High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 276: Chapter 200: Stealing Half a Day from Life _1

Professor Yao did not walk into the classroom alone.

Behind him was a young female janitor in a grey robe, sporting a ponytail and a stern face.

As always, the professor strode onto the podium, slammed his lecture notes onto the podium desk, and then habitually dusted off his sleeves.

Meanwhile, the two janitors stood silently at the classroom door, not uttering a word, as if they were statues.

The students’ curious eyes wandered between the professor and the janitors, and many couldn’t sit still, whispering to each other. The atmosphere in the classroom became a bit eerie.

”No need to get nervous, no need to get nervous,” The professor caressed his shiny bald head, suddenly grinned, revealing his yellowish teeth, ”Remember, before the end of the last class, I mentioned we would discuss your understanding of ’Guardian of the Original Morning’ at the beginning of this class.”

The classroom immediately turned into a field of mourning.

Nearly everyone griped about Professor Yao’s post-class homework.

”We couldn’t find a single clue, Professor!” Xin Fat Man waved his chubby hand, trying to draw Old Yao’s attention, ”Even our Doctor Xiao spent a week in the library and couldn’t find an explanation for this term.”

Xiao Xiao’s face turned dark instantly.

Zheng Qing couldn’t stop snickering.

This had become one of Xiao Xiao’s rare embarrassments. To find the source of this term from Old Yao, he had almost flipped through all the books on spells that first-year wizards could get hold of, including heavy-hitters like the ”Source of Curse”.

Xin Fat Man’s words clearly inspired everyone else — even doctor Xiao, acknowledged by all, couldn’t figure out ’Guardian of the Original Morning.’ It must not be due to their lack of intelligence or effort, but the devilishness of the professor’s question.

The complaints in the classroom became even more self-righteous.

Old Yao watched with amusement as the students complained, his face not betraying the slightest surprise.

Only when the noise in the classroom gradually subsided did he cough twice and speak again.

”It’s okay, if you can’t find it in a week, then try for two weeks, if you can’t find it in two weeks, then try for three.” He pulled out that dark pipe from his robe, flicked a few sparks from his fingertip, and a puff of bluish smoke rose up.

”Ahem...” The female janitor, who had been standing still like a statue at the classroom door, suddenly coughed.

Old Yao’s arm, which had been holding the pipe, froze all of a sudden. He turned his head, smiled awkwardly, extinguished the pipe and stuffed it back into his robe.

”Spend more time, you’ll eventually understand the meaning of that sentence.” The professor finished his dry speech, then, under the astonished gaze of the crowd, tidied up the lecture notes on the desk, raised his arm vigorously, and said, ”As for today...the rest of the time is handed over to this staff member from janitor’s committee.”

”You are all free.”

”No class this morning.”

There was a few seconds of silence in the classroom, then it immediately erupted into excitement.

Although Prof. Yao’s spell class wasn’t as grueling as the astronomy class, it was still a formal magic course. Every student would feel restrained and uncomfortable in class.

Being able to rightfully skip class was a rare treat for every student.

Only keen learners like Liu Fei Fei, Matthew, and Jiang Yu would show some disappointment.

Zheng Qing was trying to suppress the laughter on his face, trying to maintain his scholarship student image in front of his classmates.

But his attempt quickly failed.

”I originally planned to go to the pedestrian street to find Doctor Du Zemu after the talisman class this afternoon,” he looked excitedly at Xiao Xiao: ”If you’re free later, let’s go together... Haven’t you always wanted to meet that legendary genius alchemist?”

”I need to go to the library.” Xiao Xiao sullenly replied, still recovering from the shock inflicted by Xin Fat Man not long ago: ”If you have any discernment, you’d know that even though Old Yao is not giving lessons, there must be other arrangements.”

Everything was as Doctor Xiao had anticipated.

The young wizards in the class were still overly excited.

Just a few minutes later, a stern-faced young female janitor stepped onto the podium and explained the reason for cancelling the morning class in just a few words.

It was all due to the Sand Hour incident.

Ever since the school’s janitorial committee confirmed that the unidentified organisms invading the academy were a swarm of ”lost” Sand Hours, the entire campus operations committee of the first university has been in chaos, from last Saturday night to this morning, the heads of the janitorial committee have been stuck in that dark office building, studying the final decision plan.

To Zheng Qing’s thinking, since they have caught the Sand Hour Queen and destroyed the nest, everything should be fine.

But those experienced old janitors obviously would not be so naive.

If Zheng Qing wasn’t speed reading the ”Wizard World Encyclopedia”, he would naturally find some italicized small print explanations under the Sand Hour section.

According to many conclusions of magic experiments and records of magic notes, when a swarm of Sand Hours lose their nest and the queen, they will go out of control.

They will transform from a valuable magic medical bug into a ”legendary” level magical disaster with rapid reproduction and swift spread - another type of creature at this level that wizards are greatly familiar with are the ’Catastrophe Undead’.

Because after losing the Sand Hour Queen, any Sand Hour would start to covet her position, automatically transforming from an oviparous creature to a mitotic one, starting a path of abnormality.

It wouldn’t be until a single Sand Hour unites all the lost Sand Hours with its swarm, rebuilds the nest, and becomes the Sand Hour Queen, that this unrestrained usurpation behavior would end, and these grain-sized flying insects would regain the wizards’ familiar ’docile’ ’interesting’ ’high-value’ appearance.

Before that, these little bugs would only crazily seize other creatures’ time to expand their own forces.

Unfortunately, the capture operation that night by the Lakeside of Bell Lake, although finally confirming the perpetrator’s identity and apprehending it, was regretfully destroyed as reckless students broke the nest and even punctured the soft, leech-like queen into several pieces.

When old man Ferna discovered the young wizards’ actions, he stamped his foot in regret, but it was too late for anything to be done.

”According to the committee’s estimates, the number of Sand Hours currently loose in the campus is between one thousand to three thousand,” the female janitor’s voice was clear and distinct: ”In addition, there are many Lazy Bugs previously released by the Sand Hours, the numbers of which are unknown.”

”We must eliminate them all before they go completely out of control!” Old Yao stood at the classroom door, waved his large hand, his voice sounding incredibly strong.

The female janitor flicked her ponytail and glanced sidelong at the professor.

Old Yao let out a small chuckle, returned to his proper place behind the classroom door, and did not speak again.

Zheng Qing curiously watched them, guessing at the possibly astonishing and melodramatic story behind the two, and imagined many Chapters and episodes.

”This is incredibly difficult!” The female janitor emphasized on the podium.

Zheng Qing nodded his head in agreement, while his mind continued to daydream.

”...Especially for places like the First University— the environment here is very suitable for Sand Hours to hunt, and also very suitable for Lazy Bugs to hatch and transform... because this is the largest gathering place for young wizards in the entire wizarding world... Young wizards already have enough magic power, but their self-control is at a low... this makes them very easily bewitched by these bugs.”

Wizards do not fear brutal beasts, strange demons, or mysterious curses.

But they do fear the passing of time.

And the Sand Hours, are the culprits of many instances of unexplained time loss!