Who Let a Demon Lord into the Mage Tower? Volume 2: A Fantasy Light Novel, page 1
Who Let a Demon Lord into the Mage Tower?
Volume 2
Atlas Kane
Illustrated by
Arina Chayka
This is a work of fiction.
Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.
WHO LET A DEMON LORD INTO THE MAGE TOWER: VOLUME 2 First edition. September 17, 2021.
Copyright © 2021 Atlas Kane
Written by Atlas Kane
Created with Vellum
Contents
Welcome to the Tower Guild Academy!
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Like Light Novels, Cultivation, and Harem Lit?
A Bit of Fanart
A special thanks to a loyal fan, Exilim, for commissioning this awesome fan art of Jam.
The artist is Wanaca. Hope you all enjoy!
1
By the time Rava kicked open the classroom doors, hauling a stack of books, most of his students were too distracted to notice his fury.
The class buzzed with talk about a very important visitor coming to Amarantha.
“The Oracle hasn’t travelled here in almost three decades!” Kalanth, the huge bear demi exclaimed. “I wonder what kind of message she’ll have for us.”
“I bet it’ll be something dramatic,” Tamara mused. She played with her dark braid, her eyes unfocused and a million miles away. “Something about our fortunes. Or our strength! We do have the best school in Ria.”
Rhys glared. “This is stupid. The Oracle is an old bitch who hasn’t mattered since the damn Frost Era. Who cares?”
I muttered, “For once, I agree with the angry blonde boy.”
Jam covered her mouth to hide a smile while Clove gaped at me.
“What?” I asked, genuinely curious.
“How can you not be excited about the Oracle, Luc?”
“I don’t understand what there is to be excited about. Oracles are famously cryptic, and there have been many imposters. Besides, isn’t it a threatening sign? How certain are you that the Oracle will give an uplifting, useful message to a city that houses an unstable Tower and frequently undergoes demon attacks, all while a black market of demon materials are consistently sold under the public’s noses?”
Clove snapped her teeth closed and faced forward again, her expression oddly blank.
I leaned over to ask Jam, “Was it something I said?”
Jam chuckled nervously. “Well, you did sort of just burst her bubble, didn’t you?”
My confusion deepened. “There was no bubble that I saw. Explain yourself.”
She shook her head in wonder. “What hole have you been living in? It means you killed her excitement and expectations. And now, she’s disappointed.”
Technically, the Underworld is a Lower Realm. One could logically call that a hole. However, I will be taking her question as rhetorical.
Clove now had a very prominent jutting of her lower lip. I’ve learned this one is called a pout.
I gently threaded my fingers into hers. “Statistically, my words are correct. However, that doesn’t mean the Oracle won’t say something reasonably non-threatening.”
That was encouraging. Wasn’t it?
There was a dangerous moment where Clove’s brows furrowed closer together, one where I considered whether it was easier to slay a demon in the Underworld than comprehend the inner workings of mortal communication, but thankfully, we were interrupted.
Rava dropped the books onto his desk, the jarring slam snapping through the room. We all quieted.
“Oh,” he mocked with a fierce glare. “Am I disrupting you? Or is this my class I’m supposed to teach?”
When no one replied, he crossed his arms. “Yes, I know the wonderful news about our esteemed Oracle visiting, but we have work to do. I’ll not have you distracted while the world tips toward destruction. Am I understood?”
Quietly, I asked, “What’s gotten him burned on the ass?”
Jam blinked. “That’s a… new expression.”
It likely was for her. Damn colloquialisms between worlds.
Rava interjected, “The Tower is stable. For now. However, some adventurers have been encountering strange monster forms within the levels. No one has died. Yet. The odd black mist continues to have a presence, but so far, no demons have emerged. Yet. It’s our job to stay on guard and watch for anything strange.”
He shut his eyes and took a breath. When he exhaled, he announced, “Because of this unfortunate truth about the Tower, the Guild is requiring me to advance you faster than you should be. I strongly objected, and oddly enough, I seem to be the only one who doesn’t want my students to die prematurely.”
Clove squeezed my hand tighter. “Oh, gods. Don’t say it like that.”
“But you’ll find idiots in any esteemed organization, won’t you?” he grumbled. And then, louder. “Take your notes out! We’re learning about spell upgrades.”
