Astarte’s POV

As I looked at the mysterious demon wearing the mask, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

‘Why is he still standing there?’

The person stood rather confidently for being in such a situation, the eyes inside the mask seeming to radiate darkness.

The Archduke coughed, throwing the scroll away as it faded to shreds of darkness.

Then he simply stood there, staring down at the demon.

Turning around I noticed a small demon who had a very worried look on his face.

“Do you know him?” I asked, making sure to whisper.

The boy nodded. “I don’t know why he didn’t come with me into the Revengers. He’s much more powerful than me.”

Finally, the Archduke nodded, almost like he was accepting something.

“Everyone. I hereby present to you the only demon who our King, Abbadon, the Destroyer of Worlds, and the Demon of the Abyss, have gifted his power.”

The Archduke walked over to the boy and did something I never expected.

He knelt before him.

The Archduke Leviathan, the one who was rumored to be the one who had killed the millions of elves during the War of Ignorance with but a swipe of his hand, was kneeling to a mere boy.

I looked at the masked demon in shock. I could almost feel my jaw on the floor.

“Leon Estes. The Blessing of the Abyss.”

The Archduke stood up, turning towards the crowd of shocked demons.

“He cannot be classified.”

As the attendees began ushering all of us into the tunnels that would lead into the academy, I looked back in shock.

And the boy gazed back at me.

And his eyes looked darker than ever.

***

Leon was freaking out.

‘Wh-what just happened?’

He was pacing about his room. He was so shocked that he could not remember how he even got here.

He still could remember the notification that had appeared when he was fighting against Astarte.

[The Demon of the Abyss has given you a Skill Tree!]

‘But to think..’

“AGH!”

He punched the wall, screaming in frustration.

‘What happened to keeping a low profile?!’

This was bad. Bad. The Archduke had made it seem as if Leon was the most powerful of all the aspirants, but in reality, he could not last a minute against anyone in the Deluder rank.

Leon felt like he was going to have a panic attack. He needed someone to talk to.

[You have activated the Skill [Hunter’s Seal]

As the mask enveloped his face, Leon went out of his room.

As he did so, he marveled at the corridor, which was outlined with shining gems. He had missed that because he was so panicked.

Walking down the hallway, he saw a couple of aspirants chatting with each other. As soon as they saw Leon, their faces turned pale, all of them running back into their rooms.

‘So much for making friends.’

“Hey. You.”

Leon motioned at one of the demons that had failed to get into their room in time.

“Do you know where the Revenger ranks are staying?”

The boy nodded, his face white with fear. “Th-there in the hallway right next to ours.”

Nodding, Leon dismissed him, walking out of the hallway and entering the one right next to his.

As he walked in there, the faces of the aspirants in that hallway were even more expressive, with some squeaking in fear.

Looking around, he spotted Elvis as he was sputtering and some boys seemed to be mocking him.

‘Can’t this kid just not get picked on?’

Walking over, Leon grabbed the shoulders of one boy.

“Hey. What are you doing?”

“Agh!”

A strangled shout came from the boy’s mouth as he stared at Leon in horror.

Leon tilted his head, motioning for Elvis to follow him.

As he and Elvis walked down the hallway, with Elvis’s face pale with fear, people whispered, glances directed at Leon.

Arriving at Leon’s dorm, they entered, with Leon locking the door behind them with a sigh of relief.

“Elvis, I need your help.”

“U-uh. Yes sir!”

Groaning at the reply, Leon slapped Elvis.

“C’mon. Do you think I’m that powerful?”

Elvis tried to hide a smile.

“Eh… not really.”

“UGH!”

Leon launched himself onto the couch, groaning.

“What should I do?”

Elvis’s face turned deep with thought. “Well, our first class is starting soon. Did you get your schedule?”

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Leon shook his head. “I was so much in shock I can’t remember how I got here.”

Elvis got up and then picked up a piece of wrinkled paper on a table.

“Here it is,” he said, handing it over to Leon.

Glancing up, he peered at it.

Schedule for Leon Estes (The Blessing of Abbadon)

1. Class of Demonic History

2. Skill Use (Advanced)

3. Study of the Skill Tree (Advanced)

4. Lunch

5. Elemental Magic Practice

6. Swordsmanship (Level 5)

7. Hands-on-practice (Duels)

8. Dinner

9. Break

10. Sleep

“What’s elemental magic?”

