Chapter 251
Chapter 251: Destruction God (3)
Children belonging to noble families always live under the guidance of adults.
The current head of the Viole family, Harkel, also spent his childhood at the primary learning center.
Back then, the Viole family was well-known, so Harkel was among the top tiers in his class.
Since it was a place where nobles and commoners coexisted, various conflicts were bound to arise.
The noble kids often bullied the common kids.
– Why are you so poor?
– Why didn’t you just get born into a rich family?
– If you want to be like us, jump down from a high place and be reborn.
Such verbal abuse went along with laughter.
Especially, Harkel was the leader of the group that took the initiative in such behavior.
Of course, it was merely the antics of children. There was always a chance for correction.
After all, it was merely a time of recklessness, acting on instinct and covering eyes, nose, and mouth.
Thus, what seemed like bullying would likely be regretted later when they grew up.
Then one day.
– A child from the same class died.
That common child, always bullied, began to spiral out of control and eventually ended up hating his own family.
He directed his resentment toward his father and, due to constant drunkenness, the father ended up killing the child in a fit of rage during an argument.
The incident quickly spread through the village as a rumor.
– Did you hear? That drunk uncle killed his son.
– Why?
– The son talked back, and he couldn’t hold his temper….
Naturally, it became a huge topic even within the learning center. Everyone was curious about why that child had talked back to his father.
The reason was none other than anger toward poverty.
Having been mocked for such reasons in class, an immense amount of stress had built up.
Harkel’s reaction at that time was as follows.
– Do you really think that’s my fault?
The cause was merely the child’s anger. It was just that he’d disobeyed his father and met his end.
So Harkel thought. It’s not my fault.
But he was desperately trying to avoid the reality that the anger had built up because of him.
If he hadn’t discriminated against commoners back then, such a thing wouldn’t have happened.
It was a fact that Harkel knew all too well…
– Did I even wield a knife and stain my hands with blood? I didn’t do anything, did I? So I’m innocent.
He began to manipulate his thoughts.
When a bird is desperate, it pecks at anything to eat; when a beast is desperate, it harms people; and when a human is desperate, it lies.
Caught in mental pressure, Harkel chose to escape from reality.
He ignored his guilt. That was the inherent selfishness of humans.
At that time, Harkel was at an age where such behavior could easily be overlooked.
Since he had already gone down that path of destruction, fixing it would be no simple task.
He evaded responsibility, telling lies with his head and mouth.
To do otherwise would be contrary to instinct.
– It’s because of you.
But there was a child who caught Harkel as he tried to escape.
– Why not apologize to that father?
Harkel was dumbfounded by such a statement. He still believed he had no guilt.
That boy, seeing through Harkel’s evasion, held him back so he couldn’t escape. This made him angry.
A boy with blue hair and sapphire-like eyes. Even now, his face was simply disgusting.
This was the beginning of the ill-fated relationship with Chain Silver.
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“Ugh… Why…!”
Harkel Viole, who had floated in the air, crashed headfirst to the ground.
The shock momentarily brought back memories from the past.
The worst memory of being caught after running away towards freedom. No matter how hard he struggled to escape, the Chain Silver guys were always on his tail.
In an instant, they tracked him down, freezing his body and immobilizing him.
“What the hell…!”
Even now, it was the same, and Harkel still couldn’t understand them.
Because…
“What exactly did I do!!”
With genuine murderous intent, Harkel unleashed his mana from all over his body.
The body frozen in the Silver Age couldn’t withstand that mana and shattered.
As soon as he was released from his restraints, he immediately filled a large sword with fire-type aura.
“Why do you keep getting in my way!!”
A furious strike filled with hatred towards Chain Silver flew towards Jenny.
The immense heat emanating from the sword reignited the cooled air.
Jenny quickly responded, summoning an ice wall to block the strike. However, the tremendous power was gradually melting the wall.
“Ugh… Pretty strong…!”
Indeed, even if it were rotten, it was still a chief skill.
Harkel, like his father, was a strong fighter who has cut down demon beasts.
In terms of experience and skill, he couldn’t help but be ahead.
But Jenny had enough strength to overcome it.
[90%]
She ramped up the chill of the Silver Age to its maximum.
A powerful output that hadn’t been possible until now was in Jenny’s hands.
A massive snowstorm whirled toward the area in front of Jenny.
Harkel’s precise and powerful flame strike evaporated in an instant, and even Harkel himself was swept away by the whirlwind.
“Ugh! My body…!”
Struggling to release his mana and prevent his body from freezing, Harkel was gradually reaching his limit, starting from his toes.
Since all his mana was used to withstand the cold, channeling aura into the sword was impossible.
‘How can such absurd strength exist…!’
Harkel had experienced numerous battles. He was well aware of how to counteract frost magic after fighting mages who wielded it.
If he expelled his body’s heat outside, he could offset the chill. This was the mana operation he had devised to counter the cold-attribute swordsmanship of Chain Silver.
But what was happening? Even while releasing the searing heat of his mana, his body was starting to stiffen.
‘Is the power to counter Chain Silver so frivolous…!’
In terms of mana, that girl was ahead of him.
It was an undeniable reality, but this wasn’t a time to get lost in thought. If he stayed like this, he would freeze again.
