[Mirai Shiba's perspective]
I began to open my eyes
The first thing I saw after that night was a white ceiling covering my vision and the intense smell of disinfectant
*Chas-Chas-Chas
The sound of a knife cutting something caught my attention. I turned my head and found myself facing a certain black-haired man.
Alan Harwey, who was elegantly cutting an apple, looked at me and gave a start.
-You're very lucky, Mirai Shiba. Your life was saved by this hunter, and you opened your eyes after fainting. The first face you saw that day was this one-
I speak with an arrogant tone.
Anyone would ask if I'm okay, but what could you do?
-You're not going to ask about my condition?-
-Why ask when I see that you're completely healthy? The doctor told me you'll be fine and just need to rest for a few days-
When I began to think about what happened last night, a sharp pain inevitably shook all my thoughts.
My stomach also hurt from the strong blow Alan gave me, but the pain was tolerable, and I had no right to complain since, fortunately, I was still alive.
The boy looked at me for a few seconds and began to mock me.
-Ha, I'm glad that blow I gave you still hurts. I hope it lasts until tomorrow-
-You're a sadist-
-Well, after that incident at the meeting, I became a bit sadistic with women... especially the arrogant ones who are so self-important-
The calm, resentful tone toward me was very present.
But I still had questions.
How did he know my location? Who informed him? What did he mean by the ghost of a deceased person?
-I see you have many questions-
Alan looked me in the eyes. When his voice reached my ears, my thoughts stopped.
From his clothes, I took out a [magic contract].
===
[Grade 1 Magical Contract]
Type: [Item]
Effect: A contract imbued with great magical power that can only be activated when both individuals agree. If one of the individuals breaks the agreement, bad luck will occur in their life, and the other individual will learn of the breach of the contract.
Contents:
1. Mirai Shiba will not share the secrets that Alan Harwey gives to anyone.
2. Mirai Shiba must fully support Alan Harwey without question.
3. Mirai Shiba must obey Alan Harwey (the individual may not request sexual actions or anything that goes against Mirai Shiba's beliefs).
The first rule is absolute: once you sign the contract, you may not talk about Alan Harwey's secrets, not even write them down in a diary.
The third rule can only be used once every 24 hours.
===
This must be a joke.
Alan Harwey wanted to control me like a dog, but at least he didn't use a Grade 2 contract.
Grade 1 brings bad luck to those who break it.
Grade 2 is a stricter contract where if an individual breaks it, they die.
My wish is to win over my sister in the succession fight. I can't afford any bad luck, but if I accept this man's contract, I'll be able to learn more about him and never suspect anything. He could even be a wild card in a hypothetical emergency.
It was a risky bet, and I'm willing to honor it.
I grabbed the contract and tore it up.
[You've imposed a contract on yourself]
I could feel the magical power of that piece of paper tying my neck like a necklace.
It felt a little tight for a few seconds, but the sensation disappeared.
-Fuuu, you didn't hesitate for a second-
-I may be an evil villain from your perspective, but I have honor and I keep my word to the end-
-That's good. Now that you're under the effects of the contract, I'll clarify all your questions. Go ahead, ask me-
-How did you know about my kidnapping?-
-Well, it was all easy thanks to a spirit companion I have-
A spirit?
-Are you an elementalist?-
-No, I don't have the talent to detect elementals in the air. I could only make a contract with a spirit, that's all-
That's true.
Elementalists are very rare, and almost all of them belong to the magical towers and are taken to the magical city of Argalia, the domain of the Chevalier family.
-Do you want to ask me another question?-
-No, that was all I wanted to know about you-
-Okay, with that, we formalize our relationship. Don't think you became my friend just by accepting my contract-
-You're right. After everything I've put you through, it's hard to be your friend, but...-
I gently tugged on the boy's sleeve and looked him in the eye.
