Chapter 10
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Lady Ophelia, the freshman dormitory supervisor, is a gentle person in many ways.
Her perpetually narrowed eyes, warm, ever-present smile, and tendency to rarely get angry all contribute to that impression.
She's also a beauty known for her luxuriant blonde hair, and she's popular with the students.
That doesn't mean she's a pushover, though. As her title of “Lady” suggests, she's a full-fledged active-duty knight.
To the fledgling chicks who've only just enrolled in the academy, she's practically a being from heaven.
Becoming a full-fledged knight is an enviable career path; you have to make it at least to the fifth academic tier before you can even get career counseling.
“Is everyone here-?”
Of course, judging by the way she was leading them with that drawn-out voice, you’d never guess it.
I follow Lady Ophelia, who is leading the freshmen from the front with a wry smile. Somehow, the scene brings to mind a mother duck leading her ducklings along.
We're currently on Grande Hill, the highest hill in Elphante Academy. Every nearby facility is clearly visible from here.
It’s probably the perfect place to introduce the freshmen to the layout of the whole academy.
“That’s the academic building over there. You’re all familiar with where it is, right-? Each department uses different facilities inside- That’s the physical training hall mainly used by the Department of Knights, and over there is the mana cultivation hall for the Department of Magic...”
The explanation I already knew continued on and on.
Elphante's curriculum is divided into as many as five fields. They're also the fields represented by each department.
Knight, magic, practical studies, crafting, and theology.
It’s the same system used not only at Elphante, but also at the academies of the Tribal Alliance and the Holy Empire.
Starting with the welcome party in a few days, the freshmen will choose one of these fields as their major and another as a minor. The protagonist is no exception.
‘...Though they call them departments.’
They're called ‘departments,’ and each has its own facilities, but in terms of size alone, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call each one a small city.
As befits the continent's finest educational institution, the land and funds allocated to each department are staggering.
The same goes for the academies of the neighboring Holy Empire and Tribal Alliance, though.
Elphante Academy, the Grand Temple, and the Crucible of Strife.
The continent's greatest educational institutions, all clustered close together.
In the setting, this is known as the Golden Triangle.
‘Well, that’s beside the point.’
I let Lady Ophelia's explanation go in one ear and out the other as I check the things I brought.
The incense burner in my backpack, along with various materials to burn inside it.
And a few additional things to use as... ‘offerings.’
This guided tour, which follows right after the entrance exam, feels like a tutorial meant to explain the world and introduce the academy's facilities to the player. But there are definitely things you can only do at this point.
“Um, is that famous place over there the Void Zone?”
That's right. Good question.
When one of the students asked, a troubled expression appeared on Lady Ophelia's face.
Then her narrowed eyes turned toward the enormous gray sphere the student had just pointed at.
Though it was much farther away than it looked, its sinister, ominous presence could be clearly felt even from this distance.
“That’s right, but entry over there is forbidden- You’ll be in big trouble if you go in-”
A gigantic dome-shaped sphere sits right in the middle of the three institutions that form a triangle. And faintly visible inside it is a massive tower-shaped structure.
Lady Ophelia had good reason to mention it. In fact, calling it a forbidden area seemed far too mild.
A remnant of the War of Gods and Demons, recorded in history as the worst war of all time. The Void Zone.
The place where the messengers of the gods and the heroes who inherited their power fought their final battle against the demons, sealing away their true forms.
Hundreds of years have passed since it was first discovered, yet the clash between the deathly aura and divine power lingering around it still shows no sign of settling.
Any ordinary person who went near there would die, one hundred percent. Even someone with powerful abilities would fare no better.
‘To begin with...’
That’s why the three academies—the Golden Triangle—are clustered so close together here.
The ‘Grand Accord’ signed after the War of Gods and Demons by the three powers that rule the continent—the Empire, the Holy Empire, and the Tribal Alliance—includes a clause requiring each to send a certain number of people to oversee the Void Zone.
That promise remains in effect even now, hundreds of years after the last demon appeared.
All the demons are sealed away thanks to the sacrifices of generations of heroes, but if they were ever released, that place would undoubtedly be their starting point and the catalyst for their return.
