บท 36: Predicament

Ever since the [Towers Of Sins] manifested into reality, another kind of power was mixed into the mana which had existed in the world since its creation.

This power was later then given a moniker of "Demonic mana," not too exaggerated nor too undermining.

"Demonic mana;" just as simple as that.

The name given to it was considered according to its extremely destructive nature and the existences of the demons, which came into reality from the myths.

Unlike mana, which promoted creation and amplified abilities according to one's creative imagination; Demonic mana turned one's creative imagination aggressive, more violent and destructive then one intended their spell to be.

This Demonic mana's merge with the natural mana within the world, naturally affected everybody and everything.

In harmony, like yin and yang, both demonic and natural mana coexisted within one's self as they inherently absorbed mana of both kinds, depending on one's thoughts and nature, the demonic mana would have different effects on them, if it leaned even 1% on the negative side, the consequences would be becoming "demonized."

Of course, the opposite, natural mana increasing by a percent, one would expect that he/she would turn into a Saint, but that wasn't it, the demonic mana was too domineering to be dominated by soft and smooth natured natural mana. But, if one truly wanted to know its effects, then the effectiveness of the spell increases, while at the same time, its mana cost is lowered.

Upon entering the "Demonized" state, they would have their mana cores corrupted to the point of no return.

Currently, the demonized beast in the midst of the trainees had reached the point of no return.

***

The crowd outside sucked in a huff of cold breath as they felt a chill run down their spines. No matter what, the demonized were always an object of horror, because a few demonized which were written down in the books of the past were said to ignore and defy any meaning the "ranks" held.

They were rumored to be able cast spells that are out of their officially ranked ranks. And as if this wasn't enough, the range of these spells were said to big enough to cover a 1/6 of the Capital.

"S-shouldn't we run away?" Somebody in the midst of the crowd muttered in a whisper, but it was extremely loud in the coliseum which was dyed in ghastly silence.

"W-where will you go!!? If the trapped beast is really able to affect the outside world, wouldn't that mean we have no where to run away!!?" Somebody in the crowd yelled back in despair.

"T-that's right!!"

"Do you not hear what she said!! It is trapped within the space which is created by the [Tier-5] mage!!!" Somebody yelled encouragingly!

But,

"M-maybe if we start running now, we can avoid it?"

Those encouraging words seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, as the crowd ignored the obvious fact said out loud while they panicked in despair.

"I-I should leave, my kids are at home….." A mother muttered in a shaky whisper as her voice roared in the ears of many mothers, who had left their kids at home.

"I'll leave too, then…."

"Me too…."

...

…..

One after another, ladies, who seemed to have aged unlike their actual ages, stood up and walked away from the crowd, rushing to the exit from where they hoped to reach their homes, where their kids are waiting for them to return as soon as possible.

These ladies were all commoners, who were dressed in extremely modest clothes that they could afford. And as they pushed through the crowd, many made way as they understood their motherly concerns, but

The walk-away enticed many to do the same, since the location they stood in didn't seem to offer much protection in the current predicament.

Many parents sat still while despairing as they watched their own kids who were forced to experience the demonized's pressure firsthand. Since they themselves could feel the pressure, though subtly, even a they sat outside the artificial space, they could only imagine what their kids were experiencing.

As they, the commoners and the Noble parents, who had sent their heirs to the artificial space, despaired,

[All, remain at ease!] A loud, confident voice roared in their eardrums which felt as if they would burst apart.

While they were stunned,

Suddenly;

WHOOOMMMMMMM!!

With a strange sound, a strong warmth emitting barrier enveloped them, giving them a sense of security as the pressure oozing from the globe in front of them dispersed wholly.

[I am Eadwulf Woottone, the chairman of the Dreams Academy.] Eadwulf said arrogantly, his voice amplified with mana.

[Things are in control, if the situation was extremely dire, the staff would have acted before the crowd realized what was going on. Since the staff, including me, are silent, then that means there is nothing to be afraid of. I'll say it again, everything is under control.] He claimed arrogantly; outwardly, giving hope and calming down the panicked crowd, but inwardly, he too was frowning deeply in anxiousness.

"Then does that mean the demonized is the academy's plan? Did the academy include such a strong beast, fully knowing the consequences? Did the academy ponder over the trainees safety? Did-" Commentator no.1 threw a volley of questions, but

[The academy wasn't aware of the demonized within the selected beasts] Eadwulf cut off the commentator's words, exclaiming.

[Speaking as a matter of fact, we are intentionally not interfering yet, because you all knew that this was the kind of situation the academy was actually preparing your kids for…..] He suddenly said, silencing the murmurs marred crowd.

[….. albeit a bit early, they need to experience being in the presence of a stronger beast, and if they still dared to stand up to fight, their resolves to stand tall no matter the situation and their potential is easily displayed for us to see; in this situation, we can easily pick off the gems amidst the rocks] Eadwulf claimed indifferently, stating the obvious yet harsh truth.

"Our kids aren't things for you pick apart!!! We sent them here so that you can teach them to stand up for themselves and their allies in the situation, you want to pick them apart from!!! If you want to pick them off like this then do that after teaching them something!!! If they can do what you want to teach them by themselves, is there any fucking need to send them here!!? Huh!?" Somebody in the crowd yelled back after hearing Eadwulf's absurd claims.

"That's right!"

"That's right, that's right!!!"

"If something happened to my child, then I'll make sure to see your end!!"

"Bastards, we are sending our children here to be taught, yet they are claiming things as if they were doing these kids a favor so shamelessly after putting them in danger, due to their incompetence."

"That's right!"

....

The crowd yelled in unison, hearing which, [If that's what you think, then after we are done picking our gems, you can bring your rocks back home, we'll return the gold you have paid for their admission. Of course, the talents that have joined without admission fees shall remain in the academy!] Eadwulf exclaimed.

And the crowd turned silent.

No matter what it was, having studied and graduated from an academy of this caliber gave even a commoner kid a certain level of value which even most of the lowest ranked Nobles lacked.

Of course, the "difference" doesn't change unless they became a Noble themselves, but the value they held in the Empire and Kingdoms they joined differs, naturally.

As they pondered over the pros and cons;

[How harsh~] A hoarse, cold, and indifferent voice suddenly sounded in their ears, as the gazes of those outside the artificial space involuntarily focused on a certain black haired figure on the screen which displayed a sight of him sitting calmly under a tree's shade.

[Truly~]