Temporary Office for the Weekly Academy Ranking Battles.
The workload for the war heroes Scarlet and Dustin was never-ending.
“Umberto…”
“Calm down, Scarlet.”
It was a rather awkward situation.
Despite having spent half their lives battling demon creatures, they found themselves stationed at the academy when a demon managed to infiltrate Sellafi Black House.
To make matters worse, it was reported that the demon, disguised as Umberto, had even hoodwinked a second-year student, leaving their pride as war heroes in shambles.
The problem was that they were too busy to even pay a visit to the injured party.
Scarlet pressed a hand to her forehead, hidden beneath her lush bangs.
Her head was throbbing.
“Why do I keep relying on that little punk…”
Fortunately, Lev Denec, also a student of the Black House, had discovered it first and had combined forces with a student named Edwin Gwynn to stop the threat.
“I’m a war hero or whatever… I just want to quit. I’m not cut out for this…”
“It’s just that you’ve been overworking yourself lately.”
“Do you think I haven’t been doing anything on a normal day, huh?”
“Haha…”
When the guardians of Claris arrived at the scene, they reported that only traces of magic remained.
It was clear that a demon had infiltrated, and that a student named Yeriel had become cursed with a sixth sense, but without any clear evidence of the culprit’s involvement, they were left in a murky situation.
How were they supposed to report this to their superiors…?
Both of them were scratching their heads.
Clack, clack.
“You were here all along.”
“…?”
At that moment, the former commander of the royal knights and current guildmaster of [Crow Pay], Rezilus, approached them.
“Congratulations.”
“?”
Scarlet frowned at this sudden congratulatory message.
What’s this old geezer up to…?
“I heard you defeated your long-desired target… the Black Armor.”
“…”
The extermination of the Black Armor was supposed to be a secret shared only among Lev, Scarlet, and Dustin.
Scarlet shot a glare at Dustin.
Of course, you would let it slip…
“Ahem. Ahem.”
Scarlet had thought she could trust the combination they had formed, but it seemed someone had leaked information.
This old man must have done some digging…
It didn’t seem likely that Lev had blabbed about it, so it was clear that Rezilus had some hand in this.
Scarlet’s instincts were screaming.
But no matter, the overly nice Dustin continued to smile awkwardly and carried on the conversation.
“It’s just like you, Commander Rezilus. You have quite the extensive network.”
“Haha, flattery.”
“Umm… Do you have any business aside from the congratulations? As you can see, we are… a bit busy.”
“Aha… then let’s get straight to the point.”
Looking at the messy desk, Rezilus asked briefly.
“I wanted to know how you plan to handle the jewel from the Black Armor, the spoils from the Carapace Dragon.”
Shiver…
Scarlet tightened her grip on her feather pen.
Of course he would be interested in the reward.
Dragons were rare creatures, so each jewel associated with one held immense value because you could hardly encounter them. If it went to auction, people would line up to bid.
“I’m sorry, but there’s already a prior claimant.”
“Oh?”
…
…
…
Having left the temporary office, Rezilus rested his chin on his fingers, a habit he had.
There’s a prior claimant…?
He knew quite well that Scarlet and Dustin were not particularly money-hungry.
Since neither of them had a guild, they likely didn’t need a large sum of money.
So it was unlikely that the jewel would end up at the auction house.
“Hmmm…”
By the way, how did he pinpoint the location of the Black Armor, which had gone missing for years?
In fact, Rezilus had tried to hunt this Carapace Dragon not once or twice.
In the past, when the renowned archer Diana served as a war hero, it was none other than Rezilus who revealed the location of the Black Armor to them.
Through his unique ability, [Seer], he had perceived that the Black Armor possessed incredibly dangerous techniques.
Techniques that would inevitably require at least one sacrifice… Dark Magic, the Vessel of the Black Dragon.
Due to this imminent danger, Rezilus refrained from taking action himself.
“How did they manage to break that curse…?”
