The first-year students of Demon King Academy class 2 were in Ledenor Plain, located east of Midhaze.
Until dawn today, they had undergone rigorous combat training using <Reason Creation Edonica>, and although they each had their own differences, overall, they had achieved remarkable growth.
The students look a little haggard, being physically and mentally exhausted from being forced to overcome death over and over again, but that was to be expected. In fact, now was the perfect time to capitalize on the training still fresh in their minds.
Who knew what awaited us in the Underground World.
âAlright, letâs head underground now.â (Anos)
âUm, Anos-sama.â (Naya)
Naya the Bookworm raised her hand.
âWhat is it?â (Anos)
âI donât see Anosh-kun anywhere⊠Did something happen?â she asked curiously.
âOh, sheâs right.â (Student A)
âCome to think of it, did anyone see him during the <Reason Creation Edonica> training?â (Student B)
âNo, I donât think I did⊠Or rather, I was too focused on other thingsâŠâ (Student C)
The students began to murmur and chatter.
I could tell them that he took the day off, but if people thought that Anosh was only absent during the Greater Demon Kingâs training, some of them might get suspicious.
That being said, it would be a pain to deliberately create and animate a body double of Anosh with magic.
People would most likely see through the deception if I didnât keep it up with enough precision.
In that caseâŠ
âKuhaha! What are you talking about? Anosh has been there all along.â (Anos)
I directed my gaze towards an empty space.
âHuhâŠ?â
âAnosh-kun is there?â
âYes.â
I walked over there and spoke.
âUsing <Phantom Mimicry Lynel> and <Hidden Magic Najira>, are you? Trying to hide from me is quite the mischievous act, but youâre still far from reaching their abysses. So try to work on that during the Greater Demon Kingâs training. If you can fool my Magic Eyes even once, Iâll give you a passing grade.â (Anos)
The students fixed their Magic Eyes in the direction of my gaze.
âI canât see anything at all⊠not even a trace of magicâŠâ (Student A)
âAnosh-kun really is a boy geniusâŠâ (Student B)
âBut at the end of the day, even he gets treated like a child by the Demon King. Even though Anosh managed to hide himself so perfectly, he saw through him so easily.â (Student C)
âNow, letâs head underground.â (Anos)
Arcana, who was standing behind me, quietly stepped forward.
âI apologize for the late introduction, but this girl is Arcana. Sheâs from the Underground World. However, sheâs not a draconid. To put it simply, sheâs a god. Sheâll guide us to Jiordal.â (Anos)
Arcana suddenly disappeared and reappeared several hundred meters away from the students.
ââŠWhat was that just now? <Transition Gatom>?â (Student A)
âNo, I didnât see any magic circle at allâŠâ (Student B)
âSo then⊠Is she, like, an actual god?â (Student C)
ââŠThatâs unbelievable, but since itâs Anos-sama saying it and not Eldmed-sensei, she must really be a god. I mean, just by raising her hand, that Arcana girl turned day into nightâŠâ (Student C)
âAlso, check out her magic power. Thatâs not normal.â (Student D)
âHaving a god as a guide⊠Thatâs the Demon King of Tyranny for you⊠This lesson is on a completely different scale from anything weâve had before⊠Are we really going to make it back alive?â (Student E)
While they were talking, the crescent moon of Artiertonoa rose in the sky.
âThe earth freezes, and the ice melts away.â (Arcana)
A silver light poured down from the Moon of Creation, with Arcana at the center.
In an instant, that light froze the earth.
In the next moment, the ice cracked like a thin sheet of ice, and a vast, circular hole appeared in the ground.
It was a tunnel leading to the Underground World.
âSnow falls and becomes wings.â (Arcana)
Countless lunar snowflakes rained down.
When they were illuminated by Artiertonoa, they transformed into numerous snow dragons.
Scattering sparkles of silvery light, the snow dragons moved towards the students.
âThe Underground World is quite far away. Those who arenât good at <Flight Fless> can get on.â (Anos)
When I said that, most of the students got on the snow dragons.
âLetâs go.â (Anos)
Arcana took the lead and descended into the hole leading to the Underground World.
I flew right beside her with <Flight Fless>, followed by Eldmed and Shin.
âWow, this is fun! Weâre flying! See that, Zeshia?â (Eleonore)
ââŠIt feels⊠comfyâŠâ (Zeshia)
Eleonore and Zeshia were riding together on a snow dragon.
Misha and Sasha flew alongside them with <Flight Fless>.
âWait, shouldnât you both be able to keep up using <Flight Fless>?â Sasha complained, while Misha tilted her head.
âCheating?â (Misha)
âN-noâŠ! Thatâs not it. Itâs just that, I wanted to try riding a snow dragon.â (Eleonore)
Eleonore was making an excuse that wasnât really an excuse.
Misha stared at her expressionlessly.
âAnd besides, I might be able to create a new spell by using this snow dragon as a referenceâŠâ (Eleonore)
As she spoke, Eleonore suddenly had an idea.
âThatâs right! I might be able to create new magic!â (Eleonore)
ââŠA great discovery⊠it isâŠâ (Zeshia)
Zeshia gave a small clap, and Misha blinked.
ââŠItâs not cheating?â (Misha)
âNo, itâs definitely cheating, no matter how you look at it. It was just an excuse until she said it out loud.â Sasha sharply pointed out.
Eleonore raised her index finger, and Zeshia imitated her.
âSasha-chan, in this world, thereâs a saying that goes âAllâs well that ends wellâ!â (Eleonore)
ââŠEnds⊠wellâŠâ (Zeshia)
Sasha looked at the two of them in exasperation.
It seemed like she wanted to retort, but couldnât think of anything to say in response.
âMisha, any idea what to say to refute that?â (Sasha)
Misha tilted her head.
âDid you really think that allâs well just because it ends well?â (Misha)
âGood one.â (Sasha)
While everybody chatted among themselves, we continued flying through the hole leading to the Underground World.