NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Dark Demon is Not the Dark Demon
Chapter 1: Dark Demon is Not the Dark Demon
"Welcome to St. Marian Academy!"
In the grand hall, sacred hymns floated through the air as velvet-smooth, pitch-black curtains slowly parted. Stepping onto the stage was the most beautiful and noble lady of St. Marian Academy Headmistress Cynthia Saint Arte!
Surrounding the Saint Magus were nine great spirits, transforming into flowers and fireflies, rendering the stage dreamlike and enchanting.
The hall was adorned with four lavishly decorated long tables, above which thousands of floating candles illuminated the room.
The candlelight reflected off the golden plates and silver goblets, refracting into a kaleidoscope of colors, creating a surreal and fantastical atmosphere.
By the time Dark Demon came to his senses, he was already standing on the stage, next to the fragrant Headmistress Arte.
Memories flooded back into his mind like a flowing stream.
Dark recalled his memories from his past life.
"St. Marian Academy… Isn't this the academy from that ultimate Frankenstein of a Galgame that got trashed before release but became a hit afterward?"
Duel! St. Marian Super XX Academy!
In the Galgame industry, where most budgets were poured into exquisite character art while the storylines were often poorly crafted, Duel! St. Marian Super XX Academy was a rare breath of fresh air.
Although its plot framework was almost entirely borrowed from Harry Potter, its power system was heavily "inspired" by card games like Yu-Gi-Oh!, and the characters on the duel cards were sourced from various popular anime, the mix of elements somehow came together to form an unexpectedly fun game.
Even without pursuing the female characters in the game, players could still derive immense enjoyment from it.
For a long time, Duel! St. Marian Super XX Academy even became a "card game launcher," with various censored versions spreading like wildfire across the domestic pirated game scene.
However, Dark, with his unwavering sense of justice, held firm to his morals and resolutely avoided this trashy game that was a mix of plagiarism, piracy, and adult content. Thus, he only knew about the game's settings and plot through hearsay.
He vaguely remembered that the final boss of the game was a young noble named Dark Demon.
As the only son of a duchess, Dark Demon played a role similar to Draco Malfoy in the game, serving as an early antagonist who opposed the protagonist. Later, it was suddenly revealed that he was a descendant of a demon god. After the resurrected demon king was defeated, his bloodline awakened, transforming him into the final great demon god, giving the protagonist the opportunity to defeat him and steal his fiancée!
Speaking of which, Dark Demon was truly a tragic character from the start. Even his name, when translated, meant "Dark Demon," making him a clown destined for tragedy from the very beginning, Emmm…
Wait, why does that name sound so familiar?
Dark Demon's face gradually turned pale.
...
"Dark Demon, Dark Demon…"
The comforting, warm voice calling his name pulled Dark out of his shock.
He struggled to control the trembling muscles in his face and turned to Headmistress Arte.
Headmistress Arte had silver hair as pure and flawless as moonlight, and beneath her long lashes were blue eyes that seemed capable of drawing in one's soul.
As a romanceable character in the game, she was the moon of St. Marian, the most beautiful symbol. Her luxurious dress, tailored two sizes smaller than her actual measurements, accentuated the silver moon pendant resting on her chest, making it appear even more radiant.
Dark realized he was at the opening banquet of St. Marian Academy, about to undergo the academy's sorting ceremony as the first freshman to be called.
He tried to recall his experiences since his rebirth.
After recovering his memories from his past life, the memories of this life had become somewhat blurry.
But by combining the original Harry Potter setting, he finally managed to piece things together.
St. Marian Academy was the only academy in the kingdom capable of rivaling the Sacred Rite Academy. The academy was divided into four houses.
These four houses were: the Noble House, the Knight House, the Mage House, and the Fool House.
Students of the Noble House were all pure-blooded nobles of high status.
Students of the Knight House were brave and just, like knights.
Students of the Mage House were inheritors of knowledge, wise and learned.
Students of the Fool House, though lacking the bravery of knights or the wisdom of mages, were pure-hearted and held the greatest potential!
Dark wasn't overly nervous about this.
Before his demon god bloodline awakened, even the academy's sorting card shouldn't be able to detect it.
He was the son of a duke, the most noble bloodline below the royal family!
He was bound to be sorted into the Noble House.
Otherwise, this crappy game wouldn't even be able to get off the ground…
After calming down, Dark glanced at the area where the first-year students were seated, but among the sea of heads, it was difficult to spot anyone who looked like the original protagonist.
Then Dark realized he didn't even know the original protagonist's name!
But it didn't matter. As the son of the hero who sealed the demon king, he would soon stand out like a firefly in the night.
Dark took a deep breath and said, "Headmistress, I'm ready."
"As expected of the only son of the Demon family," Headmistress Arte smiled gently.
One of the nine spirits flying around her, a small griffin-like spirit, flew toward Dark.
When it reached him, its previously empty beak now held a magic card. The back of the card featured a crown, a lance, a grimoire, and the Tarot card The Fool, while the front was blank.
"Take the sorting card in your hand, Demon."
Following Headmistress Arte's instructions, Dark took the magic card from the spirit's beak.
"Now, place the card in your right hand over your left hand. Think about what you like and what you desire, and the sorting card will guide you."
"Understood, Headmistress."
Dark closed his eyes and began to imagine.
His knowledge of the game was limited. He only knew that as a villainous boss who played a significant role throughout the game, he would bring about his own downfall after awakening his demon god bloodline.
And the awakening of his demon god bloodline seemed to occur on the day of his coming-of-age ceremony.
Before the awakening, although he clashed with the original protagonist, it was all minor skirmishes, nothing life-threatening.
His fiancée the most popular female character in the game only gave up on him after he transformed into a demon god, giving the original protagonist the chance to swoop in.
So, as long as he found a way to suppress the power of his demon god bloodline before his coming-of-age ceremony, he would remain the son of a duke, holding a high position of power, with a fiancée who would stick by him no matter how badly he behaved!
...
Perhaps things weren't as bad as they seemed?
...
A blinding white light emanated from his palm, and Dark felt the sorting card heat up, as if it was imprinting something.
Headmistress Arte's gentle voice rang out again, "Demon, raise the sorting card and show this year's freshmen how to properly conduct the sorting ceremony."
"Understood, Headmistress."
Dark moved his right hand away and saw that the sorting card now displayed the crown symbolizing nobility.
He raised the card high, infused it with magic, and activated it.
"Boom!"
Like fireworks, points of light shot out, forming a giant golden crown in the air.
The sorting card announced, "Dark Demon, Noble House!"
"Oooh!"
Cheers gradually rose from the long table where the other Noble House students were seated.
"Dark Demon, the only son of the duke known as the Valkyrie, has been sorted into our house!"
"OMG!"
It seemed the young master was quite popular in the Noble House?
A slight smile crept onto Dark's lips as he lowered his hand.
[Ding! Detected that the demon god bloodline has entered the awakening stage, triggering…]
"D*mn it!"
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