The demonic energy of the aberrant breed explodes.
Mercenaries are blown away, and Varus pushes forward through the gap.
'No…!'
He tries to scream, but no sound comes out.
─!
With a thunderous crash, Varus is hurled back.
The tendril-like demonic energy lashes out and engulfs his fallen body.
Immediately afterward, a body that had remained motionless until now steps forward.
Flash—
A pure white radiance flares, cutting through every trace of the demonic energy.
Fueled by fury, the brilliant light surges straight toward the evil.
"Impossible…! Already this strong? As I thought, you can never be allowed to live!"
With the monster's roar, light and darkness collide.
At that moment, Aint opened his eyes.
"..."
He had realized midway that it was a dream.
A replay of the past—something that would never have happened had he been just a bit stronger.
— Your clothes are soaked with sweat. You dreamed it again?
"Yes. I can't seem to shake it off."
— A useless anxiety.
— That filthy aberrant breed was cut down by your sword in the end.
— Varus was injured, but he survived. The healers said with proper rehabilitation he could recover fully. You have no need to worry further.
Gardner's words were true.
Varus had been gravely wounded and in danger, but he survived.
The Elixir the Mercenary King brought purged the demonic energy completely and even spurred his growth—a blessing in disguise.
And the aberrant breed had fallen to Aint's hand.
"…But can that really be called victory?"
The process had been anything but smooth.
Driven by anger at Varus's injury and his own desperation to survive, Aint had fought with frenzied ferocity, and from that came new insight.
It had been nothing but luck.
— Not luck.
— Insight only comes to those prepared for it.
— Well, you do owe that rich fool Fernan. If not for the Saintbird's Heart he gave you, you'd be a corpse by now.
Indeed. Aint nodded.
Because of Fernan's intervention, Aint had been reevaluated more highly.
But they did not realize that an even stronger aberrant breed had appeared.
"I know. I know all of that…"
— You're afraid, then? If even an aberrant breed was this much trouble, how could you ever stand against a true demon?
The sharp truth made Aint nod carefully.
Neither his Armian bloodline, nor his radiant swordsmanship said to be the bane of demons, nor his pride in being chosen by the first Emperor helped him at this moment.
— Yes, as you are now, you could not stand against demons. That much is certain.
"…But I'm not the same as I was before, right?"
— …Was that too obvious?
"That's the kind of line you hear all the time in plays. Never thought I'd hear it for real."
Still, it helps a little. Aint gave a faint smile.
"You're right, Gardner."
When he first entered the academy, Aint had ranked 38th. A bit unusual, but nothing special within the academy.
That changed.
Meeting Gardner, he had defeated Anton, who ranked 10th.
He had survived ambushes from aberrant breeds and fought sea serpents, growing stronger still.
And now, though his life had been at risk, Aint had lived through it.
If it had been the Aint from before the academy, he wouldn't have even resisted properly, let alone survived.
Just as Gardner said, he had grown—and at a terrifying pace.
"Varus nearly died, but survived. I fought the aberrant breed and won. The Mercenary King has learned of their existence and sworn to eradicate them. Things have turned out well."
Indeed, the situation had improved greatly.
"As long as some demon doesn't suddenly appear out of nowhere, there shouldn't be any problems."
Aint let himself hope.
— Right. And demons aren't some vermin crawling about the streets. They won't just pop up suddenly.
Knock knock—
"Sir Aint, Sir Varus is asking if you'd join him for dinner. Do you have time?"
"Of course."
Having shaken off his dark thoughts, Aint stepped out with a bright expression.
"Even seeing it with my own eyes, I can't believe it. You actually killed that monster?"
"You didn't exactly see it, did you?"
"Oh, so the guy who got knocked out before the real fight started should shut up?"
"You're calling me trash now?"
"That's right."
Pffft—both Varus and Aint burst into laughter.
"How's mercenary work? Suits you?"
"I'm starting to get used to it."
After Varus woke up, Aint's daily life had grown fairly steady.
He carried out missions with the surviving Black Spear mercenaries, gaining experience in both their lifestyle and in real combat. Between missions, he visited Varus's sickbed.
"Ogre! Spread out and surround it!"
"Don't fight head-on! Wear it down slowly!"
From relatively simple subjugation requests—
"This isn't supposed to be gnoll territory…"
"Protect the wagon! The cargo is worth more than your lives!"
To escort missions—
"We want to reach Alves in three days."
"To make it in three days, we'd have to pass through the Kalkhan Gorge."
"That's why we hired mercenaries. Dangerous work pays well."
Even VIP escorts.
In about forty days, Aint had become a seasoned mercenary who had flawlessly completed seven missions.
"At least by appearances, you'd pass as a mercenary. Nobody would believe an Armian noble heir would wear battered leather armor and work as a sellsword."
"I wouldn't have believed it myself, not long ago."
Even a fallen imperial family was still imperial.
It was said that even a rich household takes three years to collapse completely. How much more so for an empire that had ruled nearly nine centuries?
Aint had never thought he'd wear smelly leather armor, sleep rough on the ground, and gnaw dried jerky.
— And that's why this mercenary stint is valuable.
— Complaining about tough jerky… In my time, I chewed through monsters while fighting demons.
Aint didn't bother replying. Varus checked the calendar.
"You're leaving tomorrow?"
"Yeah."
"Now that I think about it, the new semester's right around the corner."
The long break had only two weeks left. Even if he left tomorrow, it would take about a week to reach the academy.
After that, the second semester would finally begin.
"…I was supposed to go too."
"Hurry up and recover so you can come back."
"I've filed for a leave this semester."
Though he was recovering quickly, returning to school within the year was impossible when rehabilitation was factored in.
