I Became the Youngest Disciple of the Martial God

Why were the dolls that were supposed to be wandering outside suddenly charging like crazy toward this building?

I didn’t have time to think about it.

I locked eyes with the adult doll at the head of the group. It let out a monstrous screech as it picked up speed and slammed through the window with a full-body tackle.

Crash!

Damn, weren’t the windows supposed to be unbreakable?

Maybe I should just assume the opposite of everything Arin said...

The doll that had broken in glared at me.

It looked like a teddy bear, but there wasn’t a shred of cuddliness about it.

Thick drool dripped from its jagged teeth, and its blood-red eyes glinted with malice.

The tattered and torn fabric of its body was visibly stitched together, and some of its patches looked disturbingly like human skin.

It was a horrible, grotesque sight, like a stuffed doll sewn together with human parts.

Tap.

With Headmaster Alderson on my back, I had to leap aside to avoid a head-on confrontation.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The energy waves radiating from its movements were quite strong.

I could see why they were called “adult dolls.” Compared to the dolls inside the building, it really was like the difference between an adult and a child.

But of course, compared to Kajita, whom I had just fought, this thing was nothing more than a fly.

Since the Headmaster made it difficult for me to use large-scale techniques, I remembered Kajita’s use of fajin in our fight.

Should I try it?

I was familiar enough with the mechanics of Fajin. Pulling it off wouldn’t be a problem.

Tap.

As I passed the teddy bear, I placed my palm against its head and channeled my ki.

BANG!

The teddy bear's head exploded.

“Blegh.”

A foul stench assaulted my nose.

And it wasn't just the stench. The exploding head had splattered black blood everywhere mixed, with some unidentifiable gunk.

This is why I hate fighting bare-handed.

I casually wiped my bloodied-black hands off on Headmaster Alderson and looked ahead.

Graaaahhhhh!

Did these damn dolls have a sense of smell?

Several adult dolls swarmed toward me, their eyes visibly rolled back—they seemed riled up by the blood.

Still, I was a bit pleased that they seemed more demonic. I felt emotionally better about destroying them than I did burning a bunch of tiny dolls with my White Sun Form. ṞåℕՕᛒË𐌔

In truth, no matter how many came, they weren’t particularly dangerous unless they managed to completely surround me...

But sure enough, the unconscious Headmaster Alderson on my back was proving to be a nuisance.

I slung him over my right shoulder and sprinted down the hall.

Naturally, the dolls chased after me with their signature shrieks.

Damn, there’s a shitload of ’em.

It wasn’t just the ones chasing me from behind.

Soon, a few adult dolls crashed through the windows up ahead, lunging at me.

Shhring.

I drew the Dark Star Blade with my free hand.

Right now, this weapon was my best option.

The White Sun Form required too much movement, and the Sword of Seven Sins was suited more for heavier, stronger opponents.

Against these masses of stuffed cotton, a sharp blade like the Dark Star Blade was ideal.

Slash! Slash-slash-slash!

After I sliced through about eight dolls, I arrived at the first-floor dining hall.

Since I didn't have an empty hand to open the door nicely, I kicked it open with my foot. It smashed open with a crack, revealing the situation inside.

Bang!

“D-don’t come any closer...!”

“Taylor, you dumbass, get down!”

Inside, it was just as bad.

One massive doll had already broken in, and a fair number of smaller ones were swarming about.

The cadets were using the long dining table as a barrier and were fighting back desperately.

Thankfully, no one was dead or even seemed seriously injured.

The one currently fighting the adult doll was Jidon, the knight cadet I had met on the fourth floor.

He was also the one in the most danger right now since he was fighting the adult doll entirely on his own.

It really couldn’t be called a fight, though—he was no match for the adult doll. Blood poured from a gash on his forehead and one of his arms was dangling uselessly at his side. It must have been broken during the fight.

I glanced at those not fighting, those huddled in the corners, trembling like leaves.

Pathetic, sure, but honestly, it was the right move. Better to stay out of the fight than get in the way and become dead weight.

