"Ugh... Wh-what happened?"
"What was I doing...?"
The students sprawled across the floor began to groan, pushing themselves up as they regained consciousness.
Oops, they were waking up for real now. I had to finish tidying up quickly.
I immediately activated a piece of spatial system magic I’d discovered in a magic book within the Forbidden Library: Dimensional Vault. This spell carves out a rift in the fabric of the dimensions to create a storage space that can hold almost anything. If I tucked the unconscious Zen and Sheraha inside, I could keep them hidden for the time being.
"Master Lloyd, aren't ya gonna finish 'em off?" Grimo asked.
"No, there’s no need for that."
"Beggin' your pardon, but I think there is... These are members of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Army we're talkin' about!"
Jiriel gave me a look of exasperated concern, but I didn't agree. Certainly, these two were incredibly strong and thought nothing of hurting humans. Being demons made them dangerous by nature. However, they were surprisingly easy to talk to, and I didn't feel they were the type who simply had to be killed on sight.
...Well, that was my official stance. In truth, it seemed like a waste to kill such fascinating subjects after I’d gone to the trouble of capturing them alive. I had countless questions about the magic and technology of the demon world, the biology of the creatures living there, and their various magical artifacts.
I hadn't known how things would turn out, but I was definitely glad I came to the dance party. Capturing two of the Four Heavenly Kings was a huge win. I was going to grill them for every bit of information they had later.
Just as I was about to toss the two of them into the Dimensional Vault, I felt something shift.
"...?"
Their presence suddenly began to fade. Looking closer, I saw that Zen and Sheraha had both plunged their hands into their own chests.
"Wh-what the hell are they doing?! They’re attacking themselves...!" Grimo shouted.
"Suicide...? Their mana is collapsing! We can't stop it!"
True to Jiriel’s words, their magic bodies were beginning to break down. What on earth were they thinking? As I stood there stunned, I noticed the dispersing mana particles flowing in a specific direction.
They were converging—
"With this... our duty is done..."
"Yes... our master can finally awaken..."
The two of them vanished, wearing expressions of strange satisfaction.
Hey, don’t you dare disappear with those peaceful looks on your faces. I still have a mountain of questions for you. It's not like I was going to eat you or anything... Dammit.
The moment I let out a frustrated sigh, a chill ran through my entire body.
"Ma-Ma-Master Lloyd, l-l-look... over there!"
Grimo’s voice was trembling. He was pointing at Connie, who was slowly rising to her feet.
...Wait, was that really Connie? The aura she radiated was nothing short of abnormal. Furthermore, she now possessed an immense amount of mana she shouldn't have had. It was the murky, sinister mana unique to demons.
The mana the Four Heavenly Kings had used was exceptional, but Connie’s current power was pure, absolute darkness. The purity of it was on an entirely different level.
"This is bad! Really bad! I've never seen mana like that before! Master Lloyd, we have to run!"
"He's right! Even the Four Heavenly Kings combined wouldn't compare to this! Could that be the legendary—"
"—Hmm."
Connie—or whatever she had become—muttered. A low, gravelly voice echoed, layered directly over her usual tone.
"So this is my vessel for this age? A woman’s body... I had my doubts, but it’s surprisingly suitable."
The figure turned toward me and removed her glasses. Her expression was nothing like the Connie I knew. Her eyes, which usually sparkled with curiosity, were now sharp and glowed with an eerie light. A twisted, cruel smile played across her lips.
A mist of mana drifted around her. Sensing the faint remnants of Zen and Sheraha within that mist, the entity toyed with the particles with its fingertips.
"Oh, I must reward you for your efforts. Yes, you have served well. It was a great deed. I shall grant you my praise."
The entity watched the mana mist pulse with joy for a moment before the air suddenly turned frigid.
"You there. What are you staring at? Is your insolence so great that you do not recognize me as Beal, the King who rules this world?"
As the name Beal was spoken, a colossal wave of mana rippled through the hall. The pressure was so intense that the students who had been waking up promptly passed out again. Grimo and Jiriel’s eyes rolled back in their heads as they foamed at the mouth.
The Demon King Beal was the ruler who had led the demon race during the legendary Demon Army Advance. It was said he had vanished after ravaging the continent, but... why was he possessing Connie?
