Chapter 10

### How to Live Like a Demon - Chapter 10 (10/385)

How to Live Like a Demon Chapter 10

010 The One Above the Leaper (3)

"Apsylon is that way."

Lexus maintained a suitable distance without uttering a word as he led Lucius. The moment they entered the main building, he pointed to the left corridor.

He glanced at the students crowding behind him and quickly left as if fleeing.

'This is going to be a long day.'

Lucius, muttering this brief thought, headed for the classroom. Before long, he encountered a familiar face in the corridor.

Hamel, who had no choice but to follow him and had started teaching demonology this year.

"Lucius..."

Hamel, seemingly aware of the surrounding gazes, only frowned and tousled his hair, remaining silent.

Come to think of it, it's about time I should supply him with mana.

Lucius gauged when Hamel had last eaten and understood his irritability.

I should summon him today or tomorrow. Lucius nodded slightly in greeting and entered the classroom.

"Good morning, Lucius..."

The first to greet him in the classroom was Ilinushka.

It's nice that he greeted me first after our brief conversation yesterday.

"Good morning. You seem to be in a good mood today?"

Ilinushka slowly nodded in response.

"Today, I heard about the class content."

"Class content?"

"The details... you should ask the class president."

"I will."

While conversing with Ilinushka, Lucius quickly checked the students' wrists.

Besides Ilinushka, the ones without a mark... are Rayel and Kian, right?

Those two would naturally have found it on time.

It meant there were no other outstanding cases.

Moreover, upon closer inspection, only three students had received the cumbersome 'mark.'

Arcan, a Spriggan; Ratatria, a Ratman; and me.

'Interesting.'

While the exact criteria for the mark were unclear, Lucius was pleased with Arnold's gift.

His lips curled up in a pleased smile.

"Good morning!"

"Good morning. Rayel, Kian."

Rayel approached with a bright smile.

Kian stood beside her with a stern expression.

"Lucius, we're going to Warren Forest for our first class."

"Warren Forest is the artificial forest owned by the academy, right?"

It was a well-designed place, made to resemble an ordinary forest except for the absence of demons and monsters.

Forests are particularly rare in the Demon Realm, so the artificial forest is regularly maintained and repaired.

"Yes! The theme of this class is stealth and exploration. The teacher will provide more details when he arrives."

Rayel's wings fluttered softly, indicating her good mood.

"Since it's a forest, it's a familiar place for both you and me."

"Exactly. But I won't let my guard down. After all, it's Mr. Arnold."

Not only Rayel, but the other students were also hyped up for their first class.

It's probably due to Mr. Arnold's notorious reputation as a teacher.

Seeing them speculate about the class and how it will proceed reminded him of the previous Demon King's army training.

Those guys had a similar feeling.

Lucius smiled contentedly, and Rayel whispered cautiously.

"Lucius. Can we talk quietly?"

"Sure."

Lucius got up nonchalantly and headed to a corner of the classroom.

However, Rayel, apparently finding this insufficient, summoned a wind spirit to create a barrier to prevent any sound from escaping.

She seemed to have some expertise in spirit magic.

Impressive.

"Lucius. I've decided to move with Kian at the beginning of any class. What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yes! Do you want to move together?"

"Is that okay? I thought you two would only move together. As partners, it would be more convenient."

"That's true, but..."

Kian suddenly interjected.

It seemed they had both agreed to the idea of moving with Lucius.

"...Fairies and Dryads have good compatibility, so there's a lot to learn from each other. I don't know much about fairies, so I can't offer much advice."

"Do you think I can help Rayel?"

"Perhaps."

His tone lacked confidence, but his expression suggested he didn't think it would be a loss.

Even with his demonic aura perfectly concealed and his presence minimized, he couldn't evade the keen senses of beast-type demons.

He shrugged and gave a vague answer.

"I'll think about it."

Rayel and Kian seemed to want a definite answer, but Lucius had no intention of giving in easily.

Creak.

Just then, the classroom door opened, and Arnold shuffled in, interrupting their conversation.

His steps were lackadaisical, but his gaze on the students was full of energy.

He unfolded the attendance book at the lectern and smiled nastily.

"Good morning, students. How was the homework I assigned yesterday?"

There was no response from the students, as most had failed.

"It might have been easy for some and difficult for others. But there was a reason I assigned such a task on the first day."

His gaze briefly lingered on Lucius as he scanned the students.

"Regardless of what you end up doing later, you must know how to hide and explore. It's the most basic but often overlooked virtue. It's also excellent training for finely controlling and manipulating mana, so practice diligently."

Lucius nodded in agreement.

Seeing no objections from the students, Arnold took out a bunch of black cards from his pocket, spread them out, and began explaining today's class.

