The sun rises.
In the distance, the sun was beginning to rise.
Between dawn and morning, perhaps the earliest to greet the day in the Empire’s capital were the newspaper delivery workers.
Carrying armfuls of printed sheets, they shouted while handing them out to the early commuters heading off to work.
“Extra! Extra!!”
“News from the Magic Tower!”
Maybe it was because of their ruckus. Or maybe the keywords they shouted had piqued people’s curiosity.
“Extra editions?”
“Did something happen?”
People began taking the prints one by one.
High-quality paper enchanted with simple magic. It recognized human eyes and updated the text accordingly.
It was paper crafted by the Magic Tower.
[(Exclusive) Special Task Force’s false and coercive investigations exposed… Mass release of wrongfully imprisoned]
[Magic Tower: “Research from ten years ago was flawed”. Mirage Oasis is not a drug… Lead researcher identified as Heinel Shifter]
[“Unethical research exploitation, guild extortion… further revelations emerge. Task Force Commander remains “silent”]
[Secrets of the Koskov family revealed after a decade… Whistleblower murder plot?! Shocking truth…]
They say truth is the daughter of time.
After ten years, truths that had been buried suddenly surfaced before the public, and people were shocked.
“…What?”
In the midst of the crowd, someone’s muttered words rang unusually clear.
People’s eyes widened, forgetting even to blink.
While trying to deny it, “This can’t be true”, they kept scanning the articles, raising their voices as if to confirm what they saw.
“…Ten years ago, isn’t that the thing? The one with the notorious criminal designation?”
“You mean that announcement was false?!”
It was a time of day when everyone should have been hurrying along their own way.
But the usual early morning silence shattered, as if it had never existed.
The streets filled with the murmurs of the crowd.
“Hey, paperboy! Is this for real?”
“If it is, that’s insane!”
To their questions, a girl in overalls delivering papers shouted loudly:
“Who knows, but it looks like it is! Huge news!”
Attracted by her confident tone, the murmurings grew louder still.
“Wait. So what about all the people who got arrested back then?”
“Dear, do you remember Mr. George who used to live next door? Then he must’ve been…”
Even just those connected to the publicly announced case back then were a considerable number.
Innocent people… had been taken away.
Because so many people were connected to the incident, the commotion spread rapidly.
“…….”
Watching the chaos unfold, the paperboy…no, the papergirl grinned and pulled down her cap.
Her peach-colored hair swayed as she continued shouting.
“…Extra! Extra!! Magic Tower Special Edition–!!”
***
At the same time…
Inside the Headmaster’s Office at Tane University.
“Headmaster, mail has arrived via express delivery.”
“Ah, from Accounting? Just leave it there… Hmm?”
“We demand an end to the unfair treatment of the scholarship student.”
“Requesting correction of unjust discrimination.”
Two such letters had finally reached the Headmaster’s desk.
“Hmm…?”
Unfair treatment, unjust discrimination… The ominous combination of words prompted the Headmaster to open the letters.
“…What is the meaning of this? From Accounting?”
“Upon investigation, it seems the head professor of the Magic Department was responsible and complicit.”
Flipping the letters to check the senders, the Headmaster saw two familiar noble names:
[Sender: Marquis Damir]
[Sender: Count Rohton]
“The Magic Tower is also stepping in with full support. They’re all demanding a re-examination of the Koskov family case and an explanation for the retaliatory discrimination happening at Tane.”
“I see. Even setting aside the fact we can’t ignore this, their swift action is… impressive. Now, who is the current head of the Department of Magic… Hmm. I can’t recall.”
“Professor Grayton.”
“Ah, that guy.”
The Headmaster recalled Grayton from his student days. He was a talented, yet notably greedy young man.
“But still… Damir and Rohton. Those heavyweights have made a move… and for just one student, at that.”
Discrimination based on a student’s background—
It wasn’t a new story. In fact, it had happened countless times before. The difference was that this time, it was being brought into the light.
“…And now the Magic Tower too… Something strange is going on.”
“That’s not all, Headmaster. The Einzell Press has also launched a major report.”
