Chapter 3: Chapter 3: A devil transformation
Chapter 3: A devil transformation
Wenzesclaus heaved a heavy sigh. Callistus eyed his friend with a discerning eye. It was amusing he enjoyed his friend in distress. They were notified by the academy to collect their textbooks, uniforms and badges. Callistus and Wenzesclaus had became best friends ever since. Wherever they went, they were together. After learning of the fate of their history, their bonds had grown closer. It was bad luck he got top marks for all of his assessments. Wenzesclaus didn't have one ounce of interest in becoming the top student. Excelled as the top student had meant that he had the responsibilities to put on a good image and reputation for the parents and guardians who will be attending the open ceremony. A public speech was such a bother.
He sighed. I should have made more mistakes on my assessment. I should have faked my capabilities. I should have pretended to be stupid.
"Hey, Callis." Wenzesclaus had collapsed on the table once they had left the academy grounds. The pair had entered a cafe for lunch. "Why don't you take my place and represent our class?"
Callis had sighed. "What are you talking about?" The prince had gone ahead and leafed through the food catalogue. "You're the top student. Remember, Asterisk is purely merit-based. Family background doesn't matter. It all comes to how skillful you are. And you have perfectly proven that your skills certainly had surpassed mine. So hang in there, Mr Top-Student." Callis had a mischievous grin on his face.
"Bastard…" Wenzesclaus eyed Callistus. "You're just getting revenge for snatching your top seat, didn't you?"
"Well, I wonder what you're talking about." Callistus had pretended he knew nothing of it. He had turned to the waitress, and had ordered his food with a satisfying look. "Lunch Set A, please. What would you like, Zes? Or are you going on a diet?" The prince had teased. Wenzesclaus had blushed, turning crimson red from embarrassment.
"No, I'm no!" Wenzesclaus had scowled. "Lunch Set B, please." He placed his own order after Callistus. The waitress had chuckled at their childish bantering, had left with their orders. "Geez, Callis. You're the esteemed prince of this land." Wenzesclaus had sighed after the waitress had left. The prince had smirked. Wenzesclaus, The nation would weep. Their crowned prince had such an appalling personality.
After their lunch, the pair had ventured into the palatial library. Wenzesclaus was curious, had tried picturing through the descriptions and feelings the esteemed elders had felt on that fated day. It was such a mysterious puzzle. Why would a demon intrude into Seinhart? The demon did nothing. He did not try to conquer, monopolize nor sovereign the peaceful land of Seinhart. He came all to kidnap two children. Something didn't feel right. Prince Callistus had agreed.
Something was not right.
The opening ceremony commencement of Asterisk Academy had signalled a fresh start of the trimester. Students from various backgrounds were gathered in the grand, capacious hall of Asterisk Academy. The nobles and aristocrats were lined in the first row. Wenzesclaus was also seated at the first row, to his surprise. His questions were answered when the Principal of Asterisk Academy had come on stage with the esteemed His Majesty, King of Seinhart Empire, Raphael Arnold Seinhart. Wenzesclaus was frozen stiff. Callistus had laughed and chuckled to himself. Wenzesclaus had sighed, eyeing the laughing prince.
"Bastard… you must have knew, didn't you?" Wenzesclaus had whispered.
Vincent gritted his teeth, harbored great hostility against Wenzesclaus. His hostility had increased tremendously as he saw Wenzesclaus was seated in the front rows, along with the aristocrat families. He had picked the wrong person. The faces of pale expressions when Wenzesclaus was invited on stage. Seraphinus and Alexia were dumbfounded. Wenzesclaus was a descendant of the supreme oracle, the sole successor of an ancient noble family. Vincent was filled with extreme jealousy and envy. The audience were moved by Wenzesclaus's touching speech, was welcomed with open arms. Mervyn and Sassha, were also invited to the grand ceremony, were proud of their son's accomplishments.
It was time Wenzesclaus had to face the fate of destiny. The clogs which had begun will never turn back.
