That Glow Demon Couldn't Possibly Appear in the Mortal Realm

The following day. Beneath the clear morning sun, a mana rail train rumbled into Ikerite Central Station. Topped with an ochre-red brick roof, the station served as the transit hub for the entire Hutton Kingdom. Its architecture blended classical and modern styles, with soaring vaulted ceilings, marble pillars, murals, and stained-glass windows that never failed to leave a deep impression on first-time visitors. Only after the mechanical behemoth came to a complete halt on the platform level and a dozen or so seconds passed following the station announcements did the doors of every passenger car open. Unlike ordinary travelers, the group stepping out of the luxurious first-class carriage consisted of young students carrying an air of composed, profound poise. They strode across the concourse, bypassing the bustling crowds and tourists lingering indecisively before specialty shops featuring Hutton Kingdom wares. They drew considerable attention across the platform hall; many travelers in the station cast admiring glances their way. Aside from the professor leading the delegation, the young men and women all wore tailored suit jackets. Their ties bore the academy crest of Aloran Royal Academy—a flame red paired with black checks. The double-breasted jackets featured peak lapels, omitting military-style epaulets and sleeve embellishments, while colored trims along the cuffs, hems, and pockets indicated their respective years and schools. In these students, the travelers of Ikerite saw both the vibrant vigor and confidence unique to youthful prodigies, as well as the maturity and steadiness befitting seasoned fighters. The academic visiting delegation from the Aloran Kingdom numbered just over twenty. A few third-year students among them were particularly formidable, possessing combat prowess that was formidable even by mortal realm standards. Unlike the comprehensive curriculum of Ikerite Academy, Aloran Royal Academy was an institution oriented toward actual combat in the mortal realm and Shadow Worlds, specializing in cultivating combat classes. Correspondingly, its balance of scholars and magic artificers fell short of Ikerite Academy's. In previous years, Aloran Royal Academy's visiting delegations had primarily brought promising support-oriented students to study at the School of Alchemy and the School of Magic Engineering. This year was different. They had brought along students specialized in combat, carrying an unmistakable air of coming to issue a challenge. Part of the reason lay in the bitter animosity between Juliana, Grand Commander of the Aloran Kingdom's Royal Knights, and Loren, Dean of Ikerite Academy's School of Sages. On the other hand, Aloran Royal Academy's historically weak magic engineering discipline had managed to enroll a rare genius who had earned a Gold-rank registered card maker license in the Southern Continent just as she began her second year. Even at today's Ikerite Academy, the School of Magic Engineering had no second-year student who had reached Gold rank, and even third-year Gold-rank card makers could be counted on one hand. This visit carried more than a slight touch of showing off. Overall, relations between the two academies had been quite cordial for years; it was only with recent leadership shifts that an edge of rivalry had begun to emerge. "Not since Duke Mikhail has the Hutton Kingdom seen such a stunningly brilliant card maker." "Who knows whether Duke Mikhail truly disappeared or committed treason? There were gossipy rumors before claiming that the Resurrection Church's mysterious Bishop of the Night was Duke Mikhail. People used to laugh it off as a joke, but it sounds more and more real nowadays." "Don't say such things in another country." "It's fine. I heard Ikerite Academy has a habit of showing zero mercy—they roast their own people harsher than anyone from abroad ever could." The students in the delegation chatted casually. Ascending from the platform to the main concourse of Ikerite Central Station, they were greeted by Ikerite's fresh air and warm, radiant sunlight. "So this is Ikerite?" The tall youth leading the group wore his hair trimmed neat and clean. The morning sun illuminated the crown of his head, giving the tips of his hair a bright sheen, and his eyes were as clear and brilliant as stars. "As Lady Juliana's sword, I intend to have a proper exchange with Dean Loren's finest pupil." The high-spirited youth looked immensely confident, his purpose for this trip crystal clear. He truly was strong; when he had clashed with the Saint of Decay in the past, he had suffered only a narrow defeat. Royal Knight Grand Commander Juliana's sworn nemesis was Decay Cardinal Farmer. Meanwhile, Great Cleric Loren of the Church of the Goddess of Fate was the mortal rival of Bishop of Destruction Ivanos. To this day, numerous clergy members of the Church of the Goddess of Fate had died brutal deaths at the hands of the Saintess of Destruction, yet Loren had never managed to groom a young talent capable of standing against her. Being overly indecisive, soft-hearted, and incapable of strictness, Loren was fundamentally a failure of an educator. Not everyone possessed Loren's monstrous natural gifts; with his laid-back, gentle teaching philosophy, even the finest prospects would be ruined under his tutelage. All he could do was stay sequestered in the academy, trying his luck with whatever came along. When it came to education, Juliana had already surpassed Loren by leaps and bounds, the youth reflected. "Don't worry, Junior Karen. I know where to draw the line; I won't make things difficult for Dean Loren." The youth turned back and spoke to a girl with light hair and green eyes walking behind him, who possessed an exceptionally pleasant demeanor. "If possible, Senior Adams, I would prefer that you avoid conflict altogether. I know you're thinking of Lady Juliana, but I... I just don't want to see you get hurt." This girl known as Karen was the genius magic artificer from Aloran Royal Academy who had attained Gold-rank card maker certification in her second year. Her gaze was bright and innocent, her voice soft and tender. A collective murmur of admiration rippled through the surrounding students; male or female, their hearts melted all the same. "I'm sorry, Karen..." "Junior Karen is truly too kind." "An angel has descended among us." Listening to their praises, Karen maintained her gentle smile. Internally, however, she cursed: *You dumbass, you know damn well I came to observe the [Original Slate - Wind], and you're still looking for fights.