Varnier, more commonly known as The Demon Of Stone by his peers, was an A rank demon known for his sturdy defense. His rock-hard body allowed him to defend against attacks that would otherwise cause normal armor to break.
Where the steel failed, his stone shone. It was said that his armor was almost, if not on par with the armor of the Mountain God.
Just leaving a scratch on him was good enough for celebration.
That wasn't enough for Dignitas, however.
The moment he had woken up, he went to his teacher Sayuri and apologized for the earlier incident.
To his surprise, she said that she was at fault.
"I shouldn't have given you such a difficult task. But I'm happy that you were able to find your elegance. Consider it removed from my mind."
He soon left, since Sayuri was standing guard outside and wasn't to be disturbed.
After that, Dignitas quickly returned to his bed and began flipping through the Log Of The Academy's Regressor.
And just as he had thought, the chapters were being completely rewritten by some unknown force.
What should've been a normal tournament had turned into an all-out invasion by the demons.
"This thing had a pen, I think. Maybe I should try changing some things."
Dignitas brought out his "La Plume" from earlier and began scratching away at the ink. It eventually disappeared until a part of the page was now.
"What should I change…? Ah, I've got it!"
Since the book allowed him to alter parts of the story… then he would most likely be able to heal the wounds on Curie Mortem as well.
Dignitas had heard about the situation from the Professor and was feeling a bit guilty about the situation.
"Curie Mortem's wounds magically began to heal after a few minutes… yeah, I'll go with that."
"But still, this is kinda confusing. If the story is being rewritten, then which one is affected? I can't tell anymore."
Since the Log allowed him to interfere with the story, Dignitas was quite confused about which "story" was being followed.
But from the looks of it, it was both.
"Whatever, at least everything is still somewhat going as it should be. Well, other than this whole invasion."
"Come to think of it, where is John?" Dignitas thought out loud.
"Hmm? John? He's with your party members. He was saying something about slaying the demons. I'm sure he'll be fine if he's with your party." Professor Shib had overheard it and answered his question.
"Ah, I see. That's great to hea–"
*boom*
Dignitas wasn't even able to finish his reply before a massive hole in the wall was blown apart.
Smoke filled the entire infirmary, and he found it hard to breathe.
"Hurrrk??!!"
Suddenly, a crushing force enveloped his neck. It wrapped around his entire throat and began to choke him.
Dignitas hurriedly retrieved Dainsleif from beside him before it was too late and began to stab the thing that was holding him.
"What's wrong?!"
The door to the infirmary opened, and Sayuri's voice resounded throughout the room.
"Silence." The thing spoke, and Dignitas felt something sharp travel through the air at lightning speed.
It was rock bullets, compressed to the size of a pebble. Despite their small appearance, they carried even more power than the strongest of bullets.
A loud thud was heard, which Dignitas had assumed to be Sayuri being hit by the bullets.
"Professor…" Dignitas struggled to utter Shib's name.
"I'm coming! Hold still!"
The smoke cleared, and Professor Shib was seen, drawing something onto the floor.
In just a few seconds, the shape had taken form, and a hammer the size of his body materialized.
This was the first time Dignitas had seen Reality magic in battle. A rare affinity that allowed people to manipulate the world to their will, or create things that change the world.
Professor Shib was clearly in the latter category.
Picking up the hammer, Professor Shib instantly closed the distance between him and the demon and swung his hammer down.
'N-nothing?!' Dignitas screamed inwardly.
"Cease your attempts. Nobody, unless a rank higher than me, can even hope to break my stone."
Varnier raised his hand again, and a barrage of rock bullets was fired out.
*ptwoo*
Thinking quickly, Professor Shib drew a shield that covered his entire body. Placing his weight on the shield, he slammed it down onto the ground.
The shield served to mitigate almost all of the damage from the bullets. However, it would not be able to last long under constant fire.
"Grrr… I need to think fast. Where's Sayuri when you need her?"
"Hooo…" The sound of an owl came up from behind him. It had flown in from the hole in the wall.
"You're here! Great, take my pen."
Professor Shib threw the pen over to the owl, who caught it in its beak.
He could not spare any energy to continue drawing. He had to focus on holding the shield and powering it with his mana till lest it break apart.
