Chapter 116
Chapter 116
Academy’s Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Chapter 116
To me, life is nothing but an endless chain of suffering.
Some say you have to overcome that pain, endure it, and keep living on. But those who spout such nonsense have clearly never endured agony on my level.
That's why, every single day, I wished several times over to crumble to dust, scatter away, and cease to exist.
Yet I had shackles binding me.
Shackles that absolutely forbade me from dying.
A curse in the form of a will and sacrifice that forced this agonizing existence upon me, one torment after another.
That curse would compel the direction of my life forevermore, as long as I lived without dyingnow and always.
* * *
So, what's the next goal, contractor?
"I'm thinking of heading to the city. No reason to stick around here anymore."
Ever since they formed a contract that made betrayal utterly impossible, the way Seung-woo and Tamamo treated each other had changed noticeably.
Tamamo seemed a bit more casual with him.
And Seung-woo felt somehow colder, more rigid.
Tamamo, bound by their even deeper contract, picked up on it clearly.
Oh dear, you're getting a little cold with me. Or am I imagining it?
"Quiet."
You really have changed. Should I treat you all sweet and gentle like I do with little kids?
When Tamamo drew near, Seung-woo pushed her away.
Even if she pressed on regardless, he shoved her back desperately.
That was the current state of affairs between Tamamo and Baek Seung-woo.
This is getting really annoying.
If I'd known it'd turn out like this, I never would've made that contract.
Seung-woo clutched his head, feeling a migraine creeping up.
"You... If you keep peppering me with questions like this, how am I supposed to teach you later? We've already gone over twenty of these trivial ones."
Well, I've given it some thought. Instead of asking one or two questions here and there, bombarding you nonstop to satisfy my curiosity and thirst for knowledge seems way more efficient.
"......Damn it."
I hadn't anticipated that approach.
If she asked a few questions, I'd just pay the corresponding price. But if she asked infinitely many, I'd just have to pay infinitely. Simple as that.
It was a contract with no time limit anyway.
If the other side wanted a ton in return, that was that.
Tamamo had perfectly exploited the contract's loophole.
Tch, shouldve put a limit on the questions.
I can hear all your inner thoughts, you know. Better to answer obediently.
Ugh, what a hassle.
I was getting fed up, so I stared blankly up at the sky.
We were leaving tomorrow, but until then, I had plenty to discuss with the village chief and the demon tied up at the graveyard.
I prayed it wouldn't get any more annoying than this.
But as always, my prayers meant nothing.
"So, we still don't really know the cause."
"You mean even after years, you have no idea what's happening to the land you've lived on your whole lives?"
Villagers scolding the Frost Witch, Isis.
They genuinely believed she was behind this years-long brutal cold spell. So I asked for details.
And in the end, they admitted they had no clue.
What nonsense.
She could fool the villagers and students with that tongue, but not my eyes. I asked a few more things afterward, but the responses were all the same.
"What a bunch of bullshit artists."
I sharply criticized the village chief and the other adults of Temil Village.
Tap tap. I pointed at the map with my finger.
"You look at this map and still say that?"
This was the northern region, but not some eternally frozen wasteland like the South or North Poles. Hell, even those poles have seasons when the weather thaws.
They're just relatively less warm compared to other places.
But this northern area wasn't even a true permafrost zone geographically, and yet the harsh cold had lasted three straight years without a break?
"This is beyond what one person could do."
To turn a chilly region into an unending frozen tundra, you'd need an archmage.
One specialized in climate magic, at that.
Even better if they could wield massive spells or sanctums tied to blizzards and cold.
Or maybe two archmages.
And you're saying a lone 'witch' in a mountain lodge did this?
Ridiculous.
"But... anyone can see that..."
"Cut the crap. If even you, the village chief, say it, most of the villagers will believe it."
If the Frost Witch were that powerful, Isis never would've taken her place.
An archmage capable of blanketing the north in eternal winter.
No mere student could fill those shoes.
If that backstory were true, she'd be one of the key main NPCs in the shadow worldsomething on the level of a knight or Termiya.
You read maps well. First time seeing it, right?
It's nothing.
Nothing? It's not even a modern, systematized map. You're piecing together terrain and climate from a few ragged sheets.
Really, it's nothing. On chaotic battlefields, to plan operations and infiltrate enemy lines, I had to adapt quickly to maps that changed with every season and factor.
After a few back-and-forths with the chief, I headed to the graveyard.
Maybe because I'd snuck out last night and tortured confessions out of it, the demon's condition was pretty rough.
Still, it had some use left.
No plans to kill it yet.
