Chapter 15 - Risky Education

Following the end of a lengthy, exceptionally sigh-heavy lunch, the afternoon had arrived.

The students’ schedule, also called the Hero Training Regimen, was set up such that the mornings would consist of physical training sessions alongside Camilla and the other knights of the Third Division; the afternoons would be for worldly education and tutoring; and the evenings would be a much-looked-forward-to resting period.

This schedule would take effect for every day of the week except the seventh, which was automatically translated to the students through the language comprehension skill as 'Sunday'.

Of course, now that it was post-lunch, it was time for the class' second period; it wasn't hard to imagine the reactions of these kids who had just managed to escape their previous, consensually insipid schooling system on Earth, and would now have no choice but to return to education once more in the fantasy world they had been summoned to.

However, perhaps that alone was enough.

Strangely, what the students had expected to be hours of dull and tedious studying had, in reality, turned out to be far more riveting than they had anticipated. As it turned out, learning about the bizarre intricacies of a fantasy world gave them infinitely more enthusiasm to learn compared to when it came to studying their own planet’s comparatively uninteresting history or geography.

Using a spare one of the palace’s many smaller halls as a makeshift classroom, everyone listened intently to the spectacled scholar’s words as he lectured from the front of the room.

Although, one might think that what he was saying was strange.

“Put simply, yes; taboo magic does exist. However, I am, for obvious reasons, not permitted to talk about it.”

A famed Seronian scholar; he was teaching a matter that should not be discussed, period, let alone to the young Heroes of the kingdom. It was not because the scholar specifically wanted to, though, but rather because he was simply responding to an innocent student’s curiosity.

“Anyhow, we will end this matter here. While we're at it, are there any more off-topic questions? Since you all seem to be so terribly engrossed in what is ordinarily forbidden. Yes, you there.”

The scholar pointed at Nicolas, who had raised his hand, and immediately regretted it.

Nicolas lowered his hand and asked with an almost dumb-looking straight face as the scholar singled him out, “Are Demons actually real?”

The scholar’s expression instantly hardened.

Yet again, a taboo topic sprouted up.

Naturally, not a single person’s ears failed to perk up at the word ‘Demon’. It was a question on everyone’s mind ever since they were first mentioned by the now-absent princess, but one they were too afraid to ask, for various reasons.

The scholar wondered how exactly he should reply to such a difficult question, but eventually, nodded his head.

“Yes.”

The scholar’s answer was frank, without inflexion, and followed by an air of tensed silence.

“Wait, really?” Nicolas exclaimed in such a quiet room.

“That’s sweet! Wait, are they genuinely evil like the princess claimed, or was she just bullshitting?”

The boy spoke so candidly and with such innocent nescience that it rendered even the scholar speechless for a considerable length of time.

“...First of all, I would never make such a claim about Her Highness, however... Ahem. I would not tell you to think one way or another, however, what Her Highness stated is indeed what this country’s policies mandate to be taught.”

The scholar was not a man to chide a student for lèse-majesté, but even he couldn't ignore the insulting words Nicolas spoke about the princess.

He continued in a complicated manner, but was it perhaps not simply a habit of his idiolect? Some people, digesting the true meaning behind the scholar’s meticulously worded response, realised something.

One such student raised her hand.

“Sir, what do you think about the Demons?”

It was Ashley; the scholar held his tongue for a minute at her inquiry.

No one warned the students about not asking specific things.

No one told them they weren’t allowed to ask anything in particular.

Be it legally, morally, or ethically, there was nothing to forbid them from asking something.

There was also nothing strictly wrong with the act of asking a question itself.

So, why was it that these questions felt so unspokenly ruthless?

Feeling a considerably quickened heartbeat, the scholar was unable to suppress the heat that flushed to his neck and face. The previous question about illegal magic was already an unexpected shocker, but for some reason, this felt like an even more taboo topic to discuss.

Swiping a glance around the classroom that was filled with no one except himself and the class, the scholar pushed up his glasses and opened his mouth with caution.

“There are two answers I can give to that question:”

“Either, I can tell you my personal, completely subjective opinion on the matter.”

“Or, I can tell you the story I am required to teach by Seronian law.”

The class, already swimming in a pool of awkward silence, couldn't possibly fall more quiet at his response; still, somehow, it felt like it indeed had.

“In any case, I believe I have answered your question sufficiently, student Ashley. Is there anything else anyone would like to know on that topic before we move on?”

Some were puzzled by the scholar’s peculiar nonanswer, while those on the sharper side were able to tell almost exactly what he truly meant by it.

“Sir.”

“Go.”

“About the Demons; how strong are they?”

The scholar put a hand to his chin at the question posed by Chris.

“Well, that is an exceptionally vague thing to ask. If we were to place the average human and the average Demon in a comparison of overall power, then the Demon would most likely be the stronger of the two. However, the Demons’ forte lies in all fields encompassing magic―not physical strength. Therefore, even a normal human, with a little bit of training, would be able to overpower an ordinary Demon without much issue.”

As the class listened to the explanation, many began to write down notes.

