Capítulo 66: Master and Disciple (1)
[Funny, you're supposed to be a student of Eldain Academy, but you're just a freshman at best. How dare you think you can deal with me?]
"Looks like a sword doesn't fit in a demon's throat."
As Ludwig spoke the obvious line, I narrowed my eyes and returned the favor.
Even if the scenario played out according to plan, this bastard was a pain in the ass.
I've had to deal with units and annoying conversations, and I've even taken over the role of the main character. Not to mention playing the villain.
Holy shit.
Does this asshole even realize how incredibly difficult this is?
'I'm going to need to take it out on someone.'
Actually,
I have to admit, and it's pretty embarrassing for him.
Now I'm sort of 'event skipping'.
In other words, I'm cheating.
'Originally, Ludwig is the one that the students finally succeed in defeating by banding together. The final boss of this nameless forest.'
But I know.
I know that that goddamned convenient bus layout is impossible for me now.
You goddamned bastard. I can't say that many people would listen to a guy named Nox.
It's half forced that they're listening to me in the first place. I'm forced to stand in for the main character, but I'll never be the main character.
The best I can do now is to get to the root of the problem. as early as possible without derailing the story.
'He's just a mini-Ludwig, an event boss that can be skipped, no problem. This is the best option and the least damaging to the other units.'
The goal of this mission is simple.
This mission is straightforward: to introduce the player to the existence of demons, and this episode does just that.
Ludwig's death isn't given much meaning.
Neither does this particular story. It's full of writer's block tropes.
For example.
By now, the Academy's instructors are all attending a banquet in the capital city of Talonfeather.
In other words, they're having fun.
As the story unfolds, Vernon will be trying to locate the students.
Right now, I don't think Lars would miss us too much.
That crazy guy is serious about his research.
I don't know what to tell him when he asks, "How is this possible when the students are missing?" Even if it's in character. I mean, it's the original story.
Haha, f*ck you. Surprisingly authentic.
Anyway,
According to the canon, Takoyaki Vernon shows up moments after the students defeat a demon.
In other words, he's the instructor who gets the units off the ground.
Here's the thing.
You might ask. "Why would an author make such a favoritist move?"
But it's just typical tropes for games set in an academy.
It's just the typical plot of a game set in an academy: take an influential person out of the picture, make the student's role crucial, and put everyone else in the background.
The benefits mostly fall to the protagonist.
It would be more complicated if I had a protagonist here. I'd have to solve the story by awakening him.
But there is no protagonist in this world.
A small part of the character I created remains as a setting inside Nox, but it's long since gone and turned to dust.
As a result, I don't have to worry about killing him off at will.
I don't have a character to show up anyway, and I'm not in a leading role, so I'm out of the loop, right?
It means I can be absolutely relentless.
'Will you give me more life for this? At least ten days?'
I already had more than 150 days of life, but it was confirmed that I needed more.
Who wants to die early?
[You're going against the Archduke's wishes].
"You invoke the Archduke's name in the name of an insignificant demon?"
You're ridiculous.
He's not worthy of the Archduke, let alone 72 Demon Blood. Naturally, he's not going to get a big name like that in the early game, and even if he does, he's going to get nerfed.
Why?
Because otherwise, it's an unbalanced shit game.
With a mischievous look, I power up my sword to drive it into the back of his neck.
The sword gradually grew in magic, its blade glowing in the dusky moonlight.
Zzzzzzz…
I hear the silent spinning of magic. Around the blackened blade, the Stormbringer begins to maneuver to devour its master.
The sword's purpose. It's master's destruction, of course.
'But I can take this.'
I thought to myself as I felt the changes in my body become even more exhilarating.
"Whoa."
I catch my breath.
Night had already fallen.
Needless to say, I am many times stronger now than I was before.
For two reasons.
The first.
[Activates the active skill "Genius Hour+"].
[Skill duration is 7 minutes and 30 seconds].
The skill was enhanced.
Now I can activate the skill for 1.5 times as long. That's going to create a lot of variables in combat.
In a good way.
Second.
[The passive skill "Moonlight Oath" is triggered by the effect of "Conquest of the Lunatic Order"].
[Player's damage is temporarily increased by 1.2x].
It's a time-honored tradition in fantasy gaming.
It's the time-honored tradition of finding, enhancing, and equipping the right items to fight with.
I'm wearing [Lunatic's Conquest].
It conceals my identity by making the mark of the Lunatic invisible to others, but it doesn't take away its power.
Six o'clock in the evening.
From this point on, I will be able to fight enemies 1.2 times stronger. Naturally, items with a bonus damage boost of this magnitude are hard to come by.
This brings us to the second reason for the temple. {TN/???}
'Generally, it's harder to lose if you have both of these.'
A smile tugs at the corners of my mouth.
Of course, at this point, Ludwig the Demon is a villain designed not to be taken down alone. It takes a team of units to take him down.
Paracelsus, Leon von Marvas, and Talia, or as we call them, the Main Units, including Princess Penelope and Echidna.
The first episode where they have to work together is when they kill Ludwig.
A.k.a. The Demon Raid.
Also, there was originally no place for the bumbling villain Nox von Reinhafer in this arc.
Just a lonely character. Living a life of debauchery, disgracing his family name in the background.
But it doesn't matter now. That was only possible if the protagonist existed in this world, and that was when I wasn't Nox.
So I decided.
I decided to pretend to be the protagonist and take him down alone.
'This is all pre-planned. No variables.'
As for what happens after he's dead, I've already thought about what to do.
So.
Ta-da!
(taas!)
All I have to do now is kick the ground and set my sword against the enemy in front of me, then slit his throat.
[What a bastard…!!]
"Shut up."
