Chapter Chapter 64: 8. If you do it, it works. (3) (1/2)
RATH 64
TL: Eevee
8. If you do it, it works. (3)
#3 Their story: A certain student’s story.
“Hwaaaahm…”
A yawning second year student of Yugrasia dragged her feet from the dormitories.
Thinking it was probably due to her partying with her friends from other academies until the crack of dawn, she headed to school nursing her weak but persistent hangover.
Despite there being in a state of competition between the four academies, that was only really relevant within the empire.
Excluding Mercaria and a few commoner students, the majority of the students of the four academies had all met each other at social events at least once.
Although there were cases of friendships being broken off due to fighting between academies, even so, the majority of the students also thought of life after school and tried to remain on good terms with each other!
Especially since Yugrasia had taken a nosedive for the bizarre this year, the number of times she met with her friends from other schools had definitely diminished.
But that was all a thing of the past!
With the appearance of a whopping swordsmaster of all things, she and the others could finally leave school freely during the holidays.
At this rate, they could all hope for even greater things after the holidays ended!
Just how much did her mouth twitch when her friend from Arucia boasted of having sparred with the strongest swordsman in their school!
A rising star touted to become the empire’s next swordsmaster?
Our academy has an outright swordsmaster!
How she wanted to shout that out at the top of her lungs, but wanting to keep that information until the imperial festival, she said nothing.
And so after they talked all night long over a bit of wine.
Perhaps due to the alcohol, even if it was weak, she was late.
Well, even so, the students from other schools were probably in dreamland right now, either that or they’d just gotten up.
“Hnng… I’m gonna be late.”
Although classes began at nine, they were expected to arrive by eight.
Since she was going to be late no matter how hard she ran right now she decided to just take it easy.
But this student didn’t know.
That from today, the state of the academy had changed.
And the moment she came to realise it, she would curse her sluggish self of this moment.
To be accurate, it was five minutes later.
“Huh?”
The front gates that were normally wide open were tightly shut, and only the small door that let the night watch teachers in and out was open. Despite seeing this, this student did not think anything was out of the ordinary.
And the price for that came the moment she went in through the small door.
“Uwiiit, it’s a tardy kiddie!”
“Uwaaaaahkk!”
At that moment, the student lost all strength in her legs and fell down hard on her butt.
Because the one who was greeting her so enthusiastically was none other than the silver devil!
“Wha, what happens to be the problem…”
An overwhelming presence.
A pressure that forced one to speak formally!
That fear was so great that the students of Yugrasia would curse their teachers outside school, but they would never, ever say a word against the silver devil.
And the one with that presence, the silver devil looked at the student that looked at her with eyes full of fear and smiled.
“Well, course that’s cuz ya wus late?”
A smile that booked a ticket for the express train to hell.
#4 Their story: Aris ril Letia’s story
“Guuuwwuhhhk!”
“Sa, saved…”
I heard screaming coming from behind my back.
If I’d been just a hair later that would also have been my fate.
The moment I realised that, rivulets of cold sweat ran down my back.
Good job, me of the past!
To be exact, me of ten minutes ago, that started to run to not be late!
No wonder I had a bad feeling when it seemed I was going to be late this morning!
What if, I’d felt that it would be alright to be a tiny bit late just like it had always been?
-Aw… what a pity… what a pity…
How horrified had I been to see the silver devil muttering that, while watching the clock outside the door!
Even then I hadn’t realised what that pity had been!
When 8 o’clock came exactly one minute later and the main gates started to close, I realised the instant I saw the silver devil break out into a grin!
If I’d been late, I would have been killed on the spot!
-Aris, from tomorrow, I’ll do whatever it takes to wake you up.
-Yes, please wake me up! No matter what you do! You can Descend into my body whenever you want!
Normally the ones who say this are the people who have contracted with particularly strong high-ranked summons.
And among them, it was something that those that had contracted the strongest summons of them all, the god-class summons, should never ever say.
Allowing a being with a powerful will to enter your body and act as it wanted whenever it liked was very dangerous.
But getting hit by that devil was even more dangerous.
Although there’s no danger to my life, that’s dangerous to my sanity.
Because every now and then when I got hit by that thing, I started to seriously wonder just how easy it would be if I could just die.
And so, to avoid that silver devil I could hand over control of my body anytime.
“Kuwuuuhhghhh!”
“Let’s head in.”
As the screams of pain echoed out once again I hurried my footsteps.
But.
“Arrrrrghhhh!”
“Again?”
When break was about to end, a familiar scream rang out from a corner of the corridor.
Of course people can scream if they’re in pain.
But this scream that sounded like someone’s soul was being dragged out of their body was only reserved for when one was hit by that devil.
Meaning.
“Why is the devil moving on our break?”
Although I was fearful, my feet automatically moved themselves to the source of the screams.
Knowledge is power.
And to survive in Yugrasia where that devil lived, there was a need to know the standards the devil would hit us by.
“Guwuhhhg…”
“No wunnin’ in th’ hallways?”
The devil wagged her finger at the first year student who was dribbling drool and tears everywhere.
Did that mean that that student got beaten because he was running in the hallways?
And so after a day, then two passed.
As casualties grew by the day, a student in my class came running towards me with a notebook in her hand.
“M, milady!”