Demon King of the Royal Class

Chapter 386

The new academic year had begun, and we were now in the second year. Things didn’t go as I had planned. In the end, I did not gather the freshmen together again, and I ended up registering for courses with Ellen, thinking it would work out somehow.

There were a few significant changes as we entered the second year. First of all, we would not continue taking swordsmanship classes with the rest of the general cohort. They were replaced by swordsmanship classes exclusively for the Royal Class, and the hours increased significantly.

The Royal Class cohort and the general cohort were separated for one simple reason.

“The Temple will ensure your safety, but we must be prepared for any eventuality. If the Temple is attacked, the Royal Class is likely to be the first target.

“From this academic year on, you will receive combat training that will be closer to a real battle.”

The swordsmanship classes had transformed into combat training. Instead of teaching techniques, we began learning how to kill monsters, how to respond to magic, how to conduct urban warfare, and field combat tactics. It was both to prepare us to respond to attacks and to train us as soldiers or knights who could be deployed to the battlefield at any time.

The classes for our majors were mostly focused on practical training.

Even the close combat majors were in this situation, so the magic majors would also start receiving practical lessons instead of just reading magic books. There was no need to mention that the intensity of the classes had increased significantly.

And then...

“...”

“I’m Lucinil. Nice to meet you.”

I was dumbfounded when I saw Lucinil, whom Harriet had brought to the Magic Research Club.

‘No way. Is this really happening?’

Everyone was staring at Lucinil, a cute girl who had silver hair and blue eyes and looked like a doll. Even though she was right in front of us, quite a number of the others were staring at her as if wondering if she was a real person.

“My talent is in Destruction magic. Senior Saint-Ouen asked if I was interested in magic research, so I came to check it out.”

When she introduced herself and said she was thirteen years old, my mind went blank for a moment.

‘No way. Grandma... Don’t you feel any self-deprecation? Of course, I’m not really in a position to say that!’

“President, we’ve met once before, right?” Lucinil said with an innocent smile as she looked at me.

“... That’s... right.”

I felt something rising. I really felt like throwing up...

“Hey, why do you look so awful? She’s such a cute girl!” Harriet said when she noticed my annoyance, then proceeded to wrap her arms around Lucinil’s shoulders.

“Oh... I just don’t feel well...”

Lucinil looked so pleased to be adored by her senior. Her expression was really... something. Truly.

***

“What are you doing?” I asked.

Lucinil shrugged her shoulders. “Standing guard,” she replied.

I had brought Lucinil to a room in the club mansion where we could be alone, under the pretext of discussing her joining the club. Although she had been at the Temple for a while, this was the first time we were meeting face-to-face like this.

Lucinil had set up noise-canceling magic around the room, and told me to speak freely. So I did.

“Well, you seem to be enjoying it a bit too much, aren’t you?” I said.

“Oh, is that something you should be saying?” she retorted.

‘Uh. Well... That’s true. I shouldn’t be enjoying it, but I was the one enjoying it the most, wasn’t I?’

“The tournament, the rumors about you, and all that... You’re quite something,” Lucinil said, crossing her arms and giving me a sidelong glance. “You seem to be living quite comfortably, aren’t you?”

“...”

‘She’s right! I guess I wasn’t in a position to say that! Oh! I’m sorry! I’m living such a wonderful life here when I know I shouldn’t be!’

“But is this really okay? You know... living a normal life and all...” I asked.

“I can endure sunlight, and as for eating, I can just throw it up or spit it out later, so it doesn’t matter. It’s not like pretending to be human is something new for me. I’m sick of it, really,” Lucinil shrugged, as if living as a normal human was no big deal.

“Still, you should know that this wasn’t an easy decision,” she continued, giving me a serious look. “The fact that I had to infiltrate this place just means that you could be in danger at any moment.”

It was true that Lucinil had taken a significant risk to enter the Temple. Despite her apparent carefree attitude, she was fundamentally there to protect me.

“So, even though I’d rather not watch kids play house in this Magic Research Club or whatever, it’s something I have to accept.”

“... I understand, but... for some reason, it feels like you’re indulging yourself. Is that just my imagination?”

“Hmm...”

At my words, Lucinil narrowed her eyes and then smiled broadly. “I can’t deny it. I love it when people find me cute, and I love it even more when those who find me cute are even cuter little ones.”

‘Seriously. All Vampire Lords are crazy. I thought Lucinil wasn’t, but she’s definitely the craziest. She’s even stranger than Antirianus!’

“Let’s get along from now on. So that me being around you doesn’t feel out of place.”

From a rational point of view, Lucinil was absolutely right. Instead of forming some random connection, I could just say we’d become friends through the Magic Research Club, which she had joined as a junior member.

But... it was psychologically distressing.

