Strongest Existence Becomes Teacher

Chapter 278: The Trail of Jax Harl

High above the continent, two figures traveled through the sky.

One of them was Zane, who flew casually through the air with both hands inside his jacket pockets as if crossing half a continent was no different than taking a walk. Behind him floated a bluish mana bubble, moving at the same speed as him.

Inside the bubble sat Selene Raynhart.

At first she was meditating quietly, using the journey to recover her mana and organize her thoughts. However, after what felt like an eternity of flying, she slowly opened her eyes and looked outside the transparent bubble.

"Professor... are we there yet?"

Without even turning around, Zane replied, "No. We’re not."

Selene sighed and leaned back.

"It takes time to reach Malgrith Kingdom after all," Zane continued. "It’s located near the far end of the continent. Instead of asking me every few hours, you should meditate more."

Then his gaze shifted slightly toward the bubble.

"In that fight, you did a good job using self-sustaining runes."

Selene blinked in surprise.

A small smile almost appeared on her face before she quickly hid it.

A compliment.

From Professor Zane.

Those were rare enough that she still wasn’t used to receiving them.

Unfortunately, Zane wasn’t finished.

"But you still can’t use self-sustaining runes on air."

The smile instantly disappeared.

"You can meditate. Practice self-sustaining runes in the air. Or create more self-sustaining runes on paper for future battles. Any of those would be more productive than asking if we’re there yet."

Selene looked away in embarrassment.

"Yes, Professor."

For a while, only the sound of wind filled the space between them.

Then Selene seemed to remember something.

"Professor..."

"Hm?"

"Can I ask you something?"

Zane didn’t even need to think.

"It’s about Jax, right?"

Selene paused.

"...Yes."

She hesitated for a moment before continuing.

"How did you know he was half demon?"

Zane’s expression didn’t change.

"The answer is simple."

"I knew from the start."

This time Selene genuinely looked shocked.

"From the start?"

"Yes."

Zane nodded while continuing to fly.

"I knew when I first saw him during the entrance examination."

Selene stared at his back.

"Since then...?"

"You knew since then?"

She couldn’t hide her surprise.

"You still taught him normally and never said anything."

That finally made Zane glance back at her.

"Why would I?"

Selene opened her mouth before closing it again.

After a moment she finally answered.

"I mean..."

"Even though Valdoria respects every race and Astralis Arcanum accepts students from all races, there are still people who dislike demons."

Her expression became slightly complicated.

"The old wars caused a lot of suffering."

"Many people still remember them."

She lowered her gaze.

"And demons from Malgrith don’t really like other races either."

"Most of them hate half-demons even more."

Zane listened quietly.

Then he nodded.

"That’s one of the reasons we’re flying right now."

Selene blinked.

"What?"

"Malgrith Kingdom."

Zane pointed toward the horizon.

"They don’t allow teleportation gates inside their territory."

"Which is why we’re traveling normally instead of using one."

Then he looked ahead again.

"As for Jax..."

His voice remained calm.

"I don’t really care about race."

"If someone has talent and the right personality to learn, I’ll teach them."

It was a simple answer.

Yet somehow it felt completely natural coming from him.

Zane had never cared whether someone was human, beastman, elf, demon, or something else entirely.

To him, those labels seemed almost meaningless.

After a few moments, he spoke again.

"Now that’s enough talking."

Selene immediately knew what was coming.

"Practice."

As expected.

"Use the journey properly."

"Either meditate, improve your self-sustaining runes, or prepare rune papers for future battles."

Then he added,

"I’m not flying you across the continent in that bubble for chit-chat."

Selene could only nod helplessly.

"Yes, Professor Zane."

A moment later she took out several sheets of rune paper and began working while Zane continued flying toward the distant Demon Kingdom.

Far ahead of them, beyond mountains, forests, and countless territories, Malgrith Kingdom waited.

--

As Zane continued flying across the continent, the scenery below gradually began to change.

The lush green forests that dominated Valdoria and the surrounding kingdoms slowly disappeared. In their place appeared dark forests filled with black trees whose branches twisted unnaturally toward the sky. Small thorn-covered leaves covered many of the trees, giving the entire landscape a strange and gloomy appearance.

Inside the mana bubble behind him, Selene had long since fallen asleep.

