Seven Demon Sword Princesses And Zero Knights - Chapter 2 Part 2

“Alright, that’s all. This is our new classmate, Nacht-kun. Everyone, a round of applause!” Charlotte introduced cheerfully.

Claps echoed through the classroom.

The classroom had a blackboard, a podium, and large windows on both sides. The Academy’s large courtyard was just past those.

In addition, the students were seated in chairs with long desks.

Kielmor Academy of Magic, First Year, Class F. Nacht was assigned here.

“…”

However, his classmates had a cold, indifferent reaction to him.

The students stared at Nacht blankly, some with crossed arms, some with their chin resting on their palms.

Such as the class’s appearance, it was very diverse. There were normal Humans, long-eared and large-eyed Elves, and the offspring of two beasts, Beastmen.

Aside from those mentioned, there were a number of other distinct species. On this continent, Volcania, the many existing races formed nations and lived separately. At the Academy, they lived together as students.

Charlotte’s smile faltered at the students’ lack of energy, evident as the sound of their dull applause soon faded away.

“Err… ahem. Nacht, introduce yourself.”

“Okay.”

As he walked up to the podium, Nacht glanced toward Charlotte.

Her frightening, murderous aura from earlier had already faded. Now, she was cheerful as any girl of her age should be. 

This was likely her true nature.

“Umm… My name is Nacht. Just Nacht. Please take care of me from now on.” 

He briefly finished his self-introduction.

“Thank you. Then, Nacht’s seat…”

“Wait a second, Class Representative Charlotte.”

As Charlotte was looking around for a seat for Nacht, one of the students interrupted her.

(Tch…Of course…)

Without letting her frustration show on her face, Charlotte mentally clicked her tongue.

She knew this would happen.

“What’s wrong, Janka? It’s almost time for homeroom; the teacher will be here soon. We can talk about whatever later.”

“You think I can wait until later? This is a serious matter… I can’t believe a redhead is transferring into my class!” Janka, a male student, shouted, standing up. He had red skin and two horns protruding out from his head.

Janka was of the Ogre race.

“God damn it, this school is full of them. What’s wrong with being a redhead? I’ve heard that this school accepts all kinds of people,” Nacht replied, unamused.

“Yeah, it accepts all races. Except, some small fry like you shouldn’t be able to enter!”

Janka strode up to Nacht, glaring at him.

“We don’t want a redhead with no magical ability like you. Besides, I’ve heard. You’ve been talking about unifying the Academy. Is your head stuck in the clouds? And, you said you’d go against anyone to do so.”

“Ah, come to think of it, I did say that, didn’t I?”

“Then… fight me right now!” Janka challenged with a carnivorous smile. 

With that, his muscles began to crunch and prepared for battle. The Ogre was a warrior race with unnatural, well-developed muscles, and was said to be the strongest when it came to physical combat.

Charlotte hurriedly intervened to stop them.

“Wait a minute, we have class soon! If you’re going to do it, do it after school. Come on, you guys, stop…”

But despite Charlotte’s protests, the rest of her classmates quickly moved their desks and chairs, creating some room in the middle of the classroom.

“So, that’s you guys’ response… I see…” Charlotte muttered to no one in particular, looking at the class with downcast eyes.

The class’s actions expressed an immediate agreement with Janka’s opinion.

Indeed, none of her classmates approved of Nacht.

“It’s fine, Charlotte. I’ll be done in a minute. Besides, we’re allowed to brawl in here, right?” Nacht said languidly.

“It’s not ‘fine!’ Wait, no, you’re allowed to, but it doesn’t mean you can just randomly beat each other up!” 

Charlotte walked up to Nacht and reached under his collar, attaching something to his uniform.

“…What are you doing? What is this?”

“It’s your Academy badge. The Acting Principal gave it to me. Listen, Nacht, the only thing that’s allowed between students in this academy is dueling, not brawling.”

“…Is there even a difference?”

“It’s completely different! In this academy, a duel is a match that follows strict regulations. You need your Academy badge for it.”

Having finished attaching the badge, Charlotte took her hand away.

On it was a staff and sword in the shape of a cross.

“It’s a Demon Gear that anyone can use. It receives its magic power from a huge ‘Magic Crystal’ in the center of the Academy. When activated, it transforms the body of the wearer into a ‘Magic Body’, protecting the wearer temporarily. However, if it receives too much damage, the Magic Body will not be able to withstand it and will break down.”