“…Hmm. That means some sort of behind-the-scenes agreement was made… But as far as I know, isn’t the only one left in the Koskov family a young girl?”
“Yes. A 17-year-old girl named Sasha Koskov.”
The Headmaster stroked his chin.
In truth, revealing the truth itself wasn’t that difficult.
But from his long years of insight… he could tell this incident wasn’t like the usual distortions of truth seen everywhere.
This time, it was a deliberate release….one that revealed the truth at precisely the right moment.
They likely have countermeasures ready for any backlash. It no longer felt like a spontaneous phenomenon. It had the distinct feel of someone’s strategy at work.
The situation had been engineered… which meant someone out there had either done this many times before or had watched it happen many times.
In other words, there was someone pulling the strings.
The Headmaster, now convinced of this, grinned.
“This is getting interesting, Accounting Officer.”
“Yes.”
“Notify the audit team. I want every student, faculty member, and professor involved in the ostracizing of Sasha Koskov rounded up. They’ll be disciplined.”
At the cold, sharp command, the officer swallowed hard and responded.
“…I’ll take immediate action.”
***
Dawn was breaking.
The long darkness had ended, and the night that held yesterday captive was coming to an end.
Yet Niel was still struggling.
Had they fought properly, it could’ve been a real hassle.
“You think… this changes anything…?”
“Oh, it changes plenty. While you’re writhing around here, out there in the world…you’ve already become a condemned traitor.”
“Bull… shit…!”
Annoyed beyond words, I grabbed Niel’s head tightly.
[Let’s crush it. Let’s burst it open!!]
[Punish the guilty. Divine punishment for sin! Deliver judgment now!]
Even without the screams of the demon parasite writhing inside me, just remembering the past thirty days made my blood boil. I wanted nothing more than to slam her into the floor right then and there.
“Commander of the Special Task Force. I’ve been holding back this whole time, you know.”
“Go ahead. Do whatever you want, you worm.”
“I want to kill you right now. I’ve never felt purer bloodlust in my life.”
“Kh, heh… A demon worshipper talking about killing… how laughable…”
Her accusations, mockery, and stubborn sneers were soaked in arrogance. You could hear it in her tone.
I smiled.
“You’re trying to buy time, aren’t you, Niel?”
“…What?”
“Are you thinking the Special Task Force will be here any minute?”
I held up my right hand…the blade was still greedily drinking blood.
“So what? You imagining your subordinates charging in here, saving you, and me barely escaping with my life?”
“…It doesn’t change anything, I said. Adel Bliss…whether I live or die, the fact that you’ve demonized remains!”
“Oh yeah?”
“You’re already as good as dead!! The Task Force still stands!!”
Niel still managed to shout defiantly while panting.
Boasting unbelievable vitality in a human body, all because her mana core was the only thing intact. It was disgusting…like watching a struggling insect.
“There is a witness! Your teacher, Professor Quinoron, is here with me!”
“That’s right.”
“But, who knows? If you let me focus on stopping the bleeding and stabilizing my circulation now, I might…just might be lenient!”
“Haha.”
What an amusing woman.
Even when cornered to the very end, even with her life on the line, she still tries to make threats.
As if the other person had to go along with her proposal.
“Hey, Commander of the Special Task Force.”
“Hoho, thinking of accepting my offer?”
She believes without a shred of doubt that she’s different.
She truly thinks she’s special, that she’s morally superior, and that anyone who resists her must be in the wrong.
She honestly believes that.
I opened my mouth.
“You really hated Sasha’s father that much? Did he damage your pride or something?”
“…He was just a pawn of a demon worshipper!”
“Did he try to dig into your shady dealings? Did he see you release a captured cultist? Or maybe he caught you using the drugs you got from them? Did someone start to suspect that the reason you always wear full armor is tied to that? Or did he catch you staging an ‘accident’ to kill a promising agent?”
“…You bastard.”
Niel gritted her teeth and glared at me.
“So you planted a demon parasite in someone you didn’t like…just to feed them to the worms?”
“……”
Suddenly, her face turned pale.
She must have realized….if I knew this much, I might have gotten my hands on some actual evidence.
