"Waaaaaaah!"
"Kill them all!"
"Monsters! Be careful!"
Smoke rose from all directions.
Arrows and spells flew through the air as screams and roars filled the battlefield.
The students who had returned from the desert were met by hordes of monsters and fiends that attacked the fortress walls without pause.
There were easily more than two hundred of them — charging without thought or fear.
Their sheer number was dizzying; the noise was deafening; the stench made one's nose go numb.
This was a battlefield.
This was war.
And with the demons' return, this would be the future that awaited humankind.
ROAAAR!
A scorpion-like beast climbing the tall fortress wall was crushed — its tail blocked by a rock, its hard carapace shattered by flying stones, and its head smashed to pieces before it could even scream.
Fernand's eyes turned again to the battlefield.
Even in the chaos, two figures shone above all.
The hero of light, Aint Armian, the one recognized by the prophecy as the nemesis of demons—
And his destined companion, the officially anointed Royal Knight (True), Ruina Berchev, chosen by the first of the Royal Knights.
Fernand smiled contentedly.
Their growth was the future of the world. The more monsters and demons they slew, the more peace would return to the land.
"And I'll just pick up the crumbs that fall from their table."
They weren't ordinary crumbs — they were from demons and prophecy itself. With those, Fernand Pellonberg would build a golden fortress that no one could ever rival.
The thought alone made him grin.
Good. Let it continue just like this.
The Frontline Fortress, Aicrud
"The number of monsters has decreased."
Aicrud — one of the seven fortresses forming Altriarch's defensive wall, standing at the foremost line, always the first to face the monsters.
Naturally, it housed the largest garrison and saw the most battles.
But recently, the number of monsters attacking Aicrud had sharply declined — especially fiends; there were barely ten at most.
The reason was clear.
The fiend captured while attacking the desert tribes — Byran, who had orchestrated artificial monster waves — was gone. With him captured, there was no one left to lead them.
"So that's the end of everything related to the Bell of Fasa?"
Byran's original goal had been to destroy the Bell of Fasa.
But after the Academy's great purge of fiends not long ago, perhaps this was just their last desperate act — a flashy attack before their existence was exposed to the world.
Now that their ringleader was dead, their plan to destroy the Bell was likely over.
"Then when was the Bell supposed to be destroyed in the original timeline?"
At least not this time — the prophecy made no mention of it.
And there was no way the prophecy would omit something as significant as the destruction (or near-destruction) of the Bell of Fasa.
"This will end without major incident."
With the summoner captured, things would soon calm down.
The world-shaking surge of monsters would come to a close.
"This is probably the most uneventful prophecy so far… maybe even better."
They'd captured the one who aimed for the Bell, and Aint had even won over the desert tribes.
Aside from the uncertainty of how much the future might shift, everything was perfect.
Thud! Thud!
"Stay still."
Grooooan!
"When are you going to actually fight, huh? …Sorry, that was harsh."
…
When Fernand looked, the creature beside him wore an expression like it had lost its homeland.
…That shocked?
"Fine, during the break I'll find a day to let you fight some monsters."
That wouldn't be hard — just head somewhere isolated, no risk of revealing Wooden's existence.
"But that Rudger guy… his eyes were burning with something fierce."
He must have realized it after seeing Aint fight — that Aint had regained his clan's secret swordsmanship.
And honestly, anyone who hadn't noticed would be a fool.
"Now the real story begins. Rudger — no, the entire Schwaben clan — will start to keep Aint in check."
That left Fernand with three options:
Actively help Aint and oppose Schwaben.
Support Aint indirectly while avoiding open conflict.
Stay neutral.
But given that the prophecies were coming true one by one, the third option wasn't really an option.
If Aint fell, so would the future of the world.
"No need to take unnecessary risks. Aint can handle himself. I'll just keep my distance and step in only for the truly dangerous parts…"
Even if the prophecy hadn't shown it, Rudger in the original timeline must have noticed Aint's regained swordsmanship too — just a matter of sooner or later.