“Magic Body…? What the hell is that? That doesn’t sound right.”

“You’ll understand once you’ve seen it. A duel is a contest in which two people aim to destroy the opponent’s Magic Body. In addition, both sides will make a condition, and if both agree to it, the loser shall oblige to the condition of the winner. That’s what a duel is at the Academy.”

“Hm. So, I have to bet something for a duel, and it’s designed so that people don’t sustain injuries… wait. Nothing happened when I had a run-in with the Public Morals Committee earlier.”

“It only works between students who wear the Academy badge and officially declare a duel. And, they both have to be inside of the Academy. The badge won’t do you any good outside the Academy, so be careful.”

“I see. So that’s why they wouldn’t forget to wear their badge… But, the Academy really encourages fighting, doesn’t it?”

“It’s not like they’re openly encouraging it. It’s just that if they don’t enforce this duel policy, people like you will start fighting all over the place. The Academy is full of ill-tempered people.”

“Hey, that’s enough! Let’s get this thing started, redhead!” Janka barked.

“Yeah, sure. So, what do you want to bet?” Nacht replied, calm.

“If I win, you have to immediately get out of the Academy.”

“I understand. Now, my conditions…”

Nacht easily accepted Janka’s condition, proceeding to ponder his own. A bulb suddenly lit up in his mind.

“Give me your seat. Last row by the window, not bad,” Nacht said.

He remembered where Janka had stood up: the far end of the classroom, by the window, where he could see outside.

It was the best seat.

“…Are you kidding me? You bastard! Sure then, brace yourself!” Janka snapped. 

He moved to the center of the classroom. It was clear that their conditions could hardly be considered equal.

Nacht lazily got into position.

“Here we go… ‘Duel’!” Janka bellowed.

“…What? Why are you shouting all of a sudden?” Nacht asked, startled.

“That’s the cue to begin the duel. Once both parties say it together, the Academy badge will take effect.” Charlotte explained sullenly. 

“I see… Then, ‘Duel’.”

Nacht’s body began glowing with light.

Feeling the abrupt change in his body, Nacht made a puzzled face.

“Whoa, what the hell is this? What’s going on?”

“I literally just told you. Your body has transformed into a “Magic Body”. It’s an accurate representation of how strong your physical body is. Once you’ve taken an amount of damage that would cause your physical body to fall, it will break, and the result of the duel will be decided.”

“Heh, that’s pretty impressive! The Academy’s Demon Gear technology really is advanced…” Nacht praised, carefree.

Janka jumped toward him like a raging, carnivorous beast.

“It’s already started, you fool! Shaaa!”

His razor-sharp claws: it aimed at Nacht’s neck, it swung at breakneck speed, it sliced through the air.

Janka had no hesitation to gouge out Nacht’s head.

It was a blow that could kill any ordinary person, not leaving them any time for them to react.

“Oops.”

However, Nacht easily evaded it by slightly twisting his body.

“Take this! Sha! Shaaaaa!”

Janka’s attacks didn’t stop. Like a whirlwind, he swung his left and right claws, driving Nacht back.

His attacks were fierce, creating a shockwave after each slash.

One of his attacks missed and hit one of the desks, cutting through it like a knife through butter. It was no surprise that Janka’s slashes could do that.

In spite of this, Janka’s target, Nacht, seemed to have no trouble in avoiding these attacks, gracefully dancing around the classroom.

“Amazing… Even though he’s a redhead, he’s easily avoiding the enhanced Janka,” one of the classmates said in surprise. 

Enhancement was part of the nature of a Magus. Depending on how they used their magic, there were several types of Magi. Janka was one that allocated most of his magic power to enhancing his physical body and strength. 

“What’s the matter? You can’t hit the target if you just wildly swing your claws around.”

“Damn you! Don’t mess with me!”

Nacht, who continued to evade with ease, frustrated Janka, who was desperately trying to close the distance. However, the next moment, a shockwave struck him in the face, its sheer force pushing Janka’s body to the ground

“Gah!”

“I’m not messing with you.”

What dealt a blow to Janka’s face was Nacht’s fist.

He saw through Janka’s last attack and decided to counter. 

Nacht looked down at his fist.

“I see. So, this is what a ‘Magic Body’ feels like. It certainly feels different from my physical body,” he muttered.

