It had been about two hours since the Demon King’s army released monsters into the academy.

 

Even after that much time had passed, Sertia couldn’t move from the principal’s office.

 

“Keh!!”

 

She coughed up black blood onto the floor.

 

Her hair, which had been half and half until recently, now had an increased proportion of black.

 

Sertia was too weak to move her body now.

 

Intense pain spread throughout her body.

 

In this situation where magical energy surrounded her, Sertia couldn’t use her power.

 

The magical energy blowing around was strong enough to push away the surrounding mana.

 

Sertia had been suppressing the curse with the mana in her body until now, but even that action was interfered with.

 

The speed at which the curse spread throughout her body increased.

 

“The barrier, hu… This is bad… I need to, go…”

 

Sertia got up from the bed and put her feet on the ground.

 

She couldn’t stand on her two legs.

 

The legs that touched the ground were visibly shaking badly.

 

Her body was shivering, and her temperature was high.

 

Her head was dizzy, and when she closed her eyes, she thought she heard someone’s voice telling her to let go and be comfortable.

 

But she had to go.

 

“I have to go repair the barrier…”

 

It was something only she could do in the Empire.

 

Finally, she managed to stand up by grasping the furniture in the principal’s office.

 

As she stood up, a mirror came into view.

 

Sertia’s appearance reflected in the mirror was quite different from before.

 

Her red hair, which had been like her symbol, was mostly dyed black, and her left eye was dyed red.

 

The blue right eye that remained was now one of the few pieces of evidence that she had been human in the past.

 

Sertia had taken some small comfort in that fact, but…

 

“Ah…”

 

Today, even the color of the right eye that remained in Sertia’s reflection in the mirror was about to change.

 

The light of her eye, like a blue jewel, became dull, and a slight redness appeared.

 

With blue and red mixed, it was now close to purple.

 

Sertia sobbed on the spot.

 

She knew how much time she had left.

 

No matter how much she denied it and struggled, time flowed.

 

What kills the magician who beheaded the Demon King is nothing other than the second hand of the clock.

 

Tick, time passes.

 

No matter what magic she used or how much she twisted causality by squeezing out all her mana, it was impossible to hold back the flowing time.

 

Sertia kneels down.

 

She thought she had been prepared for this for a long time, but now she was afraid of death – the end of a mage.

 

In fact, there might not have been any human who wasn’t afraid of death.

 

It wouldn’t have been like this on the battlefield.

 

If she could fight to the end and die, she would have thought it was an honorable death in itself.

 

Now, she seemed to understand.

 

Sertia wasn’t afraid of dying.

 

She was afraid of her helpless self rotting away with a body that couldn’t fight.

 

It’s a terrible thing to die under the pitying gaze of others without being able to do anything.

 

It was no different from meeting death as a mage.

 

She will die in two senses before long.

 

It took quite a long time to accept that fact.

 

***

 

The monster invasion of the academy was something that had to happen eventually.

 

If this world were a novel and Ariel were the protagonist, the novel would have to create a background for him to grow in.

 

So it wasn’t surprising that the incident happened.

 

Rather, it was strange that it had been peaceful until now.

 

But Iria had eliminated two beings that would become the biggest culprits in this situation.

 

Wasn’t it too much interference in the incident for an outsider just caught up in an episode in the novel?

 

That part bothered her a little.

 

So she made two of the Empire’s top forces retire from the battlefield to match the balance.

 

This should be about right, shouldn’t it?

 

‘I’m a neutral monster. Again, I didn’t take anyone’s side in this incident.’

 

This incident is likely to be an artificial episode to raise Ariel’s growth rate.

 

‘Then, it might not be good for me to intervene and erase even the background for him to grow.’

 

So, Iria decided not to step forward anymore.

 

It was time for a supporting character to step back.

 

Iria left after throwing Lena into the group of survivors.

 

She told Rena, who tried to follow her, not to come.

 

To be honest, she would only be a hindrance.

 

If she had been as capable as Sera or Ariel, she wouldn’t have cared much, but with Rena, Iria was worried she might die if something went wrong.

 

And Albert…

 

“……”

 

She wasn’t sure.

 

Honestly, looking back now, she thinks she was emotional in many ways earlier.

