Noir Drake. He's a monster.
Monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster, monster.
The destruction of the capital, the loss of lives, the Crimson Army's onslaught—everything had been fixed.
No. Everything had been reversed. That was the only way this could make sense. There was no way all these people, who should have been dead, could act so calmly after being brought back to life. It was the only logical conclusion in Reinhardt's mind. The only explanation for this miracle.
Yet despite this grand miracle that had befallen everyone, there existed an entity in this world capable of bringing back the dead—not as skeletons like necromancers, but as full living beings.
It was impossible. It should have been impossible. It was impossible. Yet Noir Drake had succeeded, and so easily, as if it were a casual thing.
He hadn't hesitated for even a second, and he had managed to do something no one in this world was capable of. He was a monster. No—he was a god.
How could such a being have remained unnoticed all this time?
He turned his head toward Noir Drake, who was standing there unfazed.
"Who are you?" His voice was filled with fear and hesitation, yet he still asked. And Noir Drake replied with the same response he had given the first time.
"I'm Noir Drake. I'm applying to join the Selene Academy of Mages and Knights."
Despite his immense power, he was still choosing to enroll at an academy? It was almost funny when Reinhardt thought about it.
"Is that really what you wish for?"
"I would like nothing more."
Well, if a being like this wanted to live as an academy student, who were they to stop him? Actually, how would they stop him?
He turned to look at the mortified Julius. He must have been thinking the same thing.
He looked back at Noir Drake, closed his eyes, and gave a heavy sigh.
"If I had said to create a whole planet for me, would you have done that?"
"I don't think so," Noir Drake responded.
"Assuming the academy is also back… you have two days. Two days until the entrance exam. It will do you well to prepare thoroughly."
Despite what he had done, he still had to take an entrance exam?
As Julius walked away toward the academy, Noir Drake turned and began walking to a nearby stall selling grilled vegetable and steak kebabs.
As Noir walked, Reinhardt thought he heard him mumble,
"All that, and I still have to take an entrance exam. Geesh, damn it all. Well, I'm hungry."
---
I can't believe it. After reviving a capital and using up all your mana just to succeed, you still have to take another entrance exam.
You're not the only one.
My body is in pain from just standing. It's a miracle I can still walk. If not for the people around here, I might have already allowed myself to faint on the ground.
"All that, and I still have to take an entrance exam. Geesh, damn it all. Well, I'm hungry."
But at the very least, I managed to save every single life here. Let's just leave it at that.
There was a kebab stand nearby. The aroma of grilled meat filled the air and caught my attention, so I immediately began walking toward the seller.
I had a few gold coins on me, so I should be able to buy a large amount.
When I reached the stand, I pulled out a gold coin from the pocket of my coat.
"Ten grilled kebabs, please."
When I actually thought about it, I couldn't remember the last time I had eaten anything. In fact, I hadn't eaten since I entered the trial. I had been too busy to focus on my stomach.
"Actually, make that twenty… no, thirty.
"Coming right up," the owner of the stand responded.
As I waited for my food, the Commander walked up to me.
Wonder what he wants? Aside from the Headmaster, I didn't really have any business with him.
"May I help you?" I asked.
"No. I simply came here to buy some kebabs for myself. Surely you'll allow that?"
I mean, I'm not the one in charge of this stand. Talk to the owner, not me.
He pulled out a silver coin from his pocket and gave it to the owner.
"As many as I can buy," he said.
As we waited for our kebabs, the Commander and I stood there in silence. It was quite awkward, to say the least.
I could tell he was itching to say something but couldn't bring himself to do it. Seeing this, I decided to take the initiative and start a conversation.
"Are you and the Headmaster friends?" I asked.
I didn't really care what we talked about. All I wanted was to break the awkward silence between us.
"I wouldn't say we're friends. I only met him today, after all. I needed to get some answers from him."
"Really? What exactly did you need to ask him?"
"That's not something I should be telling a kid."
I'll have you know. I'm much older than even my own parents. I'm at least a thousand years old...technically.
