Ch.241Volume 18 (2)

I wait for vacation day by day, but life always brings unexpected events.

The academy has very stable security due to the large number of people coming and going, including many guards, and consequently, the number of incidents is significantly lower.

Even if security-related issues arise, they are quickly resolved. I’ve never heard of any major incidents like terrorism happening at the academy.

But this only applies inside the academy; the outside is different. Especially in this world, security is unstable because individuals can become powerful with sufficient training.

This means that at any time, anywhere, some madmen might commit insane acts—and demon worshippers fit that description perfectly.

Demon worshippers are a force that has been hiding in the shadows plotting conspiracies since before the appearance of the Biography of Xenon. If people suddenly disappear or “undead” appear without warning, it’s usually these guys’ doing.

They are literally worse than vermin, forces of evil with some unknown grudge against the world.

Their biggest problem is that while their existence was unknown before the Biography of Xenon, they’ve now completely surfaced.

Actually, it would be more accurate to say they were forcibly dragged into the light by the Biography of Xenon. As a joke, people say that since the Papal Kingdom of Sabre declared a holy war, a demon worshipper’s head gets smashed every ten seconds.

But what’s most frightening about them is that even the familiar Dark Elves and demon tribes failed to notice their presence.

While Dark Elves and demon tribes borrow power from darkness through Mora, demon worshippers are literally the sticky darkness itself. The demon tribe, having deep connections with demons, had sensed signs of them before.

This is because among the demon worshippers, there were also radical demon tribe members who were thought to have been exterminated long ago.

Those who, during the time when demon tribes were persecuted, embraced hatred toward the world instead of restraint and accepted demonic power themselves.

They were defeated in the civil war in Helium long ago, but it’s gradually being revealed that they’ve been operating covertly among demon worshippers until now.

Even Helium has found some clues after assigning the task to “Reapers.” Thus, the power and scale of demon worshippers far exceed expectations.

Greater power and scale mean more risk factors. Moreover, any faction tends to lash out when feeling threatened.

No one knows what form that lashing out will take, but in most cases, they cause chaos with an “I don’t care” attitude.

The problem is that this chaos causes tremendous damage. Especially those deeply connected to the Biography of Xenon are in great danger.

[…so I’m sending this letter to warn you to be careful. Please don’t worry about me and continue your steady serialization.]

The owner of the letter I read, Musk Grid, is exactly such a case. Musk is the only company contracted with the Biography of Xenon and one of the publicly known connections to Xenon.

Naturally, he’s bound to be a target for demon worshippers. Arwen Elidia is also known to be connected to me, but she’s too big a figure to deal with right now, so they targeted Musk instead.

According to the letter, he was ambushed by demon worshippers but managed to handle it appropriately, and future publications will be done in collaboration with the Church of Luminus.

It seemed absurd that publication would be done in collaboration with the Church of Luminus, but what concerned me most was definitely the ambush part.

In the letter, he said he didn’t mind being attacked himself, but he was really worried about the upcoming exhibition at the Mayshall estate.

Since I had notified him by letter that I attended the last exhibition, there’s a high possibility they’ll expect me to come to this one too.

So demon worshippers might be planning a terrorist attack targeting that. They’ll take countermeasures, but the uneasiness remains.

Madmen don’t listen to reason, and demon worshippers are the type to carry out terrorist attacks even if enormous manpower is invested in the exhibition.

‘Father said he would request help directly from the imperial family…’

If nothing else, my father reads the letters sent by President Musk in advance. Since Musk thinks my father is Xenon, not me, it’s better to read them just in case.

Father said he plans to invite imperial personnel to the mansion. The imperial family will understand given the clear justifications: reinforcing security and the threat of demon worshippers.

Moreover, if I inform Cecilly Drat Isillia Vin about this, Helium will also send personnel. This exhibition only happens once a year, and I have no intention of ruining it.

Above all, the scale of this exhibition is different from the one a year ago. While the previous one was mostly attended by humans and demon tribes, this one will be crowded with all races.

If security collapses here and terrorism occurs, the damage to not only the Mayshall estate but also the Empire of Minerva will be beyond imagination.

To prevent that, the exhibition must proceed smoothly.

‘Will people from the Papal Kingdom of Sabre come too? If they do, Kate Louise Angelica will come, right?’

Somehow the exhibition is becoming something other than just an exhibition. It’s not some national unity event, but an enormous population will be crowding in.

