Mia entered the room quietly.
The moment she stepped inside, everything appeared normal. Les was sitting across from Edsel as if nothing unusual had happened.
Les glanced at Mia and noticed the faint dark chains still connected between her and Edsel. She remained under his control. His gaze returned to Edsel.
What a terrifying person, he thought.
Even so, the proposal Edsel had made earlier still puzzled him. Why would someone want an army made from humans and orcs? Was he planning to start a war someday?
Slowly, a smile formed on Les' face. The idea excited him more than it frightened him. This could actually be fun.
"My lord," Les said politely, lowering his head slightly. "Shall I report the information I gathered earlier?"
"Yes," Edsel replied calmly. "Go ahead."
"When I was outside, I noticed a woman who has been feeding the children here in Cairo," Les explained. "It seems the people trust her deeply. From what I heard, they're planning to rebel against the lord of this village."
Edsel raised an eyebrow. Rebellion was something he hadn't expected. So there really was someone brave enough to stand up for the people here.
"What's her name?" he asked.
"Mary," Les replied. "She mentioned that her mother owns a pub called Shelly. I believe she's the daughter of that woman."
"Oh."
A grin slowly spread across Edsel's face as an idea formed in his mind.
Les felt a sudden chill run down his spine. He had committed many cruel acts toward humans in the past, yet something told him that Edsel might surpass even him someday.
"I'm sure she'll return to the pub tomorrow," Edsel said calmly. "For now, I need to rest."
His eyes shifted toward Les.
"As for you, Les…"
"Yes, Master?"
"I told you I'm curious about dark magic. Is there a way for me to keep you by my side?" Edsel asked. "Even Mia can't enter the academy with me."
Les thought about it for a moment.
Edsel was right. If he attended the academy, it would be difficult to stay close without drawing suspicion.
"Master, I may be overstepping," Les said carefully, "but are you certain about learning dark magic? That power belongs to demons. Humans fear it."
He paused before continuing.
"You already possess a huge amount of dark mana. If you grow even stronger, the humans will eventually notice. When that happens… they might try to eliminate you."
Edsel remained completely calm.
"You don't need to worry about that."
He already knew the truth.
His father was a ninth-circle mage who stood just one step away from becoming an Archmage, yet even he had never sensed the dark mana inside Edsel. That meant the system was hiding it perfectly.
So far, the only one who had noticed was the Nameless Demon himself.
"I see," Edsel said quietly. "Then let's do this. Stay by my side in the academy. You said there's a way for you to enter without anyone noticing, right?"
Les chuckled softly.
"Master, it seems you don't know me very well." He raised his hand proudly "The only demon who can wander anywhere without a single person noticing is me, the Nameless Demon."
He tapped his chest with a confident grin.
"Trust me."
Edsel leaned back slightly.
"And the experiment?"
"Huhuhu…" Les laughed under his breath. "Master, you truly underestimate me. If you give me a human vessel, I can divide a part of my brain and place it inside the body. I can control more than one body at the same time if I split my brain correctly."
Les' face flushed with excitement as he spoke, his breathing growing heavier while he proudly described his own abilities.
"Haha, this is exactly what I expected from the nameless demon," Edsel said while grinning. He thought about which body Les could possess without raising any suspicion. "Hey, can you mimic techniques and copy memories from the person whose body you take?"
"Of course I can do that. What do you take me for? I am the nameless demon, after all," Les responded confidently.
Edsel frowned at the excessive boasting. "Slap yourself."
Les immediately slapped his own face, realizing that he had overdone the self-praise once again.
"Ahem, yes, I can copy skills from the host body. However, I cannot maintain them for too long. There is a cooldown period of about two minutes after using a copied skill. Copying skills with regular mana instead of dark energy does cause some pain, but I can still manage it," Les explained more calmly.
"I see. Then what about the young master of the Torenzo family?" Edsel asked while smiling.
Les paused to consider this possibility. This plan might actually work, and it would allow him to stay closer to Edsel throughout their time at the academy.
**********
The next morning, Edsel walked down the stairs while Mia followed behind him carrying the luggage.
After their discussion the previous night, Les had left the inn to carry out the plan. Edsel hadn't seen him since then. He wasn't sure whether Les had succeeded in possessing Silas.
More importantly, Edsel wanted to know what had happened with the lord of the village. Had Perez and Newton resolved the situation yet?
As he stepped outside, he noticed Perez speaking with a woman who had green hair and brown eyes.
He had never seen this woman before, so he wondered who she was.
"Young master, that woman is Mery, the one I told you about last night," Mia whispered from behind.
Edsel gazed at her while observing the conversation. It seemed quite serious based on their expressions. Perez appeared worried and somewhat sad at the same time, while the woman had a determined look on her face. Should he find out what they were discussing? he wondered.
The soldiers bowed immediately the moment they noticed Edsel approaching their position.
Perez noticed the movement and quickly turned around. "Good morning, young master. How was your night? Did you sleep well?"
"It was pleasant, thanks to the treatment that I received," Edsel responded while glancing at the woman.
"I see, that is good to hear." Perez gestured towards the woman beside him. "And this woman standing next to me is Mery, Miss Sharon's daughter that we mentioned earlier."
"Greetings, young master," Mery said while holding her dress and bowing respectfully. "I have heard about what you did yesterday to save the village. I am truly grateful for your actions in protecting everyone here."
"You do not need to worry about thanking me. As I said yesterday, it is my duty to protect everyone in need. It is my responsibility as a noble," Edsel replied with a warm smile.
"Wow, you have changed so much since the last time that I saw you," Mery said while holding her face and staring at him curiously. "Sorry for saying that so suddenly. I did not mean to be rude."
Edsel continued smiling, although the expression was not entirely genuine.
"Please speak with more respect. He is a noble under the lord that I serve," Perez tried to explain to Mery while she chuckled lightly.
"I am just trying to be friendly with him. Besides, he does not look angry right now, does he?" She paused and stared at Mia standing behind Edsel. "Oh, is this not the woman who was helping me yesterday to share food with the children? Hello there, Mia!"
"Hello," Mia responded with a small smile.
Edsel observed her personality closely. She spoke in a childish manner despite being an adult, and she seemed full of energy compared to others.
"Speaking of introductions, can you tell me more about what happened yesterday? Did the lord of this territory respond to the attack at all?" Edsel asked while changing the subject.
Mery's expression changed immediately at the question. She clenched her fist tightly before forcing a smile onto her face.
"Well, he does not care about the people here at all. He never has," she answered bitterly.
Perez glared at her immediately.
"Stop saying things like that out loud. You know that if anyone hears you speaking this way, you could find yourself in serious trouble!" He sighed deeply before turning to Edsel. "Young master, please do not listen to her words. She is just trying her best to help everyone, and sooner or later, the Marquis will report this situation to the Duke. They will act on it eventually, so let us rest assured that help will come."