“Take care of the headmaster.”

“Yeah... Wait, what?”

I handed the headmaster over unceremoniously and immediately jumped into the fight.

First to Jidon, who was in the most danger.

I kicked the adult doll he was fighting in the head.

Thunk...!

Its head popped off and flew through the air like a kicked soccer ball.

“W-with a single blow...” Jidon said, his voice full of shock.

“You did well holding out, Senior,” I said, offering him some brief praise.

I meant every word, too. If Jidon hadn't held on, every cadet here would be dead.

I patted him on the shoulder, then moved on to deal with the rest of the dolls.

“Shit...! Don't back down! If we lose here, we're all dead meat anyway!”

Surprisingly, holding the front line was Russo and his lackeys.

A bloodied Russo was barking out orders with a raspy voice as he fought off the dolls, so engrossed in the battle that he had yet to even notice my coming.

Slash.

The dolls' positioning was just perfect for me to cut them all down with a single swing.

“Huh...?”

Russo’s eyes glazed over as he realized the enemy had been instantly wiped out, and the others were no different.

“Snap out of it,” I told them.

But they just stood there side by side, frozen... so I smacked each of them in the cheek in succession.

Then, seeing the light return to their vacant eyes, I said, “You can all stand, right? I’m sure you understand the situation by now: This place is no longer safe.”

In this hell, the barely maintained order had collapsed.

The adult doll that had been roaming outside had broken in through the window... and even the rooms we’d thought safe were now dangerous.

“Th-then what are we supposed to do...?”

All eyes turned to me.

Truthfully, I did not have a perfect answer to that question, but showing hesitation or fumbling with my words would only add to their anxiety.

“To the rooftop.”

“R-rooftop?”

“But we could end up trapped up there if something goes wrong...”

They weren’t wrong. We could end up trapped.

While the cadets looked at each other uneasily, only Jidon nodded.

“In a situation like this, getting trapped might be the better option. At least we won't be surrounded by enemies.”

I nodded in agreement.

Outside was swarming with adult dolls, and the rooms inside the building were no longer safe.

In that case, it was better to evacuate to the roof, barricade the single entrance, and hold them off that way.

Of course, I could be wrong, but...

In such an urgent situation as this, it was better to make a quick decision, even if it was wrong, than to be right too late.

I coaxed the cadets along and sprinted down the hall.

GRAAHHHH!

From adult dolls to small dolls, they lunged at us one after another, but I easily cut them down with the Dark Star Sword.

And I found myself surprised by my sword techniques.

Hmm...

My strikes were smooth and clean, and the blade extended exactly as my mind willed.

It wasn't just because the Dark Star Sword was a rare divine weapon.

The battle with Kajita...

The full-body burns I had suffered had deepened my understanding of fire’s nature...

And I’d also learned much about the flow of my internal energy.

Of course, my inner core was still empty, but thanks to those insights, I was able to envelop the blade with energy and send sharp blasts of wind flying from it.

We passed the second floor, then the third and the fourth... and finally reached the roof.

I heard a group of dolls chasing us while stomping up the stairs as if to break them down.

“C-close it! Quickly!”

Russo hurriedly slammed the door shut.

I knew the door wouldn’t hold for long. Was there something I could use to hold the door closed for longer?

Something sturdy. Anything that was sturdy.

I immediately drew the Sword of Seven Sins from my waistband and wedged it into the handle.

[Inheritor?]

’Pologies.

Immediately after my quick apology to the Martial God, the iron door trembled with a loud thud.

Bang...! BANG...!

“...”

I could hear heavy, dull noises coming from the other side of the door.

It sounded like someone was mindlessly ramming their head against it. The steel door was beginning to dent, but it should do for now.

“I’ll leave it to you for a moment.”

Jidon nodded firmly. “Don’t worry.”

After entrusting things to Jidon, the only reliable one here, I went to the headmaster.

“How's he doing?” I asked Arin, who happened to be taking care of him.

