Chapter 12
My eyes fluttered open. My body was still aching, but I was definitely still alive. The health potion had done its job, as I didn’t feel anything but weakness and a dull ache. It wasn’t the first time I had taken health potions. The first year, they had a week of hell where they forced recruits to push themselves to their limits. So, they didn’t have to spend a week recovering after; they gave them a potion at the end. The bad part was that we all had to be ready for classes the following morning.
I could see the popcorn ceiling above me. I was lying in a bed. This must be the infirmary. I tried to move, but realized parts of my body were bandaged. That’s when I realized I was still missing most of my clothing. I sat up in a rush to check my arm. It was covered in bandages, which conveniently hid the demon mark, but didn’t that mean that whoever applied the bandages had seen everything? I tried to swing my legs off the bed, but they slammed into the side rails. My body began to panic as I grabbed at the rail, trying to drop it down so I could run.
“Relax.” A feminine voice caused me to freeze. “You aren’t in any danger.”
“N-nurse Nightingale?” I blinked as I looked over at a green-eyed woman staring at me.
She was sitting in a chair right next to my bed, as this was normal. Her legs were crossed, and she had a chart in her hands which she was filling out. Nurse Nightingale was the primary care provider for the school, and as a result, was quite popular. This wasn’t just because she healed people. Nightingale was a complete hotty, with long auburn hair that cascaded down her back and piercing green eyes. Her skin was flawless and pale, giving her an ethereal quality. She had high cheekbones and full lips. Her body was very curvy, and she looked very good in her low-cut nurse dress, which displayed a healthy amount of cleavage.
Every once in a while, someone would complain about the provocative way she dressed, but they were quickly quieted without anything ever being done. Nightingale seemed to have an impressive fanbase. Although I appreciated her appearance, I wasn’t the type to go after older women. I preferred girls my own age. Yet, if there was an older woman that’d, I’d consider fuckable, Nightingale would be it.
“Do I need to poke your eyes out, or do you intend to continue to look at me with those lewd eyes?” Nurse Nightingale asked.
I dropped my eyes immediately. It was just a rumor, but someone said that Nurse Nightingale really had poked someone’s eyes out once. I didn’t want to take the chance. I didn’t know her enough one way or another. The only time I had ever seen her was during mandatory physicals.
“How modest…” I heard her give a soft chuckle. “In truth, I don’t really care if you look or not. If I didn’t want people to look, I wouldn’t dress this way. A body on display is meant to be appreciated. Don’t you think?”
I looked back up at her. “Misses Nightingale…”
“Please… just Miss… or you can also call me by my name, Seraphina.”
“M-miss Sera- Miss Nightingale,” I responded, realizing I couldn’t look at her directly without being tempted to look down, so my eyes settled on a poster right behind her. “Am I alright?”
“You were struck by a dragon’s breath during a knight spar.” She responded simply. “You had a few mild burns, but the health potion already took care of that. All in all, there should be no lasting disabilities. It turns out your body is surprisingly hardy.”
“In that case, can I leave?” I asked, feeling my throat tighten.
She stared at me for a moment and then gave a slow nod. “I see no reason to hold you. Once I finish my paperwork, I’ll discharge you.”
I let out a breath of relief, but before I could breathe too easily, she continued.
“You know, not everyone can survive the breath of a dragon. I looked at your former physicals, and you were nowhere near this capable even last quarter.”
“I-is that so?” I asked, my uneasy feelings returning. “It must be a fluke. I was just having a good day.”
She tilted her head. “That makes sense.”
Something about the tone of her voice seemed off to me, but I didn’t know what it was. In fact, the longer I looked at her, the more off-putting her presence became. It was like there was something wrong with her, but I couldn’t tell what. She was watching me in the same way, almost like she was waiting for something. As her eyes stared toward mine, the rejection grew stronger until I looked away.
“Are you going to finish the paperwork?” I asked awkwardly.
“Tcht.” She made noise. “How interesting..”
“What?” I blinked, looking up at her.
“You’re not affected by my Abysmal Eyes. You’re the first demonic servant I’ve seen capable of resisting them.”
I jerked up in bed in a panic. “D-demonic… what are you talking about? Demons are evil! I would never serve one!”
My words were coming out on top of each other, but Nightingale merely tapped my arm where it was wrapped. “I didn’t get a chance to look at it earlier. There is not a lot of accumulated mana, so you must be a rather new recruit.”
As she said that, she pushed her chair away, moving to her desk. She began to scribble something on the paperwork in front of her, all while my mind raced. This woman had seen my demonic mark. If she told anyone, death was my only future. That meant that I needed to take care of her. I glanced around the room, desperately looking for a weapon. That’s when I saw a pile in the corner. It included what was left of my clothing, but on top of it was my sword.
