Editor : Amethyst00



“Our mission is to investigate the abnormal incidents in the Fairy Forest. Specifically, to look into why the undead are appearing.”

At Rauta’s words, Lunia raised her hand.

“I heard that Death Knights have even appeared in the Fairy Forest recently. Rauta-sunbae, have you ever fought a Death Knight before?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must have prepared countermeasures against a Death Knight as well.”

“Do we really need to prepare countermeasures against a Death Knight?”

“What? What do you mean…?”

At Rauta’s reply, Lunia’s expression faltered in surprise.

“If a Death Knight really did appear, of course we’d need to prepare for it. But—”

Rauta glanced briefly at Leo.

“There’s only one person who claims to have seen a Death Knight.”

“Are you saying Leo lied?”

“I doubt he lied. But he probably mistook it for another type of undead. Skeleton Knights can look similar to Death Knights, after all.”

“Even so, I think it would be proper to have countermeasures ready for an emergency. It’s not exactly difficult to come up with strategies against a Death Knight, is it?”

“The proud representative of Seiren knows one thing but not two.”

Rauta let out a small chuckle.

“A high-ranking undead like a Death Knight can’t stay summoned unless it’s constantly supplied with mana from a necromancer. Which means, wherever a Death Knight exists, a demon member must be nearby. But this place is the capital of El-Salvekia, Velkia.”

“…”

“As a student of Seiren, you should know this. Around Velkia, there’s a large-scale Star Sorcery spell deployed. A magic created by our great Ancestor, Lady Luna. Demons can never approach. And even if they tried, their location would be exposed instantly.”

Rauta spoke with absolute certainty, as if it were impossible for a Death Knight to be present.

As Lunia hesitated at those words, Leo spoke.

“There’s no law that says necromancers must only be demons.”

“What?”

“Other beings can also use the power of curses.”

Hearing Leo, Rauta shot back.

“Even more absurd. Do you think a proud elf would do such a thing?”

Rauta turned away irritably.

“Let’s stop wasting time and move out.”

Watching Rauta walk ahead, Carl muttered quietly.

“Doesn’t it feel like his attitude completely changed from earlier?”

“It just means he doesn’t have anyone left to watch his behavior around.”

At Leo’s reply, Carl clicked his tongue.

“I don’t like that type of guy.”

Time passed.

Khehehek! Kyahahahaha!

A group of goblins appeared.

“Let’s see what Lumene can do.”

Rauta smirked and jerked his chin toward the goblins.

“Why don’t the two of you handle them?”

As Leo started to step forward, Carl stopped him.

“Leo. Do you really need to get involved with something as petty as goblins?”

With a grin, Carl pulled out his magic staff.

“Leave small fry like them to me.”

‘Carl in combat… come to think of it, aside from the start of the semester, I’ve hardly ever seen him fight.’

From the beginning, Carl had aimed to specialize in support.

Because of that, even during combat classes, he rarely took the frontlines. Instead, he often supported other students.

On top of that, his studies had focused more on supportive and enchantment magic rather than offensive spells.

“Goblins are a piece of cake.”

Carl playfully spun his short staff around his fingers—only to slip and drop it.

“Ugh!?”

Scrambling to pick it up, Carl earned a dumbfounded look from Lunia.

“Why is he so clumsy?”

Picking up his staff, Carl grinned slyly at the goblins encircling them.

“Alright then, time to show off my creations.”

Carl opened a subspace.

From it, weapons spilled out in a cascade.

Seeing that, Eiran’s eyes went wide.

“Weapons…?”

“Well, his specialty is alchemy-based magic.”

While Leo tilted his head in curiosity, Carl channeled mana.

Rauta snorted.

“What shabby mana.”

It was true—Carl’s mana barely made the cut for Lumene’s standards.

Carl was a talented magician, but in a school where only the very best gathered, his power always looked lacking.

‘But still… Carl never gave up.’

Knowing his own limits, he hadn’t resigned himself.

Instead, he chose to push in another direction.

Wuuum—!

The weapons resonated with Carl’s mana and floated into the air.

Leo’s eyes widened slightly.

“What? Just simple telekinesis?”

Lunia, who had been watching with mild interest, now looked disappointed.

Telekinetically controlling weapons was a common, mundane attack method.

“No, that’s not telekinesis.”

“What?”

Carl’s weapons began to radiate mana, revealing various elemental attributes.

Eiran gasped.

“What’s happening?”

“Enchantments.”

“Enchantments?”

“Yeah.”

Leo had instantly recognized the spell Carl was using.

‘He engraved telekinesis spell formulas onto the weapons themselves. And those formulas are reacting to the enchantment magic.’

Enchantment magic was something any magician could use—it was a basic spell.

And the idea of inscribing telekinesis formulas onto weapons was simple too.

But implementing enchantment magic through such a complex structure was difficult, even for seasoned magicians.

‘Were those weapons forged with alchemy? Impressive.’

“Go!”

At Carl’s command, the weapons flew toward the goblins.

Enchanted with colorful elemental powers, the weapons streaked across the air.

Krrrk?

Kyaaaak!

The goblins shrieked and scattered.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

But the weapons, bound to Carl’s will, moved in complex, precise arcs.

They cut down the goblins in an instant before returning to Carl.

