Weeks soon flew past as Kai became well-adjusted to his new curriculum. Right now, despite his shaky start in magic, he was now capable of performing Intermediate tier spells with relative ease, though Expert tier spells were still a tall order.

Kai hadn't neglected unarmed combat and weapon handling lessons in spite of his proficiency in them as he consistently became one of the top students in such lessons. General studies such as history, mathematics etc was so-so for him but the subjects Kai struggled most in were support magic and first aid.

Despite his surprising Light affinity, Kai could barely perform a healing spell properly, much to the chagrin of his friends. He could only watch in envy as Adeline performed an Intermediate tier healing spell with great efficiency.

Back to the present, Kai was trembling with excitement as only one more history lesson was left before school ended. After all, tomorrow was the day that all first year students get registered with the Adventurers' Association, allowing them to participate in quests during or after school hours that would affect their results and ranking in Zion Academy.

Anyway, back to history class, Kai usually treated these lessons with passing interest as even though he recognised their importance, they were undeniably boring as Kai wasn't interested in politics played by the various human kingdoms.

However, Kai was definitely interested in the powers that kept these politicians in their lofty positions. After all, no great kingdom can survive without an equally capable military. In his current kingdom, the Kingdom of Nirvania, the powers that kept the Kingdom safe from its enemies were the legendary 10 Saints, the 10 strongest individuals in the country from all professions that only came together in times of emergency.

To the west of Nirvania was its key rival in military might, the Kingdom of Miran. This Kingdom too had its heavyweights in the form of the 5 Pillars, whose strength is said to rival that of the 10 Saints, hence serving as an effective check and balance.

To the north of both Kingdoms was a place called the Northern Wildlands, where many monsters and beasts resided. The place was said to be so dangerous that neither of the 2 kingdoms dared to expand their territory northwards due to the difficulty in securing their northern territories. In fact, many powerful monsters such as Giants have been threatening the Northern borders of both kingdoms, explaining increased adventurer and military presence in those areas.

To the south was the small Kingdom of Cameron. Despite its minute territorial size, Cameron could hold its own ground against its 2 larger neighbours due to support from its Round Table Knights, a small group of warriors with very unique weapons that allow them to rival the 10 Saints or the 5 Pillars.

Moreover, Cameron also had the support of the mysterious wizard Merlin who is believed to be the most enigmatic of all magicians. After all, the Kingdom of Miran would never forget the shame of losing 2000 of its finest troops to Merlin alone, their disappearance a complete mystery even till today.

Thus, these were the 4 key territories whose great powers kept the ambitions of each party to a minimal, leading to decades of peace on the Central Continent. Of course, there were still minor border tensions and skirmishes which were largely started by the warmongering Miran, but the current state of affairs were generally peaceful.

Kai had previously thought that today's history lesson would probably be about one of the 3 kingdoms in the recent past, but little did he know he was in for a surprise.

Mdm Aisha, his History teacher, was referring to a map completely unfamiliar to him. She said, "Class, as our main syllabus of the current state of affairs in each major kingdom is already covered, I decided to give you guys a surprise lesson on a past long forgotten, our origins and relations with the other 3 major races."

Kai was stumped. The other 3 major races? Mdm Aisha continued, "2000 years ago, there existed 4 major races that lived together on the Central Continent. They were the Humans, Demons, Celestials and the Sylphs."

Kai tensed up upon hearing the word "demons". He thought, "Those guys really exist after all, one day I would have my revenge."

Drifting in his own thoughts, Kai failed to notice that Adeline was equally tense as him, albeit for different reasons. Mdm Aisha continued, "Initially, all 4 races lived in harmony with one another, mainly because each couldn't find a good reason to wage war. The humans then had a small populace, approximately 2/3 of our current Kingdom's populace. To make matters worse, humans then were not adept at magic and their attempts at using mana were sorely limited, hence they were forced to stifle their ambitions.

The Demons and Celestials, though they were at the forefront when it came to combat prowess, kept each other in stalemate. After all, they embodied opposing ideals, while the demons were for chaos and might of the individual, the celestials were for order and collectiveness of the group.

Last of all, the Sylphs. Though they were magically blessed, with their combat prowess only slightly below the Celestials, they were naturally peace-loving and saw their powers as a means to protect rather than conquer.

For several centuries, the 4 races lived in peace with one another, with the Humans occupying the West and part of the South on the Central Continent, the Sylphs in the East and part of the North, the Celestials who largely resided in the South and the Demons who took the North as their home.

However, in the year 1280, the 1st Holy War broke out. For some unknown reason even till today, the demons had chanced across a mysterious weapon that would drastically turn the tides of war in its favour. That weapon was the very first World Class weapon, otherwise known as Grade X magic weapons."

