Chapter 8 – Buried Past (4)

Professor Glatos Kuhlan was one of the few wizards within Parenzia Academy who embodied black magic of the 5th rank or higher.
Due to his status as a warlock, whose reputation had worsened significantly after the Great War, and because he was from the Alkaid Tower, which was geographically closest to Helzeb, he was viewed with suspicion by everyone in the academy, including professors and students.
It would probably have been impossible for him to come to Parencia without the active recommendation of the chairman.

“Professor. This is Liv Labre, a second-year student at the Ministry of Magic who contacted me earlier. Is it okay if I come in?”

However, on the other hand, it also meant that even though Professor Glatos was a warlock, he was proven enough to teach students within the academy.
Liv was also not dark enough to hate all warlocks who were not directly related to the demons.

— Come in.

A tired voice comes from inside. Liv carefully opened the door and entered a laboratory filled with stuffed dogs and various animal bones.
Professor Glatus was sitting in an armchair and reading a book.
It was a history book that all freshmen were required to learn – ‘The End of the Great War and the Beginning of the Small War’.

“I’m sorry for interrupting your reading.”
“Well, there’s nothing to worry about. Because you are an excellent student. Lately, I’ve been having a hard time concentrating in my classes, but whatever. “I was wondering if there was a problem with my teaching style or if it was my sloppy attire. I went to my colleague Roylen to ask for advice, but he didn’t care one bit.”

I don’t know if I really care or if I really care.
He closed the book he was reading and got up from the chair.
A tall man with a slim build who seems to be over 2 meters tall.
Combined with the black robe, it naturally gave off a feeling of intimidation.

“It’s really strange.”
“Yes?”
“This history book. “Don’t you think a lot has been omitted?”

Liv reflexively answered the sudden question. This was mainly what I learned during lectures.

“Oh, I heard that many records were lost when the Royal Library was restored after the war. In particular, as they were asked to delete information about the special forces dispatched from the Holy Kingdom to Helzeb as a condition of the end-of-war negotiations for the ‘small war’ that took place after the Great War…”
“No no. What I’m talking about is a different story. The Inquisitors you speak of did not even reach the heart of Helzeb—the center of the demon world. Nevertheless, everything that happened there, especially the end of the Demon King, was recorded entirely through the testimony of one Count Hubblet.”
“Isn’t Margrave Wivlet the strongest sword in the kingdom? No lie can come out of His mouth.”
“A person’s lies have nothing to do with the color of his soul. Well, let’s get to the point. “What brought you here?”

Liv hesitated for a moment and then took out a Lit Weiss test paper wrapped in thin washi paper from his pocket.
Professor Glatos saw this and let out a small exclamation.

“Where did you get it? Was it sent from the North?”
“I can’t tell you the source. “But I want to ‘wash’ this test paper.”
“Self?”
“Yes.”

Glatos took the blackened test paper, looked at it, held it up to the light, and spoke to Liv.

“It hasn’t been that long since the color changed. However, I do not recommend looking at the test paper that emits a wavelength that can be seen as a demon.”
“Are you okay. “Because I want to see it with my own eyes.”
“…”

After hesitating for a moment, he pointed to Liv with his chin to the chair he was sitting on.

“Sit down.”

And after he prepared some drugs, he put a Litweis test strip in it, heated it, and explained:

“It’s a good thing you came to see me. “Spying into other people’s images can have side effects if the wavelength of magical power is significantly different.”
“Symptoms such as delirium or seizures.”
“That’s accurate. If you had tremendous karma like the owner of this test paper, it would be a different story——.”
“…”
“If I had, I don’t think I would have gotten a B+ in my class last year.”
“… Sorry.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. “It was also the highest score among the students who took the course.”

Eventually, the dark liquid was completed.
Professor Glatos gave it to Liv, who saw it, and gave it a warning.

“When we create imagery through the Litweis test paper, we observe a limited space in the observer’s domain, but this time we did some tinkering. “You will be possessed by the body of the person around you with the most similar wavelength.”
“Are there any other precautions?”
“Basically, because karma is too strong, the realized image will be noisy and lack realism. “Once the washing is done, you will gradually forget the contents as if you woke up from a dream, so prepare a note.”
“Yes. All right.”

