CHAPTER 12: THE SCHEME OF THE BIORNO CLAN

***The private quarters of Lady Srexe of the Goblins***

“Heya, Srex! Tama and Nari coming right in!”

“Damn it, you two!” the goblin girl quickly—but clumsily—hid the letters she was writing the moment her orc and werewolf friends burst (they destroyed it) through her door. She growled at them, “Can’t you guys fucking knock? You’re giving me a heart-attack!”

“Eehhh, that’s too much of a hassle,” Tama’lee complained.

“You stupid orc! Where did you get the gall to protest when you’re the one who destroyed my door?”

“Ahehehe…Tama will replace it with a new one, okay?”

The goblin girl just stared at her and smirked, “Well, you better be. Hmph!”

“Srex is cute,” Nari suddenly spoke, “Especially when angry.”

“I’m always cute, Wolfy!” Lady Srexe countered.

“W-Wolfy?” the werewolf couldn’t hide her surprise. “T-Tama…she called me Wolfy!”

“Isn’t that nice?” the orc smiled, “Srexe now sees Nari as her friend!”

“Hooo!” Nari, in her excitement, couldn’t keep herself from howling.

“Alright, alright! Stop that ‘wolf’-thing you’re doing,” the goblin girl told her. “You’ll annoy my neighbors.”

“Sorry.”

Now that the silence returned, Srexe was free to go back to whatever she was writing earlier. Pulling up a fresh piece of paper (the one she was writing on before was crumpled and the ink was smudged all over), she began rewriting her letter.

Of course, that didn’t escape Tama’lee’s attention.

“What ‘chu writin’, Srex?” the orc asked.

“A letter.”

“Tama can see that. Tama means what kind of letter?”

“It’s for my parents.”

“Eh? Srexe misses her parents already even though they were just here a few days ago?”

“That’s not it!” the goblin girl snapped. “I’m writing a letter to ask them to come back to the Conclave.”

Tama’lee flashed a sly smile, “What’s the difference of that from what Tama said?”

“Well, for starters, I’m calling back the Goblin Legion to the outskirts of the city. And to make them obey me, I have to ask my parents—especially my father—to return.”

The nonchalant attitude from Tama’lee immediately vanished, and she was now shivering.

“What are you shaking for, Tama?” Lady Srexe teased her. “Scared?”

“A-Are we going to war a-again?” the orc asked.

“Tama,” the werewolf was quick to comfort her friend, “there’s no war.”

“Hey, Tama,” sensing that the orc’s situation was serious, Lady Srexe backed Nari up. “Calling back the Goblin Legion doesn’t mean we’re at war already. However, we’re preparing for it…just in case everything erupts into an open conflict.”

“Tama is scared,” the orc admitted. “Tama had seen how the war killed people.”

“It’s okay to be scared,” her friends gave her a pat on the back. “Don’t worry…we have the Special Scholar fighting for us.”

“Yes…” However, there were tears in the orc’s eyes. “The Special Scholar will help Tama and her friends…Tama doesn’t want war! Tama doesn’t want to see friends die! Tama doesn’t want to die!” As she said those words, she was now bawling her heart out. Nari remained at her side, trying to reassure her. Nevertheless, the orc continued to cry.

“That’s why,” Lady Srexe, though she was not used to displays of friendship, overcame her awkwardness and hugged the orc. “I will help the Special Scholar, so he can also help us, okay?”

----------

Tama’lee only calmed down after the few moments she was hugged by her friends. Because of her fears and anxiety, she ended up exhausted, and had to sleep for the meantime.

Lady Srexe and Nari were now alone together, and the goblin girl just finished the letter she intended to send to her parents.

“I was never aware that Tama is this traumatized after the recent war…” Lady Srexe muttered, as she watched over the sleeping orc. “She’s too young for that…”

The werewolf stared at the goblin, as if expecting more from her words.

“You don’t know?” she asked Nari. “Tama is one of the orcs who fought to defend their city, Orcdwelt, against the onslaught of the Knights and the Usarveds in the last war.”

“What? Isn’t she…”

“Yes, in all of us three, Tama is the youngest,” Lady Srexe confirmed. “In fact, she shouldn’t have been in our level today; Tama should only be a student in the Basic Course. But, in an effort to come after me because she’s scared of being alone in the lower grades, she took and passed the tests for the other levels, that’s why she’s with us.”

