Chapter 138

“A golem, you say?! There can’t be such a golem in the world!”

The leader shouted, denying Wooden’s existence. If not for him, the secret mission would undoubtedly have succeeded.

“…Even if we’ve failed, you won’t achieve what you’re after either.”

And with that, it was all over.

They even captured the assassin who had attacked Aria, but in the end, they failed to take any prisoners.

They extracted the poison from all three, but their suicide method didn’t end there.

“Ugh…!”

Aura reflux. A technique in which, through a seal in the aura orb, they forced the flow to reverse, twisting all the body’s meridians.

The three assassins coughed up blood and died.

Fernan clicked his tongue—disappointed, but not surprised.

“Senior, don’t you think that was a bit much? And Aint, you too! How could you act like nothing was happening?”

“They were enemies you could handle alone.”

“That’s true, but still, haven’t you heard of something called teamwork?”

“If one of those daggers even grazed you, you’d die instantly. They were coated in lethal poison.”

“…What?”

Aria’s face turned pale.

“Then you should’ve helped me more! I could’ve died right there!”

“You were fighting assassins who wanted to kill you. Of course you were going to be on the edge of death. But he was so busy dealing with the spirits that he couldn’t even get close to you.”

It wasn’t a lie, but still, it left her frustrated. Aria held back her anger with difficulty.

“So, in the end, we can’t do anything now?”

“At least for the moment.”

“That sounds like something will happen later.”

“It’s not certain yet. Just consider today as if it didn’t happen.”

Fernan recalled Ludger’s reaction after seeing Wooden.

Ludger Schwaben, who still coveted the throne he had pretended to abandon.

Human desire had no end, and those who knew how to use that desire were true merchants.

Although nothing was concrete for now, Fernan was convinced he could use it eventually. Of course, he had to prepare the groundwork ahead of time.

“Well then, I’m off. Finish your practice well.”

“Where to?”

“I only came as a temporary assistant to check how the training was going.”

Fernan vanished.

“…We should move to another place, right?”

“Yeah, we can’t sleep in the same spot where there were corpses.”

In addition to the aura reflux, it seemed their bodies held another poison—they disintegrated and were absorbed into the ground like toxic dust.

In a way, it saved them the trouble of disposing of the bodies.

After covering the traces with dirt, Aint and Aria left the site.

— Something’s off. Schwaben isn’t stupid enough to try to kill you when demons are already on the loose.

Gardner’s doubt was reasonable.

If the demons hadn’t appeared yet, that would be one thing. But the rank 66 demon, Kimaris, had already shown up in Bercheff.

Would they really try to kill him in the middle of such panic and while Aint’s image was becoming more heroic, without having any backup plan?

No matter how afraid they were, Schwaben couldn’t be that dumb.

‘So then, they have a backup plan, right?’

— Exactly. But there’s no alternative to Armian’s secret swordsmanship…

Gardner suddenly fell silent.

— Aint, when did you say Armian lost the secret swordsmanship?

‘When Schwaben took the throne and expelled them from their territory.’

— And that territory now belongs to Schwaben?

‘Yes, that’s right… ah…!’

Aint realized it too late.

— Those bastards were the ones responsible.

‘I already suspected it, but now there’s no doubt.’

It was frustrating, but there was nothing to be done for now. They only had suspicions, no clear evidence, and the assassins were already dead.

— For now, it’s best to follow Fernan’s advice. Words without proof have no weight.

‘Yes.’

— But don’t forget. The day will come when you’ll have to take revenge.

Aint didn’t intend to forget. He would recover the stolen swordsmanship and take his revenge.

He made a vow.

***

“…Hah, so full of themselves, weren’t they?”

Ludger sneered.

There had been no further reports from the assassins. He already suspected failure, and it was confirmed when the second-year practice ended—Aint Armian returned alive, even placing second.

He walked back to the dormitory.

If he was still alive, that meant the assassins were dead.

Ludger knew immediately—he would never see them again.

‘Did His Majesty underestimate Aint, or did Aint’s growth surpass expectations?’

Or maybe… someone else intervened?

He recalled a certain individual mixed in among the assistants.

‘Was that really just coincidence?’

Honestly, he hadn’t expected failure either.

Aint’s progress lately was impressive, yes, but the assassins were the best raised by Schwaben. They even used instantly lethal poison.

The fact that they failed was the real shock.

‘Idiots.’

But they had failed, and only succeeded in putting Aint on guard.

At least, there was one consolation—no one would know for sure who was behind it.

‘Though he’ll suspect… but he won’t expose it just yet.’

Regardless, as long as the Schwaben dynasty aimed for the throne, they could never get along with Armian.

And now, they were clearly exposed as enemies.

A sigh escaped Ludger.

What were Aint’s feelings toward Schwaben after this?

“…Bah, whatever.”

His Majesty would know what to do.

Even if the Schwaben family was dragged down by this, it wasn’t his problem.

The crown prince wasn’t Ludger—it was his brother.

At least for now.

***

Dawn came slowly.

“Ugh…!”

Gismond Ert opened his eyes.

He clutched his head with both hands, overwhelmed by a terrible headache. Cold sweat drenched his clothes, and the bed was a mess.

“It hurts… it hurts like hell!”

He writhed for a long while, groaning.

With the pain came pages from a book he had read in the past, unfolding in his mind.

[“The Kingdom of Frazia has formally requested cooperation from the Academy, and the headmaster has accepted.”]