The reason the academy faculty includes a suspicious number of highly qualified personnel is that their real job is monitoring and guarding the Void Zone. Teaching is more like a side duty, since letting them sit around doing nothing would be a waste of manpower.
“...”
But considering the main scenario, the possibility of real demons being released isn't all that remote.
This is putting me in an even worse mood.
“It’s a famous place that appears in mythology, isn’t it? Couldn’t we at least go closer and have a look?”
“Mmm-”
When several students, their eyes sparkling with scholarly curiosity, made that request, Lady Ophelia pursed her lips slightly and scratched her cheek.
Watching her, I calmly tightened my backpack straps.
Lady Ophelia, whom players call ‘Mom’ in more ways than one. She'll grant just about any reasonable request from her students. So what comes next will surely be...
“Then shall we go as far as the Seraph’s protective barrier reaches-? It’s safe inside it-”
Exactly.
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Another name for the messengers of the gods spoken of in mythology is angels.
They appeared alongside the demons as they awakened and began wreaking havoc on the world, and are said to have bestowed various blessings and knowledge upon humanity.
Their power was said to be so great that a single angel could boil the sea and overturn mountains.
The title of Seraph is reserved for angels whose power is on another level even among their kind.
You could say that, in this world, they have a status almost on par with demigods.
“Then we’ll have lunch around here-”
And a protective barrier raised by such a being is stable enough that you could leisurely enjoy a meal right near the Void Zone.
The only reason academies can exist around here in the first place is because of this barrier.
The clouds of pure white light drifting around nearby are a spectacle in themselves. All the students were marveling at them.
One of the students laying out a blanket and taking out the lunch they'd brought glanced at the sight and asked Lady Ophelia another question.
“By the way, I heard priests often come on field trips around here. It’s one of the few places where they can directly observe and study an angel’s power, isn’t it?”
“That’s right-?”
“Then have there ever been any cases of someone seeing an angel in person?”
The student continued, eyes shining.
Well, I could understand the curiosity. According to legend, when an angel normally dwelling in the otherworld descended into the mortal realm, it always appeared before a human and bestowed a ‘blessing’ or ‘gift’ before leaving.
Each of those was incredibly powerful, and the blessings or gifts bestowed by angels were said to be artifacts worthy of being recorded in history.
That was probably a major reason theologians and priests went to such lengths to try to see an angel at least once.
As far as I knew, that legend was based on fact.
There were just a few conditions.
“Well- I’ve seen plenty of elaborate sacrifices and rituals during my shifts- but I’ve never once seen an angel appear in person-”
At Lady Ophelia's answer, the student who'd asked nodded as if satisfied.
Well, it was an angel, after all. How could one expect to see one so easily?
That was the general impression, anyway.
‘...It’s actually easier than you’d think.’
I muttered that to myself and walked over to Lady Ophelia.
“Um, would it be all right if I ate a little farther away?”
“Hmm-?”
Lady Ophelia tilted her head. Her gesture seemed to ask why I would need to.
“It’s a little uncomfortable to eat here.”
“...Ah-”
But after hearing me and looking around, she soon nodded in understanding.
I was the one who'd knocked Elijah flying with a single blow and had also been present during the assassination attempt on the Tristan heiress. There was no way my notoriety wouldn't have skyrocketed.
Of course, judging by most of the eyes fixed on me now, it was probably notoriety of the bad kind.
During the entrance exam, I'd subdued Hasmed and simply let him go, which could cause trouble in all sorts of ways. So both Elijah and Elnore, who'd witnessed it, were keeping quiet.
In other words, as far as the public was concerned, I was a freeloader who'd not only cheated my way into defeating the next Hero candidate, but also did nothing while the Tristan heiress was being assassinated.
The rumors had certainly been exaggerated in the worst possible way, but the people gossiping about them had already decided they didn't like me before they ever heard the details.
They probably just couldn't stand some nobody baron's son getting attention.
“Don’t go too far-? You could get into trouble-”
“Yes.”
Whether those bastards did or not was none of my business.
If anything, I was grateful they were making their displeasure so obvious, since that let Lady Ophelia leave me alone.
‘Let’s see...’
I went far enough that no one else could see me.
There was no point letting anyone see what I was about to do.
Uh.
Mostly in a theological sense.
“All right.”
I carefully arranged the things I'd brought from my backpack.