Liv looked at the bottle in his hand for a moment.
If you drink this, you can learn about Lewis’s and the store owner’s secrets.
If he is a demon… Liv felt like she would never be able to forgive for the rest of her life.

“Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, then.”

Liv braced himself and gulped down the entire liquid inside.
And sweet dreams, Professor Glatos—. With those words, he lost consciousness.

***

When do people lose affection for others?
When you look physiologically dirty?
Or when your hypocritical side is revealed?
It must be a similar feeling when seeing the return of a novelist who had been dormant for over half a year just to serialize a spin-off.

“Welcome! “This is the Parencia Academy canteen!”

Every day I tried to think of getting rid of Adela, who was sitting in the cafeteria eating porridge.
Even though he is a student himself, look at him soliciting customers from fellow cadets.
He must have been bored because he didn’t even respond when I called him, let alone taught him magic, so he picked up the same wands that I gave to Professor Roylen not long ago and is selling them.

“This is a very high-performance horse harness. Would you like to buy one? “My skills have improved a lot after using this!”
“Adella… You?”
“Huh!”

Is it true? An innocent freshman who buys a cane with a suspicious expression.
Adella explodes her entire magic when told to use a fireball. A magician who can improve Adella’s skills would be very difficult.

I will not deny that sales have increased.
It was a natural result to see a beauty like a shooting star bouncing around in your mouth like that.
And when it’s lecture time and the students have left and the cafeteria is empty, he catches a glimpse of me and slowly approaches me.
Whether they are innocent or weak, there is no such thing as a fox.

“I’m a teacher~. “Teach me that magic.”
“I don’t know how to write something like that.”
“No way. You know that back then. Phut! And then, sssssw! Gather together and let’s go!! “That’s what you do.”
“Even if I teach you, you won’t be able to use it anyway.”
“Teacher Vincent, who teaches the basics of elemental magic, says that all magic converges to one law? “If you learn the ultimate magic, you can use it all!”

I burst into laughter without realizing it. The ultimate Madoran, Terra Ernisten, is the only one worth mentioning.
The intention is probably to instill dreams in fresh new students.

Anyway, I was planning on kicking Adela out.
When do people lose affection for others? At least in my experience as a child, I saw only two things.
One is when dealing with a drunk person, and the other is when that person is boasting about their past that you can’t relate to.
I poured myself a glass of beer from an oak barrel. And then the boring story started.

“Speaking of latte, I couldn’t even imagine something like magic being taught by someone else.”
“When will that be?”
“Of course it was during the Great War. There was no such thing as an academy, and in the Magic Tower, if the wizards had learned basic magic, they would run to the battlefield and literally teach themselves in order to survive.”
“Wow. And you too, teacher?”

Adela’s eyes were shining brightly as she gazed at me with her knees together, as if listening to an old story.
‘Why do you enjoy listening to it? ‘Is this right?’ I thought, but I just continued talking.
There was a little alcohol involved, and the number of mercenaries and knights who participated in the war during the Great War was enormous, so as long as it didn’t go into the specifics of a warrior’s party, it would pass over without much doubt in her mind.

“Yes. Especially in my case, I didn’t learn magic. “I just made it usable with the help of my colleagues.”
“What does that mean?”

In response to Adella’s question, I took out a magic scroll nearby.
It was a piece of parchment with shock, a first-tier lightning magic, received from Kano’s workshop.

“It’s a scroll that activates magic as soon as you inject magical power into it. “My body plays a role similar to this paper.”
“Is this a method I’ve never heard of?”
“You don’t learn it at the academy.”

There is probably no place in other magic towers that teaches this.
Strictly speaking, this is not magic, but closer to witchcraft.

The vessel called a warrior went far beyond the body of a simple human.
Since what was needed in the Demon World was more than just strength, I asked Nova to use the twelve spells Terra had created herself, and engraved them all over her body like tattoos.
Although there was a limitation of only being able to use a maximum of three at the same time, it was usable. Outwardly, there is no trace left behind.

