Creeeak... creeak...
The wooden stairs groaned loudly as Huli made his way up. He took each step carefully, afraid he would slip and humiliate himself. The guillotine was just in view, its blade beckoning him to come closer.
He gulped and walked towards it. His heart pounded in his ears, and sweat drenched him from head to toe. His breathing became ragged.
Step, step, step. Standing behind the guillotine, a little off to the side, he looked down at the demons, then at the Demon Emperor.
They were all watching.
Staring.
Listening.
His head felt like it was melting, yet at the same time doused in cold water. Huli took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm himself down, but he only felt more dizzy as time went on and he didn't say anything.
His breath hitched, putting his hand on his chest, "I-I swear loyalty t-to the Demon E-Emperor..."
...It's a fail.
"M-my arm! I sacrifice my arm!"
I watched from below as the demon named Huli Koark staked his arm on his pledge. A single thought circulated in my mind, and everyone waited for the guillotine's judgement.
However, even a few seconds later, nothing happened. The guillotine blade didn't move, and everything was silent.
I shook my head, sighing.
Huli's fingers twitched, and he looked at the supervisor.
"The guillotine's judgement has passed. Huli Koark, please move down the platform."
It was this moment that Huli realized it--the contract didn't form. He pleaded.
"W-wait! I can do it again. I-I was just nervous..!"
"Please step down from the platform."
"I-I..."
Eventually, after refusing to leave, Huli was teleported elsewhere by the supervisor, letting the next applicant take the test.
He appeared a few meters away from me, collapsing to the ground as the others asked if he felt anything from making his oath. I turned my head away, refusing to look at him.
It's like looking at a walking dead man. For some reason, I can't look. I kept my focus on the next applicant making his way up the stairs. I felt sick.
There was one definitive reason why Huli failed. And that was because he pledged loyalty to the Demon Emperor, not the demon race. A mistake born from losing composure--that was what the third condition truly tested.
What use is pledging loyalty to the Demon Emperor when another would eventually rise to power anyways?
Following that, several more people took the test and pledged loyalty. But in front of the Demon Emperor, many failed more than not, and those who passed barely made it out. I observed the appearances of each of the demons who went up, and I didn't recognize any major characters from them.
By the time I realized it, it was my turn.
"Applicant #890, Cael, please demonstrate your loyalty."
A strange magic urged me to walk up the platform. Not minding it, I made my way up.
Creak, creaak-
The wood creaked under my footsteps. When I made it close to the guillotine, I looked at it, then moved my gaze to the Demon Emperor and the demon gathering.
Again, everyone was silent. Only the sound of anxious, waiting breaths could be heard. Some picked their nails, many stared intently.
This section, that forced demons to make existence-binding oaths, had one extremely important measure that the instructors and emperor-alike paid attention to the most.
The ceiling of betrayal.
How far are you willing to go for the demon race? How much are you willing to sacrifice? What is the minimum to cause you to betray your own kind?
An arm...a leg?
I breathed heavily. The dim sky made everything dark but just bright enough to see. My shadow was cast from my figure above on the platform, darkening my expression.
But I know exactly what to stake.
My love as an author who created this world, my obsession for this novel that spanned several years, and my desperation that knew what side I had to be on.
In order to live.
I opened my mouth decisively.
"I give my life to the demon race."
My voice was calm, but stuck in the minds of the demons here.
Ka-chunk- The guillotine moved.
Now see, what a 100% passing score looks like.
Suddenly, in front of everyone, my figure disappeared.
And in place of it, an identical me--head through the hole of the guillotine. The wood of the guillotine creaked as a hidden system in the spiritual realm moved.
Then it happened.
Click.
The blade fell.
Swish!
On the ground, something splattered. Falling from the platform, something rolled.
A demon standing close to the platform heard something land next to their feet, and looked down.
My severed head, blood pooling from its severed end. It turned up, facing them.
Instantly, their eyes widened.
"AHHHHHH!"