Father said he had a headache preparing for the last exhibition, but now it’s beyond comprehension.

For now, there’s not much I can do immediately. There’s about a month left until vacation, and exam period is approaching as well.

The approaching exam period means students are very busy. Thanks to this, I’ve been meeting acquaintances less frequently, and I’m busy in my own way.

“What kind of exam questions should I set? Think about it.”

“Why are you asking me, your assistant?”

“Because you have many novel ideas. You even imagined what a world without mana would be like before.”

Elena instructed me to submit exam questions on her behalf. In my previous life, I heard of assistants grading exams, but never setting questions.

This is clearly a delegation of responsibility and an illegal act by anyone’s standards, but given the times, I’ll just let it slide. There’s no specific law against it, so there’s no point in anyone complaining.

After grumbling briefly, I shifted my gaze to Cindy Skywalker, who was busy writing a new thesis.

She still maintains her ponytail style, and judging by her dark circles, her lifestyle hasn’t changed at all.

“Doesn’t Cindy have to submit questions like me?”

“I used to do that too… but now I don’t have to…”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m a doctor like the professor now…”

It seems Cindy was also exploited a lot during her assistant days like me. But I don’t particularly mind. Elena doesn’t disregard human rights like a slave driver or nitpick on strange things.

Rather, the more she makes me work, the more helpful it is for history-related matters. While researching materials, I’ve accumulated an enormous amount of knowledge without even realizing it.

“Oh, by the way, if you leak the exam questions, I’ll immediately revoke your assistant position. Remember that. Even if it’s someone close to you, it’s not allowed.”

“I know that much. I need to set different questions for each class, right?”

“Of course. I’ll set them for the second-year and class 1, you handle the rest.”

“Understood.”

It’s annoying, but what can I do? When the professor says jump, I jump. It might be fun in its own way.

While briefly pondering what questions would make students think I set good ones, a curious point suddenly occurred to me, and I asked Elena.

“Professor, are you going to visit the exhibition this time?”

“Hmm? Ah, that’s right, the exhibition is approaching. It’s at your estate again, right?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm…”

Elena pushed up her glasses, thought for a moment, then shrugged and spoke.

“I’d like to see it. Was the Matrix Troupe’s performance really that amazing? I heard they collaborated with the Lirus Orchestra.”

“It was a performance I’ll never forget in my lifetime. If you see it once, Professor, you’ll never forget it either.”

It still plays vividly in my mind. The Sacrifice of Sacran performed by the Lirus Orchestra and Matrix Troupe. It was incredible from the very beginning.

Later, when it was revealed that the director of the Matrix Troupe was a demon tribe member, there was some commotion, but that actually increased their recognition.

It’s a performance that makes you want to see it twice after seeing it once, and three times after seeing it twice. They plan to perform again at this exhibition.

The Matrix Troupe has also stated they will only perform The Sacrifice of Sacran at the exhibition, meaning it’s a performance that happens only once a year.

“Are you coming?”

“Sorry, but I’ll pass on this exhibition too. I have mountains of research to do, so I need to stay in the lab throughout the vacation.”

“Are you that busy?”

“Yes. There are indications that demon worshippers have tampered with some historical records. Occasionally, I see historical accounts that don’t add up. If I dig into this, I think I can figure out what influence demon worshippers had.”

That’s very like Elena, or should I say, true to her scholarly nature. With such determination, I couldn’t persuade her further.

I was about to give up cleanly and think about what questions to submit when Elena advised me in a very serious voice.

“So be careful during the exhibition. Demon worshippers are the kind who can even slightly alter history. You never know how they might harm you.”

“I know that too. That’s why we’re making thorough preparations.”

“That’s good then. I’d hate to lose a good sla… I mean, workforce that I’ve just acquired.”

“You were about to say slave, weren’t you?”

“You misheard.”

I don’t think so.

******

While Issac Dukar Mayshall was busy with final exams at the academy.

The Mayshall estate, where the exhibition will take place, is busy every day.

Under the great symbolism of being Xenon’s birthplace, it’s developing into a cultural city, with various merchant groups and tourists coming and going.

The once peaceful small village is gradually evolving into a city, with various buildings being erected and skilled workers carrying materials for construction.

As a precaution against possible accidents, priests are on standby around the area.

Not only that, but some artists are already displaying their artwork for the exhibition.