All the students gasped in disbelief. Grade X magic weapons were weapons too powerful to be even graded by the grading system, far superseding the legendary Grade S weapons. Mdm Aisha cleared her throat and resumed, "That weapon had a name, it was known as [Nightmare]. The Demon King was said to have used this weapon to brainwash countless of otherwise uncontrollable monsters in the North like Giants and Vampires, forming a huge army.

Combined with his already lethal demon army, the ambitious Demon King launched an offensive southwards in an attempt to achieve dominance over the entire continent. His first target was the Human Kingdom, because it technically was the weakest force then, allowing him to bolster his forces quickly without resistance.

After all, [Nightmare] was said to possess the ability to brainwash those with little to no magic resistance, hence the humans, with little magic expertise then, succumbed to the power of [Nightmare] and joined the ranks of the demon army.

By the time the Celestials intervened, more than half of the Human Kingdom had already been captured by the demons. Even the Sylph Kingdom lost part of their territory as the demon army, bolstered by their human slaves, had ruthlessly slaughtered any Sylph opposition. The Celestials remained the only race untouched…for now.

Using the information they had obtained from their scouts, the Celestials realised that the weakness of [Nightmare] was its inability to possess those with magic resistance of some kind. Hence, the Celestials gathered the remaining humans and started to unlock and teach them the fundamentals of mana and magic.

The humans learned very quickly and were soon organised into a powerful force of both warriors and magicians. Of course, the Celestials never neglected the Sylphs, as they were their closest allies. The Celestials were somehow able to boost the power held by the already potent Sylphs, and some were said to possess power equal to the Celestials after this process.

These Sylphs were identified by their special irises on their eyes, which they named "Luminos" which meant light in reverence to the Celestials who had granted them that power.

Now, with their empowered allies, the Celestials marched into war against the demons. Even with [Nightmare] out of the picture, the war was long and brutal. After all, the demon army had already possessed a large number of reinforcements from monsters and humans alike.

Fortunately, after 10 years of bloodshed, the Celestials, Humans and Sylphs managed to push the demons northwards and eventually out of the Central Continent. The Demon King was said to have perished in battle, but [Nightmare] was believed to remain in demon possession. The demons eventually retreated to what is known as the Dark Continent, the continent north of the Central Continent.

Initially, the humans, in their thirst for revenge, wanted to cross the oceans and pursue the demons, but the Celestials advised against the idea. After all, the Alliance's forces were spread wide in their campaign northwards, their numbers had dropped steeply and there were still resistance by the monsters left behind.

Thus, the Alliance stopped their pursuit of the demons and retreated southwards to their original territories, since the North was practically uninhabitable with monsters still lurking in those territories.

All members of the Alliance suffered heavy casualties, but none more so than the Celestials, who had been the leaders in the war. Their numbers dwindled to the hundreds and they came to a logical conclusion that they could no longer be the leading force in securing the continent.

Using their power, the Celestials created an island from the clouds and named it Sky Island, which all Celestials eventually settled on, leaving their Southern territory to their human neighbours whom they entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring peace and security.

After all, the humans who lived in the South were greatly influenced in the ways of the Celestials and were among the first to heed the call to arms issued by the Celestials. Before they left, it is rumoured that the Celestials granted unique, powerful weapons to the ruling family of the South, which granted them the power to severe relations with the main Human Kingdom, forming the Kingdom of Cameron."

Julian quickly raised his hand to ask, "Mdm Aisha, are you implying that the sacred weapons owned by the Round Table Knights of the Kingdom of Cameron originated from the Celestials?" Mdm Aisha smiled and replied, "You're sharp, my boy. Yes, indeed the weapons used by the Round Table Knights are the very same ones created by the Celestials for the ruling family of the South, which is the current royal family of Cameron, the Pendragon Family.

These weapons were passed down from one generation to the next, and ensured the peace and prosperity of Cameron. Now, moving on, with the absence of both the demons and the Celestials, there were only 2 major races left on the Central Continent, as both humans and Sylphs prioritised rebuilding their homes over growing their military.

Sadly, however, this peace would once again give way to war and bloodshed, as in the year 1900, the 2nd Holy War broke out, this time between the Ancient Human Kingdom and the Sylph Kingdom." Kai noticed that Adeline was breaking out in cold sweat as she clenched her fists tightly which she placed above her thighs.

Mdm Aisha continued, "If there was one advantage the humans had over the Sylphs, it would be their procreation rate. After the 1st Holy War, with superior procreation rates which bolstered the human population exponentially, the humans had more labour resources required to not only speed up the recovery process but also to build up an army far superior in numbers compared to the Sylphs.

