ARC 1: Grimfort Academy

In a room adequately lit by the rays of the morning sun that seeped through the windows, Lord Aldrich and the man was sitting in front of each other. The tension within the atmosphere was enough to make one think twice of intruding the ongoing conversation. Right now, only the two of them was inside the room.

“So tell me, what business do you have with the artifact?” Lord Aldrich asked. He was leaning on his chair. Inquisitively glancing at the grey eyed man, he waited for the answer.

“……………………”

“Look, if you don’t want to speak then this conversation is as good as over.” The old man tapped his fingers unto the armrest. He had a fierce look on his eyes. It was an image that was worlds apart from the one he usually show to his precious granddaughters.

“I…need it.” The young man complied by giving a short answer. His ash-brown hair was still covering his face, but one could clearly tell that he was looking directly at the man in front of him.

“For what purpose?” Lord Aldrich exhaled. His body had been stiff from all the tension. He knew that the other kingdoms had their eyes on the artifact. His information network told him that.

“……..To undo….the past.” The man spoke. His voice was low but audible. It was a voice mixed with different emotions, but agony was the feeling that clearly emanated from it. The young man clenched his fists. The memories of the past were too painful for him.

“What?!” Lord Aldrich gripped the armrest. He felt a gurgling sensation inside his body. He didn’t like where the conversation was going to. His hair began to stand on its end.

He was taken by surprise by the man’s answer. He had never known that the artifact held such power. By the information the was given to him by his men, the artifact was capable of moving a being from one location to another without the astronomical amount of mana that teleportation magic needs.

Based on further analysis, the artifact was formerly used by the God of Lightning to move its body from a realm to another. It seemed that the artifact was capable of transporting a great number of people at a single instance. Such portal magic would surely be a great asset in times of war. One would be able to immediately invade the Royal Capital of a Kingdom.

But now, this man in front of him was telling him that the artifact held power even greater than what was known? The man seemed to be someone who could be trusted. Lord Aldrich’s years of experience in such negotiations were telling him that.

“Are you implying that the artifact is capable of turning back time?” Lord Aldrich stroked his ash white beard. Contrary to the calm demeanor he was showing outside, he was actually stunned by the surreal revelation. The concept of turning back time was something that’s only heard of in legends.

“…………………”

The young man nodded his head slightly. He then looked towards the veiled window. With a solemn gaze, he seemed to be reminiscing a distant memory.

“Reverting time is a dangerous concept. I don’t think I could let you do that, no matter what your objective is.” Lord Aldrich boldly stated. He had lived a good and long life. He was not afraid of dying.

He resolved himself that no matter what happened to him in this meeting, he will not back down. Countless lives were hanging in the balance. He loved his granddaughters, and he knew that eventually they will also be swept away in this mess if the man actually gets hold of the artifact. He would never let that happen.

“It…is…possible.” The young man returned his gaze towards the old man in front of him.

“What do you mean by possible?”

“The tome...of knowledge…by… combining the three artifacts correctly..will..not harm anyone.” The young man muttered in an almost hushed voice.

Lord Aldrich was taken by surprise again. The tome of knowledge was also considered a myth, but the man in front of him seemed to be telling the truth. His instinct was screaming him that.

So he had accessed the tome of knowledge huh? That explains why he had information beyond what my whole information network was capable of compiling. Then, if the tome of knowledge told him that it’s safe….

“Are you telling the truth?” Lord Aldrich inquired. He wanted confirmation.

“…Yes.” The grey eyed man spoke after a short pause.

It was just a single word, but it was enough for Lord Aldrich to believe the man. He could feel the truthfulness in his every word.

“Alright, I will help you get to where Obsidian Marifei is, but you have to grant me two things.” Lord Aldrich stood up and grabbed the bottle of wine placed on the wooden cabinet. He pulled out the cork and drank directly from it. The conversation was taxing to his old body.

