Chapter 23

“[Are you all set?]”

“Yeah.”

In the end, it was me who woke up Stella, who was still fast asleep the next day, and sent her off to the entrance ceremony.

Well, I did expect it to turn out this way.

The reason we met in the training grounds on the day of the entrance ceremony was that Stella was late and had gotten lost, so it was inevitable.

Now, I properly showed her where the entrance ceremony was held, woke her up early in the morning, and helped her get ready before sending her to the academy, so there would be no chance of running into demons.

“By the way, aren’t you going?”

Stella, who was adjusting her outfit, asked me with a look of annoyance on her face.

I couldn’t help but wonder why she was asking something like that if she found it bothersome.

I felt a bit pleased since it meant that Stella considered me important.

I smiled and replied.

“[I got suspended for stopping a fight yesterday.]”

“…”

Huh?

What is she doing?

Stella suddenly placed her hand on me and concentrated her magic power.

I took a slight step back in surprise and asked in a flustered voice.

“[Is something wrong? Why are you staring blankly…]”

“It’s nothing. I just heard you stopped a fight, so I was checking to see if you were okay for a moment.”

Ah… is that so?

Thinking back, my body didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary, to the extent that it was hard to believe she had placed her magic-imbued hand on me.

If I hadn’t seen Stella place her hand on me, I would have never known she had used magic on me.

No, maybe that’s not quite right.

In any case, I could still feel the sensation of her hand on me.

“Well then, I’ll take off first.”

“[Take care~]”

After saying goodbye, Stella stepped out the door.

As the door closed, I pondered the strange sense of dissonance I had just felt.

Something felt off.

‘She said she’d go ahead…?’

What’s going on?

Is someone playing a trick on me?

I clearly mentioned that I couldn’t go because I got suspended, yet she spoke as if I were going to the entrance ceremony.

‘Could it be…’

Did she catch on that I was secretly planning to deal with the demon?

…

That wouldn’t be likely.

Who could think that there would be a demon at the academy when I never mentioned anything about going to subdue one?

If anything, if I said I came to the academy as a VIP, someone might suspect a demon could appear, but that’s about it.

‘That couldn’t be it.’

Well… words can come out wrong sometimes.

I decided to let it go.

Right now…

‘It’s probably just nerves.’

There wasn’t much time left before the entrance ceremony.

After briefly assessing my surroundings, I made my way towards the storage area where my things were kept.

I probably wouldn’t lose, but as often happens in situations like these, it’s best to prepare for anything that might occur.

And…

“[Found you.]”

The reason I came to the Realm.

Well, the first reason was to make my abilities even stronger and to get accustomed to things.

If I wanted to get used to handling Divine Power, I should go to a place where I could handle a lot of it, right?

That’s why I was headed to the Realm, where many people needed healing.

Of course, I couldn’t deny that there was some personal desire for my own ambitions to be fulfilled in the process, but there was another reason as well.

I gazed down at the red gem-studded necklace resting in my hand and smiled.

*

The entrance ceremony at the academy is held grandly.

As the largest educational institution in the empire, with students coming to enroll from all over the world, it would be tantamount to diminishing the nation’s prestige if it wasn’t conducted elaborately.

So, I didn’t really understand why it was necessary to partake in an entrance ceremony that was hardly efficient and just an unnecessary display.

“Now, we will commence the 254th entrance ceremony!”

As a majestic voice rang out, countless spells began to rise, delighting the eyes of the spectators.

Most of the students were cheering at the sight of the myriad of spells that professors and seniors had prepared exclusively for the entrance ceremony.

However, Stella wasn’t particularly interested in any of it.

What significance did those spells, which only served to please the eyes, really hold?

What mattered more was the image of Aria she’d seen in the morning, which occupied her mind.

Before casting a spell, Stella first closed her eyes.

‘Shall I try using it gradually?’

It was coincidence.

She had felt something strange since yesterday. Well, “something strange” was just the peculiar distortion of magic power she sensed when passing by the training grounds.

Stella had a natural talent for sensing magic, which allowed her to feel the very minor crack in the magical flow.

This crack was so small that anyone might feel it countless times throughout their lives, so she hadn’t paid it much mind.

