Episode 26

“Hooh. Hooh.”

I gasp for breath.

The deity nestled in my dantian was slowly tuning my body.

‘I’m almost out.’

My remaining mana is barely reaching 20%.

Even though I conserved as much as possible, it still came to this.

I clicked my tongue as I looked at my blood-soaked clothes.

Tsk.

There’s not a single part of the monster’s body that’s intact.

The bastard’s blood was filthy, but it was better to drench my body in blood than to take a hit from the Corpse Lord.

‘It’s over.’

I plopped down.

While doing so, I scanned the surroundings with my heavenly eyes.

‘That side is about to end too.’

The students were disposing of the Corpse Lord.

What was impressive was the magic used by Shin Yura.

‘Undying Flame.’

Her magic really had a lot of unnecessary elements, but it was still worth watching.

There were a few striking conclusions I made about it.

‘That’s talent.’

It’s not something that happens by mere chance, as with Yoo Eunchae, but only when one truly grasps magic through inherent talent.

As I was resting atop the head of the Corpse Lord, the students led by Alves, who had barely managed to handle one, approached.

“You’ve truly finished it.”

“How did you alone deal with those zombie hordes and the Corpse Lord…”

The Professor and Shin Yura looked at me with eyes full of awe.

“Is it enough to respect me now?”

“…I truly respect you.”

Yoo Eunchae grumbled.

With a snicker, I ran my hand through my hair, and a flash went off from the side.

Click.

Along with that sound.

“…What are you doing?”

“No, um, well, should I say it’s instinct?”

“What instinct?”

“Well, it just looked like a moment worth capturing.”

This woman,

Makes me sigh internally.

But I understand.

This body with the name Han Seojin is such a fine specimen. Sometimes, even I get startled when I look in the mirror.

“Water.”

“Pardon?”

“Use water to wash.”

“Gasp, you want me to wash your body…!”

Snap.

I flicked the air with my finger and gave a flick on the forehead.

“Ah, no, how can it be when the distance is over 10m…!”

Yet, Yoo Eunchae was forming a sign to use water magic.

Swoosh─!

But faster than that, Shin Yura washed my body.

“Oh, you have quite the control?”

“…Thank you.”

Shin Yura quietly bowed her waist.

Now, some respect for the teacher is starting to show.

Until not long ago, she seemed to regard me as an equal.

‘It seems things have changed now.’

This is characteristic of those with such talents.

The Duke of Extermination was like that, and so was the Heavenly Demon, who was my wife in my third life.

They don’t see people as people but rather as ants on their way.

But when they met a fellow genius, the excitement and chatter was quite adorable.

‘Where could you be now?’

I was curious about their whereabouts. The Duke of Extermination and the Heavenly Demon.

It was certain that our worlds were connected.

In the magic world, I killed the Demon King, who could threaten her life.

The same goes for the Heavenly Demon.

Three old monsters who make up more than 30% of the orthodox sect’s power. And the Plum Sword Masters boasted by the Mount Hua faction.

I killed them all. The same goes for enemies within.

When the lackeys of the orthodox sect swarmed in, I took them down with me.

So, there should be nothing standing in the way of the Heavenly Demon.

They must be alive.

But now is not the time to meet them.

They are too obsessed, you see.

‘If I were to return as is.’

I might be kidnapped and forced to live the life they want for me.

The two of them may find me at the same time and fight over me.

‘…Just thinking about it is terrifying.’

Well, that’s not what’s important right now.

I laughed bleakly.

“My disciple, my disciple.”

“Yes, yes!”

Yoo Eunchae briskly came to me.

“Can you find the person who caused this incident now?”

“The dungeon isn’t that big.”

“It’s not the students, right?”

“No, I’ve been watching them closely.”

“Then that’s settled.”

Before dealing with the Corpse Lord, I gave Yoo Eunchae a piece of advice.

Keep a close eye on the students, just in case.

It would be better if none of them were involved.