“………………”

“First, tell me about yourself. I couldn’t trust someone completely without knowing him from the inside out. Second, make a blood pact with me, Aldrich Boyar Rein, head of the House of Rein.” Lord Aldrich said after gulping down the wine in one go. He then leaned on the wall and gazed at the man as he awaited the answer.

“…Yes.”

The man then told Lord Aldrich everything. The man’s name was Yuje Lukan Gashka. He was a man born from a Lukan and a Gashka. The Lukans were warriors of the forest. They worshiped their God Thenaia, the God of the Harvest. The whole tribe was generally a peaceful one.

The Gashkas were warriors of the battle field. It was a clan regarded by everyone as a myth.

According to myths, they were capable of creating weapons made from their blood. Such weapons were said to be sharper than those made even from the finest of steels. It was a weapon that could cut through anything.

Due to their great prowess in the battlefield, the elders in the clan formed a council. The council monitored the clan members—prohibiting them from interfering with wars too much. After all, just a single warrior from their tribe was enough to influence the tides of war.

According to the Yuje, the entire clan was now non-existent.

Lord Aldrich clearly heard the sound of remorse that came from the man in front of him. It was a sound familiar to him. It was the sound his granddaughters made when they had lost their parents. Ironically, the sound of agony from the man made him breathe a sigh of relief. It meant only one thing—the man was still human.

“I see… the Gashka clan actually exists…but no longer.” Lord Aldrich warmly gazed at the man before him. It seemed that the man was less threatening than before.

“………………..”

“…And to think that the man that had slain that legendary monster is the same person in front of me. Did you know that the entire kingdom of Luia is looking for you after you killed their king and his entire army? They even went as far as to put a bounty of half a million gold on your head. God’s this is such a headache.”

“……………..”

“Alright. As promised, after we made the blood pact, I’ll lead you to where the artifact is. Here, lend me your arm for a moment.” Lord Aldrich said as he took out the ornamental dagger strapped at his waist. He then ushered for the man to lend him his arm.

~Cut

Lord Aldrich made a crescent-shaped cut at the man’s arm. Chanting some words, he then began to pour his mana unto it. The blood that gushed out of the man’s arm began to form spiral marks that crept up the entire body.

“I Lord Aldrich Boyar Rein, head of the House of Rein, swear upon this blood oath that I will adhere to my promise. God Agni origin of all fire is my witness and my prosecutor.

I will not kill humans.

I will protect my granddaughters.

I shall uphold this two oaths at all times.

This man in front of me, Yuje Lukan Gashka, also swears upon this oath.

In Agni’s name,

I decree thee.”

A bright golden flash of light enveloped their bodies. The spiral marks receded along with the cut from the dagger.

Smiling from ear to ear, the old man wearing a garment with a trident and a golden-silver wing embedded on it handed Yuje a letter embossed in gold.

Letter of Recommendation

Grimfort Academy

“A promise is a promise right?” Lord Aldrich then laughed with his usual boisterous self.

****

Lord Aldrich was satisfied with his self. With the blood pact in place, he was assured of his granddaughters’ safety along with the rest of the students. Grinning while drinking his favorite snake wine, he was suddenly bombarded by loud bangs on the door.

BAMM!! BAGG!! BAGGG!!

“Old man I know you are there! What is this absurd news I’ve heard? You can’t be serious?!”

Erika’s voice echoed throughout the entire manor. It was an act unbefitting of a lady. When she realized that she can’t break through the door with brute force, she began screaming hysterically.

“UGGGHHH!!! DAMN IT!!!”

Lord Aldrich stood from his chair. After sighing in resignation, he opened the door.

~Punch

He was immediately greeted by a punch in the abdomen. Curling into his knees in pain, he looked and saw his granddaughter Erika glaring at him. Beside Erika was her little sister Sel. She too was glaring at his direction.

