In the library of Avalon Academy, Via was flipping through books, searching for some very important content.
“Found it!”
Via finally found what she needed in a dusty old book.
It was a record about demonized beings.
「Fifteen years ago, the city of Pula was attacked by a magical beast tainted with abyssal aura, extremely ferocious in nature.」
「The Saint Luo Empire dispatched imperial troops to subjugate the beast, and with the assistance of an S-rank adventurer, they successfully killed it.」
「During post-battle cleanup, a soldier accidentally came in contact with the monster core. Although there were no outward signs of abnormalities, his body was already eroded by abyssal aura. Two days later, the soldier fell into demonization and began to attack his own, causing many casualties within the army.」
Staring at the contents, Via fell into deep thought.
If I want to learn more detailed information, I might need to look into the Saint Luo Empire’s archival records of the incident.
With my status, I don’t have access. All I can do is get the gist from these books.
“Some humans who come into contact with abyssal aura will turn into a very peculiar kind of demonized being—with their reason gradually slipping away, attacking their own kind. But most humans who get infected with abyssal aura will have their life force wither and die on the spot… Regardless, all humans exposed to abyssal aura have only one path—death. Holy power cannot purify it.”
Via murmured as she looked at the pile of books stacked on the desk.
She had spent the entire day here, learning many things about humanity and the abyssal aura.
The demon race was born able to accept abyssal aura, so there was no concept of demonization among them.
In class, Anima had lectured about demonized beings, but it wasn’t until Via flipped through these books that she learned there were so many types.
“In the human world, abyssal aura is considered absolute taboo. The Saint Luo Empire exercises extremely strict control over corrupted monster cores—possession is a serious crime. And as for demonized beings, the policy is kill-on-sight…”
Via pinched her chin and closed her eyes in contemplation.
The extreme method she was planning to use to grow stronger was closely related to the information she learned today.
“Via, what a coincidence, meeting you here.” A girl spoke while taking a seat next to her.
“Eh?”
Via opened her eyes and found it was… Lucy?
She remembered Lucy Favi, the noble lady of the Favi family, who had fiercely mocked Owen Lester just a few days ago, helping humiliate the young heir of the Lester family in front of everyone.
In a way, Lucy had indirectly helped her as well.
But what she couldn’t understand was why Lucy, who rarely interacted with her, had suddenly taken the initiative to sit next to her…
What did that mean?
“Miss Lucy, you’d better stay away from her!” the girl behind Lucy couldn’t help speaking up, her voice full of vigilance and disgust.
“She’s the one responsible for Team 043 perishing in the Evergreen Mountains. What if you get hit by some kind of black magic!?” one girl warned.
Via noticed several pretty girls following Lucy.
She recalled that Lucy was quite popular in Avalon Academy, with many supporters.
Although strangely, all the people around her were girls—and each one had an outstanding appearance.
Was this some sort of interest-based clique?
No, some of the members were from ordinary backgrounds. The Favi family wouldn’t bother with them.
“All right, stop talking. I want to have a word with her.”
Lucy waved her hand without looking at the others, her entire focus fixed on Via.
The other girls cast weirdly hostile and jealous looks at Via, but reluctantly obeyed Lucy and left the area, giving Lucy and Via some privacy.
“Via, I didn’t expect you to be studying this kind of thing.”
Lucy scooted her chair closer, as if intentionally invading Via’s space.
“Um…”
Via frowned. She was even more confused now.
Normally, people avoided her. Why was Lucy approaching her of all people?
Especially now, with the rumor that she was practicing black magic, even fewer people dared speak to her.
“I wanted to review some topics Professor Anima covered in class, so I came here to find books related to it,” Via said softly.
“Oh, Via, you’re really hard-working. Even after the assessment is over, you’re still studying.”
Lucy’s gaze remained on Via instead of the books.
It felt like she was just making excuses to talk to Via.
“You’re more serious about learning than most people I know.”
“Ahaha, thank you for the compliment, Lucy…”
What is she after?
She can’t possibly be here just to chat, right?
“Hehe…”
Lucy narrowed her eyes, staring at the pink-haired girl before her like a snake coiling around its prey.
Via felt extremely uncomfortable. She instinctively folded her legs and grabbed the hem of her skirt, avoiding eye contact.
Her social anxiety was surfacing again.
Even though she’d regained her past-life memories, the habits and personality formed in this life wouldn’t disappear overnight.
“Maybe you’re not as bad as people say, Via. I’ve noticed that even when no one expected anything from you, you’ve been working very hard.”
“In the last assessment, you also got pretty decent results. Your hard work paid off.”
“That was just… luck.”
“Luck is also a kind of strength.”
“Let’s hope I have that luck in the next test…”
Via’s perfunctory responses didn’t seem to bother Lucy. In fact, Lucy’s expression became even more mysterious.
“Via, there are many things about you worth praising.”
“For example?”
“For example—”
Lucy leaned in so suddenly that she was now face-to-face with Via, lowering her voice to say something that left Via completely stunned.
“You smell so good.”