‘Just in case.’

Fortunately, there are none.

Although, Seon Woohyeon, that guy is quite creepy.

In that case.

‘The culprit is outside.’

It seems far away. It misses my senses.

My senses are special.

In my third life, I realized how to carry mana through nature.

The Wind, Earth, and Sky were the original magical attributes I possessed.

I formed a sensory range by loading mana into all these things.

‘Let’s try to do it properly for once.’

The faintly blowing wind.

I sent a small amount of my mana into the breeze. It’s one of the methods to sense more broadly.

And not long after, the wind caught someone.

“Found them.”

“You found them?”

“Yes, about 500m away from here.”

I looked at the students.

They all looked at me with eyes full of awe.

Even Seon Woohyeon, who used to be sharply defiant, seems to have put away his rebellious spirit.

‘It was worth the struggle.’

Seeing their reactions, it felt like the hard work was rewarded.

“Professor Alves.”

“Yes!”

“How did the students perform?”

“Except for Yoo Eunchae, everyone worked hard.”

Since I asked her to exclude any potential traitors among the students, I should give her some extra points for that.

“Working hard is important, but being good at it is what matters most.”

“…They did fairly well.”

Seems like they managed to make some contributions.

“Now that we’ve tested their strength, shall we test their physical abilities?”

“Pardon?”

“There’s the culprit who caused this incident, 500m away. Bring him here.”

“Yes!”

Upon my command, they all started moving quickly.

Among them, a girl moving as if flying on the wind stood out uniquely.

‘She’s unusual.’

It’s not that she controls the wind, but rather, the wind seems to feel a kinship with her.

That was the impression I got.

Speaking of which.

‘That’s a familiar mana.’

I smirked, almost mockingly.

Hide well.

I can see his hair.

Come to think of it, since he was balding, it would be hard to find him.

‘Suddenly, I remembered what happened this morning.’

「Do you not have a conscience, Heo Yeji?」

Do you have one?

I was looking forward to it.

Professor Gazel tore at his hair.

The scene before him must be a dream.

Yes, a dream.

If it weren’t, this couldn’t be happening.

“My, my perfect plan, it, it can’t end.”

This was not supposed to happen like this.

It was an operation that involved no less than five Corpse Lords.

He acknowledges that they are excellent students.

In fact, they were the most outstanding in the history of the Academy.

That was why Professor Gazel had put so much effort, mobilizing five Corpse Lords for this operation, along with nearly a thousand zombies.

Losing to the students with these numbers?

It was hard even to imagine.

Yet, he moved with caution.

Principal.

That senile transcendent should never be underestimated.

‘Even if she acts like a child.’

She is a transcendent.

An irrational being who, even if entities like her attacked in truckloads, could erase them from the world with a smile and a gesture.

He does not know why such a being is in a place like this.

But a picture is worth a thousand words.

Perhaps, she could even find out that he was ‘connected’ to ‘them.’

With utmost caution,

And secrecy,

He prepared and moved swiftly and decisively.

To say his preparations were perfect wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

Of course, the sudden appearance of a man made him prepare faster than planned.

Han Seojin.

The bastard who stole Heo Yeji, the woman who was about to fall for him.

He was infuriated by the frivolous-looking man trying to mess with his woman.

So, in a fit of anger, he committed the act.

He nearly perfected the situation.

Using the items they provided, he severed the connection between the dungeon and the outside.

Pushing those inside into the most perilous situation.

He wanted to see the students fall one by one, crying and begging for their lives.

During that process…

He had thoughts of dealing with the pretty Shin Yura who ignored him.

But he never thought he would fail.

‘They are coming.’

They are coming to catch him.

She was a girl beloved by the wind.

And she was also the one who had almost completely ignored him.

Now, she is chasing after him, glaring.

“Uh, ah…”

His body is trembling.

If the dungeon and the outside were connected, he could run away.

But to sever the connection, he cannot leave for a certain period.

