The Duke Laurence's army was ready to march.
Dozens of banners fluttered atop the fortress walls as soldiers finished taking their positions.
Magic Beast Cavalry.
Infantry.
Mages.
Supply wagons.
Everything was prepared for a campaign that could alter the balance of power within the kingdom.
Aleph Douglas strode through the ranks until he stopped before the duke.
He bowed.
"My lord. All troops are ready."
Laurence spent several moments surveying his army.
There wasn't the slightest trace of hesitation in his eyes.
"The supplies?"
"Enough for twenty days."
"The scouts?"
"They've already departed."
Laurence nodded.
Denisse territory lay nearly two weeks away.
Far too distant to allow for mistakes.
"Then we march immediately."
Aleph hesitated.
"Would you like to send one final warning to Count Thomas?"
Laurence slowly raised his gaze.
"No."
The answer came without hesitation.
"He already had his chance."
He turned toward his army.
"Now he will answer for his crimes."
The war horns echoed across the fortress.
The massive gates began to open.
And the Douglas army marched toward Denisse territory.
Laurence had no idea that, at that very moment, thousands of people were dying under the orders of the man he had just declared war upon.
Far away, on the outskirts of Vayllen City, the situation was entirely different.
While the soldiers prepared for war, Edward, Richard, and Keitaro stood in silence.
Men dressed in black robes piled corpses into great heaps before reducing them to ashes with fire magic.
Men.
Women.
Children.
Everything happened far too quickly.
One trembling survivor barely managed to explain what he had witnessed.
"After every sacrifice... demons appear."
Edward clenched his teeth.
"Then this isn't an epidemic."
Richard stared into the flames.
"It's a ritual."
Keitaro said nothing.
He activated his teleportation ability.
An instant later, the three of them vanished.
They reappeared in a nearby forest, where House Erkham maintained a secret base.
There, they would have to decide how to stop the massacre...
The days continued to pass.
As the Douglas army drew closer to Denisse territory, Richard appeared before the king.
"Count Thomas has formed an alliance with a demonic cult."
Those words alone transformed the atmosphere inside the audience chamber.
The Crown immediately summoned the kingdom's great noble houses.
If the Denisse family truly had allied themselves with demons, this was no longer a dispute between noble families.
It was a threat to the entire kingdom.
When the meeting ended, Keitaro approached Richard.
"Can I leave now?"
Richard looked at him in surprise.
"That eager to go?"
"Iris is pregnant. I want to be with her."
For the first time in several days, Richard smiled.
"Then don't waste another moment."
He placed a hand on Keitaro's shoulder.
"Go home to your family."
Keitaro disappeared instantly.
Richard stared at the empty space where he had been standing.
Perhaps very soon...
None of them would have the chance to return home.
By the end of the week, the academy tournament entered its final stage.
The stands filled early once again.
Each match eliminated another student and brought the strongest competitors one step closer to the championship.
While the kingdom quietly prepared for war, life inside the academy seemed unchanged.
The students cheered every victory, unaware that, far away, thousands of people were facing a far harsher reality.
Inside the arena, Lusian waited alongside Andrew and Jean The Mondring.
Only one match remained before the next semifinalist would be decided.
Kara Bourlance and Alejandro stepped into the arena.
For several moments, neither of them moved.
They simply watched one another.
Kara smiled first.
"I hope you won't surrender so quickly this time."
Alejandro tightened his grip on his sword.
He remembered their last fight perfectly.
The difference in strength had been overwhelming.
But things were different now.
He had trained.
He had improved.
And he had no intention of losing the same way again.
"This time will be different."
The signal to begin echoed throughout the arena.
Kara vanished instantly.
Alejandro barely had time to raise his sword before the first strike crashed against it.
The impact shook the platform.
Kara continued attacking with overwhelming speed, forcing him backward while he searched desperately for an opening.
Alejandro wrapped his blade in flames and blocked another strike.
Heat surged through his arms.
But he refused to yield.
For the first time, he seemed capable of keeping up with Kara's pace.
The spectators quickly noticed the difference.
The young man who had been defeated weeks earlier was no longer the same.
But neither was Kara.
She had continued growing stronger.
