Washburn Mountains. Devil's Castle.
"…Failed, you say?"
On a throne of countless skeletons stacked into a gruesome masterpiece was a beautiful-looking man with long hair. His back was hunched as he rested his chin on his palm.
(The situation is… unexpected.)
In front of him was a living lump of flesh. It had no facial features or body shape, and its speech was clearly slurred.
(Operation opening… successful. Hard dile successfully entered the mouth… of the duke monster. The duke monster was under control. The duke monster relentlessly attacked other students, not Lorain. The duke monster… was destroyed by that student.)
(Very weird.)
Answered a zombie butler standing at the side of the throne.
(If everything went according to plan, then the duke monster would be following the pitch black trail that had been placed into the Ancient Undead we encountered in the Forest of Screams. So if he was after someone else, and not Lorain, then…)
"Oh my God."
Magnus, who came to a similar conclusion after a moment of silence, had a serious expression on his face.
"Who was the person you said was followed by the monster duke?"
(Simon Polentia. SA1 brought by the Death Witch. Summoning major. First place in BDMAT three.)
"How strange~"
Magnus licked his lips as his prey's stomach expanded.
"So he's related to the Death Witch too. I wonder why the monster duke is after him…"
(As you suggest, it is possible that the Commander of the Seventh Legion was Simon Polentia, not Lorain Archbold.)
Answer the zombie.
(However, he was not present when Talahze was murdered.)
"That's what worries me too. But we're talking about that cunning Witch here. We have to consider every possibility."
Magnus closed his eyes for a moment in thought, then continued,
"For now, keep Lorain at the top of our priority list. But at the same time, start investigating Simon Polentia as well. Look as deeply as you can into anything, no matter how small."
Just as the butler and Alahze bowed and were about to leave…
"Oh, by the way, is that bastard obedient yet? The Ancient Undead from the Seventh Legion that we captured earlier."
The zombie butler shook his head.
(Still the same. He doesn't open his mouth no matter what we do.)
"Hmm, how loyal to a disbanded legion. That's not like the undead."
Magnus motioned for them to leave with a wave of his hand.
'Ancient Dead Dead…'
Standing up from his throne after his two subordinates left, he casually walked to the window and stared outside.
From where his castle stood, it seemed like he could see the entire world.
'To achieve my goal, I need more Ancient Undead.'
* * *
Now there are only two more BDMAT integrated semester II assessments left.
In the events that have occurred, Simon's performance has been truly extraordinary.
1st place in the first BDMAT, 10th place in the second BDMAT, and 1st place again in the third BDMAT.
Looking at it this way, getting 10th place on the second BDMAT stung a little, but if he could get the highest scores on the fourth and fifth BDMATs, he thought he could finish his freshman year as a top contender for valedictorian.
'Okay! Don't be complacent about this and do better!'
Since there was still time until the next BDMAT, the students relaxed a bit in class.
The first class Simon took was Defense Against the Sacred Arts.
"Today, we will study the subjects taught at Efnel."
The old man wearing a white robe and fanning himself gracefully was none other than 'Farahan Imidore', Simon's Defense Against the Sacred Arts professor.
He was once Bishop of Efnel and is now the leader of the anti-Holy Federation movement.
Farahann was like a representative of the priests who were subservient to Kizen, and in terms of the level of surprise, his election as a professor was far more controversial than Belya's.
Anyway, a priest is teaching astrologers. Many students feel dislike or dislike Farahann, but no one can deny that his class is actually quite useful.
"Efnel students are your greatest enemies and challenges. You'd better face them four or five times before you graduate."
Hearing Farahann's words, all the Class A students swallowed nervously.
Still inexperienced as necromancers, the priests were unknown and frightening opponents. That wasn't even considering how badly the Saintess incident had affected some of the students.
"I have a question."
A student raised his hand.
Sometimes, students from extremist families who dislike Farahann interrupt class by cutting him off with questions like this.
"Please go away."
But Farahann actually likes it when students take an interest in his lessons and ask questions.