Unless they were a demon, it would be impossible to evade curses…
Moreover, the fact that the two were trying to keep the extermination a secret was suspicious.
But that was fine.
If he participated in the upcoming auction happening in the capital, he would at least have the chance to see the face of anyone looking to sell the essence of the Black Armor.
“I just hope there are other valuable auction items…”
With that, Rezilus licked his lips longingly.
*
…
…
…
Hah, ha.
Hah, hah…
The breath of the red-haired man filled the personal training room.
Thud!
Suddenly, he threw a water bottle across the room.
Clang…
No good. Nothing was going the way he wanted.
“Damn! What’s going on? Why…!”
There was a huge difference between something not being there and something disappearing once it was there.
Caeran had an innate genius for the sword since he was young.
Once he grabbed a sword, he could visualize the trajectory in his head and bring that imagination to life.
It was supposed to be that simple.
But his body simply wouldn’t cooperate.
If he stopped like this, the thought that he might become as dull as the countless mediocre swordsmen he had looked down upon crossed his mind.
Even earlier in his morning duel with Aveline, he had heard.
“Caeran… Are you feeling unwell…?”
“What?”
Such words were spoken.
Aveline had always showered him with praise for his flawless swordsmanship.
Yesterday seemed to be better than today,
Today seemed to be worse than yesterday.
His ‘genius’ was deteriorating at an alarming rate.
Thud!
Gasp…!
For the first time ever, he felt despair and was hit with a wave of intense fear.
Kick, no…?
But he quickly reassured himself.
After all, if he could steal the abilities of others and become stronger, it wouldn’t matter.
There’s no way I can be weak, right?
It was surely just that he’d momentarily dulled his senses from playing around with a third-rate guy like Lev Denec.
Dooong!
At that moment, the internal magic lights began to turn on in the exclusive training room, indicating that someone was urgently seeking Caeran.
“What is it…?”
Clack.
When he opened the door, he found a senior with sky-blue hair.
“Hello~.”
It was Yellody Latashia.
Caeran had started the Royal Class Circle thanks to her advice.
Though he wasn’t in the mood to meet anyone, he did his best to gather himself and asked.
“Do you need something from me?”
“Hmm… You don’t look good lately.”
“Hah, even you’re saying that. I just can’t seem to concentrate. Maybe tonight, no, definitely by tonight…”
“Uh-uh? I feel like it might be an external factor?”
“…?”
Caeran didn’t like the way her voice trailed off lazily, as if she was probing.
But her advice had often benefited him before.
He had gathered quite a few gems from information about corruption in the student council and had used that leverage to gain insights from Liris, allowing him to score well on the entrance exam written portion.
Of course, he had been a step late on grabbing the Mermaid’s Scream and found out about the alchemy club’s ties to the black market.
“What’s that about?”
“Hmmm…”
Yellody scanned Caeran meticulously and said.
“It’s a curse.”
“Excuse me?”
“A curse that cannot be undone… I’ve never seen anything like it…”
Curses fall into the realm of dark magic.
In other words, they’re techniques used by demons.
If a human were to use a curse, it would inevitably be infused with dark magic.
“Where would I find something like that? I haven’t met any demons here at the academy.”
“Methods…”
“I have training to do, so please leave.”
Frustrated by her ineffectiveness, Caeran slammed the door shut.
…
…
…
Thus, Yellody was left rejected.
“There’s definitely a way…”
Her murmurs echoed.
To even think of using her ability, [Telepathy], as a contingency plan, she didn’t have much time left.
Yellody counted on her fingers.
“One, two… four! I’ve definitely helped you four times!”
Caeran… You’re finished!
With that, she mysteriously… tiptoed away.
*
The week of ranking battles flew by.
Although I only participated in the ranking battle once, I didn’t feel the need to go for two or three times.
I didn’t earn many points from my duel with Caeran, but thankfully, I didn’t lose any either.
