I Became a Murderer in the Academy.-Chapter 112

How would I describe this feeling? Though she ended as a monster, she was human. In some ways, she may have been more human than anyone else.

An endless void? No, it wasn’t quite that. It felt as if I had drifted entirely away from humanity.

Whatever feelings Serthia may have held towards me, I really had none for her.

Aside from recognizing her strength and a tragic past that rivaled my own.

"I guess I won."

But perhaps because she left with such provocation.

There was a twist of discomfort within me, like I wanted to vomit.

Though I didn’t feel anything emotionally, the very lack of feeling created an unsettling dissonance.

A monster’s life is suffering. Suffering is more terrifying than death, so in that sense, I am enduring a harsher punishment than Serthia ever did.

She won, and I lost.

The meaning of her parting words strikes me to my bones.

"…"

Perhaps, on this continent, she was the one most like me.

Serthia and I both bore the same curse, were both human and monster, and wished for death over life.

In a way, she might have been my kin. Does that mean I’ve killed one of my own kind for the first time? I’m not sure I know anything anymore.

My body hurt, and the blood loss left me feeling dizzy.

"Ugh…"

This battle had been dangerous.

My life wasn’t directly at risk, but there were moments when I almost lost my grip on sanity.

I could have repeated the massacre in the back alleys that happened about a year ago.

In the end, it was two monsters, neither of them fully conscious, fighting each other. If Serthia had fought with a bit more hatred, I wonder—perhaps the Empire would have been destroyed.

‘If Serthia had chosen to become a monster at the end, what would have happened?’

The scene would have been far more devastating than it is now.

Even if death is rest and life is suffering, it’s never easy to accept death when it’s right before you.

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It might be rest, but an instinctive fear always follows.

Yet, in the end, Serthia chose not to become a monster. It was a surprising choice, even for me.

She left the decision to me, but the choice wasn’t mine alone.

If she’d wanted, she could have accepted the demonic energy at any moment and struck me down. I respected her for not doing so.

She was similar to me, yet different.

Unlike me, who became a monster and committed a massacre a year ago, Serthia didn’t go that far.

"Goodnight."

I paid my final respects to the hero of the past, whose eyes were now closed.

Serthia had been stronger than me in both body and mind. If I had met her twenty years earlier, I might have truly found “liberation.”

And…

Even in death, the dignity of Serthia, who had served as the Academy’s principal for so many years, remained.

Just before she drew her last breath after being pierced by my sword, she said one thing.

"Please… tell that child that I’m sorry."

It wasn’t until I read her memories that I knew who that child was.

It must have been Ariel, the hero of this generation and the protagonist of this story.

What she was sorry for, I couldn’t know, as I am not Serthia. But I decided to deliver the message. It wasn’t particularly difficult for me.

With everything finished, I put away the red demonic energy. My whole body was covered in blood and wounds.

It would have been nice if it rained now, but the sky never takes pity on me.

I looked up at the sky, which had turned dark at some point.

In a landscape soaked in blood and untouched by extinguished flames, starlight seemed to rain down instead of rain.

After standing still for a while, I sensed a presence behind me.

"…Albert."

Was he alive?

I thought he’d been buried under the debris when the library collapsed.

Then again, Serthia was exceptional, but he was also a first-rate mage. He could manage his own body at the very least.

He stood with his head lowered, saying nothing. With his dark glasses obscuring his face, I couldn’t see his expression.

But I understood his feelings. Right now, there was only emptiness, but I used to be human, too.

I asked him,

“You knew this would happen from the start, didn’t you?”

“She could never escape her fate of death. While I didn’t foresee this exact outcome, I was prepared. At least she didn’t become a hideous figure like the former saintess.”

“Aren’t you resentful of me?”

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel any resentment. Yes, I do resent you.”

Of course.

Another murderer asks the mage who has lost someone.

“Because I killed your teacher?”

“…”

He answered my second question with silence.

A silent affirmation.

And then,

“But I also know that there was no other way. It was the Demon Lord’s curse that would have transformed my teacher into something inhuman.”

“Hmm.”

“I thank you for allowing my teacher to pass on as a human.”

He spoke with a calmness that hid his emotions as best as he could.

Not that he needed to hide them from me—I could see right through it. His breathing was uneven, his heartbeat irregular.

A stark contrast to the cold demeanor I’d seen before. So he does feel emotions after all. It seems I shouldn’t judge people by their exterior alone.

“You heard our conversation earlier, didn’t you?”

I looked him in the eye.

In the presence of this dense demonic energy, lying was impossible.

“They say I might be the Demon Lord. Just as Ariel is the candidate for the next hero, I might become the new Demon Lord.”

“I heard.”

“Then, will you oppose me as well? I could be the greatest calamity humanity faces.”

I asked if he would fight me now.

For him, I must be an enemy who killed his mentor, so it wouldn’t be surprising if he attacked me right here.

He had every right to be angry at me.

I stood still, waiting for his answer.

“...Of course. You are an enemy of humanity.”

“…”

“But that time is not now. If we were to fight now, there would only be one more corpse added.”

As expected, he’s level-headed.

He knows that he can’t handle me on his own, especially since Serthia couldn’t either.

I had no desire to fight, either. I may not look it, but I’m quite exhausted. If we were to keep fighting, I’d surely lose control.

I didn’t want to cause another massacre like the one a year ago.

“Then let’s look forward to another time. Come back when you’re better prepared and feel you can actually kill me.”

The current Albert is no match for me. Maybe that will change in the future.

With Serthia gone, he is now the strongest mage in the Empire. I held a slight expectation for him.

Even if he doesn’t reach Ariel’s level, he may become strong enough to give me some trouble in the end.

I’ll avoid him from now on, so we won’t meet again at the Academy.

If we do meet again, that day will be the last.

Before leaving, I turned back to Albert.

“Keep what happened today a secret. You know better than anyone that provoking me would do no good.”

The Empire is powerless without Serthia.

And this world I’ve fallen into follows the law of the jungle.

I am now stronger than the entire Empire’s forces combined. At this moment, I am the master, and they are the servants.

He is a smart man, so I won’t have to erase his memory.

“Someone will need to take care of her funeral.”

I left Serthia’s body in his care.

If someone found it later, that would only make things more complicated.

The smell of blood on me today was nauseating.

Usually, the scent of blood is so sweet it almost makes me faint, but this time it was probably because it was my own.

I endured the metallic scent and headed back to where I originally came from.

To the back alleys of the Empire.