As soon as he woke up in the morning, Fernan headed to the library.
"Welcome, Sir Fernan. Your student ID has been verified."
"Where are the books related to demons?"
"Follow the light, and it will guide you."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
When the librarian cast a spell on him, a small thread of light immediately appeared and began to lead him.
"Demons, demons, demons, demons…"
Fernan hadn't come to the library early in the morning for any other reason.
He was here to investigate demons more thoroughly.
'There wasn't anything useful in the family's library.'
After being struck by lightning and becoming aware of the existence of demons, the first thing he did was to scour his family's entire library.
But there wasn't a single piece of information he had hoped for, and he had been planning to check the academy's library ever since returning.
"King Kolomo and the 72 demons…"
The Imperial Academy's library housed an enormous collection of books, all preserved in accordance with the will of the First Emperor.
The Great First Emperor's Chronicle The First Emperor and the Royal KnightsKing Kolomo and the 72 Demons Each of the 72 Demons Is Different Demons Are From Fra…Dem…
Fernan picked out several books.
He opened The Great First Emperor's Chronicle first.
He thought there might be at least a few clues in the life story of a hero who had stood at the forefront of the fight against demons.
"The demons have plunged the continent into ruin—I can bear it no longer."
As the world fell into chaos due to the demons' rampage, the benevolent Lord Chronos Armian rose up for the sake of humanity.
"Let us all join forces to drive out the demons."
At Lord Armian's call, the five kingdoms and the religious orders, deeply moved, swarmed to his side like bees.
"Great King Kolomo, come forth and duel with me!"
Lord Armian wagered the fate of the world and fought King Kolomo day and night for an entire month.
Lord Chronos Armian pierced the heart of King Kolomo.
When he commanded, "Your king is dead, so return to where you came from," the million-strong demon army vanished on the spot.
"…What is this?"
Any shred of hope was crushed in an instant. This wasn't a chronicle—it was an absurd, over-the-top novel.
"The greedy prince-electors were moved by just a few words and joined him?"
Inserting himself into the situation made Fernan feel like he was breaking out in hives.
"Free cooperation? What, were they trying to freeload?"
That wasn't even the worst part. The next part was equally ridiculous.
"They just vanished when told to go back? Not even worth reading more. Even the church's scriptures aren't this bad."
Scoffing, Fernan pushed the book aside and opened the next one without hesitation.
The First Emperor and the Royal Knights.
It gave a detailed account of how the First Emperor met the Royal Knights and how the Royal Knight system was established.
There was also a story about Sir Gardner Alpenfarsen, the first Royal Knight and the ego of the Ego Sword.
Supposedly, Gardner Alpenfarsen had chipped a tooth during his first meeting with the emperor after acting cocky—though who knew if that was true.
'That's something I can just ask directly.'
Only Aint man could do such a thing.
Next was King Kolomo and the 72 Demons.
"King Kolomo sacrificed his entire kingdom to summon demons.
The number of summoned demons from hell totaled 72…"
The 72nd demon, Andromalius.A man with a snake wrapped around one arm.
The 71st demon, Dantalion.A demon that changes its appearance to mimic humans and sow confusion.
The 70th demon…
Whether due to the passage of a thousand years or because the records were sparse to begin with, the information on demons was very brief and vague.
'Disappointing. Well, the family library didn't have much either.'
Fernan closed the final book. Despite being the famed Imperial Academy library, all the books were lacking in substance.
'Even if a thousand years have passed, how could things be this incomplete?'
The Empire had built and maintained countless libraries, so dedicated was it to preserving records. Unless someone had intentionally erased the information, it didn't make sense that so little remained.
Having finished his business, Fernan returned the books to their shelves and headed back to the dormitory.
His attendant greeted him upon arrival.
"Where have you been since morning, sir?"
"I stopped by the library for a bit. What is it?"
"The item you requested has arrived."
The attendant handed him a small box.
"You're here."
"Why did you suddenly need this? Don't you already have one?"
"I figured it might not be enough. Just to be sure."
"Sorry? Sure of what?"
"There is something. That's all."
Fernan took the box and put back on the coat he had taken off earlier.
"Where are you going now?"