Moreover, it seemed that the impactful moment of striking Caeran had played a significant role, as not many students were requesting duels with me.
“Honestly, it’s the written test that’s more of a problem.”
After the ranking battles, the next event would be the end-of-semester written exam.
Why the fanfic author had set the schedule after the practical exam was beyond me, but the event hadn’t been heavily mentioned, which felt sorrowful.
To sum it up, Edwin had performed decently.
Top students like Melissa, Caeran, and Selena got excellent scores, but that was just glossing over it.
In the reality I was currently experiencing, there’s no such thing as skipping.
I was still in a situation where I had to study to offset the roughly 30 demerit points I had remaining.
Reality is reality, huh?
The author may have loosely written things, but in this world, all the settings had been put into place.
In the end, you can’t know everything about this world just from fanfics.
Anyway, students not participating in the ranking battles would have to attend special lectures, which also applied today.
Amidst my struggle to stay awake, I listened to the mandatory classes for students with magic power, which included [Operation of Internal Magic Power] and [Magic Circuit Theory].
Along with classes similar to technological engineering, I felt as if my brain had already been soaked like a graduate student.
But I had a secret weapon…
“Right… Liris.”
Mentioned in the fanfic, she hadn’t missed the top scores in the written assessments even in her first year.
And what she made for profit was none other than the “cheat sheets.”
She was a ruthless woman who sold second-rate items in the black market, so this should be expected.
It was clear that Caeran had benefited from this, and if it was Liris, I could count on her to listen to me; she’d be more inclined to offer me things than just hand them over.
“I may not come in first, but I should be able to clear a significant portion of my demerit points.”
I had faced multiple instances of discrimination due to demerit points.
From locker restrictions, meal time limitations, dormitory rules, reserved seating on the Circulation Train, priority for class registration, time limitations for the personal training room, to even permission for outings.
But since this was a meritocratic school, high scores would resolve everything.
Until the major event of Chapter 3, where demon creatures invade during the vacation — [Demon Spawn – Gate of the Underworld], I should be able to progress smoothly.
“This isn’t too bad…”
As I envisioned a grand blueprint for my plans, I headed to the cafeteria within the academy to replenish my energy.
Ding.
“Ah, what can I get for you?”
The staff member working there gasped lightly upon seeing my face and smiled shyly.
I was momentarily taken aback.
After all, my villain traits had faded away, and if students who knew my past weren’t around, there was no reason for anyone to frown upon me.
“I’ll take a coffee. One with maple syrup, please.”
“Sure… To go?”
If I ran into Yeriel while eating out…
Lev! Too much coffee isn’t good for your health!… If you need something to drink, just let me know and I’ll make you some tea or fruit juice, okay?
While cute nagging was welcome, I had to think about her studies too; I didn’t want to be a burden.
Yeriel was a crucial member responsible for carrying us in the latter part, so her growth also shouldn’t be delayed.
In the end, I finished my order to go and sat on the sofa beside the glass wall, where the view was clear.
There were a few more things I needed to consider.
Ultimately, if I wanted to make a substantial amount of money, my top priority was figuring out how to rapidly develop Edwin.
And I needed to find out when the [Memorize: Ring of Induction] would be auctioned.
Additionally, I had to think about what to do with the jewel from the Black Armor I would receive as a reward for the last hunt.
With lacking funds for bidding, should I just sell it, or absorb it to help Edwin grow?
Knock, knock.
Just then, the glass wall beside me was tapped.
“?”
A girl with short black hair was burning a slender cigar outside, watching me from inside the cafeteria.
A variety of thoughts swirled in my head.
What does she want?
And then…
Tap.
With a stoic expression almost resembling a glare, she stuck her business card to the wall.
As if it were a requirement for me to see it.
CROW PAY… SERA.
The guild I need to smash one day, [Crow Pay].
And the so-called “Viper” of that place, the guild manager.
She was primarily in charge of scouting newbies,
The business card of Sera Cervantes.