“What is it my lovely angels~?” Lord Aldrich forced a smile despite the pain. He continuously clutched the part where he was hit. The punch from the scion of the house was nothing to joke about.

“Absurd. I know you’re going senile, but I didn’t expect that it’s this much!” Erika smugly said. She was about to release another punch but decided not to do so. Lord Aldrich was still grimacing in pain.

“Yeah! Grandpa is too much!” Sel exclaimed. Placing both hands on her waist, she assumed the same smug face as her sister.

He had expected such an event to happen. Well, it’s the little price he had to pay in exchange for their safety. He would be glad to become a punching bag for the two ladies in exchange for his peace of mind. He was now assured that the man would not harm them.

“A peasant going to the same school as us?! Preposterous! What more—my grandfather himself was the one who recommended the guy! UGHHH! I’ve had enough of the cockroaches I always see everywhere and now I am forced to encounter another!” Erika declared.

Stomping her feet into the ground as hard as she could, she kicked the ornaments on top of the table. Seemingly satisfied at the destruction she had done, she then walked out of the room with her little sister following behind her.

A few moments later, Gaston came knocking through the door.

He then introduced a young man in his late teens, his grey eyes no longer blocked by his disheveled hair. His hair which was formerly ash-brown was now dyed silver using expensive dye magic. His hair was trimmed to a reasonable length and was combed backwards in a formal fashion. His pale white skin was adorned by a red coat with an insignia of a Dragon clutching an orb—the symbol of Grimfort academy. His red pants was coupled with a black leather boots. At first glance, the man would be mistaken for nobility.

Seemingly satisfied of the outcome, Lord Aldrich gave an approving nod towards Gaston. The ancient man then gave a mischievous smile in return.

The ladies would surely be shocked, they thought to themselves.

****

Grimfort Academy was heralded as the best school for magic users and warriors alike in the whole continent. With a school ground that encompassed a total of 39 square kilometers, the whole school was surrounded by a barrier created by the Grand Magus Arthur Poleshka III around five centuries ago. Until now, the barrier was intact and was maintained by a large Auromicum ore. Every now and then, the professors would resupply the ore with mana.

It was an accepted fact that Grimfort Academy was the most secured fortress in the whole continent. The barrier made by the Grand Magus coupled with the Auromicum ore that maintained the supply of mana was impenetrable that even an SS rank monster would have had a hard time breaking through it. That said, a kingdom’s army would be no match against the fortress.

During the Great War 300 years ago when the Demon Emperor Crestus waged war with the humans, the entire continent of Ruan and Lithuasa was left in cinders. The world lost around seventy percent of its population. Grimfort Academy was the only structure in the whole continent of Ruan which was left untarnished. It was heralded as a haven during that period of peril. Humans had come to seek shelter inside the impregnable fortress.

It had four entrances; one for each cardinal directions. One cannot enter the school grounds without the proper identification—an Identification Card was required to enter through the gates. Those without it would be rejected by the Great Barrier and would be unable to enter.

This was the reason why Yuje agreed to the terms of Lord Aldrich. He was not confident that he could break through the Great Barrier on sheer power alone. If he did manage to break through, the rebound would surely be great, and he would no longer be able to face the guards and the professors that would be sure to confront him.

Entering through the entrance, a black humanoid creature with a height of around 3 meters greeted him. The creature which was wearing a black long coat with the insignia of Grimfort scrutinized him from head to toe. It then spoke in a deep voice that would make little kids cry, immediately.

“Yuje Lukan Boyar I suppose?” The black creature gazed upon the parchment it was holding.

“…Yes”

It had been decided that he would be using the middle name of Lord Aldrich instead of Gashka. After all, the Gashka clan was considered a myth. They made the pretense that the man was a relative of the House of Rein from an annex family. They even went as far as dye the man’s hair silver in order to conceal the fact that he was the famous criminal.

“Come this way. Follow me.” The creature’s red eyes glimmered. He then began to walk towards the clearing in the woods. Yuje followed behind him.