-Consider our relationship as that of a business partner, Alan Harwey. From now on, we'll be partners. I support you, and you support me-
-Wow, you've clarified our relationship very quickly. Okay, you're my business partner. I hope we support each other, Shiba-
-...Call me Mirai. It's your reward for saving my life-
After this incident, I learned a few things.
I won't change my personality, that's a fact, but I will change my methods to avoid making enemies now that I know there are people like Jeremy who can do anything just for revenge.
And I will also remember this moment where I gained a very powerful potential ally.
***
[Alan Harwey's Perspective] [Men's Dorm]
"I see I've changed... a little, but I still don't like him. On top of that, he now knows about my existence."
The little blue flame spoke.
But that wasn't the important thing. Sooner or later, Nameless's existence would be revealed to everyone. He wanted a reliable and powerful ally. Who better than the arrogant rich girl, Mirai Shiba?
Now that he had her under control, he could demand money in droves.
-Come on, buddy, I'm going to demand a lot of things from you, a lot!-
"Hehe, I hope you ask for money and expensive materials for better weapons."
-Oh yeah, buddy. Of course I'm going to ask for a lot for that, but I'm also going to ask for something else-
"What are you going to ask that arrogant little girl?"
-Shh, it's a surprise for a certain Japanese friend-
After my conversation, I received a message:
[Are you sure you want to invest in me?]
The message was from Aoki. My plan was to help him grow together, since I consider him my partner, as well as something I needed.
[Yes, please take the money and don't use excuses.]
[Are you sure?]
[I'm 100% sure I'll invest in you!!]
[Understood, I'll keep the money. Thank you very much for investing in my agency!]
After that, he sent me a contract to my computer, which I printed out and then went to Japan with the papers already signed.
***
[Japan – Tokyo]
-Thank you for investing in my young Alan!-
He leaned toward me when he saw me, making me cringe as I felt everyone's eyes on me.
-Yes, I did it for you, but now get up! You're really embarrassing me!-
-Understood, sir-
Suddenly, he stood up like a soldier. Now his face was completely red, and I could hear everyone saying that Mr. Aoki is a chuunibyou at his age.
-Please don't do that. I still need your help buying something-
-...If it's pornography, then I'll say no-
Hell, she caught me, but I'll do that in the future.
-No! I'm not that dirty, I need to buy a lottery ticket!-
I pointed at the sign that said [Lottery Ticket]. This was one of the methods I'd come up with to make money since I had this perfect level of luck, but... I'm underage, so I couldn't do it... Society is fucking nerfing me!
-Really? Lottery tickets are a waste of money. You may be too young to understand these things, but... the lottery is a scam!-
A disappointed Aoki answered, looking at me with pity.
-What are you saying? It's not a scam. I have perfect luck. I've won the lottery many times with a money-loving magician, so I'll probably win something. If I win some money, I'll invest it in your agency, so let's give it a try...-
-I'm telling you, it's a scam...-
-I only trusted this server-
I dragged Mr. Aoki into the store, immediately took a total of 20 lottery tickets from the counter, and with Aoki's face blank, the clerk didn't even ask for his ID. After buying the tickets, I took them to a nearby table.
-Excuse me, Mr. Aoki... don't you have a coin to scratch them off?-
-Sure, take it, but I'm telling you, it's just a scam...-
I ignored his words and began scraping the silver foil off the ticket. The first one was a total failure. I immediately moved on to the second, a failure. I scratched the third, a failure.
-You know, when I was young, I also thought I could become a millionaire with lottery tickets, so I bought a lot of tickets until...-
Aoki was bored and decided to talk while he scratched the tickets. I could even tell from his voice that his numerous broken dreams were caused by the lottery.
Fourth, fifth, sixth...
He scratched and scratched the tickets until he found the right one, ticket number 15.
-Finally!-
-Oh? You won? How much?-
Asked Aoki, who had just woken up from my scream.
-17 million yen, hehe-
-Oh, but what...-
Hearing the amount, Aoki paused, then tilted his head.
-Did I hear wrong?-
The adult muttered, then turned his gaze toward me.
