74. Demon Terror
74. Demon Terror
There is a thing called trust in the world.
The trust that the bakery on the street is making normal bread without spitting phlegm into it.
The trust that the person living next door won't smash my window and steal while I am away.
In everyday life, there simply exist many social trusts that go, 'Oh, come on, would they really do that?'
Who would have ever imagined that the Clover Academy students, who had been flirting together while watching the matches at the exchange meeting meant for fostering friendship between the two nations, would all uniformly become Demon-touched who had lost their reason?
It sounded absurd that people who were laughing and chatting just moments ago could turn into monsters in an instant.
But that absurd thing happened.
Every single Clover Academy student, without exception, became a Demon-touched who had lost their reason and attacked those who had not.
"This is why I hate demons...!!!!"
A blue Aura flickered on Andy's sword.
Andy, a top-tier Expert-level combatant, was fighting well against the Demon-touched who had lost their reason.
The biggest reason he could fight so well was that he had the experience of fighting the Demon Church once in the Imperial Knights... and another reason was that he had changed his weapon according to Atlas's advice.
After the Great Demon descended in the dungeon, Atlas had badgered Andy to buy at least one sword blessed by the Church instead of splurging the reward money.
He had said that if the Demon Church truly began targeting the Academy, there would be quite a few occasions to face demons.
He had incurred an enormous expense and once again wondered if it was a bit excessive, but it turned out to be the right call this time as well.
"Hyaaaaap!!"
The Archbishop's blessed sword, purchased with the medal's reward money, demonstrated its true worth against the Demon-touched.
The Demon-touched, who normally took little to no damage from ordinary attacks and got back up nonchalantly, screamed and could barely rise when struck by the sword imbued with Holy Power.
"As expected of an Imperial Knights veteran! Those Demon-touched can't even lay a finger on you! Oh my, having a young man like you here, Instructor, is truly a blessing for the Academy."
"Ugh... my back is aching from fighting in real combat after so long, so may I slowly slip out now?"
'What are these old fogeys trying to slip out for...!!'
He could see the professors who had been holding back the Demon-touched together, laughing 'hoho' while discreetly sizing up the situation and trying to slip away.
What did they mean it was fine? It was only because they were suppressing the Demon-touched with magic that they were able to hold their own against such numbers.
He wanted to ask what kind of bullshit they were pulling, but he suppressed it with great effort, thinking about what would come after this situation was settled.
If he handled things well here, his standing within the Academy would solidify in the future.
As expected, facing demons or Demon-touched was something even Andy hated to do.
There was one particularly unsettling rumor about demons.
It was said that even if demons, who do not die when killed, are exterminated and return to Hell, they remember the one who struck them down.
The rumor was that if they are summoned once more from Hell bearing a grudge, they kill the one against whom they hold that grudge first.
So everyone was reluctant to fight demons.
Whether it was true or not, the fact that the ones who fought demons the most, the Holy Knight Order and the Inquisitors, mostly had no families and were somewhat unhinged, lent weight to this rumor.
Andy valued his own life above all.
If he had his way, he wouldn't get tangled up with demons at all.
But if he didn't fight here...
'Do the Imperial Knights flee from mere bastards like that? Do you want to fight those guys, sunbae... or die by my hand?'
Nine times out of ten, Atlas, who'd be fighting somewhere else, would show up and tear him to absolute shreds.
"Uh... Professors, do you know who that is?"
"Hmm... Red clothes.. That appears to be anti-demon gear. Are they reinforcements sent by the Church?"
Just then, Andy spotted another peculiar person in the distance.
It was a person wearing a red coat, holding a pure white greatsword in one hand and a rare weapon, a gun, in the other.
'I can't see their face properly... Cognition Hindrance Magic...?'
Someone whose gender was indiscernible was hunting demons with a terrifying aura.
They swung a greatsword ablaze with pale flames in one hand while the gun spat fire from the other hand.
He didn't know exactly what it was firing, but the Demon-touched hit by the shots from the gun writhed in agony, and the greatsword sheathed in a vivid Aura cleaved the Demon-touched in two.
The pure white blade, blazing with a pale Aura, captured Andy's gaze.
Just like the sword Andy held, divine words inscribed on the blade were visible.
Judging by the color, it was clearly not painted but the natural color of the metal itself.
And as far as Andy knew, there was only one metal that could produce such a color.
'Whoa... Is that a sword made of solid Mithril...? I wish I had one like that too...'