None of them spoke a single word all throughout their journey. It seemed that the both of them were a man of few words.

After a couple of hours, they were finally able to reach the school grounds. Packs of students were gathered at the center of what appeared to be a plaza. Based on the clueless looks upon their faces, they all seemed to be first years.

Among them, Yuje spotted a familiar face—Sel. She was huddled together with a few girls. They seemed to be discussing something.

Thinking that it was none of his business, Yuje just walked forward silently while following the black humanoid creature in front of him. The sea of crowds immediately parted to make way for them like the one in the story of Moses. It seemed that the black creature was a feared figure in this campus.

After reaching a certain point in the crowd, the man then turned towards Yuje and spoke.

“This is where we part. The chairman will explain everything else.”

“………………..”

Nodding his head as affirmation, Yuje was then left alone by the creature. Inside the sea of crowds, Yuje had the urge to just annihilate everything, grab the artifact and then immediately leave. But then he was reminded about the oath—it restricted him from killing another person. Lord Aldrich Rein sure was a wise man, he thought to himself.

After a few more moments, a woman in green dress and a silver overcoat that complemented her brown complexion stood on the pedestal. She appeared to be in her early fifties. With her voice amplified by voice magic, she then began to speak.

“Welcome new students! Welcome to Grimfort! My name is Lilian Gradua and I am the chairman of this school. In this school, neither your age nor stature matter. What matters the most is your skills, your abilities, and your perseverance! Those unable to meet our desired requirements will be kicked out of these grounds—Forever! So do your best AND TRY NOT TO DIE!”

Series of murmurs came from the sea of crowd. Everyone was to be excited of being able to attend the prestigious school.

“Moreover, as I have stated before, your skills is what matters the most in this school. Therefore, before we admit each and every one of you to your designated class and levels, we will first measure your aptitude in magic. If it is decided that you are qualified for a higher rank, then appropriate actions will be immediately delivered!” Speaking from the podium, the chairman spread out her arms in delight. With her eyes beaming with anticipation, she continued.

“In this school, we rank the students battle capabilities in eight categories. Each of those categories has a subtype. In example, one would start from Rank F and will then proceed to Rank F+, F++, until he becomes Rank E. All ranks ranges from F to the ultimate rank, the SS rank.

In terms of magical aptitude, we rank students based on four categories. The green rank is for the starting students, blue is for the beginners, silver is for the intermediate, and the gold ones are for the advanced. Your rank will increase in accordance to your magical aptitude. At the same time, the number of lessons you can apply for will also increase.”

The students were all agitated. They were all excited to know what their current rank was.

After the speech, the students were then asked to form a line towards the pedestal. At the center of the pedestal was an imbued magical circle. According to the facilitators, the magical circle absorbed a fixed amount of raw magical power and then converted it into light. The color intensity and the color itself were used to assess the magical prowess and the magical aptitude of the person. To further elaborate, magical prowess pertained to how one was able to do battle using magic, while magical aptitude pertained to how one was able to learn magic quickly.

A woman came forward towards the magical circle after having her name called. She stepped inside the circle.

~Whhhhhhhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

A low buzzing sound was heard coming from the center of the pedestal. Afterwards, the circle had begun glowing into a dim green color.

Her status was as follows:

Magical Prowess: F+

Magical Aptitude: Green

So the light intensity pertains to the magical prowess, while the color pertains to the magical aptitude.

Yuje thought to himself.

The total number of the first years seemed to be around three hundred and over half of them were already assessed by the magic circle before Yuje got his turn.

“Yuje Lukan Boyar.”

Yuje slowly walked towards the center of the pedestal, into the magic circle. Unaware of the stares of the female populace, he slowly got inside the circle.

~Whhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiiizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Shwaaaaaaaaannnnngg

It was a different sound than those before him.

Suddenly, the entire vicinity was covered by a dim light so dark that one couldn’t see anything. It was the same as what one would see when he closed his eyes in a dark place.

