Chapter 113
Chapter 113
Academy’s Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Chapter 113
Baek Seung-woo, who had obtained permission to stay in the village, strolled through it with full confidence.
Of course, there had been several arguments along the way, but he resolved them all through conversation, like the intellectual he was.
Well, if you broaden the definition, even physical persuasion starting with threats could be considered a form of dialogue.
Ahem.
Physical persuasion, huh.
How could he say something so crude?
For any real conversation, there needs to be something fitting between the two parties.
Friendship between friends.
Money between an academy instructor and student.
And between a man and a woman, love and lust if required.
In my case, it was just power.
The mana that had seemed ready to erupt at any moment back then.
Even if it had exploded, neither Seung-woo, the students, nor Termiya would have taken any damage. The village chief and the other villagers would have suffered only the slightest of scrapes.
It was a threat from the start, after all.
Honestly, who cares about the threat? As long as we could communicate, right?
True enough. That deal let both the village and your group get exactly what you wanted.
After the threat, we struck a deal that satisfied both sides.
What Seung-woo and the students wanted was information on villages and cities to reach the end of the hidden world.
And a brief stay.
In exchange, Temil Village wanted us to handle the corpse cleanup and hunt down 1,000 monsters in the surrounding area to ensure their safety.
If the information had been something massive, it might have been different.
Truth be told, their demands were disproportionately large compared to what we asked for, but we accepted anyway.
Even though we'd gained the upper hand through... well, intellectual means involving a threat, it laid bare just how desperate we were for that information.
You're the one who sealed the deal, yet you dumped the whole thing on the students.
Of course. I'm their teacher and supervisor. If they want top marks, they need to take the lead, don't they?
I seem to recall you saying that in this era, grades are the most crucial stepping stone to success. And here you are, wielding them like a weapon. Heh... you sly fox.
Sly?
Then... what should I call you?
Seung-woo grinned at her question.
What was there to ask?
The answer was already set.
Obviously, a devoted teacher striving to give his students valuable experience and high marks, and a true supervisor aiming to evaluate them fairly without any personal bias?
Huhu. Tamamo burst into loud laughter at his utterly shameless response.
She looked genuinely delighted.
No conscience at all. Willing to sell anyone out for your goals. A true heir to the nine-tailed fox.
Your heir.
Yes, you take after me from my younger days.
Trailing playfully behind him in her spirit form, she suddenly recalled her own childhood.
The time when she'd just shed her girlhood and was blossoming into a beautiful maiden.
She must have pulled similar stunts back then.
But the memories were hazy.
Somehow, over a thousand years, while her mind had held firm, her memories had crumbled away like a sandcastle before wind and waves.
Really? That's kinda disappointing.
Baek Seung-woo had subtly read her emotions.
Linked through the jade ring, they could sense each other's simple thoughts and feelings.
When Tamamowho usually kept her thoughts hiddenrevealed even a faint trace of sadness, Seung-woo smiled and said,
I'm probably prettier and kinder than you were as a kid.
Ha, what nonsense. No matter how wild I was in my immature days, I never slunk around hiding things as slyly as you do. I was always upfront with my desires.
It seemed accepting that quest without a second thought had been the root of it all.
This was getting annoying.
Judging by history, you'd be better off hiding your desires and intentions a little.
She who bore a hundred names and a hundred identities.
Look through the legends and histories tied to Tamamo, and most painted her as brutally honest about her greed and lust.
You need to hold back a bit.
A man who hid much, and a woman who hid nothing.
Their pairing was like water and oilunable to understand each other, rendering conversation pointless.
Tok tok.
Someone poked Seung-woo from behind.
The sensation came from around his thigh, too low to reach his waist or tail. Turning around, he saw a scrawny girl.
She was so malnourished she looked emaciated beyond words.
......
Poke poke. She just kept prodding his thigh with her finger.
Seung-woo knelt down with a smile, matching her eye level at last.
Hey, kiddo. What's up? Got something you want to say?
Ung......
She seemed to have words but couldn't spit them out. Seung-woo removed his glove.
Swooshthe scrape of leather against skin revealed his right hand, marred by burns and poison. It was so grotesque that even the pitifully frail girl instinctively stepped back.
Brother's hand looks bad, huh? Just wait a sec. I'll cover it right up again.
Ten rings adorned his fingers.
He touched the Ring of Subspace and pulled out a bento box.
If you've got something to say, how about eating this first?
Emergency rations he'd brought just in case.
But with his extreme calorie burn rate, he barely needed meals himself, so he'd planned to hand them out to the students later.
Can't pass on a bento with tofu in it?
Aside from that damned fried tofu, anyway.
Plus, she'd surprisingly enjoyed the blood sausage and intestines last time.
So all offal dishes went to Tamamo.
Anyway, Seung-woo pulled out the bento and, floating surveillance eyes in the air, combined it with [Fire Magic] on the spot to gently warm it up.
He handed her a spoon, urging her to dig in.
Mom said not to take food from strangers!
A completely unexpected reply.