Schwaben's interference was inevitable.
Aint would overcome it all, even without Fernand's help.
BOOM!
An orc charging at Fernand was suddenly flung back as if struck by a carriage.
"What are you daydreaming about!?"
Ruina, who had physically pushed the orc away, shouted angrily.
"I just had something to think about."
"And that's something to proudly say right now?!"
"It wasn't that dangerous. I always carry defensive artifacts."
Indeed, every bracelet and ring Fernand wore contained magic. Even if the orc's rusted axe had struck him, the barrier would've blocked it — and the creature would've been impaled by a stone spear soon after.
"…Anyway, thank you."
"…Feels like you're expecting me to bow and accept your gratitude."
"It's not that serious—"
Suddenly, pain throbbed in Fernand's head. His vision blurred.
"Another revelation? But the situation here isn't even over yet…"
Or perhaps, with the fiend's attack concluded, the prophecy's next event was beginning.
The scenes unfolded before his eyes—
The Prophecy
─────!
A deafening explosion echoed through the quiet city of Artque.
Monsters burst from the ground, attacking the citizens.
"Monsters!"
"Run!"
"How did they get in here?!"
The alarm bells rang across the city, and soldiers scrambled in panic.
The beginning — a monster attack on Artque.
"Are they targeting the Bell of Fasa?"
Considering the fiend's original goal, it was entirely possible.
No one had foreseen it.
The capital of Altriarch, Artque, being attacked by monsters — unthinkable.
Panic spread across the city.
Even after countless wars, no one had ever witnessed monsters invading the heart of Artque itself.
Flames began to rise throughout the city.
Amid the chaos, strange movements approached the Bell of Fasa — unseen by anyone.
Just as expected.
And among those caught in the attack… were the Academy students.
They had returned to Artque that very day, on their way back from their assignment in Altriarch.
"An attack?!"
"Explosion!"
—"Monsters! Monsters!"
The first to sense the ominous magical energy from all directions was Gardner.
Under the professors' command, the academy students rushed into the city to battle the invading monsters.
And it was Gardner who detected a new, powerful surge of magic.
"I sense an unusually strong magical aura… in this direction—"
Then came an ear-splitting explosion.
At that very moment, Gardner realized their true objective.
"It's a decoy!"
"The Bell of Fasa! The Bell is in danger!"
"The monster wave is a distraction—the real goal is the Bell of Fasa!"
The fiend's plan to target the Bell of Fasa was nearly perfect.
With most of the troops deployed outside the city to block the monster wave, and the people thrown into chaos, Artque was unable to mount an effective defense.
Only one thing had not gone according to plan—
Aint Armian and his sword, Sir Gardner Alpenparsen.
"It won't go your way, filthy fiend."
"Aint Armian? How are you here so soon?"
Aint's blade flashed toward the fiend's neck, a streak of light like lightning. The fiend leapt back, barely evading the strike.
"Insolent brat! Fine, this saves me the trouble. I regretted not killing you before, but now you've walked straight into hell yourself!"
The fiend's magic flared violently, exploding outward.
Even weakened by the power of light, its sheer magnitude was more than Aint could withstand.
All he could do was endure; wounds multiplied across his body.
Then—salvation came.
Slash!
A razor-sharp strike severed the mass of writhing dark energy between them.
Someone had stepped in between Aint and the fiend.
"And who might you be?"
"His instructor."
It was Professor Grad, who had followed out of concern for Aint's reckless pursuit.
The prophecy continued—
but all of it spoke only of the Bell of Fasa.
How the fiend attempted to destroy it.
How it brought the monsters into Artque.
And how it failed.
The spell formations engraved into the Bell of Fasa were far stronger than the fiend had anticipated.
Under the combined assault of Professor Grad and Aint, the fiend could not withstand the attack.
The unexpected intervention of a powerhouse like Grad had shattered the fiend's plan from its foundation.
