"Aura + Music = Catastrophe (Probably)"
The crystal-lined training sanctuary hummed with silence.
Mary stood barefoot on the platform, hair tied back, eyes sharpened with scientific hunger.
Asura stood opposite her, viol in hand, bow poised above the strings.
A soft pulse of mana rippled through the room — Mary's doing.
She wanted nothing interfering.
"Asura," she said, voice steady, calm, dangerously excited,
"Begin with aura coating on the instrument. Nothing more."
Asura nodded.
He centered his breathing.
Aura rose beneath his skin — warm, electric, predatory.
He guided it into his hands…
down his arms…
into the viol.
The wood vibrated.
Strings tightened.
Something inside the instrument recognized the power and screamed about it.
Mary leaned forward, pupils dilating.
"Asura— careful. Aura isn't designed to enter an—"
CRACK.
The viol neck snapped in half.
The strings detonated like whipcords.
A shockwave rippled through the hall, knocking over several stands and blasting Mary's hair backward like a wind tunnel.
Silence.
The viol lay dead in two perfect pieces.
Asura stared at the corpse of his first experimental victim.
Mary didn't blink.
Then—
she grinned.
"Again."
Asura blinked. "It… broke."
Mary waved her baton in a dismissive circle.
"Don't worry about the viol. Instruments exist to be destroyed in the pursuit of knowledge."
She crouched next to the broken halves and whispered, reverent and excited:
"Besides… the Headmaster can bill me."
Asura blinked. "…Isn't he just going to yell at you?"
"Probably," Mary muttered. "But if he does, I'll distract him with sheet music and emotional vulnerability."
Asura wasn't sure if that was a joke.
✦ Attempt #2
Mary summoned a harp from crystal storage.
Asura lifted a brow. "What kind of harp is that?"
"An Aetherglass Resonance Harp," Mary said proudly.
"Forged with mana-imbued strings. It can handle aura."
He placed two fingers on the frame and let aura seep into the strings—
BOOM.
The harp disintegrated like glitter in a bomb.
Mary squealed.
"Asura. Do you understand?! Aura is forcing the mana inside the strings to resonate at discordant frequency! You are breaking physics!"
Asura rubbed his ears. "I am also breaking harps."
She snapped her fingers and summoned another instrument.
"No complaints. Try again."
✦ Attempt #7
Sweat formed at Asura's temple.
Mary's hair was now messy.
Three bows lay in splinters.
Two lutes were reduced to kindling.
A drum simply ceased existing without explanation.
Mary was glowing.
Not figuratively. Literally.
"I've waited my whole life for a student who breaks instruments faster than I can summon them."
Asura, panting, wiped his forehead.
"Mary, we are running out of physical matter."
Mary slapped her hands on the platform.
"If everything breaks, that just means we haven't found the limit yet!"
✦ Attempt #12
They were surrounded by instrument rubble.
Sweat soaked Asura's collar.
Mary had kicked back off her shoes.
Her voice trembled with joy.
"Asura— do you realize? Aura isn't resisting music."
Asura adjusted his grip on the last surviving instrument.
The only instrument that hadn't broken.
The piano.
"It's adapting to it."
Mary paced in a frantic circle, muttering equations to herself.
"Unlike the strings, unlike the resonance frames… the piano isn't absorbing aura. It's containing it."
Asura sat before the keys.
Fingers hovering.
"Aura coating."
The aura rolled off him, not as pressure—
but as warmth.
Soft.
Controlled.
It didn't invade the piano.
It sheathed it.
Like the instrument accepted him.
Mary held her breath.
"Asura… try playing."
He pressed a chord.
The world trembled.
Not violently.
Not explosively.
Everything simply… resonated.
The keys sang in harmony with the aura.
Mary's voice was barely a whisper.
"It… works."
Asura smiled.
"It works."
Mary collapsed onto the floor, laughing breathlessly.
Asura leaned back on the piano bench, exhausted, satisfied.