As knights, we were required to carry our swords at all times. However, these weren’t the typical swords. These were the size of a keychain, and only when you activated them with will did they grow to their full size. People could carry them anywhere on their body, but it was common to keep them on a wristband so you could summon them without reaching for them. As the knight classes said, by the time you reached for and drew a blade, you might already be dead.
My wristband with the sword on it was sitting right on top of my clothing. It was technically illegal for me to even draw privately until I was off probation. Only a knight initiate had permission to wield their blade. Of course, for safety reasons, we still didn’t use our blades during sparring. Yet, if I had permission to draw my real sword, I might have been able to better block that dragon’s breath and never gotten into this situation in the first place. Although perhaps I was just kidding myself, as it had never occurred to me I should have used it until now. As a result, I’d be using it for something far less honorable. I was going to have to kill Miss Nightingale.
“What happened to Lumina?” I asked, watching her as I carefully and quietly exited my bed.
I had to keep her talking and distracted. Although she was just a nurse, I couldn’t assume she was defenseless. She mentioned something about eyes, which was a trait of some mages. Yet, a knight could kill a mage as long as they stuck before the mage used magic.
This is why knights were so important in the first place. A mage was stronger than fifty knights as long as they had the time to react, but in a one-on-one match, a knight would win every time. So, while a mage cast their spells, the knight’s job was to protect them.
Of course, that meant I had a chance here. As long as her back remained toward me, I just needed my blade. A single strike and I could kill her before she could cry out. After that, I’d need to figure out what to do with the body, but there was no going back now.
“Lumina?” She asked, still writing in her ledger. “Seeing as she’s an international student, it is unlikely she’ll be punished at all. Although she used an ability she shouldn’t have, you aren’t hurt. Does that anger you? I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
She suddenly spun around just as my hand reached the sword. I cursed, leaping for the blade, but her eyes flashed, and my body suddenly froze. My body felt like it was in molasses.
“Wh-what?” I managed to hiss.
“You’re persistent.” She looked more amused than angry, but as she noticed my hand started to slowly move toward the blade with some struggle, her eyes widened, and she got up and approached me. “Just who did you sign a demonic mark with? Although your demonic power is weak, the quality is incredible.”
“I- don’t know what… you’re talking about.” I hissed, my body sweating.
“Foolish boy, making me expose myself.” She gave me a coquettish look, and then, to my shock, she pulled her neck down, exposing her boob.
My eyes couldn’t help but fall on them. She didn’t lower enough to show a nipple, but it was low enough that I saw something else on her breast. On the top left breast was a mark, and I immediately knew why I felt opposition toward her. It was a demonic mark! As soon as I saw it, my eyes widened. Whatever freezing meant broke, but I no longer reached for the blade.
“Y-you’re a minion?”
“Hmph!” She pulled her shirt back up. “If you stare any harder, I may still poke out your eyes. We don’t call ourselves minions. That’s the name they use. In demonic circles, we’re called disciples.”
I finally looked away, feeling embarrassed. “I’m sorry, you’re just the first one I’ve ever met.”
“Oh, my, your first. How flattering.” She rolled her eyes and turned away, walking back to her desk. “You must be more careful. Thankfully, the students who carried you back didn’t recognize the mark. I was able to wipe their minds so they suspect nothing.
“C-could Knight Shambles have noticed it?” I asked worriedly.
“Knight Shambles? I suspect not. He’s one of ours. He wouldn’t have risked having you exposed if he knew.”
My mouth fell open, and then I closed it with a click. “H-how… how can there be so many of you…”
She looked back and then let out a soft laugh. “You really are new. You actually still believe in the bullshit propaganda the MKA put out? Some of them really think that demons have been pushed into the shadows, only to be seen in shadowy cults underground.”
I found myself nodding my head before I stopped. I had believed something similar. I would never imagine our hot nurse or the grouchy knight would actually be working for demons. Even being in line with one myself, I never would have imagined they had managed to integrate so far.
“Don’t get me wrong.” Nurse Nightingale responded. “If this were Griffins, it would be a much more difficult nut to crack. However, putting people in a few key positions at Azazel is simple. We’re not fools. We know where to conceal ourselves. For example, without me, how do you think demons would be able to get past the physical examinations?”
I couldn’t help but sweat a bit. I hadn’t really thought about it since we passed this year’s physical examination, but a full body inspection looking for demonic marks was part of the physical. There was no way any student could get passed it unless the nurse had a demon mark. She had put herself in a very difficult position, all to be able to protect other demons. Before this, I had really been feeling alone. For the first time, I felt like I had backup.
“I’ll depend on you in the future then.” I bowed.