"So it connects directly… and it's stopped even without my interference."
With the fiend already captured, the chance of disaster was now even lower.
The Bell of Fasa seemed to be in no danger at all.
When Fernand opened his eyes, Ruina's face was hovering above him—her bright blue eyes shining like aquamarine.
"…Are you all right?"
"I'm fine."
By now, he could endure the pain without even flinching.
"You're drenched in sweat. Don't tell me it's another headache?"
He couldn't completely control his body's reactions.
"It's nothing."
"How can you say that when you're covered in cold sweat? Are you sure it's not something serious?"
"The family healers examined me thoroughly. There's nothing wrong. I'm just hot, that's all."
"It's well past summer. That excuse doesn't work anymore."
"There—monster."
Slash!
Ruina's sword split a scorpion beast cleanly in two.
That was the last one.
The battle was over.
And so was the academy's deployment.
"Good work, everyone. You've had quite an experience. I can confidently say this was the most valuable field exercise the academy has ever conducted."
Naturally—how many students could say they'd fought a fiend and attended a desert tribe's festival during training?
"Rest for the day. Tomorrow, we'll pay our respects to His Excellency and then return to Artque. From there, the teleportation circle will take us straight back to the academy. Any questions?"
"None, sir!"
The students spent the night at their assigned lodgings and departed for Artque the next morning.
This time, they were escorted by the Crimson Blood Knights, and no incidents occurred along the way.
"Plenty to do once I'm back… especially regarding that Gissemond bastard."
Aside from being reminded of the need to stay wary of Gissemond Ert after passing the cliff where the Itarium had been buried, everything seemed peaceful.
But that peace—
—was shattered the moment they entered Artque, the capital of Altriarch.
Ding… Ding… Ding… Ding…
The alarm bells rang out.
"An attack!"
"Monsters!"
Screeeeeech!
Rooooar!
The cries of monsters and the screams of people mingled in chaos.
Smoke was rising from all over the city.
"…An attack?"
"The capital is under siege?"
All city gates slammed shut as soldiers began controlling the civilians.
But the academy students, under the Crimson Blood Knights' escort, were allowed inside.
Fortunately, by the time they entered, most of the situation seemed contained.
Even with many troops still stationed on the outer walls, Artque was still Artque—
the capital of Altriarch.
Corpses of monsters and fiends littered the streets, but considering the suddenness of the attack, the damage seemed minimal.
Just as Fernand began to feel relief—
──────!
"Ugh! Aaaaah!"
"My ears—my ears!"
A sound unlike anything they'd ever heard shook the entire city.
Fernand clutched his ears and collapsed; the pain was unbearable, like his eardrums would burst.
A high-pitched ringing filled his head.
He could barely stay conscious.
After what felt like ages, he managed to come to his senses—
and realized someone was holding his hand.
"…Are you all right?"
It was Ruina, grimacing as she endured the shock.
"…What the hell was that?"
"Something happened in the city. It sounded… like a bell ringing."
"A bell?"
Wait—where was the Bell of Fasa?
"I sense… magic! A powerful one!"
At that moment, Aint shouted and bolted forward.
For some reason, the sight overlapped perfectly with the lines from the prophecy.
A dark premonition stabbed through Fernand's mind, and before he realized it, he was running after Aint.
When they arrived, knights and soldiers of Altriarch were already trying to contain the panicked citizens.
Many of the grand houses surrounding the Bell—houses whose prices had soared thanks to its proximity—were reduced to rubble.
Cries and screams filled the air.
"You can't go in there!"
The soldiers blocked them from approaching any closer to the Bell.
But Fernand could see enough.
Through the settling dust and debris, he saw it—
The Bell of Fasa was no longer the sacred relic he knew.
"…"
Only shattered fragments remained—
pieces of what used to be the Bell of Fasa.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
The future had changed.
The Bell of Fasa had been destroyed.
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