The grand ceremony soon came to an end. Students and parents filed out through the exit. Students headed to the classrooms assigned to them based on their assessments. Vincent had reluctantly headed for Class-A, his glare was willed with belligerent intent. Wenzesclaus and Callistus entered the classroom for their first lesson. Wenzesclaus and Callistus had glanced around and stared at their peers who would be their classmates for the term.
" Oh! Prince Callistus, Wenzesclaus!" Alexis's expression lit when she saw the appearance of familiar figures striding into the capacious classroom. The classroom was classic; a blackboard, a teacher's desk, big windows and long desks. Although the hall was spacious, only a limited number of students was admitted into Class-S. There were only a sad number of students. Wenzesclaus glanced around and had done a quick count.
"Eight…" Wenzesclaus was speechless. It was peculiar. The lower levels class were filled with hundreds of students, but their class barely filled the front rows of the classroom. The bell soon chimed, and their homeroom teacher had walked in. He was a man with a muscular build. The outline of his ripped muscles could be seen even from the jersey he wore. Their homeroom teacher had short black hair, his coat was donned over his distasteful jersey. His gray coat had orange rims, which signified he was an instructor for the magi department.
The professor had taken a quick glance and settled himself comfortably at the teacher's desk. He had stared intently at Wenzesclaus, the one who had pulled full marks on Asterisk's assessments. Wenzesclaus was the first since the establishment of Asterisk Academy over a hundred years ago. Wenzesclaus had effortlessly broken the world's record.
Wenzesclaus had blinked. The instructor tore his eyes from staring at Wenzesclaus. "Good morning, class. Congratulations on being admitted into Class-S. In this class, all of you are expected to be independent on your studies. Your instructors are here to oversee your progress. I am the instructor in charge of all you lot. Although the years I have been instructing Class-S, the measly numbers of students here had never failed to leave me stupefied. Seems like we have a genius with us this year." The instructor glanced at Wenzesclaus. Wenzesclaus was perplexed. His presence was below nil. Not many people could have detected his very existence on the first glance. Was this what a Class-S instructor is capable of? "My name is Abraham Frost."
Unlike Class-E to Class A, Class-S has the absolute freedom of research material of their choice. After self-introductory and curriculum briefing, Class-S had been dismissed for the day. Students in Class E till A had classic lessons till evening. Wenzesclaus and Callistus had decided to stop by the research materials centre. The research materials centre was connected to the library and the research labs. There was still much they did not know about devils. Wenzesclaus had checked out books from the library. Wenzesclaus and his peers then decided to have a celebratory lunch since it was the first day of their school admission. Seraphinus and Alexia had suggested to try out the new sweets cafe which had just opened around the corner. Without much choices, the group had decided to give the new sweet cafe a try.
Wenzesclaus had glanced around his peers. With the exception of the prince, they had observed and stared at him. Wenzesclaus could barely remember their names during the homeroom that morning. Everyone's name was long and complicated, which he was weak at it. Two of his peers were Callistus's escorts. Wenzesclaus had burst into laughter.
"Hahahahaha! You have escorts at this age, Callis?"
"Have anyone decided which research society to enter?" Alexia questioned, taking a small spoon of her strawberry yoghurt parfait. Seraphinus had ordered herself a mango parfait. The males had just ordered tea. The confectionery were too sweet to their liking.
"Research society?" Wenzesclaus had blinked. He could finally experience the ache in his abdomen from laughing too much. Taking a break, he joined Alexis conversation. "What's that?" Wenzesclaus was practically clueless when it comes to society rules of their nation. Surrounded by natural resources of mother nature during his childhood days, it was the first time he had seen such a huge crowd of people when he entered the capital of Seinhart.
Seraphinus's shyly nodded. "There are a few research societies." Her timid voice spoke daintily. She took out posters from her bag. "I was given these during the ceremony." She showed the group the posters she had gotten from the seniors promoting their research societies at the walkway leading to the grand hall where the opening ceremony was held. The peers glanced at the posters, curiosity had piqued their interests. There were various research societies where magic was used for the benefit of the society.
