Caius froze, then turned around to see Hilda standing at the top of the stairs, frowning slightly as she looked down at them.

  “I—” Caius was about to speak.

  But the blond brat beat him to it.

  He withdrew his flaring magic power, pointed at Caius, his voice cracked and wheezy, “This guy attacked me!”

  “We were just walking down the hallway like normal, and he suddenly rammed into me—then punched me! That’s assault!”

  “President, I demand this man be detained!”

  Caius almost burst out laughing. What a textbook case of the guilty making the first accusation.

  But Hilda clearly wasn’t going to take just his word for it. She turned to Caius.

  Caius just shrugged. “Pretty much what he said, except he ran into me first—and insulted me while he was at it.”

  “He’s lying!” the blond brat immediately shouted. “President, don’t believe him! He’s just a violent lunatic!”

  “My teammates can testify—it was him who struck first!”

  At that, Hilda turned her gaze to the stunned students nearby. Realizing the cue, they quickly nodded in agreement.

  “Yeah, it was him! He attacked Fenton first!”

  “He’s completely nuts!”

  “He almost killed Fenton!”

  Backed by his teammates, the blond brat grew even more dramatic, whining miserably, “President, you hear that?”

  “This bastard is definitely from outside the academy! He broke into the Student Council building, and when I politely asked him to leave, he sucker-punched me!”

  “He needs to be arrested immediately!”

  “This guy must be brought to justice under Grilla City law!”

  Caius watched the whole scene like a good show. He even pulled out a cigarette and was about to light it—before remembering this was still an academy. He put it away with a small sigh.

  Hilda, meanwhile, frowned deeper as she listened, then turned to Caius again with a look that clearly said, “Well? Care to explain?”

  So Caius said lightly, “Remember I mentioned that kind of bully before?”

  “He’s one of them.”

  “Just picked the wrong person to bully this time.”

  At that, realization dawned in Hilda’s eyes. She gave a small nod, then her expression turned cold as she turned her sharp gaze toward Fenton.

  “Senior Fenton, watch your words.”

  “Caius is not an outsider.”

  Caius: “?”

  Wait, I’m not?

  Hilda: “He’s the captain of the Student Council Security Squad.”

  Caius: “??”

  Wait, I am?

  He glanced at Hilda, who wasn’t looking back, but he noticed her ears were a little red, and her fingers curled slightly.

  Caius got the hint and nodded. “Yeah. I am.”

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  Fenton and the others were stunned. They hadn’t expected Caius to have an official position. That meant he wasn’t trespassing—he had the right to be inside Hydis Academy buildings.

  “But he—” Fenton tried to argue, now recovering from his shock.

  But Hilda cut him off firmly. “Enough, Senior Fenton. Tend to your injuries first.”

  “As for this matter—I think you know exactly what happened. Don’t make me dig deeper.” She narrowed her eyes as she said the last part, staring Fenton down.

  Fenton’s heart jumped. He took two steps back, then gritted his teeth and shot Caius a venomous glare. “We’re leaving!”

  “Be sure to clean the wall on your way out~” Caius added, hands in his pockets, clearly enjoying the chaos.

  Fenton stumbled slightly at the comment, then left even faster.

  Only once Fenton and his crew had vanished down the hall did Hilda seem to breathe again. She looked at Caius with a trace of reprimand. “How did you manage to get into it with him?”

  “I didn’t,” Caius replied, shrugging. “I was coming to find you. I was just looking for the Student Council President’s office when that guy rammed into me.”

  He smiled. “Good thing our President has eyes like a hawk. Without you, I’d be in a tough spot.”

  Little Swan lifted her chin with pride at the compliment, but quickly shook her head. “Fenton really is awful. Just like you said—he uses his family connections to bully others.”

  “And not just once or twice.”

  “He just doesn’t have the guts to act out in front of me. Think I don’t know?”

  “That’s why I chose to believe you.”

  Caius snapped his fingers. “Keen-eyed as always.”

  “Come with me,” Hilda said with a smile, then turned and headed upstairs.

