Lucas Nightstar, son of a viscount [1]

In a dark, eerie room where normal people would freeze to death, multiple beings could be seen inside, seemingly unaffected by the cold or the darkness.

The beings inside were demons.

"Is everything ready?" A demon asked, his mere presence enough to make most faint.

"Yes, we can finally start the mission," another demon replied.

"Is it really smart? That kid is part of them, and didn't Lord Diablo say that we should avoid that family for the time being?" A demon interjected, expressing doubts about the mission.

"That was before His Majesty ordered all others not to leave our world. If Lord Diablo knew about such a talented boy of a mere viscount, he would surely approve of this! Besides, if we are correct, he is also the reason for Z'riel's death. When the gates open again, not only will Lord Diablo be pleased, but also Lord Belphegor, kekeke!" the intimidating demon said, a bloodthirsty grin spreading across his face.

"He is right. We won't kill him anyway, so what is the problem? The timing is perfect now; we won't get an easier opportunity than this, even if he is the son of a viscount," another demon interjected.

"Fine..." the demon finally relented.

After that, the demons left for their mission: to capture Lucas Nightstar, killer of Z'riel, heir of the Nightstar, rumored to be the White Devil, and rumored to be a champion as strong as the elven princess.

*********

A few weeks had passed since Lucas went shopping with his family. Rumors had started to spread about him being the White Devil. The media had been thrown into chaos for the past week: the Elven princess being attacked, the mysterious White Devil being the one to help her, Lucas Nightstar being the White Devil, and even the entire Nightstar family being seen in public, with the newest member being Lena Nightstar.

The repeated mention of the Nightstar name had stirred curiosity, anger, jealousy, and hatred among many nobles and other bigshots. After everything that had been happening, the attention of the royal family had turned to Lucas, inviting him to meet with them in three days to discuss these rumors.

It was nighttime, and his parents had decided to go outside with Lena today while she kidnapped Luna with her. Lucas also received a message that they would be staying in a hotel tonight. Luckily, they had brought William and Lucielle with a few other guards, so there wasn't much need for him to worry. Besides, Luna could communicate with him if there were any problems, though he doubted he could do anything about them, as his father and mother would be much more suitable to handle any problems if they arose.

Currently, Lucas was in an open training ground with the vice-commander, watching the knights duel each other and having fun betting golden credits on who would win. There was no real training happening here, as they were all free, and since Lucas was bored, he decided to join them, eliciting excitement from everyone present.

Observing the duels, the vice-commander next to him spoke. "Haha, seeing you here must have motivated them even more to impress you, young master."

"Hmm, I can see that, Dylan. Though I do wonder if William approved of these games you're all playing without him knowing," Lucas answered with a small smile, causing Dylan to break out in a cold sweat, quickly composing himself as he realized Lucas was teasing him.

Dylan was the vice-commander of the Falling Stars. He had short brown hair and emerald eyes, and while his appearance was above average, he wasn't to be underestimated, being a 9-star level swordsman. This was a level of skill that not even most count families would have in their captains.

"Haha, I didn't think the young master would actually be able to joke. You sure have changed," Dylan remarked.

"I did?" Lucas replied.

"Yes, that's right. I remember when you were young; you would always be quiet and hardly talk to anyone except Lucielle or my lord and madame. You would always just walk around the mansion or be in your room."

Now that Dylan mentioned it, Lucas realized he was right. He recalled memories of himself aimlessly wandering and hardly speaking to anyone. It was more like he felt disconnected. Was it perhaps because he didn't feel complete due to his memories being blocked? He always felt like he was missing something before his memories...

Seeing Lucas lost in thought and a little sad, Dylan quickly reassured him. "Ah, but young master, that was all in the past! Now you have become much more open to everyone. You have made all of us proud by reaching the mid-6-star level already, not to mention being rumored to be the mysterious White Devil!"

"Ah, yes... I suppose that is true," Lucas said, looking away and coughing, hiding his embarrassment at losing himself in thought again. 'Father is right; this really is a bad habit of mine.'

"Haha, it is, as Sir Williams says. You really get lost in your own head most of the time," Dylan said, laughing, further igniting Lucas's embarrassment.

'Oi, I know that, dammit! Why are you laughing? Shouldn't you show some respect?' Lucas screamed inside his mind, yet didn't show any of that on his face except for his mouth twitching a little at Dylan's laughter.

"By the way, young master, it looks like your academy year won't be peaceful, will it? Since not only the Elven princess and multiple other big shots will be attending, but also the hero himself," Dylan suddenly spoke.

The hero, Klaus, one of the champions of his generation said to have even more potential than Sylviette Velariah. Klaus was also the reason for this generation being called the second golden generation, as it had a hero for the first time in millennia. It was said that the first hero was the strongest of Myrniel, surpassing all other races even. He was the one who managed to stop the descent of the Demon King on Myrniel and even defeated him, though he didn't manage to kill him, stating that the Demon King ran away. Whether the latter part was true or not, no one knew, as after thousands of years, many stories had been made about the first hero.

