About 20 years ago, the Demon King was killed by a party of three heroes.
Even though the hero died in the process, and the Saint couldn’t even last five years.
It was a huge curse directed at those who killed the Demon King. As time passed, they would lose their humanity and become like him.
Humans tainted with the curse and magic soon die. Specifically, they either die or turn into something non-human.
The mage, left alone after losing comrades, fell into despair.
In the end, only she remained alive. Even if she killed the Demon King, peace didn’t exist.
With a body bound by the curse, she could no longer stand on the front lines. Now, all she could do was drag out her miserable life as a useless being.
What if she had just died that day? At least it wouldn’t be as painful as it is now.
Sertia took on a disciple to find a reason for her remaining life.
Though she could no longer stand on the front lines, she had accumulated knowledge and experience as a mage. Many wished to learn magic from her.
Therefore, there was no difficulty in her being hired as a professor at the Academy. In fact, the Academy approached her first.
The title of the strongest mage in history didn’t disappear after retirement. She was now the last remaining killer of the Demon King in the world.
After the previous Dean died, the other faculty unanimously decided that Sertia would succeed.
Now, she exists as the Dean of the Academy and an observer of the world.
Though, there isn’t much time left for that.
Sertia walked through the park inside the Academy and addressed her following disciple.
“Do you know why I called you, Albert?”
“……”
“I’m almost there myself. Though my body doesn’t age due to the curse, I think it’s fair to say my life is nearing its end.”
The curse placed by the Demon King slowly tightened around Sertia’s body. Even she, who was born human, was gradually becoming something like him.
The human who killed the most demon kin in history would ultimately turn into something like them.
“I originally had both eyes blue. My hair wasn’t black either.”
“I know. I’ve observed your changes up close.”
“Thank you for remembering. It’d be sad if no one did.”
Sertia gently sat down on a bench in the park, gesturing for Albert to sit beside her.
Considering that Albert might still find walking difficult.
“Albert, do you know what happens to those cursed by the Demon King?”
She called out to her disciple with a slightly serious expression.
Unlike before, when there was a faint smile and a hint of playfulness, now something bitter shone through.
She looked a bit lonely.
The emptiness of someone left alone is something ordinary people would not understand.
Albert sat beside her, waiting for her next words.
“They lose their self-control as a human and become something that isn’t human. The previous Saint, Karen, who shared a similar curse, was like this. I had to kill a comrade I had been with for a long time.”
“Is that so…”
“What you think is right. I couldn’t escape that framework either. I’m already a being not worthy of being called human.”
Sertia could feel death approaching her.
The vast amount of mana within her just delayed her transformation into a monster, but soon enough, she would bear the appearance of the previous Saint.
There were no exceptions. All who had been cursed by the Demon King had met such a fate.
So…
“You must succeed me. I have faith in you despite how this seems.”
Albert fell silent.
He had somewhat anticipated this problem. But the timing was earlier than he expected.
Sertia was like a pillar of the Empire. Someone who wouldn’t die so easily.
“I cannot be you.”
After deep contemplation, Albert responded to her words.
Even the greatest mage in the Empire, Albert still fell short when compared to Sertia from her active days.
It wasn’t that he was weak; rather, Sertia was exceptional. Throughout the history of the Empire, there had been no mage superior to her.
Sertia was irreplaceable.
In fact, the three who realized the dream of vanquishing the Demon King were all like that.
The legendary hero Elion, the previous Saint Karen, and the one who remained the last root of the Empire, Sertia.
If all of those exceptional beings perished, what remains of the Empire?
To cut to the chase, nothing would remain. The Empire would collapse without its pillars.
Though they managed to hold on for now, if she died as well, the collapse of the Empire was already assured.
Albert thought coolly that he was not someone fit to inherit her position.
He had neither accomplished great feats like them nor was he as powerful.
“What makes you think that?”
Sertia asked.
Her voice was kind, reminiscent of her past self, the one who taught him magic in his childhood.
Though there were slight differences in appearance. Albert adjusted his crooked glasses and let out a sigh.
