The Prologue chapters take place six months AFTER the start of the story.
***
'Hm... I guess he's not coming to class today.'
Olivia Del Rey, a Professor at the prestigious Altreim Magic Academy, was currently lost in thought.
She had momentarily forgotten about the full classroom in front of her.
Olivia's amber eyes, for close to a minute now, remained on the swaying leaves of the trees beyond the classroom's window.
It was a sunny and windy day.
No one seemed to be approaching the building.
'I should be happy about this but...'
It would have been the transfer student's third day of class.
The second had been particularly bad, though it hadn't been his fault at all.
Nevertheless, Olivia had been feeling "sick" since his arrival.
More like, she's been feeling weird. Heated, though she would die before admitting that.
Olivia had barely been able to fall asleep the night before, her body twisting and turning on the mattress.
She had hoped that he wouldn't show up. That he would quit. That she could go back to being a respected and diligent Professor.
Because his presence made her feel... Like she was about to turn into a different kind of Professor.
'I should be happy, and yet...'
Olivia couldn't shake the disappointment.
There was something about him.
He was extremely good-looking, sure. Very tall, yes.
But that wasn't all there was to it.
He was perfectly polite and respectful. Yet, there was something wild about him, an aura of danger that hung around him.
Olivia Del Rey had steered away from danger all her life. Hence, she had become a Professor, despite having the power and aptitude to be something more.
The whispers of her students brought her back into the classroom.
"Oh, my god, he's here..."
"I can't believe I missed the last two days of school..."
"Right? I'd come to class just to stare at him..."
"He must be at least 6'4 or something..."
"Who cares about how tall he is? He's from the boonies."
"Shut up, Jack."
Olivia Del Rey's heart started beating powerfully before her gaze could even find the door he was about to walk through.
'He's here!' The Professor gulped, her lips twitching as if they were unsure whether to curl up into a smile or down into a grimace. 'He's...'
Olivia froze as her amber eyes found him.
There it was again. That aura of danger that made her lips twitch.
Were he not Human, and such an angelic one at that, she could have sworn he was a Monster, a Demon, or some other malevolent entity.
"Sorry." He scratched his head with a polite and almost awkward smile. "I'm still having trouble making it on time."
His voice was sweet.
His long purple hair framed his perfect face beautifully.
Olivia, for the life of her, couldn't tell what was so... Scary? Dangerous?
"The peasant isn't used to the city, lol."
"Shut up already, Jack."
"That's right!"
"A privileged man making fun of the less fortunate. Typical."
"Why are you defending the peasant? He probably spent his whole life shoveling horseshit until now!"
"Are you insane?"
"It's obvious that he isn't a peasant, idiot."
"That's right, his Mana is practically average when compared to other students here."
"Y... You mean he might be nobility as well?"
"Average? I'm pretty sure he's above that..."
"Oh, I can already see it. A noble had an affair and was forced to separate from the baby. That baby was sent to the boonies, grew into the most handsome man in the world, and came back to take his rightful place..."
"This is the type of shit you read in your goonette books, isn't it?"
"Shut up, Jack."
He wasn't really from the boonies.
In fact, he wasn't even from the Human Realm.
Still, being from the countryside gave the best excuses when short on official government documents and essential common knowledge.
"Professor?" He tilted his head, Olivia's silence having lasted a bit too long. "Can I come in?"
"O-Of course." Olivia Del Rey shook her head and gestured for him to step into the classroom. "Sit wherever you want."
He walked in and took a seat.
'...' Olivia almost wanted to gulp. She had wanted him to take a different seat, but he had chosen the exact same one he had taken the past two days.
He was seated at the front of the classroom, right in front of his Professor, the two separated by no more than three steps.
Worse than the distance were his eyes. Once locked on her, they did not leave her.
Olivia Del Rey couldn't keep herself from gulping this time.
In a way, he was like a predator staring down its prey… Or like a very diligent student. There was no way to know for sure.
"H-Hey," The blonde sitting behind him placed a hand on his shoulder. Her hand shuddered, momentarily pulling back, before going back to rest on his shoulder. "C-Can I ask what your name is? I um… I couldn't come to class for the last two days, so… Maybe we could run a study group or something? Um… A-Anyway…"
He stared at her blushing face with an amused smile.
"My name's Odeus." He answered. "What's yours?"
"I… Um… My name is Jeanne."
"That's a beautiful name. Nice to meet you, Jeanne."
"T-Thank you!"
"Pay attention, class." A flustered Olivia said to no one in particular with a clap of her hands.
"Haha," Odeus scratched his head. "Sorry."
His real name was Asmodeus, and he was from the Demon Realm.