“If the competition were one of magic, there are few humans alive today who would be able to compete with a high-class Demon. Simply put, they are that much more naturally gifted in the art of handling mana than humans are. So much so, in fact, that their species has evolved in such a way to assist this monstrous talent.”

Perhaps he found a hidden opportunity within the students’ seemingly forbidden question, but the scholar wanted to educate the Heroes properly. Picking up a piece of chalk, the scholar turned to the wide blackboard at the front of the class that had been wheeled in specifically for them.

“Look. I am not a fantastic artist, so don’t mind my crude sketch, but this is the basic outline of a Demon.”

Pausing for a minute as he sketched something onto the board, the students peered with intrigue.

On the board, the scholar had drawn a simple silhouette of a human body with two smooth horns protruding from the forehead.

“As you can see, their appearance is that of any human, bar these two things here,” He tapped on the horns and continued.

“A Demon’s horns are biological limiters of magical energy. Because they are born with such high quantities of mana, the young Demonkin may find it understandably difficult to keep such large quantities of energy under control, potentially leading to what is called a 'Manergic Rampage', and thus, their horns have evolved to combat this issue.”

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Circling the horns and making annotations on the board as he talked, the scholar placed the chalk down and finished his answer.

“So, to fully answer your question, student Chris: there is no black and white."

"Demons are beings whose strength lies in magic, not in brawn, so you cannot say whether they are definitively stronger or weaker than humans as a whole."

"There are vastly fewer Demons than humans in this world, and so the advantage naturally lies in humanity's favour. However, I would still imagine there are only a handful of people even in this room who have the potential to compete with a Demon elite in a contest of magic.”

They were Heroes and yet still no match? It was a sentence that made the Demons’ peerless prowess in magic seem even more intimidating.

But, there were many strange things about what the scholar had said.

The number of Demons that existed couldn’t even be compared with the number of humans, and in terms of physical strength, the two were practically equal.

So, why were the humans having such a hard time dealing with Demons?

To the extent that they summoned Heroes from another world.

Excluding magic, wouldn’t there be basically no competition between the two?

In that state, how would a stalemate, or worse, getting cornered, possibly occur?

Unless magic was just that powerful, how could it be?

Once again, an inkling of speculation was bound to emerge when something that didn’t make logical sense occurred.

And that suspicion revolved around nothing else but the princess’ previous words.

"In that sense, excluding the prime characteristic of Demons that is their horns, the physical distinction between humans and Demons is nigh-indistinguishable."

There was a lot to think about in those words alone, and a few of the students could tell how dangerously close the scholar was to being in serious trouble as he barely skirted the line of what he was and wasn't allowed to teach.

“...Sir, could I ask something that might be considered a little bit taboo?”

As everyone else was still processing what the scholar had said, Ashley put her hand up to ask again, to which the scholar nodded with a hint of reluctance.

After all, they had already asked plenty of 'taboo' things today, so what was one more?

“Is it possible for Demons to corrupt humans?”

Despite having only arrived at the palace today, the scholar knew precisely that the origin of the question was related to the kingdom’s white propaganda.

“Although I have never personally witnessed nor heard of such a thing, student Ashley, it is indeed a fact that articles have been published in this country that claim such a thing to be true. My apologies, but I would not be able to give you a definitive answer due to an evident lack of knowledge.”

Whether or not she received a satisfactory answer, Ashley gave the scholar a smile.

“That’s fine, thank you for answering.”

She wrote something down in her notes.

“Excuse me.”

Immediately, another student raised their hand; this time, it was Kaitlyn who seemed to have a question.

“Could you explain more about the Demons' horns? How exactly do they limit mana? It wouldn’t make sense that they could do something like that if they were made out of ordinary bone or keratin, so do they contain some kind of special substance?”

Her question―born from pure curiosity and an innocent intention to learn―was quite reasonable. Some other students let out strange noises as if to indicate they hadn't even thought about it, but for some reason, it caused the scholar’s face to darken.

It was an expression so dismal that the class felt their hair stand on end.

“Good question. That is correct. Indeed, a Demon’s horns are not like those of any other creature. This property of magic energy suppression is commonly referred to as "anti-magic", and is comparable to nothing else in the natural world.”

And then.

“For that reason, as well as their inherent rarity to us humans, they are of exceptional value, and therefore highly coveted.”

It didn’t take long for the students to realise the reason for the scholar’s cynical eyes.

“I’m sure I don’t need to state explicitly what the result of that is.”

That’s right.

Almost everyone understood.

It was easy to connect the dots.

The scholar had no need to explain.

Like last time, there were a few students who didn’t quite understand the implication, but the scholar had no intention of voicing the truth aloud or explaining it completely.

In the kingdom of Seronia, Demons were posited as evil incarnate; something akin to spawn of the devil itself.

Even speaking in such a way that could mistakenly spur the belief that someone might side with the Demons was punishable by death, and that was the lightest of consequences.

Seronia was not a particularly religious country, but it treated those who held a positive view of the Demons as no less than heretics, and there was no guarantee to those with opposing views that the royal family didn't possess its own inquisition-like order.

