The Tamer Monarch - Chapter 9: The Forbidden Forest

I made a deal with the Devil.Free of Charge.

After 2000 years has passed, the ruthless demon lord has just been reincarnated! But his aptitude at an academy for nurturing candidates for demon lords is, “Inept”!?

Having the capability to destroy humans, elementals, and gods, after a long period of countless wars and strife, Arnos the demon lord became sick and tired of all that and longed for a peaceful world, so he decided to reincarnate to the future.

However, what awaited him after his reincarnation is a world too used to peace that his descendants became too weak due to a huge weakening in magical powers.

Arnos enrolled in the Maou Academy established to find any students that might be the demon lord’s reincarnation, but his powers are too extraordinary that those in the academy couldn’t properly judge his powers, so he’s regarded as an “Inept student”. Being underestimated and avoided by most people there, he recruited a girl friendly to him, Misha, as his subordinate and comrade, and strives to climb to the top of the demon race hierarchy to one day reclaim his former title and status.

On that day, the fog blocked everything.

On that day, he became the captain of a ghost ship.

On that day, he stepped through the thick fog and confronted a completely subverted and fragmented world—the old order had vanished, strange phenomonoms dominated the endless seas beyond civilized society, and isolated island city-states and fleets of ships challenged the sea that had become the last ember of lights for the civilized world. All of this while the shadows of the old days were still stirring in the deep sea, waiting to to devour this world that was about to die.

But for the new captain of the ghost ship Vanished, there was only one question he had to consider first— Who knows how to drive this ship?!

Koi Niles has always been alone. Quiet halls and empty lunchtimes are his familiar companions. Grades matter to him; they’re his way out.Ashley Miller owns the school corridors. Captain of the ice hockey team, confident smile, and a name everyone knows. When a class project pairs them together, Connor sees a chance. But Ashley disappears, leaving Connor to carry the weight.Days later, under the harsh lights of Connor’s part-time job, Ashley returns. This time, it’s different. He stands up for Connor, turns the tide against the bullies. A simple act of kindness that feels new and warm.They share moments—short walks, brief talks, the understanding of two worlds colliding. Friendship grows where none was before.But Ashley holds a secret behind those bright eyes. One evening, worry leads Connor to Ashley’s door. What he discovers there changes everything he thought he knew.