Chapter 207: Second Semester (2)

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The night passed, noisy with the sudden return of the King.

Carl had returned to Bayern and, like the other cadets, diligently attended his lectures.

The campus was enveloped in the same peaceful atmosphere as always.

The scorching heat had faded, and the lush greenery had begun to change as the season shifted once again.

With the cool breeze blowing, everyone quickly snapped out of the vacation haze and returned to their usual selves.

“……You’re saying the Demon Realm’s forces have infiltrated that deeply?”

But not everyone was the same.

At Carl’s report, Yuria stopped writing her paper and wore a grave expression.

Even in the second semester, the magic study continued as usual.

They had grown closer after shedding a layer of distance.

Carl helped Yuria in completing her goal, the 「Four Seasons」, while Yuria advised Carl on magic and martial arts.

Today’s study had started like any other, but when Carl dropped a bombshell, Yuria couldn’t help but gnaw at her lip.

“This is the worst case.”

“You said Ragnarok or an invasion by the Demon Realm were the mainstream scenarios, right?”

“There are times when both happen together. Sometimes they team up in side episodes and such. But if an entire kingdom is already being swallowed up at this point…….”

Then the story changed—drastically.

If a gate between the Demon Realm and the Middle Realm opened, it meant the entire kingdom would become hell.

Millions of undead would be created in an instant, scattered across the continent to spread catastrophe and disaster.

It was a horrific future one didn’t even want to imagine.

“I was focusing on Ragnarok, but now I should lean more toward the Demon Realm invasion.”

“Can’t we destroy the gate?”

“It doesn’t physically break. It’s called a gate, but it’s more like a phenomenon or concept.”

“This is troublesome.”

Carl furrowed his brow and twirled the pen in his hand.

Yuria had previously said that the Demon Realm’s army could be managed if they did invade, so it wouldn’t be too big of a problem.

But now that a kingdom had already been devoured, an unexpected variable had occurred.

It seemed they had prepared even more thoroughly than in the game’s story.

“Then I guess it’s about time for them to appear.”

“Appear? Who?”

“You know who.”

With Carl’s words, Yuria shrugged and drew a holy sign in front of her chest.

“The Hero. The counterbalance to the Demon Realm and the Demon King, and an essential figure to close the gate. Blessed by the Goddess, immensely strong and an exceptional powerhouse.”

“Can’t the Player be the Hero?”

“There are cases like that, but we’re not the Hero in this route, right? So a Hero NPC appears separately. The identity of the Hero changes depending on the route, and our goal is to keep them alive until the end. Otherwise, we won’t be able to close the gate.”

“What if the Hero dies?”

“Then the hellish infinite defense starts from that moment.”

Yuria shuddered just imagining it.

“To close the gate, you need both the Hero’s power blessed by the Goddess and the Holy Sword. If you fail to close the gate, all kinds of things pour out. Even uncontrollable monsters from the Demon Realm. Either you endure it until the gate exhausts its power and shuts, or you get swept away and completely annihilated. Those are the only two choices.”

“Hmm.”

Carl recalled a memory.

Could that Lancelot he had met back home have been one of those?

He definitely said he had been summoned from the very depths of hell and the Demon Realm.

If a gate connected the Demon Realm and the Middle Realm, such monsters would become commonplace.

‘I’ll have to become stronger.’

Carl twisted his lips slightly.

Through repeated battles and accumulating experience, his martial arts had progressed significantly.

Primordial Unity Divine Art was still at Three Stars, and the boundary of Four Stars shimmered tantalizingly close, though still beyond his grasp.

The good news was that both Bright Heaven Divine Art and Heavenly Demon Divine Art had advanced significantly thanks to it.

Heavenly Demon Divine Art had already reached full mastery at Six Stars, and Bright Heaven Divine Art had just passed into the Five Stars.

This growth would surely influence his Primordial Unity Divine Art as well.

‘No need to rush.’

Carl calmed his heart.

The most important thing when mastering martial arts was to maintain inner stillness like a clear mirror.

A master wasn’t born overnight.

Waking at dawn, swinging the sword hundreds of times, and repeating the same thousands more before sleep.

That consistency, gathered over time, was what bore fruit in the form of mastery.

Even to reach this point had taken decades across both past and present lives.

The future would come whether he wanted it or not—what mattered was quietly doing what had to be done.

“So, what are you going to do?”

“I’ve already made arrangements. I informed Crown Prince Yulian and made sure the Holy Nation is notified too, so they’ll handle it accordingly.”

When it came to the Demon Realm, it was best left to the experts.

Unless the gate opened and troops began pouring into the Middle Realm, the Holy Nation would probably be better prepared than them for now.

NOX didn’t have much leeway, given their expansion into the underworld and the operation of Madeira Trading House.

There was also his promise to Crown Prince Yulian—now was the time to focus on expanding their power.

“Alright, then I’ll work even harder too.”

Yuria was fired up with determination.

It had been quite a while since she completed the prototype of the magic automation system, 「Four Seasons」.

If she upgraded it step by step, perhaps she could still meet her goal.

“Then I’ll be off.”

“Ah, want to have dinner together tonight? Laysis is joining too.”