Every instrument had broken.
Except the piano.
✦ The Sleeper Wakes
Mary finally dismissed him after the instrument–destruction massacre.
"Asura, go. Rest. We continue tomorrow."
She was smiling like a mad scientist who just found a new species.
Asura smiled back — drained, but exhilarated.
He left the practice chamber, heading toward his dorm hallway.
His footsteps felt heavy.
System chime:
[ WARNING: Excessive Aura-Mana Overlap Detected ]
[ Neural strain rising. Mana flow unstable. ]
Asura muttered, "I'm fine."
He wasn't.
Halfway down the corridor, his vision blurred.
The world tilted.
The system voice sharpened.
[ HOST IS ABOUT TO COLLAPSE. ]
Asura reached his dorm door—
And blacked out.
✦ Vision Return
Stone. Smoke. Silence—the kind that listens.
Selene's breath: thin.
Knights and adventurers: afraid.
The Unknown Figure in black: present like gravity.
Then the shattering blow—Selene hurled into stone, armor crushed, blood warm under Asura's hands.
His voice, raw: "Don't leave me."
The mocking voice in his skull, oily and cold: Weak. Cry. Useless.
Something inside broke.
Power climbed out.
Hair lengthened, horns crowned, markings burned like magma; the boy stretched into something taller, colder, a silhouette of ruin. He moved—teleport, slash, thunder—until even the Unknown Figure finally braced.
Pressure drowned the forest. Knights knelt. Adventurers shook. The figure's lazy calm cracked.
Asura raised a clawed hand. Space around his palm webbed with fractures.
DING.
[New Skill Acquired: Akaris]
Type: Destruction / God-Tier
Effect: Erase existence at user's intent
Warning: Unstable—may harm user
His palm leveled with the figure's chest.
The world leaned toward no.
"Asura."
Selene's voice—small, shaking—hugging him from behind. The sigil stuttered.
A killing palm flashed toward his heart—
CLANG.
A tall shadow caught it: the Unknown Demon, violet-black flame wreathing his hand.
A breath later, another weight dropped: horns like mountains, eyes like suns.
The Demon King stepped from the trees.
"Enough."
The figure in black stared back—calm gone. Name fell like a bell:
Erevos.
King of Valoria.
[Skill Akaris: Sealed — Emotional Stabilization Trigger Detected]
The vision blew out like a candle.
✦ Infirmary — Morning
White sheets, sun stripes, sterilized air.
Rhazor burst upright from the chair he'd been drooling on. "You're UP! Oh thank the twelve orchestras— I mean— dude, you face-planted. Like full-on plank. In the hallway."
Lucilla sat rigid beside the bed, arms crossed a little too tight. "You overextended. Idiot."
Asura pushed himself up, mask easy, smile small. "Tripped on a crescendo."
Rhazor blinked. "Is that a music joke?"
"Yes."
"I'm so proud and so mad."
Lucilla's eyes searched his face. "Any dizziness? Lost time? Mana backlash?"
"Fine now," he said. "Just… tired."
They exchanged a look—relieved annoyance, the special blend reserved for him. Rhazor collapsed back into his chair with a groan. "Bro, Mary's class is gonna eat you. You can't go max-volume every day."
Lucilla nodded. "You don't need to impress her. Or anyone."
Asura chuckled. "I'm not trying to impress anyone."
He glanced at the ceiling. (I'm trying to become something.)
Rhazor wagged a finger. "Promise me you won't solo-concerto your nervous system again."
"Promise I'll try," Asura said, which was not the same thing.
✦ The System
[ Memory Integrity: partial ]
[ Origin of that other form: withheld ]
[ Offer: Assist Host in recovering what happened that night. Not why. ]
[ Proceed? — YES / NO ]
His eyes half-lidded, smile unchanged.
(Yes. When I'm alone.)
[ Acknowledged. Retrieval queued for stable state. ]
"Asura?" Lucilla asked, catching the far-away flicker.
