[A/N: This is an informative chapter... Very important, but obviously packed with a lot of information to understand what follows.]
***
The game *Apex to Supremacy*…
A world so vast it encompasses countless myths, folklore, and technologies I knew from my former world. Divided into four main spheres, each embodies a fundamental aspect of existence:
Elkaïn, the realm of mortals, fraught with conflicts between races and civilizations. And the chessboard of higher beings.
Hell, the dark kingdom of demons, teeming with unspeakable horrors. According to the books, but in reality, it wasn't much different from Elkaïn—just a more medieval civilization.
Heaven, the golden city suspended in the clouds, domain of the angels.
And the Other World, a volatile, dreamlike territory where spirits reside: sylphs, fairies, nymphs, naiads, Manes, ancient guardian spirits of the world, and more...
According to legends passed down by oracles and the codex of His Holiness, Elkaïn was forged by the Ancestral Spirits, primordial entities now vanished. Their breath fertilized the earth and raised the mountains, while their essence gave birth to mana. For millennia, Elkaïn has been the battleground of an eternal conflict between angels and demons. The last clash, known as the Hundred Years' War, ended exactly 356 years ago, leaving entire continents devastated, barren regions, and memories forever scarred.
But amidst the chaos, mortals evolved. They resisted, grew, and transcended thanks to the emergence of the legendary 15 Heroes, mythical figures spread across the three great races: Humans, Elves, and Alfumans, beings of ancient bestial lineages.
...
The continent of Arcadia is dominated by Humans, far more numerous. A power centralized around Emperor Rê IV, also known by his full name, Lancaster Von Arcadia. The Empire rests on four great Noble Houses, rivals and allies: Bentham, Indivar, River, and Moonshade. Their power rivals that of the imperial family, and each has mystical roots tracing back to the original Heroes.
The Rê Empire is recognized as the supreme military force. Its strength lies in ancient angelic pacts, passed down through blood, and the blessed lineage of the Heroes. In contrast, demonic pacts are considered an abominable heresy: practitioners are mercilessly hunted in this theocratic regime. Especially since Lancaster's older brother was impaled by a heretic.
The continent of Elfim, the closed kingdom of the Elves, is a society as refined as it is verdant. The arrogant, long-lived elves are closely tied to the spirits of the Other World. They easily form contracts with nature entities—foliage, stone, wind, water—and their sensitivity to mana makes them exceptional mages and druids.
Their wealth comes from their alchemical knowledge and power: healing potions, strength elixirs, speed boosts. A thriving trade that makes their products indispensable across all continents.
However, in the shadow of this floral nobility live the witches: female elves practicing forbidden witchcraft, capable of binding with ghosts to gain forbidden knowledge, curses, weapon enchantments, and sorcery. Rejected in Elfim, they find refuge elsewhere, where they're called dark elves.
Finally, the vast, wild continent, long considered the primitive territory of the Alfumans, was once plundered and enslaved. These beings, both human and beast, are of hybrid lineages:
The Drake tribe, proud descendants of Wyverns; the Sekh tribe, heirs of the Nemean Lions; the Neko tribe, descended from Nekomata; the Lycan tribe... Dozens of tribes, each distinct from the others.
For centuries, they were oppressed, dehumanized, sold, and massacred. Their lands were ravaged. But everything changed during the Hundred Years' War. Humanity, elves, and Alfumans had to unite against a greater evil: the imminent invasion of the Demons.
Under the impetus of the Holiness of the Cathedral, the representative of the Archangels in Elkaïn, an unlikely alliance was born. Pacts were signed. Angels descended to support the mortal races. Thus was born the Academy of Light of Luciel (ALL), a sacred bastion destined to train the new generation—noble and talented commoners—in a single crucible of learning, strategy, and combat.
I closed the last book of the day. My head was buzzing.
Hundreds of pages of history… and bullshit.
Who decided demons were the villains?
There are no heroes in this story. Everyone covets the Misty Continent, the only stable gateway to the Other World. And all are ready to do anything to claim control.
I stood up, pushed back my chair, and left the library.
Another fucked-up day. Just one more.
I walked through the silent corridors, hands buried in my pockets. Two days had passed since my encounter with the Archduke, and my return to the academy was approaching, inevitably.
The books portrayed it as a haven of learning…
The truth? A hypocritical, extremely violent environment—basically a nest of snakes.
Rampant racism. Bloody competition. Strength, family, lineage, and relics dictate everything. Without a heroic relic, even the most powerful student is just a sacrificial pawn.
The practical side of the academy—the factions had far more power than the Dean. They control resources, dungeons, expeditions. A student's death can be "accidental," just a detail. Disguised assassinations are commonplace.
Daemon Leen Indivar… My name. A prestigious lineage. And yet, I'm the subordinate of Kara Geb Bentham.
I was supposedly her right-hand man. But that was bullshit.
All of House Indivar's resources are seized by her through a weak Daemon who desperately needed protection. It was humiliating—House Indivar holds the Scepter of Ouas, the artifact of Geb, the hero who built House Bentham.
And as long as she has it, she can control her faction and impose her law on her subordinates.
As I walked, a thought crossed my mind.
What if I got my hands on Khaïbet?
At this point in history, Khaïbet hadn't yet chosen its new master.
Khaïbet… the legendary sword of Nefertoum Indivar, our Ancestor.
During the Hundred Years' War, it's said he slew ten thousand demons, and their bodies formed a lotus of corpses on which he meditated for days, until he became almost divine.
In the original story, it's Raven who finds it with the protagonist after they've slept together.
A smile stretched across my face.
I'm the only one who knows exactly where it is, apart from Eden.
There's finally a fucking hope. It's dangerous, but you've got to survive.