Chapter 43

That night, I was in the dining room reading a book from a human kingdom—the Kingdom of Masgenia.

It was a research text on ancient human magic. When it comes to human sorcery, humans are naturally more knowledgeable. It contained unique elements not found in the demon world, which made it quite interesting.

Angelica, having just finished her bath, walked in. With a bath towel draped around her neck, damp hair, and actual steam rising from her head, there was no mistaking her state.

“Demon King, you’re reading a book. I gotta say, you’re pretty studious. Even though you’re off the clock.”

“I’m not reading this for work. It’s a form of entertainment.”

“Hmm. I really don’t get how a Demon King thinks… wait, WHAT!?”

Angelica suddenly shoved her face close to mine. What now? Is something wrong?

“You… that’s a book from the Kingdom! The cover is in the Kingdom’s language and everything…!”

“It’s so obvious that I honestly don’t understand why you’re surprised…”

“You mean you can read the human language even at a book level!? Demon languages are supposed to be completely different…!”

“Well, yeah, of course I can read this much. It’s just a different notation system.”

As Angelica said, the written systems of the demon language and the human language (specifically the Kingdom of Masgenia where we currently live) are quite distinct. Given the different regions, that’s only to be expected.

The spoken languages aren’t all that different, so we can generally understand each other through speech, but because the writing systems developed independently, the characters themselves are entirely different.

“So the Demon King is actually smart. Plus, that’s an old book even by the Kingdom’s standards, so the writing style should be even more different from how it is now…”

“Like I said, I can read this much. I even studied abroad at Masgenia University a long time ago.”

“You really are an intellectual… wait? WH-WH-WH-WH-WHAT!?”

“You’re being a bit loud… Lower your tone, the neighbors will hear you…”

Due to her profession as a Hero, Angelica’s voice carries exceptionally well.

Still, I wonder how someone as easygoing and limitlessly kind as Lateia could give birth to such a headstrong female Hero.

It might truly be an eternal mystery. Did she take heavily after her father’s side? That’s the only explanation that makes sense. It would be impossible, no matter how hard she tried, for Lateia to raise Angelica to have this kind of personality…

“So, what are you surprised about this time? I don’t understand your criteria for shock…”

“Why would a Demon King study abroad at a human university!? They wouldn’t give you an admissions permit for that!”

I muttered a transformation spell under my breath.

My horns vanished instantly—at least, I think they did. I didn’t check a mirror, but I wouldn’t fail such a simple spell.

“If I hide my horns like this, I can slip in anywhere. By the way, it’s quite common for high-ranking demons to send their children to study at universities in human lands. Since there’s a lot of negotiation with humans, including matters of war, it would be a problem if we couldn’t read the human language at all.”

“I feel like I’m being told some shocking truth right now…”

Angelica’s bath towel slipped from her neck to the floor. She looked completely defeated.

“Look, anyone can read this if they just study. It’s just a matter of whether you memorize it or not. Besides, this book doesn’t even use hieroglyphs. See?”

I turned the book toward Angelica.

I could practically see a giant question mark floating above her head.

Looking at her face, it seemed she didn’t understand a single thing…

“Let’s see… this word means ‘Magic,’ right… yeah, I’ve heard that from Selene and Naharin, so I know that one… The next word is… a bit weird, so let’s skip that, and the one after it. …Skip this too, skip that one as well…”

This girl can’t read books at all.

It’s an older text, sure, but it shouldn’t be that different from modern writing. How could she be this stuck…? She looks like she’s been hit with a petrification spell.

I had a bad feeling about this.

I went and grabbed a recently published book from the Kingdom from my room.

“Angelica, try reading this. It’s a book about agriculture in the Kingdom of Masgenia.”

“I can understand this much. It’s writing about cabbage!”

Well, yeah, because there’s an illustration of a cabbage right next to it…

“And what does it say about the cabbage?”

“…It says that fresh cabbage is sweet.”

“The correct answer is: ‘Cabbage farmers hit hard by typhoon. Is public assistance necessary?’ that’s the content…”

Now it was crystal clear. I finally understood.

Angelica is a total moron!

“Say, a Hero is supposed to be able to use magic too, right? Shouldn’t you need a certain level of intelligence to pull that off?”

“I just memorized the incantations by rote. After that, it was pure guts. I chanted them over and over until I was having nightmares about the pronunciations. Man, those were some rough times.”

She mastered magic through sheer brute force!

While I suppose that level of effort is impressive in its own way, Angelica’s academic ability is abysmally low.

Or rather, because she went on her journey as a Hero right when she should have been studying, there’s a gaping hole where her education should be.

I can’t let this continue.

In an era of war, a muscle-brain might get by, but we are no longer in a time where demons and humans are constantly at each other’s throats. Moving forward, the number of situations where you can’t survive without using your head will only increase.

Besides, being an idiot means she’s that much easier to deceive.

There’s a risk she’ll get caught up in scams. She could easily be made into a mark by some no-good man…

Plus, if my stepdaughter is a complete dunce, people might look at me coldly for failing to provide a proper education…

I placed a firm hand on Angelica’s shoulder.

“Starting tomorrow, you’re going to study with me.”

At this rate, I’d be too embarrassed to marry her off to anyone… Even a suitor would back away. She’ll end up hanging out exclusively with people at her own intellectual level.

As her stepfather, I must take responsibility for her education, at least until she’s capable of finding a decent marriage partner!