<Ding! New quest [Shadows] generated.>
While walking behind the crowd, I heard the sound of the system.
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Quest – [Shadows]
Description: You have discovered dogs of demons lurking in your territory; there is no way you can ignore those worms.
Requirements: Discover the plans of Demon followers.
Rewards: Strength stat +0.1
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Looking at the panel, it was obvious that this quest was going to be chain one. First, it said to discover the plans, which meant next time, it was going to want me to disturb those plans.
In any case, I didn't care about any of those things and just made my way while following the source of the dark mana releasing.
As the one-sided duel concluded, the crowd started to disperse, whispering among themselves about the intense battle they had witnessed. But amidst the fading chatter, one figure stood out—the instructor who had been watching the duel with a sinister smile.
After all, the [All-Seeing Eye] was one of the most convenient tools for such cases where a lot of mana sources were present. If one's rank was not that high, just by sensing mana, it was very hard to pinpoint every different type.
'I am pretty sure he suggested that boy become a demon contractor.' I thought. After all, it was the perfect opportunity to do such a thing.
With a wicked grin, the instructor turned and began to walk away from the dueling grounds, probably thinking he should stay put for a while. Though he didn't know someone was following him.
I did not know about his motivations or his methods, but I could no longer see his dark mana, which meant simply one thing.
'There is an artifact that hides his mana from outside.' Of course, that was also pretty normal, considering he was able to infiltrate the ranks of the academy, but that meant if I could find the artifact, I could also provide more information to Princess or the student council president, making them less effective.
There was just no way that the amount of dark mana in the academy was being caused by simply one person. Thus it was safe to assume that there were several individuals inside.
In any case, just like that, he led me deeper into the academy, away from prying eyes. The lands of the academy were wide, which meant several big facilities were inside, and the way he was heading was a place where personalized laboratories were located.
'Hmm…. This might become troublesome.'
If the place he was heading was personal laboratories, that meant the corruption was much bigger than I was expecting since not all the lecturers and the professors inside the academy had their own laboratories. The person must have been a high ranking.
There were also a lot of formations to protect all the researches that were being made, which limited my movements as well.
'I need to cut him off, but that is too dangerous.'
I judged. His strength was higher than mine, but if I could sneak attack, I could overpower him while injuring him first. But at the same time, it was way too risky.
'All Seeing Eye.'
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Name – Kieron Dotson
Age – 35
Class – Wicked
Mage Rank - 7-star
Knight Rank – 4-star
Attributes – Dark, Water
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Since he was a 7-star mage.
'No, that is too reckless. I am not even confident that I can win even while using my sword at the same time, my magic.' I thought.
No matter how diverse I was and how much of resources I had under my disposal, the rank difference was way too much.
Peak 4-star against 7-star….
I could win if I used my brain correctly, but it would take too long, and I would also need to reveal my strength.
But to prove me wrong, he stopped moving as he raised his hand, waiting.
'Is he waiting for someone? Then, that means he is not heading to laboratories.'
Just as I was thinking about that, I suddenly sensed a bunch of mana signatures coming to this place.
'4-star rank mana?' With my trait [Child of Mana], it was a piece of cake to sense the mana of newcomers.
'Wait, something seems familiar.' Immediately hiding my traces once again, I looked at the two newcomers.
One girl I just had seen, and one boy that I hadn't seen in this world but I had seen in the game.
"You are late."
The instructor Kieron Dotson said with a serious face.
"Shaking off that Jake was hard…. That fool was clinging too hard." The girl replied with an annoyed tone.
Her pink hair and disgusting aura were enough to identify her.
'Lily, huh?'
It was the girl from before who humiliated the boy, Alex while clinging to his best friend.
Kieron glanced at the girl, a glint of annoyance in his eyes. "You should have been more careful in shaking off Jake. We can't afford any mistakes in our mission."
The girl, Lily, crossed her arms with a smug expression. "Oh, relax. We managed to lose him, didn't we? Besides, it's not like he can use his brain and understand something was wrong anyway."