There was even a research society named 'Body Enhancement Research'. Wenzesclaus had turned to stone. It sounded so wrong in so many ways. Callistus's escorts were twin brothers. The elder twin was gleaming with passion. "However, I cannot do as I please without His Highness approval. I won't be indulgent. My job is to ensure His Highness safety. This is the reason why we're chosen as His Highness's escorts."
Callistus sighed. "Kousuke, Haruki. Just do whatever pleases you. You don't need my approval, nor you have to follow me around everywhere." Callistus had told his escorts with a straight face. Wenzesclaus knew he just didn't like being followed around like a king. Wenzesclaus sighed. That was his intention all along.
Both twins were from the Salvador Family. They were a noble knight family which they vowed to protect the royal family with their lives. The successors of the Salvador families were extreme powerful, their martial arts could put the military commanders to shame. The twins were sons of the Fifth Salvador Master, Albrecht Salvador. His sons, Kousuke Romaeus Salvador and Haruki Erik Salvador were his proud children of the Salvador family. After all, his sons inherited his strong appearance and traits. The twins although were thin, they possess the lithe figure of knights, like their mother, were competent and well-versed in miracle arts, also known as magic.
Magic was once known as arts of miracle, which is not achieved by many, leading people to believe that magic could only be performed by selected people chosen by the heavens. It is a miraculous feat, a gift from the heavens. Magi were capable of conjuring things out of nothing; transforming things into nothingness. A feat which many could only dream of. But the existence of magi had made humans' dreams come true. It began with foresight and predicting of the future. The origins of magic does not have an assault nature. Individuals who were born magical talent were sensitive to spiritual and supernatural essence. The discovery of virtual imagery and chanting had opened the gates to the unlimited possibilities of magic.
"What should we do?" There are too many for me to decide~" Alexis had groaned.
"Who knows." Wenzesclaus shrugged. He picked up a few of the posters and studied them. Wenzesclaus then felt a tingling feeling behind his neck. He turned and saw Vincent was standing outside the window. Fireball magic was activated in his hands, had aimed towards his direction. Wenzsclaus had dropped the papers and raced to the front of the doors.
"Everyone, duck!" Wenzesclaus had casted a huge barrier. He had charged to the front, standing in front of the threat, his peers were behind him. The customers and the staff of the cafe had panicked. Some tried to escape, were badly injured by the fireball spell Vincent had casted. The casualty was huge. Callistus had ordered Seraphinus to heal the injured, and casted another barrier over them. He had warned them not to do anything rash and heeded his instructions.
"Do you think he's conscious of his own actions?" Wenzesclaus turned and asked Callistus. Callistus had shook his head.
"I don't think so, Zes." His reply was short.
Callistus gritted his calcium-nurtured teeth. What should I do? Callis, think! You're the prince! It's your duty to protect these people of your nation! He turned around, was wide-eyed with shock. The weak-presence Wenzesclaus had easily deflected Vincent's fireball with a single hand. In fact, it was Vincent who had a hard time assaulting Wenzesclaus. Callistus sighed. You can do everything, don't you? His treasured friend must have decided it was the only casualty they would be willing to compromise. Wenzesclaus dispelled his barrier, glared at Vincent.
"Wake up, Vincent! Do you know what you're doing?!" Wenzesclaus had yelled. His efforts were in vain. Vincent's ravings were defined as 'balderdash'. It was as if Vincent had been possessed, chanting words he had never spoken or knew he could. It was a marlakey of the society. He'd be shamed, a son of a prestigious noble family was defamed in the eyes of the people. Wenzesclaus however, frowned. He felt a tingling feelings from the litany baloney of words Vincent had spoken. Wenzesclaus could sense it. Vincent was unconscious. He was possessed by someone, something which possessed ominous powers.
