Chapter 230
Chapter 230
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 230
Chapter Title: Academy (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Demian stared at the empty classroom with a bewildered expression.
“Problem child class, I heard, but I didn’t expect it to be *this* bad…….”
The academy was the premier educational institution not just of the empire, but of the entire continent.
For its students to be this hopeless was beyond belief.
What was even more baffling was that every student in Class 13 came from high-ranking noble families.
Families of high status typically enforced strict discipline.
Yet the students of Class 13 were as far from that as could be.
“Did I read it wrong, by any chance?”
Demian flipped through the student roster he had received from the staff the day before.
The roster detailed not only photos of the students, but their full backgrounds.
“Fortina Marquis House, Sand Count House—all top-tier families…….”
As Demian was poring over the roster, someone opened the classroom door and entered.
Thinking it might be a student, he glanced toward the door. But Demian’s hopes were promptly dashed.
The person who entered was a female knight in full uniform. A striking red-tipped spear slung across her back drew the eye.
‘She’s no ordinary fighter.’
The moment he saw her, Demian couldn’t help but admire her inwardly.
She had her presence perfectly contained, not letting even a hint leak outward.
‘She must be on the verge of breaking through the second wall.’
She was stronger than Sarik of the Tyrant, whom Demian had fought before.
The empire’s most terrifying aspect was how such powerhouses appeared as if it were nothing.
“No one showed up after all, huh.”
The female knight swept her gaze over the classroom and muttered in disappointment.
“Who might you be?”
“Ah, my apologies. I should have introduced myself first—how rude of me.”
The female knight apologized to Demian. Her archaic speech suggested she came from a high noble background.
“I am Blanca Roshe. Though unworthy, I serve as the captain of the White Blood Knight Order, tasked with the academy’s protection.”
At the name White Blood Knight Order, Demian’s eyes sharpened.
Before departing for this place, Rachel had explained it to him.
To prepare for any unforeseen incidents, the empire had meticulously raised a knight order stationed at the academy.
That order was the White Blood Knight Order.
He had suspected she was no ordinary knight, and now it made sense—she was their captain.
“I’m Demian Haksen.”
Demian offered a handshake to Blanca Roshe. She gladly clasped his hand.
“I already know who you are. I came here to see you, after all.”
Blanca Roshe gave Demian a quick once-over and let out a short whistle of admiration.
“Indeed, the rumors don’t do you justice. To possess such immense presence at your young age—truly astonishing.”
Blanca Roshe released his hand as she spoke.
“I came to meet you, and while I’m at it, to offer some help. When I heard you’d been assigned to Class 13, I couldn’t just sit idly by.”
“You know about Class 13?”
“Anyone at the academy would. It’s the class where they’ve dumped all the headaches.”
A wry smile crossed Blanca’s face.
“Students with no passion for academics. Students who start fights with others. In short, it’s where they’ve gathered those even the academy struggles to control.”
Demian could only manage a wry smile of his own at Blanca’s words.
In essence, Class 13 was a dumping ground for the academy’s misfits.
“Why does the academy tolerate them?”
“Because of their families. Every student in Class 13 hails from a prominent house.”
Demian felt a twinge of puzzlement at that.
No matter how influential their families, this was the academy.
Considering its prestige, there was no way it couldn’t rein them in, family backing or not.
“And there’s one more reason……though it’s not my place to say. To put it briefly, their families want it that way.”
It was a cryptic statement that meant nothing to him.
He wanted to press further, but Demian had a more urgent matter.
“Do you know where the students are?”
“No idea, I’m afraid. Though I’ve run into them a few times while patrolling the academy. They always seemed awfully busy.”
“How often do Class 13 students attend classes in a given month?”
“Who knows? Whenever they do show up, it becomes the talk of the academy. Haven’t heard of it lately, though. The other students even bet on it.”
Demian sighed at that. In other words, they hardly ever came.
‘This is a headache.’
If Class 13 failed to perform well in the swordsmanship portion of the evaluation exam in a week, Demian would be expelled from the academy.
Getting expelled didn’t bother him. He could just search for Slara and be done.
The problem was finding Slara in a mere week.
Slara was a black mage of the Frenzy School. In Pandemonium, no one handled human bodies better than she did.
Using the Frenzy School’s black magic, Slara could disguise herself as anyone.
It didn’t matter if the target was a knight or a mage. As a knight, she could wield Aura; as a mage, she could cast any spell.
It was a feat made possible by perfectly mimicking the target’s body with Frenzy School black magic.
Even with Demian’s abilities, pinpointing Slara hidden in the academy wouldn’t be easy.
Moreover, the academy was vast. Scouring the whole place would take far more than a week.
