~Chapter 02.~
Where Is That Place
I furrowed my brow.
“This… this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.”
To think that I couldn’t form a contract because I had no mana?
Since when was there such a restriction…?
“…Was there?”
I searched my memory carefully.
Of the countless contractors I recalled, not one of them had been without mana.
Most of them possessed the qualities of a mage.
Even if they hadn’t formed a magic circle, they carried an abundance of mana within their bodies.
Those who lacked in quantity possessed some kind of special mana instead.
Even the blind or the mute had mana within them.
But this body, the one I had examined back when I was still a book, contained not a single speck of mana.
“That’s right…”
I lowered my head, letting out a deep sigh.
A body without mana…
“Well, it can’t be helped.”
I lifted my head again, igniting my will.
“I’ll just have to start from scratch.”
Resolving myself, I sat down flat on the floor.
Mana.
Though invisible like air, it is everywhere.
If one can sense and accept it, storing it in the body isn’t so difficult.
The real challenge lies in perceiving and accepting it—but that wasn’t an issue for me.
I breathed slowly.
As if swallowing the air, I drew it into my body.
Even if I felt nothing, I repeated it again and again.
Counting was meaningless.
It would take countless repetitions, again and again.
The only focus was on absorbing mana through my breath.
My senses dulled.
I drifted out of time’s flow, left alone with myself.
That was when it came.
Woom.
A heavy sensation and a faint tremor below my navel.
Success.
“Phew.”
I let out a long breath and opened my eyes.
Through the barred window, I could see the faint light of dawn.
I had spent the entire night.
“…But this is all?”
The mana I gathered was no larger than a small bead.
I sighed, feeling the tiny orb inside me.
“Well, it’s just the beginning.”
Though small at first, it could grow into something vast.
There was no need to rush.
Only a day had passed, after all.
“Now then…”
I brought the image of the book into my mind again.
This time, a response came at once.
『 Confirming contractor. 』
『 Esric Spelder. 』
『 Confirming contractor’s mana. 』
My heart pounded at the voice ringing in my head.
Would such a tiny amount of mana be enough?
『 Mana confirmed. 』
『 Proceeding with contract. 』
It worked!
『 Linking consciousness. 』
Flap-flap-flap.
The sound of pages turning echoed in my ears until the book closed with a thud.
A chill lingered on my left wrist, followed by a flash of blue light.
A thin chain of mana extended outward, forming into the shape of the book.
“Oh?”
『 From now on, the contractor may summon the book at will. 』
That was a feature I hadn’t known about.
Back when I was the book, I had no need to disappear into someone’s body.
But the book’s true power wasn’t in this.
I placed my hand on the page titled Magic.
From beneath my palm, I felt the vast mana stored within.
If I absorbed it all, I could leap several levels at once—but my body would never withstand it.
So, just a little.
Woom.
Slowly, I drew in the book’s mana.
Normally, absorbing mana without filtering it through breath was dangerous.
Breathing purified and adapted it to the user.
Without that process, foreign mana could cause one’s body to collapse.
But the book’s mana was different.
The moment the contract was made, its mana adjusted to fit the contractor perfectly.
As long as I controlled the amount, there would be no problem.
This was how I had once helped contractors rapidly grow in strength.
Now, I would give myself that very foothold.
Woom.
Mana resonated.
The tiny bead of mana grew as it mixed with what I absorbed.
Soon, it had swelled to the size of a fist.
At this point…
“…!”
Footsteps echoed in the distance.
I quickly pulled my hand back from the book.
The moment I tossed it aside, it vanished with a shffft along with the chain.
Though invisible, I could feel it settle back inside me.
Convenient.
The footsteps drew nearer.
A guard approached the cell, tossed me a loaf of bread, and spoke.
“Esric Spelder.”
He looked at me with bored eyes.
“The disciplinary committee will convene soon. Eat up—we leave when you’re done.”
I silently picked up the bread.
Cold. Hard.
Each bite crumbled dryly, rough against my teeth.
And yet, a chuckle escaped me.
To think I was eating food.
Even this tasteless loaf filled me with satisfaction.
As a book, I had never known such sensation.
Even a scrap of bread gave me a sense of fullness.
Watching me laugh as I ate, the guard shook his head.
“Crazy bastard.”
I emerged from the basement into a long corridor.
Thick stone pillars lined both sides, supporting a lofty ceiling.
Marble walls and floors gleamed so brightly they hurt the eyes.
I squinted until I reached a vast, fan-shaped chamber.
A path stretched from the entrance straight to the center.
On either side, crowds of students whispered.
Before me, on a towering platform, sat five members of the disciplinary committee.
At the center, Jerath Grim glared down at me with cold eyes.