And the time until this dungeon closes is about three hours.

However, only an hour had passed.

‘I can’t escape.’

A conclusion was reached in an instant.

Because he is a professor, he knew.

Today, he would either die at their hands or suffer a fate as miserable.

Because that’s how the Academy taught them.

Professor Gazel tightly closed his eyes.

“Hello, nice to see you again here”

I greeted Professor Gazel, who was half-dead, with a bright smile.

“But why does he look like this?”

“Hehe, he resisted a bit.”

I asked Yoo Eunchae through telepathy while looking at him.

「What information can we get from him?」

「Not much!」

「Is that so?」

It was somewhat unsatisfactory, but still, it was the confident answer of a recluse who had delved into a game for tens of thousands of hours.

I hadn’t guessed it was the butterfly effect, but still.

‘He’s not a complete fool.’

I looked at Professor Gazel.

He doesn’t seem to have any abilities.

Considering he pulled off such a stunt at a school where a transcendent being is the principal.

‘There’s no problem in killing him.’

Looking around, most seemed to harbor murderous intent.

To the point where they’d kill if I just gave the word.

‘Well, the sight of the Corpse Lord isn’t pretty, after all.’

Made by haphazardly attaching hundreds of corpses together.

Though it bears the name ‘lord’, it’s to denote its strength, but its appearance is grotesque enough to haunt dreams.

I pondered.

My calculations were swift.

I placed my hand near Professor Gazel’s heart.

Glacial Heavenly Moon.

Life-Controlling Ice Seal.

I cast a spell that seized control of the opponent’s life.

Anyway, the principal would personally interrogate him once we got out of there, so it didn’t matter.

‘If, by any chance.’

If the principal ignored this situation, then the story changes.

I had to know what purpose he served.

As soon as I came out, what I saw was the principal smiling broadly.

Her violet eyes seemed to twirl in delight.

“Sorry, really sorry!”

The principal apologized with a smile.

She didn’t seem sorry at all.

As if she knew this would happen.

“What’s the price?”

“Huh?”

“I’ve done this much, shouldn’t there be some compensation?”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll try my best to exert some effort!”

Students were staring at us blankly from the side.

Yoo Eunchae was looking at me in horror.

“Is, is this possibly extortion?”

“…Maybe it’s only natural. Seeing the principal’s demeanor, it might have been induced on purpose.”

“Eh?”

Despite the students being noisy, I focused on the principal.

There was a smell.

The smell seemed like we could extort a tremendous amount.

‘Hey, did you really force your way into becoming a transcendent?’

The scent of a pushover was strong.

I smiled broadly.

“Shall we negotiate then?”

“Uh-huh, what do you want?”

“A lot.”

“Huh?”

“Wait, hold on.”

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Abel intervened between us.

“Pr, Principal. I, I’ll go call someone else right now.”

“Huh, why?”

“Th, this isn’t the place.”

I smiled mischievously. I sealed Abel’s mouth with telekinesis.

I find this world enjoyable.

And I have entered the realm of transcendence faster than anyone else.

Therefore, I do not desire things like elixirs or treasures.

But now that I have a student, the story is a bit different.

“Professor Han Seojin alone…”

“Ah, it seems like my arm got hurt while dealing with the Corpse Lord earlier.”

“What are you talking about? You’re perfectly fine.”

I finely adjusted my body with the Great Sky Dancing Divine Mantra.

Thud.

My arm is in pain. But I blocked the sensation of pain, so no pain came.

But I pretended to be in pain on purpose.

“Ah, no. Di, did I just break my arm?”

“Due to the excessive backlash from protecting the students…ugh!”

“…Ah, no, this is extortion…”

So, what are you going to do about it?

I moved my body excessively to protect my students.

Only then did she realize something was wrong.

“You, are you a devil?”

Come to think of it, the Emperor and the Prime Minister said when they looked at me,

They called me the demon of the budget.