 

It’s because this is the first time she’s drawn and used the Demon King’s power.

 

For a moment, she felt like she was becoming something that wasn’t her.

 

Iria poured out what had been pent up inside her without being expressed until now as if throwing it at him.

 

Maybe that’s why, now that she’s calmed down, she even felt relieved.

 

She also sternly warned that it would be better to stop disclosing her information.

 

It’s not that she trusts him.

 

If necessary, she was willing to go back and kill him.

 

But is there any reason to do that?

 

No matter how things flow, the end will be disastrous anyway.

 

If by any chance things go wrong, she decided to destroy the Empire and kill its people.

 

Only after coming to that conclusion could she be a little comfortable mentally.

 

If you get too caught up in worries, you tend to stagnate.

 

Iria decided to do what she needed to do now.

 

***

 

A total of five fragments were unleashed on the academy.

 

One of them was held by Seir, an executive of the Demon King’s army, so there were a total of four Seeds of the Demon King roaming the academy.

 

Iria accidentally eliminated one of them on her way, and Reina and Albert each dealt with one, so only one remained.

 

However, the remaining one was an extremely strong individual.

 

Normally, only weak monsters were used to create Seeds.

 

It was for a simple reason.

 

Higher-level monsters were difficult to control, and it was nearly impossible to transport them inside the academy without being detected.

 

But with one, it was barely possible.

 

It’s a special-grade individual that Belial, an executive of the Demon King’s army, had been saving.

 

It has physical specs incomparable to other monsters and is highly intelligent for a monster.

 

It’s a rare monster that can use magic on its own.

 

They fed a fragment to such a being.

 

At this point, the garden inside the academy was no different from hell.

 

The professors were teaming up and confronting it, but they were no match for it.

 

-Kyaaaaaak!!!

 

The Seed of the Demon King roared.

 

Just that alone makes the weak lose their will to fight.

 

Its appearance resembles a wolf, with a purple horn on its forehead.

 

As it absorbed the fragment, its body was dyed jet-black, and its silvery-white mane flickered like flames.

 

It was already a strong monster, but as it embraced the fragment, it grew enormous and all its abilities increased.

 

‘That’s going to be tough.’

 

Iria, who was drawn by the energy of the fragment, thought.

 

Of course, she had no intention of fighting it and was just watching from afar.

 

Even the Seed of the Demon King is ultimately created when a monster absorbs the power of a fragment.

 

If the monster’s original power is not great, it doesn’t become a strong being even when it becomes a Seed.

 

However, the monster visible before her eyes was strong even before.

 

That’s why it has now become a monster with absolute power.

 

Iria estimated the power of this monster from a distance.

 

“……”

 

It’s slightly less than Seir after she embraced a fragment.

 

It seems a bit inferior when compared, but this was an amazing level.

 

Even Iria would have taken quite some time to subdue it if she didn’t draw her red sword.

 

It’s obviously not an opponent that students can take on, and it’s a difficult opponent even if all the remaining professors attack at once.

 

Maybe Albert and Lena would have to gather to barely be able to subdue it.

 

Expecting that, Iria made the two unable to engage in battle, so the rest is up to the protagonist, Ariel.

 

‘If you die here, you were just that caliber from the beginning.’

 

Objectively evaluating, it’s impossible for him as he is now.

 

Ariel was still weaker than even a single regular professor, let alone a Seed of the Demon King.

 

Although he’s called the strongest student in the academy, there’s an overwhelming difference between students and professors.

 

However, Iria seemed to think that Ariel had something that could fill that power gap.

 

-Grrrr……

 

The monster slowly steps forward among the professors who have lost their will to fight.

 

As the monster stretches its foot, the professors step back that much.

 

Even experienced practitioners with extensive practical experience are scared in front of overwhelming power.

 

They’ve been fighting for a long time but couldn’t inflict a single wound on the monster.

 

As time passed, it was the professors who were taking damage.

 

That’s when no one was stepping forward to confront it while feeling despair.

 

Even as the professors retreat, one person is holding a sword and taking a stance.

 

“……Starlight, Ignite.”

 

White starlight descended.

 

When everyone was retreating in fear, only one boy did not.