I Swear I'm Not a Demon Masquerading as a Human

Chapter 51: Lance Grabs People's Attention

Associate Dean Ron suddenly received an urgent message. He had been in the middle of teaching a class, but his expression turned grave the moment he saw the message. He immediately dismissed the class early and hurried to the conference room in the main building of the Sages' College.

He pushed open the heavy doors. Although the room featured a soft color palette, a tense atmosphere hung heavily in the enclosed space. Every instructor wore a grave expression, and their eyes were fixed intently on the large screen in the center of the room.

Ron asked anxiously as he sat down beside Dean Lawrence, "Sir, what is their situation?"

Initially, he had believed that a Level 2 Shadow Realm dungeon would pose no difficulty for Lance and Hyperion. In fact, he thought they could likely handle even a Level 3 challenge. After all, when a pair of that rank formed a team, they would typically be matched with either a difficult Level 2 dungeon or an easier Level 3 one.

Yet, Ron never imagined that these two complete novices would be swept into a Level 4 challenge with an exceptionally perilous setting right for their very first challenge. They were in a demon kingdom from an unknown era; it was certainly no place for ordinary humans to survive.

There were two possibilities for why someone was matched with a Shadow Realm challenge that far exceeded their own rank. The first was simply a case of terrible luck triggering a low-probability event. However, in such scenarios, the other teammates would usually be stronger than average.

The second possibility involved a violation of the rules: a high-ranking individual intentionally teaming up with a low-ranking one to absolutely crush a low level Shadow Realm dungeon, thereby disrupting the standard matchmaking mechanism.

"...Under normal circumstances, this would be considered a serious incident. But with those two... it's not necessarily a bad match for them," Lawrence mused as he gazed at the magical display in the center of the room.

Ron nodded. He understood what Lawrence actually meant. Unfortunately, as the dean, Lawrence had to express certain things tactfully. Most challengers, especially those lacking deep experience or licensure below Platinum, struggled to perform effectively when thrust into the perilous Shadow Realm challenges. The abnormal environments, bizarre rules, and history steeped in bloody madness compromised their judgment and mental fortitude.

Yet, there were those rare individuals who thrived in the most deranged Shadow Realm dungeons. These were people who could unleash talents that would otherwise remain dormant in the real world.

In this ancient demon kingdom, human laws and sensibilities did not apply. Once Lance shed the constraints of human morality and law, it would be hard to predict what he might do next.

***

Towering, ornate bookshelves lined the walls in a small, library-style pavilion within the Sages' College. They stretched all the way to the ceiling like the ramparts of an ancient castle. On the second floor, a standalone magical display screen allowed viewers to actively select specific feeds from a rotating array of channels.

A young woman in a black dress sat in the main seat while watching the screen. She was laughing so hard that she was clutching her stomach and kicking her legs. "Hahaha! So, Mordan, you got played by a fool today?"

This building belonged to their team, and it was a unique activity space granted to them by the school. Although Mordan was a Gold Licensed challenger and the team's leader, it was immediately obvious who the real boss was here.

The woman in the black gown was a fourth year student and a Platinum Licensed challenger. She possessed power and status that surpassed even the vast majority of the faculty.

The heir to a marquessate, Mordan Gasigus, now looked much more relaxed compared to his previous sullen expression. "Yeah. It looks like I won't be seeing him again."

She guffawed. "But you'd better be prepared, just in case he turns out not to be an idiot after all."

***

Light from the soaring ceiling bathed every corner evenly, while the entire circular wall was embedded with magical screens displaying various data and information. Across the laboratory, magical artisans were hard at work at benches of diverse shapes and sizes.

One of them stood before a magical screen and exclaimed, "No way, is he the kid Her Highness Vivian mentioned? The top freshmen from the Sages' College this year?"

In the distance was a handsome young man who was dressed in work clothes and heavy protective gauntlets as he repaired a magical device. He flipped up his goggles and glanced at the image on the screen.

A young woman standing nearby, wearing a different style of uniform from the College of Magical Engineering, spoke up. "Good thing we didn't recruit him."

Unlike the young man, she wore a Silver Certified Registered Card Maker badge from the Card Maker’s Association pinned to her collar.

The young man scratched his head in puzzlement, muttering to himself, "They say his way of thinking is... unconventional. Maybe he did this on purpose."

The young woman said, "But..."

Given the current state of the demon-infested exam room, where the mechanics had been completely shattered, the situation looked like a hopeless dead end no matter how one viewed it.

The young man removed his gauntlets, set down his tools, and sat on the edge of the table. He gazed thoughtfully at the magical screen. "You don't get it, do you?"

He shared the same light blond hair as Princess Vivian of Hutton, yet his attire was remarkably plain and unadorned, indistinguishable from that of an ordinary commoner. He dressed this way whenever he wasn't at the royal palace. Consequently, people often failed to realize he was a prince, noticing only his extraordinary bearing.

The young woman asked, "Did you notice something?"

The young man replied, "I don't really get it either."

The young woman said nothing more. She simply stood to the side, arms crossed, and turned her head away. If striking a royal wouldn't lead to serious trouble, she would have taken action right then and there.

***

In the Knights' College dormitory building, students who had just finished their day's studies were filing out of the corridors and stairwells, hurrying across the lobby. Some looked refreshed, while others appeared weary. With the end of classes coinciding with dinnertime, the hallways were noticeably more crowded than they had been in the afternoon.

One student shouted, "Hurry to Gela Memorial Plaza! If we're late, the steps will all be taken."

Another exclaimed, "Who would've thought the Sages' College of all places would have such total meatheads?"

At the doorway of a room around the corner of the first floor corridor, a student with grayish-white hair was at work. He wore sunglasses perched somewhat arrogantly halfway down his nose and held two nails between his teeth as he fastened a plaque reading "Frey's Detective Agency" next to his door.

Passing students who caught sight of Frey wore expressions of mild surprise. Setting aside the question of why a detective agency existed within the school in the first place... Why was there a detective at the Knights' College?

Yet, the moment passing freshmen saw the man who had grayish-white hair, violet eyes, and an explosive, wolf-like aura of power, they no longer found it strange.

Frey stared at the plaque, lost in thought. He didn't know what had suddenly happened at the school to cause such an unusual commotion this evening. For a while now, he had heard several students rushing out after dropping off their books, all saying similar things.

Frey turned his full attention back to the task at hand and muttered, "Oh well, I'll go check it out later."

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