CHAPTER 12: SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL

**Greg**

The duel. It was a staple of the Japanese ‘school isekai’ or ‘school fantasy’ novels I read before. Basically, it went like this: the MC would accidentally stumble upon a girl, usually in the middle of changing clothes, or taking a bath. Then, he would be seen, and—just as the angry girl was about to kill him—he would escape to his classroom. As it turned out, that girl was his classmate, and once she recognized her peeping tom, would challenge the MC to a duel where the latter would always prevail using overwhelming powers…

“…”

It’s so predictable that I would always skip the first few chapters of the novel, and still follow the story. Back to reality, honestly, I didn’t expect it would happen to me. I thought those were just a product of one fantasy writer, copied by the next author, then copied once again by the next, and the next…and the list goes on, until the cliché went stale and another idea supplanted it, ready to be copied again.

Well, in my case, there was no naked scene, nor do I wish to see one…at least, not from a student. And I didn’t even had an idea of what made that yellow-green demon girl mad at me; I don’t know her! She just spewed malicious accusations about my identity and challenged me to a duel.

“…”

Now, of course, I’m a grown-up, 25-year-old adult. I shouldn’t let myself be provoked by some random demon brat. Nevertheless, if I just let her hurl insults at me, other students would get the idea that I’m an ‘easy’ or ‘weak’ teacher, thus, I’m susceptible to bullying.

Heh, if you thought that bullying happens only to students, then you’re awfully wrong. It’s just not that widespread, unlike the other.

So, once I got the permission from my fellow teacher about obliging her student’s invite for a duel, I asked the cheeky brat where she would like to fight me.

“Let’s go to the Conclave’s courtyard, where everyone will see your fraud!” she declared.

Okay then, so we head to the courtyard, as the demon girl demanded. By the time we reached the designated place, the news of the ‘mysterious, new’ teacher dueling a student had already spread like wildfire, and the scholars had gathered around to watch.

“What’s the meaning of this? What’s the cause of the disruption?” the Discipline Prefect, Lord Scholar Gracchio, was also at the scene. Along with some members of the Discipline Committee of the Conclave, they were trying to have the students return to their classrooms.

However, the students were too many to control, and while there were those who returned to their rooms, there were also those who would return once the prefects had passed. My co-teacher finally intervened on my behalf…

“Lord Scholar Gracchio, I apologize for this ruckus,” she told him, bowing as she explained our side. “It’s just that…you know, the goblin girl…”

The angry expression on the Discipline Prefect immediately dissipated, and he just nodded, “Lady Srexe’s at it, again?”

My co-teacher confirmed, “She even dared the Special Scholar Greg to duel her, calling him a fraud.”

I could see the sarcastic smirk form on the otherwise prim and proper Discipline Prefect. “I understand. Just remind the Special Scholar not to injure her badly, so as not to offend her parents.”

“Yes, Lord Scholar.”

Wow…judging from their conversation, it seemed like this…err, goblin girl wasn’t well-liked, in this place.

I was about to ask the teacher about it when I heard a familiar voice call out to me, “Lord Greg!”

Princess Noir and Shevaun appeared from the stunned crowd, and went beside me. The demon princess asked, “What’s going on? Why are you here?”

“Some goblin girl wanted to duel me, apparently because she thinks I’m a fraud.” The other students were talking among themselves, while casting looks to Princess Noir; it seemed that Usarved Princess was well-known to them, even though she graduated from this place long ago.

“Goblin girl, you say?” the Usarved chamberlain fixed her glasses. “With a pink hair?”

“Yep…you know her?”

Both of them exchange amused looks and then laughed. It was Shevaun who told me, “Please go easy on her, milord. That girl doesn’t know what she’s getting into.”

“Heh, Srexe’s always like that,” Princess Noir grinned. “She claims she’s my rival, yet she never went past her junior graduation exams for five times now! Perhaps she’s pissed that you’re my friend, Sir.”

“Well…I did introduce myself in her class as your friend, milady,” I admitted. “What is her name again? Su-rek-se, or something?”

“Yes, Sir, your pronunciation is correct, but say it faster; goblins give weird, hard-to-pronounce names to their kin. And by the way, it’s all fine, Sir! I appreciate that you’re proud to associate yourself with my clan,” the demon princess winked at me. “But, just like what Shevaun said, don’t destroy her.”

