hands on her hips. And she didn't forget to give Little Ritas a disapproving look.
"Little Li, you're just too careless, that's why you almost got killed by that nobody, Ma. Even if you don't prioritize yourself much, you should pay more attention to yourself. Sigh... I really don't know what you'd do without me around."

"Well!"

"Sister Yu, it's alright, it's nothing."

Millie, who was about to say that Ritas summoning the Elson family's attendants might not be a bad thing, stopped halfway through her sentence.

On the one hand, if it truly is a shadowy entity like the black mist that has been killing Little Ritas, then gathering more followers will be of no use.

On the other hand, given Ritas's delicate position within the Elson family, bringing in too many followers might actually add more uncertainty to the situation.

Ever since.
"Huh? Little Ritas, you're carrying a pocket watch around at this time? Let me see. 7:07 PM, Ritas, you're officially under arrest!"

The goddess of bathing declared this.

"Sister Yu, is it really okay for us to tie the professor up like this?"

As night deepened, Millie looked at Ritas, who was tied to a pillar and staring at them with his head slightly tilted. She spoke with concern.

Unlike the bath goddess who had a strange relationship with Ritas, Millie was ultimately Ritas's student.

Therefore, even knowing that their actions weren't malicious, and knowing that the person before her wasn't Professor Ritas, her class advisor, she understood even more clearly that if something happened, these past experiences wouldn't remain after reincarnation.

However, no matter how much she tried to convince herself, Millie was still extremely uneasy.

She sensed the natural, unspoken pressure a teacher exerts on their students. And since this pressure was felt even on a mere teenager like Ritas, she had a feeling that even after she graduated three years later, it wouldn't easily disappear.

"We can't say 'it's nothing,' can we? Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. Little Li is getting anxious."

There will be a solar eclipse.

"Well, just in case, let's explain a little more. Little Li, you might not believe it, but we're really keeping you tied up here for your own good. I'm a goddess, you know, so what I say won't be wrong. If you're not with us, you'll die in a few hours!"

Faced with the goddess's genuine emotions, Little Ritas merely gave her a look as if she were a fool.

"Millie, come here."

"Well, actually, Sister Yu has already said most of what needs to be said. Okay! I'll talk about something the professor might be interested in: the future of the Yewwood Class at Earls Academy!"

Millie sat down next to Ritas, who was too lazy to struggle anymore, with her knees drawn up to her chest, and began to slowly recount some of the daily life at the academy and the interesting things that happened between the students.

The goddess of bathing felt something was off as she watched this scene.

While being tied up with her "ideal person," she tenderly expresses her "love." This kind of thing is usually called "yandere," right?
"Speaking of which, the young master has been missing for half a day. The servants in the manor haven't reacted at all, Xiao Li. Are you really doing 'well' in the Elson family usually?"

Looking out at the deep night, the goddess of bathing, who was the kidnapper, felt a sense of desolation.

The child they adopted has ended up like this within the family. Doesn't that swordsman Roland really care about anything?

She had actually developed a very positive impression of that man based on various accounts.
"Ah~ I'm a little sleepy. Let me check the time."

The goddess of bathing opened Ritas's pocket watch and checked the time. It was exactly two o'clock in the morning.

Originally, the goddess of bathing had hoped that Ritas's pocket watch contained a photograph or portrait of an important person. But unfortunately, Ritas, regardless of the era, never possessed that kind of sentiment or romance.

"Ugh!! Ugh ugh ugh ugh!!!"

Suddenly, Ritas, who had been silent for a long time, began to struggle desperately.

Meanwhile, Millie, who was focused on "easing tensions" with Little Ritas, and the Goddess of Bath, who was looking down at her pocket watch, both looked up at the window where Ritas was staring in horror.

Then, their bodies couldn't help but tremble slightly.

At this moment, almost pressed against the windowpane, was the eyeball of a huge, yellowish-brown beast.

"careful!"

Millie, who reacted the fastest, dragged the bath goddess, who was slightly closer to the window, backward.

Almost simultaneously, the window glass shattered completely, and the wall deformed and bulged inward as well.

It was still a monster shrouded in black mist. However, Millie and the Goddess of Bath were absolutely certain that this monster was not the black mist shadow that had used the "Elson Style" swordsmanship to slaughter others.

"Watch out for the bird's beak!"

In the critical moment, Little Ritas suddenly spat out the wad of cloth stuffed in his mouth, slipped free from the ropes binding his hands and feet, and shouted a warning.

They didn't care about details like how their restrictions on Little Ritas's body actually had little effect.

Millie and the Bathing Goddess hurriedly made a dodging motion, only to see a black object, like an extremely thick spear, fiercely pierce through the broken window, almost grazing them and Little Ritas, splitting the space inside the room in two.

(End of this chapter)