"If you can mention the fact that you interrogated him, there should be no problem telling me what it was about." I responded.
"…Fine. Who knows, you might have some information I want."
"Hmmm. So now I'm the one being interrogated? Interesting."
And so Commander Reinhardt began to talk.
The Crimson Army each contained draconic energy, and during their onslaught—what was supposed to be happening now—the Aether Ark had caught footage of a blonde-haired girl being carried away by a figure in a Selene Academy uniform. They were being chased by a black-haired woman.
This seems oddly similar to the story Shiro had told me, about how they were being chased by Luna Dragonheart when the capital was being destroyed.
When he saw the footage, he immediately began doing some background digging. He found out that Luna Dragonheart was actually Claudia's big sister, and by proxy mine as well. On top of that, Luna Dragonheart was the only person besides the Ten Dragons capable of using draconic energy. And so, since she just so happened to be on site when the disaster was happening, she was considered the main suspect of this whole charade.
I'm impressed. This man knows just as much as I do, maybe even more.
He had intended to question Julius about Claudia—specifically, her relation to Luna. Unfortunately, he hadn't managed to get any information from Julius. Julius was just as clueless as he was.
And just as the two of them began to question the Crimson Army, the second onslaught began.
In other words, this Luna Dragonheart thing is still a mystery.
"Do you know anything about this?" he asked me.
"I've heard of Luna Dragonheart before. I did hear that she was connected to the MorningStar family, but I never knew she was actually a descendant. But I don't think she had anything to do with the incident."
To be honest, I'm not so sure about the last part. I know she didn't order the Crimson Army to do this, but her father sure did.
Actually, where was Azar when this was all happening? He had to have been somewhere in order to orchestrate this.
As I thought about that, the kebab seller wrapped my kebabs and handed them to me.
I grabbed them and took one out. I'll eat twenty, then give the rest to Claudia. I'm sure she hasn't eaten either.
Oh yeah—the purple-haired woman. Can't forget about her.
Guess I can only eat ten then.
At this point, everything was over. The mask had been to hide my identity from Julius, but that was done now. The Commander didn't really strike me as the type to tattle. Besides, there was this weird feeling telling me that I could trust him.
So I took off the mask and began eating.
---
Reinhardt was stunned.
The short figure, Noir Drake, had taken off his black mask. There was no eye hole so Reinhardt couldn't even see his eyes before. But now, his full face was in view.
He was lavishly beautiful. His pale skin contrasted with his golden, almond-shaped eyes, and his face was similar to that of a woman.
Now that he was looking at him fully, Noir Drake's body was quite delicate for a boy. His body didn't seem suitable for combat. He looked more like a prince—perhaps even a princess.
It was at this point that Reinhardt began questioning whether Noir Drake was truly male.
"If Akari saw this, who knows how she'd react," he joked to himself in Japanese.
"Excuse me, who's Akari?" Noir Drake asked as he chewed on the kebab in his hands.
"Sorry. Just an old fr—!"
Then he stopped.
He had muttered the words in Japanese. A language that wasn't native to this world. The people of this world shouldn't have been able to understand it. And yet Noir Drake had.
"Are you from another world too?" he asked, hope transparent on his face.
It was the only answer that made sense to Reinhardt and personally, it was one he hoped was true.
"Another world? Sorry, but I don't get what you—!"
Then he stopped as well. His golden eyes widened as he turned to face Reinhardt.
"C-can you please come with me?"
---
Elsewhere, a certain figure was watching, his golden eyes fixated on a certain black-haired figure.
He smiled as his long white hair flowed in the breeze.
"There you are, Abel MorningStar. After so long, we finally meet again."
This time, the white-haired figure would not lose to him. All those years ago when Abel defeated him was still fresh in his mind.
"I'll remember you."
Those were the exact words he had thought of all those years ago. And now, he had finally decended onto this world.
"Abel MorningStar. I shall personally execute you, in the name of my lord Lucifer MorningStar."