There Is No World For ■■

* * *“You know, whenever I kill you guys, a certain phrase comes to mind occasionally.”Yeomyeong muttered as he pushed aside the lifeless body of the horse-headed man.“…Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious.”Drenched in black blood with a blue haze surrounding him, he looked like a monster straight out of a nightmare.“Who said that again? I think it was a certain writer, but I can’t quite remember who.”His gleaming eyes beneath his tangled hair turned toward a certain spot beneath the chestnut tree.“Hmm… do you happen to know who said that?”The masked woman, Number 9, who lay bleeding on the ground, gasped for breath as she responded.“You… crazy bastard…”“That’s not an answer to my question.”Yeomyeong extended his hand blade as he slowly walked towards her.With every step, black blood dripped down, leaving a trail behind.The squelching sound of footsteps echoed throughout the ground, and fear filled Number 9’s eyes as she watched him draw closer.As Yeomyeong came to a halt, she raised her head.His golden eyes, filled with an emotionless killing aura, resembled those of a butcher slaughtering livestock.Number 9 suppressed her trembling body and spoke.“T-the government… they will… never forgive you…”“Of course, they shouldn’t. I have no intention of forgiving them either.”Yeomyeong raised his hand. And just as he was about to strike Number 9’s head —…?He felt a foreign gaze coming from above his head and swung his arm upward, scattering Sword Aura.Slash!A crude Sword Aura launched his hand blade sliced through the air, cutting the chestnut tree branch overhead.Leaves fluttered, and the branch fell to the ground.Amidst the light green leaves, something black was flapping its wings.…A crow?The thing flying above the chestnut tree was not the crows Yeomyeong was used to.A crow, almost as big as an eagle, emitting mana?…After pigs, cows, and horses, it’s a crow?Yeomyeong immediately inspected his remaining mana and distanced himself from the tree.…This won’t be easy.He might have had a chance if he had been in peak condition, but he had used the Golden Seal and fought back-to-back battles, and no longer possessed a weapon.On the other hand, the opponent was skilled enough to conceal their presence from Yeomyeong’s senses.Of course, Yeomyeong didn’t think about defeat. He still had plenty of tricks up his sleeve, including the Handle of Uragan and the Invisibility Cloak.If things got too difficult for him, he even had the option of fleeing to the girls’ dormitory.The only hiccup was that he had promised Seti to meet outside the academy again…I’ll fight with the intent to kill, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll escape.Having made up his mind, Yeomyeong wiped the blood off his face and calmed his ragged breathing.As the mana of the Surging Wave technique coursed through his muscles and veins, Yeomyeong began making his final preparations when…Thud!The crow landed on the ground with enough force to hollow out the ground, scattering grass and dirt around.Yeomyeong took a stance, preparing to counter the attack. However, what the crow did next was a little different from what he was expecting.The bird neither charged at him nor cast any magic. It simply began trembling all over.After enough time to blink a few times, Yeomyeong finally realized what was happening.…Is this bastard transforming as well?Unlike with the horse-headed man earlier, he had no time to wait this time. Yeomyeong immediately swung his hand blade to release a Sword Aura.Or rather, he was about to.However, the moment he sensed the mana flowing out from the transforming crow’s body, he had no choice but to stop.The mana emanating from it was pure and clear, completely different from the distorted mana typical of the Shepherd.The only other time he ever felt mana this pure was from Miridith and the World Tree crystal he consumed in Manchuria.Who is this?As Yeomyeong furrowed his brows in confusion, the crow’s transformation neared its end.Its waist and hips elongated and straightened, resembling a human’s, while its wings grew long and sprouted human-like fingers.During this process, its already large frame grew even bigger, almost reaching eye level with Yeomyeong.And then……That was it?Yeomyeong tilted his head in confusion, but the transformation didn’t proceed any further.He had expected tentacles to sprout out or perhaps a couple more wings to appear, so he was slightly taken aback.The creature stood on two legs and had fingers like a human—half-human, half-beast.As far as he was aware, there was only one kind of being like that on Earth.“…A Beastfolk?”

* * *Why was a Beastfolk at the Academy instead of Africa?n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