-Could you repeat that?-
-I won... I won the jackpot, 17 million yen! I got the jackpot!! I'm unbeatable in the lottery, hahaha!-
First place is 17 million yen. I happily showed the ticket to Aoki. His jaw seemed to drop instantly when he saw the ticket.
-Does this make any sense?-
-It's real... half the money is yours-
I started to give him the ticket.
-Hey, why are you giving me this?!-
-…You're an idiot. I'm a minor. I can't claim the money. You can take half. It's an additional investment. Consider it a gift-
Aoki's mouth wouldn't close. I think he was still confused.
-Take it-
-Oh yeah-
Aoki quickly put the ticket in his pocket, then looked around and started sweating as if he had just committed a crime.
-Dude, calm down. No one's going to steal your ticket-
-You don't understand, you don't understand how terrifying society is-
«I understand you, my friend... I understand you»
From that day on, I understood that Aoki is a secret money lover, just like John and me.
***
[Narrator] [Island X – Principal's Office]
Starlight illuminated a large office decorated in white.
Inside the office stood a man standing in absolute silence, the only noise being his fingers tapping on his desk along with his cane.
The silence broke when the office door began to open. The person who opened it was Professor Nishizono, carrying some papers.
-Here are the reports on the mystery of the disappearances, Mr. Director-
Deckard grabbed the papers and read them at high speed, making sense of everything.
-I see... three second-year students who turned into Daemons. I find it surprising that they evaded security for so long-
-To be honest, sir, lately the Daemons have started to move more and more at this pace...-
-Probably something very big is about to happen like in the "London incident"-
Nishizono began to swallow his saliva. He knew about the London incident since... it is the case where the third strongest hunter in the world fell and the blood of the father of the hunters, Cid, was exterminated.
-...Even knowing this, I have to admit it's terrifying... that another incident like the one in London could happen-
-I understand your fear, the artificial dungeon we created was apparently altered by the Daemons and right now I'm investigating the higher-ups, those disgusting rats who were doing whatever it was, I'm absolutely sure they were responsible for all of this-
A strong gust of wind began to blow all the papers away.
Nishizono could barely stay on the ground due to the incredibly terrifying aura emanating from Director Deckard.
A man who is already 200 years old and who looks like an adult approaching old age, in addition to being an S-rank in Europe and ranked 18 in the world rankings, who was trained by the goddess of the sword, rank 2, Shiro Kanzaki.
-Oh... I lost my temper, excuse this old man-
-Don't apologize, Director... it's my fault for being too weak-
-Mmm, you're partly right... if you had taken your training seriously, maybe you would have reached S rank a long time ago, leaving that aside...-
The director spoke honestly, causing Nishizono's self-esteem to diminish a little due to his lack of tact.
Deckard looked at the moon that illuminated the night while nostalgically remembering those moments where everything was peaceful.
-I wonder what they did to kill you, "God Blacksmith"-
The old man whispered as he sipped a cup of tea.
-Sir, what are your orders?-
-I want you to assemble a special squad of A-rank hunters to investigate each of the top brass. I want them to find them and find solid pieces to bring them to justice-
«I have the power to kill the top brass, but they're still vital to the hunting community. Killing them will only cause trouble, but if I get an excuse, I'll have the power to execute them»
Deckard thought.
Remembering how the higher-ups in the past had destroyed talented young people simply for fear of losing power on the island, with the extinction of the Blacksmith family, they were beginning to stir and try to regain control of the academy.
Currently, the elders' whereabouts are unknown, and they only call from a distance.
-Anything else?-
-...Nothing else, I just want you to keep an eye on them, find any kind of information that incriminates them, if we don't gather enough evidence, they'll probably start acting to incriminate me and then take control of the academy-
Nishizono bowed and then left, leaving old Deckard alone with his cane.
Instantly the old man snapped his fingers causing all the papers to return to their place, checking the papers again he could see two faces, one was Hajime Aikawa's and the other was Alan Harwey's.