Wenzesclaus had transformed the magic barrier into an attack spell. His golden staff had materialized, and appeared in his delicate hands. His ice spell conjured was intent on slowing Vincent, however had hurt and damaged Vincent tremendously. Wenzesclaus had blinked. His eyes had turned red, his ears were pointy, had long, thin fingernails. Wenzesclaus frowned. It was bizarre. These were classic features of a resident from the Servius Empire. In other words, a spirit of the Servius empire. Vincent had transformed into one of those beings in front of his very eyes. He couldn't believe it. There were no recordings that humans could transform into spirits. However, it was also strange that such a weak spell had caused such a huge damage on a mythical being. These mythical beings were said to possess enhanced strength, durability, sight and prowess.
Wenzesclaus realized the dire emergence of the current situation. He had made a wage that Callistus had realized it too. He trusted Callistus to protect the rest. His staff touched the grounds, making ripples of the spiritual power which was outspread like a thin layer. Callistus cold feel the immense colossal of spiritual strength he had gathered. Wenzesclaus's clear teal blue irises had a sharp gaze. He had struck the grounds at Vincent's feet with his golden staff.
"Sleep, Vincent." He commanded. He had made use of the oxygen and water particles in the air, was glaciated Vincent in a cage of ice. Callistus felt Wenzesclaus was impressive. He was like a gift from the heavens. His skills were levels too advanced to be revered a magi at the young age of seventeen. He was astounded at Wenzesclaus's display of accuracy to even pinpoint at a rampaging Vincent. He was like a messenger from the heavens. His existence was vowed to kept confidential from the world.
He was just a freshman student at Asterisk Academy, was what the world knows about the young man named Wenzesclaus Marquis Fernandez.
"Is it over?" Alexis had spoke, stretching her neck nearer towards the unconscious Vincent. Wenzesclaus nodded. Callistus had summoned the royal commander, had entrusted the case to the man who played a vital role in keeping the empire safe. The royal guards were extremely perplexed by Wenzesclaus's skill, many had witnessed how effortlessly he had taken down a rampaging devil. There were still many things humans did not know about devils, nor the mysterious land of Servius Empire. People who step into the lands of Servius do not return. It was regarded as the forbidden lands by the people of Seinhart Empire.
Wenzesclaus and Callistus had said goodbyes to their classmates after the incident was safely over. Wenzesclaus had sighed on their way home.They were exhausted. It was a day filled with incidents one after another. After all, he possesses the rare capabilities no man had ever seen. He and the people who were present during the fight were questioned over and over again. Even Prince Callistus was no different. Such an obscene sight was revealed in front of their eyes. A clue to what had happened between the pair had finally appeared. They had almost lost hope when they had found the library had possessed research information on devils and Servius empire close to nil. This incident had brought hope to them. A new clue. It was the beginning of a tremendous storm.
In a land far, far away, a man who had been observing the entire incident through the crystal ball. He was located miles away from Seinhart empire. He had vermillion scarlet red hair, long, black nails, pointed fangs and ears. He had the most graceful and elegant appearance man had ever seen. Women often had fallen prey, were entranced by his alluring appearance, had met their demise at the hands of the notorious devil. With just one glance, his servants had smirked. It was a contrivance which humans were easily capacitated, had danced merrily to their tune. Humans were amusing, had achieved the conditions they required, was fit of becoming a devil's pastime. After all, it was their master who was the sole mastermind behind the strings of incidents which had ad nauseum occured on the lands of Seinhart empire. The cases of demi-devils transformation had been reported had increased since then. He had enjoyed observing Wenzesclaus being summoned by the royal commander in assisting the police in subjugating the threats of devils.
The devil had smirked. "Do you like my present, Zes?"
It's not yet the time yet. Suffer more, struggle more, my dear Zes. Our time is etched upon the clock. By the time you realize its true intentions, you are mine to have.
You are mine, Zes.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone