#991 A Battle Between Instructors

“Ha! The so-called Corrupted-Holy Sword’s clan is nothing but a bunch of weaklings! I, from the illustrious lineage of the Wild-Holy Sword Sechsweiss, will show you the true power of a high-ranking demon!”

“Again, you’ve got guts to make such reckless statements in front of me, the leader of that very clan.”

The farm student participating in the next match is a human.

He’s a familiar face from my visits to the farm.

It’s Neyote, a fellow accelerated student like me.

“Yeah, he caught the eye of President Ritheseus and was allowed to enroll early. Like Prince Goetia, he uses teleportation magic to commute from home because he’s still ‘young...’”

Oso, who had just finished her match, provides the commentary.

In reality, hardworking Neyote has even more responsibilities at home, which only increases his burdens.

“Ha! For a human who lost the war to dare challenge a demon is laughable! I’ll crush you with my overwhelming power and show you your place!”

“Human Hundred Crack Fist.”

“Ababababababa!!!”

It was the demon who learned his place from the overwhelming power gap.

Neyote secured victory in an instant.

“Humans who train on the farm gain incredible physical abilities by harnessing their biomana. Their reaction speed far exceeds that of magic. If humans had mastered this ability during the war, they might have actually won.”

Oso steps in to explain further.

“Wh-What?! The elites I, Zurbester, handpicked were defeated so easily...?!”

“Well, what’s your next move? You’ve lost two out of four matches. One more loss and your overall defeat is guaranteed.”

Zurbester looks like he can’t believe what he’s seeing.

Belphgamillia eggs him on.

“Y-You won’t be so smug for long. We’ll win the next two matches, making it a tie, and then we’ll claim victory in the final deciding match!!!”

“Since when were those the rules? Either way, let’s move on to the third match.”

The third fighter from the farm side steps forward... And it’s Tetra, the merprince?!

“This is taking too long. How about this: I’ll take on both of the remaining fighters. If I lose, you win overall.”

“Wha-?! You arrogant child, you’ll regret those words!!!”

Zurbester’s remaining two fighters step up.

“I am from the line of the Malicious-Holy Sword! I will serve as the top aide to Prince Goetia!!!”

“No, that’s the role of my line, the Coveted-Holy Sword! I am destined to be the commander of the Demon Army’s Heavenly Four!!!”

They prattle on, ignoring me, the demon prince.

But their boasting didn’t last long. Prince Tetra swiftly kicked them into the sky, turning them into twinkling stars.

Sparkle!

“They were all talk. The tail fin of merfolk trained in rapids is just as powerful when transformed into two legs with the humanizing potion.”

“Merfolk?!”

“Oh? You didn’t realize? Couldn’t tell a transformed merfolk from a human? Can someone that clueless really educate royalty?”

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!”

Zurbester’s face turns beet red at the provocation.

“Human, merfolk, whatever! They’re just inferior races compared to us demons!”

“And yet, your best students have been wiped out by these ‘inferior’ races.”

“Silence! They were just disappointments! If we demons get serious, we could wipe out humans and merfolk in no time! Don’t get cocky!”

“Oh? Should we take that as a declaration of war?”

“Huh?”

The voice is calm and gentle yet carries a certain weight.

Usually, he’s a bit of a jokester, but hearing a voice like that, it’s clear he’s really royalty among the merfolk.

“Wh-What do you mean?”

“I’m the current Mermaid King’s brother. I could tell him what you just said, and if war breaks out, it’d be your fault, right?”

“Eeeeeeeeek!”

Wait, Prince Tetra!

You can’t just casually start a war! Didn’t you once say not to flaunt your title?

“Hehe. Goetia, let me teach you something. The most satisfying way to crush a tyrant is with an even greater power!”

He said it so confidently!

“What a lineup...! A prodigy talked about in the Demon King’s Army, a young elite destined to lead the New Human Kingdom, and the brother of the current Mermaid King...! It’s quite a roster...!!!”

Meanwhile, Zurbester is trembling all over...

“This isn’t fair! You brought all these exceptional talents!”

“Didn’t you gather elite demons yourself?”

“They’re nothing compared to such outstanding talents! They should all be my students! I’ll take them all under my wing!”

“What?”

What is Zurbester saying?

Is it just me, or does it make no sense?

“Prince Goetia, don’t listen to that nonsense. Taking every idiot’s logic seriously will warp your young mind.”

“Our family has always been responsible for educating demon princes, so naturally, I’ll take on the promising talents! I’ll handle the education of those three along with Prince Goetia, and we’ll revert the class schedule to six days a week. Problem solved!!!”

