Ch.12Chapter 12

# Demon God

To understand the existence of Demon Gods, extensive research was necessary.

They are born outside the natural order from the beginning. They come into the world without parents, as if the world suddenly spat out a person. Born without infancy and immediately exposed to the world’s threats, they instinctively point their blades at everything except themselves for protection.

This was the life of a Demon God—living in a world with only enemies, without family or friends.

With no one around them, they couldn’t possibly receive education. Basic common sense and ethics didn’t apply to them. Since only they existed for themselves, they defined themselves through knowledge they gained on their own.

The title “Demon God” suited them perfectly.

They didn’t just appear naturally. Regardless of race—whether human or elf—some transcended their limitations.

But that didn’t mean there were Demon Gods friendly to humans. Whether created from hatred toward humans or loathing for the world, those who became Demon Gods harbored clear hostility toward everything else.

People unanimously declare that Demon Gods are beings beyond our understanding. They are merely beasts with intelligence, and their violence will never cease. Peace will not come to the world unless we fight and exterminate them.

That’s why people fear Demon Gods.

Because Demon Gods friendly to humans simply didn’t exist.

Of course, Ourr was different. Officially recognized as equipment by the Academy, Ourr had proven harmless to people through Professor Yuria’s continuous verification.

Professor Yuria wasn’t entirely comfortable with it either. It saddened her that a child so human-like had to be treated as equipment solely because she was a Demon God. But as long as she held her position as a professor and appointed herself as Ourr’s guardian, she had to follow orders from above.

Hoping that Ourr would become a Demon God no one feared.

“…You’ve made more friends lately.”

Professor Yuria wore a proud expression, though she embraced mixed feelings of satisfaction and wistfulness, perhaps missing when Ourr would only cling to her.

Still, thinking about the future, making many friends would be better for Ourr. With that thought, Yuria continued her research.

—

“Did you always wear clothes this big?”

On the way to the lecture hall, Sera asked cautiously. She might have asked before, but perhaps my constantly fluttering clothes bothered her as we hurried along. I was holding my skirt with my belt, so that might be why.

“Maybe, I think so…”

Truthfully, I could barely remember what the original size was anymore. I had no choice but to wear what I had, estimating the size before this happened.

I followed behind Sera with an awkward posture. Sera was quite tall with a wide stride.

Were they all planning to become models? They had short upper bodies and long legs. They all had magazine-worthy figures.

Because of this, I had to walk feeling like a sparrow following a stork.

“We’re here. Let’s go in!”

“Oh, okay.”

I nodded at Sera’s gesture. I was so tense that my lips felt dry. After swallowing hard, I followed Sera into the lecture hall, where I felt everyone’s eyes turn toward me.

Usually, they would look once, confirm I wasn’t the professor, and return to their business, but my presence in clothes different from the Academy uniform seemed to draw continuous stares.

I’d already been making my presence known throughout Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, so rumors must have spread. I wondered if everyone already knew about me.

It wasn’t particularly pleasant to be recognized throughout the Academy regardless of year, when I was neither a celebrity nor a professor.

As usual, Sera took a seat in the corner and patted the empty space beside her. I scurried over and sat down, then Sera asked:

“By the way, what are you going to do during the lecture, Ourr? Will you listen?”

“I don’t even know what lecture this is… I’m going to study letters first.”

I answered with a determined voice. Sera gasped in surprise, then took out paper and a pen from her bag and handed them to me.

After receiving them and staring at them for a while, Sera rested her chin on her hand and gave me a playful task.

“Then, can you try writing my name?”

“…Huh? Um…”

Click. The pen revealed its tip. It was obvious that drawing it across the paper would leave a black line. But the pen just hovered in the air.

Sera, Sera. I saw it yesterday when we were messaging, but what did it look like again? I can’t quite remember.

I seemed to have focused more on memorizing the ten numbers from 0 to 9 than on memorizing names. As I clutched my head and struggled, someone approached.

“Who is this?”

Looking up, I saw a woman with golden hair and golden eyes standing in front of my desk. What was unusual was that her ears were elongated on both sides.

I couldn’t help but stare at the elf, whom I was seeing for the first time. Her gold color seemed even more yellow than the professor’s, which fascinated me. Not all yellows are the same yellow. While I was making this assessment, Sera gently placed her hand on my shoulder.

“Haven’t you heard the rumors? This is Ourr.”

