[Awakening Stage Progress To Next Rank: 95%]

  With two days left to complete his assignment, Leox's stage progression now sat at an impressive 95%, meaning that he was very close to progressing to the next stage. It was a gruelling task, bringing him lots of death, and an absurd amount of heat.

  For a while, he contemplated whether he should push himself further until he reached the second stage of his awakening, but he decided against it. After viewing the Overviews of many others, he discovered that the only student who had reached the second stage so far was Astra, the boy who had already defeated a Fallen Saint. If Leox were to advance, people would start to question how he had progressed so fast without fighting any demons. So, he decided to wait until he headed out on his assignment.

  He looked forward to advancing, as he had been severely limited so far to one skill per class. However, the more he trained with the fire mage class and the more he accepted death and returned from it, he felt like his body wanted to adapt and learn new skills, but was limited due to his current awakening stage.

  Just what skills would be gained after awakening, and how would the overview become more complex?

  ...

  During the past few days, it became clear that the task was much harder than people had expected. So far, only two students had managed to complete it, which left twenty-eight students empty-handed, including himself.

  Today, that would change.

  Leox had read more than he ever had in the entirety of his life just over the past few days, which reminded him that he needed to thank Ivy for teaching him the skill. Through his reading, he had discovered the location of a nearby place of worship that had been abandoned. Its name was the Church of Hope.

  The church had been built as a standalone establishment, a decent walk away from its nearest settlement. Many worshippers used to attend its sermon on foot, but ever since the threat of demons had entered the land, the church had become abandoned. Leox knew nothing about its current state, or whether there were already knights guarding the location, but he guessed there was no harm in checking it out.

  With his sword strapped to his back and his academy uniform on, followed by his long coat, Leox left the academy grounds and headed southeast. An hour later, the sun would set, and the sight of his destination would come into view.

  ---

  As Leox took in the scenery as it passed by, he realised that it had been a long time since he had explored the land. The grass beneath his feet, the villagers who greeted him as he passed their settlements, the wild animals running to his feet and nibbling at his hands, hoping that he had food for them. It was enough to make him think back on how appreciative he was that he was no longer chained beneath the sewers of the Undying City. Even better was the fact that he ran into no demons on the way.

  Once the sun had set, he stood in a large clearing, free of any trees or wildlife. There was nothing between him, and the small church that stood in the distance ahead. Leading towards the church was a small gravel path, and outside was a campfire that had long since been lit. The church stood tall, despite not covering much of the land. It was a humble place of worship, beautifully crafted by men and women of the distant path.

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  As Leox reached the gravel path, it became clear that at least from the outside, there were no signs of demons, or even Holy Knights. During his travels, he had seen many of the men-in-white lingering in villages, keeping a keen eye on the surroundings, so this took him by surprise.

  Eventually, he reached the door and drew his sword just in case before pushing it open. The wooden hinges creaked as a strong scent stung his nose.

  Light emerged from beyond the door. Someone was there.

  Leox considered closing the door and running, but that smell. He recognised it, but couldn't put a finger on what it was.

  As the door opened wider, he found himself standing at the entrance of a small room used for worship. There were only a handful of wooden stands that sat in rows, facing towards a platform on the far side of the room. Behind the platform was a giant red stained glass window that allowed the moonlight to seep in, but there was also a candlelight on the stage, lighting up the grotesque scene at its feet.

  Two men wearing white holy armour lay slaughtered on the stage, bathing in their own blood.

  That's what the awfully recognisable smell was. Blood.

  Leox gripped his blade tightly as he stood by the entrance, his eyes glancing around the space, looking for whoever had done this. The sight of death might no longer have frightened him, but the thought of who might be lingering in the shadows certainly did.

  Can't be captured again.

  "..."

  A few seconds passed with no noise being made, and no signs of any attackers, so Leox stepped foot inside the church. He remained cautious, constantly checking his surroundings as he started to approach the stage.

  Still, despite the candle being lit, no one was around. The church was empty, but for the two corpses.

  "Nngh..."

  A sudden groan came from one of the men on the stage. His metal armour creaked as he pointlessly tried to lift his arm for help. Leox wasted no time dashing over to him, and once he arrived, he saw that even though the man had gained some sort of second wind, his death was imminent.

  A giant chunk of his skull was missing, which exposed the pink brain that should have been hidden behind bone. A fragment of his cracked skull had pierced a part of his brain, and this seemed to be only one of his injuries. All over his armoured body were numerous dents of varying intensity. Leox could only guess at how many of the man's bones were broken.

  As he knelt by his body, he checked the man's status. There was no point checking the other guys, as the life had long since left their eyes.

  [Unknown]

  [Awakening Stage: Second Stage]

  [Classes:]

  Unknown

  [Class Skills:]

  Unknown

  "Run... It isn't too... late for you." The man managed to mumble out a sentence before coughing up a mouthful of blood. He reached out and took hold of Leox's hand, staring at him with bloodshot eyes. "The demons are here."

  Despite the horror that lay before him, Leox felt a surprising amount of relief.

  It's only a demon... Not a human.

  In many ways, a human's worst enemy is not a demon, but rather another human like themselves.

  Leox tightened his grip on the man's hand, trying to keep the life in him for as long as possible.

  "This demon, what was it's powers? How strong was it to be able to kill you, and another powerful holy knight?" He asked quickly.

  The Holy Knight tried to chuckle, but he only spat out more blood. "Jonas and I? We aren't nothing but fodder... Failures of an empire that don't give a shit about us... The demon wasn't strong, we were just weak."

  Leox listened to the man's death rants, but deep down, he wished that he would provide more useful information. Assuming that the knight was of humble birth like himself, then of course the empire didn't care for him.

  "You and me both." Leox found himself saying. "But I need more information. How many demons were there, and where did they go?"

  Suddenly the man's eyes went wide. He lifted his hand, and for a moment he looked like he was trying to touch Leox's face. It took a while for him to realise that the man was attempting to point off into the distance.

  "Only one... behind you..."

  "Hmm?"

  A great force suddenly crashed into the back of Leox's head, more powerful than any strike he had felt before. Just like that, his skull had cracked, leaving him in a similar state to the dying knight beneath him.