Chapter 27

Chapter 27

I Became the Only Non-mage in the Academy.

Episode 27: Seo Ga-yeon (4)

In this world, places called boundaries exist.

The phenomenon that appeared when the dimensional gates broke connected Earth with another dimension.

The ones known as ‘Guardians of Humanity’ guarded a place called ‘the Gate’, which was closest to that location.

And deep inside that place… lie humanity’s enemies, known as ‘Mine’.

The Mines were humanity’s enemies.

There was no room for negotiation between them and humanity.

Their goal was to ultimately destroy humanity after gaining power by offering Earth’s resources to these external enemies.

-Annoying…

As time passed, the Mines realized that their time was running out.

-That person that was prophesied by the prophet. I heard he enrolled in Korea Hero Academy this year.

In a place where darkness fell.

The Mines were meeting there. None of them looked normal.

One had a body over 15 meters tall, while another appeared as if he had been thrown into a fireball, his body melted and frozen in place.

-We cannot leave this place. But if that being awakens, our lives won’t last much longer.

-The best thing would be to kill all the students along with the school.

-Impossible. That place is where ‘the Emperor’ resides. The moment we leave the boundary, he will be waiting for us there.

And the moment the Mines stepped outside the boundary, their power diminished.

This was due to a pact made by a great hero, once hailed as the most outstanding among humanity.

-Move the villains.

-Can we trust them? They may want to destroy the social order on the surface, but when their lives are at stake, they’ll be the first to look after their own safety, those scoundrels.

-Among the scoundrels, there are some gems. Heaven Society. They call themselves heaven and await the arrival of a heavenly demon (天魔) to cover the skies. Aren’t they useful?

-Hmm, them.

The Mines pondered.

It would cost a lot to move them, but they could be a good card to play.

-Then let’s move the Heaven Society. And as a follow-up, target the being that will awaken the power of the starlight.

-What is known about this being?

-Nothing. We don’t know their appearance, gender, or even where they’re from.

-Is that why the Black Magic Alliance was mobilized?

-Yes. We mobilized them to scrape together even a sliver of information. The only thing we’ve uncovered is that they’re a first-year student.

-This is problematic. We can’t even identify who it is.

-Then should we just kill them all?

The quietest man among them spoke.

He appeared to be at least two meters tall.

Unlike the Mines, these beings sided with the Mines because they desired to destroy the world’s order.

Villains.

They hadn’t received power from a special being, which made them even more dangerous.

-Good, you seem confident. Let’s keep it simple, then. We’ll decide on your initiation test based on how you handle this situation.

Upon hearing the Mine’s words, the villainous man smiled.

-Firstly…

Gyeonggi-do, Dongducheon, Soyo Mountain.

Normally, it would be quite a distance, but I arrived instantly using the warp gate at Korea Hero Academy.

I leaned against a pillar with my guitar case in that place.

-Hmm…

The Black Heavenly Demon Sword beside me tilted its head, puzzled.

-The power of the stars. A being who inherited the power of starlight exists in this era.

“Do you know them?”

-Of course not. I’ve only seen it mentioned in documents. Anyway, Master. The important thing is, don’t miss that woman.

“I won’t miss her.”

I yawned languidly. My body felt sluggish from the intense training the day before.

“Seo, Seo-ha.”

After a while, Seo Ga-yeon arrived.

As I had told her to dress comfortably, Seo Ga-yeon’s attire was casual.

She wore a black short-sleeved shirt with white high-waisted shorts, and she brought a sword for self-defense.

Since Korea Hero Academy treats its students as prospective heroes, carrying a weapon is not a problem.

“Are you here? Then shall we proceed immediately?”

“Uh, yes.”

As I headed towards the mountain, Seo Ga-yeon followed me closely.

“Bu, but Seo-ha, where are we going?”

Seo Ga-yeon asked.

I contemplated for a moment but then decided to just tell her the truth.

“A dungeon.”

“Ah, du, dungeon… Dungeon?!?!”

Seo Ga-yeon was shocked.

“A du, dungeon? Can we, just the two of us, ma, manage it?”

“It’s okay, just trust me.”

I deliberately chose the dungeon especially for Seo Ga-yeon.

It’s also a level where we would be safe, unless Seo Ga-yeon was on the Mine’s side and tried to trap me.

Although the Mines were a bit of a concern, I set it to a level that I could easily handle.

‘Besides, there’s Nyeom.’

Nyeom (念).

A power that manifested in reality based on mental strength.

This power had transformed into a stat called ‘Heaven Defying’, but it still remained.

In a much stronger state.

‘Status window.’

I looked at my status window.

▼

[Name: Lee Seo-ha]

Strength: 7

Agility: 10(7+3)

Stamina: 13

Skill: 8

Concept Stat

Heaven Defying: 6

◈Talents

-‘Reading(-)’, ‘Incomprehensible Talent (A-)’, ‘Dexterity (B+)’

◈Arts

-‘Black God Martial Arts(?)’, ‘Alton’s Arcane Alchemy (B)’, ‘Ikar’s Advanced Spirit Control Technique (C)’, ‘Black Flash Sword Technique (D)’

◈Physique

-‘Heaven Defying Body (S-)’

What stood out was the stamina.

My stamina had increased rapidly. This was despite not having taken the Spirit Elixir given by Seo Ye-bin yet.

Other aspects had increased slightly too.

“You seem familiar with hiking?”

“Ye, yes. My, my parents liked hiking when I was young.”

Seo Ga-yeon’s face turned slightly red.

I knew the reason.

Seo Ga-yeon’s family wasn’t poor, but neither were they in a wealthy situation.