“You…!” 

On the other hand, the beaten Janka shook with anger, his face flushing red.

Not even in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he, an Ogre Magus, would be struck by a Human, much less a redhead, who he had just mocked.

“You are so dead…! Awaken, my Gear!”

A small disk-shaped Demon Gear attached to his left hand was activated.

Though Janka was disgraced to use his Gear against a redhead, he didn’t care anymore. He couldn’t. If he didn’t wipe that smirk off of Nacht’s face, Janka wouldn’t feel satisfied…!

At that moment, a whip flew out from the disk-shaped Demon Gear, crawling erratically through the air and entangling itself in Nahat’s left hand, similar to how a snake would with its prey.

“…”

Nacht stared at it with a blank expression.

Janka mistook his silence as unrest, feeling triumphant.

“How’s that? My Gear can crawl through the air at will and capture my opponent without fail! If it comes down to a contest of strength, there’s no way I’ll be defeated as an Ogre! You can’t run away from me now, you redhead…!”

Janka pulled using his Gear, trying to hook Nacht closer. Janka was so strong that he could lift a huge rock that weighed a ton.

Although Janka was strong enough to lift a huge rock that weighed a ton, Nacht’s body did not even flinch.

“W-What…? What’s going on…?” Janka shouted impatiently.

Then, Nacht sighed. He tugged at the thing wrapped around his arm.

“You know…”

“Whoa!?”

Instantly, Janka’s body was thrown through the air.

Nacht, who had finally taken up a stance, unleashed a punch.

“…this ability! It’s literally the same as those guys from the Public Morals Committee!” Nacht said, disgusted.

The moment his fist and Janka’s cheek collided, a powerful sound echoed out. 

Janka’s magical body was blown to pieces. Then, it returned to its original state. However, Janka’s physical body was instantly blown out of consciousness and blasted away while spinning.

His body flew toward the edge of the classroom, heading straight toward the wall. Yet, his momentum did not slow one bit, as he collided with the wall, crashing through it… and dived straight into the neighboring classroom.

“Kyaaaaahhhhhh!?”

A scream came from over there.

That was to be expected. Anyone would be surprised if suddenly, an Ogre came crashing through the classroom wall.

Nacht walked through the wide hole in the wall, the people around him whispering.

“Is this really what Demon Gears are all about? Why don’t you use your magic power for something better?” Nacht complained.

“Hey, you, cut the crap! What are you going to do about this hole in the wall? Oh, for God’s sake, I don’t know! You! Take responsibility!” Charlotte denounced, following him.

Then Nacht, not caring that the students in the next class were watching, lifted the still-rolling Janka by the chest, checking his condition.

“Wow, he really didn’t take any damage. This badge is amazing.”

Janka was completely unconscious from the impact, but it seemed that he sustained no serious injuries on his physical body.

However, the Academy badge on his collar appeared to have lost both its light and power.

“I’m impressed that he could take such a beating. I guess I can fight without worry.”

“You… did you do that to confirm its capabilities…? Well, that’s fine. I suppose you win this duel. Come on now, let’s go back.”

With Janka in tow, Nacht began to follow Charlotte. But, a voice stopped him.

“Hey, wait!”

“Hm?”

It was a girl’s voice. Nacht turned around, his eyes meeting a female student with blond twintails with a sour look on her face.

“You sent someone crashing through the wall and didn’t even bother to greet me, the one and only Aria-sama!? You’ve got some nerve!” she protested in an arrogant tone with crossed arms. 

Though, certainly, she was a beauty, as she had large, catlike eyes, an elegant nose, and lovely lips. She was probably of the Human race.

She was a little on the short side and had a modest body. In comparison to the beautiful, dignified Charlotte, she was more like a cute, charming girl.

“Ah, my bad. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Nacht apologized, observing her carefully.

“Wha—!? I-I-I’m not scared, you are so rude!” the girl who called herself Aria shouted angrily.

It was a lie. Her name was indeed Aria, but contrary to her words, she was completely terrified when Janka suddenly crashed through the wall. The scream that Nacht had just heard belonged to her.

“…I mean, look over there! What are you trying to do? Are you trying to just leave it like it’s someone else’s problem? This is your class, Charlotte!” Aria shouted, her face flushed with anger. Charlotte had been quietly trying to sneak away, pretending to not know Aria.

