Chapter 28

Chapter 28

I Became the Only Non-mage in the Academy.

Episode 28: Seo Ga-yeon (5)

-Khuhuhuhuhu.

The Mine’s appearance resembled that of a spirit.

This was a place where spirits gathered.

This Mine was a being that accumulated power here.

Spirits were typically tricky beings.

Magical attacks affected them, but only some dealt damage.

Physical attacks were useless, leaving students who hadn’t awakened their magic power in trouble.

Especially with a Mine.

There was a boost where all abilities increased at the cost of some intellect.

Yet, I wasn’t really tense.

‘If it were a different Mine, I might have been nervous.’

But now, I felt no tension at all.

The star magic that Seo Ga-yeon possessed.

The Energy of Defying Heaven that I had.

Both were extremely effective against spirits.

Since they lacked a physical body, physical attacks were ineffective, but they were particularly vulnerable to unique powers like star magic and the Energy of Defying Heaven.

-Kieeek!

The Mine screamed and charged.

“Ugh!”

Seo Ga-yeon staggered for a moment, as it attacked her mind with a wave.

But I remained unaffected.

The Energy of Defying Heaven was protecting my body.

I infused the Energy of Defying Heaven into the Black Heavenly Demon Sword.

As I prepared to swing the sword, the spirit stopped and stared at the Black Heavenly Demon Sword.

-It seems there’s still some intellect left. And it’s fast, too.

‘Exactly.’

I replied with Nyeom to the Black Heavenly Demon Sword’s words.

Nyeom.

I focused. Then, the movements of the spirit became apparent.

I gripped the sword.

Black Flash Sword Technique.

A sword technique that was simply fast. But I quite liked this sword move.

I struck with the Energy of Defying Heaven.

That act alone could inflict a fatal blow on the opponent.

‘That’s not how it should be.’

This world wasn’t that convenient.

You shouldn’t take the easy route. If you’re ignorant, you should suffer the consequences.

It was a world where you must make even the slightest effort to see the end.

That’s why I enjoyed the game called Epic World.

“Phew.”

I exhaled.

And then I moved.

The spirit responded to my movements.

I swung my arm wide. A purple energy hurtled toward my face.

Footwork.

I executed an incomplete footwork technique, yet I encountered no problem moving.

[Your proficiency in Black Shadow Step has increased.]

Black God Martial Arts.

This was a method to maneuver the body more skillfully. The Black Energy corrected my posture. The Energy of Defying Heaven flowed smoothly.

Swoosh.

The Black Heavenly Demon Sword sliced through the spirit’s arm.

-Khuhut!

The creature reacted. Its other hand sprouted long nails, targeting my arm.

I evaded with a half-step.

Now I could see it.

There was a lot of waste in its movements.

‘I think I’m getting the hang of it.’

Through my battles, I had come to a realization.

I was significantly lacking compared to my opponent.

Especially in basic physical abilities.

I needed to dodge with minimal movement and deliver as many attacks as possible onto my adversary.

At the same time, I couldn’t afford to be hit by the opponent’s attack.

Because even one mistake could prove fatal.

‘Damn lousy game.’

Such a cursed game.

The Black Heavenly Demon Sword observed Lee Seo-ha.

He employed a style of fighting against spirits with minimal movement while gradually depleting their strength.

However, the Energy of Defying Heaven enhanced his attacks, inflicting critical damage on the adversary.

‘Absurd.’

Lee Seo-ha’s martial talent was at a master’s level.

Initially, when it came to teaching martial arts, the Black Heavenly Demon Sword had its regrets.

But as the battle commenced and continued, Lee Seo-ha’s growth was extraordinary.

-Hee-hee.

The spirit lunged.

Lee Seo-ha dodged the strike with a minimal shift.

A strand of hair was severed by the spirit’s nail, marking a fine line on his face.

Yet, Lee Seo-ha was smiling.

It was a fight at a disadvantage.

Lee Seo-ha had intentionally placed himself in a challenging situation.

Movements unfamiliar with fighting were gradually adapting to combat.

It was a kind of madness.

An ordinary person wouldn’t push themselves so hard.

Even someone devoted to martial arts for life wouldn’t push themselves like that.

Yet Lee Seo-ha did so without hesitation, as if it was the right thing.

That’s why the Black Heavenly Demon Sword was both afraid of and excited about Lee Seo-ha.

Thinking this far, Lee Seo-ha pierced the spirit’s chest with the Black Heavenly Demon Sword.

‘Not bad.’

Lee Seo-ha thought.

He became more familiar with Black God Martial Arts.

Perhaps it’s time to learn a different sword technique, not just Black Flash Sword Technique.

Whiff.

The spirit’s body turned to ash and scattered into the air.

[You have killed a Mine! Concept Stat Energy of Defying Heaven increased by 1.]