When I was young, I used to pick various things like mushrooms and wild greens in the mountains, hence my familiarity.

“Shall we climb up?”

“Uh-huh.”

We continued hiking.

There were times when it was hard to breathe, but we would take a break and then resume hiking.

About an hour into our climb, we reached a plateau scattered with graves.

Countless people milled about the area.

“What is this place?”

“It’s a graveyard.”

They called it the graveyard without corpses.

When dimensions first fractured and beings from other worlds poured in, people began to awaken to mana and various powers.

Among these beings, the benevolent ones imparted their martial arts and magic to humanity.

Yet, trouble brewed with the emergence of ‘Mines’ and monsters following the dimensional breaches.

Monsters devoured many people.

Others perished, leaving no remains.

Some vanished upon entering gates.

Others died, ensnared within towers.

In South Korea alone, the lost souls exceeded ten million.

To honor them, this graveyard without corpses was founded.

Nearby stood a dungeon.

It was formed by the resonance of the amassed sorrow from the graves with certain relics.

I guided Seo Ga-yeon further in.

As we ventured deeper, the number of people and graves dwindled.

Eventually, we arrived at a deserted spot.

A sheer cliff face.

Embedded in the cliff was a small crevice, as if chiseled from the mountain itself.

It was a narrow space, barely large enough to admit a child.

“Here’s the dungeon.”

“Yes.”

Seo Ga-yeon’s voice quivered.

I marveled at the situation. It was reminiscent of a video game world—I half-expected her to question how I came upon this place.

“I’ll enter first. Stay close behind me.”

“O-okay.”

It was imperative that I lead, ready for any lurking dangers.

Ahead of Seo Ga-yeon, I proceeded, maneuvering the guitar case that housed the Black Heavenly Demon Sword with Nyeom.

-Master, aren’t you handling me a bit roughly?

‘Please, be understanding.’

I engaged with the Black Heavenly Demon Sword in a form of telepathy, a skill I acquired while mastering Nyeom.

Truthfully, carrying it within a void space would be my preference, but it detested that method, so I resorted to this one.

I bent my body and stepped inside.

“Ugh.”

I sensed Seo Ga-yeon following close behind. She seemed to be managing well.

I continued deeper into the passage.

After crouching for about 100 meters, the passage began to widen.

“Kikhek?”

Suddenly, a monster appeared.

It was shooting deep purple flames that fluttered around its translucent form.

It was a monster known as a Wraith.

“What is, what is that?”

“A monster. A kind of spirit-like creature, created from concentrated resentment.”

“Is it, is it dangerous?”

“Not for us.”

To assure her of our safety, I first drew the Black Heavenly Demon Sword.

Swoosh-.

The Black Heavenly Demon Sword, guided by my Nyeom, shot towards the Wraith.

-Kiheeheeeek!

The Wraith shrieked in its death throes and perished.

The Black Heavenly Demon Sword, forged countless times with Heaven Defying power, can easily defeat Wraiths with ‘mana’-based physical forms.

In regards to Wraiths, I was more than just their natural predator.

‘That’s the problem, though.’

However, my overwhelming power was the issue at hand.

Seo Ga-yeon wasn’t in danger, but Mines composed of Wraiths couldn’t withstand my attack.

“Did it, did it disappear?”

“Did you really think I would bring you to a dangerous place?”

I smiled, and Seo Ga-yeon flinched.

Perhaps she genuinely thought I hadn’t come with a plan.

“Don’t worry. It’s safe. I chose this dungeon because it’s most suitable for you.”

“This, this dungeon?”

“Yes. Your star power is the exact antithesis of evil. The more you fight against evil-related beings, the more your power will awaken.”

“I see.”

Seo Ga-yeon looked at me with eyes wide and trembling.

“So, what’s the fastest way to awaken mana?”

“By, by fighting hard?”

“No, it’s by pushing to the brink of death. But don’t worry. I won’t let your life be in danger.”

“What, what?”

I withdrew a potion from the void space.

It was a potion that Wraiths were attracted to.

I uncapped the bottle, and a pungent smell assaulted my nostrils.

“Then, good luck.”

“What, what?”

I pushed Seo Ga-yeon forward and stood behind her as the wraiths approached.

“Ha, ha.”

Seo Ga-yeon took deep breaths, her sword in hand.

Her neat clothes were scratched and torn in places.

Most of the wraiths lay dead.

There had been a moment of danger, but as soon as her star power began to awaken, the wraiths literally ‘evaporated’.

Lee Seo-ha quietly applied a healing potion to Seo Ga-yeon’s wounds.

“Drink this.”

“Ha, ha. Th-thank you.”

She took the potion with both hands and drank it down.

“Do you feel like you’ve regained some strength?”

“Yeah, a bit.”

Seo Ga-yeon caught her breath as she spoke.

“Then just a little more… No, let’s stop here for today.”

Her expression changed dramatically.

It was a look that said she could go no further.

Lee Seo-ha felt disappointed but chose to stop.

He would have pushed himself further if necessary, but it seemed wrong to impose that on Seo Ga-yeon.

Not yet.

Seo Ga-yeon was still catching her breath, replaying the recent events.

The wraiths reaching out to her.

The power she felt surge inside her body just before Lee Seo-ha intervened.

That vivid power had shocked her.

“Next time, we should try a different dungeon.”

“Uh, huh?”

Before she could inquire further, a chilling gaze swept over her.

“It’s a Mine.”

Lee Seo-ha smiled faintly and grasped the Black Heavenly Demon Sword.

He had no intention of capturing it now, but if an item approached you, it was only polite to take it.