After spending hours creating rune papers and practicing self-sustaining runes, she had finally exhausted herself. Now she sat curled up inside the bluish bubble, sleeping peacefully while stacks of completed rune papers rested beside her.

Zane glanced back once before returning his attention to the horizon.

"Finally here."

His eyes swept across the distant lands.

The atmosphere itself felt different.

The mana felt different.

Even the terrain looked different.

This was the territory of Malgrith Kingdom.

Closing his eyes briefly, Zane extended his senses outward.

A few moments later, he nodded.

"I can still feel Jax’s mana."

The signature was faint compared to before.

Much weaker.

But it was still there.

More importantly...

It was still alive.

"Hmm."

Whatever had happened to Jax, he would deal with it when the time came.

Though knowing his luck, it would probably somehow connect back to the Abyssals.

At this point, Zane was beginning to notice a pattern.

A very annoying pattern.

Every time something happened.

Every time a strange incident appeared.

Every time a mystery get solved.

Somehow...

The goddamn Abyssals and the vassel ended up being connected to it.

Zane sighed.

"I swear everything leads back to those bastards."

"What the hell is this world building... no variety in villains at all.."

For a moment he considered heading directly toward Jax.

Then another thought entered his mind.

"Anyway."

"I feel like eating something."

A much more important matter.

His gaze drifted toward the sleeping Selene.

The girl didn’t appear likely to wake up anytime soon.

After all, she had practically worked herself to exhaustion preparing rune papers.

Zane looked between Selene and the nearby settlements below.

Then he nodded to himself.

"I could probably find food and get back before she even realizes I’m gone."

His eyes landed on the large glowing mana bubble.

A pause followed.

Then another pause.

"...Yeah."

"That would look weird."

A giant floating mana bubble containing a sleeping girl wasn’t exactly subtle.

If someone spotted it, questions would inevitably follow.

Questions were annoying.

Zane casually waved his hand.

Immediately the entire mana bubble vanished from sight.

The bubble itself still existed.

Selene was still sleeping inside.

But both had become completely invisible.

Satisfied, Zane nodded.

"There should be a village or town nearby."

His eyes scanned the landscape below.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Let’s see what Demon Kingdom delicacies taste like."

The next second he changed direction and shot across the sky, leaving behind the invisible sleeping Selene as he flew toward the nearest settlement in search of food.

--

Far away from the border regions of Malgrith Kingdom, deep within its territory, stood a large noble estate.

From the outside, it looked no different from the countless noble residences scattered throughout the kingdom. Guards patrolled the grounds, servants carried out their duties, and everything appeared peaceful.

Beneath the estate, however...

A very different scene was unfolding.

Screams echoed through the basement.

Raw.

Painful.

Desperate.

Anyone hearing them would feel chills run down their spine.

And strangely enough...

Those screams sounded familiar.

Inside a large underground chamber, a masked woman calmly sat behind a desk while writing something inside a thick ledger. Her movements were unhurried, almost relaxed, as though the screams filling the room were nothing more than background noise.

Occasionally, she would glance up from the ledger toward the center of the chamber.

Toward the boy hanging there.

His limbs were spread apart and restrained by chains fixed to the walls. Sweat covered his body while countless surgical cuts and scars covered his skin. Some looked old, some looked recent, and some appeared to be in the process of healing.

The boy’s appearance had changed significantly from before.

His body had become noticeably thinner, as if months of imprisonment and experimentation had worn him down. His chestnut-brown hair was now short, messy, and completely unkempt.

But those weren’t the most obvious changes.

His ears were no longer human.

They had become pointed.

Like a demon’s.

His left eye possessed a black sclera with a slit pupil, making it look almost inhuman.

And on his head...

Two small gray horns had begun growing.

The woman observed him for a moment before writing another note into the ledger.

"The progress is going splendidly, don’t you think, Jax?"

The boy slowly raised his head.

Pain filled every movement.

Every breath.

Every heartbeat.

Yet despite that, he still managed to force out a response.

"Fuck..."

He coughed.

"...you."

The woman paused.

Then she sighed.

"That’s bad manners."

Closing the ledger, she finally stood from her chair and walked toward him.

Her footsteps echoed softly through the chamber.

When she stopped in front of him, a faint smile appeared beneath the mask.

"Is that really how you speak to your mother, Jax?"