Jiji no. 8

Not so Professor-y

Their conversation broke when the floor of the grand hall started to move. Holder and Ellaine frantically looked when the floor of the Grand Hall started shaking. The tiles danced in eerie, erratic move. The black embedded lines as design of the white marbled floor was too, shaking: instead of elegant swirls with beautiful curves of the dancing lines, it shifted and then turned into a shaky, thunderous-looking black lines.

Holder then asked Ellaine, “What is that?”

“Professor Zen. Her Laboratory is below the floor of the grand hall,” Ellaine answered. She faced her body towards the shaking floor, and then waited for something to happen, aside from it just shaking.

“What? Why does Professor dared making her laboratory below the Grand Hall?”

“Well, for a record, Professor Zen says that there will be people inside the Kingdom who may have been betraying us. Professor Zen is one of our greatest asset in the Kingdom because, aside from her being a Sankt Vessel User, she is also the lead researcher of every Majicule research that is being spearheaded by the kingdom. She had a lot of success in the field of Majicule research. That is why her name would be valuable to other Kingdoms as well. And there would have a high chance that someone would dare breaching her laboratory to get valuable data in regards of her researches. That is why we have to hide her laboratory in a less conspicuous space of the palace.”

The floor was still shaking.

“But that means, she will only have the chance of entering her laboratory when the Grand Hall is evacuated?”

Ellaine nodded, then laughed. “You know, the Professor is too stubborn. And spoiled brat. She is being treated by the King and Queen as my elder sister. And whatever she wants, she would get just by telling towards them.”

“That means when she wants to go in her lab, she would ask for the King and Queen—”

“And they would immediately order other people who was inside the Grand Hall to leave. No matter what the event was, even an important meeting, if she wants it, she will get it.”

“Wow.”

Sooner, the white marbled floor started to divide itself into two. A gray stone ladder appeared below the floor, and each step has an embedded Sen Crystal. Those crystals were served to use as a guide towards the dark path of the laboratory. Of course, a secret laboratory under the ground is expected to be dark and creepy. It was also just the way how the path towards the laboratory of Professor Zen looks like.

A series of successive steps started to echo from below. What Holder could see is just a few steps of the ladder. But the deepest part of it, the bottom of that laboratory, he cannot see it even there are Sen Crystals embedded in each step.

From the shadows, a portion of the ladder where the lights from the grand hall cannot reach, a pair of feet had appeared.

Holder quickly held Ellaine on her arms.

“What’s happening to you?” asked Ellaine as she look at the hand of Holder who holds her arm.

“What if that feet belongs to a ghost?” the mere mentioning of ghost started to make Holder feel pale and cold.

Ellaine smiled at her. She then grabbed Holder’s arm who was holding her arms as well. And then, just like what she was used to do, she pulled Holder.

“W—Wait! We must confirm that it was Professor Zen first!”

“Ah! Come on, Holder! Why are you so afraid?”

Ellaine quickly took the steps of the ladder leading below, leading down, leading to the pair of feet that does not move and looked as if a medium of horror.

Holder, though he told Ellaine he was scared, had no chance but to follow Ellaine. Who could not, if she was being dragged by her?

When they were few steps away from the pair of feet in which the body is still being hidden by the darkness, Ellaine called the professor.

“Professor Zen! Why are you standing here?”

Holder looked at the surrounding, and started observing it. He then realized that the Sen crystal was partially dimmed in the part of this ladder.

“Hey, Professor,” Holder said. He does not look panicking anymore, but the truth, his insides were shaking and in turmoil. What a scaredy cat.

“Professor?” Ellaine asked too. But then, the Professor did not respond. Ellaine then took a step backwards.

Realizing what Ellaine had done, Holder took a few step backwards too.

“Professor,” Holder again called.

“What happened to you Professor? Why aren’t you answering me?”

The Professor then took few steps forward. Holder and Ellaine did a wise decision of quickly taking another few steps backward. The floor above, on the Grand Hall, closed with a raspy sound, and an echoing boom as the two divided portions of the floor collided again, back into its position. They were trapped.

“ARRRGGHH!” the Professor—which is very not a professor—screamed. It seemed that her voice was of a beast, too hungry and was about to kill them in no matter of minute.

Ellaine screamed. Holder took her to his back. He readied himself towards the beast. He closed his fists, and made a fighting stance. He can fight. He knew that. Even though Jiji was not beside him, he knew he can fight. Even a beast.

When Holder finally found an opportunity to look at the face of the Professor, a chill ran down through his spine, and made his stomach frozen.

It was not the Professor. It was something… ugly. And evil. Her body is that of Professor’s, but her head… it was of an insect. Like an ant. With antlers, with huge insect-like eyes, with razor-like fangs, and a green frothing liquid escaping out of its mouth.