Elvis shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s a new class for all of us. Humans use that a lot.”

Nodding, Leon got up. “So I guess I should be dreading my sixth class?”

Elvis nodded in reply. He also pointed to a stack of clothes neatly folded on the desk.

“Wear your uniform. I need to change into mine as well. I’ll meet you here.”

As Elvis left, Leon headed over to the bed. The Velereth uniform was a regular dress shirt that was printed with curling designs of gold on the collars. The pants were all black, ending also with gold printing. He also noticed a gold medal beside the clothing which signified him as a Deluder. They were not going to make a whole new medal just for him.

Slipping on the clothes, Leon looked at the mirror, fixing his clothing. After, he went out, where he saw Elvis wearing the same clothing. However, his medal was silver, glinting on the shining gemstones.

“Well, c'mon. Let's go.”

They both again walked out into the hallway.

Leon turned to Elvis. “So how do we get to the classes?”

In reply, Elvis pointed towards a group of gemstones glowing brightly in bright yellow. “We need to just follow the color yellow.”

As they walked down, Leon muttered to Elvis, “At least your popularity ain’t that bad anymore.”

It was true. All demons who were also heading to class seemed to stare at Leon or anybody near him with reverence.

Leon also noticed that the girl’s uniform was pretty much the same as the boys, just with them wearing a black skirt.

Arriving at the classroom, Leon entered.

It was pretty standard, almost like a college lecture room. An elevated platform surrounded by seats of soft cushions that had foldable tables.

Taking a seat next to Elvis, he nodded a thanks as Elvis handed him some paper and a charcoal stick to write with.

Soon, the seats filled, with the professor entering, a burly demon with long facial hair. He introduced himself as Lord Amun, a very revered historian.

The next few hours were quite dull with only the professor’s dull voice and the scribbling of notes being heard.

However, Leon listened attentively, trying to absorb as much information as possible.

This world, which was called Sheol, was one of the many worlds on the branches of the World Tree. It had normally been occupied by the elves, but during the War of Ignorance, the demons had driven them out, settling in their new lands. It seemed like the War of Ignorance was almost like the Frozen War compared to human history. It was a mass, with many dying on each side.

As the lecture ended, Leon stood up, slipping the neatly detailed notes into his pocket. However, as he walked out a voice came from behind.

“Um… excuse me?”

‘Fuck.’

Cursing under his breath, Leon turned towards Astarte.

“Yes?”

Astarte bowed. “I would just like to introduce myself, as I am one of the Ensnares of Abbadon. It would seem we will be very acquainted.”

Leon waved her away. “Yes. I know.”

Then, promptly ignoring her, he headed to his next class, struggling to keep his legs steady.

‘Can’t she just not talk to me?’

He caught up to Elvis, who was walking in shock.

“You okay?”

Elvis looked up and then shook his head.

“It just ain’t fair.”

‘Eh?’

They arrived at the next classroom, a large room that didn’t have any seats.

Seeing other students sit down on the floor, Leon and Elvis followed and smiled as the entitled grumbled as servants had to rush to bring them cushions.

“By the way, this is the last class we have together. After this, I need to go to my Mana circles class.”

Leon nodded, his attention diverted to the door opening. A man came in, his long white hair flowing onto the floor.

“My name is Duke Andras. And welcome to my class, the study of using your Skills.”

“You will be practicing your Skills, and hopefully be able to ingrain them into your fighting style.”

After the quick introduction, they had to pair up with someone of their choosing. After that, they had to use their skills against each other. However, lethal ones were not allowed.

‘I guess I can use [Mesmeric Trance] because Astarte isn’t here.’

Soon, the class ended, after a couple of incidents where some demons activated their Skill output too high, causing several demons to be sent to the infirmary.

During the study of the Skill Tree class, Leon had to avoid the peering glances from the professor who seemed to think of Leon as a lab rat, bombarding him with questions about King Abbadon’s Skill Tree.

Finally, during lunch, Leon entered the cafeteria, which was padded with soft cushions, where people could sit anywhere they liked on circular tables.

As he grabbed a plate of collard greens and some meat dribbled with a sauce, he realized that all the people from the Deluder rank (all the ranks had different eating times) were sitting all alone, occupying one table with their presence. The air was so tense that it felt like you could cut it with a knife.

Looking around, Leon finally decided to sit next to Lily, the girl from the Seekers. After all, she didn’t show as talkative, and she would most likely ignore him.