What was that about advancing us? It was strange that he brought it up only to move on into class material.
He was clearly not doing well. It sounded as though his authority was overtaken by the bureaucrats of the Guild who wanted more adventurers, faster. I understood that anger, but there were worse things to experience.
Like endless war in the Underworld.
With the sound of shuffling papers and metal satchel clips, Rava began his lecture. “Those who write spells are rare and powerful. The ability is built over decades of training. After that, each spell that it forged can only be done so after extensive meditation and focus, at least three meetings with the Oracle herself, and likely a lot of drinking. However, once it’s finished, the world may enjoy the fruits of labor. Only the strongest spellmakers create upgrades to their creations. That is how we have these.”
He picked up a book from the top of the stack. It was a slim volume. “These are the most common upgradeable spells. Your work is to discover the upgrade to a spell you know, and learn it. If you cannot find one here, you must learn both the base spell and the upgrade. I’ll be testing you within a week, so work hard.”
Interesting. I’d never thought to wonder how spells were made here. Just like in the Underworld, there were likely hundreds of spells that have been crafted, but have been either lost or unrecorded.
We each received a copy of the book. I immediately found Fire Flare, which was fantastic.
Jam quickly discovered that her capture spell, Manclia, upgraded to Iron Hold.
Clove thought about upgrading Fire Flare too, since she knew the spell as well, but decided on advancing her more powerful stone spell to something called Goron. It still turned the targeted area into stone, but the new version doubled the depth and surface area it could reach.
Kalanth and Rhys sat together, pouring over the book and scribbling their notes.
Ash, the shieldmaiden, quietly studied while Caz and Gordon, their party leader, quietly whispered about something they’d both just read.
Rava finally began to decompress. I hadn’t noticed how blotchy and red his face had been with anger until I noticed his normal complexion return. He observed us with a calmer expression, satisfied with our new focus, and sat down in his seat.
Just as he did, the classroom doors burst open again.
Nessie zoomed inside on her floating platform, still breathless even though she clearly hadn’t run even a single step.
Red hair wild and wind-blown, she proclaimed, “The Oracle has arrived. The Guild is declaring this a national holiday. Go home, everyone! Have a drink! Or come to hear what the old lady says.”
2
The sun beat down on the old woman’s cotton hair and grayish skin, giving her a hellish glow that would have looked perfectly benign in the Underworld.
Her wrinkled jowls trembled as she declared, “A new prophecy has been delivered to me by those in the Great Heavens!”
The crowds of demi-humans and humans waited patiently while the woman caught her breath, perched on her black steed. I couldn’t see any of our classmates, but was sure a few of them had made it to the gathering.
Everyone except for Rhys, who refused to attend something so menial, and dragged his friends away with him.
The Oracle’s gray skin turned even more pale.
I leaned to the side and whispered, “Is she ill?”
Clove gave me a stern look. “Show the High Oracle your respect!” she whispered. “She is nearly 105 years old, and she’s saved Ria from disaster after disaster!”
“Right,” I agreed. “Respecting elders is important here.” It wasn’t the best time to mention that, in truth, the High Oracle should be bowing to me.
Being over two-hundred years old as I was.
However, in the Underworld, if you crushed your ‘elder’ into a pulp, you’d likely be promoted in rank.
I lifted a brow at the frail old woman.
I could definitely take her.
Clove gazed up soulfully as the Oracle trembled on her steed, clearly caught up in emotion.
Jam crossed her arms, her black ears turning and twitching. Unlike Clove, Jam’s attention wasn’t caught up in awe. Instead, she examined the Oracle.
And her entourage of handsome soldiers.
As well as the expensive, rich fabrics, leathers, and armor they all seemed to wear.
She definitely didn’t miss the demon hide gloves and boots.
Jam exhaled casually and pretended to smooth the fur on her tail while she scanned the crowd. Now, her ears were perked to the heavens.
I’d come to realize that though I had more experience than both of the girls combined, Jam had a more natural ability to see and interpret even the most minuscule of details.
As her attention flicked over the Oracle and her guards, I wondered what else it was that Jam saw.
Even beyond what I’d imagined she’d noticed.
She seemed… focused. More than usual.
Finally, the cat demi seemed to realize that while she’d been observing the area, I’d been watching her.
Funny that with all her focus, she’d completely missed that I’d been studying her.
