Chapter 4

As soon as he woke up in the morning, Fernan headed to the library.

“Welcome, Sir Fernan. Your student credential has been verified.”

“Where are the books related to demons?”

“Follow the light and it will guide you.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

When the librarian cast a spell, a small thread of light appeared instantly and began to lead him.

“Demons, demons, demons, demons…”

Fernan hadn’t come to the library early in the morning for any other reason.

He was there to research demons more thoroughly.

‘There was nothing useful in the family library.’

After being struck by lightning and realizing the existence of demons, the first thing he did was scour his family’s entire library.

But there wasn’t a single piece of the information he hoped for, and he had been planning to check the academy’s library ever since returning.

“King Kolomo and the 72 demons…”

The Imperial Academy’s library housed an enormous collection of books, all preserved according to the will of the First Emperor.

The Chronicle of the Great First Emperor. The First Emperor and the Royal Knights. King Kolomo and the 72 Demons. Each of the 72 Demons is Different. Demons are from Fra… Dem…

Fernan selected several books.

He first opened The Chronicle of the Great First Emperor.

He thought there might be at least some clues in the life story of a hero who had stood on the front lines against the demons.

“The demons have plunged the continent into ruin. I can’t bear it any longer.”

As the world fell into chaos due to the demon uprising, the benevolent Lord Chronos Armian rose for the sake of humanity.

“Let us unite our strength to drive out the demons.”

At Armian’s call, the five kingdoms and religious orders, deeply moved, gathered to his side like bees.

“Great King Kolomo, come and duel with me!”

Armian staked the fate of the world and fought King Kolomo day and night for an entire month.

Chronos Armian pierced King Kolomo’s heart.

When he commanded, “Your king is dead, so return to where you came from,” the million-strong demon army vanished on the spot.

“…What is this?”

Any glimmer of hope vanished in an instant. This wasn’t a chronicle—it was an absurd and over-the-top novel.

“The greedy Elector Princes were moved by mere words and joined him?”

Putting himself in that situation made Fernan feel like he was breaking out in hives. Free cooperation? What? Were they looking to exploit the situation?

That wasn’t even the worst part. The next section was just as ridiculous.

They disappeared just because they were told to go back? Not even worth reading further. Not even the church scriptures are this bad.

Scoffing, Fernan pushed the book aside and opened the next one without hesitation. The First Emperor and the Royal Knights.

It offered a detailed account of how the First Emperor met the Royal Knights and how the Royal Knight system was established.

There was also a story about Gardner Alfenfarsen, the first Royal Knight and the ego of the Ego Sword.

Supposedly, Gardner Alfenfarsen broke a tooth during his first meeting with the emperor for acting arrogantly—though who knew if that was true.

‘That’s something I can ask him directly.’

Only one man couldn’t have done such a thing. The next book was King Kolomo and the 72 Demons.

“King Kolomo sacrificed his entire kingdom to summon demons. The number of demons summoned from hell reached 72…”

The 72nd demon, Andromalius. A man with a snake coiled around his arm.

The 71st demon, Dantalion. A demon that changes appearance to mimic humans and sow confusion.

The 70th demon…

Whether because a thousand years had passed or the records were sparse to begin with, the information on the demons was extremely brief and vague.

‘Disappointing. Well, the family library didn’t have much either.’

Fernan closed the last book. Despite being the renowned library of the Imperial Academy, all the books lacked content.

‘Even after a thousand years, how can things be so incomplete?’

The Empire had built and maintained countless libraries, so dedicated was it to preserving records. Unless someone had erased the information intentionally, it made no sense that so little remained.

Having finished his business, Fernan returned the books to their shelves and headed back to the dormitory.

His assistant greeted him upon arrival.

“Where have you been since morning, Young Master?”

“I stopped by the library for a bit. What is it?”

“The item you requested has arrived.”

The assistant handed him a small box.

“You’re here.”

“Why did you need this so suddenly? Don’t you already have one?”

“I thought maybe it wouldn’t be enough. Just to be sure.”

“Excuse me? Sure of what?”

“There’s something. That’s all.”

Fernan took the box and put back on the coat he had taken off earlier.

