The Graduate Student Wants to Assassinate the Professor - Chapter 110

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 110

“Yes, this time I can simply tell Pope Beronas that I’m unable to continue the mission and request that he assign a different assassin, right?”
“But if that happens, Khalid will truly die.”
“That was always his fate anyway.”
Leoryna found herself profoundly shaken by Pongko’s words.
Even if she didn’t kill him, someone had to. Otherwise, Petila’s oracle would…
“You’re right… According to Petila’s oracle, he would bring calamity to this world. If that comes to pass, I would certainly regret not having killed Khalid.”
Leoryna buried her face in her hands.
“But I still don’t know if this is right.”
The doubts she’d harbored all along resurfaced.
Did the single-horned Demon Race truly refer to Khalid? Couldn’t there be another single-horned Demon Race member?
But…

‘You are Petila’s blade. And a blade does not think for itself.’

Zeles’s words echoed in her mind.
If her blade had dulled, then according to Pongko’s logic, it would be right to replace the assassin—perhaps with her own master, Roabel Sailtos.
Yet it was Leoryna who had been assigned this assassination mission, selected by the Holy Maiden herself.

‘There must be a reason why Petila chose you. So believe in yourself, Leoryna. Simply continue as you have until now.’

Leoryna turned over Veronas’s words in her mind.
If there was indeed a reason for her selection, then perhaps this very confusion was itself part of the goddess’s inscrutable design—something a mortal could never fully comprehend.
“I need to think about this more.”
Leoryna rose to her feet with a dejected expression, brushing off her clothes. Pongko followed behind her, lost in thought.
‘Leoryna’s failure isn’t the problem.’
Pongko’s nose twitched. In his eyes, Leoryna appeared dangerously fragile right now.
‘The problem is if she succeeds.’
Should she succeed in this mission, Leoryna would undoubtedly be wounded, consumed by self-loathing. In the worst case, she might never forgive herself.
‘Leoryna… will you really be alright?’
Unaware of—or perhaps aware of—Pongko’s concern, Leoryna composed her expression back to its usual calm and turned toward where the students were grilling barbecue.

* * *

“Now then, everyone. You’ll need to submit your reports on today’s field survey by next Wednesday….”
“Wow, meat! Meat!”
“And drink responsibly….”
“Isikabel~ loves~ random~ games~”
“You brats, listen up! I’m talking to you!”
Leoryna let out a sharp cry, and only then did everyone’s attention turn to her. She cleared her throat once before continuing.
“I’d like to extend our thanks to Seleya for arranging this gathering.”
As Leoryna gestured toward Seleya beside her, the students broke into applause.
“With that, let’s wrap up this field survey. After we eat dinner, we’ll head back to Halderion Academy.”
“Yay! Let’s drink! Let’s drink!”
The students’ revelry continued unabated.
They pitched a tent beside the flying airship, grilling meat, drinking, and playing games as they enjoyed a boisterous after-party. Leoryna tried to keep the students in line and prevent any accidents, but instead found herself cornered by them.
“The teaching assistant~ loves~ random~ games~!”
“I’m not doing it!”
As Leoryna tried to escape, Zigzagel—whose hair had been tied into multiple braids as a penalty—suddenly grabbed her.
“Don’t leave me out!”
“Professor Zigzagel, you should slip away tactfully too!”
While they were making a ruckus, Khalid emerged with a yawn. He chuckled at the scene before him.
“What a mess.”
“Hey, Khalid. Are you feeling alright?”
Seleya approached, sipping from a drink. In her other hand, she held an unopened bottle of alcohol.
“I’m fine.”
As Khalid waved his hand, Seleya handed him the fresh bottle she was holding.
“You worked hard today. Thanks to you, it looks like we’ll be able to keep this land.”
“Of course. Who am I? I’m Kaladniel Sigelo Huaderica, that’s who. I’ll organize the information from what we saw in the temple today and send it over soon.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Khalid sat down in a camping chair with a self-satisfied air, and Seleya took the seat beside him. After taking a sip of her drink, Seleya rested her chin on her hand and looked at him.
“Can I ask you something?”
“What?”
“You said I couldn’t, but why is that girl okay?”
“What do you mean?”
Confused by her question, Khalid asked her to clarify, and Seleya let out a soft laugh.
“About letting someone else be by your side. You rejected me so harshly, yet you allow Leoryna to stay close to you. You even throw yourself into danger to protect her.”
“What are you talking about? Leoryna is my graduate student. It’s natural that we’re close. Besides, how can you even compare? At least Leoryna doesn’t ask me to marry her.”
Khalid spoke in bewilderment, but Seleya shook her head.
“So as long as I don’t propose, it’s fine? But from what I can see, you care for Leoryna far too much. And though it’s awkward to say, you were alone for over a hundred years. The fact that you’ve formed a close bond with a human means something in your heart has changed.”
At Seleya’s observation, Khalid let out a small groan.
“I’m not sure about all that. But the reason I can be close to Leoryna is….”
Khalid took a sip of his drink before continuing.
“Leoryna doesn’t fear me, nor does she revere me.”
“What do you mean?”
“In your case, you held me in half-reverence. If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t have agreed to marry me. And everyone else feared me. Because of the incident I caused…”
Seleya didn’t need to ask which incident Khalid was referring to—it had to be the massacre of the 108 Clans from one hundred twenty-four years ago.
“But Leoryna knew about that incident and yet treated it as though it were nothing.”
Khalid recalled Leoryna’s response when he’d asked if she wasn’t afraid of him—she’d simply said, “What about it?”
“That’s why it’s fine.”
“Hmm.”
Seleya made a dismissive sound. Rather than pondering what it meant, Khalid let it go in one ear and out the other, continuing with a note of pride in his voice.
“And she does her work well. She listens to what I say. She’s an excellent graduate student.”
“I see…”
Seleya regarded Khalid with a complicated expression.
“Well, if that’s truly how you think, then I have nothing more to say. But still, Khalid—don’t overlook the fact that Leoryna is human.”
“Why does it matter that she’s human?”
“Humans have far shorter lifespans than we do. There’s a good chance you won’t be able to keep her as long as you think. So you mustn’t grow too attached.”
“Ha, I know that already. Do you think I’m a fool?”
“Then I’m relieved.”
Seleya took another drink.
Khalid felt the heat rising from the alcohol, so he stepped outside for some air and gazed toward where Leoryna was—she was tying a fresh ribbon into Zigzagel’s hair.
‘I won’t be able to keep her for long…’
It was something he’d already known long before Seleya mentioned it.
Leoryna, being human, would die within a few decades. To Khalid, a few decades was not a long time at all. He’d met many humans throughout his existence, but whenever he’d turned his attention elsewhere for a moment, he’d eventually hear that they’d died. So giving one’s heart deeply to a human only meant accumulating more loneliness.
Besides, a master’s degree typically took only two years to complete if nothing went wrong, and if Leoryna didn’t pursue a doctoral degree afterward, that would be the end of his connection with her.
Of course, one never knew what the future held—perhaps they’d meet again later and collaborate on research together. But that was merely an uncertain hope.
‘It shouldn’t matter. I’ve managed the Research Laboratory just fine on my own all this time. Without Leoryna, I’ll simply return to how things were before.’
Khalid exhaled a sigh without realizing it.
‘But still… I don’t like that.’
He couldn’t distinguish whether his dislike stemmed from not having a graduate student, or from not having Leoryna specifically.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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