Bonds Forged Over Cigarettes
The craving for a cigarette hit him like a truck.
“Those fucking hero party bastards. Those goddamn sons of bitches!!!!!”
Everything he had poured his entire life into—the Night Crows. The tactics he had armed and trained them with. All of it had vanished in an instant. Somehow, he and the Night Crows had been painted as wicked dark mages and a criminal syndicate, while the hero party was strutting around claiming they had slain the Demon King—who was probably still alive somewhere. They were bragging about it like they’d actually done something.
It was a complete shitshow.
How the hell had things gone this wrong?
The rage boiled over until Dayman genuinely thought he would die if he didn’t light up right that second. In his previous life, he had been a hopeless chain-smoker. The stress was making his body scream for nicotine.
“Cigarettes. Where the hell can I get cigarettes?”
He frantically turned on his smartphone, opened the map app, and searched for tobacco vendors. Luckily, a convenience store inside the academy popped up. He rushed there immediately.
“We don’t sell cigarettes to students.”
“What?”
“I said we don’t sell cigarettes to students. Did you not hear me?”
“N-no, why not??”
“Because smoking is bad for your health. A young man like you already…”
With the middle-aged woman’s scolding ringing in his ears, Dayman was promptly kicked out of the convenience store. Smoking is bad for your health? What kind of nonsense was that? Back when he was a kid, even eight-year-olds used to smoke for colds.
“What the hell, I can’t even smoke when I want to!! Goddamn it!!!!!”
After cursing out the convenience store, he trudged away in a foul mood. He could see students around him snickering. Everyone was laughing at him. The Night Crows were gone. The hero party had become heroes. And there wasn’t the slightest movement to prepare for the Demon King who was still alive somewhere.
“What the hell am I supposed to do about all this?”
There was so much to do. Technology had advanced, yet the truly important areas were horribly behind. Dayman, who had been sitting there in a daze, suddenly clenched his fist and shot to his feet.
“You think I’d give up? You think this body would give up!!!”
One thing was clear. This era was full of problems, but at least it wasn’t as much of a dumpster fire as the time of the Human-Demon War. Even back then, he had somehow managed to produce results through sheer grit and passion. Sure, he had ultimately failed, but he had still chopped off eight of the Demon King’s nine heads.
“I just haven’t decided on a direction yet. The potential and the talented people are everywhere!!”
Compared to the past, these people possessed far more advanced knowledge systems and higher levels of technical skill. If he simply pointed them in the right direction, things would change rapidly. Once he realized that, he couldn’t afford to sit around any longer.
“Let’s write down what I need to do!”
He quickly looked for some paper. He tore off one of the club recruitment posters and began scribbling his goals on the back.
“Defeat the Demon King. That bastard is definitely gathering strength somewhere. I have to be the one to take him down when he rises. And I need to raise disciples again. The revival of the Night Crows!”
He slowly wrote the words using the wand of Arcana, the former leader of the Hell Riders. After writing Demon King Subjugation and Night Crow Revival as numbers one and two, Dayman fell into deep thought.
“What do I need to accomplish these two things… That’s right. I need connections! Connections and money!!”
In his previous life, because he had distanced himself from the mainstream magic world, the imperial family, and the nobility, he had suffered tremendously while building the Night Crows. He had no intention of repeating that mistake. In a situation where combat magic had regressed this badly, his abilities would quickly be recognized for their true value.
Besides, he had smartphones and the internet now! Promotion would be instant. He wouldn’t have to rely on word of mouth like before!
“I need to find powerful backers. And people who can provide funding. Only then can the Night Crows be revived.”
He wrote Find Backers and Find Money Source as numbers three and four.
“What else… Yeah. That sounds good too.”
In his previous life, the environment had been so miserable that he couldn’t enjoy anything. He had a woman he loved, but she died before they could be together. It was nothing but hardship, misery, and painful memories. In this life, he had become young again. He wanted to live a little more positively.
“Fall in love with a beautiful woman. That’s definitely worth trying. Hell yeah! And enjoy the pleasures of this world while living a somewhat happy life. That sounds good too, haha!!”
It was a long road ahead.
And having already walked a long road once before, Dayman knew that if he only rushed forward without rest, a person would eventually break. In this life, he planned to enjoy things a little. To rest when it was time to rest, and work when it was time to work. A life with that kind of balance.
“Yeah. This should be enough. Six goals! I will absolutely achieve them all!!!”
Staring at the six goals he had written on the torn poster, he clenched his fist tightly. Goals he would accomplish no matter what it took. He proudly raised the scrap of poster high into the air.
And to achieve these grand objectives, there was one thing he needed.
“I need a young person by my side who knows this modern world well.”
He still didn’t know how to properly use a smartphone, and there were so many things he needed to learn about this era. He needed someone truly competent—not an empty-headed fool like Arcana.
“There must be some outstanding talents somewhere. Surely this academy has them too!”
A young person who understood culture, possessed talent, knew the inner workings of the academy, and was well-versed in the current world. He needed to make someone like that his friend.
“Where could such a person be… *sniff sniff*… Hmm????”
While he was pondering, a familiar scent suddenly reached Dayman’s nose. The smell of cigarettes. The thick, stimulating aroma of nicotine made his eyes snap toward the source like lightning.
“Where’s that cigarette smell coming from… Hmm??”
His gaze turned to one side. Far off in the corner. That was where the cigarette scent was drifting from. Along with it came the chattering voices of teenagers. Dayman’s body trembled like he was having a seizure.