“Why?”

“You know how it is with the orcs. Their bodies were physically well-developed, and they possess great strength even at an early age. However, the cost is that, their populations are low, that’s why they had to bolster their numbers with their children. Tama is one of the squires for an orc knight, but, after that war, she was scarred enough not to pick the sword anymore…”

“Tama is kind…” Nari quipped. “And you know lots, Srex.”

“Of course, Tama is my cousin, see? Her father and my mother are siblings.”

“I see…”

“Well, in any case, I need to get this to my parents,” Lady Srexe stood up, and was about to leave. “Please watch Tama for me.”

“Srexe…” the werewolf called out to her. “The letter.”

“What?”

“Carry to your parents,” she answered. “Using my werewolf form.”

“H-Hey, are you sure about this?” the goblin asked. “If the teachers catch you, you can be expelled. The school rules say that unless it’s weekend, we can’t go out the Conclave.”

“I’m faster,” Nari pointed out.

“Err…yes?”

“They can’t catch me.”

“Of course.” Even though the goblin girl was concerned about her werewolf friend, Nari had made her argument. She’s faster than the goblin girl, and aside from the fact that jumping over the Conclave’s wall was an easy feat for the werewolf, traversing over the distance of the Sea of Sand to reach the Goblin Legion should also be a quick work to her. So, with no other options, Lady Srexe entrusted the letter to Nari Tambara, and the little werewolf girl immediately set out to find the goblin forces.

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**Greg**

I don’t know, but in all my observations regarding societal changes, it was always the youth that could always be seen at the frontline, fighting for their rights, and of the others who seemed not to be aware that they’d already been violated (rights-wise). Not only on Earth, but in these worlds that I’d been as well. For example, Lady Madelaine Ann Rubinforth—perhaps a teenager about 16 years of age on Earth—led the humans to a period of quiet and stability known as the ‘Saint’s Peace’. The Queen of Cherwind, Lady Ursura of the Beastmen, united the Beastfolk and humans of Cherwind and founded the Kingdom of Cherwind. My student, Alexa Cassandra David, caused the demon clans of Cherflammen to stop their infighting and created the Conclave to educate them…

Indeed, the youth—at least, the educated ones and guided by their ideals, will always lead the calls and actions for a meaningful change.

“…”

In contrast to them, the old people were mostly traditionalists. Perhaps they were the ones who benefitted from the status quo, or the individuals who were afraid of the unknown…as change could always lead to uncertainty. Nevertheless, in their quest for ‘keeping the system as it should be’, they tend to forget that there were people who ended up abused or neglected by the current conditions. They didn’t care, as most cases were, as long as they were not the ones directly affected by the rotting system.

Or worse, they will never change, for they are the ones who’d end up getting the short stick.

“…”

And so, the moment our campaign began was the opportunity the other side to strike back at us. The student-scholars, most of them still remember the events of the previous election that led to the ouster of the Lady Head Scholar Shevaun Ilkes, created counter-measures designed to keep the incubi and succubi (most of the faculty were from those demons) abilities from affecting them. Thus, they could cast their votes unhindered.

Of course, the teachers wouldn’t let that go unchecked, so their solution? They hid their test-checking devices so that the student-scholars couldn’t vote. However, I think they forgot that I also possessed a test-checker, so the students came to me to vote. Not only did I give them a ‘voice’ in the elections, I also used the chance to teach the history about Lady Cassandra David to them.

The results were spectacular. The more I teach to them, the more the student-scholars get to experience the reforms I’d been advocating. Thus, many of them were getting convinced that the Conclave needed a new Head Scholar.

“…”

Still, the other side won’t give up. When they learned that the students were voting through the test-checker that I had in my possession, they sought to discourage the scholars who’d vote for me by threatening to cut-off their token supply. Our solution? Shevaun and Princess Noir—through her ‘brother’ Prince Hurion Devras—ordered in food from House Usarved’s own reserves.

As the Usarved princess had no idea how to cook food, nor her chamberlain was adept in creating an ‘edible’ dish, I was the one who took charge of providing meals to those students who were blocked from receiving their tokens.

