Chapter 106
Chapter 106
Academy’s Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Chapter 106
"Teacher, where do we go from here?"
Isis, who had changed from her pristine white mourning dress into her school uniform, asked.
She glanced once at the safety seal embroidered inside her uniform, then carefully folded her Frost Witch mourning garb and left it at the mountain lodge.
"Northeast. I'm not certain there's a village there, but I sensed human presence."
"Got it. But could it be wild animals, monsters, or hunters who've come from far away?"
"No. It was the presence of a child."
"Understood."
In the process of mapping the entire mountain range as if holding it in her hand, she had detected the presences and traces of children.
These might not necessarily point to a village, but she could be certain that there were people in the northeast direction.
The traces were fresh.
There was a high chance of encountering this world's residentsNPCs.
That was the thought crossing her mind.
"Teacher."
"I know."
"Enemies spotted. Engaging in combat immediately."
Isis's voice had already turned as hard and cold as ice.
She spoke in minimal words and slipped on her gloves.
They were the same color as mine but featured frilly lace around the wrists, completely different from my simple designbridal gloves.
Ones she had obtained as repair payment from the auction house before.
Their power embodied the proverb: "When a woman harbors a grudge, frost falls even in the fifth lunar month."
Kwuduk.
Resentment gathered thickly in the magic Isis shaped with frost and ice filling both hands.
"I'll handle this alone, right?"
"Right. I'm the supervisor here before I'm your teacher."
"Can't be helped, then. Let's begin"
"but take this first."
Tuk.
I took off my gloves and pulled a bracelet from the space in my ring, handing it to her.
To avoid showing the gruesome burn scars on my hand, I did it as quickly as possible.
Fortunately, her gaze was fixed ahead, not on me.
Isis tilted her head at the sky-blue bracelet.
She didn't know what it was, but since it was from her teacher, she figured it couldn't be anything strange, and slipped it onto her right wrist.
Then, the magic in her grasp began to subtly transform.
Kwaduduk.
The ice and frost shaped larger and harder.
In moments, the ice gained sharpness and strength comparable to a military greatsword, becoming a weapon with ample lethality just from swinging or throwing it.
Watching her magic gradually strengthen before her eyes, Isis murmured.
"This... don't tell me it's already complete?"
Behind it lay the sky-blue bracelet I had tossed her and the ability embedded within.
Crystal of Snowflakes
Grade: S
Description: A weapon crafted by artisan Guya based on designs drawn by the mage Isis. The original blueprint was for a staff, but given the combat style of its mage wielder, jewelry form seemed more fitting, so it was made into a bracelet.
*Frozen Helix of Life
Inspired by Baek Seung-woo's Double Helix, a certain mage sought to integrate this principle into her own magic and mana, transforming the helix into a geometric form. Now, the helix's genome has become a fractal crystal structure, enhancing the power and efficiency of all ice magic.
A weapon completely different from the initial blueprint.
The only thing the same as the draft was the bracelet's ability.
"I tried incorporating what I taught you before into a weapon."
To Iji, I had taught how to wield an axe and how to hold a shield to protect teammates.
Just as I taught Seo Ye-rin two types of spearmanship, I had taught Isis my accidentally created Double Helix.
She had demonstrated intricate mana manipulation at the auction house based on that lesson.
But from my perspective, it felt a bit lacking.
'Compared to mine, it was a step below.'
A skill called Double Helix, born by chance from pure personal enlightenment hard-won alone and a sage-like talent beyond explanation.
I thought Double Helix would suit Isis well, so I tried to recreate the environment where I gained my insight as closely as possible.
But without those two factors, teaching her wasn't easy.
No flashes of insight, no sage-level talent.
That's why I embedded the incantation into an objectthe bracelet.
Last night, it was completed alongside my gear and the students' weapons.
Weapons that maximized the functions each desired, compensating for weaknesses and amplifying strengthstruly divine arms.
"Teacher, can I... use this in the exam?"
"If it were a B-rank or A-rank dungeon, no, but since you're entering the back world, carrying personal weapons like this is fine."
Isis's question about fairness.
Normal exams limit items and weapons, but our team chose such hellish difficulty that slipping these in was easy.
"But Teacher."
"What?"
"Those monsters. What are they called?"
She casually erected an ice barrier.
Then, buying time to chain into a powerful spell, she asked me.
Her bold attitude in asking their name made me chuckle involuntarily.
"You're asking me, the proctor, that?"
"You're my teacher first. You have to answer your student's questions."
Her utterly nonchalant demand made me laugh without realizing.
Well, living in cold regions might make one like that.
It was natural to be curious about massive wolves covered in shaggy gray fur.
Since I'm a teacher before proctor, I figured this much was fine and answered.
"7th Hierarchy, Bang Wolf. A monster that charges with speed like a gunshot."
"Lower hierarchy than I thought?"
"What do you mean? Considering it burst out from the mountains, it means they're probably common here. What if that's the weakest in these mountains?"
"Ah..."
Even asking me so casually, she somehow seemed naive.
It suited her age perfectly.
'Truly fitting for the Frost Witch.'
What did she just say?
Something like 'unforgivable' and 'freeze'?
Her naive side felt adorably teenage.
Kugugung!!
While I smirked, Isis froze the wolf-shaped monsters to death, then extended the ice into long, sharp icicles to impale them.
Even if a Bang Wolf dodged vital spots with its signature gunshot speed, the gloves' grudge cursed their ankles and throats.