More importantly, were they a shepherd sent by the Korean government? If not…Just as Yeomyeong was about to get lost in his thoughts, the crow suddenly opened their beak.“Oscar Wilde.”The voice coming from the crow’s throat was so clear and melodious, it was hard to believe that it was coming from a bird.Since there was no hint of hostility in that voice, Yeomyeong squinted and asked.“…Oscar Wilde?”“That is the answer to the question you asked earlier. ‘Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious’— Oscar Wilde was the person who said that.”“…”“Oh, do you perhaps not know who Oscar Wilde is? You know, he wrote ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’…”Just as it seemed that the crow’s explanation was about to go on for some time, Yeomyeong raised a hand to stop her.He then turned around to check the reaction of Number 9, who was gasping for breath.Number 9’s face had a similar look of bewilderment through the mask.This was conclusive evidence that the crow Beastfolk was not a shepherd.However, Yeomyeong still didn’t let his guard down as he asked.“…Why were you watching me?”“How could I pass by a fight under the moonlight?”So you were just watching the fight? Yeomyeong bit his lip to keep himself from grimacing.And as if not noticing Yeomyeong’s expression, the crow began a tactless review of the fight.“In my opinion, it was a splendid fight! The techniques used were a bit too brutal, but… that’s just youthful spirit, isn’t it? You can refine it over time.”Completely unbothered by the blood and corpses on the ground, the crow displaying a light and relaxed demeanor.This act had helped ease the tension in Yeomyeong that any further comments seemed unnecessary.“That’s enough of the explanation…”Just as Yeomyeong was about to ask another question to avoid getting involved, the crow beat him to it.“By the way, could you tell me the name of your master before you entered the Academy? From your Killing Aura alone, it seems like you’ve inherited the style of the Dzhugashvili School Sect.”Aura? School Sect? Dzhugashvili? Yeomyeong felt a strange sense of déjà vu and asked the question he had been holding back.“…Forget that, first tell me who you are.”“Ah! My apologies. I was so excited to find a capable person after so long that I got carried away.”The crow then made a sharp noise with her beak, similar to someone clearing their throat.“My name is Corvus! The Master of Crows, the friend of all who walk the crossroads. Have you heard of me?”“…”“Oh, you haven’t. That’s fine. It’s not like I lived chasing fame anyway.”Corvus? Upon hearing that name, Yeomyeong suddenly remembered the conversation he had with Moryne before rushing to the dormitory and the black feather she had given him.“I know this is sudden, but may I make a suggestion? Actually, I came to the Academy after being invited by Principal Himena… Hmm?”When Yeomyeong pulled out a black feather from his pocket, Corvus, who had been chatting excitedly, immediately shut her beak.A brief silence ensued.Nearing her end, Number 9’s breathing grew ragged as Corvus spoke up.“…Where did you get that?”“I received it from the Blue Rat.”As soon as Yeomyeong said that, the crow’s eyes narrowed.“…Moryne?”The Mother of the Saintess and the President of the Blue Rat information guild. Instead of answering, Yeomyeong nodded.Corvus didn’t say anything and raised a hand to scratch her beak. After a moment, she asked in a voice that was softer than before.“What did Moryne tell you when she gave you that feather?”She seemed to be probing for something from her manner of speaking.There seemed to be a hidden story behind the feather, but that didn’t matter to Yeomyeong.Recalling that the time he had promised to meet Seti was getting closer, he shook his head.“…She told me to become your apprentice. That’s all.”“Ah… So, it is really you…”What about me? Yeomyeong frowned as Corvus began to examine his body rather blatantly, but Corvus turned away without saying anything.She was staring at the area around the chestnut tree where Yeomyeong had fought.The horse-headed man’s corpse, the black blood soaking the ground, and the dying Number 9.Corvus seemed to be deliberating over something as she inspected the scene, before suddenly asking Yeomyeong.“What excuse do you plan on giving the Academy to explain these corpses?”Yeomyeong was about to ask her about the intent behind the question but then decided to answer honestly.“…I was going to say that I engaged in combat with terrorists.”“Not a bad idea, seeing as they clearly aren’t authorized to be here, so the Academy won’t have a means to refute it… Hmm…”Corvus began to deliberate again.Just as Yeomyeong was considering whether to head to Seti, Corvus strode up to Number 9 and suddenly grabbed her by the neck.Thud!Number 9 died instantly without even a scream.As Yeomyeong looked at Corvus, puzzled by the action, Corvus tossed Number 9’s corpse next to the horse-headed man’s corpse and spoke again.“Just tell them that I did this.”“…All of a sudden? Why?”“It seems like these bastards weren’t targeting you in particular, so is there any need to reveal your identity?”It was an unexpected offer. Yeomyeong thought over it for a moment.What would happen if he claimed to have defeated these guys?First, he would need to come up with an excuse for lingering around the girls’ dormitory at this hour. Following that, he’d likely have to move things around the Academy.On top of that, the hostility from the Korean government would be an added burden.He would gain the reputation of having defeated some terrorists, but he already had more than enough reputation in such matters.Because he had already thwarted terrorists more dangerous than these shepherds.…Thinking along those lines, it seemed that having Corvus take the blame for killing the shepherds would be a wiser choice.If there were any issues…“…Why are you doing me this favor? It’s not something you’d do for a mere apprentice.”At Yeomyeong’s question, Corvus pointed to the feather in Yeomyeong’s hand and said.“That feather. It’s the feather I plucked after the Saintess saved my life 8 years ago. I swore that if it was a request made with that feather as a token, I would grant anything.”Was she reminiscing about the past here? Disregarding Yeomyeong’s sudden frown, Corvus continued her explanation.“The Saintess did not seek reimbursement, but… Moryne received the feather on behalf of the Saintess and told me.”“…”“She said that if the Saintess finds someone she loves at a later time… she will give the feather to that person. And if I wish to repay the favor, I should repay it to him.”“…?”What was this about? The Saintess’ love…?As Yeomyeong struggled to grasp reality with his mouth open, Corvus declared with an open beak.

“From this moment on, until the love between the two of you comes true, I will dedicate everything I have to protect you.”