“I won’t; I never hurt a student before, at least deliberately, and I have no intentions of doing that now. However, I’m curious. Is she hated here?”

“Lady Srexe’s abhorred everywhere she goes,” Shevaun explained, “Arrogant, and self-absorbed, who wants a companion like that?”

“But you say she’s a lady, eh?”

“She’s the daughter of one of the ruling clans of the city of Goblinhom,” Princess Noir confirmed. “And that fact got deep into her head, she demands that everyone bow down to her.”

“I see…a classic case of cheekiness, eh?”

Our conversation was interrupted when the goblin girl appeared, the other students stepping aside to make way for her entrance. She carried a sword on one hand—a rapier, to be exact—and a wand made of mithril on the other. Once their eyes met, Lady Srexe taunted Princess Noir, “So you finally showed up, my greatest rival! I suppose your human ‘boy toy’ tucked his tail and ran to you?”

“Hello there, my greatest fan!” the demon princess countered her with a sarcastic quip. “I see you’re still doing well in your junior level! Envious of my ‘boy toy’?”

These girls…do they even have an idea of what that phrase means?

“Kuh!” the goblin girl clicked her tongue. It was obvious that she’s being pushed to a corner, yet, her spirit was unwilling to accept defeat, “So you do admit that filthy human barbarian is from your clan! What now, trying to fool the Conclave with your human fraud? Oh, sorry, I mean, friend!”

“At least I got a friend…and a ‘toy’, unlike some greatest fan I knew.”

“Grr…I really hate you, Noir Usarved!”

“The feeling is mutual, goblin girl,” Princess Noir heaved a sigh and turned her back on Lady Srexe, “Sir, please end this pathetic show immediately. We’re still going to discuss how to trick everyone in the Conclave.”

“Milady, you sure know how to piss someone off. Bravo!” I whispered my sardonic comment.

“Shevaun is my former teacher, milord,” she snickered and winked at me. “Where else will I learn this expertise?”

----------

Although the demon realm of Cherflammen was considerably ‘more modern’ than the lands of Chersea (late medieval) and Cherwind (prehistoric) combined, there were certain aspects of the demon culture that was still deeply-rooted in their past. For examples, there’s the concept of the ‘male superiority’ in leadership, which was reflected in the case of Princess Noir and her ‘brother’ Prince Hurion. The idea of clan affiliation that supersedes the formation of a unified demon nation. And the belief in the justice of trial by combat.

Well, just like the Earth version of this type of duel, the winner was deemed as the right one, for the sole reason that the heavens would never favor the ‘evil’ pretender. However, there were some minor modifications…

“Err…so what weapons will we use?” I asked the Lord Scholar Gracchio.

“What do you mean, Special Scholar Greg?”

“You don’t have rules like only one type of weapon should be used in the fight? Like, swords only, or magic spells only?”

“What are you saying? In duels like this, only the might of the combatants matter. Why should we limit the weapons available to them?”

“Uhh…how about the injuries? Don’t you have something to protect us from fatal injuries?”

The Lord Scholar stared blankly at me. “Special Scholar Greg, what nonsense are you spouting? Of course, this is a duel! And in a duel, you fight ’till one side gives up, draws the blood of their opponent, or dies. Don’t tell me you accepted Lady Srexe’s invite without knowing those facts!”

I froze when I heard that. Years of reading ‘isekai’ duels made me forget the rules of the actual duels that sometimes led to the death of one of the combatants.

And, uh, though she’s a rude idiot, Lady Srexe must be young…well, relative to her race.

“…”

Ugh, I can’t stomach this. I’ll fight a kid in a ‘do-or-die’ battle situation. But, if I turned tail and give way to her right now, Princess Noir’s name will be disrespected.

“Haa…” I guess I’d just injure Lady Srexe enough to show blood, then heal her with my god-powers.

“What are you sighing for, fraud? Did you realize how hopeless your situation is, and is thinking of surrender?” the goblin girl called out to me. “Well, if you would bow before me and admit to your cheating, I might consider forgiving you.”

Yep, I’ll definitely kick her ass, then just heal her later. Some brats need a good dose of discipline.

The Discipline Prefect, though the Conclave discouraged duels (if it’s between the students), officiated our match. From his words and reactions, I could guess that the Lord Scholar Gracchio had no love for the noble goblin girl from Goblinhom. Princess Noir whispered to me earlier that she overheard him and the other teachers wishing for Lady Srexe’s defeat, though they also didn’t support me that much, since I’m a ‘hated’ human.