The students all reacted like it was inevitable.

They had eyes and ears too.

They knew Frazia was in chaos because of the corrupt and the monsters, and that the kingdom’s real objective was Aint Armian.

“In a time when war against demons and the corrupt is becoming more evident, it’s been decided that this will be a good experience for you.”]

“….”

[“Considering the level of danger, only students ranked 10 and above in each faculty will participate, excluding first-years. And it’s not optional, it’s mandatory.”]

The mission: sixty students from the Academy would be sent to a Frazia devastated by corrupt ones and monsters.

[“A large group of monsters is marching north from the south.”

“There are more than two thousand! If they follow the expected route, they’ll head straight to Fortress Fairos.”]

Thousands of monsters sent the entire kingdom into a panic.

[“We will participate as well. You’ve come to experience real war. If you run away out of fear or cowardice, you’ll never achieve anything.”]

The Academy chose to fight alongside them instead of withdrawing to protect themselves.

[“This is war. We cannot absolutely guarantee your lives. But no matter what, we will never let a student die before a professor.”]

And of course, among those students were Aint Armian and Luina Bercheff.

The memory showed the Academy choosing to stand and fight alongside Frazia.

[The sky was blood-red.

In the distance, monsters could be seen slowly advancing. Aint stood on the fortress walls, silently watching.

“Aint.”

Luina stood beside him.

“Senior, to be honest, I’m scared. But you told me something before, remember? That a knight is the sword that cuts down his lord’s enemies and the shield that protects him.”

“…You didn’t have to remember that.”

“No, thanks to that, I feel a little more at ease.”

Because she believed her senior was by her side. A smile appeared on Aint’s lips.

“I’ll only say this to you—I want to rebuild my house.”

“You…?”

“Someone once told me that the emperor is the knight of the Empire.”

That’s why I can’t turn my back on the Empire.]

Aint and Luina reaffirmed their resolve.

And the war against the monsters was about to begin.

[A human body with the head of a leopard.

It barely measured two meters, but the pressure it radiated made it feel like a two-hundred-meter giant.

The dense corrupt magic and overwhelming presence it exhaled made it feel that way.

“…A demon? That’s impossible…”

“Is that really a demon? Hahaha, we’re dead…”

“We have to run!”

With the appearance of the demon, the soldiers on the walls fell into panic.]

It had appeared.

Gismond’s hands and feet trembled.

“A demon…! The demon has descended! The demon…!”

It was none other than the rank 64 demon, Flauros.

“Will Aint be able to stop it?”

Yes, he will. He’ll definitely stop it.

Even though Gismond had forgotten much of what he’d read, he knew for certain that the story didn’t end there.

But the problem was that war always brought casualties and injuries.

No matter how much the professors risked their lives to protect them, there was no such thing as “absolute” in battle.

“Good thing… I don’t have to go.”

Thanks to elixirs, the duel in Bercheff, and some real experience, he had improved a lot—but he was still ranked around 20th.

And from what he remembered, only the top 10 would be sent.

Luckily, he wasn’t in that group.

“…I better go see Fernan.”

He knew Fernan could also see the future, but even so, you never know.

If he was the only one who had received that vision, it’d be a great chance to earn points with him.

After a quick shower, he dressed and headed to Ravidus Hall.

“Do you have any business to attend to?”

“I’m here to see Fernan Pellenberg.”

“I’ll notify him upstairs. Please wait in the reception room.”

Guided by the maid, he took a seat in the room.

“Wow, this is amazing.”

When his rank rose and he moved from the Base Hall to the Bless Hall, he thought it was luxurious.

But Ravidus Hall was on another level.

Even without knowing anything about furniture, he could tell everything was top quality.

And there were maids—something that surprised him.

“Could I ever live here someday?”

“Yes, you could.”

At that moment, the door opened and Fernan walked in.

“Good morning. I didn’t come too early, did I? It’s just that I had something important…”

“Don’t worry. I usually wake up around this time.”

Fernan’s day always began at dawn.

“Ah, that’s a relief. Hey, do you really think I could live here too?”

“Yes. I’ll make sure of it.”

“…Huh? T-Thanks.”

The response was so different from what he expected that Gismond was thrown off but nodded immediately.

“Anyway, the reason I came so early is…”

“I can more or less guess. It’s about the Kingdom of Frazia, right?”

“Yes, then you also…”

“Yes.”

Fernan nodded. He too had received a new vision that very morning.

There was nothing about Flauros in the previous one, so he thought it would be next year. But no—and realizing it, he clenched his teeth in frustration that morning.

“Then I don’t need to explain it.”

“That’s right. So I’m telling you to prepare too, senior.”

“Prepare…? Prepare for what?”

“To go to Fortress Fairos.”

“…But I’m not in the top 10.”

“Even if you were ranked 100th, if I want to take you, I can.”

“Huh…?”

Upon hearing that he’d have to go to the place where the demon would descend, Gismond’s face went pale.

“W-Wouldn’t that be unfair?”

“Normally, fairness is solved with money. Besides, you won’t go with the Academy. I’ll have you enter as an independent mercenary.”

“Is that really necessary…?”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to live in Ravidus Hall?”

Fernan smiled calmly.

“But… with my level, isn’t it too dangerous? That’s why the Academy only sends the top 10. Hahaha…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything.”

So no, your refusal isn’t an option.

“……”

Gismond’s face looked on the verge of tears.