  Caius followed with Kiki in tow. Soon they arrived at the so-called President’s office.

  It was spacious, tidy. Hilda sat on the sofa and began preparing tea.

  Caius flopped down unceremoniously on the couch, shifting around to get comfortable. “Damn, this is nice. I need one of these at the orphanage.”

  Hilda chuckled. “That’s a great idea.”

  “By the way,” Caius said, suddenly curious, “you mentioned I’m the captain of the Student Council Security Squad? When did that happen? I must’ve missed the memo.”

  Hilda blinked her large eyes playfully. “The position was technically vacant. If you were an outsider, Fenton would’ve made a huge deal out of it. Even if he started the whole mess, you’d still be in the wrong.”

  “So I figured I’d just give you the title. That way, you’re not an outsider anymore.”

  She beamed at him, eyes sparkling with a hint of expectation—like a girl waiting for praise.

  Caius, of course, wasn’t stingy with compliments. “Brilliant. That means all Fenton can do now is swallow his teeth—literally. Speaking of which, did he actually swallow his teeth back there?”

  “Of course not!” Hilda laughed. Then, her tone turned serious. “But Fenton’s father is one of Hydis Academy’s board members. He won’t let this go so easily.”

  “He might come after you. Be careful.”

  “If you ever need help, come to me. As long as I’m around, they won’t dare do anything to you.”

  Seeing the concern on Little Swan’s face warmed Caius’s heart. He nodded. “Don’t worry. They can’t touch me.”

  “Mhm.” Hilda nodded, confident in Caius’s strength.

  Then, smiling again, she asked, “So? Interested in safeguarding the Student Council?”

  “Of course!” Caius replied immediately.

  To put it plainly, the position was basically “head of security”—not a lot of power, but with it, he’d have free and legal access to all Hydis buildings.

  “What exactly do I need to do?” Caius asked.

  “Protect the Student Council members,” Hilda explained. “The Council doesn’t just have authority within Hydis Academy—sometimes it’s involved with external matters.”

  “Like political events in Grilla City, or affairs with affiliated academies.”

  “For example, if a Student Council member needs to travel to another city’s academy for work or exchange programs, they might have to pass through dangerous areas. That’s where you come in.”

  “Or if there’s a business or political event in Grilla City where Hydis Academy needs to send representatives—the Council will attend, and they’ll need protection.”

  “After all, our students are future mages. Council members are the cream of the crop. Some of the Empire’s enemies—or just plain bad guys—might try to target them.”

  As Hilda explained all this seriously, Caius couldn’t help but grin.

  This Little Swan is truly getting more adorable by the minute

  So he asked, “Then when the time comes, will I be protecting you at the event?”

  “Of course,” Hilda nodded, but then added, “But I don’t need your protection. I can take care of myself.”

  “I don’t think so.” Caius smiled slyly.

  “You’re looking down on me again. Don’t believe me? How about we have another sparring session? I’ve made a lot of progress since yesterday!” Hilda puffed her cheeks slightly as she spoke.

  “Haha, I’d love to, but it might have to wait a bit,” Caius replied.

  “Why?” Hilda asked, a little confused. “Isn’t that why you came here, to spar with me?”

  “No.” Caius shook his head.

  “Oh…” Hilda’s face immediately fell, a bit disappointed.

  But the next moment, Caius said, “I came to invite you on an investigation mission to Nofalark Forest.”

  With that, he took out his task sheet and handed it to Hilda.

  Hilda took it, glanced at it, and her eyes lit up with excitement. “Right now?”

  “Mhm,” Caius nodded. “I completed my other tasks early just for you and took up this official investigation mission from Ocean City.”

  “Thank you!” Hilda exclaimed joyfully, then immediately stood up and rushed toward the door, her steps quick and a little light-hearted. “Wait here for me, I’ll get ready, we’re leaving right away!”

  As she hurried out, her steps full of energy and enthusiasm, Caius couldn’t help but admire her retreating figure, a smile spread across his face.

  Such a cute little Swan.