Ah, poor kid…you must’ve pissed off a lot of people that they will side with their hated enemy just to bring you down.

The Lord Scholar Gracchio, in all his seriousness, took his prominent position on the middle side of our battlefield. The moment he did that, the noises of the spectators were immediately hushed, and the other members of the Discipline Committee immediately chanted a magic barrier spell that was meant to protect the onlookers.

“Hear ’ye! Hear ’ye!” the Discipline Prefect began his announcement, “Witness the trial between the Lady Srexe of the Goblins, who is accusing the Special Scholar Greg Santos of lying because of his claims as the former teacher of our revered hero, Lady Cassandra David. May the heavens, with the providence of our divine Saint of Darkness, Lady Natasha Bellingsen, guide the true and the worthy to triumph and justice.”

After that, he gestured for us to stand on the opposite sides of the battlefield, his other prefects making sure that our positions were in equal distance from one another. Aside from her rapier and mithril wand, Lady Srexe also brought a pair of matchlock pistols—which they referred to as ‘crack horns’. On my side, I got a dagger and a matchlock pistol, too…though I attached a small bayonet on its barrel.

“If anyone wishes to surrender, now is your time,” the Lord Scholar said. “Otherwise, this duel will only end once the other party cannot continue to fight. Am I understood?”

“Yes!” was the goblin girl’s enthusiastic answer. Her confidence was oozing high; I bet anyone would, the moment they saw and compare our weapons. One look, and it’s quite obvious who’s outgunned in this duel. However…

Yep, I deliberately chose these to send a message.

And of course, I won’t let them see that I didn’t like the idea of fighting a child, so I replied with a “Yes,” as well.

With no side willing to back down, the Discipline Prefect raised his hand—the signal that we begin our fight in earnest.

----------

“So, you really did not surrender,” Lady Srexe began. “I commend your brave—!!!”

Her words were interrupted when I fired the first shot, which I aimed at her leg, but unfortunately missed. Naturally, she was embarrassed, surprised and annoyed, all at the same time.

“Lady Srexe,” I reloaded my matchlock gun leisurely, as I walked towards her, “one of the rules on the actual battlefield is that your foe wouldn’t wait for you to finish talking to him, nor announce your attack. Be grateful that I missed; it won’t happen next time.”

Taking upon my advice, the goblin girl started her attack. She aimed one of her pistols on me and fired, generating a good amount of smoke. However, as she pulled the trigger with improper posture, the gun’s recoil shook her arm, and she inadvertently dropped her weapon without hitting me. I continued on my ‘menacing’ walk…

“!!!”

Ah, the face of a panicked, cornered brat, trying to find a solution to the mess she created.

Not willing to give up, Lady Srexe whipped her other pistol and trained it on me once again. As she was losing her nerves, she immediately fired—forgetting that she needed to have a proper footing before shooting, lest the recoil would throw her down…which it did. Meanwhile, the bullet only chipped the ‘air shield’ (from my god-power) I secretly cast in front of me before we started. My leisure walk towards the goblin girl neither slowed nor went faster. My matchlock pistol was loaded, and I made sure that she knew it was; I also clarified that the decision to fire it, or not, would be according to my whims.

Heh, I want to instill some sense of terror to this cheeky goblin brat while I inched my way to her.

Outside our protective barrier, the shouts of the students went uncontrolled, and it grew louder with every moment passing. They were cheering, though I didn’t know if it’s because I was clearly winning, or the goblin girl fell down on her butt, desperate to escape her predicament. I glanced at Princess Noir; she was shouting something at me, though the shouts of the others and the shield drowned her voice.

“Y-You f-f-fraud! I-I’m not even starting!” Lady Srexe stood defiant, as she went back on her feet, with her rapier and wand drawn.

“Milady, let’s stop this stupid show,” I told her for the last time. “I don’t want to cause further injuries to you, nor do I wish to embarrass you. I won’t ask for any apologies; let’s just stop. Plain and simple.”

“Hoh! So, you really are scared to face me—!!!”

For goodness’ sake, I had enough. Once I was an arm’s length away from her, I gave the goblin girl a slap to her face. I think that shocked her, for she couldn’t move for a few seconds; ample time to beat someone like her to submission. But—as I’m the adult—I still held back, hoping that what I did sent some sense into her inflated head.