"I don't really understand. Why do we need to know what classes the priests took?"
"I will explain it soon."
Then, another student jumped to his feet even though Farahann had not given him permission to speak.
"I am suspicious of your intentions! Professor, which student do you think is better? Kizen or Efnel's student?"
That is a question that is impossible to answer correctly.
In fact, this is the question of the century, a question that no one knows the answer to. The answer is as elusive as the meaning of life.
"I have experienced Efnel and Kizen, and while you may be equal in terms of skill, you are no match for the young man Efnel in terms of mentality."
The commotion.
The students whispered earnestly. The student who asked the question spoke even louder, trying to get to the heart of the matter with his forked tongue.
"Professor! What did you just say—!"
What!
It takes less than a second.
Farahann pointed his finger at the student, and immediately a stream of divinity shot out like a bullet before stopping right in front of the student.
"Ah!!"
The student's eyes widened. For a moment, he thought he was dead, only to see too late where the stream of divinity ended.
"This is exactly what I'm talking about."
The student gaped and his legs shook. A wet spot formed on his pants.
"Efnel students are trained at an impersonal and inhuman level of training with the belief that faith and mental strength are the source of divinity. Also, I suggest a visit to the restroom."
A teaching assistant took the student and disappeared into the back of the lecture hall.
Farahann returned his arms to his sides as if he hadn't just threatened to kill someone and continued fanning himself.
"Of course, I believe it is simply a difference in teaching methods. Your flexibility, creativity in battle, and ability to create unexpected variables are far superior. Now, let's get back to the point."
He turned to face the large blackboard behind him.
* * *
* * *
"There are seven core subjects at Efnel."
Farahann took a piece of chalk and carefully wrote each one down.
Blessing
The Mechanism of Divinity
Study of the Holy Spirit
Healing
Guard
Study of Divine Beasts
Fighting Light Magic
Putting down the chalk, Farahann stroked his beard and smiled.
"Do they look familiar?"
The students started to murmur. Jamie Victoria raised her hand.
"Jamie Victoria, Sir! The top three subjects have similar concepts to the 'CMS' in Kizen! Curse, Jet-Black Mechanics, and Summoning!"
"Good job. I'll give you 5 points for good attitude."
Jamie clenched his fists in joy.
"Just as you all choose your majors, Efnel students choose their own majors from this list. And when you come face to face with a priest, it's not hard to tell which discipline they're taking if you pay close attention to the spells they use."
Farahann's eyes became serious.
"If you determine your opponent's specialty, you can learn a ton of information from that alone. What basic spells they have available to them, their strengths and weaknesses, their fighting style, their attack and defense patterns, and even their personality. All this information for nothing in return."
Listening to the class, Simon nodded in agreement.
"Are you now..."
Putting down the chalk, Farahann smiled.
"a…understand the need to know your enemy?"
The lecture hall fell silent again.
Farahann's lessons are very helpful, even though he is a pastor. That is a fact that no one can deny.
"Fortunately, priests have studied their strategies against necromancers in depth because it is imperative to avoid anything that might shake their beliefs in the slightest. So you should try to outsmart your opponent and then ruthlessly bite into their weaknesses. That is how a necromancer can defeat a priest in a disadvantageous fight. After all…"
Farahann added while tapping the blackboard with his fan,
"After all, overcoming stronger enemies with intelligence and cunning is the primary role of a necromancer."
Simon almost gave him a standing ovation. The other students were also amazed.
"Well then, we will now delve into the details of each subject."
In fact, Simon knew most of the 'Defense Against Sacred Arts' class, having studied this precisely.
Back when he went to the Holy Federation during his vacation, Rete had taught him so strictly that even an inquisitor would not have discovered it. Therefore, Simon's understanding of most aspects of the Holy Federation was extraordinary.
"Is there a student here who can explain the subject called Guarding?"
Simon raised his hand and answered,
"Simon Polentia, sir. This is a study that specializes in defense, such as barriers and divine domains."