“Where are you going now?”

“I’m going to the gym. Take this to Luina Bercheff.”

“A letter? Is this a love letter?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Just tell her I’m waiting and that she should come out as soon as possible.”

“Understood.”

Now that everything was ready, it was time to prove his worth—just as he had promised.

Fernan headed to the training hall.

***

Training hall of the Academy, prepared for students.

Luina stood with a sword in hand. Opposite her, Fernan Pellenberg faced her, holding a staff.

“I still don’t quite understand. What exactly does this mean?”

“We’re face to face in the training hall. Do I really need to explain more?”

“…You seriously want to fight me?”

“I already told you. Even though I’m only ranked tenth and you’re the runner-up, I’ll prove I lack nothing. And the most direct and undeniable way is through strength.”

Given his unwavering confidence, it was clear Fernan was serious.

“You really think you can win?”

“If you beat me, I’ll give you chocolate.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“I heard you like chocolate. Was I wrong?”

“Have you been spying on me?”

“I wouldn’t bother putting in that much effort just for you.”

Simply put:

“I looked up the personal records of all the ranked students.”

“…How insolent.”

Fernan shrugged. Luina’s face twisted with disgust. She gripped her sword hilt more tightly.

“If you really want this, fine. Let’s see this so-called ‘proof’ of yours.”

Despite her words, Luina didn’t believe Fernan had any chance of defeating her.

Not that Fernan Pellenberg was weak.

Ranking tenth in the Academy—home to countless prodigies—and even qualifying for a seat in Ravidus Hall, no matter how low his rank, was undeniable proof of talent.

But there was still a clear gap between second and tenth.

Although first-year sword and magic students rarely clashed, it wasn’t like it never happened.

And those few occasions were enough to judge Fernan’s skills. Exactly what you’d expect from someone in tenth place: nothing more, nothing less.

‘Unless something happened over winter break…?’

Still, she couldn’t understand this behavior.

“I’ll give you the first strike.”

“With pleasure.”

Fernan began chanting a spell. The mana crystal embedded in the tip of his staff absorbed the surrounding mana.

Rumble!

The ground shook. Dozens of stones materialized in the air and came crashing down toward Luina.

“…!”

She calmed her breathing, gathered aura in her legs, and dashed forward.

Her body shot out like an arrow. Her speed became a weapon itself. The blade cut through the falling rocks as she charged directly at the mage.

Slash!

She struck. But no blow landed. The illusion vanished. Fernan was already far behind.

But Luina was unfazed.

She accelerated her aura in mid-air and spun the opposite direction. Like a wild warhorse, she attacked straight into a wall of stone spikes.

—!

Debris flew in every direction. Behind the shattered wall, she faced hundreds of stone spears, but dove in anyway.

Her sword was heavy, but not clumsy. Fierce, but not reckless. Sometimes heavy, sometimes soft, sometimes graceful.

She pierced, deflected, and slashed through the spears. And finally, she reached her target. But what awaited her wasn’t Fernan.

It was an even greater spell. A shadow loomed above her. A massive boulder torn straight from the training hall floor.

‘…Did he break the floor of the training hall?’

The hall had been magically reinforced to withstand even powerful impacts. This was unexpected. The thought didn’t last long. The boulder dropped.

A moment’s hesitation made it too late to dodge.

Boom!

Though she blocked it, her body screamed in pain. It felt like slamming into a siege weapon. The floor shattered, her feet sank into the ground.

‘Was he hiding his strength…?!’

For the first time, after taking a clean hit, Luina set aside all underestimation of Fernan.

She bit her lip and held her breath. As her heart pounded faster, her aura core responded.

A blue aura wrapped her entirely. A massive sword aura surged from her.

And just as she was about to swing her sword—

A barrage fell. Like before, giant boulders.

At the same time, the ground began to tremble as if an earthquake had struck.

‘This is insane…!’

Casting high-level spells like this repeatedly—and even simultaneously? How much mana does he have?

Luina blocked again and again. The magical storm was relentless, giving her no room to counterattack. The constant pressure grew, and a trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth.