And then, it happened.
In the distance, the sound of multiple people running grew closer.
– Find the Commander!
– Move in pairs! There’s a demon worshipper nearby!
Voices of the Special Task Force members.
At that, Niel suddenly wore a triumphant expression, as if she’d never been flustered.
“…I’ll give you credit for digging this up. But now what? Looks like you’re about to die too.”
“Is that so?”
“If you don’t want to die, release me and accept your fate. Adel Bliss!!”
At that, I couldn’t hold back a small laugh.
“You know what? People like you… when they’re the ones getting hurt, their tone changes real quick.”
I pinched Niel’s nose tight.
Then, as soon as her mouth opened, I poured in the powder I’d prepared.
“Mmgh…Pffft!!! Wh-what is this?!”
“What do you think it is?”
“Gkh?! Kuhhghk…!”
If Niel had been able to see a status window, she probably would’ve seen a message pop up in her vision:
You have ingested the high-risk substance “Mirage Oasis”
At the same time, I began drawing a magic circle on the ground using my wings.
I asked Niel, who was enduring the pain:
“Do you know what this is?”
“……”
“It’s a magic circle of curses. You know how curse magic works differently from regular magic, right? I’ve combined the two a bit…”
“My skill’s not really high enough to lift curses… but I can transfer them. That means I can make someone else the sacrifice instead.”
“Ghk, ughgh…?”
“So, once I finish this… the parasite inside me will move over to you.”
“……──!!!”
I stepped in close, making sure she could hear the grotesque voices echoing inside me.
[Sin!!! Sin!!]
[Kill! Kill! Kill!!]
“H-Hyaaaagh?!”
I held her wildly thrashing head in place. I brought my face up close to the eyes of the commander, now rolling back to the whites.
“What are you so scared of? This is exactly what you did to Sasha’s father. And since your heart’s already ruined… it’s a perfect fit, isn’t it?”
“N-No, no, d-don’t do it!!!”
“Now then… I’m almost done.”
After finishing the magic circle, I stomped down on it.
It created a shockwave. It was my trigger signal to activate it.
“…Ta-da! It’s done, Niel. Haha!”
Standing atop the now-glowing light, I couldn’t help but laugh for some reason.
Crackkkkk—!
“──!!!”
Ding—
[Adel Bliss (Demon of Justice and Execution)] → [Adel Bliss]
My body began returning to its original form.
***
“There! In the back alley!”
“Commander Niel!!”
The Special Task Force finally located the scene only to witness their own commander, now fully demonized.
“Wh-What is that?!”
“The Commander…? No. That’s a demon! Everyone, draw your weapons!!”
They spotted the boy collapsed on the ground and a girl supporting him. With weapons drawn, they stood their ground.
What followed was a fierce battle.
With a few casualties, they managed to defeat the demon.
“…She was a demon worshipper from the beginning.”
“Snff… h-huff…”
“She cornered us in that alley… We almost died…”
There had been such testimonies, and riding on the momentum of the incident that had just erupted, news that the Commander of the Special Task Force was a demon worshipper quickly spread throughout the Empire.
And it wasn’t just about the previous victims.
There was the attempted murder of two students, the murder of a maid from the Tane household, and the disappearance of a professor.
Because the perpetrator behind these shocking incidents turned out to be the very commander of the knights, the Special Task Force faced a temporary disbandment.
However, that’s a story that belongs a bit further in the future.
“…….”
As I thought about what was to come, I lifted the unconscious Sasha onto my back.
How should I put it? It hurts.
I thought the wound in my chest had healed, but apparently, it hadn’t completely closed.
Before I knew it, morning had come.
Bathed in the temperature and sky color that now fully reflected the spirit of morning, I stared blankly at the street.
“It’s over?”
“…It seems that way.”
“Looks like it went well.”
“Thanks to you…”
I looked at the person who spoke to me.
The one who emerged from the darkness was a familiar face.
“Heinel Shifter.”
“…Yeah. From now on, according to the contract, you’re officially considered dead. You understand that, right?”
I simply shrugged my shoulders in response.
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