After the ceremony, Arthur was strolling through the campus alone which had assumed the orange hue of the setting sun.
It was an oddly quiet evening, mainly because everyone was exhausted from the long speeches that were given by the head of the mage sector, Professor Goblin, and other professors who had come to select the extraordinary students and place them under their wing.
"Phew!"
He sighed with relief as he blessed his eyes with the beautiful lighting of the sun over the academy. Stella's stunt today had pulled too much attention, it felt good that not so many eyes were now anchoring on him. And to make it worse, everyone was curious about how he ranked up in just a few days after joining the academy.
Some even claimed that Professor Obsidian planned all of this since the three of them were under his mentorship.
"Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"
A girl suddenly approached him, breaking his focus on the scenery that had robbed his heart. Her uniform indicated she was a second-year in the mage sector of the academy. She also had dark purple hair that she had pulled back into a bun and a round pair of glasses covering her violet eyes.
At first glance, Arthur could tell she was an inconspicuous beauty pretending to look normal.
"Claudia?" he whispered after noticing her voice and face immediately.
She nodded in reply.
At the moment, she looked human, there were no horns popping out of her head and her demon aura had been completely sealed away.
"What do you want from me? Do you go to this school?" he asked in a hushed voice, already panicking from the fact that if anyone saw or sensed that the girl in front of him was a demon—he would face execution for being an accomplice.
She scoffed, "Yes, I go to this school. Humans can't stop primordial demons from doing what we want…hence, their magic boundaries have no effect on us no matter how strong they are."
Arthur didn't know a thing about the primordial demons. But if what she was saying was true, then it was best if he stayed calm in such a situation. She did hint to him about the sword, though he would have figured it out afterward.
"Where do you want to talk?" he asked.
"Let's head to that bench." She pointed at an empty bench under a cherry tree.
They both walked to the bench and settled under the dazzling glow of the sunset. She first surveyed around to make sure they weren't being watched or heard by nearby students. And after confirming they were the only ones here, she leaned back into her seat to get some comfort.
"What do you want to talk about?" he jumped to the topic without hesitation.
"Hm…Well, I want to first congratulate you on making it to the dark knight sector. I always knew that you had it in you," she said with a smile on her face before answering his question.
"Someone wants you dead, Arthur."
"Really…?" he wasn't flustered by her words.
"Yes, the mutated ogre was after you. Whoever sent it knew you would be in the selection exam and had planned to exterminate you before you could get stronger…" She was serious. "But lucky for you, a student handled it on his own."
"Bairon, right?" he remembered, "he mentioned going against something like that during the exam."
She shook her head, impressed by how fast Arthur caught on to situations.
"It seems someone knows that a demon god's grimoire appeared here. Have told anyone about the grimoire ever since you got your hands on it?"
"I can't, no one remembers it at all." He answered.
"I see, then for now you need to keep low. I can't risk losing someone with so much potential of becoming a demon lord."
"So much potential? What are you talking about?" asked Arthur while staring at the clobber stones that made the academy's walkways.
When he thought about it, ever since he woke up in the infirmary, he had been feeling weird of late. His physical abilities had grown drastically and his body felt lighter due to improved stamina that was now at the C the last time he checked his status card. Also, his speed had also improved thanks to whatever happened in the dungeon.
At this current level, swordsmanship wasn't going to be as hard as it was before the exam. Maybe this human body wasn't so bad after all. His mind was sharper and it was quickly adapting to everything.
And on top of that, he was slowly recovering the demonic ability to absorb mana from nature. In his previous life he wasn't able to use the mana he would absorb from nature—being a human this time around now gave him a chance to use that ability, and soon, he will be able to use powerful magic without losing his consciousness.
"The sword you have is known as the dark sister, to humans, it's nothing but a cheap Mitheral sword. But to demons, the dark sister was a sword of hidden power. It had a conscious of its own—so it chose its users," she said. "Many demons have used it throughout the years, but not so many have managed to awaken her true power. One of its previous users must have died before passing it on, now it chose a human. How poetic of it."