"So, how was his condition?" The instructor asked, shaking his annoyance off.I think you should take a look at
"I am pretty sure Alex will accept your offer. The drugs I gave him should also have started showing their effects." Lily answered while putting a smile on her face. "After all, they were prepared by 'him.' There is no way they won't work."
"Good. But, a notice came from the headquarters. From the looks of it, it seems the academy sensed something was amiss, so they are increasing the security." Kieron said, looking around with annoyance.
"Then?" Lily asked, not understanding.
"But, it is too late to set back now. After all those preparations, we can't afford it. Thus we need to find more targets now."
"What? Are you crazy? How can we find another bunch in this short amount of time?"
"This time, we won't take the long route. Here." Saying that Kieron brought a small box from his ring.
"What is this?"
"Demon Essence."
"What?! Demon Essence."
"Yes."
The moment I heard the name, a particular piece of information came into my head.
'Demon Essence.' The type of materials that demons used to convert humans and other races into demon followers, giving them access to demonic dark mana. There are also several other ways to do that, but this one was the cheapest and most common one.
But it had its own restrictions, of course. Firstly, the transformation revealed too much mana and left too many traces, which meant it was very easy to locate. And secondly, the strength of the user could not be that strong, meaning only weaker individuals could use it.
However, bringing Demon Essence meant one thing.
'They must have someone to cover their traces.'
"Since they want us to fasten our plans, we need to lure as many as people," Kieron said. "It doesn't-"
Just as he was about to continue further, a voice cut him down. "Choose commoners." It was the third person here who didn't talk much from the start alone.
"Hey, I know we made a deal, but we can't afford to do that now."
"I said choose commoners. Nothing else is acceptable." He was a handsome man with very good looks.
Kieron looked at the handsome man with a mix of annoyance and hesitation. "You do realize that using commoners will attract more attention, right? We won't be able to cover our tracks as easily."
The man's eyes narrowed, and a sinister smile played on his lips. "That's exactly what I want. Let them come. The more chaos we create, the easier it will be to execute our true plan."
Lily's expression shifted from smugness to confusion. "True plan? What are you talking about?"
The man turned his gaze towards her, his silver eyes gleaming with malice. "You don't need to know the details. Just do as I say."
"Tch!" Lily clicked her tongue but, in the end, wimped under his gaze.
Kieron hesitated for a moment, but then he nodded in agreement. "Fine. We'll use commoners, but you better be prepared to handle the consequences."
The man chuckled darkly. "Oh, I'm always prepared. The chaos will serve our purposes well."
I knew who this was. After all, he was a character I knew from the game. A person that appeared as a villain for Arthur to defeat and acquire a heroine.
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Name – Vincent Blackwood
Age – 18
Class – Shadow Lancer
Mage Rank – 5-star
Knight Rank – 5-star
Attributes – Shadow
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Looking at the handsome man with my [All Seeing Eye], I saw his attributes.
'As expected from a senior with a good background, look at his stats.'
Vincent Blackwood.
A villain who was an elitist that discriminated against commoners and wanted to rule others. He was a blood supremacist, and he was an annoying character in the game.
Since he was someone with a very strong background as well as good individual strength, thanks to him being a second-year, it was very hard to deal with him.
'But to think that he would even make a deal with demon followers just to butcher some commoners. What a pathetic dog. Though this makes everything more and more complicated.'
The more I stood there, the more variables entered the equation.
As the conversation came to an end, the trio dispersed in different directions, each with their own dark agenda. Vincent Blackwood disappeared into the shadows, leaving no trace behind.
And Kieron also headed to the laboratory district, leaving Lily alone.
Alone for her to be a prey for me…..
------------------A/N-----------------
I am pretty sick right now, this morning my fever was 39 degrees...
Anyway, hope you liked the chapter, another is on the way. Now, it is time for Callius to smash this girl...
You can check my discord if you want. You will be able to see the illustrations here and engage in a conversation with me if I am available.
https://discord.gg/XJEgBRM3C????????????????????????????????.????????????