He blinked back to them. "Thinking about tomorrow's scales."
Rhazor shuddered. "Bro said scales. He's committed. I respect it. I hate it. I respect it."
Lucilla stood, smoothing her skirt. "Rest. Or I will tell Instructor Mary you are unavailable."
He saluted weakly. "Terrifying."
They left with one last glance—Rhazor mouthing text me; Lucilla pretending she hadn't looked back.
Asura exhaled into the quiet.
(Akaris… sealed. The other form… unanswered. Good. We'll do this the slow way.)
He turned to the window, sunlight warm on his cheek, grin returning—small, dangerous, excited.
"Leveling arc," he whispered to himself. "Start."
✦The System's Quiet Question
The infirmary was still.
Mana lights flowed across the ceiling like ripples in water, dimming toward evening. The healing crystals beside Asura's bed pulsed slow and steady, syncing their glow with his breathing.
Asura stared at the ceiling.
Completely awake.
Completely still.
But his brain?
Going 500MPH.
That transformation… was AWESOME.
He replayed fragments of the vision in his mind:
Taller, older body Shadowed wings unfurling in a roar of power Crimson markings like molten rivers across his skin Horns longer, sharp, wicked
Like a final boss cut-scene.
He sat up abruptly, clutching the blankets as excitement physically buzzed through him.
"…I had LORE."
He made a dramatic gesture to absolutely no one.
"Like an anime mid-season villain-turn-anti-hero awakening. If I had background music? It would've gone 'bwOOOOOM.'"
He did it with sound effects.
BWOOOOOM.
He even spread his arms to mimic wings.
I literally became the cool transformation trope.
He flopped backward, kicking his feet under the sheet like a 5-year-old with a new toy.
"Holy crap, I was terrifying. Selene had to emotionally interrupt me like a shoujo heroine."
(Whispering dramatically) "Asura… don't…"
He snorted.
"That's peak protag."
System chime.
[ Clarification: Transformation was triggered by emotional collapse bordering on psychological fracture. Not "cool." ]
Asura waved a dismissive hand.
"No, no—you don't understand. I looked badass."
[ Host nearly obliterated a sovereign-class opponent. ]
"Yeah," he nodded proudly. "With style."
[ Host was not in control. ]
He blinked.
"…but I looked cool right?"
[ …Yes. ]
Asura pumped a fist.
"LET'S GO."
He sat up straighter, suddenly energized, voice hushed like he was letting the world in on a secret.
"I finally have a form that isn't just 'baby demon with markings.'"
He began posing in the infirmary bed.
Folded arms Tilted head Mysterious shadow stare
"…I need a cape."
He paused.
"No—two capes."
[ Re-focusing request: Memory retrieval regarding Skill: Akaris. ]
Asura froze mid-pose, one arm in the air, sheet tangled on his foot.
"Oh. Right. Trauma."
The seriousness came back in a cold wave.
He sank into the pillow, expression softening.
"…I really almost erased someone from existence."
He touched his hand — the same hand that had lifted in the vision.
It didn't feel powerful now.
Just small.
(Erase.)
His pulse skipped.
The System's voice gentled, lowering as if to not break the moment.
[ Memory remaining is unstable. Retrieval may cause emotional overload. ]
[ Host may request later when mentally prepared. ]
Asura swallowed.
"Yeah… not yet."
[ Acknowledged. Flag: Akaris — Memory Thread (Dormant). ]
He exhaled.
Then—because it was Asura—
He smirked again.
"Still. Cape."
System sighed in binary.
[ Host has the emotional range of a cracked glowstick. ]
Rhazor and Lucilla stood outside his door, talking in hushed tones.
"He needs to stop going full anime moment," Rhazor muttered.
Lucilla crossed her arms defensively.
"He didn't do it on purpose."
Rhazor paused, eyes narrowing.
"…you're worried."
She looked away.
