“T-thank you, Teacher.”
“And you are?”
“My name is Han Ji-hye.”
“Han Ji-hye? The daughter of Helios’s Guildmaster?”
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
Han Ji-hye looked at me with a voice that seemed to tremble. Although she had revealed that she was the daughter of Helios’s Guildmaster, my lack of surprise appeared to have caught her off guard. She wore a deeply embarrassed expression, then hesitated briefly before lowering her head and apologizing.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“Pardon?”
“What do you have to apologize to me for?”
“I doubted that you had been framed. I, too, found the entire situation suspicious and unpleasant, so I borrowed Helios’s power to do something I never should have done. Even after you cleared your name, I continued to doubt and guard against you.”
Having learned the whole truth from Ji Geon-hyeong, she repeatedly bowed her head toward me in sincere apology, looking deeply remorseful. I watched Han Ji-hye and sank into many thoughts.
‘If the original owner of this body, Baek Seon-woo, had seen this... wouldn’t the feelings that had filled his heart have been eased? Even now, I hope some small part of his grievance can be laid to rest...’
The original owner of this body, who had struggled to clear his name, was already dead, and I had taken possession of his body. Now that all the truth had been made so clear, I closed my eyes for a moment and offered a prayer for Baek Seon-woo. Then I slowly opened them and spoke to Han Ji-hye.
“Han Ji-hye.”
“Yes, Teacher.”
“First, I’m not sure whether I’m the one who should accept your apology, but I’ll accept your feelings for now.”
“T-thank you, Teacher. Helios will certainly compensate you for the injustice you suffered...”
“We’ll talk about compensation later. For now, evacuate with Teacher Park Chang-hu and request reinforcements from Helios.”
“!!! Y-yes, Teacher.”
Ding—!
[Skill ‘Third Eye’ Activated.]
◎ Someone is looking at you with eyes filled with remorse and respect.
- Target: Han Ji-hye (Mage / Ice Element – Awakened Grade / Rare)
※ For the record, she really likes strong men. Who knows? Her Awakened Grade might even be influenced by you?
‘W-what is this...?’
As Han Ji-hye repeatedly bowed her head toward me and joined Teacher Park Chang-hu, Third Eye appeared before my eyes.
‘Huh? She respects me? And her Awakened Grade might be influenced because of me? What the hell does that mean?’
Amid the many questions running through my mind, Han Ji-hye, who knew nothing, urgently contacted someone and moved away with Park Chang-hu and the children. Once they had completely vanished from my sight, I loaded my gun and began walking toward the shelter where the principal and teachers were hiding.
“Still, they can’t be dead before I get there... They’re teachers at a prestigious Academy, at least. They should be able to hold out, right?”
***
“Kuhh—!”
“P-Principal—!”
Amid a situation where countless teachers and staff members already lay sprawled across the floor, groaning in agony, Principal Choi Hyeon-seok was barely supporting himself with an old wooden staff he had summoned. He clutched it in both hands, bracing himself against the ground as he drew rough, labored breaths.
“For someone who calls himself an Academy principal, you’re holding up better than the other teachers. Was it true that you were once someone the prestigious guilds coveted?”
“Wow~! I didn’t expect much, but you’re holding up quite well against the two of us. Normally, you and the teachers here would already be dead. I heard your Awakened Grade was Rare, but you’re unexpectedly strong for a Rare. Heh-heh.”
“How did you get in here? Even if you invaded, this is a space made by a spell. Villains like you shouldn’t be able to enter so easily...”
“Ta-da—!”
“!!! T-this is... Don’t tell me? How did you get this magic stone?”
“Ji Geon-hyeong gave us the magic stone. Thanks to it, we were able to approach this place with ease. I heard that this magic stone is only given to Academy teachers?”
“Are you saying Teacher Ji betrayed us? Th-that is impossible!”
“When we handed that bastard a little money and said we would give him the position of branch chief overseeing this area, he immediately accepted our offer. It also seems like he has quite a lot of complaints about you and the other teachers. Come to think of it, you and we aren’t all that different, are we? Heh-heh—!”
“S-shut up—! To put us in the same category as filthy Villains like you—! Kugh—!”
