Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest

Chapter 358 83.1 - Damsel?

?"Student Irina hadn't returned to her dormitory."

Normally, such words shouldn't have made me feel in such a manner. After all, no matter what, it was normal for a student like Irina to have some business outside her dorms.

But, her state was not normal. She was in a possibly enraged state, and she was looking for a fight with something or someone. This was something I was sure of.

Therefore, if she hadn't returned to her dorms, that meant she found the thing she was looking for outside.

Considering the fact that the conflict between Sophomore years and freshmen was this easy to escalate, the possibility of a senior messing with Irina with some sort of insults and her reacting severely to that was high.

I could easily form such a scene in my head, and visualizing the results of these seniors being burnt to the crips by Irina's flames, I somehow trailed the results.

'She would most likely be reprimanded by the academy, and I don't think that that woman will take it well. This is not something that is beneficial at all.'

In the end, Irina needed to be found and then be talked with. If she needed to vent her anger, I hoped that it would be the training dummies, not your fellow humans.

'But, let's believe in her a little bit….I should check the general training grounds and other locations where she could train. Maybe she didn't return here not to face Seraphina? That is also a possibility as well.'

With that thought, I started moving.

My first stop was the combat training facility, a sprawling arena where students honed their combat skills under the watchful eyes of instructors for any possible case of conflict. I scanned the area, searching for any sign of Irina among the sparring students.

But she was nowhere to be found.

Next, I headed to the elemental training grounds, where students practiced harnessing and controlling the elements. The air crackled with energy as students unleashed bursts of fire, water, and lightning in their training exercises.

Again, there was no sign of Irina.

Feeling like this time, I would find it, I made my way to the third and final training facility: the advanced combat arena. This was where the academy's students sparred and trained, pushing themselves to their limits in pursuit of greatness, and the place that I had frequently visited. After all, this place was where you could personally combat against the golems.

However, I doubted they could hold against Irina as they would compared to the training golems in her dorms.

As I entered, I saw that many of the students had already occupied the rooms. Well, that was to be expected since the second semester was slowly reaching its end, and the final exams were approaching.

In any case, after seizing the place and checking if there were any familiar traces of mana, I turned my attention to the place where I could possibly find my answer.

Approaching the receptionist's desk, I inquired if Irina had been seen in the vicinity.

The receptionist, a young woman with a friendly demeanor, nodded in response.

"Ah….You are talking about the girl with the fiery red hair, right? Yes, she was here earlier," she confirmed, her voice tinged with both concern and a slight fear. "But she left not too long ago. She seemed...disturbed and somehow drunk. She was emanating a strong pressure, and it even made me burn a little."

It seemed like Irina had left an impression on the receptionist woman.

'But, drunk? What does that mean?'

Somehow, that word made me narrow my eyes.

"And to think that first-ranked student would come here to train….It is my first time seeing such a thing."

The receptionist said. It also seemed like she had checked the name of the student from the database. Well, it was to be expected that she would be curious.

"Thank you for your answer. I will check up on her now."

After taking my thanks, the receptionist revealed a smile. But somehow, I could sense a slight pity in her eyes. It seemed she pitied me, thinking it would be a hassle to deal with Irina.

And she was probably right.

However, the word drunk. It rose the ominous feeling in my heart.

'It can be Mana Exhaustion…But, Irina wouldn't be that careless….No, she definitely can be.'

I would like to request the footage of Irina leaving, but my request would mostly be met with a bunch of suspicions.

'And she is still not answering any of my calls.'

None of my calls were being responded to. In any case, since she hadn't left long before, I wanted to attempt to trace her steps.

But, there was one thing that was hindering me from doing that. It was because Irina's mana was exhausted. The phenomenon of Mana Exhaustion occurred when even the basal mana that was required for an Awakened body to operate inhumanly was used.

Naturally, that also meant that the mana imprint was lost, and it was nearly impossible for me to trail her mana even with [Perceptive Insight].

–RING!

But right at that moment, I got a message notification on my smartwatch.

[Irina: D.]

The message notification on my smartwatch pulled me out of my thoughts, and I quickly glanced at the screen. My eyes narrowed as I read the single letter displayed: D.

"D?"

I muttered to myself, furrowing my brow in confusion. What could Irina possibly mean by sending just a single letter?

At first, I entertained the idea that it might be some sort of prank or joke on her part. Irina was known for her weirdly mischievous nature, and sending a cryptic message like this could be her way of teasing me or joking with me.

