Chapter 20

Second period...

Good morning everyone...

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"Isuzu Azuko."

"Here."

"Ookawa Aki."

"Here."

"Kakizaki Misa."

"Here."

A middle-aged teacher with graying hair and glasses stood at the podium, conducting the daily roll call.

This was the classroom of the second-year A class of the middle school division of Mahora Academy, one of the two super-large school complexes on Academy Island. Since it was an all-girls school, except for the teacher at the podium, all the students were around fourteen years old, at the age when they were lively and full of energy. The teacher conducting the roll call was the homeroom teacher of 2-A, Takahata Kōdō. "Kagurazaka Asuna."

"Y-Yes, y-yes, y-yes... Ah!"

When the student with the eighth student number was called, a small incident occurred in the otherwise calm class.

The girl named Kagurazaka Asuna, probably got up from her seat too quickly, and her clothes got caught on the corner of the desk. She struggled for a moment, swaying back and forth, and finally toppled the desk, falling to the ground.

The classmates, who had been serious until then, burst into laughter at the sight of Asuna entangled with the desk on the floor, turning the solemn classroom into a playground of laughter.

Seeing this familiar scene, Kōdō sighed helplessly. This girl with orange-red hair tied into two braids was an excellent athlete, yet why did she always end up in such silly situations?

Kōdō tapped the roll call book on the desk to get the class to quiet down.

"Asuna, are you hurt?"

Although he knew that such a fall wouldn't cause any real harm to her, as a teacher, Kōdō was still concerned about his student.

"Mr. Takahata, I..."

"Our class's red-headed klutz, Asuna, has only one non-feminine quality—her strong body. So don't worry, Mr. Takahata."

Before Asuna could finish her sentence, she was interrupted. The one who interrupted her was her biggest rival, the class president, Yukihiro Ayaka.

Being the class president, Ayaka had the respect of her classmates in terms of her character and conduct. However, for some reason, she and Asuna were always at odds. While Ayaka didn't engage in overly harsh behavior, she often mocked and ridiculed Asuna.

"You!..."

It seemed that today was not going to be a lucky day for Kagurazaka Asuna. Just as she managed to right the desk and stand up to retort, she was interrupted again, this time by the homeroom teacher standing at the podium.

"Alright, Asuna, please sit down. Ayaka, mocking your classmates is not a good behavior. As the class president, I expect you to set a good example."

"Yes."

"Sorry, Mr. Takahata."

With the responses from the two students, Kōdō opened the roll call book and continued the unfinished task.

"Kasuga Misora."

"Here!"

"...

"Yakase Satoshi."

"Here."

"Hasegawa Chizuru."

"Here."

"Evangeline."

...

"Evangeline?"

...

"Evangeline isn't here?"

After calling her name three times with no response, Kōdō, who was already used to this student's frequent absences, was not particularly concerned. He was about to mark her name when he heard an unexpected response.

"Mr. Takahata, the master is here."

The voice, flat and emotionless, came from the student with the tenth student number, Chachamaru Karakuri.

Kōdō immediately looked up and directed his gaze to Evangeline's seat.

The student sitting there had her hands on the desk, her face down, and only her beautiful golden hair, which looked like silk, was visible on the desk.

Evangeline coming to school was already a surprising miracle for Kōdō. Whether she was sleeping in class was a trivial matter in comparison.

After finishing the roll call, Kōdō wondered what special day it was. Not only did Evangeline come to class, but she was even on time! He opened his textbook and began the lesson, still pondering the matter.

＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝＝

"Mr. Takahata, the master wants to see you."

Kōdō, who had just finished packing up his teaching materials and was about to leave the classroom, was stopped by Chachamaru at the door.

"Evangeline is looking for me? No wonder..."

Finally understanding the reason for Evangeline's punctuality, Kōdō followed Chachamaru to the stairs.

The two walked up the stairs one after the other. Because the break between classes was short, most students stayed in the classroom, and few used the stairs. Kōdō followed Chachamaru halfway up the stairs and saw Evangeline, dressed in her school uniform, leaning against the wall, looking impatient.

"Kōdō, help me with something."

Before Kōdō could speak, Evangeline preempted him with the reason she had called him.

"Help you?"

Since Evangeline had come to him, Kōdō was well aware of her identity. In his memory, the vampire progenitor before him had never asked anyone for help. The trouble of having something to do was temporarily forgotten, and Kōdō was very curious about what Evangeline needed from him.

"Yes, the terms are up to you. My request is simple: for the next two weeks, you must be available whenever I call. Whether it's day or night, whether you're in class or doing other work, you must come immediately when I call, understood?"

The demand sounded domineering and unreasonable. Kōdō felt a sense of achievement at being the first person the vampire progenitor might seek help from, but as a teacher, he couldn't casually agree to something that could disrupt the teaching schedule.

"Tell me the reason first. Being on call... that's quite a tall order. And why two weeks?"

Kōdō was not aware of the Holy Grail War. Evangeline, however, had learned from Eve that Levi had joined the Holy Grail War and had taken the opportunity to ask Eve for all the details about the war while Levi was away.

Since the Holy Grail had a time limit, the Holy Grail War was set to last two weeks. Although Eve couldn't specify what would happen if the two weeks were exceeded, she assured Evangeline that Levi would no longer be in danger after two weeks. This was why Evangeline made this request to Kōdō—she considered him the best person she could find in such a short time.

"Really troublesome! Don't worry about school; I've already talked to that old man, the principal."

As Kōdō had guessed, this was the first time the vampire progenitor Evangeline had asked for help. Having lived in solitude for hundreds of years, she had created many homunculi, including Chachamaru Zero, after gaining sufficient power. Apart from Levi, she had almost no deep interactions with other humans. In the cruel world of the solitary vampire, it was either kill or be forgotten. How could she have the opportunity to experience being helped by someone?

"But at least let me know what I'm supposed to do, right?"

Kōdō still didn't dare to agree rashly. Although he didn't have any particularly bad impressions of Evangeline, given her notorious past as a wanted criminal, he maintained a cautious attitude.

"How troublesome! That old man has already agreed! Fine, I'll tell you. Your task is simple—protect Levi well for the next two weeks! If a single hair on his head is harmed, be prepared to have your blood drained by me!"