"I'm heading to the training hall. You take this to Luina berchef."
"A letter? Is this a love letter?"
"Don't be ridiculous. Just tell her I'm waiting and to come out as quickly as possible."
"Understood."
Now that everything was prepared, it was time to prove himself, as promised.
Fernan headed to the training hall.
The Academy's training hall, prepared for the students.
Luina stood with a sword in hand. Before her, Fernan Pellenberg faced her, holding a staff.
"I'm still not entirely sure I understand. What exactly is the meaning of this?"
"We're standing face to face in the training hall. Do I really need to explain more?"
"...You seriously want to fight me?"
"I already told you. Even if I'm just tenth place and you're the runner-up, I'll prove I'm not lacking. And the most direct, undeniable way is through force."
Given his unwavering confidence, it was clear Fernan meant every word.
"You really believe you can win?"
"If you beat me, I'll give you chocolate."
"...What do you mean by that?"
"I heard you like chocolate. Was that wrong?"
"Did you look into my personal life?"
"I wouldn't bother going through all that effort just for you."
Simply put—
"I looked up the personal profiles of all the ranked students."
"...How insolent."
Fernan shrugged. Luina's face twisted in displeasure. Her grip on the hilt of her sword tightened.
"If you truly want this, fine. Let's see this so-called 'proof' of yours."
Despite her words, Luina didn't believe Fernan had any chance of beating her.
It wasn't that Fernan Pellenberg was weak.
Ranking tenth in the Academy—home to countless prodigies—and even being qualified for a seat in the Rabidus Hall, no matter how low-ranked, was proof of undeniable talent.
But there was still a clear difference between the runner-up and tenth place.
Even though first-year sword and magic students rarely clashed, it wasn't like it never happened.
And those few chances were enough to judge Fernan's skills. Exactly what you'd expect from tenth place—nothing more, nothing less.
'Unless something happened over the winter break…?'
Even so, she couldn't understand this behavior.
"I'll give you the first move."
"Gladly."
Fernan began chanting a spell. The mana crystal embedded at the tip of his staff absorbed the surrounding mana.
Rumble—
The ground trembled. Dozens of stones materialized in the air and rained down on Luina.
—!
She steadied her breath, gathered aura in her legs, and dashed forward.
Her body shot forward like an arrow. Her sheer speed became a weapon in itself. The blade cleaved through the rocks as she charged directly toward the caster.
Slice—
She struck. But didn't land a hit.
The fake illusion vanished. Fernan was already standing far behind.
But Luina didn't flinch.
She stepped on her aura mid-air and twisted her direction. Like a rampaging warhorse, she charged straight through a wall of stone spikes.
—!
Shattered debris flew in every direction. Behind the demolished wall, she faced hundreds of stone spears—but dove in anyway.
Her sword was heavy, but not clumsy. Fierce, but not reckless.
Sometimes weighty, sometimes gentle, sometimes graceful.
She smashed through, deflected, and shaved away the spears.
And at last, she reached her target. But what awaited her wasn't Fernan.
It was an even greater spell.
A shadow loomed above her. A massive boulder torn directly from the training hall floor.
'…He tore the floor of the training hall?'
The hall had been magically reinforced to withstand even strong impacts. This was unexpected.
The thought didn't last long. The boulder fell.
A moment of hesitation made it too late to dodge.
BOOM!
Even though she blocked it, her body screamed in pain. It felt like colliding head-on with a massive siege weapon. The floor shattered, and her feet were driven into the ground.
'Was he hiding his strength…?!'
For the first time, after taking a clean hit, Luina shed all underestimation toward Fernan.
She bit her lip and caught her breath. As her heart pounded faster, her aura core reacted.
Blue aura wrapped around her entire body. A massive blade aura surged forth.
And just as she was about to swing her sword—
A bombardment rained down.
Just like before, massive boulders.
Simultaneously, the ground began to quake as if an earthquake had struck.
'This is insane…!'
To cast upper-tier spells like this repeatedly—and even simultaneously? How much mana does he have?
Luina blocked and blocked again. The storm of magic was relentless, giving her no opening to counterattack. The constant shock built up, and a trickle of blood ran down from the corner of her mouth.