Jam grinned up at me. The crown of her midnight hair reached just under my chest, and as she tilted her head up, the sun gleamed off her canines. “Something on your mind, pretty boy?”
I swept back a lock away from her face and asked, “‘Pretty’?”
The Oracle gasped, drawing Jam’s attention away.
But her sly smile remained.
“Very,” she added after a moment.
The Oracle gasped and clutched onto her horse’s rei ns. Her eyes had filmed over with white, and all of her rotted teeth were on display.
“Watch for the Cloaked King, the bluest waters and blackest nights.
The Lord of Chaos follows him on the eve of the Tower’s trembling.
Only Death will keep Ria from darkness.”
The crowd fell completely silent.
I yawned. That wasn’t a good message, but I’d certainly expected that.
Just as the crowd began to fall into panicked muttering and worried demands for explanation, the skies opened up.
Another rip in the void? Here?
Darkness gazed down at us through an eye-shaped tear in reality.
A demon surged out. It was lanky with a fat, bulbous body and protruding black eyes. Its slimy skin shimmered in the sunlight.
Before anyone could so much as blink, the demon’s maw opened around the Oracle’s skull.
The jaws clamped down, and her head popped like a grape.
Unfortunately for my new tastes of the mortal world, I enjoyed grapes.
More unfortunately for me and everyone else in Ria, I recognized this new demon.
What are you doing here?
The huge demon landed on the ground, his mouth frothing with blood. The Oracle lay at his feet in a crimson puddle.
He didn’t even glance at me before leaping down the street, trampling screaming citizens and heading toward the forest.
He doesn’t like places with a high population, but he’ll stay close for the food. That leaves —
A dozen more lesser winged demons slipped out of the void before the tear closed itself.
Well, fuck me.
A month ago, Clove would have been shivering with nerves and stumbling her way toward certain death, likely finding a rock to crack her skull into.
Now, she was summoning her staff and standing tall. “The normal formation?” she asked, her brows pulled together in determination.
Jam crouched, knives out. Her mouth pursed in concentration as the crowd erupted and citizens fled.
I answered, “Yes. Protect as many people as you can!”
My old demon acquaintance could wait. But these rabid, hungry lesser demons could not.
One lifted a child, its claws already sinking into her skin as she shrieked. It opened its ugly mouth.
My demon bone weapon could morph into any shape I wished.
Double-bladed staff.
The white bone shifted, forming a streamlined, beautiful weapon right as I struck the creature’s side.
The beast roared.
I twisted the blade.
I caught the child in my arms before the beast fell and handed her to a terrified man who’d run up to help her.
Jam and Clove were right beside me, their backs to one another.
Jam flung three knives with pinpoint precision, sinking them into a demon’s wing and neck. It thrashed, knocking over two people, its blood spilling out.
On the other side, Clove used her staff to bore burning holes into another demon’s wings, keeping it earthbound.
There were unconscious people on the ground. Others were bleeding and calling for help, their cries lost in the panic.
The crowd thickened, knocking Clove off her feet.
I lunged for her, but she disappeared.
Another one of Jam’s knives stuck into the demon’s flesh, but this only attracted its attention toward her. It charged at the cat demi.
She shouted a spell at the demon, and a red light streamed from her fingers to wrap around its neck.
That’s not going to work.
The demon struggled against the restraints, but the spell was already fading.
Jam had a little time. Just a touch. I had to make sure it was enough.
The rushing crowd remained a barrier between myself and my team. I pushed toward them, trying not to add to the chaos.
I made it to Clove. She was curled up in a ball, a shield spell erected around her.
Thank the gods.
She reached for me, eager and relieved and fearful.
I hauled her toward Jam, who was trying to stand her ground while people streaked past her.
The demon shattered her spell’s hold and, wanting to avoid the rush as well, launched into the air and dove straight for Jam.
3
Demons always do have idiotic vendettas. You could eat a random person and satisfy your bloodlust, but your thirst for revenge will be the end of you.
I halted in front of Jam and maneuvered Clove behind me. “Valley Leash.”
The spell lashed out, wrapping around the monster in a punishing hold.
These particular demons remained alive for as long as their hearts kept moving. Not even decapitation would kill them completely.
The key was in crushing the ribs inward or cutting through them. As long as the heart was damaged, they’d die for good.
