Chapter 27

“…I think I misheard.”

“You heard right.”

“You said you found a trace of a demon? When was that?”

“Exactly three days ago, after dinner. Around seven. I was in a duel requested by a classmate. During the fight, her power suddenly increased.”

Luina replied calmly.

“Who was it?”

“Bella Hoenne.”

“Ranked 19th in the second year of the Knight Department, daughter of Viscount Hoenne. A wealthy family.”

Viscount Hoenne owned a prosperous territory and was one of the Golden Turtle Company’s top clients.

“You’re saying her power spiked suddenly?”

“Exactly. Not just her physical strength, but her aura amount surged as well.”

“That’s not enough.”

Tap, tap. Fernan drummed his fingers on the armrest.

“Any physical changes?”

“None.”

“I don’t think she’d take performance enhancers for a duel, so it’s likely a new aura refinement technique.”

“Are you saying I’m mistaken?”

“I’m just saying you might be overinterpreting things because of how heavy the word ‘demon’ is.”

“I sensed demonic energy for a moment.”

“…Now that’s a different story.”

Fernan uncrossed his legs.

“Any other witnesses?”

“None. It was just the two of us in the duel room.”

“Are you certain it was demonic energy?”

“It was very faint and fleeting, but that ominous feeling isn’t something you forget easily. Still, I can’t say it with absolute certainty.”

Luina lowered her voice slightly at the end. She was still uncertain.

“As I recall, Bella Hoenne is your friend. One of your two closest friends along with Aina Rium, right?”

“…How do you know that?”

“That doesn’t matter. The question is whether you’re overreacting because she’s your friend.”

“…I’d be lying if I said no.”

Luina couldn’t be sure. It was so faint, so brief, and she couldn’t imagine why Bella would ever make a pact with a demon.

“Bella is a dedicated student. Always diligent in class and training. She loves reading and visits the library and bookstore often.”

“And?”

“While researching demons, I read they prey on the voids in people’s hearts. But Bella is always cheerful and has a great relationship with her family. I can’t picture her contacting one.”

Still, after witnessing what happened with Verian, Luina was aware the demons had returned to the world.

She wanted to verify what happened. She didn’t want to believe it.

“Tell me exactly what happened.”

“…Alright…”

***

That day was no different from any other.

“Luina!”

She attended her classes as usual, and they ended normally.

“How about a duel today?”

“Whenever you want.”

And so, she had a duel with her friend. Not an everyday occurrence, but not unusual either.

“Today will be different.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yes. I feel like my skills have really improved lately.”

In the student duel arena, Luina and Bella faced each other, both with real swords drawn.

They weren’t using wooden swords, but real ones, with armor for safety.

“Did you bring the protection scroll?”

“Yes.”

The scroll would activate a magic shield if an impact exceeded a certain threshold.

“I’ll go first.”

Bella gripped her sword tightly. It was a Zweihänder as large as she was.

An ideal weapon for her style—not based on quick cuts or thrusts, but on overwhelming force and weight.

The massive Zweihänder swept through the air.

Rather than dodging, Luina moved in to meet the blow.

─!

‘What… power…?’

She felt overwhelming pressure through her sword. It was different. Heavier, stronger.

She realized Bella hadn’t lied about improving.

Clang.

She twisted her wrist to deflect the Zweihänder’s blow. When she saw an opening, Bella immediately stepped back.

‘She’s fast.’

It wasn’t just strength. She was faster too.

After a single clash, there was a brief pause.

“What do you think?”

“…Definitely different. Heavier and faster.”

“Right?”

Bella smiled brightly.

“Lately I feel like I have better control over my body. Like I’m brimming with strength. But I’m glad you noticed too.”

She readied herself again.

“Here I come again.”

“Alright.”

─!

Sword against sword.

There was no feeling-out phase. Bella came in full force from the start, and Luina had to match her intensity.

─!

A shockwave exploded. A faint aura enveloped Bella’s Zweihänder. Unshaken, Luina focused her own blue aura.

