Primordial Heir: Nine Stars

’Look at them glaring at me, wishing they could swallow me whole. It’s true that I really don’t know how I came up with that answer; it just rolled off my tongue. The moment I said that word, a wave of intense hatred threatened to consume me, but thankfully, I managed to control myself. I wonder why? How did I know the answer? Why does the name ”Devil” provoke such intense feelings in me? Hah! Just more questions to add to my long list of inquiries about myself. Well, it will be intriguing to uncover these answers.’ Nero was lost in thought.

Meanwhile, Aaron decided to wrap up the day’s lesson with a bit of history.

”Let me tell you a little story.”

Everyone was eager to hear this story.

Nero’s attention snapped back at the mention of a story; like everyone else present, he was curious, hoping to glean something from it.

Aaron began his tale.

”At the beginning of the universe, there was nothing but chaos. As time passed, consciousness began to emerge from that chaos, one after another, until there were several. These consciousnesses evolved, gaining physical forms, transforming the endless chaos into usable energy. Each wielded different powers and created life—a world. But like everything that exists, there can be no light without shadow. Among those primordial beings, some turned against the others, seeking nothing but destruction; their creation reflected their desires, only yearning for annihilation. A clash ensued among the primordial beings, resulting in the destruction of many things, and ultimately, they vanished. Nobody knows what truly happened. That’s the end of my story.”

Aaron’s students expressed disappointment upon hearing that it was the conclusion, yearning to know more, and above all, wanting to discern if this tale held any truth—if it was part of the hidden truth about their past. Aaron could read their expressions like an open book and chuckled.

”Don’t think too hard about it. Just a fabricated story of my own.”

Most of the cadets didn’t believe him.

’I have a feeling there’s some truth mixed in with what he said, and there’s still more to this story,’ Nero thought with certainty.

Seeing his students’ reactions, Aaron shook his head, having anticipated this response. He continued, ”The truth will be revealed as you grow stronger. You will find it yourself. Right now, you are too weak to know some secrets. Sometimes, learning too soon can be deadly. Let’s end today class. Your next class will begin soon.’’

Aaron vanished shortly after, and the classroom sprang to life as soon as he left.

”Nero, you’re a knight, right?” Adam suddenly asked.

Nero nodded, inferring that out of the four of them, two belonged to the Mage class, with Lux’s next words confirming this.

”Too bad we won’t be together in the next class. Well, let’s meet after the second class.”

”Okay.” Nero watched as Lux dragged Blake out of the classroom, heading to another one.

Adam chuckled, amused by Blake’s reluctance to leave his seat. Nero shook his head, thinking Blake really didn’t like to move his body.

More than half of the classroom had emptied, leaving only a few cadets behind.

Elteth and Azalea stood up and began making their way toward them. Nero’s expression remained impassive, but inwardly he felt displeased.

’Better move before I’m dragged into something troublesome.’

Noticing Adam’s frown upon seeing Azalea approach, Nero suggested, ”We better move.”

The underlying meaning was clear: ’Let’s get out of here before we get stuck with them. I doubt you want that.’

”Sure, I’ll lead the way.” Adam stood up, and Nero followed him, taking the opposite direction as they left the classroom. Nero could feel Elreth’s face twitching, but instead of being frustrated by his action, she chuckled, finding the situation interesting.

While Elreth found the situation amusing, Azalea did not. A cold light flashed briefly in her eyes before disappearing, her face returning to its usual liveliness. Inside, she was seething. How dare Nero act like that? Fleeing as if she were a plague, he should have been grateful and waited for them. Instead, he acted as if they were a nuisance. If it had been a snooty dwarf, she could have understood, but someone without any background like Nero should have done his utmost to form connections with outstanding cadets like them. Yet here he was, acting like they were troublesome.

Azalea vowed to make Nero crawl beneath her feet as she toyed with him. Just the thought made her body shudder, nearly losing control. Fortunately, she was adept at managing her expression, never allowing her facade to crack.

Unknowingly, Nero drew the attention of two beautiful girls. The first was purely curious, while the second was motivated by pettiness; since he had made her lose face, he would have to pay.

On the way to their next class, Adam glanced at Nero’s profile and couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. There was no doubt that this new friend of his was extremely handsome, surrounded by an air of mystery. His impassive face made it impossible to guess what was going on in that mind of his. He was like a chick magnet, attracting women and stirring their inner desires to uncover more about him.

While dwarves may be stereotyped as muscle-bound lovers of booze and hammering, that didn’t mean they were brainless; they could think and were quite clever, despite what others believed. Being on the sharper side himself, Adam sensed the princess’s interest in Nero—an interest born of curiosity. Having grown up together and met several members of the seven families, Adam knew most of their personalities and could deduce that the princess’s interest in Nero was purely about discovering something extraordinary that she wished to possess.

The second person interested in Nero, however, was someone Adam was cautious about. Azalea was quite the piece of work, and getting on her bad side could be dangerous. He believed Nero had caught her attention because of his earlier actions. So, he decided to offer Nero a word of caution.

”Little Nero, you better watch out. Don’t get too close to that bitch—I mean Azalea. She’s dangerous.”