Several weeks passed quietly in the peaceful daily life of the school.

Zijing's teaching career gradually got on track, and he became more and more adept at teaching courses, and even gained the admiration of some real students - although Alicia was still the "number one problem" in his class. However, the investigation on Chuxia was like a stone sinking into the sea, without any ripples.

Otto used the vast intelligence network of Tianming, but the information he got back was still blank. The observation report submitted by Rita recorded in detail Chuxia's daily routine, study, and social life - regular, ordinary, and without any suspicious points. Zijing also used various "reasonable" teacher identities to contact her, indirect inquiries, and even used more secret detection methods, but the results all pointed to the same conclusion: this is an ordinary preparatory student with good talent and a slightly introverted and lonely personality.

"A real 'blank sheet'..." Zijing closed the latest report sent by Rita, tapping his fingertips unconsciously on the table, frowning slightly. He stood in front of the window of his room, looking at the bustling and vibrant scene in the academy outside the window, and for the first time, he was shaken by his intuition.

Maybe... he was just overthinking? Was he going in the wrong direction?

……

The sun was shining brightly, and the sea breeze blew across the golden beach with a salty and humid breath. The atmosphere of the beach barbecue day organized by St. Freya Academy was as warm as boiling water.

"Mei! Mei! My grilled fish! It's burnt!" Kiana, wearing an apron, waved the grilling fork frantically, yelling at Mei who was flipping the skewers gracefully beside her.

"Kiana, don't worry, it will be done soon." Mei smiled gently and skillfully saved the grilled fish that was about to be burned to death.

"...Bronya thinks that this steak has been cooked to optimal perfection." Bronya operated the grill expressionlessly with precise techniques.

"Our chicken wings! Our chicken wings are going to be brushed with honey!" Padu jumped up and down, looking at her food eagerly.

Rosalia and Lilia were arguing over whose grilled sausages were better. Seele quietly helped skewer the vegetables, occasionally exchanging a smile with Seele beside her. Principal Theresa, due to her height problem, was trying to reach the upper grill by standing on tiptoe. Her face was flushed red as she commanded, "Jizi! Stop drinking! Help me!"

Jizi lazily leaned on the beach chair, holding a can of beer in her hand, and waved at Theresa:

"Come on, Principal! I'm rooting for you!" In return, Theresa gave him an angry glare.

In the shallow sea not far away, Alicia was playing in the water with the sisters Yae Sakura and Yae Rin, who were wearing swimsuits. Their pink figures were like leaping elves, and their crisp laughter was intertwined with the sound of the waves. Xilin was sitting on a reef away from the crowd, hugging her knees, looking at the noisy beach with a "stupid human" expression, but her eyes occasionally drifted towards the barbecue grill.

Zijing sat alone under a parasol on the beach a little further away, leaning back against a comfortable recliner, with his elbows on the armrests and his chin in his hand. He looked at the scene full of fireworks and youthful vitality, listened to Kiana's shouting, Theresa's instructions, and Alicia's laughter... The slight irritability and doubts that had lingered in his heart for days because of the fruitless investigation seemed to be gently blown away by the warm sea breeze.

He sighed inaudibly, but the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, with a hint of relief. Perhaps... it's time to temporarily put aside those unnecessary suspicions? It's not bad to enjoy the present moment.

He stood up, brushed off the sand on his pants, and walked towards the bustling scene.

"Hey! Leave a string of those chicken wings over there for me!" Zijing's voice was not loud, but it clearly blended into the noise.

"Ah! Brother is here!" Kiana was the first to notice and immediately ran over holding a freshly grilled fish. "Try my cooking! Mei taught me!"

"Mr. Amethyst, would you like to try this?" Mei also smiled and handed over a skewer of perfectly grilled meat.

"Ah! That's ours!" Paddy wailed.

"Haha... do it yourself and you will have enough food and clothing." Zijing took over the grilled fish from Kiana with a smile, walked to the grill naturally, and picked up a bunch of raw chicken wings, "Pado, where is the sauce? I'll grill it for you."

"Really? That's great!" Padu's cloudy day immediately turned sunny and she happily ran to get the sauce.

The sun, the beach, the aroma of barbecue, the noise of friends... Zijing withdrew her gaze from the black-haired girl who was also in the play group, and temporarily put her and those unanswered questions behind her.

……

The sun was scorching the beach, and the air was filled with the aroma of barbecue and the salty sea breeze. After filling their stomachs, the energetic "young people" naturally wanted to have some fun. Someone brought in a few big round watermelons, and the cold watermelon skins glowed attractively in the sun.

"Over here! Uncle Qianjie! A little to the left!" Kiana commanded loudly.

"No, no! Go to the right! Watermelon is three steps ahead of you!" Rosalia also shouted.

"According to Bronya's calculations, the target is 1.75 meters in front of you and 15 degrees to the left." Bronya reported the data calmly.

“Uncle Qianjie, Xigua is... um..." Just as Grayshu was about to speak, Mebius stood on tiptoe and covered her mouth with his hand. The latter had a wicked smile on his face, as if he had succeeded in a prank.

“Follow your instincts, Qianjie.” Aponya’s voice had a strange rhythm, as if she was reciting a motto.

"Hmph, idiot, you can't even find a watermelon?" Mebius whispered sarcastically at the right time.

Qianjie was annoyed by the instructions coming from all directions, which were difficult to distinguish between true and false, and the wooden sword in his hand was clenched so tightly that it made a creaking sound.

He took a step forward based on his feeling, and the wooden sword chopped down fiercely with the sound of wind!

puff!

There was a muffled sound, accompanied by the sound of watermelon juice splashing.

However, the place where Qianjie hit was half a meter away from the real watermelon. The wooden sword cut deeply into the soft sand, and the splashed sand hit him and also affected Paduo and Kosmo who were close by.

"Pfft——Hahaha!" Kiana was the first one who couldn't help laughing. She pointed at Qianjie who was covered in sand and laughed until she bent over.

"Oh my, it was just a little bit short, Qianjie~?" Alicia clapped her hands with pretended regret.

"Bronya's calculations are correct, and the probability of the executor making an error is 97.3%." Bronya stated calmly.

"Tsk, poor power control, zero accuracy," Mebius commented mercilessly, taking a sip of her 'drink'.

Kevin turned his head away silently, and his shoulders seemed to shrug slightly.

Eden covered her lips and chuckled, still elegant.

"You guys--!" Qianjie pulled off his blindfold and saw the wooden sword he had chopped into the sand and the intact watermelon. He also saw the people around him who were trying to hold back their laughter or laughing out loud, especially Mebius's undisguised sneer. A violent aura instantly rose in his heart and the air around him seemed to be burning a little.