She looked a bit stunned, and then her expression turned strange. “Why are you speaking like someone who doesn’t know any of this? Who is your cult leader?”
“Ah… that…” How was I supposed to explain this? “I don’t have one?”
“Don’t have one?” She gave me an incredulous look. “I don’t mind if you want to hold back information. Every demon does. You could at least not insult my intelligence.”
Realizing she looked a bit unhappy, I quickly waved my hands. “No, really. I signed a contract with my demon personally.”
She snorted. “That would make you a cult leader. You’re just a little knight. What fool would make a child the head of their cult?”
“Ah…” I didn’t really know how to respond, but when she saw me staring at her blankly, a frown appeared on her lips.
“Let me see that mark.” She demanded.
“H-here?” I put out my arm.
She blinked and then took it and unwrapped it. “It’s not considered polite to look at someone else’s mark too closely, but… th-the horn! Who the hell is your demon?”
“Ah, her name is Andromeda?”
“Andro-“ She stopped, staring at me for a moment, and then she began to wrap up my arm quickly. “No wonder you can resist my eyes so easily. Listen to me very carefully. Since your demon clearly hasn’t explained things to you, I’ll only say this once.”
“O-okay?” I wouldn’t say I resisted her eyes easily.
“Demons cannot be trusted.”
I blinked. “Um…”
“Other demons, and those that work for them. People like Knight Shambles… don’t expect them to help you.”
“I don’t think I understand…”
She let out a sigh, backing away and letting me sit down. “Demons are all self-serving. Hell has a hierarchy, but demons are always looking for ways to increase their rank and screw others over. This is one of the reasons that demons are still trapped in hell. They’re all constantly fighting and undercutting each other.”
“What about you?” I asked in worry.
She looked me up and down, and I slight smirk appeared on her lips. “My demon believes in a different path. He wants to unite hell and, once and for all, invade and conquer Earth. This is one of the reasons he sent me here to help other demons.”
As she spoke, her hand instinctively touched her chest where the mark was now hidden, and her eyes grew softer. I couldn’t help but shudder over her words. If a demon really did succeed in conquering Earth, it was a horrifying thought to have. Yet, this nurse had said it so casually.
“You know who Andromeda is, right?” I asked.
“You don’t need to worry about that right now.” She shook her head. “I have no clue why someone like her would make someone like you into a cult leader. I don’t know if she’s done you a favor or condemned you for eternity. I suppose that depends on you.”
“I-is there anything else I should know?” I asked.
“As the cult leader, you’re effectively her avatar on Earth. Her power flows through you. As you become stronger and gain disciples, so will your demon. If you wish to survive, though, you must keep your head low and help her earn followers. This is the only way for you to protect yourself and your demon.”
I already knew all that, although hearing her say it helped me focus a bit. I really had screwed Andromeda over when I failed to bang Sophia. She could have already had a new disciple, but instead, she still just had me. It gave me something to think about.
“Thank you for protecting my secret,” I spoke after a moment.
She bit her lip with her arms crossed as she looked me up and down.
“Look, although demons aren’t necessarily aligned, we do have rules. Rule One: We never reveal another demon or disciple’s identity to the other side. Revealing a cult member’s identity makes you a high traitor. High traitors are put at the top of the demonic hit list. Killing one grants you a large bounty of soul power.”
“Soul power?”
“Don’t interrupt me.” She lifted a second finger. “Rule Two: You protect the identity of anyone on the demonic side if you have the opportunity. Allowing someone’s identity to be exposed is nearly as bad as exposing it yourself.”
“Doesn’t that mean you were obligated to help me?”
“Rule Three!” She ignored me, bringing up her last finger. “The only demon you’re loyal to is your own. You take orders from no other demon. If you betray your demon and leave them for another, it’s not a death penalty, but it is a stigmatization. They also can retaliate if your new demon doesn’t have the strength to protect you.”
“So, I can sign in with another demon?” I asked.
“Not you.” She shook her head. “You’re a cult leader. Your connection is directly to your demon. She would have to release you herself for you to go to someone else. However, other disciples can be lured away. So, keep that in mind.”
“I see…”
“That’s it. That’s the rules. Which means, even if another demon wished to kill you, it wouldn’t be against the rules for them to do so. The only one they’ll have to contend with is the retribution of your demon and their cult. Do you understand?”
“I-i think…”
She stared at me for another moment and then sighed. “If you have any other problems, you can come to me if you need to.”
“Really?” My expression brightened. “Thank you!”
She was the first person I had ever met who had a demonic mark. She had given me some useful information, and she had even protected me from getting discovered. In a way, I felt like I owed her.
She couldn’t help but shake her head. “I think you’re going to need all the help you can get.”