-How interesting, the first one has a lot of talent which all the guilds want, but he is very naive and inexperienced, but the other one has low talent but that is compensated by his high intelligence and skills, but the guilds are not interested in him... how blind the guilds have been lately, I think I will visit that boy during the exam...-
***
[Alan Harwey's Perspective] [Thursday]
The only thing that could be heard in the classroom was the sound of pencils writing, almost all of the students working hard for the exam after four days.
-I'm... in hell-
Of course, there should at least be some students who didn't like studying.
I could hear that from some students, but the one that stood out the most was Hanami, who had a depressed face and her body seemed to express boredom.
This week's incident was very prominent news around the world. Therefore, combat training was canceled by order of the principal. As a result, there were only review and theory classes until the exams. Fortunately, the training ground could be used.
-Hanami, the exams are next week. You should study or you'll regret it in the end-
Hajime spoke with a smile, but he was almost the same as her. His grades were average, but since she'd recently become closer to Shiba, he went to ask her.
-Uh... Shiba, could you tell me how to solve this?-
-…Sort it out, lazybones-
Shiba's cold words made Hajime put his head on his desk, his heart pounding.
How easy all this is, too bad no one has my enormous intelligence.
As I started to laugh, someone tapped me on the shoulder. It was Alice. When I tilted my head, she handed me a piece of paper.
Just like the other day, it was a high-difficulty problem.
This girl started asking me for help with problems like this. I actually couldn't even hear her voice.
[The boss monster is an A-rank Wyvern. The dungeon is A-rank but has 12 stages, and each stage has a total of 40 undead monsters. Let's assume the dungeon is medium-sized. Find the minimum and maximum mana density and approximate the number of people needed to conquer it.]
I felt dizzy when I read the problem... It was a very complicated one!!
"This girl is getting you into trouble, Alan."
Nameless started laughing at me, since he thought I couldn't solve it, but... he was wrong.
«Let's see, an A-rank Wyvern has a mana capacity of 10,000 and its size is up to 19 meters, each stage has at most B or C-rank monsters... the amount of mana released would be between 1,000-1,450, Six B-rank people led by one A-rank person could conquer it without much trouble»
I quickly wrote down the answers I thought of on a piece of paper and immediately gave it to Alice. Her eyes widened, she buried her face in the paper, and began carefully examining each step of the calculation.
"Tsk, you're so lucky"
«Hey, I got my way... again.»
*Ding dong
The hologram of the bell signaled the end of classes. Many of my classmates didn't want to get up because math hell would begin on Friday.
I was going to plan to practice again.
As I began to pack my supplies into my backpack, a shadow was projected over my desk, and I could feel a blank stare piercing me... when I turned my head toward the shadow, it was... Hanami.
-Help me study-
I spoke with tears in my eyes, trying to feel sorry for myself... but I got up from my seat.
I don't want to get too involved in high-ranking issues, and I wanted my school life to be peaceful, but this girl is making my life even more complicated.
I think my plans will be destroyed again.
-Never-
-What?!-
-I don't like working overtime-
The written exams started next week, specifically on Monday. Even if she started studying now, her grades wouldn't change a bit. Not to mention I don't know how to help her, and it wouldn't do any good.
Plus, I have to test out the new spells I learned along with a rune.
-Please, please, help me! W-How about a study guide? Okay?-
Her desperation could be felt in the air, she seemed very desperate yet with all the determination in the world I continued on my path to become stronger with pure coldness
***
[Narrator] [Italy – Florence]
Inside a large gray building
In the conference room, one could see a very panoramic view of the city of Florence. The room was very spacious, enough to fit 100 people. It was decorated with multiple elegant paintings and statues made by the best artists.
Five men sat around a round table with numbers and began interrogating the elderly Elder, who had been gently slapped in the face.
-...Fifth Elder, you acted without consulting your elders at all. This time, the plan to kill Hajime Aikawa failed-
-I agree with that statement. This is clearly an act that cannot be tolerated, Elder-
Those who spoke were the First Elder, Balzac, and the Second Elder, Eugene.
