When the Serial Killer Next Door Gained Harem System

So that was the reason. Decades of betrayal, cruelty, and war. No wonder the hatred ran this deep.

"Damn."

"Reading the The Sundering War?"

I looked up and saw Mrs. Manherob standing to my left, arms crossed. "Y-yeah, ma’am. It’s... intense."

"I don’t know which is worse, kid," she shrugged. "The Sultan or the elves... actually, change that. The elves are definitely the worst."

"Even the innocent ones?"

"Innocent elves?" Her voice dropped low and sharp. "Don’t let the guards catch you saying that, kid. There are no innocent elves. They’re barbaric monsters."

"It’s... I don’t know," I shook my head, uncomfortable.

Hearing footsteps, I turned and saw Professor Kroua approaching. I quickly stood up, tucking the book under my arm. She stopped an arm’s length away, her expression unreadable.

"I thought you’d be off by now, Mr. Walker."

"Off?" Mrs. Manherob repeated. "I thought he was still getting tested."

"He already was," Professor Kroua replied. "And he is the one blessed by Ambly, Goddess of Lust."

"AMBLY!?" The librarian practically shouted, eyes wide. "No way..."

"Y-yeah. Sorry for lying to you, Mrs. Manherob. I’m just trying to keep this whole thing to myself for now."

"The Queen will need to learn about this, Mr. Walker," Professor Kroua said, shaking her head. "That won’t be possible to hide, I’m afraid. This is... such a strange case."

"Yeah, Mr. Marble already told me about it." I nodded. "I, uh... anyway, I need to go prepare for tomorrow. If you’ll excuse me."

"Of course." Professor Kroua gave a small nod as I put the book on the table. "Have a nice day, Ace."

"Hmm..."

ꨄ︎ꨄ︎ꨄ︎

I had only one gold coin left, and that wasn’t nearly enough to spend another night at The Cracked Tankard. I still owed for breakfast too, ten silver, but that could wait for another day. Right now, I needed a roof over my head tonight. And I was still indebted to Dierthen as well. Debts on top of debts.

I was now at the outskirts of the city. From where I stood, Kinola rose on my right, its tall stone walls and towers glowing softly in the late afternoon light. I was on a wide, flat grassy field that stretched between the city and the distant forest. A well-worn dirt road cut through the middle of it, and every few minutes a horse-drawn carriage or a merchant cart would trundle past, wheels kicking up small clouds of dust. Wildflowers dotted the grass in patches of yellow and white, and a gentle breeze carried the faint smell of earth and distant woodsmoke. The area felt open and exposed, but peaceful for now.

"Alright," I muttered, rolling my shoulders. "Time I try these new skills I got."

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> Ace | LC: 7 | EXP: 63/133 | LVL 2

╠═══════════════════════╣

> HP ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ 100/100

> MP ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ 70/70

> STA ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▱▱▱ 51/80

────────────────────────

> Class: MAGE

> Known Abilities:

• Fireball

• Heal

────────────────────────

> PERKS

• +10% More magic damage

╠═══════════════════════╣

> [ BAG ] [ MAP ] [ SHOP ] [QUESTS]

╚═══════════════════════╝

Good, my MP was full again, as well as my HP. So... how exactly did these spells work?

Without overthinking it, I lifted my right hand, palm facing upward toward the sky. If I somehow managed to cast Fireball, I didn’t want to accidentally set the grass, or worse, the distant forest, on fire.

I took a slow breath and closed my eyes. In that moment, I felt something stir inside me. It was hard to describe, like a warm current moving through my veins, some kind of living energy answering my will. It flowed toward my right palm, building, tingling.

"Oh, what..."

A small yellow spark appeared on my right palm, then rapidly grew into a flickering ball of fire. It hovered there, crackling softly, warm but not burning me.

Shit, it was really happening!

With another deep breath, I finally released the spell. The fireball shot upward, climbing at least twenty or twenty-five meters into the air before it fizzled out harmlessly in the sky.

Holy crap. I did it. I actually cast a spell!

"Yes!"

╔═════════════╗

> Fireball cast: -5MP

╚═════════════╝

Five, huh? That was... not that bad. I had seventy MP.

I laughed in disbelief and immediately tried again. Another fireball formed in my right palm, then launched skyward. The same thing happened a third time. Each cast felt more natural than the last.

Fuck me, this was fun. If I could take these spells back to my old world... throwing fire from my bare hand? That would be insane.

"Woo!"

This was real, huh? Real Fireball. A real spell.

I was just raising my right hand for another one when I heard the sound of horses, fast ones, not the slow plodding of carts. Hooves thundered closer along the dirt road.

Suddenly, four riders came galloping into view and pulled their horses to a sharp halt right in front of me. Two of them quickly dismounted while the other two stayed in the saddle, bows already drawn and arrows nocked, scanning the area with sharp, professional eyes.

City guards?

The dismounted guards wore light chainmail under dark green tabards embroidered with Kinola’s crest, swords resting at their hips, and simple helmets with nasal guards that shaded their faces. They moved with the easy confidence of men who had done this many times before; experienced, alert, and clearly not in the mood for games.

Just what were they doing here?

"You threw those help signals, boy?" one of them barked, hand resting on his sword hilt. "Is it elves? Bandits?"

"I’m taking the east!" the female rider with the bow called out, already turning her horse. "You take the other side!"

"Where are they?" the second mounted guard demanded, bow still raised and aimed in my general direction. "Talk, boy!"

"I was... I was just practicing magic!" I said quickly, lifting both hands to show I was unarmed. "I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t mean to—"

All four guards turned toward me at once, eyes wide with disbelief.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" the first guard roared, stepping forward and grabbing my shoulder hard. "You’re practicing magic out here?!"

"I didn’t know it would—"

"One of those stupid kids trying to trick us!" the woman on horseback snapped. "Throwing fake help signals just to mess with the guards!"

"I swear, I didn’t know!" I pleaded. "I had no intention to—"

"Grab him!" the woman ordered.

Ah, crap.