Chapter 16: Education (7)

Is this really the same timid child from just moments ago…?

The instructor tilted her head, watching the girl stride forward excitedly on her short legs.

Well, it was good that the child was taking initiative.

The problem was that somehow, the girl’s entire demeanor seemed to have changed.

Her downcast, docile eyes had somehow turned slightly upward.

Her tightly closed lips now spread into a grin, and so on.

The girl, facing the wooden dummy, lifted her head slightly to look at the instructor and asked.

“Sis. That’s a demon, right?”

…Sis?

…Demon?

The child must be too young to distinguish between ‘sis’ and ‘ma’am’.

And… she must have seen demons in movies or cartoons.

The instructor silently nodded, not wanting to dampen the girl’s enthusiasm.

And so the limit test began.

“Sinner, servant of the almighty God. I’ll start the test.”

As the girl bowed to the dummy, the (༼.◕ヮ◕.༽) faced dummy bowed back in greeting.

A completely different reaction from how it had blatantly ignored Kim Seongyeong.

“Wow, is that gender discrimination?!”

Kim Seongyeong threw a fit in the back, but the girl paid no attention.

No.

More precisely, she couldn’t pay attention.

Endless voices echoed in her head.

Demons, a scourge that only benefits the world through death.

The power bestowed by God is for slaying demons.

Any remaining power is for bestowing upon the unfortunate.

And when my flesh melts away like a spent candle,

I will have completed all atonement and depart for heaven.

Flash!

Sparks flew before her eyes.

It started with Instructor Yang Joya’s ability, but now it was God’s revelation toying with the girl’s vision.

Her sight turned white, then yellow.

Her pupils contracted vertically like a beast’s in the flickering light.

“…What’s she doing? Is she scared?”

As the students started murmuring at the continued silence,

The girl raised her hand.

Eight of her long nails, grown out for wishes, were still intact.

She sacrificed one as payment and summoned a large metal object the size of her torso.

“Whoa! Shit! What’s that! It’s an RPG!!”

An FPS game enthusiast jumped up and down, pointing at the metal object.

That’s right.

An RPG, known to be ineffective against monsters, had been summoned onto the girl’s shoulder.

Though they didn’t know how she summoned it, that thing wouldn’t work.

Kim Seongyeong snickered inwardly, but.

“…Consecration? A modern weapon with holy attributes?!”

The instructor couldn’t laugh.

Modern weapons are blocked by a kind of ‘dimensional barrier’, reducing their power.

Bullets become like toothpicks, missiles like bullets.

That’s why Awakened weapons were limited to those made from byproducts from beyond the Gate.

But what if the full power of modern weapons could be projected onto monsters?

The girl staggered as she aimed the RPG resting on her shoulder.

The pointed missile head aimed at the wooden dummy.

Ignoring how the students and instructor behind her might react, she pressed the launch button.

Bang-! Whoosh!

The acrid smell of gunpowder spread with the blast.

But everyone’s eyes were fixed on the happily flying missile.

In less than a few seconds.

Kaboom-! The missile struck the dummy directly, exploding with a deafening boom.

Only scattered wooden pieces showed that a dummy had been there.

[Stage 1 100 points!]

[You’ve got talent! Keep going!]

The result was 100 points.

“Wow… what was that…?”

It was the same perfect score as the instructor who had demonstrated.

“L-lucky. It’s obviously just luck for stage 1.”

Kim Seongyeong’s face flushed red, thinking his score had been surpassed with just a finger snap.

Losing to other kids was one thing, but losing to this tiny brat was unacceptable.

How could this be?

But no matter how much he shouted “shit RNG game,” the girl’s test didn’t stop there.

Stage 2 ‘Evasion’.

As if determined not to be taken down easily like in stage 1, the wooden dummy started circling quickly around the girl.

Whoosh-! Whisk-!

The dummy’s clumsy movements made the girl’s blue hair flutter about.

As expected of a demon, its actions were frivolous.

The girl frowned slightly and immediately made a wish to summon a new weapon.

A thicker, larger cylindrical weapon than the previous RPG.

“Waaah! Javelin! Infrared guidance!! I want to shoot too!!”

The FPS-obsessed friend shouted, flapping his arms like an epileptic.

It was loud enough to hurt the ears, but students curious about what it was quietly leaned in.

“So what is that?”

“Y-you don’t know about the Javelin?! It costs 100 million won per missile! It can take down modern tanks easily, with top-attack and infrared guidance, and remote control capabilities! It’s the US military’s pride and joy!!”

Oh, I see.

That’s amazing.

The students just nodded along.

But even that military enthusiast friend didn’t notice one thing.

‘Consecration and guidance properties? What kind of ability is this? Is her Awakened ability summoning Uncle Sam or something?’

This Javelin was enhanced far beyond its modern counterpart by the girl’s wish.

