Crutiara: Where New Demon Lords are Born

3. Listening to a Lecture

There was a realm where demons lived in the past. Zeno is ruled by a demon lord and was once a place prone to human invasion.

Without a clear reason, humans once treated us as pests. In their eyes, we are evil. We did nothing at all.

It all came from the tales of the reborn hero fighting the demon lord. Those absurd myths became human religion and later became international beliefs.

Those myths led to a war, an unreasonable war between humans and demons. Those humans just couldn't stop back then. Every demon lord becomes a threat to them.

Humans are a complicated race. Even though they are weak unlike the beastmen, the sylphs, and the others, they are formidable creatures. A demon can have a hard time reading human actions.

That made the hierarchy of the demon realm become different. Instead of demon nobles, war generals became demon lords. The monarchy became a competition for power. Gluttony was replaced by unity.

Demon Lords are volatile except for one… well, almost one. He is an unnamed individual who took the name Satan, the main antagonist of the hero in human myths.

He and his archdemons ruled Zeno for 6000 years of war. It is impossible for him to live a day without seeing a dead demon's remains. After his reign was over, the hundred-year era of depression struck the realm.

Nevertheless, after all those years of carrying, the present generation views him as a traitor. The reason? That's what the book claims.

I believe that my historical sense won't betray me. The book had been the subject of years of controversy from scholars. I'm not a geek.

In history books, the hero is said to have caused the great depression after he sacrificed his life to defeat the demon lord. And after the hundred years of Zeno being frozen, the war has ended.

The civilization of demon rule has been established. Demon lords are now the byproduct of the seven demon universities, named after archdemons who also vanished in war.

One of them is Crutiara, based on the most famous archdemon, Humaea. The image of purity and cleansing resides within her. She still has fan clubs today.

And that was the history of the world after the Great Depression. Too shameful. People might think that the demons of that time did not know how to write because so many records are missing.

Like the creation of religion, demon history is a convincing tale passed down from generation to generation. This belief will soon result in a war. These lies should stop.

I knew everything. I was once there.

In that same Crutiara, I'm standing in the middle of the spotlight. Everyone is looking at me like an unknown being from another world. Miss Kobayashi looks at me with sharp brows.

In a flurry, I stuttered, scratching my head. "I'm Ritake of the Hanashiba lineage. I'm looking forward to all of you in becoming my colleagues. I'll leave myself in your care. Thank you."

With crossed arms, Miss Kobayashi taps her feet loudly. "Do you call that an introduction?"

"Y… Yes?" I asked with doubt. Was my introduction wrong in the first place? I just said how I introduce myself to other guests in our family.

"You introduced yourself in such a demanding tone. And you dare doubt it? Why are you calling your classmates colleagues? Are you heading to work? Where is your complete background. What does your family do? Why did you enter Crutiara? Aren't there any other things to consider?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I will repeat my…"

"Sit down."

What?

She points at a blank chair in the back, between Nazuno and the man near the window. "I said sit down. Don't make me repeat.”

"Is that my permanent chair, ma'am?"

"Since you're a newbie here, I'll forgive you just once. I don't like repeated questions. I believe that should be the last time I say this to the class."

"Noted, ma'am." She's scary!

I walked with a bent spine toward my assigned seat. I didn't expect my seat to be near Nazuno. She'll have a hard time avoiding me.

Immediately after entering the classroom, I sensed someone glaring at me. It is a sensation that bugs a person and is an indication of pressure.

She had already caught my attention, but I only crossed her eyes once I passed her seat in the third row. She has pink hair and blue eyes. Her body is by a long shot better than Nazuno's.

She's still staring at me, directly, in the eye. I quickly averted my eyes once I saw her. This is not because I wanted to avoid her sight, but because she's pretty as a star. What I did was a man's natural response.

I only escaped that strange feeling after sitting down. Finally, I can breathe. My exhalations were so loud that I disturbed those around me. I'm still sweating because of what happened.

“Well then, let’s continue the lecture. Where did we stop, Miss Hashimoto?” Miss Kobayashi asked.

The girl in front of Nazuno stands up. She has short ash hair and brown eyes. I can feel her nervousness as she stands while shaking.

“W… We’re in…” Hashimoto scans her notes. “… in the discusion of… combustion fields…”

“Everyone, that’s an example of a student paying attention to class.”

I am unable to understand a word of what is being said. A short time after that, the man near the window leaned towards me while sitting.

He has straight black hair in front, while orange in the back. He has deep ocean eyes.

"Hey! You're so cool back there!"

"I… I'm not! It's cringe. I wanna die."

"You know, I've been longing for a seatmate this whole time. It took a week before that chair had someone to sit on."

"A week!?" But it's my first day today! Did I sleep for a week? But the date is today!

"Classes started last week. Our adviser didn't repeat her instructions with the earlier absentees except you. You might be a special case. Has anyone in your family passed away? Or is it a case like that?"

"It is not. Yet I believe I cannot explain the reason to you." After all, the class date assigned to me is today. It is what Sensei wrote in his letter.

"I apologize for being so abrupt. It seems I'm still a stranger to you. Since it's your first day, let me introduce myself. I'm Majiro Matsudara. You can call me Majiro."

"You can call me Ritake."

"It is a pleasure meeting you Ritake. But maybe we should pay attention to the class. Miss Kobayashi won't repeat her classes again. She is strict in teaching."

"Good idea."

I'm not here to study, but I guess listening to a lecture is just fine.

The class continues, and even though I’m just starting out, the lecture automatically sinks into my mind. She emphasizes the things we should pay attention to.

She is a talented instructor. Everyone’s focus was solely on her. It’s like she’s creating music with her words, preventing boredom. She even uses appropriate analogies.

She’s such a talented educator that I don't wonder why she is so strict with her students. If I were asked to explain that topic, I would face difficulty delivering those.

The lecture ended after one and a half hours of complete learning. It feels like I've been reborn.

As the bell rings, Miss Kobayashi fixes her things and announces. “Don’t forget, we'll have a practical activity at our next meeting. Nazuno and Ritake, come to my office after school. The rest will be dismissed.”

Everyone stands and greets synchronously except me. “Thank you for everything, Miss Hirari!”

Eh? Why did she want to call us in her office? This is driving me nuts. I don’t know what to make of these happenings. And they call her Miss Hirari!?

And after her class, I’ve been hearing rumblings from the other side of the room’s closed doors. After Miss Hirari opened the door, I saw a crowd gathering.

The door is guarded by four huge men in suits. Most people have banners raised. Some of them write ‘We Love You <3 Tsuki.’

Cringe. I curled my lips.

The woman standing is the one who has been staring at me the whole time. She walks out the door while the guards protect her from the stampede.

After they left, the hallway was cleared. Peaceful. Only one person in this room seems chaotic... well, two? Nazuno included.

The class starts dismissing themselves immediately after that. Majiro's face had already taken my point of view just before I stood up. He has a wide grin that stretches both side of his face.

“Hey, Ritake! Wanna roam?”

“What made you think of that?”

As a newcomer, it'd be wise to familiarize yourself with places in exchange for time. Why don’t you add a companion to make things easier?”

“Just make sure you don’t have hidden intentions.”

“I only have one intention and it’s obvious. I wanted to be friends with you.”

Friends. It's an old way to justify betrayal. Maybe that’s what Nazuno meant when she warned me.

Speaking of Nazuno, she's been in her seat before. When I look at it again, she silently vanished.