“…”

The result was, it was a hit. My experience within the Conclave taught me that these kids were used to fancy food—the types often served in high-level restaurants on Earth. As I did not cook something as complicated as those in my lifetime, I resorted to create a dish from my culture that’s easy and tasty to a demon’s tastebuds.

Good thing that these demons have no shortage in milk and spicy stuff.

“Sir!” the Usarved princess blurted out. “What is this food? This is really great!”

“Ah, it’s a dish from my country called ‘Bicol Express’,” I explained to her. “After trying out some of your food available at the cafeterias, I thought that certain food from my culture would be a hit to you demons. Heh, I never thought I would be correct on that assumption of mine.”

“Can you give me the recipe to this, Lord Greg?” Shevaun asked me.

“Sure!”

----------

Well, that solved our problems about food. However, I knew this shouldn’t last for long. For one, the Usarved’s logistics won’t hold if this continued, and the students couldn’t—and shouldn’t—live on the same food every single day. The harassment of the student-scholars supporting me must stop, and the rule of law and order should return.

So, I asked Princess Noir about the progress of the voting.

“Almost all the students have already voted, Sir,” she informed me. “However, there were a few who are still to vote.”

“It’s mostly on the Basic Course students,” Shevaun revealed. “My best bet is that they are being threatened not to vote by the other teachers; most of the students there are young enough to still be gullible.”

“Yes,” Princess Noir backed her up. “They knew that the current Lord Head Scholar won’t win, even if they twist the arms of those who are yet to voite to elect them. Given the numbers of those who support us, their best bet is to delay the elections until a favorable situation presents itself.”

“Favorable…situation?”

“Wait for you to grow old, for example,” the Usarved princess said. “And die. You know our life-spans are greatly different; we can wait for your demise forever.”

“Wow…even though I prepared myself to lead, I can’t do that,” I admitted.

“Exactly,” the chamberlain interjected. “That’s why, Her Highness and I—together with His Highness the Prince Hurion Devras—are thinking of ways to reach those students who are still to vote.”

“What’s your ideas then?” I asked.

“We asked Darkmoor for another shipment of anti-succubi/incubi charms,” Shevaun revealed. “Of course, we disguised it as ‘innocuous necklaces and bangles’, or the teachers won’t allow its entry. We’ll distribute it among the Basic Course students via student networks.”

“I’m also thinking of sending in an armed force to surround the Saint’s Tower from the outside,” the Usarved Princess followed. “That way, the Lord Head Scholar Emile Biorno would know that we don’t take lightly their repeated harassments.”

“No, don’t do it. Absolutely not.”

“Told ’ya, Shevaun,” Princess Noir chuckled. “The Lord Greg won’t allow such a thing.”

“Well, if we can’t go the invasion route, what happened to that succubus who says she will support you, Lord Greg?” the demon chamberlain brought up the Lady Scholar Capaldi. “Any news on her?”

Honestly, I had no idea as well. After that talk I had with her before, I hadn’t seen her since. I’d like to doubt her words, but her ‘true name’ was what kept me from completely suspecting her.

“Perhaps the Lady Scholar Capaldi got into the Lord Head Scholar’s nerves and got punished,” Princess Noir suggested. “After all, that incubus demands complete obedience from his followers. Lady Capaldi’s decision to negotiate must’ve irked him.”

“If it is so, then we must do something quickly.”

“Hoh…” the demon princess threw a sarcastic stare on me, “You’re concerned because she’s a succubus, Sir?”

“W-Wait! That’s not what I said!”

“Oh right, you’re concerned because Lady Scholar Capaldi got punished. It’s not completely related to her beautifu—ow!”

“Your Highness,” her chamberlain was smiling, yet something sinister was oozing out from her. “We would really appreciate if you just hold back on your emotions for a bit.”

Seeking to change the topic, I proposed, “In any case, going back to the elections, what if I would take the machine to those students myself?”

“Don’t be foolish, Lord Greg,” Shevaun quipped. “It’s Emile Biorno we’re fighting here. I already expected their harassment, and of course, they would have the gall to do it because they have weapons smuggled inside this school.”

“What?”