But…

“You!” the terrible expression on Lady Srexe’s face told me that my efforts to protect her were ineffective. “How dare you lift your filthy human hands to a noble lady of the Goblin clan!”

Oh dear…she’s even more pissed.

“Yaaarrrrggh!!!” the goblin girl attacked me with her sword this time. Combined with her magic spells, Lady Srexe was unrelenting. In her eyes, I could see that she was determined to kill me. However…

“Oh no! The Special Scholar made her mad!”

“There goes the famed goblin swordplay!”

“You mean the lame goblin swordplay!” which was followed by laughs.

Yes, the insults were real. Though she was raging, Lady Srexe’s attacks were like a child’s way of flailing arms while in the middle of a tantrum. Lots of openings, weak footwork (if you could call it one), and she was just slashing randomly at my direction. I didn’t even bother to block or deflect her—a simple evade was enough to protect myself.

“You! I’ll kill you!” there were tears in the goblin girl’s eyes. She knew that she was being seen as a laughingstock, that’s why she tried her best to catch me off guard by throwing a few magic spells that my ‘air shield’ conveniently blocked.

Goodness…this is pathetic.

“Try to bite him, that might work!”

“How about you turn around and let him kick your ass!”

“Hahaha! How low can you get, Srexe? You even got defeated by a human!”

At that point, Lady Srexe was not attacking anymore. She just stood before me, dropping her sword and wand, bawling her heart out. Honestly, though I was pissed at her before, looking at this brat in her current situation made me pity her. It’s as if the entire world was laughing at her…a failure for five times, hated by everyone, and couldn’t even land a hit on her opponent.

Haa…though I hated her guts, I’m also annoyed at these idiots watching outside. I mean, come on, the person’s obnoxious and all, but at least don’t kick her when she’s completely down. Have some fucking sympathy for the devil!

“!!!” I channeled my mana to my hands, and it began to glow golden-yellow. Immediately, the bright azure skies of Cherflammen were filled with dark clouds, and soon, flashes of lightning and peals of thunder manifested, followed by strong winds. The students and some teachers watching were shocked and scared. I heard one of them say,

“Look at the Special Scholar’s hands! It’s the god-power of the Beastman Saint!”

The golden-yellow light grew even more intense, in turn it made the weather even worse. Everyone outside the protective barrier was having a difficult time standing up; and the trees around were already shaking violently. To show to all what I could do, I raised my hands towards the heavens—though it was unnecessary (just for added flair), and called out a few hailstones to rain down on them.

Well, I made sure that those will fall on places where there’s no people; after all, my goal is to just scaring them.

“Kyaaa!!!”

“The Special Scholar! Please appease him; don’t make him even angrier!”

“Hush your insults! Stop the duel!”

Led by the Discipline Prefect himself, the other prefects lifted the protective barriers and ran towards me. I thought they would attack, but they threw themselves prostrate at my feet, begging that I stopped the foul weather.

“Lord Special Scholar Greg, master, we implore you to have mercy on us!” the baritone demon clasped his hands. “We’ll keep everyone from harming you, just please stay your mighty hand!”

The rest of the demons followed the prefects’ lead and kneeled before me as well—save for the Princess Noir, Shevaun and Lady Srexe, who was stunned at what she was witnessing.

“I had enough of this nonsense,” I told them. “I only wish to be left alone to teach.”

“Y-Yes, it will be done, l-lord!” the Lord Scholar Gracchio replied.

“And that goblin girl over there, I demand that no bullying will be done to her. In exchange, I’ll make sure she fixes her attitude.”

“Y-Yes…l-lord…”

“Why is your answer sounds unsure, Lord Scholar?”

“Yes, lord!” the baritone demon corrected himself. “I’ll assign prefects to watch over Lady Srexe!”

“Good. It’s settled then,” I stopped the mana flow from my hands, and the foul weather disappeared in an instant, further astonishing the entire population of the Conclave. The azure sky returned, together with the bright light up there…though there were some light damages to the school that needed to be fixed.

My cheeky foe then uttered, “What just happened?”

“Do you still want to fight?”

She dumbfoundedly shook her head.

“Then we’re good,” I told her. “And since I defeated you, you’ll follow every word I say. Let’s fix that bad attitude of yours.”

The goblin girl just answered with a blank nod, as if all the gutsiness she displayed earlier were blown away by the foul weather.