"Huh?" Arthur was confused, was this why she said he had potential? because he was chosen by a living sword…!
"The person who found it knew it was different, rune smithed weapons were forged from the heart of this realm after all. that one was also created the same way, but with an interesting twist that made it accept only those with demon blood in them. Now it has chosen a human with demon qualities…very interesting…so interesting indeed."
She felt a rush of excitement sparking through her beautiful body for the first time in a long time.
***
Being the primordial demon of gluttony, Claudia has never felt satisfaction her entire life. She was born even before the demons discovered this world so she had practically seen it all.
She was part of the demon lord's generals when the demons attempted to take over the magic realm for the first time and was the third strongest primordial by then. But after losing the first holy war, the seven primordial demons grew bored and chose to stop fighting since no one was strong enough to entertain them. They vanished after that, and to some, they were a myth.
However, they've recently regained their interest in the magic realm because of the demon lord's passing.
"I don't have demon qualities!" Arthur snapped.
"Your growing powers say otherwise," she smirked.
In her eyes, everything about Arthur was interesting; his lifestyle; his power; his mysterious background, and how he suddenly appeared and a grimoire chose him.
He was a mystery she desired to solve. Why the demon god chose a human as one of his representatives in the magic realm?
"What is it?" Arthur noticed her staring at his face.
"There's something on you," she said, wiping a stray thread off his shoulder while she studied his profile.
"Why did you choose this academy?" she asked.
"I want a good and peaceful life for myself. And the only way I can get that life is through this academy," he answered.
"Hmm…" his answer was too plain, it's not what she was looking for—but that will do for now. She then got a better look at his green eyes when he glared directly into hers. They were cold and empty as if he had no soul resting in his body.
'This mortal…he's different.'
She smiled once again, engrossed with excitement. "That's a selfish reason…almost every human here wants to become the strongest and join the bureau or become an Archmage for the kingdom in order to protect it from demons. Pretty heroic right?"
"I guess so," he agreed hastily and continued, "My mother had a heroic nature and that only sent her to an early grave. During the dungeon test, I learned that holding back might never create the peaceful world I want for myself. I was planning to guide the strongest but I learned that the strongest people I know are not strong enough for me to guide." He was referring to Bairon and Elizabeth.
"So, what now then?"
"I need to surpass them and turn into something that can't be stopped. I need more power," he coldly stared at his bandaged hands, then flinched once he tried to clench.
The evening sank beneath the horizon and the dim light now made the clouds appear vermilion. And a silence followed his greedy words.
Claudia fanned her neck which was now slightly sweaty from the heat. Her violet eyes glistened in the sunlight as she thought deeply about what she was about to say. Then opened her mouth to speak. "The magic realm offers power to those who seek it. I sense so much hunger coming from you, I am ready to serve you in every way you wish."
"Huh? What?!" he rose from his seat, bewildered by what he had just heard. It sounded like she had just claimed herself as his servant.
Claudia grinned and clutched onto her chest. "You'll be the one to satisfy me, Arthur. I am gluttony and you are the demon candidate that has gained my interest. How fascinating…a human is my master…truly interesting…very interesting."
There it was again, her whole face was now red, and her breathing quavered as she spoke. She was too excited.
'Satisfy?'
She stood up, fell on one knee, and bowed her head like a real servant. "I promise to serve you with my soul, and protect you until you are strong enough Arthur Bellrock."
The word strong caught his interest immediately. "Can you become stronger?" he asked.
"Yes, I can," she nodded with a grin on her face.
He didn't know what to believe because he didn't know what to say to her—she was a demon, perhaps one of the strongest. Stepping into this would be a death wish, but the biggest part of him had grown desperate for power. He could no longer hold himself back…
He drew a sharp breath and said:
"Then I accept my position as a demon candidate. On condition that you help me become the strongest human, and create my peaceful world."
"Fine by me," she agreed with a mischievous smile on her face.