Many emotions burst forth at once.
“I’m not as great a person as you.”
“Do you think I’m that great? I don’t think so.”
“The words from someone who severed the Demon King’s neck don’t seem fitting.”
“Well, does killing the Demon King bring peace to the world?”
“Aren’t you the mage who killed the most demon kin in history?”
“I didn’t know how to do anything else. Now I can’t even do that.”
Since being cursed, Sertia has been unable to use magic.
She spent all the mana within her to delay the spread of the curse throughout her body.
For Sertia, wasting mana meant death.
Thus, since being cursed, she hadn’t used magic except when she killed Karen.
“I’ll tell you something, Albert. The talents of this generation, including you, aren’t significantly inferior to mine. I truly believe there are those among you who could surpass me. Do you know why?”
“……”
“Because that’s the nature of the human species. As generations pass, superior talents are born and grow compared to the previous ones. The reason I was called the strongest mage in history is for this reason. I was born with superior talent compared to previous mages.”
“But despite twenty years passing, no one has emerged to rival you. Why is that?”
“Because you were born in an era after the Demon King fell. I think there has been no opportunity for talent to manifest properly.”
It differs slightly from Sertia’s generation, where they had to roll in the front lines from childhood.
Though times are chaotic now, on the surface, the war has ended.
“I have high expectations for my next generation of students. Of course, you, Albert, are included. I believe you will protect the continent in my absence.”
Born with talent but unable to manifest it properly. That includes Albert as well.
Sertia thought the talent of her disciple she had taught was in no way inferior to hers.
She believed that one day they would achieve something and show it, just as she did.
So, she felt she could now close her eyes, that the Empire wouldn’t collapse even if she disappeared.
However, for some reason, Albert wanted to deny her words.
There are various reasons for that, but the biggest one is that he didn’t want to see Sertia die.
“Is there really no outcome of not dying or disappearing?”
“There is one, do you want to hear it?”
Albert crossed his arms as if wanting to hear it. Even he, who usually presented a rational appearance, had a complicated expression today.
Sertia continued, in a calm tone despite the cruel content.
“You can fully accept the Demon King’s curse and continue living as a non-human. The species might change, but you won’t die, right? I don’t particularly want to die either.”
“……”
“But it’s not something you’d want, right? The one who was a human hero becoming a wretched monster in an instant. If I were to lose all my humanity and go on a rampage, would you have the power to stop me?”
Albert couldn’t respond.
It was probably because he was picturing the worst-case scenario from her words.
At this point, there existed no human who could defeat her. Who could challenge the one who cut off the Demon King’s head and came back alive?
The hero of this generation? No, he still falls woefully short compared to the previous generation.
Perhaps she might become a spark of disaster.
One fortunate thing is that she too is aware of that.
After a small sigh, Sertia added her final words, thick with bitterness.
“If not, please let me go. I want to close my eyes as a human at least.”
She wore a face on the verge of collapsing. It felt both near and far away.
Her condition was evident just from her demeanor.
During the conversation, her left eye, which was blue, faintly turned red and then returned repeatedly. It meant maintaining her current state was unstable.
The one who dared to challenge the Demon King as a human. Those who stood before the Demon King also met the same fate as her.
Now that the Demon King and all the humans from that era were dead, Sertia was the last.
“Hmm.”
Thinking the atmosphere had grown heavy, she coughed lightly. Following that, she offered a faint smile.
She stood up and reached out her hand to Albert.
“I think I’ve spoken too darkly. I didn’t mean to call you for this.”
“No, it’s fine.”
“Then shall we walk a bit more? Actually, from here on is the main topic—it’s about the being I fought.”
Albert agreed to that.
Once again, Sertia led the way through the Academy’s park.
Albert followed behind, akin to following the path of his teacher.
But for some reason, today her back seemed so small.
Looking back now, despite her overwhelming reputation, she had a very small and delicate body.
And he had relied on such a being all this time. She had held everything up alone with that body.
Sertia now appeared to have many wounds.
Both physically and mentally.