There was no way he could keep up with the other students in his condition.
"Well, missing a semester isn't a big deal. I can catch up with a seasonal course if I work hard enough. What's disappointing is not being able to take part in the festival."
The Empire's Foundation Day.
The day the first Emperor proclaimed the Empire had been the greatest holiday of the thousand-year-long dynasty, celebrated with festivals across the realm. The academy was no exception.
Especially the jousting competition of the Knight Faculty and the magical duels of the Magic Faculty carried special weight.
"The jousting match was the perfect chance to smash some knight's jaw and make the Black Spear Mercenary Corps' name known…!"
Indeed, Varus's skill in mounted combat was extraordinary. If he had entered, he surely would have achieved a meaningful result.
"I'll do my best in your stead."
"Why would you? Sure, after living as a mercenary together, you can call yourself part of the Black Spear Corps, but my role is mine to handle."
Still—
"Just don't lose while carrying our banner. If you do, don't mention you were part of our corps. It'd hurt our reputation."
"My rank's higher than yours, you know?"
"Individual ranking and reputation aren't the same thing."
Aint and Varus looked at each other and chuckled.
For some reason, Aint felt warm inside. This mercenary journey had been more than real combat experience—it had given him a trustworthy friend, no, a comrade-in-arms.
"Anyway, I'll be off."
"Yeah, see you next time."
Aint boarded a ship and headed back to the academy.
After the recent yacht club incident, there were plenty of patrol ships in the academy's waters.
'Come to think of it, weren't they establishing a Naval Combat Studies course?'
After such chaos, it was only natural to prepare for battles at sea.
The ship glided smoothly over the waves until it reached the academy. The harbor teemed with students returning from vacation.
— Where are you going? You don't belong in those smelly dorms anymore. You're supposed to head to the Rabidus Hall.
"Ah, right. That's true."
Since becoming runner-up, his dorm had been reassigned, and he remembered moving his belongings there right after the term ended.
"Hard to believe I'm returning here with my own achievements. It feels surreal."
Aint marveled at the stately elegance of Rabidus Hall. Before, he had only visited as Berian's guest. Now he was a rightful resident.
"Welcome back, Sir Aint. Allow us to escort you."
As he entered the lobby, maids greeted him warmly. Just then, he ran into Berian.
"Berian, long time no see."
"Aint? So you're finally back. Seems becoming runner-up has made you lazy?"
"Not exactly. Where are you headed?"
"To see Senior Fernan."
"Senior Fernan? I'll come too. I have things I need to say to him as well."
About the aberrant breed they had encountered in the Kingdom of Frajia. He had sent one letter, but there was much more to discuss in person.
"…Do as you please."
Berian nodded reluctantly.
"Did you visit your family during the break?"
"No. I took seasonal classes."
"Oh, right. You mentioned that."
"And you? Your aura feels… sharper."
"I spent some time in Frajia."
"Frajia? Mercenary work?"
"How'd you guess?"
"Obvious, isn't it?"
There were two places in the world with the most mercenaries: one was Berchef, the other Frajia.
For the simple reason that both regions teemed with monsters worth money to hunt.
"So that's why you've got that rough edge now."
"Does it show that much?"
"The kid who used to look so mild suddenly turned sharp—if that didn't show, now that would be strange."
With that, the conversation died for a moment.
"So… where are we going right now?"
"The southern forest."
"Senior Fernan is there? Why?"
"You'll see when we get there. Oh, right—he told me to bring you as soon as you returned. So I suppose it's fine if you come along."
"Me? Why me?"
"That I don't know. Stop pestering me."
Silence settled again.
When at last they stepped into the deeper part of the forest, a strange sensation pricked at Aint's senses.
"…Demonic energy?"
— It's demonic energy.
That now all-too-familiar disgust.
Aint froze. And in that instant—
Rrrrmmm—!
Not far away, a massive black trunk shot vertically into the sky, scattering shockwaves as it pierced the air.
"…Tch!"
"What the hell is that…!"
The blast of force swept the surroundings. Aint and Berian hunched down, groaning.
─!
The towering trunk radiated waves skyward. An opaque dome of demonic energy spread across the forest.
— …That's a barrier!
"…What the hell is going on?!"
"Berian! What's in there?!"
"…A branch."
"A branch?"
"A branch of the World Tree. Half-corrupted."
"…What did you just say?"
Aint already knew Fernan had secured a branch of the World Tree.
But this?
— They said its location was top secret, not even told to us. How does this guy know?!
— Wait. Did you just say the branch of the World Tree is corrupted by demonic energy? Then that thing…?
These lunatics. What kind of idiots manage the World Tree like this? Gardner spat curses.
And then—
─!
An inhuman noise, impossible to describe in human language, reverberated through the barrier.
──!
It was the most revolting, skin-crawling scream.
"…A tree?"
The trunks twisted together into a massive tree.
And that tree shot upward, piercing the heavens themselves.
"…The space itself is breaking?"
Berian's mouth fell open. Aint followed his gaze.
Along the path the branches extended, the sky cracked, and shattered fragments rained to the ground.
— No…!
— No, it can't be! This is impossible!
'What is it, damn it?!'
— If my guess is right, then this is…!
At that moment, a pale white hand thrust out from the fissure.
Crk-crk-crkk! As it pried the rift wider, the collapse of space accelerated.
The barrier brimmed with suffocating demonic energy. Aint's face went ashen.
— …A demon.
The hand was followed by an arm, then a head and torso.
— A demon is descending…!
A humanoid, but no human. And coiled around its arm was a serpent.
"…Andromalius."
The 72nd demon—Andromalius had descended.
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