“But weren’t you supposed to step down if you lost? What about our agreement?”

“Minor details! True talent deserves my education!”

“However, Prince Goetia and the others are already under someone else’s guidance. They’ve grown splendidly because of that. There’s no room for you to interfere.”

Belphgamilia is trying to reason with Zurbester while cleverly keeping the Farm School a secret.

But Zurbester, eyes bloodshot, isn’t listening anymore.

“No one is a better educator than I am! I don’t care which backwater teacher they have; it’s obvious that I’m superior! Under my guidance, they’d grow even more!”

“Where does this baseless confidence come from? ...Ugh, what a hassle.”

For once, Belphgamilia looks genuinely exhausted.

“In that case, how about another competition?”

“A competition?”

“Earlier, it was the students competing. Now, let’s have their teachers compete. The winner is the better educator... What do you say?”

“I accept! As someone who guides young talent, I’ll crush that country bumpkin in no time!”

Zurbester is brimming with confidence.

“So, where is this backwater teacher?! Sending students without showing up themselves? Clearly, they’re not qualified to teach such brilliant minds!!!”

“Well, there’s a reason they can’t show up so easily. But if you insist on challenging them, then we’ll make it happen.”

“Huh?”

Belphgamilia speaks as if it were all Zurbester’s idea.

“Well then, let’s summon them right now. Once they appear, feel free to battle them to your heart’s content.”

With that, Belphgamilia starts chanting a spell, creating a dark portal.

Out steps...

Sensei the Lifeless King.

Seeing Sensei’s figure, Zurbester lets out a gut-wrenching scream.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”

“I understand the situation. Let’s duel to our heart’s content, demon educator.”

Faced with the sudden appearance of the most terrifying figure, Zurbester is in utter chaos.

“A Lifeless King?! A Lifeless...?! Guards! Guards! This is the biggest crisis the Demon Kingdom has ever faceddddd!!!”

“He doesn’t listen, does he?”

Anyone would react like that if you showed up, Sensei.

However, Zurbester, reacting more than most people would, shoves aside his own students as he flees, making his way to the wall. When he realizes he has no more room to run, he crouches down in place, hiding his head but leaving his backside completely exposed.

Is this how an adult is supposed to behave?

And Zurbester isn’t just any adult; he’s supposed to be an educator, guiding and teaching children.

And here, right now, are the very students he’s meant to protect and teach.

Given his role as a teacher, shouldn’t he have either protected the children with his own life or at least devised a more intelligent and resourceful way to escape?

In my mind, the image of a respectable adult is crumbling to pieces with a loud crash.

***

I know.

Not everyone is like that. There are genuinely admirable adults, like my father.

But some aren’t, and that’s an important lesson I learned today.

“Zurbester was taking bribes from some higher-up demons,” Belphgamilia says after things calmed down.

Sensei is still here, casually saying, “Being summoned is quite an experience.”

“Being friends with a demon prince is a fast track to success. Get in their good graces, and you might get an important position in the future.”

“That’s true...”

The ones we fought today boasted that they’d be the Heavenly Four in the future.

I can’t deny they have that kind of ambition.

“And if you gather those high-ranking candidates under the guise of ‘students,’ the influence of the Demon King’s education department becomes immeasurable. Their family has maintained their status for generations by doing just that.”

“Ridiculous! What good is that...?!”

If you’re going to gain a position, it should be based on merit.

Trying to secure a position through connections is like admitting you lack real ability.

If I become the Demon King, I wouldn’t give any positions to those who try to rise through the ranks that way.

“There are all kinds of people, especially in a large country. It’s the leader’s job to unite them, at least on the surface. Your father has been doing that well.”

“My father...”

“We picked someone like Zurbester, a nobody, just to calm the conservatives by following old traditions. Those folks don’t see eye to eye with the Demon King, but if we cut them off for that alone, our kingdom would vanish in a heartbeat.”

Our Demon Kingdom, built by people with all sorts of ideas coming together.

Father must be thinking every day about how to unite these beliefs.

“Well, it’s a stroke of luck that today’s fool handed us a reason to cut him off on a silver platter. With such a blunder, even the conservatives can’t defend him.”

Did Father foresee all this when he sent me to the farm?

“That’s just a secondary goal. The main thing is that he wants you to grow. Surely, today was another learning experience for you, and your father has high hopes for you,” says Belphgamilia.

That’s right, I’m the future Demon King.

Seeing such filth won’t break me.

To meet my father’s expectations, I’ll keep studying hard on the farm!