"I'm… annoyed."
Rhazor smiled knowingly. "Uh-huh."
She turned sharply, coat swaying.
"Shut up."
They walked off.
Asura closed his eyes.
He didn't think of pain.
He didn't think of fear.
He thought of the wings.
The markings.
The power that felt like inevitability.
A slow grin unspooled across his face.
"…next time," he whispered, "I'm naming the form."
[ Please do not. ]
"I'm naming it."
"Edge Lord God Form."
[ Rejected. ]
"True Demon Lord: Final Expansion."
[ Rejected harder. ]
"Sexy Leisure Mode."
[ SHUTTING. DOWN. ]
Asura laughed quietly into his pillow, satisfied.
I have a transformation.
And I look cool.
He closed his eyes and finally slept—
not peacefully…
but eagerly.
Ready to earn it.
✦ The Midnight Awakening (…Instead of Vocal Aura Practice)
The infirmary was silent.
Mana crystals dimmed, monitors steady, everyone asleep.
Except Asura.
He slid out of bed with the stealth of a professional troublemaker.
"Okay. Just vocal aura. Coat the vocal cords. Sing like a god. Then come back."
[ Reminder: Host is supposed to be resting. ]
"Yeah, yeah. Rest is for people who aren't protagonists."
He slipped into the hallway, barefoot and grinning.
Outer Courtyard — Academy Grounds
Moonlight reflected on the polished stone.
Perfect place to do something stupid.
Asura inhaled.
"Step one: vocal aura."
He placed two fingers on his throat, gathering aura.
Then his brain immediately betrayed him.
(…what if I transformed instead?)
He grinned at the moon.
"…just once."
[ Host. Focus. Vocal aura first. ]
"I'll focus after I'm cool."
He unclenched his hands, remembering the vision:
Long black hair.
Wings of shadow.
Destruction in silence.
His heart pounded.
"Okay—transformation time."
[ This is not the training plan. ]
[ Repeat: Not the training plan. ]
He ignored that.
Pressing his hand to his chest, he tried to replicate that emotional trigger.
Except…
He got the wrong one.
WHOOOOMP
A blast of aura erupted out of him, ripping across the courtyard like a shockwave.
Black-red lightning crawled over his skin as markings exploded across his torso and arms — twisting, alive.
His horns sharpened.
His eyes burned.
His aura roared like a hurricane trapped in a cage.
✦ TRUE DEMON LORD AWAKENING — 100% ✦
Asura blinked.
"…oh."
He looked down.
He was covered in glowing demonic markings.
"…wrong transformation."
[ Correction: True Demon Lord Awakening achieved. Full output. ]
[ Host is now radiating enough killing intent to be a national problem. ]
But Asura wasn't listening.
He was too busy admiring himself in a courtyard window.
"…I look AWESOME."
He flexed. The markings pulsed.
He flexed again.
He struck a dramatic pose, cape he didn't have billowing in wind that didn't exist.
[ Please stop posing. ]
"Oh? Sorry. Didn't hear you over how COOL I LOOK."
He snapped his fingers.
"Status window."
✦[ STATUS WINDOW ]
Name: Asura Satomi
Age: 8
Race: True Demon Lord
Level: 346
|| Base Value || ×1.5 Awakening || Current Total
HP | 260,000 | ×1.5 | 390,000
MP | 230,000 | ×1.5 | 345,000
STR | 227,400 | ×1.5 | 341,100
VIT | 269,000 | ×1.5 | 403,500
AGI | 243,000 | ×1.5 | 364,500
INT | 230,000 | ×1.5 | 345,000
LUK | 99,999 (MAX) | — | 99,999 (MAX)
Asura stared.
Then whispered:
"…I broke three hundred thousand STR."
He kicked the air experimentally.
The air moved.
"This is the best night of my life."
[ Host intended to test vocal aura, not become a runaway WMD. ]
"I'm going to fight someone."
[ NO. ]
"Just lightly."