Total darkness.

Only the sound of the magic circle was what could be heard for a while. Some students began to panic from the unusual occurrence.

In a few more moments, the dark light began to recede quickly along with the sound that came from the circle.

Lilian Gradua was agape. She had heard of such a phenomenon happening before, and that was with the founder of the academy. A blindingly dark black light meant only one thing. Rank SSS. The legendary rank that only one person was known to have attained—the Grand Magus Arthur Poleshka III.

The students were also confused on what happened. They had heard of people becoming rank C or B immediately at their first year, but those high rankers had a bright light instead of a blindingly dark one. The murmurs kept on until Lilian spoke in a trembling voice.

“R-rank SSS… m-magical aptitude..g-gold”

An uninterrupted silence enveloped the area for a while.

****

He regretted his decision a few moments ago.

When the chairman Lilian Gradua asked him if he wanted to be given the most advanced lessons immediately, he refused. It was a well-known fact that the advance classes were harder and more time consuming with a one-on-one lesson with a professor, so instead, he chose the intermediate ones. Beginner classes had a professor closely monitoring each student in order to prevent accidental injuries from misuse of magic; therefore, one wouldn’t have much free time on their hands. On the other hand, the intermediate classes were for those students who could already do some self-trainings. Lesser interference and monitoring from the professors were given to such classes.

He expected that since it’s on the intermediate level, lesser students than usual would be attending especially since he was just a first year. He was wrong. Around 40 students were attending the class from the total 350 student populace of the first years.

Yuje became an instant celebrity when the chairman uttered his rank. After all, a legendary rank was something almost unheard of. It’s the rank everyone aspired to attain.

Having his face well memorized by the first years who were with him that time, not a moment of silence was given to him the moment he stepped foot into the classroom.

“Hey~ my name is Raul Thena, I’m the second son of Julei Thena—head of the House of Thena. I hope we could be good friends!”

A man wearing the same uniform as him with brown hair that covered a fourth of his freckled face held forward his hands to him, as if asking for a hand shake. The man’s eyes were sparkling like the morning dew.

“………………….”

Yuje just stared at the man in front of him for a moment and then resumed looking out of the window. He had chosen the backmost seat near the window in order to avoid as much attention as possible.

“Mine’s Priscilla Sheen. You could just call me Ceila for short! Hey~ how did you do that? I mean, your rank… and you’re only a first year.”

A girl wearing a red coat and dress leaned close to him, her blonde wavy hair brushed Yuje’s face occasionally. This time, Yuje didn’t even bother to look at her. He just sat there with his face looking towards the window.

Afterwards, a couple more people went and introduced themselves to him. Even Sel which appeared to had been chosen for intermediate class on her first year introduced herself to him. Everyone was aspiring to become friends with the SSS rank.

I want to massacre everyone in this room already. So nosy. Now that I think about it, the pact restricts me from killing another person, but it doesn’t necessarily state that I couldn’t hurt them. Hmm… Let’s test the limit on what I could do then.

“If you don’t stop bothering me, you’ll regret it.”

~BAM

With a loud bang, the beautiful lady which introduced herself as Priscilla flew towards the other end of the room. Blood came gushing out of her mouth as she lost consciousness.

Everyone stared in shock at the unconscious woman and then into the man sitting by the window. Stunned at the scenario that had just occurred, everyone went pale. In just a few moments, the students that surrounded him trying to be friends were miles away from him.

“Did you see that?.....”

“He did that to Ceila…and she was just trying to be friends with the guy….”

“Monster…”

“Yeah, he’s a demon….”

The students within the room began to panic, not knowing which of them will be attacked next by the apparition of a demon. After a few minutes, nothing happened and they began to calm down a little bit.

Some students tried to carry the unconscious Priscilla into the infirmary when the door suddenly opened. A muscular guy with a scar on his left cheek entered the room. Just from a single glance, one could tell that the man had gone to countless battle fields.