Beal nodded as he watched me tilt my head in confusion.
"Impressive. You remain standing even under the weight of my pressure. ...I see. Are you this girl’s lover, perhaps? Is the power of love what keeps you upright? Heh, how touching. Very well. I am in a pleasant mood now that I have obtained this flesh. As a gift for the afterlife, I shall tell you exactly what is happening."
Beal continued, sounding almost cheerful.
"Long ago, I fell into a slumber in this land. My mana soaked into the very earth. Over the next century, humans began to settle in this land filled with my power. The monsters were too afraid of my mana to approach, which served the humans well, I imagine. However, because of the influence of my mana, every human born here suffered from some form of affliction."
I see. He was talking about Connie’s home village. Monsters avoided it, and the villagers were born with magic disorders. It made sense if the earth was saturated with the mana of such a terrifying being.
"But then, this girl was born. She possessed a constitution that allowed her to seal any and all mana within herself. When I learned of this, I decided to plant the nucleus of my being within her."
Connie’s Magic-Housed Constitution meant she didn't possess mana of her own, but that was simply because she couldn't manifest it; her body was actually a vortex of energy. She functioned as a living seal. Because of that power, Connie had been hosting Beal’s magic body this entire time.
"And so, the girl carrying my nucleus grew up and eventually arrived at this academy, the place where the vast majority of my mana was originally sealed. The seal had frayed over the years, and by sacrificing my clones—the Four Heavenly Kings—I was able to trigger a resonance. Thus, my resurrection is complete. Do you understand now?"
In magical terms, there are two ways to break a seal: from the inside or the outside. I felt a mana signature from Beal that was very similar to the Four Heavenly Kings. They were likely his avatars—fragments of his own soul. Grimo had done something similar before. If the main body responds to the call of the avatars, the resonance can shatter a seal. And the strongest possible call is the act of death. The Four Heavenly Kings had been trying to get close to Connie all along to achieve this.
When an overwhelming amount of mana like this overflows, no human vessel can withstand it. Connie’s consciousness had been suppressed, and Beal had taken control.
"—Now, the talk is over. Unfortunately, the girl you love is never coming back. But do not despair. I shall send you—no, I shall send all of humanity—to join her very soon."
Beal raised his hand toward the ceiling, mana coalescing at the tip of his finger. A massive orb of black energy expanded rapidly until it threatened to blot out the sky. It was nearly as large as the academy itself. The air wailed and the ground shook.
"Farewell, world of men."
With those words, Beal released the sphere with a casual flick of his finger.
Beal soared into the night sky, glancing back at the rising plumes of black smoke. He let out a bored sigh as he surveyed the landscape below.
"Good grief. Even after centuries, this world is still so tedious."
Beal had originally come to this continent from the demon world in search of a worthy opponent. But no one had ever satisfied him, leading him to fall into a long slumber. Now that he was awake, he had held a flicker of hope that he might sense a new powerhouse in this era. Yet the mana signatures around him were all mediocre.
No—the boy he had just spoken to was slightly interesting, but still not enough to make his heart race.
"If he were facing my clones, the Four Heavenly Kings, he might have put up a decent fight."
What a shame, Beal thought.
"He is likely a once-in-a-century genius who reached that height through sheer effort. But it is not enough. What I desire is a battle that makes the blood boil and the soul sing. Power that rivals my own is not something that can be attained through talent and effort alone. It requires infinite hunger, infinite time, and infinite curiosity... a realm those with short human lifespans can never hope to reach. Well, I expected nothing else. I accepted the solitude of the overwhelmingly powerful long ago—"
Beal stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening.
As the smoke from the explosion cleared, the Academy Tower was still standing, completely unharmed. It had been shielded by a massive Magic Barrier deployed by the boy—Lloyd.
"What...?"
The word escaped him involuntarily. That sphere of mana had been a crude, unrefined mass, but it was still something no human—not even someone on the level of the Four Heavenly Kings—should have been able to survive.
"Not only did you protect yourself, but the academy and everyone around you as well? ...Tell me your name, boy. I shall grant you the honor of a place in my memory."
Lloyd thought for a moment before answering.
"Lloyd di Saloom. I'm just the Seventh Prince, and I happen to like magic quite a bit."