However, as he sat down, she looked up from her food, her mouth opening to speak.

“How are you going to eat?”

Her voice sounded a silver bell, clear and sweet.

Leon shrugged. “I’ll just lift the mask a little.”

Lily smiled. “Isn’t that uncomfortable? That’s why I wear a half-mask.”

“Is yours a Skill too?”

She nodded. “Of course. I say that having to remove it from your storage and then wearing it is quite a hassle.”

Lifting his mask, Leon bit into the food, closing his eyes as the savory taste flooded in.

Lily giggled. “You must like your food.”

Leon tilted his head, confused. “How do you know? I’m wearing a mask.”

She nodded. “For us Seekers, we always wear a mask. So I found that I could replace facial gestures with body movement.”

“You don’t seem too worried about being a Seeker.”

Lily sighed. “What’s the point? That’s my destiny anyway. To lose my mind. So I might as well have fun before that.”

She glanced up, smiling even more. “The Archduke made you all scary and such, but you seem nice. Do you want to go to Recreation after our classes? All the other Deluders are so stiff.”

Leon shook his head. “I can’t. I need to meet with my other friend.”

“Oh! Do you mean Elvis? He seems very nice. He’s in my Mana circles class.”

“You do Mana circles? I thought you used wires?”

She laughed. “Where do you think those wires come from?”

After chatting some more, Leon finished his meal, standing up. “Well, it was nice to meet you. I might be able to go with you next time.”

“Sure. See you!”

Nodding, Leon walked out, looking at his schedule.

‘I wonder what Elemental Practice is.’

It turned out, that Elemental Practice was using your Skill Tree on stone golems, which Leon couldn’t do that well. However, Luna, the girl who had been blasting away demons with ice during the entrance exam, was very skilled at it, destroying several golems in a single attack. For some reason, the teacher seemed rather disappointed about Leon, sending out disapproving vibes every time he looked in Leon’s direction.

Swordsmanship was inside a wooden dojo, which Astarte excelled in. Leon tried to keep a low profile, just doing some simple movements with his falchion, but it was clear that he was one of the best regarding that. It would seem that most of the demons hadn’t even tried out their Bound weapons before coming here.

Soon, however, it was time for Leon’s most dreaded class.

Hands-on-Practice (Duels)

Gulping nervously at the sign, Leon walked over, sitting down on the bleachers that surrounded the arena.

The only demons who had this class were the Deluders, who each made sure to sit a good distance away from each other, except for Lily, who plopped down right next to Leon.

The teacher introduced herself as Archlady Rangda, positioning herself in front of the students.

“You will be conducting multiple duels. This arena has a special enchantment, so you cannot die here. So feel free to go all out.”

‘Well, I'm going to die.’

“Isn’t this going to be so fun?” Said Lily excitedly, grinning, “I want to challenge you!”

“Me? Why me?”

Lily shrugged. “Just because.”

Leon shook his head, as the teacher continued. “You may choose your opponents.”

As soon as the words were uttered, all the Deluders immediately stood up, staring at Leon.

“I'd like to challenge you.”

All the words were directed towards Leon.

***

As Leon looked at all the people that were challenging him, he sighed in disappointment. He had been hoping nobody would want to duel with him.

‘If I’m going to fight, I need to be smart about this.’

Looking around, he finally decided on Astarte. After all, he was most familiar with her fighting pattern, and he knew most things about her.

Ignoring Lily’s pouting expression, Leon jumped down into the arena, as Astarte followed, pulling out her khopesh.

‘I need to be careful about this. After all, I can’t show her my Skill Tree or Skills.’

Leon bowed respectfully, saying, “How about we only use swordsmanship? I would like to see your style.”

Astarte agreed, smiling. “Very well.”

They positioned themselves, Leon’s falchion and Astarte’s khopesh gleaming in the light.

“You may fight,” said Archlady Rangda tiredly, waving her hand before her.

And they immediately launched themselves at each other, swords whistling in the air.

***

thx for reading!

hopefully this is enough for the writathon... right?

Edit: As it turns out, I need 52 more words. ugh. so umm...

im just going to use this place as an post-chapter author note for the remaining. I hope you guys don't mind.

Well, I hope you guys can continue to support me and follow.

I would also REALY appreciate it if you gave reviews and edit suggestions. After all, I'm an just-starting author, so I need a lot of feedback.

Thanks so much!