“I’ll pass today. I’ve got an external assignment.”

“Oh? Then I guess there’s no helping it.”

Carl said farewell to Yuria and exited the laboratory.

He had an external schedule to attend to after this.

Boarding the carriage waiting outside the Bayern campus, he headed straight for the Teleport Gate located in the center of the Imperial Capital.

Though he had already submitted a request for overnight leave, Carl had no intention of letting this drag on too long.

“Carlos Leipzig, reservation confirmed. Let’s proceed with the teleportation.”

“Understood.”

As Carl nodded, the mage activated the Teleport Gate.

A brilliant white light wrapped around him, and in an instant, Carl arrived at Kashan, a region of the Kingdom of Alforam, from Polfoardel, the capital of the Ribera Empire.

“Master.”

Outside the Teleport Gate, Nine was waiting for him.

“The progress?”

“The route to the interior has been perfectly opened. As per your instructions, the attic door at the far end remains untouched.”

“Hmm.”

Carl nodded.

The reason he had come to a city in the Kingdom of Alforam on a valuable weekday, even bringing NOX’s elite with him.

It was because he had discovered a ruin of Kylos.

“This time, I was lucky.”

Having grasped the world’s narrative from Yuria, Carl mobilized NOX’s information network to thoroughly investigate sites suspected to be ruins of the demigod Kylos.

It had cost a considerable amount of money and manpower, but thanks to a jackpot with mana beads, there were no financial issues.

Investigation teams were dispatched across the continent, and each suspicious location was explored one by one.

Even now, after developing seventeen locations, they had only just uncovered one ruin.

“This is the place.”

The site Nine led him to was a dense forest on the outskirts of the city.

It was an ordinary forest, the kind found anywhere on the continent, but a narrow crack large enough for a single person to enter lay in the cliff within.

Step.

As Carl arrived, the NOX members standing guard greeted him respectfully.

Carl gave a slight nod and proceeded inward, and soon encountered a familiar interior.

A grand castle and a spacious mansion.

It was his third visit to the ruins of Kylos.

“This is it.”

Carl smiled in satisfaction at the faint divine power in the air and the sharp hostility it carried.

There were scattered traces indicating several battles had occurred while opening the path.

As they went further in, Carl found several NOX agents and King, who was chuckling and leisurely exploring the area.

“You came in person?”

“Of course I did. It’s my first mission since returning. This place is truly curious.”

“It’s said to belong to a demigod, after all.”

“A shard, wasn’t it?”

Carl nodded.

Only a few in NOX knew anything about Kylos.

King was among those few and thus knew Carl had absorbed the power of the demigod.

“Mind if I come with you?”

“It shouldn’t be a problem.”

Carl nodded.

Having someone as skilled as King accompany him was as reassuring as it could get.

The two naturally began walking without needing to say a word and stood before the attic at the edge of the mansion.

“……This is it. What a murderous aura. Were the other two like this?”

“They were ominous, but this one seems especially saturated with killing intent.”

Carl found it odd.

The others were grim, but not nearly this intense.

It felt as though everything beyond the door was determined to slaughter anyone who entered.

That made Carl and King even more intrigued.

“I’ll open it.”

“Alright.”

Creak.

As divine power from Kylos flowed into the door, it began to open slowly with a groaning noise.

Flash!

Murderous intent, hostility, killing spirit…

All kinds of energies mingled and burst forth with overwhelming force.

As Carl and King entered, Nine tried to follow behind them.

But King shook his head gently to stop her.

“This is far enough. The interior feels too harsh. You’d get hurt if you went inside.”

“Understood.”

Nine didn’t insist.

It was only right to follow a senior’s judgment precisely.

It would suit her better to prepare outside in case something happened.

“Hmm.”

Johanel, entering the room alongside Carl, let out a brief groan as he looked around.

A wide hollow, like a coliseum, a grand arena, chilling air, and an indescribable sense of foreboding.

“Stay out of this. This is a trial I must overcome alone.”

“Even if you cry and beg, I won’t lift a finger, so rest assured.”

At Carl’s declaration, Johanel grinned and teased him.

Carl returned the smile and slowly drew the Heavenly Thunder Sword as he stepped further inward.

“…….”

The interior was empty.

In the first and second ruins, that one had always greeted him at the center, but now there wasn’t even a hint of presence—

Clack-clack-clack!

Acting on instinct, Carl raised the Heavenly Thunder Sword and blocked above his shoulder.

At that moment, a burst of yellow sparks scattered as Carl’s defensive energy barrier was torn apart.

“……An ambush?”

Carl’s eyes widened.

For someone like him, once an assassin, to completely miss the presence and be attacked unilaterally…

Swish.

Flicking off the sparks with a light swing of the sword, Carl slowly steadied his senses.

“Something’s in the darkness.”

Something moved freely like flowing smoke through the shadows, emanating a monstrous killing intent.

His dulled senses were likely due to the killing aura engulfing the entire hollow like an aquarium.

“Need help?”

“……I’m fine.”

Carl shook his head at King’s question.

No matter what, as the leader of an organization, it would be disgraceful to change his words after only a minute.

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