“I-I think he's in a deep sleep. He... this is Headmaster Alderson, right? Where was he?”

“The underground prison,” I replied. Then I placed my hand on Alderson's abdomen to observe the inside of his body.

“...”

It was a mess.

A tangled mess of energy and blood and mana that was all running rampant. I mentally clicked my tongue. From the look of it, he wouldn’t be of much help even after he regained consciousness.

Still, he should at least be able to talk.

I forcefully injected my true ki into the archmage's body to calm the rampaging mana.

* * * * *

* * * * *

“Cough...!” Alderson coughed harshly and his eyes snapped open.

He looked up at me with wide, confused eyes.

“You're...?”

“I'm Luan Bednicker.”

“B-Bednicker!?”

Arin, who was standing next to me, was the most surprised.

Come to think of it, I had never revealed my family name to her.

“Bednicker... cough. I see... you must be a young hero of the... training camp that was supposed to come to our academy.”

“I'll keep it brief. This place is the Veiled Side, and we've just rescued you, Headmaster, from captivity.”

As I spoke, I sensed his condition stabilizing considerably and withdrew my hand.

“...I see.”

Headmaster Alderson looked at me with calm eyes.

His title of archmage wasn’t just for show. Despite the chaos of the situation, he showed no sign of panic.

“Please,” he said, “continue.”

“The dolls of this Veiled Side, probably demons dressed up as dolls, have suddenly gone berserk. We're on the roof of a building, and beyond those iron doors are rampaging demons. To put it bluntly, we are in a crisis.”

“Mm, I understand. Then we must first resolve the current situation.”

Headmaster Alderson rose to his feet.

“Headmaster?” I asked.

“Just a moment.”

He stood there and took a deep breath.

Suddenly, I felt a surge of mana swirling around him.

This is...

Alderson took a few breaths, inhaling and exhaling slowly as if to catch his breath, before suddenly speaking.

“I declare...”

“...!”

By now, the other cadets had noticed the overwhelming mana rippling through the air.

Headmaster Alderson's robes whipped fiercely in the wind.

Five, then six, then seven magic circles layered over one another, spinning like interlocking cogs.

“This place shall be my domain.”

Hwaaaaaah!

It was like a fountain of light erupted into existence.

Centered on Headmaster Alderson, a colossal column of light surged upward, reaching the sky before breaking into tiny particles that rained down on the building.

The way they drifted down resembled snowflakes more than rain.

Kyaaaaa!

A horrifying scream rang out as the entire building shook. I sensed countless sinister presences disappearing all at once.

“...Everyone can rest easy. This building is safe now,” Alderson said with a faint smile, and the cadets immediately erupted into cheer.

Some of the weaker ones even collapsed on the spot, sobs wracking their bodies.

Like someone who had been stranded for weeks on end and had just been rescued.

But who could blame them?

These cadets had been forcibly dragged into the Veiled Side out of nowhere.

After living in fear daily, trembling at the thought of their approaching demise, they had finally come across an adult they could trust.

And not just anyone—Headmaster Alderson, the most powerful figure in this academy.

So of course their bodies relaxed so much that they lost the strength to stand.

“It’s all right now. Stop those tears. Cadets of the proud Kartell Academy shouldn’t shed tears over something like this,” Alderson consoled and encouraged them, a faint smile on his face.

...

I seemed to be the only one who realized: Alderson’s complexion was far paler than when he’d awoken.

...This is bad.

I didn’t know much about magic, but I could tell that Headmaster Alderson had pushed himself too hard.

Of course, it was impressive enough that he’d been able to perform such magic despite being in such a weakened state...

Headmaster Alderson’s unreadable eyes turned to me, and he said, “Young Hero Luan. May I speak with you alone for a moment?”

I nodded.

* * *

“Hoo...”

Alderson slumped back heavily into a chair. I rummaged through the room and handed him a canteen of water I found.

“Here you go.”

“Thank you.”

After gulping down half the bottle, Alderson closed his eyes and was silent for a moment.

