Allen scratched his head and said, "I was just curious, asking casually. I didn't mean anything else."

  Evelyn immediately raised her hand and handed a box to Allen. "This is for you."

  Allen reached out and took the box. The moment he opened it, he saw a vial lying quietly inside.

  Delicate patterns of light flowed across its surface, clearly marking it as no ordinary potion. He picked up the vial and examined it carefully. "What is this?"

  Eleanor explained, "This is the Aether Pulse Elixir. It is a supplementary potion the academy distributes every month to the top ten ranked apprentices."

  "After consumption, it stabilizes magical circuits and purifies the Holy Light energy within the body, increasing the success rate of rank advancement by several times."

  Upon hearing this, Allen quickly returned the vial to the box and handed it back to Evelyn. "Evelyn, I cannot accept such a precious potion! This is the academy's reward for you. My magical affinity is average at best, so taking it would be a waste. You should keep it for yourself."

  In his mind, he had another reason. The Aether Pulse Elixir had great effects for human apprentices but was completely useless for him, a Demon King.

  He had deliberately slowed the pace of his magical growth, and if he consumed this potion, the accelerated advancement would likely expose his abnormality.

  Evelyn's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, her gaze fixed on the box, but she did not reach for it. Her tone carried a hint of pride. "If you touched it, I do not want it."

  Allen awkwardly rubbed his hands with his sleeve, silently regretting having touched the vial.

  He was about to say more, but Evelyn turned away, her back facing him, refusing to speak further. Her resolve was clear.

  Left with no choice, Allen could only tuck the box into his arms.

  Back in his room, he immediately hid the box in a secret compartment of his wardrobe.

  The next morning, he calculated the timing carefully, deliberately channeling his magic to adjust his aura and stabilize his apparent rank at Fourth-tier Magic Apprentice.

  He then excitedly sought out Evelyn, feigning enthusiasm. "Evelyn! Your Aether Pulse Elixir is amazing! After taking it last night, I successfully advanced to Fourth-tier Magic Apprentice!"

  "I feel the energy inside me more abundant than ever. My whole body is filled with power. I could punch an adult magical wild boar to death!"

  Evelyn simply responded with a calm "oh," as if she had already expected it, saying nothing more.

  Seeing her reaction, Allen turned and left, heading alone to the academy Library.

  As Eleanor's core apprentice, he had full access to all the tomes in the Library. Allen casually picked one and began flipping through it rapidly.

  The core logic of human magic was immediately clear to him. One reading was enough for him to fully grasp it, and even complex magical circuits reconstructed themselves instantly in his mind.

  In just half a day, he had quietly reached the level of Intermediate Mage within the human magical system, far surpassing results that would normally take others years or even decades to achieve.

  When Allen returned to the Eleanor Estate, he could already hear apprentices whispering along the way. The core message was the same: Karen had died in the Gale Demon Forest.

  Allen understood at once. Judging by the timing, the people the academy had sent to investigate the missing trial team had likely already discovered the bodies of Karen and the others, and the news had naturally spread.

  When Karen's father, Marcus, saw his son's corpse, he lost control on the spot, his emotions bordering on madness.

  In everyone's understanding, Karen's group must have encountered the leader of the Gale Demon Tribe during the trial and met their end there.

  No one would place the blame on Allen, who seemed to have mediocre talent, and even less would anyone imagine that all of this had been orchestrated by a hidden Demon King.

  At first, Marcus was furious beyond measure and immediately wanted to gather his men and slaughter the Gale Demon Forest in revenge for his son.

  But when he personally led a team there, he found that the entire lair had already been abandoned.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Not a single Gale Demon could be found, and Graham, who had gone missing with them, was nowhere to be seen either.

  However, Marcus did not dwell on this too much. He vaguely knew his son's true purpose for this trip.

  It was not simply a trial, but an attempt to eliminate Allen and take revenge on Graham.

  In his view, Graham had most likely been silenced by Karen, while the Gale Demons had fled in advance out of fear of the academy's power. This only strengthened his resolve for revenge.

  "I will kill that wretch Evelyn!" Marcus stood beside Karen's body, his hair disheveled and his eyes bloodshot.

  All the dignity of an elder was gone, replaced by hysterical hatred in his voice. "If it were not for her, Karen would never have insisted on going to the Gale Demon Forest to set this trap!"

  "Karen cherished her in every possible way, yet she always looked down on him. It was this obsession that got my Karen killed here!"

  Marcus was overwhelmed with grief. Ignoring the people around him, he squatted down and burst into tears, his posture utterly miserable.

  "Kill her! Only then can I ease the hatred in my heart!"

  He suddenly stood up, his fists clenched so tightly they crackled, murderous intent almost spilling from his eyes.

  "And that useless Allen too! If it were not for plotting against him, Karen would never have taken a single step outside the academy!"

