Yilu’s voice was so loud that it even startled the occupants of the nearby dormitory rooms.
Some opened their doors and looked toward the source of the noise, but finding it strange, they quickly retreated back into their rooms.
No matter the Academy, there were always strange rumors and ghost stories. Who knew if this was one of those?
Hiding in your room and not wandering around was always the correct choice.
Facing Yilu’s venting rage, Lyr narrowed his eyes and frowned.
‘Did I just piss this girl off?’
Before he could react, Yilu swung her hand at him.
The power behind that punch was no joke, just like the first time they had met.
This time, Lyr didn’t dodge. His back was against the desk, and there was nowhere to go.
Lyr could only raise his arms by his head to parry Yilu’s attack.
Though he was prepared, taking such a solid hit still made Lyr stagger back a step.
His eyes widened in surprise. To say this girl was like a cat with its fur standing on end would be an understatement; she was more like a tigress.
This strike had no technique behind it; it was fueled entirely by Yilu’s raw strength.
After knocking Lyr back slightly, Yilu reached out to grab the remaining Magic Cores on the desk.
“How can you be so stubborn? I told you that you can’t use these things.”
Lyr snapped back to his senses and grabbed Yilu’s hand. Seeing her struggle, he used the momentum to pull her arm up high.
Lyr then pressed forward with his body, forcing Yilu to retreat with him.
Their bodies slammed against the wardrobe next to the desk, making a loud *thud*.
Immediately after, Yilu’s voice rang out again. “Let me go! I’m going to kill you!”
Lyr didn’t know why things had turned out this way. It was completely beyond his expectations.
“I actually wanted to talk to you about some things after seeing that list today, but in the state you’re in, it’s useless to say anything.”
‘I’m not stupid enough to try reasoning with a cat that’s already been triggered.’
He pulled Yilu’s hand down and pressed his other hand over her mouth to muffle her voice.
Lyr didn’t like his job as an Academy Teacher, but he didn’t want to be fired for being accused of attacking his own student. That would be a social death sentence.
Besides, she was the one attacking him; he was just restraining her.
“Be quiet,” Lyr said, lowering his head. His voice was deep as his eyes met Yilu’s in a firm stare.
The only response he got was Yilu’s fierce gaze.
Although her body was pinned by Lyr and she couldn’t move much, her hands tightly gripped Lyr’s clothes, struggling to tear them apart.
“First, I have to tell you that I have no ill will toward you. But if you’re taking your anger out on me because of what Beiyao said today, I’ll accept it.”
Lyr noticed that when he mentioned the girl’s name, Yilu’s eyes grew even fiercer, as if she wanted to devour him.
*Hiss.*
Lyr felt a sharp pain in the palm he was using to cover Yilu’s mouth; she had bitten him.
He could already imagine the teeth marks left on his hand.
Since words were useless, Lyr felt he had to try another way.
“Fine, alright. Didn’t you want to kill me? I’ll give you the chance.”
Keeping one hand over Yilu’s mouth, he felt around the table next to him with his other hand, grabbed a sharp Magic Core, and shoved it into Yilu’s palm.
Afraid she would crush it like before, Lyr wrapped his hand over hers to control the pressure.
Following Lyr’s lead, the hand holding the Magic Core rose until the sharp edge was pressed against Lyr’s throat.
“Come on. All you need to do is apply a little pressure, and you can kill me with this.”
“…”
Muffled sounds came from Yilu’s blocked mouth. Even if he couldn’t understand her, Lyr knew what she was thinking.
‘She dares? Why wouldn’t she?’
She was brave enough to hunt Magical Beasts in such a reckless manner and now wanted to absorb the unpurified Magic Power from a Magic Core. She was more than daring enough.
“But think it through. After you kill me, or after you really kill those people, what will you do next?”
Yilu froze. She had put in so much effort to become stronger, even becoming unscrupulous like this.
She had never considered what Lyr was asking.
“I won’t talk about all that nonsense. You said earlier that you aren’t inferior to me. Honestly, I agree.”
“The fact that you can go this far, even to the point of absorbing unpurified Magic Cores… I admit that I’m not as good as you.”
At the very least, Lyr was quite afraid of dying.
He felt there were still many new things in this world he hadn’t tried yet. To die now would be a waste.
“Right here, right now, you need to know that no one else is denying your hard work—except for yourself.”
“You can go ahead and kill me right here, then leave like a fugitive.”
Before Yilu could apply pressure, Lyr guided her hand, causing the Magic Core to prick him.
Under the sharp point of the Magic Core, a small bead of red began to seep from Lyr’s neck.
“But I have to tell you, from that moment on, you will have truly and utterly failed. Everything you’ve done before will be for nothing, completely meaningless. And you will be the one who personally denied and buried all your past efforts.”
Lyr didn’t know Yilu that well. Including today, the number of times they had met could be counted on one hand.
The disappearance of Yilu’s older brother had indeed placed all the pressure on her.
People were all like that. Once pushed to the breaking point without an outlet, even the most rational person would eventually snap.
Someone like Yilu, who was stubborn and didn’t like interacting with others, was already impressive for being able to internalize it for this long.
However, she didn’t seem willing to give up on the method of absorbing unpurified Magic Cores.
There might be shortcuts in the world, but most of them came with a price, sometimes a fatal one.
If Yilu really did it, she would be effectively denying all her hard work and everything she stood for.
As he spoke, Lyr noticed the ferocity in Yilu’s eyes slowly fade, replaced by a layer of mist.
Lyr knew that she had temporarily calmed down.
He slowly pulled his hand away from her mouth. Seeing that she didn’t scream or shout again, Lyr truly breathed a sigh of relief.
As Lyr took a step back, Yilu’s entire body lost its strength, and she slumped onto the floor.