Click-

The girl moved her tiny finger to press the launch button.

Whoosh-! The Javelin soared into the sky, then rotated 180 degrees as if pulled by gravity and headed for the ground.

It plunged straight down onto the wooden dummy circling the girl, without the slightest error.

Kaboom-!

Its power was so great that it not only destroyed the dummy but also blackened and cratered the ground where it had stood.

The result?

[Stage 2 100 points!]

[You’ve got talent! Keep going!]

Another perfect score.

“Ah…”

This time, even the overconfident Kim Seongyeong was speechless.

He might have dismissed the first time as luck, but this…

Anyone with eyes had to acknowledge it.

Even the instructor, who had taught many talented children, had never seen such a unique ability.

Next came Stage 3 ‘Defense’.

Once again, the Javelin missile appeared and the wooden dummy exploded without a trace.

[Stage 3 100 points!]

[You’ve got talent! Keep going!]

Followed by Stage 4 ‘Counterattack’.

“J-Javelin is god and invincible!”

As expected, the Javelin ended the test in one shot before any counterattack could happen.

Is this… really a test to measure limits?

It’s too easy, isn’t it?

The girl’s expression, fixated on demon hunting, grew even colder.

That expression even resembled Mia’s.

Unaware of this fact, the girl moved on to the Stage 5 test, seeking to satisfy her unfulfilled desire.

Until now, battlefields that could drag the girl in were dangerous enough to instantly kill B-rank or lower Awakened.

Of course, a fake dummy made for newly Awakened wouldn’t pose a threat.

Kim Seongyeong had given up out of fear, but at this rate, it seemed Stage 5 would be easy to win too.

Saying this, the girl stood facing the newly appeared wooden dummy.

Then she turned her head-

“Javelin isn’t God. It’s a weapon bestowed by God.”

“Uh…? Oh, y-yeah. R-right…”

She corrected the blasphemous statement that had called a mere object God.

Even in a fight against demons, such a comment couldn’t be overlooked.

“Stage 5 has the same physical abilities as the most common D-rank Awakened. Getting hurt here won’t affect reality, but don’t take it lightly and do your best. It still hurts.”

The instructor gave a long warning, worried the child the Guild Master was protecting might become a shut-in.

The wooden dummy’s expression changed to a fierce (｀ط´≠).

The real battle began.

Tap tap-!

The dummy made the first move, launching an attack.

Wham-! A strike much faster than in ‘Evasion’ mode hit the girl’s soft abdomen.

“Gack!”

The girl’s small body, unable to withstand the impact, flew across the field.

She rolled several times, her blue hair turning brown, before finally stopping.

“I-if it’s too much, shout that you give up!”

This time, even the students and instructor started worrying about the girl’s safety, stomping their feet anxiously.

Kim Seongyeong felt the same.

‘…How could they hit such a small child!’

Grr.

If he had an ability other than acceleration.

If he could use his acceleration ability just a bit more effectively.

He would have stepped in and subdued that wooden dummy himself.

Even after the girl collapsed on the ground, the wooden dummy didn’t stop.

Tap tap-! It immediately changed direction and sped towards where the girl had fallen.

“Kyaa!”

Like a hero landing, it drove its fist towards the fallen girl’s head.

Kaboom-!

A loud noise and vibration as if a Javelin missile had exploded.

The students closed their eyes and lowered their heads at the horrific result.

Only the instructor, pale-faced, tried to check on the girl through the rising dust.

“…She, she endured?!”

Surprisingly, the girl was alive.

No, more than just alive.

“Hehe, hehehe. Now, you really look like a demon…?”

The dummy’s fist that had attacked the girl passed through a finely shattered space and hit its own head.

A space-type ability?

Then what about the summoning and consecrated weapons she’d shown until now?

Even the instructor could only gape at this scene that couldn’t realistically happen.

Meanwhile.

Drip-

The girl, blood trickling from her mouth, slowly got up with a chilling smile.

Though she staggered, seemingly badly hurt, her eyes were clearer than ever.

Her well-manicured nails had all fallen out, blood dripping steadily.

It was too brutal a sight for a child who looked about ten years old.

The girl, unaware that something was wrong with her, forgetting that this body belonged to Mia, continued to make wishes to kill the ‘demon’ before her.

Demons, demons must burn and die.

Falling into eternal hellfire and suffering.

Paying for the sin of plunging the world into chaos.

Whoosh-!

A pure white flame bloomed above the girl’s hand.

The temperature exceeded 5,000 degrees, causing even the girl’s skin to start melting stickily.

As if unable to feel pain, she thrust the flame towards the wooden dummy.

That’s when it happened.

[…Wake up! You crazy bastard! I said wake up!!]

A familiar voice rang out, along with a shock as if someone had struck the back of the girl’s head.

—