Chapter 7

The moon was dark, the wind was high. Wearing a black outfit, Winnie peeked out from the side door of the student council building, looked around, and set off.

At this hour, most student council members had already left. Only workaholics like Mirexia would stay late to work overtime. Plus, he was wearing a night cloak he had borrowed from Zoe. As long as he avoided the light, no one could see him.

Carrying a letter, Winnie avoided the street lamps and moved forward through the night. A few days ago, he had already scouted the abandoned academy building Zoe mentioned, observing the surroundings and figuring out the most hidden route to get there.

The abandoned academy building was eerily silent at night, filled with dilapidated structures.

Half-collapsed walls were everywhere, and piles of discarded desks and chairs were stacked like small hills by the trees. The nearby park was overgrown with weeds, and the pond was filled with filthy water.

It seemed this place had been abandoned for a long time. Since Carillian Academy had plenty of space and dealing with this area was troublesome, it had been left to decay.

Since no one lived here, the street lamps had long been out of repair, and no one cared. The visibility at night was very low, especially since Winnie was wearing a night cloak.

This cloak was a higher-end model, even capable of muffling sound to some extent, leaving no trace.

Winnie arrived at the old tree Zoe had described. To be safe, he reached into the tree hollow, gently placed the note on the ground, and then quietly left.

Winnie retreated along the same route he had come. Although it was late and there were hardly any students on the streets, and no one would see him, Winnie still took extra precautions, sticking to the shadows and avoiding all lit areas.

He planned to find a secluded spot to change out of the night cloak before returning to his dorm.

That shrubbery area would be perfect. He could change out of the night cloak in the bushes and then make his way back to the dorm through the grass.

However, as he approached the bushes, he suddenly felt as if the scene before him paused for a moment.

Winnie was startled. He felt like something had happened in that instant. He touched his cloak, it was securely fastened.

The surroundings were as quiet as before, with no movement except the rustling of the grass in the wind.

Nothing had happened. It must have been his imagination.

“Sniff… why does it smell so nice?” A fleeting fragrance brushed his nose, disappearing before he could get a good whiff, making him think it was just his imagination.

It must have been from the cloak, right?

After all, Zoe had worn it. Girls usually like to wear perfume or apply scented ointments and cosmetics, so it was normal.

‘Virtue +100.’

‘Current Virtue: 9154.’

‘Virtue +50.’

‘Current Virtue: 9204.’

“Huh? Why did my virtue increase?” Winnie frowned, feeling something was off.

There was no one around here. If there were, he would have noticed. Plus, he was wearing the night cloak in such low light. Who could possibly recognize him?

But why did his virtue increase inexplicably?

This made Winnie a bit nervous.

Could he have been caught?

But how? Even if there was a girl nearby who saw him, she wouldn’t recognize him, right?

He was wearing the night cloak, which made his figure and face a blurry black silhouette. Even if someone spotted him, they wouldn’t know it was him unless they lifted his cloak.

The odds of that were too low, almost impossible.

After thinking it over, Winnie suddenly understood.

Oh, he remembered.

It must have been Shikondell, who had returned home and seen the cake and desserts on the table. She must have been surprised, then read the note and been moved.

Thinking this, Winnie felt relieved.

That little elf was so naive, so easily moved.

With this in mind, Winnie lingered around for a while, silently checking all the possible hiding spots in the woods. There was indeed no one.

He knew it. How could anyone have spotted him?

If there had been someone, they wouldn’t have been able to escape when he came searching. Trying to run away would have made a lot of noise, and he would have noticed.

Since there was no one in the nearby hiding spots, it was clear that no one had been here earlier.

Winnie felt at ease. He hid in the bushes, changed out of the night cloak, and made his way through the grass to the main path of the academy. Then, carrying a small bag with the night cloak, he walked out as if nothing had happened.

This kind of thing was best done by a former villain like him. He executed it flawlessly.

“Ahem, Dell, I’m back. Open the door for me,” Winnie said nonchalantly as he arrived at his dorm and knocked on the door.

Soon, the sound of quick footsteps came from inside, and Shikondell, with her white hair tied in a high ponytail, opened the door barefoot, wearing only white socks.

Winnie could almost imagine her rushing to the door in a hurry upon hearing he was back, not even bothering to put on shoes.

Sure enough, Shikondell had returned. No wonder he had received the virtue notification.

Winnie sighed in relief, finally putting his mind at ease.

“Winnie, are you done with your work? You’ve had a long day,” Shikondell quickly handed him slippers, giving Winnie the feeling of a hardworking husband returning home to a dutiful wife.

“Yeah, there’s been a lot of student council work lately. Did you see the cake I bought for you?”

“I did, hehe. Thank you, Winnie. The cake was delicious,” Shikondell seemed very happy.

“Good, as long as you liked it,” Winnie entered the room.

After a long day, he was tired. After chatting with Shikondell for a while and taking a shower, he went to sleep.

The next morning, as usual, he had classes.

Winnie glanced at the schedule. He had alchemy class in the afternoon.

But before class, there was a small incident.

“Are you Winnie?” A red-haired beauty with a high ponytail blocked the classroom door, arms crossed and head held high. Even though she tilted her head up, she was still shorter than Winnie and had to look up at him.

“Huh?” Winnie looked at the girl’s uniform skirt, glanced around, and then pointed at himself.

“Are you talking to me?”

Clearly, he didn’t know this red-haired girl. She wasn’t from his class.

“Who else would I be talking to?” The red-haired girl leaned against the door frame, spat out a blade of grass she had been chewing, and glared at Winnie with fiery eyes. “You’re that infamous scoundrel who pretends to be a descendant of the goddess, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m not. You’ve got the wrong person. Hey, Winnie, someone’s looking for you,” Winnie waved at a male classmate not far away.