And it wasn’t to organize his thoughts.

He was just trying to calm his shaken insides.

Even after he finished drinking the water, his throat moved, swallowing belatedly.

I suspected he had to swallow down blood.

“...A legion commander should have been guarding me.”

“It was a formidable opponent.”

Alderson paused at my words and asked, “...Are you saying you defeated it?”

“Yes, I did.”

“...”

Alderson looked at me for a brief moment, as if to discern whether I was telling the truth or not.

“Luan Bednicker. Youngest child of the Lord of Blood and Iron, and the disgrace of the Bednicker family... I heard you were a fool who sold off the family treasure. Was it all just a front?”

“Mm, well... Maybe.”

By now, I was tired of clearing up this misunderstanding.

The headmaster rose from his seat and walked to the window.

His deeply sunken eyes turned toward the blood-lit moon.

“It’s gotten a lot closer.”

“What do you mean, closer?” I asked absentmindedly as I followed the headmaster’s gaze to the moon...

And I immediately understood what he was saying.

Indeed, the moon loomed larger than when I’d first seen it.

“That moon, is there something about it?”

“It's not just something, that blood-lit moon is Hadenaihar itself.”

“What?” I blinked my eyes.

So “Blood-Lit Moon” wasn’t just a title—it was literal?

Well, then again, Tangtata did look like an actual green tongue...

Alderson said, “It will continue to get closer, and when it fully touches this land, it will corrupt the minds of everyone on the Veiled Side. The repercussions will spread into the real world too.”

“Then we just have to take down the mastermind before that happens.”

Alderson looked at me, slightly surprised. “You know far more than I expected. You’re correct. But...”

“Is there something else?”

The headmaster sighed heavily and asked, “Do you happen to know who the mastermind is?”

“I’m fairly certain it’s Princess Ferith.”

“It is as you say.”

It seemed like he had also known that.

Now it was my turn to ask: “Are you concerned about the imperial family?”

“Not quite. The Empire’s laws do not apply to cultists.”

Then what was the issue?

When I gave him a questioning look, the headmaster shared his thoughts.

“I'm ashamed to say, but it’s been a long time since I was dragged here. I assume there was a puppet impersonating me in the real world?”

“Yes, there was.”

“In that case, the princess should have secured full control of the Tower of Trials. That is the problem.”

The Tower of Trials?

“Is mass production of puppets the issue?”

“No. Young Hero Luan, have you climbed the Tower of Trials as well?”

“I have.”

“How many floors did you climb?”

“Until the fourth floor.”

“I see.” Alderson nodded gravely. “...On the top floor of the Tower of Trials is the armored cavalry that administers the final trial. I dare say it is my greatest masterpiece: the combat golem.”

“Ah.”

I remembered hearing that from the headmaster’s puppet.

“And the princess likely has control over that cavalry.”

“Is that a major issue? Unless, of course, this cavalry is stronger than the demon commander?”

I wasn’t trying to be sarcastic; I was genuinely curious.

Alderson shook his head.

“Of course not. Even in its weakened state, the commander who was watching over me was a formidable demon. Kajita, the Infernal Legion commander... My cavalry could not stand against such a demon.”

“...”

“Even so, it would not be a one-sided defeat. Not only does my cavalry have exceptional durability and resistance to water, weather, and heat, but their combat abilities easily surpass even the high-ranking knights who use aura. With at least ten, or fifteen to be generous, together, they would be a match for Kajita.”

I still was unsure of his point.

While avoiding my gaze, Alderson murmured, “The cavalry was inspired by the Platinum Knight Order. Do you know of them? The legendary knight order that served the Platinum King three hundred years ago?”

The Platinum King.

One of the five kings of The Empire, revered as a god after his death.

But my focus wasn’t on the king but on another word.

“...A knight order?”

“That's right. I admired the legend of the Platinum Knight Order and wanted to form a knight order with armored cavalry. So I spent a massive fortune to mass-produce combat golems... totaling two hundred and fifty.”

Holy crap.