*Ding, ding*
As the class-ending bell rang, Professor Yeno gathered his lecture notes, wiped the blackboard clean of ancient history, and prepared to leave the classroom without paying heed to the students who were still fast asleep on their desks, even after class had ended.
However, the sound of hurried footsteps from behind made Yeno stop.
"Professor! Professor!"
The one who chased out of the classroom was the little girl with freckles.
Yeno adjusted his glasses and recognized the student, after all, she was the only one who listened during his lectures.
The girl asked Professor Yeno about some knowledge points.
All about ancient history, about the Demon Race.
Professor Yeno answered patiently, one by one, very detailed and clear. It was evident that he had a thorough understanding of ancient history, especially his research on the Demon Race.
Because of this,
"Professor Yeno, do you really think the Demon Race is as lowly and inferior as written in the textbooks? I have read many history books, and there are few records of the human-demon war a thousand years ago. Even if there are, almost all of them end with a great victory for humans, as if the Demon Race was really easy to defeat. This, this seems a bit different from what you taught us"
Hearing the freckled girl student say this, Professor Yeno adjusted his glasses.
He shook his head and smiled, saying, "My Child, history books are only written by the victors."
"Professor Yeno, I don't quite understand. Then, do you think the Demon Race has really been exterminated?"
"It depends on how you understand it, just like for a person who covers their ears to steal a bell, to him, the bell does not exist."
The freckled girl student clearly couldn't keep up.
She was completely puzzled.
"I'm sorry, I have to go home now. If you still have any knowledge points that you don't understand, you can come to my office tomorrow."
"Or..." Professor Yeno paused.
He then handed a card with a simple magical formula to the freckled girl.
"Take good care of this."
"Professor, what is this...?"
"This is an invitation to a gathering."
"It's a meeting founded by those who haven't covered their ears and can hear the bell sound. After activating the card with your magic, you will get the location and time of the next meeting. Perhaps there, you can learn more about what you wish to know about ancient studies, about the Demon Race, about... the truth."
Professor Yeno left.
He was slender and had a limp. Teachers and students avoided this "weird" professor in the corridor since he was typically silent and did not take part in any school-related events.
And the freckled girl stood there.
She carefully clipped the meeting invitation, which was printed with strange purple and black patterns, into her notebook.
Leaving the Royal Academy of the capital city.
Yeno took a carriage back to his residence in the commoner district.
Upon entering the house, his virtuous wife and two lovely daughters had been waiting for him for a long time.
"Dear, dinner is ready."
"Daddy! I want to hear a story! The story of Commander Anna you told me last time!" the seven or eight-year-old daughter whined to Yeno.
Haila, the other daughter, who was more mature and graceful than her sister exclaimed, "Nana! Let Dad get the rest he deserves; he's been exhausted all day."
"No, no! Nana just wants to listen! Daddy~!"
Professor Yeno's wrinkled face broke into a smile.
He picked up his younger daughter and sat at the dining table, then cheerfully asked, "Alright, alright, where did I leave off last time?"
"You were telling about how Commander Anna was lured by a traitor and was surrounded by the demon race alone. Dad, please tell me, what happened to Commander Anna in the end? She must have successfully broken through the demon ranks, right?"
"Unfortunately my sweet heart, Commander Anna and her soldiers were surrounded by the demon army and held out for three days and nights but ultimately could not wait for reinforcements and lost their lives to the demon forces."
"Ah! How could this happen..." The little girl, upon hearing the continuation of the story, showed a face full of disappointment and loss.
She quickly became angry, clenching her little fists.
"Damn it! If it wasn't for that human traitor, how could Commander Anna have been surrounded! Wahh! Dad, I like Big sister Anna, and I want to be like her when I grow up, a hero who fights against the demon race and protects humanity!"
"There, there! Let's eat now, even heroes need to eat well!"
Yeno's wife rubbed their indignant little daughter's back, feeling somewhat helpless.
In fact, she would rather guide her daughter to become a mage, a doctor, or a civil servant serving the empire like herself, rather than a commander.
To fight against a demon race that doesn't exist.
But after all, this was her husband's profession.
Even if ancient history was an unpopular subject, he was still a professor at the Royal Academy, and that was the reason they could afford to live in the commoner area.
Thankfully, their older daughter was more promising.
Thinking this, Yeno's wife gave Haila an encouraging look.
Haila hesitated for a moment but still mustered the courage at the dining table to say to Yeno, "Father, tomorrow is my coming-of-age ceremony at the Swordsmanship Academy. Could... could you find the time to attend the ceremony?"
Yeno was not a social person.
Haila originally did not want to force her father, but her mother felt that it was better for both parents to bless her on such an important occasion.
At this moment, Yeno's wife chimed in from the side, "Dear, Haila's swordsmanship instructor came to see me yesterday. Haila's grades and talent are among the top in the academy. In the future, she has a good chance of being incorporated and becoming a high-ranking Swordmaster of the empire."
Hearing how excellent his daughter was, Yeno showed a relieved smile and patted his older daughter's head.
"Of course."
"I will be there on time."
The wife and older daughter both breathed a sigh of relief, while the clueless younger daughter kept her head down and ate, as if venting for Commander Anna. The family, warm and modest at the dinner table, was not wealthy but at least happy.
However,
All of this was shattered with a "snap."