But such cases were rare.
Most Bang Wolves froze solid like meat in a freezer under the enhanced [Ice Magic], amplified by the fractal mana array from Crystal of Snowflakes.
"All enemies eliminated."
"Clean work."
Impeccable combat sense in slaughtering 72 pack Bang Wolves in an instant.
Of course, their corpses were frozen, pierced, or smashed to pulp by massive hail-like ice chunks from the sky, so "clean" was a stretch... but still.
'This counts as clean enough.'
The gore didn't faze me.
Rather, as scenes no less gruesome continued even after leaving the mountains, I couldn't hide my shock.
Is this the original concept here?
"...Gruesome."
"I-I don't think even I could survive down there for over a year..."
The village viewed from the mountains.
It didn't take long to realize that was Temil Village. Yet we stared down blankly because.
"It's literally 'ruins'."
"That looks like... Cocytus?"
"The frozen lake from the Divine Comedy, symbolizing the river of wails in the underworld? If the Divine Comedy's backdrop were real, it might've drawn inspiration from a sight like that."
It evoked the hell of the Divine Comedy.
The village, vast enough for thousands, was desolate from endless blizzards and north winds.
No vitality whatsoevernot even a rat showed in my Demon Eye.
Was everything in this snowing post-blizzard world frozen solid?
It felt like an illusion.
And this shocking first impression was our destination: Temil Village.
* * *
Descending to the village, we scanned everywhere.
We entered without ID.
No guards at the entrance to check identities, no people walking the streets.
The village was quiet and serene.
The blizzard-piled snow evoked a poetic charm, but depending on perspective, unease and fear too.
Traces of human life were evident everywhere.
Yet not even a rat's squeak.
"Teacher, this place is weird."
"Yeah."
"In weather this cold, houses should be burning firewood non-stop, but not a single chimney smokes."
Who uses chimneys these days? Fair point.
But this back world's setting seemed medieval Earth-level civilization.
House styles and facilities gave it away.
Yet in a medieval setup without boilers, after that insane blizzard, no house with fire?
The north wind and snow had just eased, but ordinary folk would've risked frostbite indoors.
"A village near harsh mountains is geographically odd too. Anyway, lots to investigate."
"First, find the kids."
"Right, it's midterms now."
No flying drones in this weather.
Not unless the snow lightens more.
So, filming the kids meant holding the camera myself.
And for that, they needed to be near me.
My role was gathering students first, intel second.
"By the way, Teacher."
"Yeah?"
"Thinking about our roles, our combo is hilarious."
"Haha, true."
The sole surviving captain of a mercenary band hired for the village quest.
The Frost Witch of the mountain lodge, blamed for the north winds and blizzards.
Villagers might suspect the merc betrayed his comrades for the witch.
Might be better to split up.
"Yeah, we should search separately."
"W-Why? Am I... making you uncomfortable, Teacher?"
"Hm?"
What was this out of nowhere?
Looking down at her face.
"..."
She looked more tense than usual.
Isis's expressions didn't change much, hard to spot, but I sensed it.
She was quite nervous now.
"Dad and Mom said that too... then they all... vanished."
"..."
"I didn't mean anything weird... just wondering...?"
Silence stretched.
She fidgeted with her fingers, trying to act normal but failing miserably.
Adorable.
And funny too.
Why do all my kids have backstories?
Like pets resembling owners, do students resemble their teacher?
"No way. You don't make me uncomfortable at all."
"Really...?"
"Yeah. If anything, I'm the uncomfortable one, right?"
I gripped my sleeve.
My ungloved hand hid scars from flame and poison.
My body under the suit wasn't pristine either.
That's why I prefer suitsno skin exposure.
Then my hands went to head and rear.
Fox ears and tail, far from normal.
Body hair that wouldn't obey, constantly reminding me I'm no ordinary person.
Nothing normal anywhere.
Every part diseased or different.
It was like that even before possession.
Child me saw my 'unordinary' self as special.
But as an adultor beforeI realized.
Being different from 'normal' is misfortune.
Plus bad personality and rumors.
Baek Seung-woo has no redeeming qualities.
So Isis, better than me, couldn't possibly discomfort me.
Without words, she got it, blushing and shaking her head.
"No. Teacher is... beautiful instead."
I scratched my head, thinking she overpraised.
But Isis meant it.
In her eyes, Baek Seung-woo was more beautiful than anyone.
Jewel-like red eyes burning crimson.
Jet-black tail and hair like the night sky.
Tall stature, perfect proportions.
Sculpted face.
Knowledge teaching her and friends.
No flaws anywhere; that perfection shone brightest, most beautiful in her eyes.
Thus, she admired and respected him as mage and man.
She ignored rumors.
Most untrustworthy; truth demands eyewitnessher experience.
But seeing only this Baek Seung-woo so far, Isis didn't know.
That he was far from such beauty in reality.
Not yet.
So it didn't matter now.
What mattered was.
"Ah, found one."
"Where? Who?"
"Iji's over there at the edge."
In faint visibility, calm-faced Iji caught my eye.
He frolicked wildly with two or three local-looking kids.
Good we found one, but...
"...That kid hasn't forgotten this is midterms, has he?"
I eyed him pitifully.
Isis followed my point, glaring pitifully at Iji too.
We crossed mountains and blizzards, yet he played carefree with kidsabsurd, words failed.
...Should I troll him?