“Professor Rouma!”

“It’s the professor!”

“Professor!”

The students began to cheer in joy at the appearance of the man. Professor Rouma was assigned in teaching Battle Magic to the intermediate class. With rank of S, he was heralded as one of the strongest professors in the whole Grimfort Academy, next only to the chairman and another professor called Kia.

Rouma’s eyes began surveying the room. His eyes darted from the unconscious girl being carried by her classmates and towards the guy at the window. Just from glancing at the direction of the stares of the students and their pale faces, he immediately knew who the culprit was.

“Take that girl into the infirmary. As for the rest of you, evacuate the room. Get away from here as far as possible.” He calmly told the students.

His instincts and countless experience in battle was screaming at him that something dangerous was about to happen.

Everyone immediately understood what professor Rouma was implying. If an SSS rank and an S rank were to fight here, the damage would surely be great. Following Rouma’s instructions, the students immediately fled.

I heard rumors that an SSS rank first year entered the school this year. The descriptions fit that person. It’s most likely the same student.

Professor Rouma walked towards the man sitting by the window. He stopped just right in front of the man.

“Why did you hurt one of my students?” Rouma asked. He was clenching his fist.

“………………………”

Yuje didn’t bother to answer. For him it was just a waste of time. Why should he explain himself to another person anyway was what he thought.

“Hey I’m talking to you!!” Rouma tried to suppress a yell. Veins began to pop out of his head.

“………………………”

Rouma became furious. The man in front of him did not seem to be taking the issue seriously. Unlike his scar-faced, muscular appearance, the guy was actully a warm-hearted person. After killing countless people in the battlefield, he then found solace in teaching the young ones. To him, his students and the academy was his eternal battle field—his life’s purpose.

For Rouma, hurting a student of his was an unforgivable crime that wouldn’t be left unpunished.

“Answer me!!”

With his blood close to boiling, he then smashed the table Yuje was sitting in. Yuje then, for the first time, looked at the enraged man in front of him.

“So noisy.”

~BAAAAAAAAAAAAMMMM

Rouma was sent flying toward the other side of the room. He continued colliding and breaking through walls for three times until the fourth wall broke the impact. Luckily, all classrooms were devoid of any students. It seemed that they have been forewarned.

Yuje judged that such force was not enough to kill the guy. He knew just from looking at Rouma that he was no feeble warrior.

“Ughhhh….” Rouma stroked his temporal. Looking towards the room he was formerly at, he then brushed off the dusts on his body.

What the hell is that? A crimson like thing suddenly erupted from him and collided with my whole body.

Rouma started to slowly get up. Such an impact was not enough to make him admit defeat.

He then began coating his whole body with mana; it glimmered in a silver color. It was his trump card, the silver armor made of pure mana. Some people even say that the defense produced by the armor was comparable to the great barrier of Grimfort Academy. But of course, a single person can’t hope to maintain such strong defense for an extended period of time.

Yuje felt the pulsating condensed mana in front of him. The current pressure he was feeling was on par with the Black Ogres he fought in the deeper areas of the Nerie Forest. He remembered that those guys gave him quite a fight.

Acknowledging the opponent in front of him, Yuje then began to pull out his weapon. The minute particles of blood that normally floated around him, naked to the human eye, formed a crimson-black blade. Grasping the sword with his right hand, he then began to prepare for his attack.

An attack strong enough to penetrate that armor and knock him out, but not too strong as to kill him. Damn it this is irritating.

Rouma, with his instinct kicking in, began to jump out of the window. He wanted take the fight outside the school building, into an empty ground. Thankfully, lunch period ended some time ago and students were now inside their own rooms.

Jumping down, Yuje then began to concentrate mana into the crimson-black sword and then slashed towards Rouma who was already on the ground.