"Good job. Can you name one area of light sp—"
"Territory of Exaltation. This is a light spell used by priests to buy time to bestow blessings. It is activated in the subconscious, so it can be broken with a curse that has a confusion effect."
The teaching assistants were very surprised, because they had never met a student who only had half of their basic knowledge.
Farahann also laughed out loud and said,
"Good, no, good! I'll give you 10 points for good attitude."
"Thank you sir!"
The Defense Against the Sacred Arts class was like a score vending machine for Simon.
Meilyn, who was sitting next to him, patted Simon's elbow and whispered to him,
"Hey, what's the meaning of this?! When did you learn Defense Against Sacred Arts in depth?"
Simon grinned, full of joy from seeing her face full of envy.
"It's a secret."
"Oh, so stingy. Please tell me!"
* * *
After the theory class, straight to practice.
Today's practice is about spreading divinity in the body. The main goal is to overcome the fear of divinity and learn how to expel it with jet black.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
"Pant! Pant!"
The students' reactions were worse than when they ate the poison in Poisonous Alchemy.
One by one, the students screamed as if they had lost their minds even for a drop of divinity.
'Focus, focus.'
Simon was nervous but for a completely different reason.
"Please tell me if you can't take it anymore."
The assistant teacher standing in front of Simon grabbed Simon's arm and channeled divinity. The assistant teachers were also former priests.
"Gasp!"
Simon gathered pitch black in his veins until his face turned pale.
"A-Are you okay?"
"…Ah, yes. Still not bad."
His voice was hoarse, as if he had to push through layers of excruciating pain with every syllable, but deep down, Simon felt something akin to doubt or shame.
'I feel like I'm getting better at acting.'
First, he had to be good at acting as if he was feeling the pain of divinity, and second, he had to be careful not to use divinity without realizing it.
Sometimes, when he was taking Defense Against the Sacred Arts class, he would get completely immersed in it, and suddenly, the divinity would slip out of his hands. It had happened once, but luckily he didn't get caught. And he had been extra careful ever since.
"Hoho, give me a moment."
Then, Farahann approached them.
"I will be the one to look after this student."
"Ah, yes, Professor."
The assistant teacher left, and Farahann grabbed Simon's arm, channeling divinity into it.
Simon frowned.
"Is it okay? The roots of divinity and jet black are the same. Please try to push divinity out with jet black."
"Yes, Sir!"
Simon easily removed his jet black color and suppressed the divinity that had entered his body.
"Mm. Very good."
He pretended to make a mistake once, then succeeded on the second try. Farahann nodded in satisfaction and returned Simon to his seat.
'Did I do it too fast?'
After looking at his palm, he immediately shook his head and returned to his seat.
And just like that, today's Defense Against the Sacred Arts class was over.
"I heard there's steak on the limited menu today! Run!"
Rick shouted as he held his textbook on his waist while running on the spot.
As Meilyn and Camibarez were finishing their clothes and Simon hurriedly stood up,
"Mr. Simon."
Suddenly, the assistant teacher of Defense Against the Sacred Arts called out to Simon.
"Professor Farahann would like to see you for a moment."
"What?"
He saw Farahann waiting, still fanning herself in the distance.
"Please, guys."
said Simon. Rick looked surprised.
"Wow, what's this? Is this another offer to become a direct disciple?
"Here we go again, talking without a filter. Mandatory subjects no direct discipleship or anything."
As Rick and Meilyn argued, Simon quickly arrived in front of Farahann.
"Come with me to my lab."
"Oh yeah."
Farahann's laboratory is on the top floor of the building.
After entering a clean room with white painted walls, the two of them sat on the sofa.
"Would you like a cup of tea?"
"No, I'm fine."
Nodding, Farahann opened her fan wide.
Using that as a signal, the curtains of the room were closed, the lights went out, and darkness filled the room. At the same time, the divine magic circle was activated, exploding with light.
"P-Professor?"
"Please don't be surprised. This is a simple device to block sound and sight. Now, I have one question."
Farahann stroked his beard, his forehead furrowed with grim seriousness.
"Can you use divinity?"