Chapter 118: Spear

After the demon disaster at the academy, high-level demons began to gather in alarming numbers. It was as if something ominous were about to unfold. 

No—something had already happened. Those fighting on the front lines understood that all too well.

“This is going to spiral out of control…”

“It’s already screwed, huh?”

The Summoners muttered, eyes filled with dread as they stared at the sea of demons. Many felt certain they would die there. Yet, whether by fortune or misfortune, death did not come so easily.

Battles erupted daily. 

The front lines shifted back and forth with every skirmish, big or small. In this endless warfare, Summoners became numb to death—both their own and that of their comrades. Even when a close friend died right in front of them, there was no emotion left to spare.

Over-adaptation bred detachment. Facing the same horrors each day, they moved like machines—soulless, dull, barely tending to their summons.

Machines follow only pre-programmed actions. And so did the Summoners, now reduced to little more than war machines.

Then the demons changed their approach. They infiltrated humanity’s territory in a way never seen before—and succeeded. It took less than a week for several high-level demons to slip past the defenses and into human lands.

***

After the disaster, the academy fell into an unnatural silence. 

The cadets, once cheerful and friendly, now eyed each other with suspicion. Tension hung thick in the air, sharpening with each passing day.

It wasn’t good. This kind of atmosphere bred stress—and stress was a known accelerant of demonization.

‘I can’t force everyone to be friends.’

Friendship requires space to breathe—emotional and mental room to care for others. And when someone is barely holding themselves together, kindness becomes a luxury.

Ironically, the cadets most likely to fall to demonization became targets of bullying.

[Because you can’t understand human beings?]

The fairy in the subspace whispered.

If someone is at risk of becoming a demon, shouldn’t we treat them with kindness—try to pull them back from the edge? Instead, people treated them like monsters already lost.

Humanity on Earth was no different, and the inhabitants of this world showed no more compassion.

If it were easy, someone who dreamed of loving their neighbor and showing mercy to their enemies wouldn’t have stood out so much in history.

‘I’m not going to torment them. Not really.’

[Why?]

‘Because even within the academy, we’re aware of all this.’

Of course, that didn’t mean Ian could save the bullied cadets. Realistically, the best he could do was isolate them from the others to reduce further harm.

Cadet Ian now understood: it was a race against time. Before humanity tore itself apart from within, they needed to defeat the demons. He had to remind everyone that humanity had only one true enemy—the demons—by killing them and making those victories count.

Unfortunately, demons worthy of gaining merit from were becoming increasingly rare, even on the front lines.

‘I’d be grateful if the demons just came to kill me.’

With that morbid thought, Ian gathered the girls. 

The mood in the academy was stifling. Even those usually full of energy were visibly subdued.

Ian forced a smile as he looked at them.

“Hey—what’s with those faces? Smile. Laugh. It’s all we’ve got left.”

He smiled at them, and the girls, seeing his effort, forced smiles of their own.

That was enough. Even a fake smile could trigger the release of hormones that eased stress—endorphins, enkephalins, even cortisol. Once those were flowing, Ian began discussing how to lift their spirits further.

“Ian, what should we do?” one of them asked.

“Well… honestly? I don’t have a clear answer.”

At least in the game, there was no known way to stop demonization. Maybe if Anna used her Origin Art, Wish the God, it could work—but that wasn’t a skill that could be used more than once a day.

He couldn’t use it on every cadet in the academy. Doing so would mean removing Anna from combat entirely, which was a huge loss. As a 3-star summon, she could already take down advanced demons with ease.

“I can treat everyone here, for now. But beyond that… it’s not possible.”

“That’s…”

“We need to address the root cause.”

As a result, all that could be done was prevention—not treatment. Eliminating the cause of the disease was the only way to eliminate the risk of humans becoming demons.

It was said that everything in this world related to demons consumed the remnants of the Demon King. If the Demon King were killed, even that dreadful disease would eventually vanish.

“Well, it’s not something you can catch just because you want to… Just manage your stress and live your life as usual, okay?”

“…Yes. Okay.”

“You understand, right? Listen carefully. If you let a few people get under your skin and let the stress sway you, you could doom the entire human race.”

“We are great beings—those who will kill the Demon King and save mankind. Don’t forget that.”

Hearing the warning, the girls nodded and returned to playing as usual. And so, Ian started chatting away, though he didn’t quite understand what the conversation was about.

It turns out, men weren’t supposed to interfere in women’s conversations. From the flow to the content, everything was completely different.

At that moment, Ian found himself wishing for at least one friend of the same gender. But if you don’t have one, you just have to be satisfied with what you do have.

“Looks like it’s time to wear winter clothes again.”

“I know, right? Feels like I was just wearing summer clothes yesterday, but it’s already getting cold.”

As the girls spoke, they rubbed their bare forearms. The sun was warm, but in the shade, or when the wind blew, it was often uncomfortably chilly.

So naturally, when planning to have tea time outdoors, bringing a coat was a given.

As the stories unfolded, they eventually wandered into territory they probably should have avoided.

“Next summer… We might get to see it.”

“—Hey.”

“Ah, M—I’m sorry…”

Next summer. It felt like such a distant concept now. Wasn’t summer just ending, with fall fast approaching?

It had only been half a year, but so many events—so many accidents—had taken place. Looking just one year ahead made the girls tremble at the thought of what might still lie ahead.

And then, a new feeling began to rise in the minds of these girls, those who were beginning to foresee their own deaths—the desire to reproduce, to leave behind offspring.

Clap. 

One by one, the girls licked their lips and turned to look at Ian.

Sudden goosebumps…

Realizing that his skin had prickled, Ian rubbed his forearm and curled up. Something about this was giving him the creeps…

[ …Hey, summoner. You may— ]

[ Oh, sister! Shh! ]

Feeling the noise in his head, Ian shook his head in irritation, trying to shut it out.

***

God created the summoning system and entrusted its management to the church. The church’s role was only to oversee the system.

But as time passed, records of the Pope or saints hearing God’s voice became scarce.

And then, just as the Pope finished his diligent prayers that day, an alarm rang in his mind.

[—o…ow…yes…he…]

At first, he thought he had misheard. But the voice grew clearer with each passing moment.

[—Dragon—Sal—Danger—Danger—]

Once those fragmented words formed a complete message, the Pope wept, overcome by the will of God. He immediately reported the revelation to the emperor.

The emperor already knew who the Heroes were—and why they were dangerous.

Ian Clark. 

Noah Melie. 

Hadn’t they sent a death row inmate who looked exactly like those two to the demon’s side?

Given the demons’ magic and their spies embedded across the continent, they must have already discovered Ian and Noah’s true identities.

Thus, the emperor quickly dispatched the Imperial Knights to protect them—all of them expert summoners, and elite bodyguards assigned to the order.

Since Ian and Noah were both powerful summoners with strong summons, even just having a meat shield would buy enough time for them to summon their forces.

***

Shi…shreeet!

Stabbed.

Ian let out a wry smile as he looked down at the spear impaled through his abdomen. Each time he chuckled, blood spurted from the wound.

“Master!”

“Summoner!”

Immediately, Ian’s summon appeared and sliced through the demon who had attacked him.

But it was already too late.

[—Kik, kikik. Success—so, easy.]

The insect-like demon, covered in dozens of blades, collapsed with a grin.

Though the demon died on the spot, from the perspective of the demon army, the outcome was well worth the loss.

The life of a high-ranking demon exchanged for that of the Hero, Ian?

It shouldn’t have happened.

And yet—it did.