Ultima of Divinity. The materials to burn and produce incense.
I filled the incense burner with unicorn horn powder, placed a phoenix feather on top, and lit a match.
Then I adjusted the flame with a coralwood fan, and thick smoke began billowing into the area.
The smoke immediately reached the clouds of light floating nearby, then began mingling and clumping together.
Ultima's function is simple. As I said before, it's like a telephone: it lets you reach beings you normally could never communicate with.
It can give physical form to beings from the otherworld layered over the back of the real world. That's what Ultima does.
‘Come to think of it...’
The theologians and priests coming here and making such a fuss weren't entirely off the mark.
The presence of angels is definitely especially strong around here. After all, this is a barrier raised personally by a Seraph.
The problem is that they've misunderstood the nature of angels.
Since they appear in mythology, people tend to assume on their own that they must be ‘noble’ and ‘lofty.’
They imagine them as dignified beings who serve as examples to others.
But.
That's not how it is.
Seriously.
-....
The smoke mingled with the clouds of light and soon took shape, revealing one burly man after another.
What they had on their backs were pure white wings. Above their heads floated golden halos.
No matter how you looked at them, they had the clichéd appearance of angels.
However.
“What the fuck kind of prep work did those goddamn bastards leave us with? Which unit’s handling fortification work this quarter?”
“Uh, Chief Angel, I think it’s the guys from Gerion.”
“They’re juniors to me and they still left the job this shitty? Do I have to bash their heads in before they get it? Hey, contact those bastards. If the Seraph sees this, we’re all getting our heads chopped off. Got it?”
There was nothing noble or dignified about the conversation, no matter how you looked at it.
Besides, there was nothing remotely refined about the hammers and entrenching shovels they each held.
“...”
The angels' general atmosphere was, you could say, kind of like... ‘the military.’
Uh.
An overwhelmingly male-dominated society. A rigid rank system. A chain of command where you obey when those above you tell you to. A stiff, rough atmosphere.
If the Seraph had personally built something, that meant all the underlings had to run themselves ragged maintaining it.
“We’re short on the holy-water paste to patch the gap in the barrier over there! Would it be all right if we borrowed a little?”
“You idiot, can’t you even do that right? Give me the brush. I’ll do it myself. The ninth-rank angels these days can’t do a damn thing right. Back in my day—”
“...”
Hearing the conversations around me, I was newly glad I'd come alone.
If devout believers saw this, they'd foam at the mouth and faint.
“Um, Squad Leader, you see that human over there?”
“Yeah. What about him?”
“He’s been staring at us this whole time, sir.”
“Must be a coincidence. Still, it's nice that he's quiet. Those bastards who come by on a regular basis and make a damn scene, every time I see them, I just...”
Now, let's think about this for a moment.
What meaning could all those elaborate sacrifices and rituals have in front of people like them?
They'd been dragged out to do hard labor they didn't want, and were already working themselves to death. They were so on edge that even someone speaking to them would make them want to kill.
And then what if dozens or hundreds of humans crowded around them, chanting prayers or reciting scripture right beside them?
There’s a reason angels don’t descend. Staying away suits both sides.
We should be thankful no calamity has come down on us instead.
What they wanted was something far simpler and more primal.
With a sigh, I took out the ‘offerings’ I'd brought in my backpack.
Cheap liquor meant for the masses. High in alcohol and utterly lacking in subtlety, but with a distinctive, powerful taste.
And meat I’d bought at the market. It had a coarse, hearty flavor favored by common folk, but nothing went better with this sort of liquor.
A kind of construction worker's special meal set.
This was the best way to restore your strength after intense labor.
A cup of makgeolli and slices of boiled pork after sweating like crazy.
You just can’t beat this, right?
“...Damn, that guy’s eating well. He picked out exactly the stuff I’d want a bite of.”
“Should we ask him for a little...?”
“We can’t descend into the material world unless a human who recognizes us gives permission. We don’t even meet the conditions for a descent, so how can we ask for some...”
“Hey, you guys.”
When I said that quietly, the angels who'd been chatting among themselves all fell silent.
It seemed they'd realized I was aware of them.
Then I gave a chuckle and continued.
“Make sure you eat while you work. You’ll ruin your health otherwise.”
The angels' eyes rolled back.
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