Thud.

And a gem emitting a deep purple glow fell to the ground.

…So, killing Mine added to his stats.

‘Should I focus on hunting Mine as much as possible?’

Swish.

The Black Energy assimilated the newly increased Energy of Defying Heaven.

Feeling the slightly enlarged Black Energy, he picked up the purple gem.

Evaluation.

[Amethyst of Deep Resentment (B+)]

An amethyst formed from the aggregation of malicious spirits with deep resentment.

Highly valued in magical studies.

:When made into an accessory, it provides additional magic power to the wearer.

:When made into a weapon, it curses the target upon hitting.

:When made into armor, it curses the attacker upon being hit.

:When consumed, Mind -3, Magic Power +5 increase.

It’s a high-grade item.

Though I beat it quite easily, it’s not an entity that’s normally so easily captured.

And it’s versatile in many ways, which justified its high grade.

‘But the real value of this gem lies elsewhere.’

Lee Seo-ha stored it in his subspace.

“Wow, amazing, Seo-ha.”

Seo Ga-yeon exclaimed in admiration.

But looking closely, her body was trembling. A sign that she had overexerted herself.

“Ah, you did well too.”

Saying so, Lee Seo-ha handed a vitality recovery potion to Seo Ga-yeon.

“Bu-but, is it really okay to give this to me like this?”

“It’s meant to be used freely, so no problem. And it’s being used by the most promising students of the school, so why not.”

“Pr-promising?”

Seo Ga-yeon pointed at herself.

Lee Seo-ha nodded.

“A promising talent. No, maybe more than that. You have star magic, which is most lethal to Mines.”

At this rate, maybe I should concede the top spot to her.

Lee Seo-ha added, smiling.

Seo Ga-yeon was confused.

He always did this to her.

Showing boundless kindness.

Even her family didn’t have this much faith in her.

“Today, it’s important to maintain the feeling of awakening your magic power.”

“…Yeah, thank you so much for today.”

“It’s nothing. If you’re that grateful, do something for me later.”

“I will. Anything.”

Seo Ga-yeon looked at Lee Seo-ha and smiled brightly.

Seo Ga-yeon and I returned to school.

Lying on the bed and turning on my phone, there were KakaoTalk messages.

‘There’s a lot’

More messages than I expected, so I checked KakaoTalk.

Hong Yu-hwa

-You know about Professor Song Ra-hee’s magic breaking test on Wednesday?

-Let’s make another bet then.

…I definitely have to do this.

Me

-Ok

Hong Yu-hwa

-Okay. Be prepared for this time.

It seems like someone else should be the one getting ready.

Seo Ga-yeon

-Today was really great!

-I’ll treat you to a meal later!

-An emoticon of a hamster nodding its head.

Me

-Yeah

A meal, huh?

I guess I should casually get some kimbap or something.

Kim Seo-hyun

-Today’s cheese pork ribs

-Photo

-How is it? Looks delicious, right?

Me

-Yeah

Kim Ara

-Good morning. Are you awake? I always say this, but thank you for teaching me how to break free from my father. I’ll keep to messages like this as I’m pretty busy during the day. Let’s keep fighting together…

I was overwhelmed by the lengthy message, almost like a letter.

Even for me, it didn’t seem right to reply with a short answer.

Me

-Have a good day too

After sorting out the messages, I casually washed my hands.

I wanted to rest.

I really wanted to rest intensely.

But I needed to move a bit. I sighed and got up.

Heading out to go to the training ground.

I took the elevator and pressed the 1st floor.

Ding.

The elevator soon stopped.

98th floor.

When the elevator opened, Ershil appeared, her hair wet.

“Oh, you’re here? I heard you were going somewhere with Seo Ga-yeon.”

Ershil said with a smile.

“Yeah. Just went to see something.”

“Really? Where did you go?”

“It’s a secret. But are you going out for training?”

“Yes, the night magic suits me quite well. I usually train at night.”

As I diverted the conversation, Ershil’s eyes followed me.

Eyes sparkling gold with a star shape drawn in them.

“You know, right?”

“Know what?”

“Hmm, never mind. But you know the midterms are starting soon.”

“Yeah.”

Time had passed. Midterms were in two weeks.

Because of that, the instructors have been quite busy.

“There’s a rumor that the midterms will be a big deal this time.”

“It makes sense. We’re not ordinary students.”

“Hmm, is that confidence?”

“Could be.”

I was actually relieved about that.

This midterm involved Mines causing trouble.

During the exam, Mines would intrude and harm the students.

It won’t be a big problem. Just a few Mines during the exam period.

Even if they were Mines, there was a limit to what they could do.

Even hell wouldn’t invade the school and kill all students.

“Anyway, I’m off to train.”

“Without much sentiment. Do your best.”

Ershil waved and walked away.

I headed towards the training ground.