Coupled with increased mastery over magic and mana, the Human Army was a formidable one. Though the Sylphs prioritised recovery, they were not ignorant of their neighbours' situation, devoting the minimal amount of resources required to its army. Basically, before the 2nd Holy War, the humans outnumber the Sylphs 4 to 1, but the Sylphs had stronger soldiers thanks to the blessings from the Celestials.

Yes, the root cause behind the 2nd Holy War was ambition possessed by the humans to achieve what the demons couldn't, but that alone wouldn't be enough to trigger the start of the 2nd Holy War.

Once again, by eerie coincidence to the 1st Holy War, the humans had chanced upon the second World Class weapon known in history, [Catastrophe]. It was said that this weapon had the ability to infect enemies per the user's will, poisoning the mana within them. The more mana an individual possessed, the faster he would succumb to the poison and die.

What made matters worse was that the effects of [Catastrophe] was highly contagious and spread easily through blood. Truly a weapon of mass destruction. The Sylphs stood no chance against [Catastrophe] as huge numbers of Sylphs were infected, weakening the Sylph Army and causing the poison to spread further.

The human army, with no fear of being infected, marched through the Sylph lands, slaughtering Sylph soldiers effortlessly and occupying their cities. It was clear that the 2nd Holy War wasn't a war at all, but rather a genocide, hence it was also named the Great Purge.

It was rumoured that the Sylphs had evacuated North, which was protected by the harsh terrain and thick vegetation of the Forest of Pangaea, but no one exactly knew if there were survivors after that horrendous attack."

Julia quickly interjected, "If the humans had such a superior position, how did the 2nd Holy War come to an end?" Mdm Aisha replied, "If you guys had all been paying attention to what I've said thus far, you would have known that external intervention is impossible.

The demons were in the Dark Continent and the Celestials were decidedly against intervention due to their small numbers. The Kingdom of Cameron then was still too weak against the Ancient Human Kingdom despite possession of the sacred weapons, hence they couldn't offer a helping hand to the Sylphs.

The 2nd Holy War ended due to an internal revolution. General Stormfury, who would later on become the 1st King of Nirvania, was disgusted by the atrocities committed by [Catastrophe]. He, with the support of several like-minded nobles and military commanders, staged an uprising against the King then, successfully stealing [Catastrophe] from the grasps of the royal guard before it could be turned against them.

With the help of his magician aides, General Stormfury successfully deactivated the weapon, purifying the air on the Central Continent. With the help of forces loyal to him, he seized control of the captured territories that used to belong to the Sylphs, establishing his own separate Kingdom which he named Nirvania.

Of course, the King of the Ancient Human Kingdom was infuriated by General Stormfury's actions, but the forces loyal to the General could rival that of his, hence an uneasy stalemate was formed. When the Crown Prince took over from his father, he renamed his Kingdom to Miran, swearing vengeance on Nirvania. That's how the 2nd Holy War came to an end in the year 1905, which was the year 2 new human kingdoms were born, the eternal rivals Miran and Nirvania."

Shen raised his hand and asked, "Mdm, sorry for interrupting but what happened to [Catastrophe]? Where exactly is it now?" Mdm Aisha shook her head and replied, "I don't know. All I know is that King Stormfury decreed the weapon as forbidden and had his loyal aide seal the weapon in a secret location, never to be used again."

Shen expressed a sceptical look and pressed further, "If a weapon like that was so dangerous, why not destroy it?" Mdm Aisha spoke dejectedly, "[Catastrophe] is after all, a World Class weapon. King Stormfury had similar thoughts of destroying it but despite pulling out his best efforts, the weapon remained indestructible. Hence, he had to pursue the next best alternative, to seal the weapon for all eternity so that disaster does not break loose once again on the Central Continent.

With this, I end today's lesson. By right, this should only be shared with senior students who are about to graduate, but I'm sharing with you this forgotten history so that you'll never forget your roots and the price we've all paid to achieve peace in this world. Thank you for your attention."

Kai had never paid so much attention to a history lesson before, but this lesson had him captivated. He never knew that history could be so exciting yet cruel at the same time. He was nearly brought to tears himself when he heard about the plight of the Sylphs, a race they once called allies in the 1st Holy War.

A few girls who couldn't restrain their emotions were already sobbing long before the lesson ended. His thoughts were broken when he felt someone brush past him. He realised it was Adeline…and she was crying? Adeline had always been a stoic girl, so it was an unfamiliar sight to behold.

Kai was stunned before Shen nudged him and said, "Come on, you know what to do right?" Kai replied, "Right…" before giving chase as he bolted out of the classroom.