"At this rate, I'll lose."
She was nothing more than a training dummy, getting beaten one-sidedly. By someone she had considered beneath her.
Her pride wouldn't allow it. Even while enduring the shock, she pressed forward. When she was pushed back by a spell, she advanced two steps forward.
And finally, when she caught her opponent—
"I surrender."
Fernan raised both hands. Ruina's sword stopped right in front of his nose.
He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
"…Are you mocking me right now?"
At his calm expression, she grit her teeth.
"Mocking? My mana just ran out. A mage without mana can't possibly beat a knight, can they?"
It wasn't an excuse or an act. Her sharp knightly instincts told her it was true.
"Or are you saying that a proud knight who values chivalry is going to take their anger out on someone who surrendered? Just because you were getting hit one-sidedly?"
"…I would never do that."
Indeed, Fernan's mana had run dry. In his current state, he couldn't beat Ruina.
Realizing he couldn't win through ordinary means, he gambled everything—and she overcame it. Which meant, in the end, her victory was real.
Still, even with that in mind—
She, the runner-up, had almost lost to the tenth place student. Someone she was sure she could defeat.
The massive amount of mana he poured into those reckless attacks was beyond anything she could have imagined.
"So, what kind of chocolate do you want? The whiskey chocolates made by my family? The famous bark chocolate from the World Tree of Freedian? Or perhaps the Kraken ink chocolate from the Kingdom of Frazia…"
"…You."
That's when Ruina realized.
"Why?"
She had a million questions. But after thinking and thinking again, only one simple, instinctive word came out.
"Obviously."
And in Fernan's answer—
"A merchant doesn't step forward."
—was a world of meaning.
"…Did you fight an ogre or something?"
His clothes were torn, his hair a mess. It was an unfamiliar sight for Fernan, who was always impeccably dressed.
His attendant asked with a grimace.
"There's no ogre inside the academy. Maybe up in the northern mountains."
"Then what happened?"
Fernan didn't answer. Instead, he pulled items out of a subspace. They were shattered orbs.
"Those are five mana amplifiers and mana storage units I gave you less than two hours ago! And they're all broken? Do you know how expensive these are?"
"I made an investment in the future."
"Whoever you fought, it looks like you got hit on the head. I'll call a healing mage."
"Do I look like the kind of guy who goes around getting hit?"
"Is it another aftereffect from being struck by lightning?"
"I'm perfectly fine."
"Then it must have been Ruina Berchef."
Fernan gave a small nod.
"This might be presumptuous, but if it's not too much to ask, may I ask you something?"
"Go ahead."
"Since I began serving you, I've been able to understand your motives in most things. Everything always had a clear reason or logic."
"But this time, you can't figure it out?"
"Exactly."
It was only natural. He had erased Berchef House's debts for three years and decided to support Ruina Berchef.
All he would gain in return was the chance to become her partner.
Compared to the money invested and the secret swordsmanship of House Berchef, it was a terrible deal. No one in House Pellenberg would ever agree to something so foolish.
Had it not been for the prophecy, Fernan wouldn't have done it either.
"That's rude."
Which is why Fernan had no real basis or explanation to convince him.
In moments like this, authority was the best tool. That's what power was for, after all.
"You'll understand when the time comes."
"If you say so, I understand. I'll contact the family and request more magic tools."
"As many as possible."
"By the way, have you written the letter to the Duke?"
"Here it is."
"I'll make sure it's delivered properly. Oh, and why haven't you been handling your work lately?"
"I've been busy. I'll get to it soon, so stop nagging."
"Understood. I'll keep that in mind."
The attendant exited.
"Hmph."
Fernan turned his gaze to the window and leisurely sipped his coffee.
He had finally sent the letter. There was no turning back now.
"Damn it. I'm not going to get disowned for this… right?"
If it were my kid, I'd probably disown them too.
Ripples stirred the once calm surface of his coffee.
And a few days later, a reply arrived from the Duke of Pellenberg.
It was short and to the point:
[You've been possessed by a demon.]
Which only made it hit harder.
"…I'm screwed."
Fernan knew it in his gut—He was completely screwed.