Demons, vampires and succubi.
They were the three most common demonic races in the game.
I remember fighting all of them and even having a few conversations with several.
One of those conversations was with a succubus.
A Grade 22 Succubus, in fact.
Merilyn.
"Hello dear. Amon Everness, is it? My name is Merilyn, please sit down."
Red hair.
Innocent blue eyes.
It really was her.
But I knew that today of all days, she didn't act.
In fact, for the entirety of the first year, she was peaceful.
That didn't make me trust her any more though.
As I sat down opposite her, I calmed down, nodding at her.
"You seem a little tired. Was the test that hard?" She chuckled. "Fear not, dear. Your written exam was remarkable. It's my first time seeing a perfect 500/500 score. Enough of that though, you can relax here while I ask you some questions."
After a brief silence, she spoke again.
"Why do you want to become a cadet and join the Future Academy?"
It was a basic question, so I just gave her a basic answer.
"I want to become stronger."
And reach the end, of course.
Merilyn smiled and wagged her finger at me.
"No more boring responses, 'kay? If I want to evaluate your intentions, I really need to know what drives you."
Before I could respond, she moved on to another question.
"What are your future plans? After graduating, I mean."
After graduating...
Unlike what she asked me, I interpreted it a little differently.
What would I do after I reached the end?
Would I try to get back to my old world?
Would I settle down?
...Could I even settle down?
Those thoughts kept swirling inside my mind as I tried to make a breakthrough.
But in the end, I came up empty.
Every single time.
"Should I write down that you don't know?" she said.
"Yes," I replied instantly.
She gave me a faint smile and kept asking questions.
They were pretty boring, mostly concerned with my mental state and teamwork.
It was just a psychological exam, but with a succubus doing the examining.
A little sketchy.
But as it felt like we were nearing the end, she asked a question I didn't remember from the game.
"What are your thoughts on demons?"
"...Sorry?"
"Let me rephrase." Merilyn crossed one leg over the other and leaned in slightly.
"If, and this is only an if. If there ever comes a day where a battle between humans and the demonic races breaks out, which side would you support?"
Hearing that, my eyes widened for a moment.
That battle would happen.
I knew, obviously. I played the game.
But this battle wasn't even the worst of what had happened in the game.
In fact, that battle was like a prologue.
By the end of the first academy year, when the main character overpowered a couple of seniors during a tournament, that very same battle would break out.
A relentless assault by the demons against humans, which, if I recall correctly, wiped out nearly 40% of the human population.
This time around, I would make sure that didn't happen.
After all, what good was my knowledge if I couldn't use it to create the perfect ending?
Chuckling inwardly, I looked her dead in the eye.
"That's a stupid question, and I know why you're asking it. I hope the academy instructors don't show prejudice to the cadets just because of their past. That would be a little unprofessional, no?"
As I saw her brows twitch, I suddenly rose from my seat.
"If that's over, then point me to the next exam. I have something I need to take care of after I've become a cadet."
She just stared at me for a few moments.
That was when I saw more blood gather in her heart, likely meaning she activated her Gift.
Or... her special racial ability.
I immediately started holding my breath.
Succubi had this weird racial ability that let out pheromones.
They had some really detailed characteristics, but in short, they just made people really horny.
But so long as I didn't breathe in those pheromones, I had nothing to worry about.
She extended her finger, showing off her dimensional ring.
Just then, a single-piece silver coin fell onto the table and rolled off, landing beside my feet.
"Be careful in the next test. Monsters are very rarely considerate of weakness."
I gave her a smile and leaned down.
As I picked up the silver coin and stashed it in my pocket, I opened the door behind me and gave Merilyn one last look.
"Since you were so curious, I'll answer your question..."
"I'd side with the humans. Demons have caused nothing but harm, and they were also responsible for the death of my parents. I won't forgive them."
Her expression was the same as before, meaning she didn't even acknowledge my words.
I mean, why would she?
She was a powerful succubus of the Demonic race.
A race that could squash humans not only in power but also in numbers.
Even in my most successful route, I wasn't able to kill all the demons. Instead, I had to seal them away.
So her confidence was not for show.
But right as I turned around, prepared to leave, her words made me stop once again.
"Demons killed your parents, huh? What a joke."
I swiftly turned my head toward her, but the expression she had a moment ago was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, she was sitting in her seat with a professional smile.
"You may leave now, future cadet. I wish you the best of luck in passing all our tests."
"..."
She made it sound like a demon wasn't responsible for the death of Amon's parents.
But I read the lore. I even saw the secret ending that detailed Amon's life before the academy.
A demon possessed him and killed his parents.
Was she trying to say that because the demon possessed Amon's body and killed his parents with his own hands, it was somehow his fault?
Ridiculous.
I stomped out of the room and slammed the door closed.
Her words pissed me off more than I had expected.
And yet, I couldn't help but recall what she said.
I knew not to trust a demon, but given Amon's past, it would be wrong for me not to investigate.
But I would only do that after curing my constant blackouts.
Though, the stupid succubus forgot to tell me where I had to go.
Shitty way to get revenge.
Anyhow, since I knew this whole academy like the back of my hand, I navigated the hallways and eventually reached a dark corridor.
There were thick steel doors on the left and the right.
It looked pretty ominous at a glance, but this was called the portal room.
Space mages set it up, connecting it to distant places filled with monsters and of course demons.
This next test was pretty simple.
In teams of four, the cadets would fight monsters, and the instructors would evaluate their performance.
It was a neat exercise, and it was really easy—
My ass.
The main character was going to get rocked by a demon and just barely escape with his life, leaving the rest of his group to die.
Amon and Isabelle faced the same situation, and they were the only two who made it out alive from their group as well.
But since I was here, the outcome was going to be different.