They titled Klaus as the 2nd hero of humanity due to him having an affinity to Light, something only the first hero was rumored to have had. He also had an affinity for all four basic elements and something else that was revealed a year ago, shocking Lucas back then when he heard about it to his core.

Klaus, the second hero, had something called a special talent, allowing him to wield both mana and aura simultaneously, just like Lucas. It was something unheard of, something no one should be able to do except the hero could.

Klaus was supposed to be an orphan who lost his parents during a dungeon break where demons emerged and killed everyone in his town when he was a child. He even has the perfect backstory of a hero. He is apparently already in Shield for protection, since he didn't really have a place to stay, most of the time he used the money the government gave him to adventure out and book hotels when needed.

He would've already joined one of the top 10 biggest guilds, probably, if it weren't for the fact that it's illegal to recruit until you turn 20. Yes, in Myrniel, you are considered an adult at the age of 20, unlike in Lucas's previous life where you had to be 18 to be considered an adult.

It took a whole year for the media to calm down about Klaus and his special talent and with the affinity to Light and all other four basic elements.

Myrniel was currently said to be at peace, yet those at the higher circle, like high nobles, the biggest guilds, the government, the royal family, Lucas and his family, and those known to be smart, and the golden alliance, knew that this peace was probably only a calm before the storm.

That's why the government had decided to reveal Klaus and his abillities to Myrniel, to give them hope for when the time came that something would go wrong; he would be there in the future to save them all.

Honestly, Lucas thought it was a stupid idea to reveal such a valuable trump card this early and also his affinity and special talent. Yet what could he do about it? It's not like he cared a lot. He wasn't stupid and wouldn't reveal all his cards like them. Who knows, maybe the hero still had some trump cards as well...

Realizing he had been lost in thought again, he decided to respond to Dylan.

"Hmm, well, I will just try my best to live peacefully my academy life and enjoy it to the fullest. Though perhaps you are right; some people with their huge egos might be annoying..."

"Haha, that is true," Dylan agreed.

As Lucas and Dylan conversed with each other and gazed at the duels happening in front of them, filled with joy and laughter, a guard who was supposed to be standing at the gates approached them.

"Hmm? Mike, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be on duty?" Dylan asked with a frown, gazing at Mike as he approached.

"Haha, Mike, don't tell me you are jealous and want to join in on the fun!" the others, still in a joyous mood, started teasing him.

Yet Mike never looked at them or Dylan; instead, he slowly kept walking towards Lucas and looked only at him.

As Lucas saw him approaching, he noticed that his eyes... they looked hollow.

Seeing no response as they watched him, everyone felt

 something was terribly wrong. Dylan, Lucas, and everyone else instantly got on guard. They were all seasoned warriors who had faced death multiple times.

Lucas had a skill that he picked up at the royal treasury back in Eldrath, called [Danger Sense]. Even though with his experience in both lives, he could rely on instinct, he knew that it was better to be safe than sorry, so he picked a skill that could negate almost any surprise attack on him and never let him be caught off guard when his life would be in danger.

And currently, [Danger Sense] was loudly screaming alarm bells inside his head.

He didn't know what the danger was as he kept his guard up in the tense atmosphere, as Mike silently kept approaching. Dylan instantly got in front of Lucas, protecting him from any danger that would come, as the others also got serious and ready for any type of danger.

Each step Mike took felt like an eternity, each time he took a step forward, Lucas's skill kept getting louder and louder. Everyone's instincts were screaming; their hearts were filled with sudden dread, yet no one understood what was happening. Everyone started gritting their teeth as they kept watching Mike approach, ignoring them.

"Mike! Final warning! If you don't stop now, I swear I will cut you down this instant!" Dylan screamed at him, which finally made him stop in his tracks, letting a few young ones breathe out of relief. Yet for the others, seasoned warriors and Lucas, they felt no sort of relief; the dread filling their hearts hadn't dissipated in the slightest.

As he finally stopped, he gazed with his hollow eyes directly at Lucas, who cautiously came beside Dylan.

Lucas, gazing back, felt a chill run down his spine, making him grit his teeth even harder as his skill kept being on edge.

Suddenly, Mike opened his mouth, his voice twisted in agony, hoarse, and filled with pain and despair.

"P-please... help... m-"

Before he could finish, his head exploded, sending blood and pieces of his brain everywhere, even onto the others and Dylan and Lucas, as they all stood there shocked and bewildered.

"W-w-what happened?"

"S-shit, everyone, weapons out!"

"We are being fucking attacked inside the Nightstar estate!"

"W-what the fuck, who is crazy enough for this!?"

The knights kept shouting at each other as they got ready for any other surprise attacks. Lucas summoned his Blade of Chaos as Dylan unsheathed his long sword. Everyone was tense as they looked around, their eyes scanning their surroundings. It was quiet, eerily quiet, making everyone's face turn grim and their hearts beat loud, as every hair on their neck stood up.

And in the next second...

The ground shook.