His goodwill wasn't returned in kind, but he wasn't offended.
Smart kid.
Patting her head in admiration, she closed her eyes blissfully.
Cute.
Then if I'm not a stranger, it's fine?
How?
We introduce ourselves.
Aha!
Her face lit up with innocent delight, as if she'd discovered a profound truth. A smile tugged at his lips unbidden.
She must have been dying for chocolate.
Brother's Seung-woo. Baek Seung-woo.
Baek... Seung-woo? That's a weird name.
Yeah? I saw on a map onceit's a common style down south.
Sou...th?
Yeah, the south.
Wow, so cool! You're my first southerner!
This world's north and south were as different as east and west on Earth.
Seeing a southern-style name for the first time in her life, her wide-eyed wonder was utterly adorable.
So brother's from the Great Forest?
Great Forest?
Yeah! An old book said pointy ears and tails mean beastkin from the Great Forest.
Beastkin, huh.
Did this world still have those?
In our world, most beastkin lines had gone extinct ages ago. Only nine tribes lingered on with diluted blood, arrogantly calling themselves heavenly.
Here, it seemed they all lived together in some place called the Great Forest.
Interesting.
I'm Amy. Amy. Nice to meet you!
Nice to meet you too.
So... can I eat now?
You asking me? We know each other's names noweat up if you want.
I'll eat well!
Such untarnished innocence and purity.
Having cleared all the conditions for accepting food from a stranger, Amy attacked the bento with her plastic spoon like she was drilling a hole in the bottom.
Impressive appetite for such a skinny little thing.
But as her eating speed didn't slowin fact, it picked upit gave him an eerie chill. It felt less like she was eating and more like she was desperately stockpiling nutrients, as if possessed or something.
What the hell?
Pfhew. Ate well, nice brother!
Amy, think you could call over some friends?
Why? Wanna do something to them?
Gonna feed them too. Bring 'em here, and brother'll give you chocolate.
Chocolate!
Yeah, chocolate.
The girl beamed at the word.
He figured that was itshe'd dash off and round up her friends.
But she just stared blankly, so he wondered what was up.
Then she stuck out her left hand, and it clicked.
Upfront payment.
This one's going places.
Won't get scammed as an adult, that's for sure.
Seung-woo handed over one chocolate bar and promised another for each friend she brought.
Only then did Amy bolt off.
Definitely a promising sprout.
* * *
Way more kids showed up than expected.
This tiny village was packed with them.
Thanks to that, he didn't hesitate to hand out even Tamamo's tofu bento.
The grudge of this tofu... I won't forget it.
What a headache of a personality.
Scratching his head, he watched the kids chow down.
It wasn't just Amyall the kids were severely malnourished.
He'd first thought she only brought orphans, but nothey all showed signs of recent adult care. Freshly combed hair was a dead giveaway.
Brother, it's yummy!
Ate well. Um... where do we throw this?
I'll take care of it. Just leave it there. Hey, kidsanything weird happen in the village lately?
......
One chocolate per story.
A few days ago, Grandpa Richard passed away!
Chie...f came to our house for tea. But we didn't have any tea...
Yesterday! Wolves got into the village, so the hunter brothers and sisters went out.
Put chocolate rewards on the table, and the stories poured out.
Plenty were useless trivia, but he didn't skimp. Those scraps often wove together into the big picture.
Oh, and four months back, big bro Jonya vanished!
Vanished...?
Yeah! The village aunts say he left for the city...
Happens to a few people lately.
For real? I only knew about Jonyano one mentioned others.
I just overheard my parents talking in the living room at night.
Uncle Sam next door disappeared two months ago too.
Whoa!? No way!
You know Gwen and Nava went missing two weeks back?
Huh?! How'd I miss that? Yeah, I hadn't seen them around!
Everyone's heading to the city. Must be that great, huh?
Gotta be, if they're going.
Stories he'd never heard once from the chief or any villagers.
...The city.
Had to mean Frontier, where the knights and Termiya hailed from.
To see the end of this world, they'd need to head there. Midterms lasted a week.
Two days lefthad to leave by tomorrow at the latest.
But first things first.
Ung, why're you patting my head all of a sudden?
Oh, thought maybe you were upset? Something was stuck up there.
Ung, it's fine. You're an acquaintance now, brother.
Alright then, just a quick pat.
Okay.
Patting Amy's head, something squirmed in his grasp.
It wriggled like a creature living amid her scalp and hair. Yet when he pinched it, there was no spark of life.
Sniff sniffthe stench assaulted him, a vile odor stabbing straight to his brain.
Not just disgusting, but filthy and grotesque.
There was only one smell like that in the world.
......Demonkin.
What's wrong?
Nothing at all.
It wasn't just Amy.
The other kids' hair and clothes harbored tiny, faint bugs too.
Flea-like things, purple in hue.
Their odor was utterly unlike that of beastsa contrived foulness mimicking humanity.
But like trying to mask stench with perfume only makes it worse.
The reek of demons permeated the air.