episode_0102

Regardless of whether interest in the purple-haired woman was sparked or not, let’s put such secondary factors aside for a moment and think.

The enemies’ power was clearly threatening. A woman who used her fists and an old man with a demon sword.

Both were at least S-rank, if not higher.

Perhaps even upper-tier among them.

Normally, an Archmage and two Awakener Academy students combining forces wouldn’t be enough to stop people like them…

Yet, the balance of this battlefield was somehow being maintained for a comprehensive set of reasons.

First, Ryu Jinseong’s unique magic was inherently suited for coordinated attacks.

Second, though it felt awkward to say, both I and Cheon Woohyuk were competent mages.

‘…And…’

If I had to add another reason, there was one more, but it required proper confirmation, so I was a bit cautious.

I subtly scanned the expression of the woman opposite the old man, my gaze a little ambiguous.

What should I call that attitude?

It was just a gut feeling.

‘Non-lethal?’

She was different from the old man, who was maniacally swinging his demon sword, broken in half.

The woman’s fists somehow gave off a strong impression that she was holding back.

Just a moment ago, for instance. There was one time when my support was delayed, leaving Cheon Woohyuk’s opening perfectly exposed.

-Tsk.

The woman didn’t bother to exploit that opening. Considering the angle and the situation, she could have easily incapacitated him with a direct attack.

The initial confusion arose then, and a plausible conjecture gradually bloomed.

An attack was possible, but conversely, it was a timing that would require a very strong attack.

What if that fierce, sharp punch had directly hit Cheon Woohyuk?

A pure-blood mage, who had only minimally trained their body, might have been turned into meat paste by an S-rank pugilist’s punch.

Whoosh!

I continuously watched the woman even as I showered the old man with hundreds of ice arrows.

Occasionally, I deliberately created weaknesses in the operation of my auxiliary magic, giving her opportunities.

It was a situation where Cheon Woohyuk could have vanished without a trace from the woman’s attack.

One might call it a gamble-like experiment, but my imperfect hypothesis successfully proved true.

“Ugh, seriously!”

The woman, who had made an awkward posture of “extending her fist then faltering” for the fourth time, exploded in frustration.

And then she whipped her head around to glare at me with an incredibly fierce gaze.

I could only awkwardly scratch my cheek.

Caught.

“Hey! You, ice brat! Are you going to keep annoying me?! I was a bit unsure, but you really *are* doing it on purpose…!”

“…Ahem.”

I feigned ignorance, clearing my throat and looking away, but it likely made no difference.

Thanks to her shout, Cheon Woohyuk seemed to grasp the situation and looked back at me with a shocked expression.

To have my future brother-in-law look at me with such a betrayed expression usually brought a terrible sense of guilt…

‘Hmm.’

It didn’t. Such a conscience apparently didn’t exist within me.

Anyway, he’s alive, so isn’t that enough?

[Violet, you wretched woman…!]

Instead, the one who exploded in fury, letting out a loud shout, was neither the woman nor Cheon Woohyuk, but the old man opposite us.

He spoke in a sharp voice, his eyes unpleasantly narrowed.

[What are you doing! Are you dragging this out because you can’t even kill one measly brat?! Do you even properly understand the situation?!]

“…”

The woman, presumed to be named Violet, who until then had been sharply arguing with the old man, flinched.

“But… our boss prioritized securing the hostage…”

And she weakly added a flimsy excuse, but—

Slash!

“…”

Before she could finish, the old man swung his demon sword, split in half, releasing a blade of aura.

An invisible blade grazed Violet’s cheek dangerously.

[…How laughable.]

The old man’s voice, conversely, dropped low.

A voice filled with emotion beyond mere anger.

His red eyes glowed menacingly as he glared at Cheon Woohyuk and me simultaneously.

[Why don’t you just say it honestly? That your ridiculous life-respecting ideals have kicked in again in some strange way.]

“…”

[…It’s fine. It’s too late anyway.]

The woman’s expression became uncomfortable as she fell silent, and the old man let out a deep sigh of resignation.

And at that point, everyone present naturally ceased fighting.

There was no intention, of course, to give them time in hopes that their internal dispute would be amicably resolved.

Instead, the five individuals in this underground space, without anyone needing to prompt, simply looked up.

There was a sword there.

A sword shining brilliantly.

One, two, three… It wasn’t a number that could be counted with such simple enumeration.

Perhaps tens, perhaps hundreds, perhaps thousands.