[ NO. ]
"…I'll only emotionally damage them."
[ … ]
He finally inhaled again, calming.
"Okay. Vocal aura. For real this time."
He put his hand to his throat.
A burst of demon lord aura detonated instead—
shattering a courtyard lantern.
Students in the dorm across campus shot awake.
"What was that!?"
"A mana surge!? At midnight!?"
Asura froze.
"…oops."
[ Host activated a full demon awakening in the academy courtyard at midnight. ]
[ Flee. Now. ]
Asura blurred into motion, markings trailing like comet fire.
He was gone before the courtyard dust settled.
✦ Intercepted by the Magi in Pajamas
Asura sprinted across the courtyard—horns, markings, aura blazing wild.
[ HOST IS CURRENTLY AN UNSUPERVISED WMD ]
[ STOP RUNNING ]
"I AM TRAINING FOR VOCAL AURA!"
He was definitely not training.
He rounded a pillar—
—and nearly face-planted into someone standing in front of him.
He skid to a stop, stone cracking under his geta.
Mary stood there.
Nightgown.
Robe half-tied over it.
Hair loose and messy from sleep.
Asura's brain lagged like a bad internet connection.
"…you look different."
Mary smiled, tired but amused.
"It's just a nightgown. Humans sleep in them."
He blinked, processing.
"You look like… a soft boss fight."
She laughed—low, warm, dangerous.
"You're in full Awakening mode, and that is your first comment?"
He nodded seriously.
"It's important to identify threats."
[ Host is flustered and pretending to be tactical. ]
Asura cleared his throat.
Which made his markings glow brighter.
Mary finally noticed him.
The horns.
The markings crawling over his skin.
The violent aura radiating off him like storm heat.
Her eyes widened.
"…that's a Demon Awakening."
She walked around him slowly, circling like a researcher who just discovered a new specimen.
"All demons have an Awakening form.
When triggered, they access primal instinct—awareness sharpened, strength amplified. A controlled predator state."
She tapped one of the markings.
"It's triggered by instinct. By dominance. By the desire to overpower."
Asura listened.
Then the System whispered privately:
[ Correction: Host's state is not Demon Awakening. ]
[ This is True Demon Lord Awakening — an evolved variant. ]
[ Trigger: emotional hurt. ]
Asura's heart stilled.
Hurt provokes the form.
[ Yes. Pain unlocks power. ]
Asura swallowed.
Mary kept talking, unaware.
"But what you're showing… your markings…"
she stepped back, aura prickling,
"…the feeling of it isn't controlled instinct."
She narrowed her eyes.
"It feels like emotion."
Asura froze.
Mary continued—her voice breathless with fascination:
"Yours feels like an Awakening taken further. Almost… berserk. Like an evolved version created through emotional overload."
Asura tried to act casual. "Ohhh. Neat."
[ Host is dying internally. ]
Mary crossed her arms, thinking.
"You shouldn't be able to sustain it without losing your mind. Yet here you are… standing still. Talking."
She smiled—not sweet. But hunting.
"Asura Satomi."
He blinked.
"fight me." She said smiling.
"…excuse me?" Asura said.
Mary pointed toward the outer wall of the academy.
"Not here. There's a path behind the east gardens—wide, isolated, mana-sealed. Perfect for testing a secret Awakening."
Asura's markings pulsed. "You want to test my awakening form?"
"No," she said, eyes gleaming.
"I want to see what happens when your Awakening faces a Grand Magi."
[ WARNING: Host is at 6% stamina. This is mathematically dumb. ]
[ Suggest retreat. Sleep. Pretend you did not hear anything. ]
Asura grinned. "…protagonist moment."
He stepped past her. "I accept."
Mary smirked, turning toward the hidden exit path.
"Good.
Meet me at the gardens."
She walked off, barefoot on stone, nightgown swaying.
Asura stared after her.
"…I am so dead."
[ Affirmative. ]