The tone they used against the fifth Elder was a mixture of mercy, courtesy, and a slight hint of coldness.
During the exam, Elder was in charge of using the scapegoats, the students who were swearing loyalty to him to mutate the dungeon itself. In the end, his soldiers did not obey him, and Elder had to use mind control magic. Because of this, a certain headmaster was now a little annoyed and trying to find his hiding place.
-Isn't this something you all actually agreed on?-
-Yes... but we told you not to use your magic and other means on your pawns. Because of you for not using the undercover professor to eliminate the corpses, Deckard now has us in his sights-
-And if that weren't enough, Jeremy, our little star was killed. We've been using this boy to increase the number of Daemons in the academy since last year, but now our valuable pawn is no longer with us-
The third elder, Gourdes, and the fourth elder, Flat, were upset by the outcome as all that happened was losses for them.
Smearing Deckard's name and forcing him to step down as director is the elders' main objective. Without Deckard, the elders' unholy plans would run unchecked.
-I'm so sorry everything is like this. I admit I'm guilty of not playing my cards right in the exam and of not being able to kill Hajime Aikawa-
The fifth elder stood up and bowed his head, offering his most sincere apology, only to sit down in shame for such a failure.
*Clap-Clap
Cold, emotionless applause echoed around the room, and a figure emerged from the shadows. Owens, the vice principal and one of the infiltrators within the academy, appeared, displaying that cold, cruel smile on his face.
-I'm so sorry I'm late-
-You're late, Owens-
The first old man claimed, glaring at the Wizard.
-I-I'm so sorry, my lord. Escaping Deckard's vigilance was very difficult. The old man never took his gaze off me-
-I'll accept your apologies, Mago. Now tell me, what do you want to talk to us about? We're meeting tonight just to talk to you-
At old Balzac's words, Owens coughed a little due to the discomfort caused by the presence of the first elder.
-Coof, Coof, dear senators, after this incident Deckard has now gone on the defensive and that is not something to be taken lightly. Think about it, almost a decade ago, Deckard almost achieved his goal of taking away your power and influence, but all he achieved was expelling you from the island. Since then, you all hate that man with all your hearts-
Since the death of Edward Blacksmith, the leader of the Blacksmith family, descendant of the lineage of the heroes, Cid and Eleonore, the elders began to move more freely and plot many dark things in their heads.
Without the Blacksmith family in power, the only family of the first hunters in the world is the Chevalier, but they don't have as much political power as the Blacksmiths and only focus on the technological advancement of the ARK space colony, and...
Their blood was degrading.
-For now, we won't be able to do anything against Deckard because of that. I request that "They" lend us some of their power to achieve our goal-
Owens spoke politely.
The elders became nervous. "They" are his collaborators. Without their presence for almost a decade, it would be most likely that Deckard would achieve his goal. They are only alive because of their leader, who has threatened them with death. If they are not useful to him, he will discard them as pawns in his chess game.
*Bisbis-Bisbis-Bisbis
The five elders began to murmur about asking their collaborators for help. Both sides had no response until they looked at the first elder, their leader. He would make the best choice.
Balzac closes his eyes in silence while keeping his hands clasped on the round table.
In the end, the elders' judgment is theirs. After all, the other elders respect him so much that he is largely their leader.
Owens, his most loyal subordinate, the one who never fails in his mission, who achieved the position of vice-principal of the academy to keep an eye on Deckard and has played his role very well so far, was logically one of his best cards.
The elders needed the public enemies of society, the Daemons, to maintain their status of power.
If the public enemies diminish, not only the elders will face a backlash from which they will have no escape.
-Okay... Owens, we'll do as you say-
With Balzac's support, Owens knelt.
-Thank you very much, sir. I, Owens, promise to bring ruin to Deckard and make the academy his again-
With that, Owens flashed a smile similar to that of a snake, ready to bite its prey and infuse it with its venom.