~SLASH

A crescent shaped crimson-black aura went towards the place Rouma was at. With his quick reflexes enhanced the by silver armor made of pure mana, he dodged the incoming strike.

What he saw afterwards shattered his composure. The place struck by the slash was devastated. A deep bottomless fissure was seen on the place where Rouma was.

If I was hit by that strike…

Rouma then steeled his mind and initiated the next attack. With his body made agile by the armor, he then formed the mana in his fist into a pointed edge. Striking the falling man, what the silver edge hit was a crimson-black material surrounding Yuje’s body. Unable to penetrate the body of Yuje, Rouma then immediately formed a distance between them.

Yuje, irritated of the ongoing battle, gripped tightly the crimson-black sword and began to form countless slashes to Rouma. Series of gigantic crescent strikes went towards the man’s direction. Rouma kept dodging but was hit after a few more attempts of random slashing.

~SLASH

~SLASH

~SLASH

Without stopping, Yuje continued the gigantic slashes aimed at the man until the silver armor finally broke.

Finally breaking the silver armor, Yuje disappeared from his current spot—reappeared next to the wounded Rouma. He then slammed the body of Rouma hard into the ground, which made the ground rumbled for an instant.

Rouma, with his silver armor broken, finally lost consciousness.

This isn’t enough to kill him.

Yuje, after he had finally got rid of the annoyance, walked calmly back into the school building. Countless students were watching the fight from the windows but he did not care. After all, he was just here for the Obsidian Marifei was what he thought.

That day, Yuje got a nickname.

The Demon of Grimfort.

***

It had been a week since the incident with Rouma.

Causing such havoc just on his first day, Yuje was given the nickname The Demon of Grimfort.

Contrary to his first day wherein every student in his class wanted to become a friend of his, now, an abnormal space was created between him and the students seated next to him. Everyone was terrified of the monster which was in the same class as them.

Priscilla Sheen, after recovering from her injuries refused to come back to class. Whenever the incident was brought up to her, she had become hysterical while muttering the words ‘demon’.

Professor Rouma on the other hand was fully healed after three days. His injuries were light and were actually not life threatening. After being fully healed, he immediately went to Yuje for another fight but was immediately hindered by the chairman. Respecting the position of the chairman, he backed down for now.

The resulting week ended with no injured persons or casualties. They have come to accept the fact that the Demon of Grimfort won’t hurt anyone as long as they don’t bother him.

There was even an instance when the pen of a student accidentally went flying towards Yuje. Yuje himself was not hit but the object landed on top of his table. The owner of the pen immediately pissed his pants and began crying silently.

Contrary to the expected slaughter, Yuje remained silent and just continuously stared at the window.

Even after a week, Yuje wasn’t able to find any lead regarding the Obsidian Marifei. The professor which had obtained the object was missing for a while now. He was forced to attend the classes since he did not want to be kicked out of the academy.

“And that marks our lesson for today. Remember to read your book Herbalism and Concoction by Emilia Heart pages 150 to 180.”

A professor who appeared to be in her 70s was assigned to teach Herbalism in the intermediate class. Yuje actually liked her class because the old lady had a very low voice which was hardly audible. In effect, the entire class remained silent all throughout the class in order for them to hear the hushed voice of hers.

After the professor left, Yuje also stood and left the room. Starting today he had two days day-off. He would make use of it to search for the whereabouts of the artifact.

Spreading his aura in a ten meter radius around him, he then began to move stealthily in a fast manner. He moved around the school grounds hoping that the aura would be able to detect the presence of a God’s artifact.

A God’s artifact had a distinct aura exclusive to the God that created it. Thanks to the tome of knowledge, Yuje was able to acquire information regarding the distinct the aura of Auborn the God of Lightning.

Yuje had been doing the same thing for quite a while now ever since he had been admitted in the Academy. A week of searching still yielded no results. The school was vast, so he figured that it would take time for him to pick up something.