***

Lucinil joined the Magic Research Club. There were other first-year magic majors in Class A, but upon learning that I was the president of the club, they turned pale and avoided it. As a result, Lucinil was the only magic major who joined the Magic Research Club.

The first semester of my second year had started, and we had juniors now. Of course, I didn’t have many interactions with the juniors. Ludwig and the guys from Class B often hung out with the juniors, and I sometimes saw them together.

I had agreed that having Lucinil join the Magic Research Club as a junior member would make it less strange for me to be seen with her. After all, I had thought the same thing.

But...

“Senior?”

.

.

“Senior!”

.

.

“Senior Reinhart!”

.

.

“Oppa!”

.

.

I felt like I was going to lose my mind!

“Stop calling me already!”

In the end, I couldn’t help but be annoyed by Lucinil, who was following me around almost to the point of stalking me. Whether she was diligently fulfilling her duty or just trying to annoy me, Lucinil frequently visited the second-year dormitory, constantly looking for me and trying to stick to my side.

This wasn’t protection; it was harassment. She was definitely enjoying watching me get flustered. My classmates seemed slightly puzzled by how unusually fond Lucinil was of me.

The final blow was delivered by none other than Vertus.

“...”

“Hello, senior.”

Lucinil bowed her head slightly to Vertus, whom she encountered in the hallway.

“Oh, you’re... the first-year student who skipped a grade...”

“I’m Lucinil.”

“...”

Vertus quietly observed Lucinil, who had just greeted him. A girl with silver hair and blue eyes. A junior. And although she was following me around, Vertus didn’t know the full story about why.

Moreover...

I had once cross-dressed and worn silver hair.

“... Do you, by any chance...”

Vertus seemed like he was about to say more, but in the end, he passed by without finishing his sentence.

‘No! He definitely thought something dirty about me, didn’t he? He seemed convinced I had a fetish for silver hair!’

“Huh?”

Lucinil tilted her head, watching as Vertus hurried off.

“Reinhart! What are you doing?”

Olivia Lanche, who hadn’t visited the second-year dormitory in a while, saw the silver-haired little girl next to me and tilted her head. Her expression began to darken ominously.

“...Whose kid is this?” she asked.

Olivia was taking things a step further.

“Do you think it’s mine or something?!” I replied.

***

After the arrival of the freshmen, something bizarre began to occur around the second-year students.

—Oppa! Play with me!

—I told you to leave me alone, didn’t I? Huh? Stop following me around!

—Why not?! Play with me, play with me, buy me something tasty, give me a piggyback ride, take me for a walk!

—Aaaaah!

A junior who followed Reinhart around everywhere had appeared. The hopeless quartet, Heinrich, Erhi, Kaier, and Connor Lint, sat in the lobby, watching the silver-haired girl follow Reinhart around, while Reinhart, looking exasperated, tried to escape.

“What on earth is that guy...?” Connor Lint muttered absentmindedly, his mouth agape.

“They say he’s handsome,” Erhi muttered as if he had given up.

A girl as cute and pretty as a doll had started following him as soon as the new semester began. At first, she’d called him “senior” while following him around, but now she called him “oppa.”

“No matter how handsome he is, is it really to that extent? Huh?” exclaimed Kaier.

Heinrich shook his head, looking bewildered. “I’m not sure if it’s to that extent... But maybe we can’t say for sure because we’re guys.”

Could it be that Reinhart had something that only appealed to women? If not, it was hard to understand how he had already captivated a first-year junior so much that she was following him around like that.

“On top of all that, it’s infuriating how he finds it annoying to have someone like that following him,” Connor Lint said.

The other three nodded at Connor Lint’s words.

Anyone else would be grinning from ear to ear if placed in that situation, but Reinhart was actually finding it bothersome.

The girl didn’t even spare any of the other seniors a glance, and only followed Reinhart persistently. Yet Reinhart acted as if it was the most annoying thing in the world and did his best to avoid her.

Was that the luxury of someone who had everything?

“Have you seen Reinhart?”

And as if to prove that statement, Ellen, the winner of the previous year’s Miss Temple, approached them, looking for Reinhart.

“He... went somewhere to avoid that first-year girl.”

“Again?”

Ellen tilted her head and walked off, presumably to find Reinhart.

Reinhart this, Reinhart that... It was like before, but now even a junior had joined in the search for Reinhart. And those who were already after him continued to run after him.

The luxury of someone who had everything...

“The world is... unfair...”

Connor Lint’s mutterings were met with a deep sigh of agreement from Erhi.

“Exactly.”

—Oppa! Why are you running to the magic lab when you don’t even know magic?

—Just leave me alone!

—No, it’s not me, it’s senior Ellen who’s looking for you.

—Oh? Ah... really?