But then, I shook my head, dismissing the notion. Knowing Irina's character, if she wanted to get back at me, she would send a barrage of insults or some cleverly crafted message designed to rile me up.

So, what did the letter "D" signify?

My mind raced with possibilities, my brain working at a rapid speed. In that instant, I thought of countless different scenarios and formulated them in my head.

There could be many things, like when she was messaging, she fell asleep from fatigue, or she was caught up in a fight.

'And, if she caught up in a fight with her Mana Exhausted state….That can be dangerous….But, knowing her strength, I am sure she must have already recovered to some extent. According to the receptionist, it had already been half an hour after she left. That means she should be conscious by now, so the drunken state doesn't make sense. Then, while she was trying to convey a message to me, she was interrupted. And with her being weak, she wasn't able to defend herself. This is possible. But why the letter D? What starts with the D, and why did she send it to me?'

At that moment, I started considering our past interactions and the recent events from Irina's eyes. And then, I noticed why she did so.

'Evil Spirit and a Demon. Only she knows I dealt with Belthazor…..And D….This is possible.'

The moment I considered this, I came to a conclusion.

'I don't want it to be true, but it can be very well that she was in this suction because of a demon-follower.'

The moment I reached this conclusion, I immediately started typing. Entering the site that I had been frequently using, I messaged my hacker group.

[Find me the location of this number. It is urgent.]

I sent the message to the Horde. [Horde: Understood. I will start investigating it.]

Of course, knowing that Irina was an Emberheart, her smartwatch was bound to be interfered with. It would be hard to track her by normal means, but Horde was a cheat when it came to that.

They were the best hacking organization in the world, and with the investments I had made in them, they very well had the equipment.

Of course, while they were doing that, I also didn't wait either. I instantly left the training grounds and slowly hid myself. I did it so that any situation like that in the noon wouldn't happen.

It was my own lack of consideration that such a thing happened in the noon, and the results were dangerous. Though it was not my clear responsibility, my blood was boiling a little.

After waiting in the shadows for a little while, another message notification appeared on my smartwatch, indicating a response from the Horde.

I quickly read the message, my eyes scanning the screen for any information about Irina's whereabouts.

The message displayed the location of Irina's smartwatch, pinpointing it to a specific area.

However, what caught my attention was the additional note from the Horde, warning me that they might be tracked back and wouldn't be able to respond for a while.

I nodded to myself, acknowledging the risk. It was to be expected, considering the nature of their work as well as the target being an Emberheart. The headquarters most likely knew about the attempt to trace her position. They might even be alerted as well.

With a quick reply, assuring them that it was okay and thanking them for their assistance, I turned my focus back to the task at hand.

Checking the location provided by the Horde, I noted that it was slightly off from the main road, nestled among the surrounding greenery, though it was subtle.

'That location is not even that far off…..Hmm?'

SWOOSH! Without wasting any time, I made my way there, moving swiftly and silently through the shadows.

Arriving at the vicinity of the designated spot, I activated my [Aurora Raven], summoning the ethereal bird to scout ahead for me.

From its vantage point, I could see the smartwatch lying on the ground, its screen turned to the ground. But there were no traces of someone else being there at that moment.

THUMP!

But, my heart clenched with a sense of dread as I approached, my senses on high alert.

I knew what this feeling meant, and it basically confirmed my suspicions. After all, there were the remnants of demonic energy there, and that was activating my passive.

And if there were remnants of demonic energy but no one, that meant only one thing.

'Irina is captured.'

"Tsk."

I could only click my tongue seeing this place. After all, from the remnant traces on the ground, I could already form the scene in my head.

As I examined the traces on the ground, a scene began to form in my mind, pieced together from the evidence before me.

In my mind's eye, I saw a girl lying on the ground, her hair sprawled out around her like a halo of flames. She seemed weakened since she pushed her weight onto the ground, her movements restricted by some unseen force, her body not moving as freely as it should.

Despite her struggle, she attempted to rise, and her determination was evident even in her weakened state.

The traces of her struggle were on the ground laid bare.

Standing over her was another figure, their presence looming ominously in the scene. But her presence was faint since the depth of her footmarks wasn't as deep as it would be. It seemed she was putting effort into concealing her traces as best as she could, but my eyes were special.

She seemed to emanate a dark energy, her intentions clear as they gazed down at the girl with a cold, calculating stare. With a swift motion, Irina was lifted, and then she disappeared.

'But, well, I am the best tracker in this academy.'

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