They screamed and my body on the platform turned limp, collapsing. Blood got on the clothes of the demon, and they stumbled back. On the sidelines, I thought calmly.
Huh, did they not experience much death in the maze?
"Still scared of death... How envious."
Then, everything disappeared. As if nothing had happened, the severed head and body vanished, and I reappeared in my original place on the platform. It was an illusion made by the guillotine, an almost grandiose demonstration to drill it in the hearts of everyone here.
Sshhh... I looked up, a hissing sound above me. There, a large contract that everyone could see formed. Black lines were being written magically on the floating brown parchment.
Red wisps of mana circled around the contract, feeding it with the mana necessary to make it absolute. On it, it could be clearly seen that if I were to ever take any action with the intentions of malice or betrayal against the demon race, I would sacrifice my life to make up for the mistake.
In just one minute, the contract completed, and a sign of my name was written at the bottom in blood. The contract furled, and broke down into a single ball of mana. It shot straight to my heart and merged with my existence.
I looked at my hands. Nothing seemed to have changed, and I didn't feel anything different. But when I tried thinking about something blasphemous to the Demon Emperor, I felt something watching me from the inside. The pressure mounted on me and I dismissed those thoughts quickly.
I don't feel any pain though. Does it mean it only applies to my actions?
The supervisor shouted from above, "Please step down from the platform. Applicant #37, Tilia, please demonstrate your loyalty."
Without fussing, I moved down the platform, and whispers started among the demons below.
"His head! His head w-was...I-I saw it..! It looked at me-"
"Calm down. But really, is he being serious?"
"Are you saying the legendary artifact made the wrong judgement? Even if its a replica, show some respect!"
Afterward, the test continued on normally. The ratio of pass and failure tilted somewhat after my test. More demons passed and less failed. Perhaps it was inspiration from seeing my resolve? Regardless, I kept my eye out for any major characters. I saw a few from the crowd while I was on there, so I should make sure that all of them pass without trouble...
However, the rest of the test was largely smooth, and I didn't spot anything that could have been different from the story. Lully also went on there at some point but I don't exactly remember what he staked. He passed though.
After some time, it was done. The third section ended with only a third of those having passed. Some were done in due to being human spies, others staked something slightly short of the minimum significance, and the rest were done in by the Demon Emperor's presence. Since the supervisor didn't mention whether someone passed or failed after their test, it was difficult for the demons to 'crack the code' on the conditions for passing.
Eventually, those who passed and failed were separated into two groups. Those who failed were led somewhere else, while those who passed were teleported back into the stadium. However, I knew that those who failed would simply be killed to minimize information leakage and providing hostages for the humans.
"Hoo..haa..", I breathed in the fresh cold air of the stadium, feeling the artificial lights brighten the place once more.
The Demon Emperor had left by now, and the supervisor stepped back onto the platform up front.
She bellowed, "This marks the end of the third section, and the entirety of the entrance examination. Those still standing here have passed!"
"Woo!"
"Yeah!"
"Oh thank goodness..."
Plenty of demons cheered and patted their chests in hurrah. They breathed sighs of relief and sobbed eating the fruits of their struggles.
The supervisor nodded and put her hands behind her back, "The Demon Emperor is pleased with the results from this year's examination. The school year starts in 5 days. Your dorms and uniforms have been prepared, please follow the guides here."
She gestured to the left wall of the stadium, and out of nowhere, several sections of the wall vanished to reveal several demons in full black standing behind them.
Around...20 guides?
"Separate yourselves into groups of 5 and 6!"
Hearing the supervisor, everyone hurried to line up in front of the demon guides. It was somewhat messy at first, but after some time, everyone was able to sort themselves out cleanly.
I stood at around the 3rd closest position to the demon guide I was at. The guide I got was a black-haired man, with black sclera and red pupils, while red demon horns sprouted from his head. And, oh, right, his skin was completely red too.
"A red demon.", I said under my breath.
The demon guide, glancing at me briefly, roared, "Cadets, welcome to the Demon Academy!"
"Follow me!"
Everyone shouted.
"Yes, sir!"