Reincarnated as a Dragon and Raised by a Demon

Jema, having heard the story of Alium, fiddled with the handcuffs.

“What is the success rate?”

“It’s about 60%.”

Both Solche and Alium must have passed that test to be here.

“However, that 60% is assuming that all training has been completed.”

“Isn’t there any other way?”

“It can be removed through surgery.”

“Have you done it before?”

“No, we can’t. The number of people capable of that even in the Empire is extremely low.”

The reason to escape this country became even clearer.

Jema moved to see if there was more to discuss with Alium.

Now that I can see, I don’t need your help.

I sat facing Solche across the table.

“Still, thanks to you, it was easy to infiltrate.”

“When you all escape, take us with you.”

“It’ll be difficult if the handcuffs aren’t released.”

“Don’t worry. If it’s Jema, she’ll do it in no time.”

Didn’t she just heal her injured eye in an instant earlier?

“What does the key to those handcuffs look like?”

I asked Solche about the question I had been holding onto.

“It looks like a small card, but if you don’t have it, you can use the person’s mana to release it.”

“Can you check if that card is inside the Academy?”

“Didn’t you say you trust Jema?”

“If there’s a safe method to release it, we should do it.”

Finding a way to release it safely is the best option.

It is impossible to succeed in the training the agents receive in a short time.

“The headmaster’s office is the most suspicious. They won’t let a common teacher like me in there.”

“As long as you have the key, you can break in and take it.”

“You’re more aggressive than I expected.”

Since when has irritation been rising within me?

With no clear outlet for my frustration, it’s just simmering.

“You can’t defeat the Academy headmaster with your skills.”

“Ugh.”

It hurt more because it was true.

My current skill level is similar to that of the Academy students.

The headmaster is certainly much stronger than the teachers.

“Do you know what the Kingdom of Tholis Academy cultivates?”

“Mercenaries. Anyone from this country knows that.”

“That’s the exterior.”

Solche pulled out a sword from somewhere and placed it on the table.

“Have you ever seen any weapons other than swords used in your Academy?”

“No.”

“Don’t you find that strange?”

I never really thought it was strange.

As I tilted my head in confusion, Solche sighed.

“You really have no knowledge.”

“I was born here and have never been outside.”

“Well, that must be a bit unfair.”

Solche continued to share her thoughts.

“The ultimate goal of the Tholis Kingdom Academy is to produce magic swordsmen.”

“Are all graduates magic swordsmen?”

“No, among humans, there are only a handful of magic swordsmen.”

The most famous human magic swordsman is the first knight king of the Latnia Empire.

This was one of the pieces of knowledge Jema had shared.

“Currently, the most famous magic swordsmen are Blanco from Latnia, Maran from Tehel, and Steve from Tholis. This guy is probably the one you’re looking for.”

“Steve…”

I never thought the person who put handcuffs on Jema would be a magic swordsman.

From the moment I came out of the egg, Jema already had handcuffs on her neck.

The appearance of the person is known only to Jema.

I just learned the name through Solche for the first time.

What Jema knows is only the appearance of the other party.

I’ve managed to catch a little bit of a clue about him.

“How strong is a magic swordsman?”

“In terms of swordsmanship, they’re stronger than our demons. Moreover, since they also use magic, ordinary demons are no match for them.”

It’s a thing of the past that humans were weaker than demons.

Demons have also been stimulated by humans, leading to the emergence of those who have honed various abilities and weapons.

“Your goal is to assassinate Juan, right?”

“Exactly.”

“If you can get the key to the handcuffs in the headmaster’s office, we can deal with Juan.”

“With what means?”

“If I stab him hard with a sword, he’ll probably die.”

Upon hearing my statement, Solche started laughing.

“Haha. If you can kill him that easily, why would we have gone to the trouble of infiltrating the Academy?”

“Is that not possible?”

“Juan is quite a skilled person. He’s one of the candidates for the next magic swordsman, and you think you can kill him? This is amusing.”

How can such a scoundrel be a candidate for the next magic swordsman?

Are the magic swordsmen of this country inherently that twisted?

Or is it that to become a magic swordsman, one has to throw away human qualities?

“Anyway, I will kill him.”

“If you kill Juan, it’s an immediate wanted status. You may not care, but Jema will be executed on the spot.”

“Tsk.”

That handcuff remains a nuisance.

“Shall we wrap it up for today?”

“Since I got the gist of it, let’s do that.”

When Jema opened her eyes after learning something from Alium, an intangible aura surged around her.

“Ririan, come here for a moment.”

“Okay.”

As I approached Jema, her red eyes shone as they looked at me.

“Here, a gift.”

Jema placed something on my hand.

“This is—no way! Is it to release them?”

“Just that. The one in the heart is still in place.”