Even if the crack had been bigger, if that were all there was to it, she would have likely dismissed it as an annoyance.

It was none of her business what happened at the academy.

However, today, as soon as she heard that Aria had been suspended, the strange distortion of magic power from yesterday resurfaced in her thoughts.

The suspension of the Saint, the peculiar spatial crack, and… the distortion of magic power.

The birth of the Hero and the Saint, along with the rumors of demons that had begun to emerge.

It was common knowledge that two years ago, the Holy Kingdom publicly announced that the birth of the Demon King had come through a prophecy after the appearance of the Saint.

Although Stella wasn’t particularly interested in the events of the world, she knew very well the story surrounding the birth of the Demon King.

Her instincts as a magician, combined with all the situations she had observed so far, had led her to one simple premonition.

There was going to be an incident at the academy.

And she hypothesized that the Saint had purposely gotten suspended to prevent it.

It would be a relief if nothing happened.

If it was truly just a case of her getting suspended for trying to prevent a fight, then that would indeed seem just like her to meddle unnecessarily, and she might have just accepted it.

However, the weight of unease was too much to casually dismiss it.

That’s why, before leaving the dormitory, under the pretense of checking her physical state, she placed Surveillance Magic on herself.

Knowing that Aria would also have her privacy, it wasn’t a spell that she could maintain continuously, but she had set a detailed magic circle that would leave a clear mark of magical traces behind, making it easy for a magician to notice.

‘Sorry, I’ll apologize later.’

With that resolution, Stella closed her eyes and cast the spell.

‘Who would have thought I’d go this far?’

Disappointed with the Dark Magic Tower, she had become cynical.

She had never experienced affection in her whole life.

Only the pressure from the Council to push her to reach higher levels of magic, surviving under that pressure while continuing her magical research was all that remained as her past memory.

That’s why the warm feelings she received from the Saint, who had been essentially a complete stranger, felt overwhelmingly significant to her after just a day.

It flickered before her eyes, like a fleeting favor that could wash away all the time spent in the Dark Magic Tower.

If any trouble was occurring as she checked with magic, she thought she’d go help.

It was in that moment, as she had resolved herself and used the spell.

‘The training grounds…?’

The place where Aria was located was the training grounds inside the academy.

Just as she was puzzled as to why she had suddenly come here, a menacing and vile dark energy appeared within her vision, causing Stella to stiffen.

Even though she had never seen it in her life and had never experienced it before, she instantly recognized it upon seeing it.

What was that black mist she was looking at through this magical eye…?

‘Magic…!!’

The energy of a demon, akin to the magic power in the human realm.

Stella covered her mouth in shock at the scene unfolding before her eyes.

‘A demon…!!’

It was a demon.

With horns protruding from its head and a body of dark hues, even though she was only spying with magic, it emitted a grotesque stench.

The human-formed demon was at least an upper-rank demon.

In other words, a high-ranking demon.

‘No, no…!!’

No matter how much of a Saint she was, she had limitations when alone.

Facing an upper-rank demon all by herself was tantamount to a s*icide mission. Even from what she saw through magic, it was evident that Aria was at a disadvantage.

She was breathing heavily, covered in wounds inflicted by demonic energy that were yet to heal.

This was dangerous.

If things continued as they were, Aria could d*e…

[You lowly being, did you think I wouldn’t see through your petty magic?]

‘…?!’

As a dark and ominous voice echoed in her mind, she felt a backlash of magic power.

In that moment, Stella, through her instincts as a magician, succeeded in cutting off the magic somehow.

“Gah… Gah…”

Stella gasped for breath, drenched in cold sweat.

This was not good.

To think a high-ranking demon was at the academy was more than just odd—it was incredibly strange.

However, if she shouted that a high-ranking demon had appeared, who would believe her?

Stella gritted her teeth.

‘… There’s only one way.’

Her clever mind quickly devised a plan.

Stella stood up and dashed past the students, who were entranced by the magic, right out of the building.

The training instructor, surprised by Stella’s sudden exit, asked where she was going, but she simply replied that she was going to the restroom to defuse the situation.

‘Please… let me not be too late…!’

Hoping earnestly that she would not be late, Stella spread her magic power.