“Hey~ old man! I told you not to overexert yourself. Wouldn’t it be better to just die quietly? You look like you can barely remain standing. Come to think of it, you really did hold out well against the two of us. We didn’t use all our strength, but still, there were two Hero Grades coming at you. They said you were strong even among the Rare Grade Awakened in Korea, and I guess that was true?”
“It is impressive. Otherwise, you and the teachers here would already have been killed by us.”
‘Damn it, why is this happening...?’
At the sudden invasion by Villains, followed by the news that Teacher Ji Geon-hyeong had betrayed them, Principal Choi Hyeon-seok gripped his staff tightly in both hands. His mind appeared to be in complete turmoil as he looked at the Villains who had invaded the Academy.
‘This is bad. No matter what has happened, I have to get the children out of here first. Many of their parents belong to well-known guilds or wield influence in the government, so if even one child disappears or is badly injured here, the responsibility will fall on me! Still, why isn’t Helios sending support? At this point, they should already be here, shouldn’t they?’
No matter how he considered it, Helios, which managed this Academy, had a detection system in place for Villain invasions. They should have arrived and ended the situation by now, yet there was only silence, and Choi Hyeon-seok sensed that something was wrong.
‘Even if Teacher Ji Geon-hyeong betrayed us, Helios’s response is this slow? And this is a school where Han Ji-hye, the daughter of their Guildmaster, is attending? This is far too strange.’
“Hey~ old man. Isn’t it about time you quietly put down that staff and surrender? Since you’re the principal of this Academy, I’ll give you special treatment and kill you in one blow with as little pain as possible.”
“S-shut up—! I have not fallen yet! What are the teachers doing right now? Those who can move even a little, find a way to get the children out of here!”
“P-Principal! The injuries suffered by the teachers and staff are already severe. We do not know what those bastards did, but the children are trapped inside a transparent barrier. There is no way we can...”
“Find a way! Aren’t you the teachers responsible for those children?!”
“Goodness~ The teachers have no way either. Do you think yelling at them will solve anything, Principal? Heh-heh.”
“What?”
“You, the principal, can’t find a way to defeat us either, can you? When all you can do is cling to that staff.”
“...Do you intend to kill everyone here?”
“Kill them? Are you crazy? We will kill you, the principal, and the teachers, but why would we kill the children over there when they will become such valuable resources for us?”
“!!! Resources?”
“That’s right. We are going to raise those children and put them to excellent use as experimental subjects or organization members~!”
“E-experimental subjects? Organization members? What in the world are you...”
“Only you teachers are going to die here, so do not worry too much. Hahaha—! Let’s end everything now. Then~! Goodbye. Heh-heh—!”
“Kugh...”
The two Villains with Hero Grade abilities summoned enormous black spheres toward Principal Choi Hyeon-seok and the teachers, wore wicked smiles, and began dropping them down on their targets. Soon after, a massive explosion rang out.
KABOOOM—!
“I thought there might be some worthy opponents because this was the prestigious Ares Academy backed by Helios, but they were just small fry. We killed them far too easily.”
“Let’s take the remaining Academy cadets and get moving! This is an excellent result—! Hahaha—!”
“Yeah, let’s move quickly... !!! W-what? Who are those people?”
As though they were protecting the teachers, enormous barriers appeared. A middle-aged man, a man who seemed to be guarding him, and a red-haired woman with a youthful, beautiful face stood before them.
“!!! S-Seo Do-gyeom?”
***
As the two enormous black spheres gradually drew closer to him and the teachers, Choi Hyeon-seok’s mind filled with memories as though he had realized he was about to die. A chill ran down his spine.
‘I need to evade or block those somehow, but there is no way. Am I really going to die like this?’
“Haaah—!”
KABOOM—!
“!!! W-who are you?”
“Are you all right, Principal Choi Hyeon-seok? It has been a while. Heh-heh—!”
The person who had erected an enormous barrier to block the Villains’ attack was the Guildmaster of Abel Guild, Seo Do-gyeom.
“S-Seo Do-gyeom? What is someone like you doing here?”
“Are you all right?”