“I didn’t expect to succeed today.”

Alium was very surprised by Jema’s achievement.

“How do you plan to defuse the bomb?”

“That’s a business secret I can’t disclose.”

Alium sat at the table and was testing several spells.

“Ririan, you’ve worked hard.”

“What have I done?”

Jema reached out and gently patted my head.

“Well, we’ll head back now.”

“The way out is over there.”

A wooden door located opposite from the one Solche and I entered.

“If you go out and up to the second floor, you’ll be connected to the neighboring marketplace, go out that way.”

“Okay. Then see you in class tomorrow.”

“Sure.”

Leaving Solche and Alium behind, Jema and I opened the wooden door and stepped outside.

As soon as I closed the door, it felt like I was entering darkness.

“Light.”

When Jema snapped her fingers, a white orb of light appeared on her palm.

“You could use magic?”

“I showed magic when I enrolled in the Academy.”

That’s when the questions Solche and Alium had were resolved.

How could a demon enroll in an Academy that only had humans?

They must have coveted Jema’s magical abilities.

Unlike humans, demons can use magic as easily as breathing.

What humans acquire through long-term practice, demons are born with.

“Jema, do you know what a magic swordsman is?”

“I do. It refers to one who has reached a certain level in both swordsmanship and magic.”

At the end of the corridor, there was a ladder, and climbing it revealed an ordinary-looking house.

Once on the second floor, all but one of the doors were locked.

Opening the one open door revealed a large hole in one wall.

The distance to the external stairs of the neighboring building was about 30 cm.

I easily crossed over and descended the stairs.

“Here’s the marketplace.”

“I’ve never been here before.”

Jema naturally took my hand and led me.

“I’ll guide you here~”

As we walked through the marketplace, we caught the attention of those around us at once.

We definitely came out of the Academy following Solche in the morning, yet now the sun was setting.

People reacted with surprise as we passed by.

“Have you ever been inside a shop?”

“No, demons can’t enter shops.”

We walked down the street quickly, as if fleeing.

Walking leisurely outside is not easily permitted.

If I continued to roam outside like this, I would go insane.

When we reached the Academy, the headmaster and one teacher were at the entrance.

“Where have you two been?”

“Can’t we go out freely?”

“You can go out, but you can’t disregard class time.”

“The supervising teacher permitted it.”

At my words, the expressions of the teacher and headmaster turned serious.

“Return to the dormitory.”

With just that one sentence, the headmaster and teacher left for the day.

The Academy’s purpose is to produce magic swordsmen.

I don’t know what they plan to do using Jema, but I won’t just let it happen.

Back in the dorm room, Jema tossed aside the clothes she had been wearing.

“After all, this outfit is the most comfortable.”

In pajamas that doubled as underwear, Jema buried herself in her bed.

“I’m a bit tired today, so I’ll sleep first.”

“Okay.”

With today’s events, the Academy might be monitoring us.

I suddenly felt like I needed to pay more attention to the boundaries of the room.

Thinking about escape routes in case of emergencies, I looked out the window.

By chance, I caught sight of a silhouette behind a tree in the dormitory garden.

Someone wearing a blue cloak and a hat pulled down low.

Anyone could see their actions were suspicious.

I realized that there were no curtains on our room’s window.

If the other party looked this way, they could easily notice us.

I hurriedly hid my body below the window.

I thought about whether to wake Jema, but the other party hasn’t moved yet.

Deciding to refrain from acting hastily, I planned to observe the other party slowly.

That person’s gaze was directed not at our window but towards the entrance of the building.

There are about 30 students living in the dormitory, including Jema and me.

Of course, that’s just for the building we’re in.

The other buildings are larger and host many more occupants.

The direction the figure in the garden was looking was not towards our building.

After a moment, I realized my concerns were unnecessary.

The person disappeared cautiously, following another student coming out of another building.

After meeting Solche and Alium, my worries increased.

I no longer felt that the Academy’s dormitory was safe.

I need to become stronger than I am now.

To kill Juan.

From Juan’s perspective, I must have been nothing but an outsider.

Even if I acted impulsively, I had avoided making a big deal out of things.

If I had fought seriously, could I have won?

Thinking back, I am merely a bit stronger than humans.

From what Solche told me, magic swordsmen can’t be matched by ordinary demons.

A regular person who hasn’t trained would be no match at all.

I sat cross-legged in the middle of the room.

With my wings fully spread and tail raised, I concentrated all my nerves.

The enemy I must face is a magic swordsman.

Even if I unleash everything I have now, I can’t kill the opponent.

What I lack.

The mana that was swirling around Jema!

Solche said I am also a demon.

If that’s the case, then I should be able to wield mana.

I don’t know the mental method, but Jema also learned it independently.

First of all, I’ll try it no matter what.

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