  "I am going to the Eleanor Estate right now, seize those two, and make them kneel before Karen's grave to beg for forgiveness, paying life for life!"

  Marcus stamped his feet and pounded his chest, so agitated he nearly fainted.

  The people beside him hurried forward to support him, trying to calm him as they said, "Mentor, please restrain your grief. Do not harm your health by being too distraught."

  "Even if you seek revenge, there is no need for you to act personally. Moreover, Evelyn is one of the four chief apprentices of the academy and also Elder Eleanor's student."

  "If you forcibly remove her and Allen from the academy to silence them, the higher-ups will definitely investigate thoroughly and will not stand by."

  "Besides, the incident in the Gale Demon Forest is already full of suspicious points. If it is pursued and the truth about Karen deliberately setting a trap comes out."

  "Not only might your position as an elder be at risk, even your entire family could be implicated. Then you would be trapped on all sides, and it would not be worth the loss."

  Marcus suddenly turned his head, glaring fiercely at the speaking apprentice, his voice filled with raging fury.

  "What did you say? Are you saying my Karen just died for nothing?"

  "I do not care about academy rules or family honor. Even if I have to stake this old life, I will kill those two and avenge Karen!"

  Marcus's voice was hoarse and harsh, the obsession with revenge having already clouded his mind.

  Seeing this, the apprentice quickly explained, "Mentor, that is not what I mean. I am not saying you should not take revenge. I only think we should plan for the long term."

  "Evelyn and Allen are under the academy's protection right now. Acting openly is not a good strategy.

  We can lay our plans in secret, wait for the right opportunity, and then strike without drawing attention. That way we get our revenge and keep our hands clean. Would that not be better?"

  The apprentice's eyes flickered, revealing shrewd calculation. "You forgot, we still have Samuel. He is the number one among the younger generation of the academy!"

  His tone was confident as he continued to instigate, "Once he finishes his meditation, all we need to do is fabricate a story that Evelyn slandered her brother, then find a way to trick her into signing a life-and-death duel contract."

  "The life-and-death duel is a fair combat allowed by the academy. Once it begins, no one can find any fault with it, no matter the outcome."

  "At that point, even if Samuel kills her, it will only be seen as a contest between geniuses. Who would suspect that we were manipulating things behind the scenes?"

  "As for that Allen, without Evelyn's protection, he is nothing more than a useless wretch. Dealing with him will be easy, and we can handle him however we want."

  Upon hearing this, the grief in Marcus's eyes abruptly vanished, replaced by a flash of ruthless determination. "How could I forget Samuel?"

  "Do it as you said. Let Samuel act personally!" Marcus's face ignited with the fire of revenge again, his tone icy.

  "First, let Samuel publicly humiliate that wretch in front of everyone, strip her of dignity and ruin her reputation, then take her life with his own hands!"

  The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed, and he began planning how to set the stage after Samuel's meditation ended.

  Meanwhile, Allen stayed behind closed doors in his room, rarely venturing out.

  At first, he expected Marcus to immediately come after him and Evelyn because of his grief over Karen.

  But days passed, and the academy remained unusually calm. Marcus made no move, which only made Allen more cautious.

  Through his secret inquiries, Allen quickly uncovered the reason. Karen indeed had a brother named Samuel, the most dazzling magical prodigy of Radiant Magic Academy, with a magical rank already at Ninth-tier Intermediate Mage.

  Samuel's current meditation retreat was aimed at breaking through to Senior Mage, though whether he would succeed remained uncertain.

  Allen understood immediately: Marcus was waiting for Samuel.

  During these days of seclusion, Allen had not been idle. He steadily elevated his apparent human magical rank to Ninth-tier Intermediate Mage.

  With his Demon King foundation and mastery over magic, even relying solely on human Holy Light magic, he could easily overwhelm Samuel.

  Even if Samuel successfully advanced to Senior Mage, Allen could handle him effortlessly.

  In Allen's understanding, it was standard for geniuses to fight across rank boundaries. Such a power gap was trivial for him.

  However, Allen deliberately slowed the pace of his advancement, so as not to appear too abnormal while still being able to protect Evelyn if necessary.

  He knew that exposing too much of his talent would only bring trouble and jeopardize his plans.

  While Allen remained secluded and alert, a sudden major event shook Radiant Magic Academy.

  The Holy Demon Prison Tower had opened! This towering prison on the western side of the academy immediately drew attention.

  Scholars and apprentices from other academies began converging on Radiant Magic Academy, each with steady auras and exceptional talent, all hoping to improve their abilities within the Holy Demon Prison Tower.

  Allen, however, had no idea. His apparent magical rank was only Magic Apprentice, and he had always presented himself as a talent of average capability.

  Events like this, limited to only the top geniuses, were never meant for him. Naturally, he was excluded from this grand gathering of prodigies.