Her movements remained impossibly fast.
Every time Alejandro found an opening, she had already moved elsewhere.
The exchange continued until both fighters reached their limits.
Alejandro gathered every last drop of mana he possessed and unleashed a blazing slash that tore across the arena.
Kara answered with an attack of her own.
The collision sent a cloud of dust billowing over the platform.
For several seconds, no one could see what was happening.
Then Alejandro emerged from the dust.
He was breathing heavily.
His arm trembled.
But he was still standing.
He couldn't lose again.
Using the last of his mana, he disappeared from Kara's sight and reappeared behind her.
One final attempt.
One final strike.
But Kara had already anticipated it.
She spun gracefully, blocked the attack, and used the momentum of Alejandro's own movement to throw him off the platform.
A sharp crack echoed as he hit the ground.
Silence fell over the arena.
Then the judges raised a hand.
"Kara Bourlance is the winner!"
The crowd erupted into applause.
Kara took a deep breath before turning toward Lusian.
"You're next."
Lusian closed his eyes.
"What a nuisance..."
Emily, standing beside him, couldn't help smiling.
"You can't refuse. Those are the academy's rules."
"I know."
Lusian sighed.
"Though I admit it'll be nice having a few months of peace once everyone's families return to their territories."
Emily watched him quietly.
"So... will you stop coming to see me too?"
Lusian opened his eyes.
"Of course not."
A small smile appeared on Emily's face.
"Then when you return home... come visit me."
"I will."
For just a moment...
He stopped thinking about the war that was drawing closer.
Just for a moment.
The mages' tournament resumed shortly afterward.
Elizabeth and Katherine The Mondring entered the arena.
The audience fell silent as two of the academy's finest mages faced one another.
Katherine attacked first.
Water spread across the arena floor, forming a rushing current that surged toward Elizabeth.
The princess didn't retreat.
Lightning began crackling around her body.
Each bolt tore through Katherine's water defenses before striking its target.
The difference in skill quickly became obvious.
Katherine struggled to hold her ground, pouring more mana into her spells.
Elizabeth shattered every barrier with flawless precision.
At last, after one final exchange, Katherine dropped to one knee.
The instructor raised a hand.
"Elizabeth is the winner!"
The princess let out a slow breath as she stepped off the platform.
She had won.
But she knew the matches ahead would be far more difficult.
The next battle was Emily versus Roxy Briggs.
Roxy attacked the instant the match began.
Flames swept across the arena in a blazing wave of heat, forcing Emily to concentrate completely.
Emily closed her eyes and gathered her mana.
"Lucidium."
A barrier of light materialized before her.
The flames crashed against the shield and were deflected.
Part of the attack rebounded toward Roxy, forcing her backward.
The fire mage gritted her teeth.
She refused to surrender.
Gathering the last of her strength, she unleashed one final spell.
But Emily's barrier remained unshaken.
The attack rebounded with its full force.
Roxy collapsed.
The crowd fell silent for a heartbeat.
Then applause filled the arena.
"Emily Carter is the winner!"
Emily finally released the breath she'd been holding.
She had won.
But the effort had left her legs trembling.
Lusian approached as she stepped down from the platform.
He rested a hand gently on her shoulder.
"Well done."
Emily smiled.
"Is that all?"
Lusian shook his head.
"I also wanted to tell you to get some rest."
He glanced at her with concern.
"You used too much mana."
She laughed softly.
"But I won."
Lusian watched her for a few moments.
Then he smiled.
"You did."
He paused.
"You fought beautifully."
While the students celebrated the tournament's results, none of them realized that, far from the academy, the fate of the kingdom had already begun to change.
The semifinalists had been decided.
Soon, these young nobles would have to leave the arena behind...
And face something far more dangerous than any tournament match.
A few days later, Laurence's army finally caught sight of the first villages of Denisse territory.
The soldiers slowed their march.
Ahead of them, smoke blanketed the road.
Near the entrance to an abandoned village...
They found the first bodies.
Laurence remained silent.
Aleph stepped up beside him.
"My lord... we've arrived."
Laurence surveyed the deserted houses.
"Then let's discover what the Denisse family has been hiding."
The war was about to begin.