As Demian wrestled with his thoughts, Blanca spoke up.
“Well then, I’ll be off. I still have patrols to finish.”
Blanca gave a farewell and left the classroom. Demian stared blankly at the door for a moment.
‘Slara?’
Slara could even impersonate a master-class.
Of course, even with her abilities, she couldn’t perfectly mimic one. In actual combat, the fakeness would be obvious.
But at rest, distinguishing her from the real thing was nearly impossible.
‘I need to watch her a bit longer.’
Slara could become anyone. Thus, Demian resolved to suspect every person he met at the academy.
Demian was leaning against the teacher’s desk, lost in thought.
Suddenly, the classroom door opened, and someone entered.
At first, Demian thought Blanca had returned. But he was mistaken.
The newcomer was a male student in academy uniform.
The boy, with buckteeth protruding like a rat’s, spotted Demian and let out a whoop of joy.
“Whoa, the rumors were true! Demian Haksen is really our Class 13 homeroom teacher!”
Demian wore a look of utter bewilderment.
Anyone would react the same upon hearing such casual speech from a kid young enough to be a child.
But the boy didn’t care a whit about Demian’s feelings.
“This is insane! I gotta go tell the others right now.”
The male student turned to leave. Demian immediately called him back.
“Hey.”
The male student halted on his way out and turned to Demian.
“You’re a Class 13 student?”
“So what?”
Demian let out a chuckle at the boy’s manners, which he’d apparently fed to the dogs.
“Your speech is a bit casual.”
“Yeah? And?”
Demian nearly second-guessed himself at the boy’s brazen attitude.
“What, you mad I’m talking down to you? That’s hilarious.”
The male student laughed derisively.
“Do you even know who I am? I’m Oliver Fortina, fourth son of the Fortina Marquis House! You think some apple kingdom nobody like you can talk to me like that?”
Demian let out an involuntary snort.
Now he understood the boy’s audacity.
A marquis house of the empire carried far more weight than one from another kingdom.
With knight orders, elite standing troops, and multiple master-class experts to boot.
Riding on that prestige, he figured Demian wouldn’t dare touch him.
The other teachers probably handled him with kid gloves, reinforcing that.
“Well, this works out perfectly.”
Demian strode toward Oliver. As Demian closed the distance abruptly, Oliver looked flustered.
“What the—why’re you coming closer?”
“You said you were gonna tell the others about me, right? You know where the other students are? Then guide me there now.”
Oliver’s expression darkened at Demian’s words.
“Nah, don’t feel like it. Why should I tell you?”
“Can’t force you if you don’t want to.”
Demian opened his subspace and pulled something out. The moment Oliver saw it, he flinched.
“Y-you, what’s that?”
What Demian retrieved was a wooden club he’d carved himself.
The perfectly hexagonal club gleamed, well-oiled and polished.
“I’ll ask again. Where are the other students?”
“What bullshit…….”
Demian promptly swung the club down on Oliver Fortina’s head.
*Thwack.*
With a sharp crack, Oliver Fortina’s head slammed into the floor.
“Ow! Argh! Ahhhhh!”
Oliver Fortina clutched his head and rolled on the ground.
“Y-you psycho! H-how dare you hit me? You’re dead! I-I’m telling my dad everything!”
“No idea what you’re on about. What did I do wrong?”
“Y-you can’t play innocent! You just hit my head…… my head…….”
Oliver Fortina pawed at the back of his skull.
“Huh……? Huh……?”
There wasn’t even a scratch, let alone a bump. Flustered by the bizarre turn, Oliver Fortina panicked.
“H-how did you…….”
“I’ll ask once more. Where are the other students?”
“G-get lost! Y-you think I’d sell out my friends?”
Demian admired Oliver’s defiance. Most would cower after one hit, but not this kid.
“Quite the rebellious spirit.”
Paying tribute to that, Demian whacked Oliver’s head again.
*Thwack.*
An even clearer crack rang out as Oliver rolled on the floor once more.
“Ow! Argh! You’re dead! My dad won’t let this slide…….”
Demian raised the club high. Oliver shielded his head with both arms and yelled.
“W-wait! I’ll talk! I said I’ll talk! Th-they’re all scattered, so I don’t know everywhere! B-but at this time…….”
“No, you don’t need to say anything right now.”
Oliver looked up at Demian in confusion at the sudden shift.
“W-what?”
“Even in a spot like this, no honorifics slip out. You’re no ordinary delinquent. Before hunting down the others, I need to ‘reform’ that rotten attitude of yours first.”
Demian tapped the club against his palm. Oliver stared at it in terror.
“So, let’s start with a good beating.”
The quiet, empty classroom.
Only the steady sounds of something being thrashed echoed calmly.