Most are sculptures and crafts that are difficult to move, and more artworks will be placed in the future.

In this way, the once quiet Mayshall estate was progressing toward becoming a cultural city day by day, but this time something is different.

“Move quickly! Everything must be completed by the exhibition!”

“Hey! If it’s too hard, take a break. If you collapse while building, it will reflect badly on Lord Xenon.”

“Give me something sweet over here!”

What’s needed to build a designed building is labor. And the ability of the workers who build the building is just as important as the designer’s.

They must understand what the designer wants and build accordingly for both sides to be satisfied. Additionally, the more labor increases, the more time is significantly reduced.

But above all, the most important thing is the number of workers. Especially for large-scale buildings, quantity takes precedence over quality.

Look at the current situation. Regardless of what building they’re constructing, the number of workers assigned to one building appears to exceed 100.

Unlike Earth, technology is inferior, so everything must be done manually, but it’s still a large-scale construction.

So what are they building that requires such manpower?

“…Will it really be completed within a month?”

The head of the Mayshall family, Hawk Ducar Mayshall, spoke with a bewildered expression as he watched the busy construction site. Currently, his eyes reflected a construction scale typically seen only in the capital.

And the golden-haired woman standing beside him smiled beautifully.

She was armed with white armor, and a well-maintained mace was tied to her waist.

It was Cardinal and Grand Inquisitor Kate Louise Angelica, who was reportedly back on her pilgrimage.

For some unknown reason, she had reached the Mayshall estate beyond the capital.

And with tremendous manpower dispatched from the Papal Kingdom of Sabre. All the workers at the construction site are directly dispatched by Sabre.

“Of course. That’s why I brought those people.”

Hawk looked at the temple that had taken some shape with his arms crossed, then slightly turned his head.

Kate was smiling benevolently as usual, but Hawk felt slightly uncomfortable.

When he heard that a cardinal had come to the estate with an enormous number of people, he was puzzled, and later when he heard they were building a temple in the estate without any context, he was dumbfounded.

He wanted to say “What nonsense is that?” to her face, but when they immediately started construction, he was left speechless. Apparently, they had already discussed and decided with the imperial family.

Building a temple is mostly the Papal Kingdom of Sabre’s share, and other countries just need to give permission.

From the perspective of the country where the temple is being built, it sells goods, reduces unemployment, and above all, a temple is being built, so it’s something to welcome with open arms.

“Hmm…”

Hawk slightly furrowed his brow after hearing Kate’s explanation. As a believer in Luminus himself, he had no complaints about a temple being built.

But temples should only be built in cities of a certain size. Because of this, one had to go to the capital to visit a temple.

For reference, it was possible for him, known as the Red Lion, to go to the capital every day, but it would be almost impossible for others. He ran there without even riding a carriage.

“You’re probably wondering why we’re suddenly building a temple. But a temple must be built for this sacred land to receive protection from Lord Luminus.”

Kate seemed to notice Hawk’s inner thoughts and reassured him with a kind smile.

To this, Hawk raised one eyebrow and questioned.

“Did you say sacred land?”

“Yes. The land where the one chosen by Lord Luminus, who furthermore gave the world a chance to drive out the foul darkness, was born. Lord Xenon’s birthplace.”

“…”

“Building a temple on it is only natural. The exhibition can be held under divine protection, and furthermore, it will receive blessings.”

As Kate said this, she looked directly into Hawk’s eyes. Her green glowing eyes contained clear conviction.

Hawk looked at her firm gaze before shifting his gaze toward the construction site.

Just hearing it might be confusing, but Kate’s message is this:

[I will make the Mayshall estate a ‘holy land.’]

A land that is not defiled by anyone, where only purity remains.

Hawk realized her intention and sighed deeply with a complicated expression.

Above all, the most ominous thing was something else.

“How happy would Lord Xenon be if he saw this? Just imagining it thrills me.”

“…”

“Ah, I wish this land would be filled with Lord Luminus’s blessings soon…”

It was Kate’s fanatical aspect. Hawk immediately perceived that she knew Issac’s identity.

However, her attitude toward Issac gives goosebumps to those who see it.

Even he, who had seen everything while making his name as the Red Lion, was retreating slightly.

‘What on earth have you done, my son…’

Hawk sighed again with a complicated expression and looked at the construction site.

‘Surely the demon princess isn’t going to follow this example?’

Such a thought suddenly struck him.