“It seems like you were good colleagues.”

Good colleague? Of course.
Although we are now scattered, we were an elite unit that no one could stop on the battlefield.
The demons pouring down filling the sky were all defeated by the overwhelming destructive power.
When I received thanks from people who were groaning in pain, I could breathe a sigh of relief while wiping my bloody sword.

“It was amazing. Necromancer of Baragall? The four worst? Those guys weren’t even worth a shot. “I can’t say we led humanity to victory, but at least we probably added a little something to it.”
“My family says it’s still very difficult in the North…”
“Well, when you say demons are weak, it’s because you easily see them. “Maybe when you go on field training and start arguing with monsters, you’ll understand what I said.”

Seeing Adela reacting so innocently that I wondered if she was a saint, I understood Professor Vincent’s feelings to some extent.
From then on, I continued to tell anecdotes from the war and small adventure stories full of romance and dreams, as if I were a war veteran giving a lecture.
Contrary to my initial purpose, I ended up just talking around and around, but my drunk head didn’t work properly.

Well, if it comes tomorrow, it will come, but if it doesn’t, it won’t come.

I emptied my glass again, immersed in old memories that came to mind after a long time.

***

The world was shrouded in mystery. My ears and eyes were black, so nothing came to me clearly.
My hands were so wet as I sat down and touched the ground, and the air was suffocating.
All that came into my distorted vision was the red cracked earth and something black visible in the sky.

— The erosion of karma has begun. It’s okay because I have unique magic, but without Eris’s healing magic, we’re doomed.
— Damn, if demonic energy builds up in your body, it means you’re close to the Demon King’s Castle. Since when did you get induced?
— From three days ago. When you run away from the evil one, you probably have a pursuer.
— Let’s decide quickly. If we run west now, we might be able to break through the siege.

There were a few very quiet mutterings that seemed to be holding one’s breath.
After a moment of silence, Liv could hear a familiar voice.

— No, we keep going like this.
– What?
— If this continues, more people will die. The Katsen basin, where the Holy Light Knights were wiped out, is already a sea of ​​blood. It’s better to move forward.
— However, if karma accumulates, you cannot use the White Magic Blade properly. I should have brought more holy water.
— There is one way to do that. I just need to embrace all of your karma.
— You, you are crazy… !?

This is Lewis’ memory. What on earth is he talking about?

— You’re really going to die like this! There are already three unique magic spells in effect!
— You can make it right now, right? Terra, you are the greatest wizard in the kingdom.
– Louis!!!

After several scuffles, silence came.
The sound of a heavy sword being dragged on the ground was heard.

— It’s going to hurt.
— When hasn’t that happened? Do it cheaply. It’s hard to even draw a line with this guy’s body, it drives me crazy every time I do it.
— Tell me when you’re ready… Let’s get started.
— I’m done, but wait a minute.

At that time, Liv noticed a figure approaching him.
And as something warm passed by the corner of his eyes, he saw the scene before him fully for the first time.

“Why are you crying? What’s going on?”
“Ugh, huh… !”
“Someone made our saintess cry again. “Quickly turn yourself in.”
“Of course it’s you, Louis. “Look at you now.”

It was a dark cave.
Dirty bandages, rotting flesh, and a huge amount of blood were scattered around, mixed with dirt.
It was hard to believe that it all came from one person.

“Lu, Louis… Sigh! Seed…”
“Oh, that’s me. Don’t worry too much because you won’t die at this level. Hey, he was definitely around the Four Heavenly Kings, so he was really strong. I was struck by a black magic spell and couldn’t see for several days. “I can’t stop crying.”

What was flowing from the eyelids was not tears but blood.
Even though he called him by the same name as the store owner, it was impossible to recognize him from the outside, covered in blood.
There was only one thing that was certain.

“But you’re not hurt, are you, Eris?”

The hand that wiped away her tears belonged to a young boy who was probably barely over the age of Jihak.