"Whaa… What do you want to do!" Emily shouted in mild panic and folded her arms around her body protectively. Her cheeks flushed a deep shade of red, and her green eyes darted nervously toward Kaero.
"What do I want to do? Why are you asking me that all of a sudden? You're so weird!" Kaero blinked and shouted back, his voice echoing through the quiet corridor.
His emotions were running high.
Very, very high.
For a few moments there, he was acting very unlike the veteran army Commander that he was.
But this was not your ordinary circumstance.
He can't believe that he was back in Blacksteel Magic Academy!
He remembered the situation from his previous life vaguely.
They had been sparring in the training field, a vast expanse of grass and steel bordered by mana wards that shimmered under the afternoon sun. Ms. Ayaka Serizawa, despite her graceful beauty and gentle tone, was a terrifying genius in combat.
She had thrown the first-year students into chaos, forcing them to learn the brutal rhythm of battle through grand melees. Four hundred students clashing against four hundred more in a sprawling, dust-filled field the size of four football pitches.
It was exhilarating, violent, and utterly thrilling.
Kaero had thrown himself into it with raw enthusiasm. His excitement had quickly translated into performance, and he had climbed the ranks in record time.
By the third grand melee, his opponents had marked him as the biggest threat. He remembered the moment they rushed him, ten students against one, with Emily Valcray at the lead, her hair a crimson banner in the wind.
In his previous life, he hadn't been hurt badly. Just a few scrapes and bruises before being carried off the field.
This time, due to… ehem. The wonderful view that was presented to him, his nose had spurted out a huge amount of blood.
And thus here they were.
In the corridor leading to the infirmary.
"I… weird? You're the weird one!" Emily shouted, her voice trembling between indignation and embarrassment. "You… you… damn pervert!"
"Who's the pervert? What's happening here?"
A stern voice cut through the air. Mr. Larouse appeared from the far end of the corridor.
Apparently their shouting had attracted unwanted attention.
"Mr Larouse! This… This Kaero. He… he…" Emily stammered. She was at a loss as to what to say.
Because well, what exactly did he do apart from staring at her with an impassioned gaze?
"Pervert?! What do you mean pervert? You were the one who ganged up on me during the Grand Melee. You knocked me down and caused me to lose gallons of blood. And then instead of taking me to the infirmary, you dumped me here on the floor!
Ow! My face! My legs! My arms! They hurt! They hurt so bad!!" Kaero squealed shamelessly.
"I… you!!" Emily's jaw dropped. She was completely stumped by Kaero's masterful performance.
What a damn skilled pervert!
She had never seen anybody like him before!
"Emily. Is that really what happened? You don't have to be afraid. You can tell me the truth. I will make sure no harm falls upon you."
His deep voice rumbled through the hall, calm but commanding. The faint scent of old parchment and pipe smoke clung to him .
It was the smell of an old-school gentleman who believed absolutely in honor, order, propriety… and the caning of naughty boys.
And cane he did.
Mr Larouse was a Peak C Rank Psychic Mage. He was able to hear silent whispers of what people were thinking. And in addition to the information given by their body language, he was extremely efficient and productive as an interrogator.
No students were able to hide their misconduct from him!
Kaero tried to put up an innocent and half indignant face as he looked at the ancient looking Mr Larouse. At the same time, his mind whirred at high speed.
"Strange. I distinctly remember Mr Larouse. But how come I do not have much recollection about his participation in the later wars? What happened to him?" Kaero wondered as his mind searched for answers.
"Ah, Mr Larouse. I, uhm. Well. It's nothing actually." Emily finally sighed. She wanted to lie and get that damned Kaero caned, of course. But she also knew that there was no point lying to Mr Larouse.
He would detect it instantly, and although she would not get caned, she would get a hell lot of demerits. And it simply wasn't worth it.
"Hmmm… In that case, go on to the infirmary. Kaero seemed to be… Distraught. It must have been a bad… Hmm. Crash." Mr Larouse smiled as a twinkle appeared in his eyes.
"Ah, the joys of being young. Crashing here and there. Bumbling through the confusion and joys of love and romance… Wonderful. Wonderful." He sighed to himself.
However, at that moment, Kaero's eyes widened.
He finally remembered what happened.
There was a mini disaster that happened in his previous life. It was a shocking incident that had been buried completely. There were no records.
No announcement or news had ever been made about it.
Nothing.
Only whispers from the survivors had hinted at what really happened that day. And even those whispers had been quickly silenced.
Kaero had learnt about it years later when he finally became strong enough to join the ranks of senior warriors, and had joined up with his teachers who had been there when it happened.
Twenty five demons.
A new, as yet undiscovered demonic species.
A flying and invisible type.
They had pierced through the academy's defenses like ghosts in daylight and descended upon the Teacher's Lounge where dozens of instructors were resting during the Grand Melee.
By the time the alarms went off, the lounge had been painted red by the blood of the instructors. Body parts were everywhere.
It took Principal Shareef himself, a High Grade B Rank Ice Mage powerhouse, to destroy those demons. And even then, he had been crippled beyond recovery.
Tens of instructors, all future powerhouses of humanity, had been killed.
And if he had remembered it correctly… It was today.
The third and last Grand Melee.
Kaero's blood turned to ice.
"The demons are here!" The words ripped from his throat before he could stop them.
Emily blinked in confusion, startled by the sudden shift in his tone. "What? Demons?!"
But Mr. Larouse's reaction was instant. His pupils dilated as he locked eyes with Kaero.
His psychic powers flared and in that single heartbeat, he read Kaero's intent, his terror and his truth.
The old teacher didn't hesitate.
He slammed his hand into the wall beside him, triggering the embedded crystal rune there.
The Emergency Seal.
A deafening siren tore through the academy. The mana lights along the ceiling flickered from blue to violent red.
Arcane sigils flared to life across the hall, sealing specific doors and activating barriers.
Mr. Larouse turned toward Kaero, his expression deadly serious.
"Boy." he said quietly. "Tell me where."
"The sky. They went towards… The Teacher's Lounge."