‘I can’t win with strength.’

Bella’s aura refinement focused on raw physical power.

Clashing head-on would be a mistake. Amid a storm-like flurry of blows, Luina calmly dodged.

“You’re amazing, Luina!”

With a short shout, the energy in her sword intensified even more. As her wrists and arms went numb, Luina sensed she was nearing her limit.

Clang.

She deflected the sword and kicked Bella in the stomach. Bella stumbled back a step, and Luina followed.

The Zweihänder was devastating with heavy strikes, but its size made it clumsy up close.

But at that moment…

─!

Bella’s sword twisted at an odd angle, blocking between them. As Luina’s sword shook, fragments of aura exploded everywhere.

A powerful shockwave knocked Luina backward.

“How…?”

It changed again. Her aura felt rougher, stranger. Unsettling and yet familiar.

‘It’s like…’

“You won’t beat me that easily!”

Red aura burst forth, covering Bella’s body like flames. Luina’s thoughts were cut off. What she had felt for a moment vanished.

──!

The ground cracked under a slash that barely missed its target.

“I can’t control my strength very well.”

“…Bella, did you take any tonics?”

“I took a few, yeah. Maybe they’re finally kicking in.”

Bella smiled as she adjusted her sword.

“Here I go again.”

***

“…So that’s how it happened.”

“You say her aura output suddenly spiked, and you felt a faint trace of demonic energy.”

“At first, I didn’t think it was demonic. But the more I went over the situation… the more I thought maybe it was.” Bella Hoenne was ranked 19th.

Not insignificant, but even so, there was a clear gap between her and Luina.

The fact that this difference had shrunk so much in such a short time was undoubtedly strange.

“And Bella’s condition?”

“She’s fine. She didn’t show any physical anomalies like Verian, nor did she lose her sanity. After the duel, nothing unusual happened either.”

“Seriously?”

“It might’ve just been confusion or a misunderstanding on my part, but…”

Fernan interrupted her.

“Even so, you want to confirm it just in case?”

“Yes. We’re not talking about just anything. It’s a demon.”

“I agree on that. If something’s off, it should be investigated.”

Honestly, Fernan thought that once he caught Verian, he’d be able to learn everything about demons.

But that wasn’t the case. Though he knew Verian was a demon’s pawn and even interrogated her after her transformation, he gained nothing useful.

“…I know I’m not really in a position to ask, but is there a way?”

“No. There’s not.”

Still, doing everything possible was the right thing to do. If Bella had indeed used demonic power, then she and Verian had something in common.

Neither had knowingly met a demon or made a pact.

“That means it infiltrated without them realizing. Honestly, I’m not sure if that’s even possible, but for now we’ll investigate whether they had any places in common.”

“I suppose that’s the best we can do right now. Thanks for helping me.”

“Dealing with demons concerns the entire continent. Of course I’ll help.”

“Then I’ll go talk to Bella and—”

“No need. It’ll all be clear by tomorrow. For now, head back. I’ll call you again tomorrow.”

Once Luina left, Fernan called Hyde.

“Bring me all the records of Bella Hoenne’s movements.”

“And of Verian. Even from before you started tracking her.”

“Yes, young master.”

It took less than a day before all records from the start of the semester to the present landed on Fernan’s desk.

“…Residence, academy, city.”

“Yes, inside the academy she only attended classes, the dueling field, and the library. In town, she only visited restaurants and bookstores.”

“Exactly the same as Verian.”

But that wasn’t unusual. Most academy students followed that routine.

It was the typical student lifestyle.

“Luina, I need you to arrange a meeting with Bella.”

“Did you find a clue?”

“No. That’s exactly why I want to see her in person.”

It might just be coincidence. But an uneasy feeling kept nagging at Fernan’s mind.

Maybe it was nothing. But after confirming the demons’ existence through the prophecy book and Verian, if there was even the slightest chance Bella was involved, it had to be verified.

