The Academy’s Weapon Replicator

About three hours after passing Poseidon.

“──Here it is.”

As I had expected when we passed through, the continent soon came into view.

The sun was quite low, casting an evening glow, and we confirmed the continent visible in the distance.

Selena, who had been staring blankly as if amazed by the outline of the continent, said,

“We really just went west and arrived.”

“We weren’t looking for an island.”

To find a small area, we would need a proper map, but Agoris is a continent. Even if we were slightly off course, we would have reached Agoris.

“So what should we do? Should we look for a place where humans live right away?”

I shook my head at Arald’s question.

“I’ll go take a look alone first, so please take care of anchoring. It might take a few days. We have enough food, right?”

I said that and created wings on my back with Obsidian.

Elodie, who was watching, said,

“You look like a real demon when you do that.”

…That’s not a criticism, is it?

I had that worry for a moment, but Elodie was thinking something else.

“…Maybe, even if real demons see it…”

“Ah.”

I understood Elodie’s intention and looked at Ria Lis.

“Ria Lis. Do you think I can deceive demons with these wings?”

Ria Lis frowned, pondering.

“Assuming you have your wings spread from the beginning, and you’re not exposed for too long, I think you could fool them. Demons’ wings have different shapes depending on their individuality, and the higher their rank, the more distinct they are. Frondier’s wings are a bit too extravagant, though.”

The first time Obsidian attached to my back like wings was when I fought Belphegor.

When I ate the Dragon Heart I made myself and poured all my pure mana and Helheim’s mana into Obsidian. I became able to handle all of Obsidian, which was as vast as a lake.

So, the excess that covered my entire body extended behind me like wings. However, at that time, I didn’t use them for flight. I didn’t have the luxury to do so.

Recalling that memory, I used the wings for flight inside Hitchcock, and I’ve been using them well ever since.

“Since they’re created wings and I only thought about flying at high speeds, they got a bit big.”

The flight speed increases with the amount of mana I inject into Obsidian. In fact, this principle is more like an engine than a bird’s wings.

Obsidian itself is mana, so it’s like my whole body is being pushed by the concentration of mana in the shape of wings.

“They’re eye-catching, but they’re as black as a demon’s wings. And there are demons with large, flamboyant wings. But if they see you folding or unfolding your wings, they’ll find it strange. Demons’ wings don’t spread like that.”

Of course. They’re created by Obsidian. The way they unfold is completely different from a demon’s wings.

And even though their shapes vary, Obsidian’s material is so peculiar that there’s a chance I’ll be caught if I’m exposed for too long.

“In that case.”

But that was enough for me.

“I can get close to a certain extent.”

“Get close?”

Selena asked.

There was no reason to hide it, so I said,

“I’m going to Baal.”

* * *

And as time passed, I finally arrived at a castle gate.

On the castle walls, there were winged creatures keeping watch, and I could see a few demons flying around in the air, making a bit of a commotion.

It looked as if the demons had already occupied the human territory, but that wasn’t the case.

There were no humans here from the beginning.

This wasn’t a human castle.

“Found you.”

I confirmed Baal looking down at me from above.

Unfortunately.

My plan to meet Baal without causing a stir had already been ruined a few days ago.

I searched for Baal in the Agoris continent.

Of course, finding one demon in this vast land is ridiculous, but Baal is different. He’s the King of Hell. There must be no demon in this country who doesn’t know him.

I’m sure all the demons I met would agree with how kind I was to them in my search for Baal.

‘I thought the demons in Agoris were originally planning to attack the Empire, so they would be at the closest eastern end.’

I assumed the location of the Agoris demons would be similar to Manggot’s.

If Manggot was at the western end, they would be at the eastern end.

And that assumption wasn’t wrong.

It wasn’t wrong, but.

‘The demons really built a country.’

I didn’t even have to search; demons were visible at the eastern end of the continent.

And there were an absurd number of them, spread across an absurdly wide area.

‘Arald and Ria Lis were right.’

There’s no Zodiac in Agoris.

Literally and figuratively.

Agoris doesn’t have a powerhouse like the Zodiac. This is something I learned from the conversation between Baal and Marco.

But I heard that in Agoris, demons fight against humans instead of monsters.

Then how did they prevent the demons’ invasion and endure?

Before coming here, I received advice from Ria Lis and Arald, who were originally demons.

“Based on what Baal said, there are two things we can predict.”

Ria Lis said.

“One, demons don’t hate humans that much. They don’t particularly like them either.”

“Compared to monsters that rush to kill you on sight, demons are much calmer, then.”

Monsters have an unconditional hatred for humans. There are no exceptions.

Whether it’s a normal monster or an outer monster, they become stronger and smarter, but their hostility towards humans never diminishes.

That’s why they try to kill humans even at the cost of their own lives, and that’s why the Falind continent has shed so much blood.

“I think the demons in Agoris have already established their own country.”

“They haven’t lost their memories like Satan’s subordinates.”

The demons who gathered in Agoris in the past to invade the Empire. They are demons who crossed Satan’s gate, but they are not Satan’s subordinates. Rather, they hold immense hostility towards Satan for leaving them behind and closing the gate.

As they were already a group, it would have been much easier for them to settle in Agoris than the demons of the Empire who lost their memories.

“Demons aren’t stupid either. They don’t want to shed unnecessary blood. Even though demons don’t prioritize their own lives, they do have a sense of preserving their species. They would want to avoid war as much as possible.”

“Then are the humans in Agoris safer than I thought?”

Arald shook his head at my question.

“That wouldn’t be the case.”

“Why?”

“Of course, there wouldn’t be as much danger as in the Falind continent, but humans and demons are clearly hostile towards each other. The idea of avoiding war as much as possible that Ria Lis mentioned is only temporary.”

“When will that idea change?”

Arald answered as if it were obvious.

“Of course, the moment they are convinced they can annihilate humans.”