The momentum, the power, and even the number of those swords felt different depending on the observer, but everyone present surely knew their name.

Those were the Hero’s Holy Swords.

‘Ha.’

I silently let out a dry chuckle and cleanly released the mana I had gathered.

There was nothing more for me to do now. What more could a mere student do anyway?

From now on, the remaining tasks were the adults’ responsibility.

“Let’s see here.”

A voice was heard.

“Most of the black mage remnants are tied up… So, there are only two left to deal with? That elder over there, and the purple-haired lady?”

“…”

The voice echoing from above was light, perhaps even flippant.

But it contained a contradictory mysticism.

Overwhelm. Awe. Or perhaps fear and submission. I couldn’t precisely identify the exact nature of the sensation I was feeling, but…

One thing was certain.

I slowly looked around. Ryu Jinseong and the old man closest to me, Cheon Woohyuk in the distance and Violet in front of him.

It was the same. Everyone here must be feeling what I was feeling.

Such was his presence.

“Hmm.”

The Hero waved his hand. With a light swish, swords rained down.

Like a summer night’s downpour.

Crunch! The old man’s demon sword was completely shattered in one blow, and Thump! another Holy Sword pierced his abdomen, restricting his movements.

Following that, dozens of Holy Swords, moving gracefully and smoothly like a school of flying fish, pinned Violet’s entire body to the wall as if mounting her.

“Oh…”

Such a clean suppression that it drew admiration. I involuntarily clapped my hands, then lowered my arms after receiving Cheon Woohyuk’s quiet gaze.

Honestly, wasn’t it cool? Anyway.

I watched Yang Chan-ho land on the ground with a renewed sense of awe.

‘That Hero, who acted like a village idiot in card games…’

Perhaps a Hero truly was a Hero. As if to prove that his fame and title weren’t won in a card game, he calmly took control of the situation.

The black mages were led away by the faculty members who arrived shortly after, and the remnants of the demon sword the old man used turned to ash by a Holy Sword.

“Alright, then.”

Yang Chan-ho, leaving only the old man and the woman in front of him, casually shrugged his shoulders.

With an uncharacteristically chilling gaze, he emotionlessly looked down at the two villains.

“How should we handle these two?”

“…”

Both the old man and Violet’s shoulders flinched simultaneously. Could it be that even their lofty pride had to falter before the Hero?

A brief silence flowed.

Slide-

In the quiet underground space, Yang Chan-ho silently extended his hand.

It was the moment when the two villains’ eyes filled with tension.

“Hyaah…!”

“?”

“?”

Another voice, from a third party, suddenly echoed. Its origin was from above.

Everyone gathered looked up, their faces displaying question marks.

And from the sky, Seol Hayeon dropped down and delivered a soccer kick to Violet’s solar plexus.

“Cough…!”

“…?!”

Violet, the presumed S-rank villain, who had been subdued but maintained consciousness.

Her beautiful face contorted in pain, and she immediately bowed her head.

Thud…

“…”

“…”

Even with everyone’s bewildered gazes fixed on her, Seol Hayeon remained nonchalant.

She simply snorted indifferently, then turned to me, her expression instantly changing.

“My, Disciple-nim…!”

“…Yes?”

And she flew towards me, calling my name, articulating each syllable. Ah, not a metaphorical expression; she literally flew and hugged me.

Squeeze!

I broke out in a cold sweat but reflexively hugged her back.

“Are you okay? Nothing happened, right? Are you hurt? Ah, I was so worried…”

Seol Hayeon rubbed her cheek against my chest, as if acting cute.

I felt a chill run down my spine.

“…”

That wasn’t solely because of Cheon Woohyuk’s gaze, which glared at me from across the room as if he wanted to kill me, but also because of Seol Hayeon’s actions.

…Surely there were only two villains here, the old man and Violet.

Why did Teacher-nim specifically target Violet with such an attack?

And with a physical blow, something she didn’t typically use.

I pressed my lips together and thought.

What was the hidden meaning behind that action?

Squeeze-

‘Ah.’

Before I could finish interpreting. Teacher-nim secretly gripped my lapel tightly and began writing on my back.

The sentences were simple and concise.

-Don’t get distracted. -You’re dead.

“…”

I couldn’t say a word. I just formally extended my hand, like a machine glitching, and patted Seol Hayeon’s back.

I somehow felt exposed.

Well, given that it was Seol Hayeon…

Perhaps it was only natural.