"For that reason, we'll be using these today."

The cards were infused with Arnold's demonic aura.

Moreover, the 'mark' around his neck seemed to be connected to the cards.

This meant the cards had some mechanism to recognize the marked individuals.

"These are 50 specially treated cards. If you find and collect 5 or more cards hidden in the forest, you pass."

Students confident in their combat skills exchanged glances, finding it interesting and not too challenging.

In contrast, a few weaker students looked deeply troubled.

There were 20 students and 50 cards.

Even if they divided the cards equally, only half the students could pass.

Arnold scanned the various reactions and smiled.

"Don't think it ends there. I won't spoil the fun by giving away too much in advance."

"Teacher."

Lucius raised his hand, and Arnold turned his gaze to him.

"Do you have a question? Lucius Kendrick."

"Is it 5 or more cards?"

5, not just 5.

Arnold smiled meaningfully and nodded.

"Good question. Whether it's 5 or 50, as long as you collect them and complete the class, it's fine. The class ends exactly 8 hours after it starts."

"What about the score?"

"You'll get what you deserve for your efforts."

The students' expressions changed dramatically at his response.

Arnold added,

"To complete the class, infuse the collected cards with mana. Your score will be checked at that moment."

The atmosphere in the class shifted dramatically after Lucius and Arnold's exchange.

Students who had been forming teams by exchanging glances now avoided looking at each other.

Their eyes were filled with greed for the scores.

They were no longer classmates but competitors vying for limited scores.

Arnold clapped his hands once.

Then, in a slow but clear voice, he said,

"Be fully prepared and gather at Warren Forest in one hour."

* * *

Warren Forest was a collaborative effort by druids, dryads, and fairies to create a training ground for students.

It had various cover and sufficiently threatening plants. The forest's demonic aura was of a suitable concentration, making the students naturally tense.

Rayel, who had been admiring the forest, poked Lucius's side.

"Don't turn your head. What should we do now?"

Rayel seemed to want to team up with Lucius.

'I have no intention of following you just because it's convenient.'

Without looking at Rayel, he asked,

"Do you have any good ideas?"

"Yes, to complete the class safely, we need at least 15 cards."

"Assuming 5 cards per person, that makes sense."

"Finding more is good, but spending too much time searching could make us targets for other students. I think the key to this class is to collect cards as quickly as possible."

A simple system: collect cards to complete the class.

The class ends in 8 hours and 23 minutes.

And there are 23 minutes left before the class starts.

Of course, if you collect and infuse mana quickly, you can complete the class early.

Rayel seems to want to quickly collect 15 cards and finish the class.

Lucius stroked his neck once and turned to Rayel.

"So we need to cooperate as much as possible."

"Even though more cards mean more points?"

In response to Lucius's question, Rayel shook her head firmly.

"Mr. Arnold said we get what we deserve for our efforts. He never said more cards mean more points."

"..."

"So collecting more cards is meaningless."

Lucius was inwardly impressed.

Despite it being the first class, she didn't panic and made quick, accurate judgments.

Rayel looked at him curiously at his silence.

Lucius shrugged.

"You're right. There's no need to go out of our way to collect more cards."

Before Rayel could say anything, he added,

"Ultimately, they'll all be taken away."

"Lucius...?"

"Rayel, I said I'd think about it, not that I'd move with you."

Rayel frowned.

She seemed a bit flustered, and a hint of hostility appeared in her gaze.

"Is that how you want to play it?"

"As I said, I'm thinking about acting alone this time."

"It will be hard for you to collect 5 cards alone, Lucius."

"Even if we're three, it won't make much of a difference."

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

So, how do you prevent too many cooks from spoiling the broth?

Simple.

Remove all the cooks.

"Rayel, let me give you a hint."

"A hint?"

"Think carefully about what Mr. Arnold said."

Arnold had laid out plenty of bait.

It was necessary to revisit the class explanation.

"These are specially treated cards. There are 50 in total. Find and collect 5 or more cards hidden in Warren Forest to pass."

The subject was unclear.

He never specified who would pass if 5 or more cards were found and collected.

The students had assumed, without question, that the demon who found the cards would pass.

Perhaps one person would pass for every 5 cards, or multiple people could pass.

By suggesting that collecting more than 5 cards would result in passing, Arnold had framed the class as a competition to showcase individual abilities, leading to a card-grabbing frenzy.

"To complete the class, infuse the collected cards with mana. Your score will be checked at that moment."

Recalling how Arnold had conducted previous classes, it was likely he had installed some mechanism in the cards.

Since he could only observe from a distance, he couldn't gather more information, but examining the cards directly would reveal more.

Lucius found a spot a suitable distance from Rayel.

Then, Arnold, appearing precisely on time, declared,

"Class begins."