After storing them back in the subspace, Carl struck a proud pose.

“Heh. How was my secret trump card?”

“Carl-nim! You were amazing!”

Eiran shouted in excitement.

Even Leo was impressed.

“Why didn’t you present this during midterms as your unique magic?”

“It’s just enchantment spells and alchemy-forged weapons. Hardly something I’d call a unique magic.”

“I’d say even approaching magic from that angle is enough to qualify as a unique magic.”

“Really? Honestly, I just came up with it while desperately trying to create something useful.”

Carl was a mage specializing in enchantments—imbuing objects with power.

But just being an enchanter wasn’t enough to rise as a great magician.

‘Yet since the start, Carl focused relentlessly on enchantment, honing his strength, and finally perfected something like this.’

“If you show this to Professor Ren, he’ll shower you with praise.”

“Whoa, really? Then maybe this will help me survive till next semester?”

Carl brightened instantly at Leo’s words.

Whatever others said, Leo’s guarantee carried weight.

Watching Carl’s enthusiasm, Leo let out a small smile.

Both Lunia and Rauta also looked at Carl in surprise.

“Hmph. In the end, it’s still just enchantment magic.”

Rauta snorted dismissively, but Lunia thought differently.

‘If by our school’s standards he’d be a lower-class level, yet he thought up such magic…….’

Her expression turned complicated as she looked at Carl.

“Alright, let’s move again.”

Several more monster encounters followed.

But no undead appeared.

“No undead, yet you talk about Death Knights? Ridiculous.”

Rauta’s mocking voice echoed.

But Leo’s face had turned grim.

Their group had now arrived at the entrance to the former Fairy Land.

The protective spell cast by the previous Fairy King still held strong, and on the surface, nothing seemed different from a few days ago.

But…

‘The ground is cursed.’

It was a subtle curse only someone like Leo, who had lived through the Age of Calamity, could recognize.

‘The Curse of the Dead.’

Among the many curses used by the demon race, this one was unique.

Because only one person could cast it.

The Supreme Commander of Tartaros’s legions who survive the Age of Calamity—

The Lich King, Hell Kaiser.

Erebos’s most loyal servant, and the most terrifying among demons.

‘The true general who commands Tartaros.’

‘He wouldn’t have moved himself.’

If Hell Kaiser personally acted, it would be no ordinary matter.

‘According to records after the Age of Calamity, he never once moved in person. But at the very least, one of his subordinates under direct orders must be here.’

Leo stared grimly at the entrance of Fairy Land.

‘Beyond this… lies something Sylord wishes to protect.’

While Leo pondered, Lunia spoke to Rauta.

“Rauta-sunbae. Since there are no signs of undead, should we return for now?”

“No. We’ll explore the surroundings a bit longer.”

“Understood.”

“From here, split up and search the area.”

Lunia hesitated.

“Just us?”

“Of course. Do you expect me to babysit you?”

Rauta scowled irritably.

At that sight, Lunia was flustered, and Rauta, sneering, investigated the surroundings with a serious face.

“Wait—wasn’t he supposed to be leading us? What the heck is he doing?”

“Looks more like… he’s searching for something.”

Carl muttered in annoyance, while Eiran looked puzzled.

“Forget him. Let’s ignore that stuck-up jerk and search on our own.”

As Lunia stuck out her tongue at Rauta and led the group, she stopped when she noticed Leo.

Leo was staring intently at Rauta, who seemed to be searching for something with unusual focus.

Seeing Leo’s narrowed eyes, Lunia realized instinctively:

‘He knows something.’

bl

That evening.

After returning from their exploration, the Lumene and Seiren students found something odd.

“Chelsea, your group didn’t find any undead either?”

“Yeah. Not just us—none of the groups found any undead.”

“…Is that so?”

The appearance of undead had already been confirmed by the El-Salvekia Council.

That was why they had formally requested Lumene and Seiren to investigate.

‘And yet, the undead vanished within just a day?’

If the undead had simply dissipated, it wouldn’t be strange.

After all, without mana supply, their active duration was limited.

But within the Fairy Forest’s core, the “Curse of the Dead” was spread—a curse that endlessly generated undead.

‘And yet the undead disappeared. Almost as if a necromancer was controlling them.’

“Teacher Herdium.”

At that moment, Rauta addressed Herdium, who had been receiving reports from the Seiren students.

“What is it, Rauta?”

“Even if the undead aren’t present, the anomaly is real. The Fairy Forest is the sanctuary of the elves. Such ominous presences must be eradicated swiftly. First-years might find it dangerous, but the second-years are fully capable of exploring the forest at night. Please grant us permission to search during the night.”

Some second-years immediately grumbled in irritation.

“Ugh, there he goes kissing up again.”

“What a smug bastard.”

Since all the second-years except Rauta were in lower or intermediate classes, their view of him was far from favorable.

“Rauta, I understand your point. But even for second-years, night explorations are dangerous. Night is when the undead’s presence grows strongest. Therefore, I cannot permit it.”

“But Teacher!”

“Rauta. Excessive zeal will only cause problems.”

At Herdium’s firm refusal, Rauta grit his teeth and withdrew.

Watching him, Leo muttered inwardly:

‘You’re looking more suspicious by the moment.’