Shadow Dragon: The Fallen Angel Is My Teacher

An elder called in the middle-aged exorcist who had been waiting outside.

When the man entered, they gave him a clear order.

He was to inform the Prime Five that the Exorcist Union had decided to agree to their demands of sending only Rank 3 Exorcists.

In return, no one was allowed to meet the Rune Sage until the day after tomorrow.

The middle-aged exorcist bowed and hurried out to deliver the message.

...

Mc's POV

Dad was holding me and flying me around the house like a little toy.

He was laughing loudly while doing it.

I gave him an unamused stare, trying to tell him I didn't want any part of this, but he kept spinning and swinging me around.

He probably thought children needed this kind of play.

'Dammit, this is so embarrassing.'

I understood where Dad was coming from.

In his eyes, I had been separated from my only friend, Seris.

So he wanted me to grow up normally and stay happy.

But…

I had the mind of an adult.

I was going out at night, fighting Cursed Spirits, plotting against the Exorcist Union and the Prime Five.

And in the morning, I had to sit still while my mother washed me, get fed by Dad, listen to Mom read stories, and then play with them the whole day because they wanted to entertain me.

'This is more exhausting than fighting Cursed Spirits.'

It made me pray I would grow up faster.

Right now, my Shadow — wearing Disguise Skin of Caelum Nocthera — and Dante were inside the Bermuda Triangle's domain.

The reason was simple.

I needed people to see that Caelum Nocthera didn't only show up at night like Alan Veritus.

My Shadow couldn't speak yet, but I already told it to avoid any situation where talking was needed.

It just had to stay in the Drinking Whale Inn, act like a voyager, and sometimes show its face outside.

My Shadow wouldn't get contaminated even if it stayed near voyagers, so this role suited it perfectly.

Night came.

My parents tucked me into bed and left the room.

One good thing these days was that they didn't come to check on me during the night anymore.

Because… they were preparing to gift me a little sister.

I was happy they didn't sneak into my room — they used to when I was building the warp points and then I would have to come back quickly — while I was gone, but I didn't know how to feel about getting a sibling.

I sighed.

"I want to return to the domain of Bermuda Triangle."

A key appeared in my palm.

I walked to the bathroom door and reached up to insert the key.

But the keyhole was taller than me.

'…I hope I can grow up quickly.'

I sighed again and used Telekinesis to lift the key into the keyhole.

The key turned, and I pushed the door open.

Instead of my bathroom, it showed my room inside the Drinking Whale Inn.

My Shadow—wearing the Disguise Skin of Caelum—and Dante were already inside, just as I told them.

I stepped in, used Shadow Assimilation to fuse with my Shadow, and then put on the Disguise Skin of Caelum Nocthera along with his clothes.

I checked myself in the mirror.

"It feels great to be tall."

I opened the door and walked downstairs.

According to my estimates, today should be the day the Exorcist Union and the Prime Five send someone to meet me.

'I wonder if they will send Rank 3 Exorcists or Rank 4.'

'There is no way they would send Rank 5 Exorcists, but Rank 4 Exorcists were also too few during this time period, so they probably won't send Rank 4 either.'

I walked down the stairs one step at a time.

A sudden chill ran down my spine.

It felt sharp and cold.

Something was wrong.

Something had gone horribly wrong.

'Did they send a Rank 5 Exorcist?'

I trusted my instincts.

A chill like this would mean there was danger ahead.

I paused on the stairs.

Rank 5 Exorcists were too dangerous for me right now.

Even Rank 3 Exorcists were a threat, but I could escape from them.

I might even escape from a Rank 4 with a good plan.

But a Rank 5 was on a completely different level.

'Sigh, there is no need to worry.'

'I already asked the inn girl to increase the patrol.'

'Even a Rank 5 Exorcist won't be able to cause trouble here.'

I forced the uneasy feeling down and kept walking.

When I reached the first floor, I looked around.

I saw a few Exorcists from the Prime Five based on their clothes and small details.

I recognized some of them.

All of them were Rank 3.

'Strange. Why did I feel a chill if everyone is Rank 3…'

My thoughts stopped when I noticed the Exorcist sent by the Exorcist Union.

She stood in the center of the room.

She wore a clean white kimono tied neatly at the waist.

Over it was a dark blue haori that rested lightly on her shoulders.

Her long black hair was smooth and straight, reaching halfway down her back.

Her bangs were trimmed evenly across her forehead.

Her face was soft but firm, almost gentle, yet her eyes were sharp and quiet with a deep focus that made it clear she had seen real battles.

A small pale scar sat under her lower lip, thin enough to miss unless someone looked closely.

She stood with perfect posture, like every movement came from years of strict training.

A katana rested at her left side inside a plain black sheath.

Nothing about her looked loud or flashy, but the quiet pressure around her was heavier than anyone else in the room.

I blinked slowly.

'These Exorcist Union bastards…'

Tomoe Gozen.

A Rank 3 Exorcist from Japan.

At least, that was the fake story everyone knew.

People believed she was the strongest Rank 3 Exorcist.

But her true identity was far more terrifying.

Rank 4 Cursed Spirit: the Blackout Priest.

It had annihilated Tomoe Gozen's entire team when they went to exorcise it.

Then it used her body and appearance as a disguise to infiltrate the Exorcist Union and deliver a fatal blow from inside.

Its most notable future achievement was horrifying.

Exterminator of the entire Japanese Exorcist Union branch.

Killer of all Exorcist Clans in Japan.

Cause of death of five million civilians.

'Dammit.'

The Exorcists from the Exorcist Union and the Prime Five turned their eyes toward me.

I raised my hand and gave them a small wave with a polite smile.

But inside, I was quickly organizing every piece of information I knew about her.

Right now, the Japanese Exorcists were celebrating Tomoe's "return" after the exorcism of a Rank 4 Cursed Spirit.

None of them realized she had been possessed by the very Cursed Spirit she went to exorcise.

I took a slow breath and forced myself to calm down.

'This is not the worst-case situation.'

'The Cursed Spirit is acting like Tomoe. As long as it believes its disguise is working, it won't attack anyone here.'

A Rank 4 Cursed Spirit could kill a Rank 5 Exorcist.

Even a major Hidden Clan needed all their forces just to try exorcising a Rank 4, and sometimes they still failed.

'Alright, change of plans.'

'Act like I don't know it's a Cursed Spirit. Do what I need to do and leave quickly.'