If it were known to the officials of the palace or even the royals that the scholar had been disseminating disinformation about the so-called ‘Demon scum’ to the young and impressionable Heroes, then not only would his career and life both be put to a swift end, but he might even be subject to torturous interrogation on grounds of being a Demon spy or propagator.

The thought alone of what horrific deeds might be done to him made the scholar shudder, and that alone was enough to dissuade him from talking openly about it.

So, why was he taking such a big risk by sending them these hidden messages of the truth?

The fact that the Heroes were summoned by such a radical and selfish kingdom caused the scholar to gaze at them with pity.

That it wasn’t supposed to be like this.

That it wasn’t like this in the past.

The scholar couldn’t help but feel shame at the kingdom that had become so radicalised.

After the subject of Demons had been cut short and concluded, the scholar taught the class about what he had originally intended to start the class with before things got derailed, and not long after that, the extensive lesson ended.

It was only the first day, but there was already a strange atmosphere floating around the class.

No one spoke up about it, but they could all unanimously feel it.

A sense that the kingdom was not being entirely honest with them.

And this suspicion naturally spread to topics other than Demons, too.

----------------------------------------

Evening.

A quiet hallway within the royal palace.

“Uhm, excuse me. Ma’am?”

A scarlet-haired knight turned around at the call.

“You are... Hero Ashley, correct? What might be the matter?”

A girl with long, cinnamon brown hair and who wore an amiable smile; she spoke to the knight.

“It’s a bit sudden, and to be honest, I’m not sure if it’s something I should be asking, but I have a question I’d like to ask.”

“Of course, you can ask. A question from a talented A-class Hero such as yourself... There shouldn’t be anything I cannot answer unless it’s something about the kingdom’s tightest secrets. But, I don’t think you’re the type of girl to ask something like that out of the blue, are you?”

Ashley waved her hands.

“No no, nothing like that... Well, it might be, I’m not sure... It’s just something I feel like I need to know. And that I feel I have a right to know.”

Camilla nodded but said nothing in response as if indicating for Ashley to continue. A moment of hesitation passed before she asked what was on her mind.

“Jae... My classmate, who was allegedly colluding with Demons; can I meet him?”

“......”

Silence dominated the hall for an unknown period of time, the knight’s blank expression unchanging.

Camilla said nothing.

Nothing had happened, but something about her changed.

She didn’t move, but neither did the air around her it seemed.

Her aura had become one of intimidation in the blink of an eye.

The frozen atmosphere was almost suffocating for Ashley, causing her to gulp just to wet her pressured throat.

“...Can I know why you are asking such a question?”

After a while of quiet that felt almost physically painful, Camilla enquired.

“I... Would like to meet him because I haven’t heard from him all this time. I think it is wrong not to hear his side of the story, and most of all, because he is my classmate, I would like to believe in his innocence.”

Ashley ignored the cold sweat that slid down her neck and suppressed her fear of the tension emanating from the knight in front of her.

“Her Highness said that he has been captured, so he should still reside somewhere in the palace, correct? Please, if it is at all possible, I would like to meet him just once to talk.”

Camilla didn’t respond for a few moments, seemingly in thought as she gazed blankly at the young and promising talent before her.

“Hero Ashley. I am confident in my ability to judge character. It's a quality a person in my position is required to possess as it is part of my job to recruit and promote the lower-ranked knights who catch my eye. Because of that, I don’t think you are the type of loquacious person to go spreading meaningless rumours. Would I be correct with such an assumption?”

She nodded her head curtly.

“I would like to agree that I’m not a loose-lipped person, yes.”

Then, Camilla too nodded and folded her arms.

“Then, I suppose it would be fine to let you in on a small secret.”

Ashley’s ears perked up at the sentence. When finding the right person to ask about Jae, she had been understandably anxious due to the taboo nature of the topic, and she had certainly never expected to receive a genuine answer.

It was a surprise, but a welcome one.

However...

“You can’t meet him. Actually, no one can. See, that matter has become a bit complicated.”

“Complicated? How so? Will I ever get the chance to meet him?”

Camilla shrugged.

“The Demonic Hero has escaped custody, so we don’t hold him anymore. That’s why it's not just you, but nobody can meet him; not even His Highness the King.”

Ashley froze with an amalgamation of emotions surging within, but Camilla continued, utterly ignorant of how the girl was feeling.

“In fact, we’ve just started releasing wanted posters for the boy's subjugation, dead or alive, but we don’t expect much return.”

“......”

She didn’t know what to think, but if there was a silver lining, it would be this.

Jae Kang, the ‘Demonic Hero’, was still alive.

Of course, although Camilla asked Ashley to keep this under wraps, neither of them was aware that she was not the only student listening to this bombshell of a reveal.

Among the 30-odd students who were summoned to this new world with fantastical powers in their possession, it was par for the course that there would be at least one or two of them with enough covert capabilities to eavesdrop without getting discovered.

It was a mistake on Camilla's part, who simply assumed that she would be able to detect the presence of immature Heroes who had yet to train their skills.

And the result of that mistake would be something undoubtedly problematic for the kingdom.