Determined, Harkel slammed the sword into the ground.
<Viole Style - Land Geyser>
In that moment, a massive quake began, and the ground started to split.
Enduring the cold, Harkel infused his mana into the ground, creating a great tremor.
As the ground broke apart, chunks of earth erupted like an explosion.
“This is…!”
Jenny, losing her balance from the shaking, realized what technique this was.
It was a technique often used by that first-year Travell Viole during sparring.
It was always a technique that interfered with the movements of the sword, and it was applicable even against the Silver Age.
For a brief moment, as she staggered, the chill weakened, and Harkel seized the opportunity.
“Die!!”
With his body barely able to move, Harkel closed the distance in an instant.
His massive sword, poised to decapitate, drew a line through the air.
But just before the line could touch, the sword suddenly halted.
“What gives you the right to try to kill my friend?”
The sword, which was close to striking his neck, was blocked by a small girl’s barrier.
“You…!”
The sky darkened suddenly due to the enraged Mary Ryudshiel.
In an instant, dark clouds gathered, and a storm broke out.
Simultaneously, a tremendous sound erupted, creating a threat toward the ground.
“And what do you think you’re yelling for!!”
Boom!—
With a flash of red in her eyes, Mary, filled with wrath, summoned a massive lightning bolt that struck down towards the earth.
It was ‘Heavenly Thunder,’ a high-level spell, and Harkel was struck directly by that overwhelming lightning.
“Ughhhhh!!!”
Screaming as if his flesh was being torn, Harkel writhed in agony.
No matter how strong Harkel was, being hit by such powerful magic made it hard to maintain composure.
Ultimately burned black, he collapsed, his whole body paralyzed.
“Even if you fly and crawl for a hundred days, you’ll never match the likes of Uncle Gerard.”
“Ugh…!”
“And you’re saying it’s not your fault? I can see that with that black coffin.”
In an unusually serious tone, Mary spoke.
It was a significant issue, so Mary couldn’t laugh as she usually did.
The Demon Beast War resulting from opening the Black Coffin was something Harkel had intended.
“Of course, when it was first opened, it was probably a mistake. And there was a chance to close it before the evil that had been resting in the coffin could spread into the world.”
“On what grounds…?”
Mary wasn’t at the scene at that time.
So Harkel had questions, but there was something he didn’t know.
What was inside the Black Coffin was the Demon King’s power.
Mary, possessing that power, could sense how things had unfolded.
The demon king’s will that had escaped from the coffin. She had caught a glimpse of the memories it had experienced.
“At that time, you must have felt something was wrong when you opened the coffin. But seeing the evil energies extending into the world, you must’ve thought.”
It was a perfect opportunity to gain merit for the Viole family.
If that evil was spreading in the region, there were surely demon beasts to defeat, and by taking them down, he could make his name widely known.
So he didn’t close the opened Black Coffin.
He showed no thought of the fact that others would be sacrificed due to that evil.
“But unexpectedly, a terrible existence known as the Demon King burst forth from the coffin, leading to the Demon Beast War. You tried to close it late, but it was already too late.”
Still, Harkel went to the frontlines to fight.
However, he bore no sense of responsibility for having opened the coffin.
Those unaware of the situation merely thought he was one among the heroes fighting for the citizens.
Harkel simply wished for such passionate responses directed at him.
That was the reason he fought.
“After having brought all this upon yourself, you then parade around calling yourself a hero for defeating demon beasts before the citizens of the Empire. Just how many tongues are you hiding under there?”
“Ugh!”
Knowing all the truth, Jenny looked down upon him.
Following that, Luska and the Saint, along with Mirona, who was once a princess, directed glances filled with disdain.
Paralyzed, Harkel could only grit his teeth.
“But don’t worry. We’re not like you, trying to take lives without reason. Instead…”
“…?”
“The one who started with lies should fall with lies.”
Whoosh!—
“Ughh!”
Mary severed Harkel’s leg with a blade of wind.
Even with blood splattering across his face, he showed no reaction. He was a scammer who deceived all citizens of the Empire.
The calamity of the Demon Beast War was the result of his lies, leading to catastrophic damage to the Empire.
It was pure evil, putting ignorant people in danger for his own convenience…
At that moment.
Boom!—
The ground began to tremble violently once again.
This felt different from the earthquake caused by Harkel.
A strange energy was surging below, precisely under the castle.
A tremendous force was writhing in the underground.
As they reacted, questioning what this was, Harkel smirked.
“Finally, it has begun.”
“What?”
Harkel’s paralyzed mouth began to move.
At the same time, a malevolent energy began to writhe from Harkel’s body.
“It’s already too late. Everything was set up before you even arrived.”
What did that mean? Jenny asked, but all she received were nonsensical answers.
“Do you even know what kind of existence that boy you were with is?”
“What?”
“It seems you know nothing. Anyway… it’s about to begin!”
In that moment, Harkel’s body disintegrated into particles of light and vanished. He had used some kind of magical device to teleport himself elsewhere.
Then, a massive explosion erupted centered around the castle.
The sky, once colored with dark clouds, split apart, and the ground was dug up like it was shoveling dirt.
Half of the kingdom lost its form and was obliterated.
Surviving as the Academy Scammer.
