“So, what are you going to do with the corpse?”
After all the fighting ended, the headmaster brought up the cleanup. His words carried the extremely sorcerer-like madness of wanting to study the corpse of someone at the level of a master.
Reading his intention, Kail maintained silence for a moment before quietly speaking.
“It’s better if no one knows about what happened today.”
“That’s how we’ll handle it.”
With a beaming smile, the headmaster carefully lifted Schwartz’s corpse with magic. At his light gesture, the corpse completely disappeared from sight.
He probably stuffed it into a pocket dimension only sorcerers could access. Leaving behind the now-vanished corpse, Kail let out a bitter smile.
‘I could have ended up like that.’
If he hadn’t gained insight during the battle, if his talent was too meager to grow stronger, it would’ve been him lying dead instead of Schwartz.
In that case, Headmaster and Gawein, waiting far away, would have rushed in to restrain Schwartz. Realizing the disadvantage of battling a master consecutively, Schwartz would have fled.
Only his lifeless body would have remained here. As an academy student and a noble of high reputation, his corpse would have been sent back to his family and buried in a tomb.
‘It’s tough. So tough.’
But he couldn’t be satisfied with just defeating one master. Schwartz’s organization, Holy Weapons, consisted entirely of masters as terrorist members.
Whether due to hiding their identities or because they were all masters, this group of monsters remained elusive even to the Empire.
Meaning, if just two members came after him, surviving would be quite difficult.
‘I need to get stronger.’
To grow stronger, he had to fight stronger opponents. He needed to face death every time and still survive.
What a contradiction. To avoid death, he must grow strong, yet to become strong, he had to face death.
Smiling bitterly at the paradox of strength, Kail returned to the mansion supported by two others.
* * *
‘I didn’t expect to come back here.’
Kaines frowned slightly as he gazed at the academy grounds. The distant territory, and within it, the grandest Diaros Academy, came fully into view.
Since his face was likely known, he didn’t enter the academy directly. There was no need. He was Gongseong (Bow Star), a master archer.
Sniping from several kilometers away was his specialty.
‘Is Schwartz… not here?’
From atop the ridge, Kaines observed the academy visible from the mountaintop and realized Schwartz wasn’t in sight, tilting his head in confusion.
Considering the guy’s personality, he should’ve caused some trouble by now. Yet, nothing seemed amiss.
Just as he started sensing something off, Kaines swiftly turned his bow toward the presence he felt behind him.
“…Monster?”
Before him stood a monster with six arms and pitch-black skin. Not very tall, around two meters in stature.
In this world where supergiant monsters spanning over ten meters roamed, it wasn’t particularly large.
Looking at the creature around eye level, Kaines chuckled dryly.
“Now even monsters ignore me.”
That’s how it felt. He was a master, openly emitting aura at this moment.
Monsters instinctively avoided him—it was normal. Masters were beings capable of annihilating ordinary monsters.
“Scram, freak.”
Though he said that, Kaines lightly plucked his bowstring. An arrow made of aura instantly formed on the empty string and shot toward the monster with a heavy “thwoong!” sound.
Kaines turned his head the moment he released the bow. There was no need to watch. No monster could withstand this attack, especially not in this place.
─My, name… not monster.
However, at that moment, Kaines felt a chill run down his spine and leaped forward.
The monster behind him had spoken. Surviving his attack alone was shocking enough, but the fact that it spoke human language was terrifying.
“What is this…”
─He, ca, te.
The monster drew a sword from its hand and pointed it at Kaines.
─My name.
“…Even monsters have names now? What’s the world coming to!”
Kaines retreated backward while firing an arrow. As the aura-formed arrow flew, he finally understood why the monster was still alive.
The self-proclaimed Hecate casually swung its arm and slashed the arrow. The aura gathered at the tip of the sword made it possible.
Seeing the wavering aura, Kaines groaned.
‘Damn, a monster who’s an Aura Master…?’
Until now, he believed the master level was exclusive to humans, the pinnacle of living beings. Though there were monsters with enormous bodies and strength surpassing masters, none possessed refined techniques like humans.
That history was negated in this moment. Stunned by the overturning of human history, Kaines stared blankly at Hecate.
In the blink of an eye, Hecate dashed forward and swung its sword at Kaines.
“Ugh─!”
Its astonishing speed. Realizing it stemmed purely from Hecate’s raw power, Kaines swung his bow to block the sword.
As his bow, imbued with aura, blocked one sword, he belatedly remembered Hecate had six arms.
Just as with the sword he blocked, blades sprouted from Hecate’s previously empty hands. Holding six swords, Hecate swung them with lightning speed.
Swish─!
“Shi, bal─!”
Seeing his left arm roll through the air again, Kaines spat out a frustrated curse. Unlike before, there was no time to retrieve his arm this time.
Because Hecate immediately snatched up his severed left arm.
─Aaang.
Crunch─!
Watching the monster devour his left arm, Kaines gritted his teeth. Now, Hecate paid him no mind, focusing solely on consuming his arm.
“This damn bastard…!”
Frustrating. He wanted to shoot the monster in front of him right now. But he couldn’t.
After stemming the bleeding from his left arm, Kaines quickly left the ridge. Hecate paid no attention to his departure, focused on devouring the arm.
─Not enough.
After chewing and swallowing the entire arm, Hecate stared blankly into the sky, blood smeared around its mouth.
Not enough. Still not enough.
Hecate’s eyes slowly shifted. The academy grounds. The city that birthed its mother and then killed her.
Could it win now? It was uncertain. Unable to draw aura outside its body, it lacked confidence against those gleaming blades.
─A little more.
It needed more prey and time. Thinking this, Hecate returned to its nest, hoping for more prey to arrive on the mountain.
* * *
Though one academy student was mercilessly slaughtered, it didn’t escalate into a major incident. The academy’s upper management intentionally buried the event.
Of course, if the deceased student had been a noble, it wouldn’t have been easily swept under the rug. Fortunately—or unfortunately—the dead student was a commoner. Even in death, there was no influential backing to deeply investigate the matter.
The headmaster thus buried the incident.
“These days, it feels like everyone’s asking too much of me.”
Ariah grumbled petulantly toward Kail. Knowing her abilities, Kail simply chuckled.
Every time something happened, he asked her to brainwash the entire academy, making Ariah, after Kail, the headmaster, and Gawein, the person most knowledgeable about academy incidents.
“Who told you to get involved in such things?”
“No, I’m not refusing! I’m saying I deserve a reward. Get it?”
Quickly changing the subject after hearing Kail’s response, Ariah naturally clung to his arm and began acting coy.
Given that Kail controlled the necklace restraining Ariah, her actions were somewhat expected. With a single gesture from Kail, she’d be doomed to die on the spot.
Still, her behavior suggested it wasn’t purely out of survival instinct—there seemed to be some genuine affection mixed in.
“A reward, huh… what do you want?”
“Oh, there’s this dessert I really want to eat─.”
“Kail?”
At that moment, Kail, spotting Yuri approaching from afar, hastily pulled his arm out from between Ariah’s cleavage.
Though Ariah pouted and gave him a sulky look, Kail scrambled to explain himself.
“She forced herself onto me. I didn’t do anything.”
“You should’ve pulled away sooner.”
“Yeah, I did! Right after she grabbed on!”
While waving his hands in denial, Yuri trudged up and reached Kail. As he looked down at Yuri standing before him, he was yanked by the scruff of his neck and collided lips-first with Yuri.
Yuri, whose lips met violently with his, immediately pulled back and glared at Ariah.
“This is… mine.”
Don’t covet it.
Her tone full of intent, Ariah’s eyes curved into crescents.