----------

***The Office of the Head Scholar***

“So, now that you’ve already seen what ‘Kuro’ can do, what do you say, Emile? Convincing victory, right?”

The Lord Head Scholar of the Conclave, Emile Biorno, turned away from the windows of his office, where he saw everything that transpired. He returned to his desk, and after taking his seat, let out a sigh. “Yes…now I am convinced that this Lord Kuro of Arles you speak of is, indeed, a powerful human. In fact, if I may daresay, he surpassed Lady Cassandra David in terms of magical prowess and abilities.”

“ ‘Our’ hero? Cassandra David? You demons really did claim that girl as yours, how shameful!” the former god of Chersea, the Lord Gaius, chuckled.

“We owe our existence to her,” the Head Scholar magically brought out a tea set, and served his visitor. “If she didn’t turn against you, then our ancestors are all dead by now.”

The Lord Gaius refused to touch the food and drink from the old demon, “True. I have no love for the children of Hanno who always dares to defy my edicts.”

“We are blessed with limitless curiosity, Lord Gaius,” the Head Scholar replied. “It’s in our nature.”

“Yes, ‘nature’ that was shaped by the ‘Seductress’ herself,” the former god grinned. “And, as her offspring through my accursed son, Hanno, you’ll surely be dragged in this. So, I’m here to negotiate.”

“Speak, lord.”

“Though it’s an affront to me to personally come and talk to you, a demon, the pressing matter at hand is more important than our old grudges. I’m willing to extend a hand; part of it is by sending you one of my servants, the Lord Kuro of Arles. He’s a man of character, and wisdom. Use him as you see fit.”

“Is that why you allowed your servant, the Saint of the Flame, to let Princess Noir bring the Lord Kuro here in Cherflammen?”

“Yes, I’m impressed you immediately saw the connection. He’s here not only for the demon princess, but also to ‘change’ a few things.”

“You mean?”

“Your problem with the ‘Knights’, for example. You witnessed how Kuro saved that problematic goblin girl from her enemies. Now, just you wait; soon, the city of Goblinhom and the rest of the Goblin clans will align themselves to Princess Noir’s faction.”

“While I favor the Usarveds over the ‘Knights’, I still don’t want her to be the demon lord.”

“It’s not my problem, Emile. Solve your people’s problems yourselves.”

“Of course…such answer is expected.”

“In any case, use ‘Kuro’ to counter the influence of the ‘Knights’ on your students, then have the Usarved princess destroy them once their support dwindled,” the Lord Gaius continued. “So, in the meantime, I’m asking you to stop your ‘hidden activities’ against the Usarved clan, at least, until we dealt with the more ‘pressing threat’.”

“You said it’s about the return of the ‘Seductress’, right?”

The former god nodded.

“And you want me to submit under the Usarveds?”

“See, I’m painting a bigger picture here, Emile. Let’s set aside our differences for now and create a united front—all the peoples of Chersea and of the Four Realms—to fight in the looming war against the ‘Seductress’.”

“And what do I get for my cooperation?”

“Well, first, your people, the demons, get to live another day. Second, after eliminating the ‘Knights’ and the ‘Seductress’, only the Usarved princess will stand on your path to ascendancy, Emile. Let her clan and allies fight the battles for you, then once the other factions are defeated, you can snatch the demon lordship away from her hands. Her forces will be depleted by then, because of the wars. And third, you get to preserve your people’s traditions and culture once you’re the demon lord.”

The Head Scholar was silent for a few moments, before he spoke once again, “And what about the Lord Kuro? I’ve heard of his heroics; of how he defeated your servant’s undead hordes, brought the Chersean Emperor to his knees, and united the Beastmen and Humans of Cherwind. With him on the side of the Usarveds, how can you expect me to defeat the demon princess?”

“You need not to worry about the Lord Kuro,” the Lord Gaius smirked. “Contrary to me, he is weak-willed, almost to the point of bringing himself down. A few words on this man, and he’ll follow wherever I lead him.”

“Is that the reason you chose him as your successor, lord?”

“You said it yourself, Emile. Though I can’t return to being a god anymore, I have someone who does the work on my behalf.”

“Have you not considered the possibility of him betraying you, just like how our hero did?”

“There’s the chance, I won’t deny it,” the Lord Gaius admitted. “However, I’ve learned from my past mistakes, Emile. Kuro will never betray me, or he’ll end up losing the ones he loves the most…”