“…Tch, busted… what a pain…” Charlotte muttered in annoyance, turning back around.

“I can hear you, you know?!” Aria fussed.

“What? Charlotte, do you know her?” Nacht asked.

“Ehh, well… This girl is Aria Lina Rune Maxwell. She’s… basically a distant relative, and she’s also the Representative of the First Year Class E.”

“I’m the princess of the commercial nation of Athenia, a Magus with the strongest magic, the most beautiful girl in the school, and more! I’m also one of the Demon Sword Princesses, and I was chosen to wield the Demon Sword as soon as I entered the Academy! You should be thankful that you can even talk to me, redhead!” Aria added pretentiously.

“…Demon Sword Princess…”

Nacht twitched at those words.

He looked toward Charlotte for confirmation.

“It’s true. She is the princess of Athenia, though she can wield the Demon Sword only while she is a student at the Academy. When the wielder graduates, a new student chosen by the Academy will become the wielder. So, when the previous wielders graduated, she and I were chosen, and thus, we became Demon Sword Princesses,” Charlotte explained, nodding.

“That’s right. I’m the genius who was chosen to be the owner of the Demon Sword ‘Superbia’ as soon as I entered the Academy. If you’re going to mess with me, I hope you’re ready to die!” Aria arrogantly proclaimed.

Indeed, a sword was hanging from her waist. However, unlike Charlotte’s chokutō-like Demon Sword, Aria’s Demon Sword was rapier-like.

There was a large orb embedded on its handle, reminiscent of one on a magic staff.

(It’s the second Demon Sword. I guess I’ll have to fight this one too.)

Before Nacht came to the Academy, he had assumed that the Magi would all have villainous, atrocious faces. It seemed that his assumptions were wrong.

It was unbelievable that there were cute girls. Nacht, excited, boldly stared at Aria’s body while pondering something.

“Hey, don’t stare at me, you pervert! I hope you’re not having weird thoughts about me!” Aria yelled with a shy look on her face, covering her body. 

“Yeah, well, you’re cute,” Nacht answered flatly.

“Wha—Whaaaaaaa!? Are you stupid? I’m a princess! How dare you…!?” Aria barked, her face dyed red.

“Alright, alright. This is not going anywhere. Nacht, you shut up for a second,” Charlotte interrupted, disgusted by the womanizer.

(This guy! Speaking to every girl like that…)

“Anyway, this hole was caused by a duel. We’re sorry, but the damage to the Academy building due to a duel should be excused. I’m sure the repair man will soon be here to fix it, so forgive us, please.”

But when Aria heard this, she sniffed arrogantly and replied with a great deal of sarcasm.

“Hmph. I’m sure you just wanted to get at me with an excuse of a duel… right, Princess Charlotte of the Fallen Kingdom?” Aria mocked.

“…Huh?” Charlotte’s expression hardened.

“My, I’m so sorry. I guess I was too honest there. After all, Irule used to be a great country, but now it’s just a poor country that’s fallen on hard times. Oops, I think I hit a sore spot,” Aria continued, satisfied with Charlotte’s glare.

“…You’ve got some nerve to be saying that. Your country made of selfish merchants is a cesspool of corruption that betrayed us, became independent, and called itself a country. What that arrogant upstart’s daughter over there is saying isn’t matching up…!” 

“Oh dear. With all due respect, the reason your country’s the way it is is because some king ruined it, isn’t it? Why don’t you try to make your country as rich as ours?”

“What are you…grr!”

As this heated exchange went on, their glares became more intense.

The students of the two classes whispered to each other as they watched from a distance.

“It’s already started… The first year Demon Sword Princesses are at each other’s throats… These two really don’t get along.”

“Since Aria’s country became independent from Charlotte’s country, they’ve been at odds with each other. They’ve been rivals since they were kids themselves. They’ll do anything to beat one another.”

(Hm. So, that’s the kind of relationship they have.)

They were distantly related, as they both have “Rune” in their names. It sounded to Nacht that they went way back.

and Charlotte, who was heated up, shouted while putting her hand on the sword at her waist.

“I can’t take it anymore! Aria, we’ll settle this right here, right now! We’ll see who’s more worthy of the Demon Sword!” Charlotte shouted heatedly, putting her hand on the hilt of the sword strapped to her waist.