“!!! Seok Jin-young! What are you doing here as well? And the woman beside you is Seo Ha-yoon?”
“It has been a while, Principal Choi.”
Seo Do-gyeom, Seok Jin-young, and Seo Ha-yoon had appeared without warning. Not only the Guildmaster of Abel Guild but its highest-ranking executives were all here, so Principal Choi Hyeon-seok could only be dumbfounded.
“I thought I was going to die here... I’m glad, but what in the world is going on?”
“I was visiting this Academy to thank the benefactor who saved my life. At that moment, I saw you being attacked by Villains and rushed here.”
“How did you enter this shelter? Even if you are the Guildmaster of Abel Guild, you should not have been able to approach it so easily...”
“You may not know this, but Helios is not the only guild with a stake in Ares Academy.”
“Pardon? What do you mean...”
“I cannot tell you the details, Principal Choi, but I have a secret pact with Helios’s Guildmaster. Thanks to that, I was able to enter easily.”
“What in the world...”
“The situation is urgent, so let us deal with the Villains here first and talk afterward. Now~! Who will come at us first? You cowards there, trembling and watching us? Or those two fools above us, acting high and mighty in the air as though they are your leaders?”
“What is Seo Do-gyeom of Abel Guild doing here? And Seok Jin-young is with him...”
“That woman beside Seo Do-gyeom looks fairly strong too...”
“There has been a hitch in the plan.”
There was now a huge variable in their plan to inflict a heavy blow on Ares Academy, which had harmed them, and abduct every cadet in retaliation.
“How about we push through anyway?”
“What? Are you insane? That is Seo Do-gyeom. Seok Jin-young is here too. We have not even confirmed that woman’s strength yet. If we rush in without thinking, our losses will be considerable.”
“Then you’re saying we should retreat like this? We have more people. Why not just fight?”
“That is Seo Do-gyeom. Even if the two of us fight him, we cannot guarantee a victory over that old man. And with Seok Jin-young here too, it is regrettable, but retreating would be best.”
“Hmm... It would be a shame to retreat like this. How about we stir things up once and then leave?”
“Do not do anything stupid. Have you forgotten our principles? A variable has appeared, so gather our people and retreat immediately. If we needlessly make things worse, we may be the ones to die at that crazy bitch’s hands first.”
“Even if we return quietly like this, we will eventually die at that crazy bitch’s hands anyway.”
“!!! What?”
“And the person in front of us is only an old man, isn’t he? Besides, his Awakened Grade is the same as ours! We have more than enough chance of winning.”
“Do not do anything foolish. Seo Do-gyeom is only taking a defensive stance because he is protecting the Academy people right now. Stop being stupid and retreat. He is a monster who represents one of South Korea’s ten largest guilds.”
“Let’s see whether it is stupid or not by trying it once—!”
“You crazy...”
One of the two leaders of the organization directing the Villains summoned another enormous black sphere. He then looked at Seo Do-gyeom and wore a wicked smile.
“Let’s see whether you can block this attack too. For your information, I put more mana into it than before, so it will not be easy even for you, Seo Do-gyeom.”
Swish—!
With a casual flick of his hand, he released the enormous black sphere toward Seo Do-gyeom on the ground as though lightly setting it down.
“Let’s see what that great Guildmaster of Abel Guild can do!”
“Y-you crazy bastard! I told you not to provoke him recklessly!”
BANG—!
KABOOOM—!
“!!! B-Bang? What is that gunshot...?”
The moment a single bullet struck the enormous black sphere, darkness briefly spread. The sphere then rippled like a heat haze and, as though a black hole were absorbing everything, gradually shrank and began to disappear.
“!!! What? What the hell is this? And who stopped that—?!”
As the Villains looked around in panic at their attack vanishing so absurdly easily alongside the sudden gunshot, I shouted at the two bastards floating in the air as though I found them utterly pathetic.
“It was me, you bastards—!”
“!!! What? Who the hell are you?”
The Villains looked at me in alarm after I had destroyed their attack in an instant. Ignoring their gazes, I loaded my gun and took aim at them.
Click—!
“How dare Villains float around so arrogantly? As an Academy teacher, I should give you two some education first.”