"Ah..."
"Ah! I can speak again," William said, brushing the sweat from his forehead.
"For a second there, I thought you actually took away my voice. So that's one of the effects, huh? Ariston's little trip really did bear fruit."
He straightened his posture.
"Amon, with this final injection, you are the project's third survivor. You are our greatest success to date."
"...Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine someone surviving the blood of a Demon King. You truly are one of a kind, Amon."
Did I hear that right?
Is that what this trait is...?
Did these maniacs seriously capture a Demon King?
Just how...?
"There it is."
William chuckled.
"That's the curiosity I've been dying to see. Ever since you arrived, it looked like you knew exactly what this project was, and you didn't seek answers. So while I'm still here, Amon, would you like to satisfy your curiosity?"
Obviously.
"What is the point of all of this, really?"
The 'oh we're just curious about the limits' bullshit is just too unbelievable.
And as expected, I was right.
"That's simple. We want to create the perfect human. Someone who could be used as both a weapon against humanity and the demonic kind."
He pointed at me.
"You are our third and most potential-filled weapon. I can't wait to see just how far you'll grow with these gifts we bestowed on you."
"..."
For starters, I won't be this guy's weapon.
I'm sure he told me this, banking on the belief that whatever poison he put in those syringes did something to me.
They didn't.
I had no intention of being controlled.
"You're mentioning 'we' a lot. Who are you people?"
"Us? Well, we're no one that important."
William chuckled and crossed his legs.
"We are just a gathering of likeminded individuals. That's all you need to know for now, Amon."
It kind of reminds me of the 12 Calamities.
People whose sole purpose is to eliminate all the demons.
But I highly doubted this guy was a part of that group.
And since that was the case, his group's also a mystery to me.
Regardless of that, I felt my strength returning, and so I sat up, meeting his gaze.
I wanted to leave.
But I still had one more question that had been gnawing at my mind for the last couple of minutes.
"Do you really have a Demon King locked up somewhere?"
"Oh, of course not," William replied, shaking his head. "Not even Ariston can defeat a Demon King. But I have heard Ariston's very charming. So charming, in fact, he managed to recruit a Demon King to our cause."
And by now... I was completely lost.
The Demon Kings were the worst of the worst, and every single one of them hated humans.
Yet William's telling me the headmaster somehow managed to convince one of the Demon Kings to help them...?
My head spun from just how little the game's knowledge was helping me right now.
If anything, it wasn't helping me at all.
"Now then, since you're awake and dandy, I believe it's time."
William stood up and dusted himself off.
Then he leaned in slightly.
All of a sudden, his pupils dilated as he began speaking.
"You will forget everything that has happened here. You will forget who was a part of this project, and you will forget my face in particular."
"Your call sign is Astraea, and when you hear us calling out to you, you must respond."
"Do you understand, Astraea?"
Huh.
So he has two Gifts?
A black fire Gift and a brainwashing Gift?
...Or something?
I can't say I felt anything though.
"Yes."
"Good."
William chuckled and then snapped his fingers.
A few seconds passed, then a portal appeared out of thin air.
The city of Aldraazan was on the other side.
Specifically, my house.
"This is your destination. All your charges have been dropped, and you may return to the academy as soon as tomorrow. Now then, until we meet again, Astraea."
"..."
I purposefully acted all robotic as I approached the portal, but just as I was about to step through...
"Pfft... Hahaha!"
William burst out laughing.
When I turned around, he pointed at me and laughed even harder.
"Haha! That's a funny reaction. No, my Gift isn't mind control or anything of the sort. I was merely making a joke."
Then, to my surprise, he flicked his wrist, and I began slightly levitating off the ground.
"Telekinesis isn't the most uncommon Gift there is in this world, Amon. However, do remember that as much as you might dislike us and have mixed opinions about our methods, I'm sure, with due time and perhaps a few more conversations, you'll start to understand us better."
"Oh!"
His smirk twisted unnaturally.
"I hope you enjoyed reading the book I wrote for you. I can't wait to see how you put those concepts into practice."
My eyes widened, and right as I was about to speak, William waved and pushed me through the portal.
Then, with another snap of his fingers, he closed the portal right in my face.
I just stared at where the portal had been.
He was the person who wrote The Mastery of Telekinesis?
And he also knew that I read it.
Was this guy watching me all this time?
Or was it the headmaster who told him all about me?
Regardless of whatever he knew about me, I was wary of how easily I got out of there.
So I double-checked my body, then triple-checked...
There was nothing suspicious.
Still...
Just what kind of group could these people be?
William and the headmaster... they even had a Demon King on their side, as well as two more people like me.
I didn't know how to feel.
But I also stood by my earlier decision.
I wasn't going to follow the plot of the game anymore.
Isabelle was more powerful than before, and Kevin seemed a little stronger too.
So ultimately, all they needed now was information.
I was going to tell them about the events that would happen in the future.
That'll be enough.
Though deep down I knew I wouldn't be able to stay away from them for long.
In fact, the descent of demons in less than a year was going to unite all of humanity.
But I had my own goals I wanted to achieve until then.
Equip the main character and the heroines with knowledge so they don't die.
Expand Evelyn's control over the continent's underworld.
Then lastly, find Clementine and also become stronger.
They were simple goals, but their impact was drastic.
So with that in mind, I entered my house, and after looking around for a while, I turned toward one room in particular.
It was the office that belonged to Amon's father.
In the game, he never really entered that office.
I didn't have the gall to enter it either.
But since I was planning to move out very soon, the least I could do was pay that office a visit.
So that's exactly what I did.