After all classes ended, Fernan went with Luina to a café where they met Bella.

“Fernan? What are you doing here…?”

“Bella Hoenne. It’s the first time we’ve met in private like this. I asked Luina to arrange it.”

“You asked to see me? Why?”

“It’s nothing major. Luina…”

─!

In that instant, a deafening roar surged in Fernan’s head. A searing pain tore through him, and a flood of prophecies stormed into his mind.

A sky red as blood, a nauseating stench, and demonic energy.

Fernan felt like he’d seen this before. It was the same sensation he felt the day he saw the prophecy about Andromalius.

The academy was no different than hell.

In the distance, a blood-red magic circle glowed intensely. Monsters and humans, driven mad, ran rampant.

They were students. People from the academy. Island residents. He saw Aint’s anguished face.

[“Everyone’s acting weird!”]

Not just the students, but also academy staff and islanders.

The demonic energy that had silently seeped into their bodies had begun to activate with the appearance of the demon Andromalius.

And there were hundreds of them.

[— It’s demonic energy! They’ve been infected!

“You mean the students made pacts with demons?”

— No, not that. If that were the case, I would’ve noticed.

Still, the students were infected, and it was throwing the academy into chaos.]

Time sped up.

Aint had his hand on a fallen student’s chest.

Following Gardner Alfenparsen’s instructions, Aint injected mana into the student to inspect his interior.

“I got it!”

Aside from the Empire’s first emperor, no one had slain more demons than he—the First Noble Knight. He finally understood the source of the problem.

— Those damned demons played dirty.

— They infected students with demonic energy so subtly that no one noticed. And since students aren’t very receptive, it must’ve taken a long time.

— Most probably faded without doing anything. Maybe nothing would’ve ever happened.

— But that magic circle… it’s activating the demonic energy. We have to destroy it!]

The scene shifted again.

Aint was already rushing toward the source of the demonic energy—the red magic circle.

[- Damn. That’s no mere demonic energy activator. It’s…! It’s a summoning circle!

— They’re trying to summon a demon!

— Aint, you have to stop it!]

Gardner Alfenparsen’s shouts rang through Aint’s mind.

Everything sped up again. Aint was even closer to the magic circle, and then he ran into a trusted knight.

[“Aint! Help me! Bella, Bella’s…!”

“Calm down, senior. It’ll be alright.”

“Bella’s acting weird!”

“She’s infected with demonic energy. If we defeat the demon, she’ll return to normal. I’ll handle it personally.”]

[“I promise.”]

‘So it really was demonic energy…?’

He had suspected, but hadn’t confirmed.

But the prophecy book said it clearly. Luina’s suspicion was valid. If the infected were left untreated, catastrophe would follow.

‘This ties into what I saw before.’

In fact, this was prior to what he’d already seen. Before the battle against Andromalius. Before Luina pledged her loyalty to him as a knight.

‘I have to stop it.’

The academy from his memories was absolute chaos. They couldn’t kill the infected since they were students or residents, and that only worsened things.

He had to prevent that from happening again.

“…Fernan? Are you okay?”

“Is your head hurting again?”

“It’s nothing.”

Fernan blinked a few times and shook his head.

He met their worried eyes and took a moment to collect his thoughts.

“Luina.”

“Yes?”

“How much do you trust Bella Hoenne?”

“She’s been my friend since childhood. I trust her more than anyone.”

“What are you two talking about all of a sudden?”

Bella asked, puzzled by the conversation.

“Bella Hoenne, the reason I asked Luina to arrange this meeting…”

At first, he only wanted to speak with her directly. Even if Luina trusted Bella, you could never be certain. But after seeing the prophecy, his thoughts had completely changed.

“It’s because you have a demon in your head.”

“What?”

“And we have to beat it out of you.”

He had the proof right in front of him, and the method to solve it was clear too.

“Let’s go to the temple.”

They had to show the proof to those who could never coexist with demons—and work with them to act.