“At this rate, I’ll lose.”

She was nothing more than a training dummy, taking a one-sided beating. From someone she considered inferior.

Her pride couldn’t allow it. Even while withstanding the assault, she pushed forward. When a spell knocked her back, she advanced two steps.

And finally, when she caught her opponent—

“I surrender.”

Fernan raised both hands. Luina’s sword stopped just short of his nose.

He collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.

“…Are you mocking me right now?”

At his calm expression, she clenched her teeth.

“Mocking? I ran out of mana. A mage without mana can’t beat a knight, right?”

It wasn’t an excuse or an act. Her sharp knightly instincts told her it was true.

“Or are you saying a proud knight who values chivalry is going to take out their frustration on someone who surrendered? Just because you were being beaten one-sidedly?”

“…I’d never do that.”

Indeed, Fernan had run out of mana. In his current state, he couldn’t beat Luina.

Realizing he couldn’t win through conventional means, he gambled everything—and she overcame it. Which meant, in the end, her victory was real.

Still, even with that in mind—she, the runner-up, had almost lost to the tenth-place student. Someone she was sure she could beat.

The sheer volume of mana he poured into those reckless attacks surpassed anything she could’ve imagined.

“So, what kind of chocolate do you want? My family’s whiskey truffles? The famous World Tree bark chocolate from Freedian? Or perhaps Kraken ink chocolate from the Kingdom of Frazia…?”

“…You.”

It was then that Luina realized.

“What?”

She had a million questions. But after thinking again and again, only one simple, instinctive word came out.

“Obviously.”

And Fernan’s response:

“A merchant doesn’t step forward.”

It was a world of meaning.

***

“…Did you fight an ogre or something?”

His clothes were torn and his hair disheveled. It was an unfamiliar sight for Fernan, who was always impeccably dressed.

His assistant asked with a grimace.

“There are no ogres in the academy. Maybe in the northern mountains.”

“So then what happened?”

Fernan didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled items from a subspace. They were shattered orbs.

“Those are five mana amplifiers and storage units I gave you less than two hours ago! And they’re all broken? Do you know how expensive those are?”

“I made an investment in the future.”

“Whoever you fought, looks like they hit you in the head. I’m calling a healing mage.”

“Do I look like someone who gets beaten up out there?”

“Is this another side effect from getting struck by lightning?”

“I’m perfectly fine.”

“Then it must’ve been Luina Bercheff.”

Fernan made a slight nod.

“Maybe it’s presumptuous, but if it’s not too much, may I ask something?”

“Go ahead.”

“Since I started serving you, I’ve been able to understand your motives in almost everything. Everything always had a clear reason or logic.”

“But this time you can’t figure it out?”

“Exactly.”

It was natural. He had wiped out the Bercheff family’s debt for three years and decided to support Luina Bercheff.

The only thing he’d get in return was the chance to be her partner.

Compared to the money invested and the Bercheff family’s secret sword technique, it was a terrible deal. No one in House Pellenberg would ever accept something so absurd.

If it hadn’t been for the prophecy, Fernan wouldn’t have either.

“That’s rude.”

That’s why Fernan had no real foundation or explanation to justify it.

In times like this, authority was the best tool. After all, that’s what power was for.

“You’ll understand when the time comes.”

“If you say so, I understand. I’ll contact the family and request more magical tools.”

“As many as possible.”

“By the way, have you written the letter to the Duke?”

“Here it is.”

“I’ll make sure it’s delivered properly. Oh, and why haven’t you been working lately?”

“I’ve been busy. I’ll get back to it soon, so stop nagging. Got it.”

The assistant left.

“Hmph.”

Fernan turned his gaze toward the window and calmly sipped his coffee. The letter had been sent. There was no turning back now.

“Damn it. They’re not going to disown me for this… right?”

If he were my son, I’d probably disown him too. Ripples stirred the once-still surface of his coffee.

***

And a few days later, a reply came from the Duke of Pellenberg.

It was brief and to the point.

[You’ve been possessed by a demon.]

Which only made the impact that much worse.

“…I’m screwed.”

Fernan knew it in his gut—he was completely screwed.