The chamberlain nodded, then gave me a paper with a list of students’ names on it, “Those are the scholars who can testify that they saw some of the teachers carrying swords, daggers, or those black, strange-looking thing that looked similar to our short demon weapons.”

I didn’t like what I just heard. So, I asked Shevaun, “Did you get some of them to draw that black thing you’re telling me?”

The chamberlain didn’t answer. She just handed me another paper with a drawing so familiar, I immediately went pale, “Oh my god…this is…”

“You know something about that strange device, Lord Greg?”

I nodded, “This is a pistol…a type of gun from my own world. How the hell did they get copies of these?”

“G-Gun?”

“It’s our world’s term for the ‘demon weapon’, or as you call it here, the ‘crack horn’. A pistol is a type of short crack horn in our world.”

“Oh…so based from your reaction, Sir, is it powerful?”

“Damn it, more than powerful, this thing is dangerous. It can shoot bullets in rapid succession in a few blinks of your eyes, and in longer ranges, too, compared to the models of your crack horns here. Not to mention, if ever you’re using armors here, those would be rendered useless.” I could feel dread creep across my body. Deep in my thoughts, I was thinking of various scenarios, most of which were events I could not describe. It was too disheartening to witness.

“Then we must do something about those crack horns!”

“True, and fast,” I nodded. Honestly, I wanted to jump into action right now and do something about our situation. The students’ lives were in danger, and it’s all because of me. I don’t know what would happen if they got injured or killed, just because they supported my reforms. “But then again, it’s only us—me, Her Highness Princess Noir, Shevaun—and the rest are student-scholars. I won’t risk the lives of those kids, as well as your lives, to prop me up into position!”

“Don’t worry, Sir,” the demon princess smirked. “In case you don’t know, I already asked for a contingent of Usarved soldiers from Darkmoor. And don’t worry about their accommodations, I instructed them to set up camp outside the city limits, but still near to come and help us in time.”

“When will they arrive?”

“About three days’ time, Sir,” Princess Noir replied. “Until then, we can’t afford to have open hostilities against the Biornos and their supporters.”

“I see…”

The chamberlain stared at me, “I hope you understand how important the presence of our armies here, Lord Greg.”

“Well, do you think I have any other choice? Good job on that, Your Highness,” I gave the Usarved Princess a head pat, much to my own surprise. But, I think she didn’t mind me doing it; I just kept quiet about the break of protocol. “Though I don’t agree to the presence of militaries inside schools, this is a different matter. However, I still wish to resolve this peacefully.”

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***The advance course students’ dormitory***

Although they never attended the classes of the Special Scholar Greg Santos, the advance course students were one of the levels where his support was strong. Most of it was because of the fact that the rumors of how the Special Scholar taught his lessons spread among them. For many of the intermediate level students, the human teacher was their ‘hope’ that their junior to senior levels would be easy…or at least, tolerable.

That’s why, it was one of the most heavily-guarded parts of the Conclave. The teachers and other staff from the Biorno clan and their allies patrolled its hallways, complete with armor, melee weapons, and some were armed with modern guns.

“…”

Of course, many of the students were intimidate, so only a few brave souls would try to go out of their dormitories, and talk to their guards.

“Please let us buy food in the cafeteria!” one scholar pleaded. “It’s been a day since we last ate our meal!”

“Go back to your dormitory!” the leader of the teachers and staff assigned in that place bellowed. “A day of hunger is not a big deal to the purest of the demon blood! Are you telling us that you’re not a pure-blooded demon?”

“Err…I am,” the scholar answered. As the guards displayed their weapons well, the poor demon child immediately understood what they meant, so he didn’t take his chances and quickly retreated.

The situation was like that, all the time. A student or two would come out of their rooms, asking to be let through the checkpoints the teachers and school staff had set up. Each time, they would intimidate the demon children to follow their orders, which the latter always did. However, as days dragged on, the teachers began to notice that the incidence of the student-scholars trying their luck in passing through them were increasing.

It’s as if the demon students are not actually afraid of them; they are annoying their teachers on purpose.

“…”

Another incident was, a student put up a sign that says ‘vote for the Conclave’ on her door. It was taken down as soon as the teachers saw it. However, the next day, similar signs appeared on the doors of the other dormitories, that the teachers and the staff had an exhausting time trying to remove the offending makeshift placards.

