Staring at the short white-haired, expressionless elf before him,
Some vague memories and terms from Agusheed's long-forgotten past life flickered into his mind.
"I think I once accidentally watched an anime with this white-haired elf as the main character in my past life."
"It was called…"
"Hmm… 'The Gifted King of Hibiscus'?"
Shaking his head, Agusheed cast aside those blurred images.
To him, remembering those so-called plotlines wasn't important.
Because he simply did not care about the future's path.
Besides, knowing the future wasn't necessarily a good thing.
The Demon King's top strategist, the All-Knowing One, Schlacht, possessed magic capable of foreseeing millennia into the future.
He would not tolerate anyone else possessing the ability to predict the future.
Although Agusheed did not fear facing Schlacht, he certainly disliked trouble.
So, rather than grasping the future, Agusheed was more dedicated to reclaiming his humanity.
"But… the protagonist, huh?"
For once, Agusheed showed a bit of interest.
"Frieren."
Beside him, Flamme burst out laughing with delight. She reached out and patted the white-haired elf's head as she approached.
"If you keep patting me like this, I won't grow tall, Flamme."
"Weren't you never going to grow tall anyway?"
Despite her words, Flamme withdrew her hand, giving the tiny elf a glimmer of hope for growth.
"I'm only a few hundred years old. I'll definitely grow taller in another thousand years."
Unbothered by Flamme's prejudice, Frieren responded nonchalantly.
Then, she looked at Flamme expectantly, stretching out her hand.
"Gift."
Flamme glanced back at Agusheed.
Though his expression remained impassive,
Frieren's behavior certainly made Flamme's previous words harder to believe.
"Sigh…"
Flamme rubbed her forehead with one hand, then stepped aside, revealing Agusheed behind her.
"I'll give you a trial. If you pass, I'll give you the spell book you want."
"I want the Magic to Kill Mosquitoes with a Glance."
Without even listening to what the trial entailed, Frieren already stated her desired magic.
"Ten years have passed, and you're still the same as always…"
"What are you talking about? It's only been ten years; how could I change?"
Another example of how long-lived beings perceive the passage of time, prompting a soft sigh from Flamme.
"Alright, back to the main topic—"
Flamme pointed towards Agusheed, who stood motionless at the back.
Frieren followed her gesture and saw the unremarkable man, the kind of person you'd forget if you didn't pay attention.
"Frieren, what can you see from him?"
Flamme posed the question.
Agusheed obligingly stepped closer, allowing her to observe him more closely.
"Hmm—"
Frieren dragged out the sound as she carefully studied Agusheed's expressionless face.
One second, two seconds.
One minute, two minutes.
"It's trembling. The magic is trembling. How incredible! This terrifying amount of magic is actually being suppressed…"
Frieren gave her answer.
Agusheed's face showed no surprise whatsoever.
"I told you already, it's a meaningless act."
"Flamme, go take care of your matters. I'll wait for you outside."
After saying this to Flamme, Agusheed turned and walked out of the palace.
He had come here purely to verify Flamme's claim.
Now that the result was unsurprising, there was no reason for him to stay.
After all, Flamme still had to meet the Emperor alone.
So, waiting outside the palace would suffice.
So much for exceeding my expectations—
She's no different from those court magicians.
The so-called protagonist is just that, huh?
Just another mortal born in the era of me and Flamme.
Tap, tap, tap…
After walking a few steps, Agusheed suddenly sensed something off.
Because in his perception, Frieren hadn't moved a single step since he turned away.
And at that moment, he heard Flamme laughing behind him.
A laugh full of delight and pride.
Thus, Agusheed stopped walking.
He turned around and calmly looked at the motionless Frieren.
"What did you see?"
"Besides the trembling of magic, what else did you see in me?"
He watched himself reflected in Frieren's unblinking eyes.
For the first time, Agusheed took the initiative to ask.
In Frieren's perspective,
At the very moment Agusheed turned around,
She saw two outlines on his head—shapes that did not belong to human anatomy.
"Horns…"
"Demon… horns…"
Frieren blurted out what her unreasonable intuition had sensed from Agusheed.
And instinctively—
She unleashed the highest-damage and fastest-casting spell she had.
Thunderous Destruction Release Magic
When she realized that the demon before her was personally brought by Flamme, it was already too late.
Less than ten meters of distance.
At that range, almost no magic user could react to an instant attack without any warning—
Especially not an attack as swift as Thunderous Destruction Release Magic.
When she realized she couldn't withdraw the magic,
Frieren immediately looked toward her teacher—
The most powerful mage of the current era.
And then…
What she saw was Flamme, grinning gleefully.
Before she could even question why her teacher looked so amused—
Agusheed had already provided the answer.
A slash, too fast for the naked eye to catch, cleaved through the Thunderous Destruction Release Magic effortlessly.
The walls on both sides and the library door behind them were marked with deep gashes.
Even a small lock of white hair from Frieren's temple was sliced off, scattering across the floor.
"How rude…"
Agusheed said calmly.
"But… the reaction was exactly the same as when Flamme first saw me. I suppose it's true—you really are her disciple."
Agusheed wasn't angry. In fact, he seemed to admire Frieren a bit more.
"I admit it, Flamme. Your disciple is just as talented as you claimed."
Casting a deep glance at Flamme, who still looked smug, Agusheed didn't linger and turned to leave.
…
"Flamme, why?"
Frieren looked at Flamme, who stood with her arms crossed, full of confusion.
"What do you mean?"
Flamme released her arms, pulling out the Magic to Kill Mosquitoes with a Glance as she spoke.
"That person, he's a high-ranking demon, isn't he?"
Frieren asked with concern.
Flamme placed the spell book on Frieren's head, answering softly:
"That's right. He's a true high-ranking demon, and he almost became one of the Seven Sages of Ruin once."
Frieren took the spell book off her head, dusting it off as she confirmed the title. Her confusion only deepened.
"Then why is he with you?"
"Why wouldn't he be with me?"
"Didn't you always say: 'Demons took everything from me. I hate them to my core and want to kill them all.'?"
Flamme nodded, not denying it.
Frieren hugged the spell book, still struggling to understand her teacher's behavior.
"Then why…"
Frieren didn't finish her question, but she believed Flamme understood her confusion.
"Because he is unique among demons."
Flamme smiled softly, squeezing Frieren's cheeks.
"He is the only one throughout history who seeks humanity and refuses to harm humans…"
"For five hundred years, it has always been so."