40 40 Unholy Smite
The Headmistress stepped forward out of the shadows with a large smile on her face.
“You really are an oddball. When humans are hit with that spell, it is supposed to transform them into a type of Demon appropriate to their power level, with an appearance that reflects the very worst aspects of their nature. That’s how the majority of artificial demons were created and banished from this world by the Witches to eliminate suspected survivors of the Magi Clans and other criminal elements from society.
The girls expected you to be turned into an imp or worse, but it looks like it didn’t change your form. That is very intriguing indeed. How pure does your heart have to be to retain a human form?”
“So you’re saying I could be transformed into an imp at any moment?” Wolfe asked.
“Use your new magic and see what happens. It’s better to get it all out of the way at once.” The pity was clear in her voice, but she had a point.
Wolfe filled his mana pouch, which seemed to absorb mana much faster than before, despite holding much more, then focused on the new spell that he had gained when he was cursed, called [Unholy Smite]. He focused on activating the spell as far away from himself as possible, then felt his mana pool empty, but nothing seemed to happen.
“It used mana, but I should have focused on something in sight. I don’t know if it worked.” Wolfe shrugged.
“Try using it again on me.” Headmistress Peach suggested, but screaming from outside caught their attention even through the thick dorm walls.
The headmistress ran out of the room to the large window at the end of the hall, closely followed by Wolfe and dozens of students.
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Teachers were rushing out, using counter-spell magic and dousing her transport with water, which had no apparent effect on the flames.
“Wolfe, is that your magic?” Headmistress Peach asked, giving Wolfe a murderous glare.
“I’ve never seen that spell effect in my life. You wouldn’t have asked me to use it if the spell could be that dangerous, right?” Wolfe countered, and the Headmistress sighed.
“Just make it stop before someone dies.”
“I, uh, can’t? Smite isn’t an ongoing thing. I don’t think.” Wolfe shrugged, not particularly concerned now that he had seen where his spell had hit.
On further introspection, that was an incredibly idiotic thing to do. He could have seriously hurt or killed an innocent bystander, throwing magic around at random without knowing what it would do.
Headmistress Peach cast a spell that created a huge circle around the burning vehicle and snuffed out the flames, then put her hands on Wolfe’s shoulders and walked him back to the dorm room.
“For the record, I didn’t expect that.” Wolfe began, but the Headmistress was shaking her head and quietly laughing to herself.
“You gained Holy Magic? That should keep them away from the Academy for a while. Holy Magic can only be used on evil beings or those with bad intentions. If she were impartial in her judgement, the spell wouldn’t have done more than stung her, and it certainly wouldn’t have burned out her vehicle and made her walk home.”
Wolfe didn’t correct her clear mistake and let her believe that his magic was Holy and not Unholy. It was better to keep on everyone’s good side at this point until he understood what this judgement meant for him in the grand scheme of things.
On the other hand, Cassie and Ella were thoroughly confused by the recent events. Wolfe hadn’t shown any signs of being able to use advanced magic yesterday, and even the curse that had been expected to turn him into an imp or a goblin hadn’t worked as expected. Nothing that had happened since they got up this morning had gone as planned, and it had left them feeling disoriented.
“Demons all get unique gifts from the curse. It is an innate and unavoidable side effect of the magic and the reason that nobody in their right mind uses the Eternal Curses. The boon that the spell grants the targets can make them much more dangerous than they were, to begin with. A Witch’s Innate Magic requires balance. In this case, the target is granted power in exchange for their freedom. Growing plants will deplete the soil, and so on.” The Headmistress explained.
“I don’t think that was enough explanation. They still look pretty lost, and so am I.” Wolfe replied.
“The Coven Leader decided that you were too dangerous to be allowed to enter society again after your time here at the Academy. So, she banished you from the Coven controlled Fortress Cities forever.
The investigator decided that the best way to enforce that decree was to make you a Demon since they can’t enter the city unless they are bound by a summoning spell. If they break the binding, they are immediately banished by the wards of the city. It is the perfect implementation of their will but the most extreme option within the range of banishment options.
Nobody really worried about what would happen to you afterward since you are already a Familiar and an eternally banished criminal by birth in the minds of the Investigators.” Headmistress Peach tried again.
“Will our families be in trouble?” Cassie asked.
“Not as long as Wolfe stays gone. You and Ella could likely go back without issue, and they won’t actively target your families inside the city, but for both of you and Wolfe, the smart move is to make a choice like Reiko intends to and pick somewhere far away to seek employment after graduation.”
The room fell silent as everyone digested the implications of her words and what they meant for the girls’ future, even if they aced the exams and were proven to be the most powerful witches of their generation.
“I can get you a map and guidebook if you need them?” The Headmistress offered.
“Like The Adventurers Handbook? I checked it out of the library yesterday because sitting in class doing nothing is boring.” Wolfe told her, pointing to the book on the dresser.
“That’s a good start, and it even has a map of the continent for you to look over. If you have more questions, ask Professor Ashcroft, she’s always out in the wilderness gathering potion ingredients.
But if anyone asks any of you about today, Wolfe was sentenced to be a Familiar. You don’t know what happened to the investigator’s transport, and Wolfe certainly can’t use destructive combat magic without permission from his Witch. Understood?”
All three nodded their agreement, and the Headmistress rushed out of the room to assist the investigator and the others in cleaning up the mess in the parking lot.
“I wonder what the teachers will think of you tomorrow? Some might have thought the Summoning was a mistake, but now it’s an official sentence.” Cassie asked while hugging Wolfe and checking him for damages.
“Probably about the same as today. One already treated me as non-human, and Professor Ashcroft is pretty mellow about the whole thing, even if she did bring me here to be judged.” Wolfe replied.
“We’re late for the Library, so we should probably head to breakfast and let everyone know the official version of what happened,” Ella suggested, pulling them both along and out of the room, where the disturbing feeling of an incredibly powerful curse lingered in the air and was creeping her out.
When Mary and Reiko arrived in the cafeteria with an armload of new books and an exhausted Pup, who had been chasing the Librarian around for an hour, trying to get the candies in her pocket that she kept for her own Familiar, they were clearly not impressed with the trio who had skipped the trip.
Deciding that an ounce of prevention was the best option, Wolfe apologized before they could begin an angry rant. “First, before you say anything, the investigator from the city was here today to issue my sentence. It put us way behind schedule, sorry.”
“Oh, well, they didn’t kill you, so the professor was right about that. What did you get? The mana binding, so you couldn’t work any magic? But that would make you a lousy Familiar.” Mary asked.
“Being a Familiar is my sentence. Plus, being banished from all the Coven Cities on pain of death.” Wolfe shrugged.
“So, are you going to be heading for the woods right away then? Wait, you only said the cities. They didn’t demand you leave the Academy?” Reiko asked.
“Nope, I can stay, so I’ve got until the end of the year at the very least to figure it out and make sure these fine young Witches graduate,” Wolfe told Reiko with a smile.