“C-cigarettes… There are people smoking cigarettes!!”
He had been dying for a smoke anyway. The convenience store refused to sell him any, so he had been wondering where the hell he was supposed to get them. The moment the scent hit him, his body moved on its own like a cat that had smelled fish.
“No choice then. I’ll offer to send them money through internet banking and ask to borrow a few cigarettes. I really hope they don’t refuse this time.”
He quickly followed the cigarette scent into a secluded back alley of the academy. Hoping desperately that he could finally get his hands on some smokes.
“Seria. Wanna hit the karaoke room after school?”
Deep blue hair. Sharp, gleaming red eyes that contrasted with her hair color. Seria de Xavier stared at her phone with an indifferent expression before taking a long, deep drag from the cigarette between her lips.
“Sure.”
She could feel her friends watching her every move. Of course they would. She was the center of this group. Thinking about what had happened today made fresh anger surge up inside her. If she went to karaoke and screamed her lungs out, then hit the PC bang to game for a while, she figured she’d calm down at least a little.
“Let me finish a couple more and we’ll go.”
“Yeah, yeah. Sounds good.”
She flicked the butt to the ground and crushed it under her shoe, then pulled a fresh cigarette from her pocket, stuck it in her mouth, and lit it with her wand. With a soft *whoosh*, the smoke flowed through her mouth and into her lungs. As she smoked, she mulled over the events of the day.
She had dueled one of the star students from the Knight Faculty. Unlike her, the girl was doted on by her family, the classic elegant princess type rather than a wild delinquent like Seria, and an absolute beauty that every guy in the Knight Faculty worshipped.
The memory of that bitch from the Knight Faculty smiling with such infuriatingly perfect manners made Seria’s blood boil. Why couldn’t she beat her? Why the hell not?
She wanted to prove that combat mages could be just as strong—if not stronger—than knights. She wanted to show that to her lifelong rival, that fucking bitch. But no matter how hard she tried, the gap only kept widening.
Can I really never win?
From childhood until now.
Seria had never once stood above that girl. She wanted to crush that bitch’s arrogance with magic somehow. She wanted to shove it in everyone’s face that while knights could still function without mages, mages were useless without knights to protect them.
How dare that girl say such things right in front of the Xavier family, who had built their name through magic? And her father had just awkwardly brushed it off like it was no big deal? The sight had been so disgusting that Seria had trained like a madwoman, over and over, determined to crush that fucking bitch’s pride.
But after months of careful preparation, the duel had ended with her getting utterly destroyed again. She was so furious she felt like she was going to explode. What else could she do? To beat those genetic gold-spoon bastards born with cheat-level blessings, she had to shake it off as fast as possible and challenge them again.
That was her only option.
“Hey. Ready to go?”
“Yeah. Let’s go. I already made the reservation.”
“Can we drink there?”
“Obviously. Don’t you know I’m tight with the owner? I already cleared it with him.”
“If we get caught it’s gonna be a huge pain in the ass. You know that, right? Last time we got busted it was a total mess.”
“If it wasn’t for Seria’s family influence we would’ve been held back already. Hehe.”
Watching her friends fawn over her, Seria let out a small smirk.
Yeah.
They were pathetic friends, but at least she got to play queen bee here. It made her feel a little better.
It was like her battered self-esteem was recovering, even if only slightly.
“Let’s go. Drinks are on me.”
“Kyaaa! Seria, I love you for real!”
They were chattering excitedly as they headed toward the karaoke room when someone suddenly stepped out in front of the group.
Blonde hair.
Tanned dark skin.
Flashy gold earrings and necklace that jingled with every movement.
And hospital patient clothes that clashed horribly with the rest of the look.
“So the cigarette smell was coming from here! Hey, youngsters! Can you lend me a cigarette? I tried to buy some at that place called a convenience store, but they wouldn’t sell to me because I’m a student!!”
And that outdated, old-man way of speaking that sounded like it belonged to some grandpa in the park.
“Pffft-hahaha!! Oh shit, it’s Dayman?”
It was Dayman Calidos, a fellow delinquent from the same school whose name they all knew since they ran into each other often.
“Dude, dude. We all saw it on SNS, you dumbass.”
“What the hell was that on Line 3, man?”
“It was fucking hilarious, you idiot. We’re going to karaoke to drink. Wanna come with?”
Everyone snickered as they approached Dayman, offering him cigarettes.
“Karaoke? What kind of place is that? From the name, I assume it’s a spot where you sing songs and enjoy entertainment?”
“Pffffft-hahaha!!! His way of talking is insane!!”
“He sounds exactly like my grandpa!!!”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s a place where you drink and have fun.”
At those words, Dayman recalled what he had written earlier.
Hadn’t he decided on the very last, sixth goal to enjoy the pleasures of this world himself? These young people looked like they knew the current era inside and out and were also familiar with how the academy worked. Making friends with them wouldn’t be a bad idea.
“Alright then. Let’s go. I’ll sing a song for you guys.”
“I’m so fucking hyped!!!”
“This guy’s speech pattern is killing me!!”
“Did something happen to you? Why are you suddenly going so hard on this concept?”
While everyone was laughing, Seria quietly observed Dayman. He was the same type as her. Someone whose light was always overshadowed by those more talented, always compared and treated like leftovers. Maybe it was because they were in similar situations, but even though they didn’t interact often, Seria didn’t feel any particular dislike toward Dayman.
I don’t know why he talks like that, but… whatever. Bringing him along wouldn’t be bad.
That was what Seria thought.