“…”

So, the tension was high between the faculty and the school staff on one side, and the student-scholars of the advance course level on the other. Despite that, even with the signs of defiance springing up occasionally, everyone was still hoping that the situation won’t escalate into a full, bloody conflict.

Well, that is, until…

“We will not be oppressed anymore!” someone from the upper levels of the dormitories shouted, and it was followed by a chorus of cheers. The teachers and the staff were put on high alert, as the student-scholars started to show their support by screaming and jeering at their ‘guards’.

“Let us out! Let us out!” was the chant of the other students.

Much to the shock of the teachers and the school staff, the scholars simultaneously got out of their rooms and marched through the hallways, intending to head to the checkpoint. The members of the faculty drew their weapons, formed a barricade, and stood their ground against the advancing students.

“You can’t stop change!” one of the scholars shouted to them.

“We’re starving! Let us pass!” another student demanded.

“Back off you Biorno dogs!” several people in the crowd were flashing their anti-incubi/succubi charms, designed to ward-off the latter’s abilities.

“Go back to your rooms!” the teachers countered. With the presence of the charms against their powers, they could not get the students to obey them, so they resorted to threats of violence. “One more step and we’re going to shoot you!”

However, their commands fell on deaf ears, as the student-scholars continued on their united march. Soon, the demon children were all staring down the barrel of the guns their teachers pointed at them. Nevertheless, their zeal went even higher in the face of those weapons.

“Kill us if you dare!”

“Butchers!”

“You can’t control us! We want change!”

“You know nothing, you brats!” one of the teachers ranted. “It’s easy for you to demand something, yet you’re easy to fool as well!”

“Boo!” The students, however, kept on heckling them.

The other side was getting mad. Many of them wanted to run their swords down on the scholars; however, some cooler heads were still prevailing, so they had to content themselves with, “Show respect to your elders!”

“We don’t give you respect! Earn it from us, you Biorno dogs!”

At that point, someone from the student side suddenly threw a wet, stinking towel on the teachers and the staff. It didn’t injure someone, yet it was enough to snap the razor-thin patience of the Head Scholar’s supporters. Upon their leader’s command, those who had guns let loose a hail of bullets towards the gathering crowd of young demon scholars, many of them didn’t even know what hit them before they died.

Terrible screams and cries asking for help echoed throughout the Conclave. Blood splattered on the walls, as bodies piled up in front of the teachers who were supposed to teach their students. Those who could escape ended using the lifeless bodies of their classmates, or dormmates, just to shield themselves from the lethal bullets raining down on them.

“…”

The deadly fire soon stopped. As the smoke of the guns dissipated, scores of demon children lie dead, or dying. Most of those who were still alive were calling out to their parents, their desperate gasps for air and agonizing cries slowly weakened as their life left their mortal bodies.

It was a terrible, and sick, spectacle. And neither the supporters of the Lord Head Scholar Emile Biorno wanted what they just did. However, they had to convince themselves that it was the right decision—to murder some of their students—so that order could be restored. After all, this was Cherflammen…a hard and violent land. A place where one was forced to kill or be killed.

----------

Amidst the chaos and carnage on the corridors, a lone figure came out and hid himself in one of the dark alleys in-between the dormitory buildings. Of course, with a mortal body like that, it was impossible for him to stay amid that hail of bullets and live. Nevertheless, with all the escalation of tension and the massacre that followed, Gaius knew he was successful…

After all, one smelly towel was all it took to provoke the armed teachers to shoot at their students.

“…”

As ugly and nonsensical the item that caused the death and injuries, for Gaius, he thought it was well-deserved. These were demons, and he didn’t even give a damn whether or not there were children. For him, they were all the same.

The demons should be left to die and disappear from this world…

With several students dead or dying, it wouldn’t take long before their screams of despair and spilled blood to reach the Seductress and strengthen her powers. The saints were doing a good job in restraining her, but that’s all they could do. In the end, they won’t stop that villain’s return, and it would take a strength of a god to force her back into the void…where she rightfully belonged.

“…”

Yes, and that god will be him, Gaius Julius Caesar…the rightful deity of Chersea, and of the four other realms.