Squeak squeak. A small, rat-like bug-shaped lump of mana, crying out.
This thing, packed with the demon's powers, would definitely come in handy in the shadow world.
Needed to seal it so no one could get to it.
Need help? Can you seal it solo?
"Ugh... Y-Yeah...! It's tougher than I thought, but I can manage...!"
A simple sealing ritual.
The principle was just imbuing the idea of being bound tight with chainsa straightforward spell. But layering intermediate [Earth Magic], which I'd memorized as a side study while learning elemental [Fire Magic], atop the seal gave it strength rivaling advanced magic.
And now, as I was about to head out...
"Whew... That just drained all my energy."
That ritual had a pretty unique form to it.
"You saw it from behind. It's magic that turns a dug-out underground cavity into a prison-like sealed chamber."
Not that.
Tamamo's finger touched the spell at the edge of the magic.
This isn't [Earth Magic], is it?
"......When did you learn elemental magic?"
Hehe, just picked it up by peeking over your shoulder. You've been devouring magic tomes lately.
Maybe because I felt like no more surprises could pop up. I'd started immersing myself even more in reading and knowledge.
At least to avoid dying pointlessly from ignorance.
Nothing feels as empty and hollow as that.
Tap tap. As I checked the seal by thumping it a few times, the surroundings came into view.
A half-finished cemetery.
The students had been told to build it but left it half-done.
"The graves. Better if I handle them myself."
What, you don't trust them?
"Not exactly."
I pointed at the pile of stacked corpses with my finger.
The bodies were pristine.
Not decayed at alllooked just like sleeping people, superficially.
The students had cleaned and prepped them like undertakers before burial.
"The kids went overboard."
You think the fledglings aren't ready to mature yet?
"Maybe 'cause they're still young. Too soft for their own good."
With mindsets that tender, they won't survive in this cutthroat society.
In the high-stakes player world where lives are on the line.
More than that, they'll crumble before reaching the world's end.
Maybe I should teach them now. Could give them severe PTSD, but it's something they need to learn eventually.
This world won't be kind to you.
Death can descend in an instant, sword always at your throat.
* * *
While I handed out food and snacks to the kids to extract raw, unfiltered info, the students stayed in the village, taking on requests and favors to build rapport.
Just two days, but the affable Iji was already arm-in-arm with the village elders.
Everyone except Isis and me.
Goris, the middle-aged guy perpetually drunk on booze to fight the cold day and night, even started treating him like a drinking buddy.
Of course, Iji was underage and didn't drink.
"T-T-Teacher... Got any cold water?"
"......Just eat the snow everywhere. Swallow it down, and it'll be like cold water."
"Oh... I see. Thank you..."
"......"
I watched Iji wobble off toward the snowfield.
That guy's gone off the deep end.
Told him not to drink booze several times, but he did anyway.
Whether Goris pushed hard or curiosity got him, he chugged right up to blackout.
No, he was already wasted.
Stuffing snow in his mouth for "cold water" confirmed it.
"Iji, what're you doing?"
"W-Water... Putting snow in my mouth to melt it for cold water."
"I don't get why you're bothering, but hereeat my ice. You can melt ice made with my mana easily."
Isis formed a small cup-shaped piece of ice.
Sloshed as he was, Iji grabbed the handle without issue.
No complaints about the cold.
Not frostbite or frozen fingers or anything.
She'd simply made the ice cup not feel cold.
Her ice magic was getting ever more refined.
Elite-level growth rate, and within Chilseong, hers stood out especially.
At this pace, she could aim for promising prospect next semester.
Half of them were extras like her anyway.
No reason she couldn't.
"Alright, everyone gathered?"
I scanned the group with their packs ready.
Dawn was breaking soon.
The seven of us, including me, eagerly awaited the moment we'd set off for Frontier.
Never thought we'd waste two days in a place like this.
"Still no sign of Isabel in the end."
"Probably at Frontier. Hope she is, anyway."
"Yeah, she's the strongest and smartest of us."
"No wonder she's the head."
A term from my old days leading squadrons into battle.
Isabel handled command flawlessly while supplementing our firepower with massive spells. To the team, she was irreplaceable.
No one could fill her shoes.
Sure, her magic could sorta be covered by Isis's [Freezing Magic], but the limits were clear compared to her.
And her genius-level leadership in uniting the students? She'd picked up strategy and command from me without wasting much time.
Still, with her absent, we'd brought along a guide instead.
"Why do I have to be the guide?"
Termiya's hollow cry, laden with tents, rations, and gear. Naturally, no one answered her empty plea.
We finished prepping and awaited departure for the city.
Soon, the morning sun rose.