Sigh.
As I spoke, my sword slashed at the Demon Ludwig's right arm with precision.
* * *
"Uhhh… did you say… Leon, do you know where Nox is?"
Talia asked Leon, looking for him after Nox had disappeared.
Leon replied with a faint smile, reading a book spewing out some ominous magic but quickly closing it when he noticed her attention.
A quick glance showed that it was the same one he had used to summon the undead the first time. Talia was curious but not nearly as interested as she was about Nox's current whereabouts, so she managed to suppress it.
"Ah, you must be Miss Talia; Nox went to the forest a little while ago. He said he was going to check out the neighborhood for a while."
"In the fo-forest?"
"Yes. Is there something wrong?"
'Leon the black lion'.
Unlike his lethal voice, he had a mild and gentle disposition, which made him immensely popular with girls despite his darkness.
Black hair as black as the night sky. His handsome appearance, which is not concealed by his modest clothing, and his polite demeanor, which does not discriminate between commoners and nobles, are already rumored.
However, Talia had never seen him in such an off-white color.
The mere mention of the forest now gives her a slightly eerie feeling. Especially when she realizes that Nox has gone there to scout alone…
Even if he was stronger than her, she couldn't help but worry.
Talia stammered, trying to hide her confusion.
"Does that mean… do you think we can find out which way he went…?"
"Probably that way…."
Boom!
(kuung!)
Leon stood up and was about to elaborate on the direction in which Nox had disappeared.
With the harsh noise of the ground colliding, the beast fell from the sky to the ground. A surprise. Nox had warned Leon the other day.
'Dangerous.'
Leon's eyes quickly scanned the area around him. There were at least a dozen of them. They appeared to be low to mid-level.
"…Looks like we'll have to find him later."
Leon von Marvas opened the book.
-Hmm, what's all the fuss about…?
-What? Is that… a demon?!
-Dude, I just detected a weird magical force. Is there something going on?…
-Crazy! Wake up! There's a demon!
Paracelsus, who had already sensed the change, stood by the Princess's side to protect her while the other group members waited behind him.
The students who had been sleeping inside the tent also woke up.
Paracelsus pursed his lips tightly as he watched the many red eyes around him. It was a tricky composition.
It was an ambush of warriors, archers, and mages.
Obviously, this was the first time they had faced such an organized group.
Right now, they could only neutralize them with overwhelming force.
...Of course, that was without their top units.
"I think this is a little too much."
"I know."
Leon stood beside Paracelsus as he casually released his magic.
The beasts surrounded them in a circle. They seemed to have been directed by someone. Perhaps it was the demon that had transported them to this forest.
"We'll form up and move as Nox explained earlier. Protect the princess first, but all mages except me in the rear. Knights, please stand in the front."
Leon was quick to assess the situation.
He thought back to Nox's appearance earlier.
'No doubt, Nox saw this coming all along and went to kill the demon alone. Paracelsus, the strongest of the freshmen, has to protect the princess, and that means Echidna as well. I see.'
It came down to one thing.
'I have to do something about it.'
Leon von Marvas's family heirloom, a book he inherited from his father.
He energized the Necronomicon and sent it on a rampage.
Clang!
(chwalalalag!)
Along with it, an assortment of rusted cold weapons rose up from among the besieging horsemen. Then came its master, the dead. The undead began to take shape.
"I hope this stone can somehow hold out."
A bead of cold sweat broke out on Leon's forehead and rolled down his cheek.
"Hold on, all of you. Until Nox comes back."
"Damn it, they're coming!"
Paracelsus's last cry. With a look of determination on Talia's face, the fight against the demons began. This was when the other side also started their own fierce battle.
* * *
Thud. and the sound of something falling, but I don't relax. It's all fake, anyways. That guy's resilience is incredibly tough.
Ouch!
Ludwig is now attacking my flank with his regenerated arm.
But I'm not worried at all.
If I know where the attack is coming from, what's there to fear?
The time I'd spent training after the possession hadn't been in vain.
Its extended arm swings like a whip and strikes at me.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
I smirk and parry a few of his inaccurate strikes. Before I know it, I'm thrusting my sword into his arms.
For a split second, I remembered.
So... this guy's core.
Right in the middle of his left shoulder. Maybe?
"No, wait, Nox, stop!"
At that moment, I heard a vaguely familiar voice.
What was it?
But it was strange.
There was no reason for his voice to be heard here…?
"Please! Wait, wait, wait, stop the attack!"
The voice continued once more. I realized that my ears weren't wrong, but at the same time, I was deeply perplexed.
Why the hell is he here?
'Crazy.'
I wasn't sure, but one thing was for sure.
Another twist in the story.
The man who was now watching my fight with Ludwig before my eyes was none other than the professor who had been stalking me to enslave me.
It was Lars von Celestia.
My sword, thrusting towards his left arm, stops dead in its tracks.
I take a moment to think.
Why the hell is Lars here?
"In the original story, Lars would not be searching for a student. He must have been working on some life-changing research....'
In all my dozens of runs through the Inner Lunatic, this has never happened before. What the hell was going on?
Why, and where, had things started to go awry?
"Hold on a second. Nox. Give me a chance to talk to him. He's my student."
"...What do you mean?"
I asked, genuinely puzzled.
For all his stubborn stubbornness, Lars had a concept of a disciple?
Didn't he consider them all to be his minions?
'Well, in retrospect, Lars was a character who could be very generous with talent, even bending the rules. But this was outrageous, to say the least.'
[...I didn't mean for our reunion to be like this, but... it's come to this, Master].
I quickly began to rack my brain to figure out what had happened.
I don't know what else, but one thing is clear.
It's f*cked, it's definitely f*cked.
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