“I know that. She has a nameplate.”

The golden elf’s finger pointed toward my chest. It was the ID card and nameplate that the professor had given me. I felt its effectiveness as it displayed my face and name.

As I gripped the pen tightly and looked at her, she also glanced at me.

“She’s a Demon God, a Demon God.”

“…A Demon God?”

“Aria, you didn’t take the course because you weren’t particularly interested in Demon Gods, right? I just took it to fill credits, but look at me now, meeting a Demon God in my third year!”

Sera put her arm around my shoulders, showing off our friendship to the elf she called Aria. It made me feel a bit suffocated as I was pulled into her embrace.

“…”

Aria’s gaze turned toward me. That careful yet scrutinizing look, which seemed to examine every inch of my body, felt slightly chilling.

When I shrank my shoulders and shivered, Aria stepped back slightly in surprise.

“…Sorry, I didn’t expect to encounter a Demon God like this.”

“It wouldn’t be bad to add the course during the registration adjustment period, right? You could even become friends with Ourr like this.”

Sera’s smile stretched up to her cheekbones. I wondered if by third year, everyone had close friends even if they took different courses or had different majors.

Or was Sera just particularly sociable?

“I’ll consider it. I’m curious. I’ve always heard they were violent, but looking at her now, she’s just like a small animal… reminds me of the cats I raised in my garden.”

“…Cats?”

“The cats in our gardens enjoy being touched, unlike the cats in the human world, it seems.”

When I cautiously asked, Aria told me with a slightly nostalgic look, as if remembering her homeland.

By the way, I wondered if people would really change their course registration just to see me. The thought made me a bit scared. Still, since there were enrollment limits for each lecture, I could be somewhat reassured that there wouldn’t be too many.

“Ah, the lecture’s about to start.”

As the professor opened the door and entered, Sera immediately took out her textbook. Aria looked around frantically before noticing the empty seat next to me and slipping into it.

“…May I sit here?”

“I don’t mind.”

The professor had arrived, and I couldn’t ask Aria to leave when she was already sitting to my left, so I nodded. Well, I wouldn’t have asked her to leave even if the professor hadn’t arrived.

“…Um, I’ll call attendance.”

The professor climbed onto the podium and took out the attendance sheet. I used that as a signal to move my pen. The pen glided across the paper, completing one character.

“…Ourr.”

Perhaps seeing what I was writing, Aria softly read it aloud. When I slightly turned my head, Aria continued with an expressionless face.

“Can I call you Ourr?”

“Yes, then can I call you Aria?”

“Yes.”

Aria nodded. Thinking we had finished our introductions, I went back to writing. As I was writing letters, thinking I should at least know how to write my own name, Aria suddenly took out her own pen from her pencil case.

Then she quickly wrote something on the paper where I was writing my name.

“…Aria.”

She used the tip of her pen to read what she had written.

“Aria.”

I stared at those letters for a moment, then wrote “Aria” below my name. At that, the corners of Aria’s expressionless face slightly turned upward.

Sera, who had been watching quietly, flinched in surprise and pressed herself against me.

“She’s, she’s my friend…!”

“I just became friends with her too.”

Despite Sera’s outcry, Aria counterattacked without concern.

And amid that commotion, an urgent call for Sera was heard.

“Sera, Sera? Is she not here?”

At the professor’s call, I poked Sera’s waist. Startled, Sera looked at me once, then realizing the professor was calling her, raised her hand high.

“Yes, yes! I’m here!”

“Please focus during attendance check.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Sera sighed, dropping her shoulders.

Despite apologizing, now that her name had been called, she seemed to think it didn’t matter anymore and scribbled something on my paper.

“Se-ra. Got it?”

After writing the letters and reading them clearly, Sera gave me a slight smile. Watching this from my left, Aria shook her head.

“That means ‘darling.’ Forget it.”

“Hey…! That’s too much! It’s my name…”

Since their words were so contradictory, I carefully took out my phone from my inner pocket. Checking Sera’s contact in my phone book, I could confirm that what Sera had written was indeed her name.

Aria seemed to have little change in her expression, making her appear blunt, but she seemed to have a mischievous side.

“Wow, she’s checking.”

“…You have a phone? I’ll give you my number too.”

Caught between Sera and Aria, I turned off my phone, sweating profusely.

“…Let’s listen to the class.”

It was just a brief conversation, but I felt completely drained.