While moving at an inhuman speed, he stopped by near the forest at the west side of the school grounds when he heard a familiar voice.

“Y-you filthy bugs! H-how dare you!” A woman screamed. She was sprawled on the ground. With a battered body, she slowly stood up.

“Oh don’t tell me that the great scion of the House of Rein is actually scared right now?”

“Hahahaha!”

It was Erika Rein. Her coat and her garb were tattered showing bits of her ivory white skin. Her skirt was tainted by a dark stain which ominously screamed of the word blood. Her sapphire eyes were furiously glaring at the five guys that surrounded her. Clenching her fists tight, she began to chant her magic.

“Oh great God Agni,

Origin of all fire

I ask thee…”

~BAG!

Her chant was interrupted by a green chain that collided with her body. Kneeling in pain, blood came gushing out of her mouth.

“Do you think we will let you finish chanting your spell? The great scion of the House of Rein doesn’t even know how to do voiceless incantations! It’s something that should have been learnt by those in their third year right? Pathetic.” The man spit unto the ground. Brandishing the whip magic he was holding, he mischievously grinned. His eyes emanated extreme lust. Beside him, the other men began licking their lower lips.

With a her body battered all over, The scion of the House of Rein just knelt there, her fierce sapphire eyes continued to gaze at the men slowly walking towards her. She tried to suppress the tears in her eyes.

“During every entrance ceremony it was always emphasized that stature doesn’t matter inside Grimfort right?” The man licked the chains he was holding. Unbuttoning his garb, he added. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a noble or a commoner, what matters is your skill. Your skill is what defines a person in this Academy.”

The other guys also began to unbutton their uniforms. After removing their upper garment, they stopped right in front of the aghast lady—deliberately expressing their motive.

“I heard of the guy with the SSS rank causing havoc inside the school. I would prefer to be friends with that demon than you who uses the name of her family to get what she wants. Listen, not everyone can put up with your antics oh miss great noble!” The man smacked Erika with his chains. She fell flat to the ground.

“Your nobility and your house won’t save you from this sweetheart.” He said as he removed all of his clothes. Exposing his everything, he reached out towards the motionless lady in front of him.

“I’ll enjoy this. Hehehehe”

“NOOOOOOOO!” Erika screamed. She tried to resist from the hand that grabbed her. With tears flowing down her eyes, she desperately tried to scamper away from the unfortunate reality. Sadly, her body refused to move. Unable to accept her fate, she closed her eyes.

This can’t be happening. Oh Gods I want to die. Please. Someone. Anyone.

~THUD

A loud ~thud sound enveloped the isolated forest. Afterwards, an eerie silence took over, Erika was puzzled. Still shaking with fear, she opened her eyes.

In front of her were the five men with their body bent the wrong way. Fully naked, all of them had been knocked unconscious. Silhouetted by the rays of the hovering moon, a man gazed at her in perpetual silence. It was a face she was familiar with. It was the Demon of Grimfort.

She had watched the battle with Professor Rouma. When she heard that Professor Rouma challenged the demon when one of his students was hurt by the guy, she was moved. She felt admiration towards the professor. On the other hand, she felt disgust towards the demon.

Priscilla Sheen was a good friend of hers. They had been friends since they were little kids and the two of them had a common point—they were both stunningly beautiful. But even so, Yuje didn’t seem to notice and still did that to her.

Erika shuddered from the thought that the guy did not discern between beauties. After the incident with Priscilla and Professor Rouma, she tried her best to avoid the so called demon.

And now, the demon was in front of her and seemed to have saved her. She was puzzled by the thought that the demon had even an ounce of compassion for others. Still, she was saved from her horrible fate—that much was true.

Trying her best not to stutter nor appear afraid, she began to speak words she hardly told anyone.

“Thank you.”

“……………….”

Silence.

The man was no longer there.

Surprised by the man’s sudden disappearance, Erika repeatedly chanted the man’s name in her mind.