“The disciplinary hearing of Esric Spelder…”
My heart pounded.
I swallowed dryly—not because of Jerath, but because of the voice echoing in my head.
『 Presence of a demonkin detected. 』
『 Presence of a demonkin detected. 』
『 Presence of a demonkin detected. 』
『 Presence of a demonkin det— 』
The ceaseless voice made my nerves bristle.
A demonkin.
A monster with reason.
Or a human who had contracted with a demon.
At last, I understood why that man had tried to use Esric Spelder to summon a demon.
“Let us begin.”
Jerath Grim’s eyes glinted like a snake’s.
The Imperial Academy’s Disciplinary Committee.
The thing students feared most.
They would rather fail every class or be held back a year.
Those still left room for “next time.”
But the committee’s punishments offered no such chance.
To be summoned before them was to be expelled.
The only matter to decide was where the student would be cast out.
“Esric Spelder… the last heir of House Spelder, is that correct?”
“…”
Esric remained silent.
Had he given up?
Jerath sneered inwardly.
A wise choice.
Nothing he said could change the outcome.
The four professors serving as committee members were all Jerath’s people.
No matter what Esric claimed, they would not bat an eye.
The professors scolded him for keeping his mouth shut.
“So… yet another ancient family comes to its end?”
“Regrettable, but he trespassed into the headmaster’s study.”
“Indeed. No matter his lineage, this cannot be overlooked!”
“Correct. We must follow the rules.”
Not one raised the obvious questions.
Was Esric truly guilty?
What was his motive?
How had he broken into the study, even with a key?
What exactly had he stolen, and where was it now?
Neither the committee nor the students asked.
The students were only curious about where Esric would be banished.
“Esric Spelder.”
Jerath spoke slowly.
The room fell silent.
“Sadly, you committed a crime that endangered the academy.
We must hold you accountable.
But as academy students are precious assets of the Empire, we shall grant you the chance to atone through service.
Thus, this committee decrees your exile…”
Jerath couldn’t hold back a sly smile.
“…to Icelock.”
Gasps rippled through the chamber.
Icelock.
A fortress built to hold back the calamities of the northern mountains.
Once a bastion of honor and duty.
But honor had long since been forgotten.
With few volunteers, the Empire filled its ranks with criminals.
Noble houses soon followed suit, sending their unwanted heirs and outcasts to Icelock to rid themselves of shame.
A family’s disgrace.
Defeated rivals.
Illegitimate children.
They were discarded into Icelock, a garbage bin for the nobility.
No one who entered had ever returned.
Thus, exile to Icelock was the same as a death sentence.
And Jerath had no intention of letting me reach it alive.
The path through the northern mountains was treacherous.
Many disappeared along the way.
Whether I knew that or not…
“Understood. But…”
Esric’s reply was utterly foolish.
“…Where exactly is Icelock?”
The hearing ended without an answer.
Jerath and the committee looked at me as if I were an idiot.
I was dragged out by guards and handed over to a waiting coachman.
The burly man tossed me into the carriage like cargo.
Inside the bare wagon, I rolled across the floor.
“We’ve got a long road ahead. Don’t waste your strength, eh?”
Bang.
The coachman slammed the door shut.
Even the tiny window was barred with iron.
Crack! The sound of a whip, and the carriage lurched into motion.
A moving prison.
Through the bars, I watched the academy fade into the distance.
“For now… I live.”
I recalled Jerath Grim’s snake-like eyes with a sigh.
So he really was a demonkin…
Then it made sense.
To him, the book I once was would have seemed a remnant of a demon.
No ordinary book could contain mana.
A demonkin couldn’t summon demons themselves, so he must have intended to use Esric.
One day, I would have to bring him down.
But not now.
For now, distance was my ally.
Exile, though?
It was like being handed the perfect excuse.
“Hey, coachman!”
I banged on the partition.
“If you’re desperate, do your business in there. We’re not stopping for you. Of course, you’ll be stuck in that mess for days, but that’s your problem.”
He snapped back in irritation.
“How long until we arrive?”
“Ten days just to reach the north. Another five to the fortress. So keep your trap shut and sleep, will you?”
That was enough.
About two weeks’ journey.
Plenty of time.
Jerath wouldn’t act near the academy.
If he had meant to, he’d have done it while I was still in prison.
No, he wanted it quiet, unnoticed.
Two weeks?
For me, that was more than enough.
I spread my left hand.
『 Contractor is casting magic. 』
At the thought, blue light flashed and the book appeared once more.
I placed my hand upon its cover.
Slowly, I drew its mana into myself.
I felt it swell within me, like a snowball rolling downhill.
And I smirked.
Let’s see if things go your way, demonkin.