* Because Aloran Royal Academy suffered a severe shortage of magic artificers, exceptional ones were showered with praise. Though only a second-year, Karen held a position visibly higher than anyone else. She thoroughly relished the feeling of being treated like a queen. It would be no different at Ikerite Academy; with her talent, everyone would cluster around her like stars around the moon. She was the very embodiment of innocence, and no one could possibly dislike her! While the front of the procession was busy praising Karen, the smaller groups toward the rear continued their own discussions. "I've long heard that the martial artists in Ikerite Academy's School of Knights are quite formidable. When the time comes, we should challenge them to a bout with our warrior's pride on the line." "I heard that just last month, Cervini, the strongest martial artist in the School of Knights and a Gold-rank challenger, suddenly transferred to the School of Alchemy's legal studies program. Word has it she abandoned the way of the warrior altogether. She's doubling up on courses to make up credits, torturing herself with nonstop study just to become a lawyer." "No way. There's actually a martial artist who can stand hitting the books?" "If she doesn't dare accept our challenge, we'll just teach her lackeys a harsh lesson. When that happens, she'll definitely rediscover her fighting spirit!" Several martial artists from Aloran Royal Academy burned with a fighting spirit even hotter than that of Adams, the strongest third-year student at the very front. In any case, each student harbored their own agenda. Soon enough, the professor leading the delegation spotted the Ikerite Academy staff and student council members assigned to receive them in the concourse and stepped forward to confer with them. "..." A young pair of siblings within the group had remained quiet for a long while since stepping off the train. "What is it? Didn't sleep well?" The paladin older brother looked at his cleric younger sister, noticing her poor complexion. "I'm sorry. Ever since that Shadow World, I've been having frequent nightmares," the young girl murmured, closing her eyes with a slight shake of her head. Two months ago, right as the term began for their second year, they had challenged a Tier 4 Demon Realm-themed Shadow World. For two Tier 4 Silver-rank challengers, that Shadow World had been hazardous, yet not insurmountable. In the end, however, the experience had left such a profound scar that it gave the young cleric lasting psychological trauma. Facing a lethal situation after the Shadow World went berserk, they had encountered an ancient great demon that had no business appearing in a Tier 4 Shadow World. And just when they thought all hope was lost... That horrifying Glow Demon had forcefully taken them away. He had spent two full hours in their presence. Throughout those two hours in the Headmaster's Office with that Glow Demon, they had felt peak terror and mental agony every single second, sitting on pins and needles. Yet bizarrely enough, that Glow Demon had actually let them go! They couldn't begin to fathom just how exalted the headmaster of Purgatory Corridor Academy truly was; they hadn't been able to detect the slightest trace of mana fluctuations from him. Reaching such complete suppression and concealment of power only proved that the gap between him and them was unfathomably vast. They hadn't felt such terror even when facing Lady Juliana. That Glow Demon was almost certainly an entity of supreme evil on par with the Cardinals of the Resurrection Church. Just imagining being trapped in the same room with a Resurrection Church Cardinal for two hours was enough to drive any ordinary young person insane. Due to privacy protections for challengers, it was impossible to look up information on matched fellow challengers through the Southern Continent Shadow World Management Association after a run concluded. "I hope this trip to Ikerite brings my heart some peace," the cleric sister whispered. Her brave paladin brother had fared decently, but she was now too terrified to ever step foot in a Shadow World again. She remembered that there had been six challengers in total within that Shadow World known as Purgatory Corridor Academy. Yet for some reason, it had felt as though only the two of them were there the entire time, without ever encountering the others. Then came the berserk state, followed by an inexplicable clear. They had never experienced such an absurd Shadow World in their lives! They ought to rejoice at having survived by a stroke of fortune. The only lingering torment was that extraordinarily terrifying Glow Demon headmaster in the Demon Realm academy, who had left an indelible mark on their minds. Still, looking on the bright side... They would never encounter that sort of demon in reality. That Glow Demon was merely an ancient great demon projected by a Shadow World, long lost to the sands of history. And the shadow in her heart would surely erode away with time.