Thankfully, the owl was no ordinary owl. It was a Spirit Animal, a being much more intelligent than normal beasts.
Using its beak, the owl quickly drew multiple humanoid figures that quickly took form.
These figures were about the same size as Professor Shib and looked like they had the same amount of power as a B- rank.
That wasn't all. The owl continued drawing and handed the figures a hammer each.
"Haha! This is why you're my buddy!" Professor Shib was relieved that some of the weight was beginning to be removed.
The figures all charged towards Varnier, wielding their hammers.
"Weak." Varnier channeled his mana and erected a dome of rock around him, covering him and Dignitas away from sight.
"No! Break it!"
The figures obeyed Shib's command and began to strike at the dome with their hammers.
In that short time frame, the dome had grown to a size twice that of a car. It completely covered around half of the infirmary.
Each of the figures possessed the power of many cadets. And yet, their strikes and bashes served to do nothing against the dome.
Professor Shib was beginning to panic the longer Dignitas was inside with Varnier.
"Quick… something to break it apart… I've got it!"
Professor Shib hurriedly lowered himself onto the ground and began creating a weapon resembling a large tube.
"A rocket launcher should work… I hope it's strong enough to break it. Hold on, Dignitas. I can't have Sayuri lose her one disciple."
***
Meanwhile, inside the rock dome…
"Gah!" Dignitas groaned in pain as he was thrown to the floor helplessly by Varnier.
"I did not expect the one the Sovereign calls the Destroyer Of Demons to be this weak. He must've confused you with someone else."
Dignitas could not even process the words said before he was kicked in the stomach, and flung back against the wall.
He could feel his back breaking as it crashed against the tough shell of the dome.
'This isn't the time, goddammit! I just got healed!' Dignitas cursed in his head.
He was right, though. It hadn't even been five minutes after he woke up that Varnier had crashed through the infirmary wall.
"Although, that sword you carry is of interest. Maybe I should take it with me…" Varnier's interest turned to the sword Dignitas was carrying in his hand.
Dignitas wasn't sane enough to completely understand everything Varnier was saying, but he heard the word Dainsleif.
He instantly clutched the sword in his arms and placed it under his stomach.
Varnier moved. His steps echoed throughout the dome, signifying that he was getting closer by the second.
It wasn't long before he was right beside Dignitas.
The pressure… or if it could even be called that, was terrifying. Dignitas couldn't even find the words to say against it.
"This sword is now mine." Varnier grabbed Dignitas by the collar and lifted him off the ground.
"Shit, no!"
"Don't try to hide it. The glow the sword possesses is even more valuable than the most precious of gems." With one hand, Varnier grabbed Dainsleif by the handle and began inspecting the sword.
The gargoyle-like demon ran his hands across the blade like it was a piece of treasure.
With each moment Varnier inspected Dainsleif, Dignitas' anger only grew.
And yet, he could not do anything about it. His trump card, the one he would later name the "Berserk" state, would be useless against a beast like him.
"Something… something, anything!"
"Silence." Varnier's voice shook the earth dome, and Dignitas felt the strength in his body leaving.
"I always found it hard to understand… Why is it that prey struggle? Is it to survive?"
"The will to live has always been engraved in our minds since the moment we were born. And it is only when you run into danger that that will further strengthen."
"But against absolute power… wouldn't it be fine to just give up? Wouldn't it be fine for you to just admit that you have no chance of winning?"
"But even then, I'm not planning to kill you. The Sovereign himself declared that the Destroyer Of Demons and his party be taken back to Hell alive."
"It makes my job harder, but it is no problem."
"What are you… talking about?" Dignitas spoke while trying to breathe.
"I am saying that you should just give up and lead me to your party members. In turn, I can grant you a swift trip to unconsciousness."
"So? How about it?" Varnier brought Dignitas to his face level.
Now that he was directly in front of Varnier, Dignitas was left with no choice but to experience the full force of the demon's pressure.
The moment he tried to move a muscle, a strong force would cause them to stay still.
But even so, Dignitas placed all his strength on his right arm, curling it into a fist.
Varnier noticed this but knew that the boy wouldn't be able to do anything, so he allowed it.
Moving his hand such that it was right in between his face and Varnier's, Dignitas opened up his fist and stuck out the middle finger.
"Fuck you."