It wasn't just any sword but a rather thick greatsword, and the person in the red coat wielded it freely with one hand.
It was possible because Mithril was both strong and light.
Andy felt his own sword looked incredibly shabby.
-Kukwakwang!!!
At that moment, black Demonic Energy erupted from the special arena and began demolishing the stadium.
——————————
Morgan was having the worst day since taking up the post of Academy Headmaster.
Just dealing with the Sword Saint's mood was a problem; although he outwardly pretended to be fine after witnessing the destruction at the exchange meeting, inside he was almost certainly seething.
Since being inaugurated as Headmaster, he had grown accustomed to others catering to his mood, but trying to appease a psychopath like the Sword Saint, who could snap at any moment, was no small ordeal.
Everyone who knew anything knew that the Sword Saint was a lunatic who acted normal in public but wouldn't leave anyone alone if they rubbed him even slightly the wrong way.
Still, he could endure it since he was supposed to leave tomorrow...
But these bastards suddenly carried out a suicide bombing?
He should have noticed when the Sword Saint suddenly said he'd be vacating his seat.
Who could have imagined that all 120 students he brought were bombs that would all transform into Demon-touched?
Summoning demons directly is more powerful, but since summoning a demon requires a more complex procedure, they went with Demon-touched...
Seeing that they were all Demon-touched with similar characteristics, they weren't even typical Demon-touched who contract one-on-one with a demon, but appeared to have been thrown en masse to a single demon like sacrifices.
And that single demon was the first Demon-touched that appeared in the arena.
There was only one place that could perpetrate something like this with Demon-touched.
'The Clover Kingdom... No, that Sword Saint bastard colluded with the Demon Church...!!!'
The Empire wouldn't be shaken by just this much.
Some students were injured, but there were many professors sitting in the audience as well, and since all the Clover Academy students were gathered together, the damage could be minimized.
Communication was currently being jammed, but other professors were working hard to dispel it, so it wouldn't hold for long.
The moment contact with the capital was restored, the Imperial Knights... the Empire's foremost sword would be dispatched, and if she came, the Sword Saint wouldn't be able to hold out.
It was just a matter of holding on until then.
But this was an event that could shake the continent.
A Master, the most effective means of dealing with demons, had joined hands with a demon.
The Clover Kingdom was finished now.
A clear declaration of war against the Empire... even if it didn't go to war, the pillar of their nation would be torn down.
They would have to prove they were unrelated to the Demon Church, and if they had truly fallen to the demons, the country called the Clover Kingdom would vanish from the map.
Even if they hadn't fallen, they would have to offer up at least the Sword Saint's head.
The reason he had survived the war with the Empire was solely because the Church had prevented the reduction of the number of Masters needed to confront demons.
Morgan simply couldn't understand what possible benefit there could be in doing such a thing.
'The problem is that the Sword Saint... is still nowhere to be seen...!!!'
If the Sword Saint joined forces with those Demon-touched, he didn't know how long he could last.
First, he needed to shelve the complicated matters and immediately stop the Demon-touched right in front of him.
-Do not... interfere!!!!!
Having borrowed the power of a highest-grade demon, the Demon-touched Margaret's ordinary attacks possessed power exceeding that of 5th-circle magic used by elemental mages.
Each lump of Demonic Energy she carelessly hurled was an attack with enough power to annihilate an entire infantry squad.
And Morgan, the Grand Mage, was a powerhouse beyond that.
"Ice Spear..!"
With a single incantation, dozens of Ice Spears—6th-circle magic—materialized.
It was a sight that would make anyone involved in the magical arts drop their jaw in astonishment.
Creating dozens of spells with a single incantation.
Unlike other mages who followed the fundamental law of creating only one spell at a time and couldn't even dream of it, Morgan could perform 'Chain Casting', the ultimate pinnacle of magic, as naturally as breathing because he was a Grand Mage.
With one gesture from Morgan, the icicles created in the air were launched.
Some of them pierced the bodies of the Demon-touched still remaining in the arena, but most poured down towards the Demon-touched Margaret.
The icicles raining down like falling rain struck the large target that was Margaret's body, but only collided with a loud clatter before shattering powerlessly.
"Agh... That Demonic Energy is weakening the power of magic..!"
The Demon-touched Margaret's face had gaping holes for features that spewed Demonic Energy, so a thick black mist always surrounded her. He judged that the mist composed of Demonic Energy was weakening the magic's power.
"This is troublesome... extremely so..!"
Morgan was convinced that if this fight dragged on, it would be disadvantageous for him.