The Third-Rate Academy Villain Who Refuses to Become a Beggar

Gerhard knew that demons were beings not even allowed to leave their corpses in the middle realm.

Through a method he never wanted to know.

"..."

How much could he get from dismantling that giant snake's corpse?

Though the black scales were somewhat ominous, they were so solid that they couldn't even be scratched without the aura that Aint and Luina had carefully forged.

The golden eyes that had gleamed and the blood would probably sell at a high price as magical materials that wizards would go crazy over.

The sharpness of the teeth was at a level where even decent swords couldn't compare, and the hardness of the bones would certainly be material for excellent armor.

Not only that, but the flesh permeated with demonic energy could somehow be purified and sold as medicine.

If marketed as a snake soup made from a demon's familiar, anyone would go wild for it.

But the crown jewel would have been the heart.

Since all the enormous strength and vast demonic energy possessed by that snake originated from the heart, the heart could have been the ultimate elixir comparable to a dragon's heart, or a power source.

'If I had somehow purified that and enhanced Wooden's core?'

It wouldn't have been easy, but Wooden might have advanced to another level.

A corpse from which one could suck the marrow.

But those dreams, that money, had vanished in an instant.

After all that hard work, he gained nothing.

"Aah..."

Gerhard, whose legs had given out, unconsciously sat down.

"We won! We really won! We actually won!"

Aint's cheer came from far away.

"We defeated a demon!"

Luina's excited voice was heard right in front of him.

"It's thanks to you, Gerhard! Without that golem of yours, it would have been impossible...?"

Achievement, relief, excitement, jubilation, emotion, joy, happiness.

Various emotions were complexly expressed on her flushed face.

"Are you crying?"

"I'm not crying."

"Are you badly injured somewhere? I don't see any wounds on the outside..."

"...You know nothing, Luina."

"What does that suddenly mean?"

Gerhard didn't bother to explain. Even if he did, there was no way Luina would understand.

"Senior!"

A swift shadow tightly grabbed his hand. It was Aint.

"We won! It's all thanks to you, Senior!"

"It's not because of me, but because of you. You're the one who beheaded the demon."

"No! Without your golem, we could never have pushed the demon to the end!"

"Yes, I get it, now let go of my hand."

And don't press your face so close to mine.

"What exactly happened to the demon?"

"It died. Since demons are not beings of the middle realm, their corpses turned to dust and disappeared."

However, not everything was gone.

Others didn't see it, but part of the demon was absorbed into Aint's sword.

<It's one of the abilities residing in the sword. It absorbs some of the demon's power and strengthens its owner.>

A warrior who becomes stronger with each demon he slays. That was the first Emperor.

<Don't tell anyone. Since you never know when it might leak out, it's good to keep some part of your power hidden from anyone.>

Gardner explained that it's a knight's virtue to hide 10% of their power, even from close companions.

"And the barrier is gradually being lifted."

"Barrier?"

"Yes. The moment the demon was summoned, a barrier isolated the surroundings from the outside."

That explains it. He thought it was strange that no one came despite the commotion.

'Was it like this in the original future too?'

Perhaps Andromalius had set up the barrier after Aint and Luina arrived.

"Then the real thing starts now."

With such a commotion, the Academy would now learn about demons.

There would be a major disturbance, and a lot of investigations would be poured on the five people at the scene, including Gerhard, Luina, and Aint.

"Then just talk about this incident. Don't mention that you knew about the demonic species from before."

"Yes."

"I know."

Knowing about the demonic species beforehand wouldn't work in their favor, no matter what excuse they gave.

They coordinated on a few other points as well. Fortunately, both of them readily followed Gerhard's opinion.

What was somewhat unexpected was that while some trust had built up with Luina, he hadn't expected Aint to agree so readily.

'It seems our relationship has deepened a bit more after catching this demon.'

Not bad.

"By the way, I've been wanting to ask, what is that?"

As the conversation was wrapping up, Luina's finger was pointing at Gerhard's shoulder.

On his shoulder, something small, about 10cm, was wriggling.

"It's Wooden."

A black knight the size of a small doll.

"Wooden?"

"That... this form? Really?"

"Yes, this is the giant golem you were so grateful for."

<Gring?>

Wooden tilted his tiny head and waved his hand.

"...Is it possible for a giant golem to shrink like that?"

"...It's not linked right now, is it, Senior?"

"I told you. It's an ego golem."

"Ego? It really has its own consciousness?"

"Of course. Wooden, hand."

<Gring!>

Wooden extended his small hand forward. At this sight, Luina and Aint were astonished once again.

"...I've never seen a golem like this."

"Because it's a masterpiece that didn't exist before and won't exist in the future."

"No, really? Aren't you secretly linking it and doing this on your own, Senior?"

"That's not the case, Aint."

The answer came from somewhere completely different.

"Please give me a potion too, Senior. I feel like I'm dying."

It was Ariadne, with a small hole in her side.

"Where were you resting that you show up when it's all over?"

"I was fighting hard and fainted, how can you say I was resting!"

Gerhard threw her a potion.

"Ariadne, you say that's not the case? Do you know about this golem?"

"Of course. I put the ego in it."

"You put it in?"

"Yes."

Ariadne nodded.

"It's a spirit."

==

The time rewinds to a while ago.

When Ariadne was freed from demonic energy by the Saint and they checked the contaminated World Tree together.

"By the way, are you good at spirit magic?"

"Is that like asking a monkey if it knows how to climb trees?"

"If you help me, I'll introduce you to one more person."

"Who is it?"

Ariadne asked with even more sparkling eyes.

Gerhard took something out of his subspace.

It was a gleaming jewel, about the size of a human head.

No, it wasn't just a jewel.

"...A core?"