“Oh, so it’s not you? My apologies, I must have mistaken you for someone else,” To Winnie’s surprise, the red-haired girl actually believed him and immediately apologized sincerely, lowering her head before rushing over to the male classmate Winnie had pointed out, who was now confused and caught off guard.

What a weirdo.

Glancing at the girl’s back, Winnie was about to step into the classroom when she suddenly turned around and blocked his path again.

What the hell? Are you a nut wall or something?

Winnie was speechless.

“Ah, so you’re trying to trick me! That classmate showed me his student ID, proving he’s not Winnie, and he pointed you out as the real Winnie!” The red-haired girl gritted her teeth.

“Damn, girl, you’re quick!” Winnie was impressed by how fast she had acted in such a short time.

“You know, if you used that speed for something productive instead of bothering me, it’d be great.”

“Ugh! You liar! You’re so good at deceiving people. No wonder your family is full of frauds, your name is fake, everything about you is a lie. Who knows how many innocent people you’ve tricked behind the scenes!” The girl spoke with conviction.

“So what?” Winnie casually picked his ear. “Did I eat your rice?”

“I’m going to teach you, you shameless scoundrel, on behalf of the goddess and all the past Saintness!” The red-haired girl pointed at Winnie’s nose with one hand on her hip.

“Huh?” Winnie tilted his head. “Girl, are you okay?”

“So, who are you anyway? I’ve never seen you before, and I haven’t offended you, have I?”

“Listen up, you shameless imposter! I’m Fanya Cassian, the eldest daughter of the House of Cassian of the Church of Radiance, a Holy Cross Knight of the Church of Radiance!”

“Holy Cross Knight? You? Pfft, really?” Winnie teased. “If you’re a Holy Cross Knight, then the church must really be running out of people.”

“Hmph, I will be one soon! In the future, I’ll definitely join the Holy Cross Knights!” Fanya said indignantly. “You deceitful imposter, prepare yourself!”

“Imposter? That’s such a harsh word. Let me tell you something, everyone lies at some point in their lives. Even white lies are still lies, but they’re well-intentioned. So, tell me, have you never lied or deceived anyone in your life?” Winnie raised an eyebrow.

“Impossible, right? You just lied to me, saying you’re a Holy Cross Knight.”

“You! I was just, ”

“Don’t ‘you you’ me. Morality is for self-discipline, not for judging others. Before you judge others, you should reflect on yourself. Didn’t your parents teach you that?” Winnie didn’t give Fanya a chance to retort.

“Just tell me, are you a Holy Cross Knight right now?”

“Not… not yet… but I will be soon!”

“See? That’s called lying. Oh, or did I, the master liar, teach you so well that you’ve already learned how to deceive without me even demonstrating? Well done, girl. I see potential in you. You’ve got what it takes to be a liar,” Winnie said with a cheeky grin, looking very punchable.

“I’m not a liar! Of course, I haven’t lied. I was just… um…” The red-haired girl’s face turned red, and her voice became hesitant.

Pfft.

He thought he was in big trouble, but it turned out to be another naive little fool.

Anyone else would have stubbornly denied it, but this red-haired girl was so honest. Realizing the boomerang had hit her, she immediately blushed and couldn’t speak.

By now, a crowd of onlookers had gathered, all eager to watch the drama unfold. No one stepped in to help Winnie, and even a certain golden-haired elf was secretly enjoying the show, clearly amused by Winnie being confronted.

Oh no, not secretly, openly enjoying it, openly laughing at the situation.

“I was just exaggerating a bit…”

“Exaggerating? Isn’t that lying?” Winnie, a seasoned expert in the art of arguing and abstract insults, found it all too easy to deal with such a naive girl.

What’s the core of arguing?

Right or wrong? No.

The answer is: attack, attack relentlessly!

Throw out countless accusations to keep the other person busy defending themselves, leaving them no time to counterattack. If they’re too busy explaining themselves, you’ve already won.

“You, as a descendant of the House of Cassian of the Church of Radiance, keep talking about representing the goddess and the Saintness, yet you don’t even reflect on yourself before lecturing others. You’ve got lies hanging on your lips, yet you dare to call others liars? Isn’t that hypocritical? Stop talking about the goddess. Even the Goddess of Radiance would be ashamed of you!” Winnie crossed his arms and looked down at the red-haired girl with disdain.

“Ugh!…” The red-haired girl clenched her fists, gritted her teeth, but couldn’t find the words to respond.

“Kid, you come here pretending to be a little justice warrior? How do you have the nerve? Tsk tsk, I feel embarrassed for your family,” Winnie shook his head, feigning regret.

“Do you think the Holy Cross Knights would accept a little liar like you?”

“Ugh, ugh!” Fanya was at a loss for words, her big eyes welling up with tears.

“Give up. You’ll never become one. Because the goddess hates liars like you,” Winnie leaned in close to Fanya, enunciating each word.

“Ugh! I didn’t… I didn’t mean to lie, I was just… ugh!”

“Ugh, no, goddess, don’t hate me! Don’t, ugh…” Fanya cried as she ran away.

Well, that was unexpected.

Winnie scratched his head.

Had he gone too far?

He hadn’t expected the girl to be so naive, so adorably foolish.

If there were a ranking for the most naive and sweet students at Carillian Academy, she and Shikondell would definitely compete for the top five spots.

Sure enough, the onlookers didn’t care who had started the trouble. They all blamed Winnie, the notorious bad boy, for bullying the poor girl.

Damn it, these idiots with their eyes wide open but still blind!

They didn’t see who had started the trouble; all they saw was a pure, beautiful girl running away in tears.

So, is it a crime that I’m not a beautiful girl?