In the end, no one could deny that Reinhart was handsome. That was why everyone accepted the rather bizarre situation of a junior student suddenly appearing and following him around.

***

Lucinil, who tried her frantic best to stick close to me when others were watching, changed her tone when we were alone. Of course, if she whined in that childish tone even when we were alone, I was sure I’d go completely insane.

Watching her going “senior, senior” in front of Harriet, Ellen, and Adelia made her seem so much like the child she appeared to be that it was almost creepy.

Anyway, Lucinil stuck close to me half because she wanted to protect me and half because she wanted to tease me, but she couldn’t do it all the time.

Clang!

“Ugh!”

Sabioleen Tana deactivated her Aura Blade as she watched Tiamata finally fall from my hand.

“Let’s call it a day.”

Even though the semester had started, Tana was still overseeing swordsmanship training for both Ellen and me.

“Both of you are becoming more sensitive to Mana Manipulation. Keep it up.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

After Tana left, Ellen and I sat on a bench in the training grounds to catch our breath for a moment.

The effects of consuming Moonshine were definitely noticeable. In addition to a finer control over my mana, the changes in my constitution due to Moonshine made me increasingly familiar with Mana Manipulation, to the point where I could feel it in my body.

I hadn’t yet reached the level of being able to expel mana offensively, but it seemed possible to achieve within that semester.

“How long do you think it will take to become a Swordmaster?” Ellen suddenly asked.

Ellen, when using Lapelt, could already approximate the capabilities of a Swordmaster. However, if she reached the level of Master on her own, she would become much stronger.

“... I don’t know,” I replied.

For Ellen, that achievement probably wasn’t too distant in the future. As for me, I didn’t feel it was too far off either. However, I had a subtle certainty that becoming a Swordmaster would mean having to face even more significant challenges ahead.

***

The one relief was that Lucinil hadn’t gotten into any conflicts with the others. Harriet seemed to simply find her adorable, and while Ellen didn’t converse with her often, she would quietly watch her and then pinch her cheeks or pat her head. Even though she didn’t often express it, there was a sense that Ellen found her cute.

In Olivia’s case, Lucinil tended to avoid her. It wasn’t because she feared being discovered, but rather because she sensed the immense Divine Power of Ouen emanating from Olivia. In passing, Lucinil had said, “She’s too overwhelming. I can’t handle her.” It seemed Olivia’s Divine Power was enough to make even a Vampire Lord uneasy.

Of course, Olivia, who had recently become rather prickly, didn’t find Lucinil cute or endearing. However, since Lucinil avoided her whenever their paths were about to cross, Olivia seemed to begin to wonder why Lucinil was so wary of her.

However, since Lucinil didn’t bother her, Olivia left her alone. In fact, when Olivia appeared, Lucinil would stop clinging to me and quietly slip away, so Olivia didn’t seem particularly suspicious.

The first semester of the second year began without any major incidents, and aside from Lucinil’s appearance, my daily life wasn’t much different from before.

However, a significant event was approaching.

We were in the second-year classroom, on a day with common classes, when Mr. Effenhauser addressed us.

“As you know, an event commemorating the first anniversary of the end of the Great War was planned to be held this weekend.”

The first anniversary of the end of the Great War was approaching.

“However, given the current situation, it has been deemed impractical to hold such a large-scale festival, and thus, it has been canceled.”

The incidents that had occurred in the lead up to this date had made their impact. The Demon King’s covert activities had been uncovered, and these incidents had brought about the realization that the war hadn’t yet truly ended. The date which humanity believed marked the end of the Great War was proven to be false. Thus, no commemorative event would take place.

However, the date was still reserved for something special.

“Instead, although it won’t be a festival, the empire has decided to find a new master for Alsbringer.”

Mr. Effenhauser’s words brought silence to the classroom. It was likely the first time anyone had heard such news.

“Therefore, all members of the Royal Class are to gather at the Temple’s main auditorium by noon this weekend.”

The first anniversary marking the commemoration of the end of the war... During that event, the sword of the hero Artorius, Alsbringer, would choose Ludwig as its new owner.

That hadn’t been the original intention of the imperial family. In the original story, when Alsbringer, a commemorative artifact and proof of humanity’s victory, was presented to the public, it had whimsically chosen Ludwig on its own.

However, that commemorative event had been erased from this timeline. A new Demon King was lurking. Unlike in the original story, the empire was now seeking a new master for Alsbringer.

The more relics that had found their masters, the better.

If Alsbringer also chose a master, there would be four relics in the world: Lament, Tiamata, Alsbringer, and Lapelt. It was the first time in history that four relics had appeared simultaneously in one era.

Ellen was staring at the blackboard with a determined expression.

Her brother’s relic was about to reappear in the world, and would choose a new master.