[First POV]

Within the academy grounds, the sound of something heavy being dragged echoed through the air as a boy, completely drenched in blood from head to toe, walked forward.

His body was riddled with injuries, some of them still gushing freely, yet he wore a crazed smile.

And who else could it be, if not the glorious me.

As for what I was dragging behind me… yeah. It was the limbless body of the guy I had so painfully made suffer.

Now, trust me, I don't actually enjoy inflicting this kind of pain. I would have much rather killed the poor bastard outright.

But this was necessary.

And honestly, anyone in my position, after being pushed this far… to the point where even I wasn't sure I would make it out alive, would have done the same.

"Hey, man… are you still alive?" I asked politely. After all, I couldn't have him dying before he got to see that spineless bastard.

And who knows… if this guy survives long enough, I might even reward him a little for all his trouble.

After nearly half an hour of dragging this guy around, I realized that when I came up with this plan, I was still slightly affected by the lingering insanity.

I mean, there were a few other ways to achieve the exact same result without chopping off his limbs… but oh well.

He kind of deserved it.

And man, I have to say, I was way too cool back then.

"Hey, don't you think I was cool?" I asked again.

After all, the second-year dorms were an hour away from mine with my bruised state and I had barely crossed half the distance.

So, I needed someone to talk to, even if it was the half-dead body I was dragging behind me.

Arza followed from a distance, hidden properly, just like I had instructed. So, I couldn't exactly talk to her either.

The guy, whose name turned out to be Rex, something I learned from the wallet in his pocket, let out a weak grunt.

"Huarggh."

Yeah. That was the language of the poor guy after being thrashed by me… but I understood it immediately.

He obviously meant, "Yes, sir. You were extremely glorious."

After all, I couldn't see anyone else around to reject my interpretation.

"Good boy."

Tsk… What the hell am I even doing?

I shook my head immediately.

I didn't know what kind of inner masochist that fight had awakened in me but it brought a shit ton of instability with it and I was still having trouble keeping it under control.

I really needed to look into whatever the fuck that was. Useful as it might have been to ignore pain… it made me far too loose.

All the masks I wore had shattered and it felt like I was dancing naked without any shame and that was a feeling I would rather never experience again.

So, to keep my inner madness in check, I stayed silent and continued walking quietly the rest of the way.

As I neared the second-year dorms, I ran into a few academy staff members. Every single one of them ignored me as if they weren't paid enough to deal with this.

Still, they would definitely inform the student council.

That meant I didn't have much time left.

The staff weren't the only ones I encountered. The deeper I moved into the second-year dorm area, the more students began coming out of their rooms, drawn by the commotion. They started following me toward the center, circling from a distance.

Even so, I kept my heart calm.

If only I had managed to control my madness before chopping off this guy's limbs, I would have planned something else.

But… I only got it under control afterward.

So throwing away the opportunity felt like a waste and I took the gamble.

I deliberately kept my breathing rough as I walked forward and once I reached the central area, where the main villas of the high-rankers were located, I stopped.

Then I screamed, pouring every last bit of air from my lungs into it.

"VAREK!!! YOU SON OF A BITCH, COME OUT IF YOU DRANK YOUR MOTHER'S MILK."

The scream caught his attention almost immediately. He stepped out of his room onto the connected balcony.

His eyes locked onto mine and I curled my lips into a grin.

"You spineless bastard," I screamed again. "You sent a fucking D-Rank against me, an E-Rank. Real bold move and it really shows what a pussy you are."

The students gathered around me began to mutter, whispers spreading through the air like wildfire but I wasn't done.

"See what happened to the one you sent," I said, pointing at Rex. "Even he couldn't defeat me."

Then I raised my voice even higher.

"DID YOU REALLY THINK WE HUMANS ARE EASY PREY TO BE TRAMPLED JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE SOME SUCCESSOR OF DEMON KING?"

I was saying all of this deliberately.

After Rio told me how afraid the human students were of Varek, I hadn't thought much of it back then but now that a perfect opportunity had presented itself, with me standing at the center of it all… who was I to deny it?

"BUT NO MORE," I shouted. "I WILL STAND AGAINST YOU. AND NO MATTER HOW MANY GOONS YOU SEND, I WILL STAND TALL AND DEFEAT EVERY ONE OF THEM."

Then I lowered my voice.

"And remember this. Whoever wishes to go against me… this is just the trailer. I won't hesitate to recreate your worst nightmares."

That was my threat.

I was making an example out of Rex and from the sharp gasps echoing around me, I could tell it was working.

I was weaving a narrative of how a weak first year student barged into the palace of the King of Second year and spat on his face in front of his own subjects.

I scanned the students surrounding me one last time, deliberately letting my gaze linger. Every time I met the eyes of a human student, I put on a look of disappointment.

I wanted them to understand just how pathetic they were.

So that one day… I could turn that self-loathing into embers of revolt against Varek.

Then I looked at Varek once again.

"I challenge you to a duel of succession, according to Demon Realm laws."

"The duel will take place in two months. That's how much time I'll need to defeat a pathetic bastard like you."

"And do try to kill me again with backhanded methods if you can't defeat me face to face."

This was bait.

Honestly, I had no intention of letting this bastard survive for two whole months but I needed time… Time to make sure he couldn't pull anything funny in the meantime.

This was my insurance.

If he tried to kill me during those two months, he would be admitting to everything I accused him of.

And for people like Varek…

That kind of humiliation was worse than death.

Varek's face was practically a volcano of emotions as he stared down at me.

"You filthy human." He spat. "Fine. You want a duel? You'll get a duel."

He had no idea how much effect those words had but then again, this bastard was never very smart when anger clouded his judgment.

He stormed back inside after saying that much and my smile widened.

I had achieved everything I wanted, so… I should have left as well, right?

But well, I had promised this guy a reward, didn't I?

I turned toward Rex, who was still lying on the ground and slowly walked over. The crowd surrounding me didn't disperse either, probably curious to see what I was about to do.

Honestly, leaving him like this would have been enough but there was a better option.

I had already turned the humans into my supporters and if I could pull this off… even the demons would follow me.

I knelt beside Rex's broken body and poured a red-colored potion into him.

Red ones were epic-rank potions.

At Rex's current rank, he could barely handle rare potions at best. Taking an epic potion would either restore his body completely… or cause it to explode into pieces.

A fifty-fifty gamble.

That uncertainty was exactly why people never used potions above what their bodies could endure.

At least I would never use something like that on my own body but Rex was different.

If he healed, I could claim I was a benevolent guy who didn't like making pawns suffer for the sins of their rulers.

And if he exploded… Well, that would only make my warning even more intense.

So either way, I wasn't losing anything.

The moment the potion touched his body, it began to glow a bright red. Soon after, every vein and mana pathway within him lit up in gold…

…and then it happened.

—

Author's Note:

Okay, the mini-arc is officially over. Let me know which POV you liked more, the usual first-person or third-person.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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