“Oh, my. I’m fine with that. Though… I’ll use my Knights. Guys!”

“HA!”

About half of the students in Class E rushed over to form a circle around her.

“You’re playing d-dirty. You can’t just rely on numbers! Let’s do it one on one, one on one!” Charlotte protested impatiently.

“This is a very vulgar thing for you to say, Charlotte. But, my dear, it’s common knowledge that when two people with Demon Swords fight each other, their knights are included in the fight. It’s your fault for not having Knights, you idiot!”

“What’s with youuuuuu…? It’s just your parents’ money…!” Charlotte said frustratingly.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s my parents’ or not; it’s my power! There’s no one who would follow some weak little Demon Sword Princess who was chosen to inherit a Demon Sword but still can’t prepare an ‘Airship’. If you’re angry at me, why don’t you just call your friends? Ahahahahahaha!” Aria laughed, proud of her victory.

The word “Knights” originally meant a group of knights serving the state, but the meaning was different at the Academy. In this school, Knights are like a group made up of students, and it is common knowledge that everything is done in units of Knights.

Then Nahat, who had doubts about the story, interrupted.

“…Wait. Charlotte, you’re one of the Demon Sword Princesses, right? Why don’t you have Knights?”

“Um, that’s…”

“Obviously, it’s because you have no popularity and no money!” Aria replied with heartfelt joy.

“It takes a lot of money to get Knights. Plus, I would need to rent them rooms, pay them salaries, and I even would have to buy an Airship. My Fallen Kingdom doesn’t seem to be able to give their princess any proper support, though!”

“Ah, so that’s what that was… So, that’s why you needed the money or something,” Nacht said, convinced.

Apparently, Charlotte’s position was the weakest among the Demon Sword Princesses.

“Ugh, whatever! Just shut up! It’s not that I’m not getting support; I’m just turning it down! Besides, I-I’m in the process of making more friends too! Soon, you’ll be…!” Charlotte barked, her teeth grinding.

“Oh my. That’s a new one. I’ve heard that no matter who you talk to, they reject you, they ‘don’t want to join the Poor Knights’. Well, whatever. Where are these people you’re talking about? If you don’t mind, I’d like to be introduced to them.”

“Th-That’s right…Ah!”

Then, Charlotte’s expression brightened like a lightbulb. She pulled Nacht’s arm firmly toward her.

“This guy, this guy! This new student is my friend! He’s very strong, even though he has red hair! Your Knights are no match for him!” Charlotte declared.

“Hey, what are you talking about? I’m not your friend…” Nacht began to deny.

“Shh, just go along with me…! I’ll buy you lunch later!” Charlotte interrupted desperately in a whisper. 

It seemed that Aria had not yet heard about the incident at the entrance. If that was the case, then they could fool her, albeit only on the spur of the moment.

Then Aria looked at Nahat suspiciously but replied with a hum and a sniff.

“A redhead for a friend. Well, now that you’ve found a friend, I won’t have to be so hesitant about destroying you. All right. Right now, you and me, as first-years…”

A voice from the other side interjected.

“Um, may I have a moment?”

“No, just shut up! I’m in the middle of something. Shut up… ah,”Aria demanded, irate.

However, when she realized that it was the homeroom teacher, her fearful expression was easy to read.

Storia, a female teacher with glasses, was standing there. 

“Homeroom has already started. There seems to have been some sort of commotion, but roughing each other up is prohibited in class. Everyone, take your seats,” she said with a smile.

“…Um, excuse me, teacher…. Actually, there was a big hole in the wall due to a duel in our class…” Charlotte slowly explained, pointing toward the hole in the wall.

“Oh dear. There really is one. That’s a problem~” Storia replied calmly.

“Don’t worry, I will call the repairman right away. Until it’s fixed, our class will have to use another classroom. So, don’t fuss over it too much,” the teacher continued with her hand on Charlotte’s shoulder.

“Thank you, Storia-sensei, for your help! Come on, let’s go, Nacht!”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Charlotte began to lead Nacht back to class.

“Don’t forget, Charlotte. One of these days, we’re going to settle this,” a voice behind her back uttered.

“…”

Though Charlotte flinched at those words, she left without answering back.

 

(TL: Yo, ucali here. I’m aware that some of the terminology sounds stupid, so if I think of anything better, I will change it. Thanks for reading.)