Chapter 64
Chapter 64
Academy’s Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Chapter 64
Next.
A low voice echoed through the room.
No one was shocked or astonished by that voice anymore.
The scene unfolding before their eyes was far more shocking.
The monsters body just folded up like a piece of paper?
Th-thats not the point right now. Next means the S-rank exam, right?
Um S-rank exams arent possible. Even the A-rank was a blatant abuse of authority
The staff stammered in panic, blurting out excuses.
But what they were saying boiled down to something simple.
You cant see an S-rank exam.
Even A-rank was overstepping, so please be satisfied with this.
But Baek Seung-woo had no reason to listen.
He was parched for a real fight after so long.
His body ached, but his current state was like a single drop of water on parched earth during a drought. It wasnt nearly enough to quench his thirst.
No, the next exam happens here. Right now.
Th-thats impossible!
We really cant go any further! Get the director to say something!
The association staff desperately tried to dissuade him.
If they let the exams continue, the associations fairness would crack beyond repair.
All tests had to be fair. That was the neutral stance of the association.
But that was just the associations opinion.
So.
What do I care?
His chilling smile, like hed already caught them in the act, made the staff instinctively realize there was no turning back.
Baek Seung-woos brazen attitude left the association staff burning with frustration inside.
Someone drag him out by force!
You dont know how terrifying Baek Seung-woo is? That guys a lunatic whos ruined plenty of people for ignoring him!!
D-Director, what do we do?
It was a demand not worth reconsidering under normal circumstances.
But the opponent was the Family Head of the Heavenly Fox Baek Family.
Their influence over South Korea was absolute.
A mere low-level association employee couldnt dare touch him.
And the director was no different.
Damn it all!
He was just an ordinary employee with no real talent.
A sycophant whod latched onto the right side for survival had risen to director thanks to his backers.
The Nine-Tail Guild.
More precisely, the top executives known as the Nine Tails, especially the [First Tail] and other key members, had pulled the strings.
And now.
Their shadowy superior, the infamous mad dog Baek Seung-woo, was chewing him out. As someone aligned with the pro-elder faction in the Heavenly Fox Baek Family, the director couldnt afford to help Seung-woo.
Thats why hed allowed the A-rank exam, hoping hed fail miserably.
But Seung-woo passed with flying colors and now boldly demanded the S-rank.
He was screwed.
The Nine Tails or Baek Seung-woo.
Whichever he chose, his future wouldnt be smooth.
Choosing the latter meant facing punishment for ignoring regulations twice as directornot just a written apology.
And if he approved it, the blatant abuse of power would trigger an investigation from above, exposing his ties to the Nine-Tail Guild. Dismissal and lawsuits werent out of the question.
If he was going to stop, it had to be now.
Right now.
But.
The gaze fixed on him silently.
Those burning crimson pupils held something as black and void as his hair.
It was calling for the directors death.
He wasnt sure if this was the fabled killing intent.
But in that moment, facing those eyes, he cursed his own existence. It wasnt just fear or chill.
In that instant, the director instinctively knew his life hung in the balance of his decision.
It was the gut honed over ten years of office politics in this hellhole.
Dismissal or death.
Torn between them, the director squeezed his eyes shut and.
Thud!
Pressed the button to manifest an S-rank monster illusion inside the space.
Mana swirled unnaturally fast within the test room, birthing a massive presence. Only then did Seung-woos eyes shift away from the director.
The director let out a sigh of relief, his legs giving out as he dropped to his knees.
Watching the creatures birth, a question arose in Seung-woos mind.
How the hell do I even deal with that?
Hed passed the B-rank with pure magic and the A-rank mixing in a bit of incantation. So what for S-rank?
No time to ponder deeply.
Incomparably faster than before, it lunged for his throat.
Kuwaaaaaah!
The crocodile-type monster charged right at him, jaws wide in aggressive courtship.
Hed vaguely lumped S and A together, but this thing was far more dangerous than expected.
Damn it, if hed known, he wouldnt have strutted around demanding the next exam.
Manas at about fifty percent, but staminas running low.
His A+ mana flowed strong, but his frail body couldnt handle a sports cars full throttle.
A couple more large-scale spells at most.
With injuries, maybe ten more; hospitalization, thirty. But.
Thatd just look pathetic.
It was his chosen path, no one elses.
Seung-woo wordlessly shifted into combat stance.
Rumble!
The massive crocodiles movement shook the ground.
A 4th Hierarchy monster, capable of turning villages or cities to rubble depending on its abilities.
Snake Dragon Crocodile.
At that size, it looked less like a crocodile and more like a dragon or drake.
There was a theory that dragons and drakes originated from crocodiles. Fittingly, its name included dragon.
Good, no breath attack.
The crocodile just approached with jaws agape.
No blast of powerful mana or poison from its maw.
Right, it wasnt a real dragon or wyvern. If it could breathe, itd be higher than 4th Hierarchy.
But the stench from its mouth was so foul it made his nose and head ache.
Bad enough to count as a breath weapon.
Plugging his nose couldnt block the stench invading his sinuses.
Whoosh. Crimson flames roared, searing the crocodiles hide and jaws.
The smell of burning flesh and cooking meat waftedsomething no living thing should emit. But compared to its colossal body, the damage was negligible.
What kind of monster had a body this huge?
It dwarfed even the officetel turtle hed just beaten easily.
More surface area to hit was good, but at this scale, fire magic wouldnt meaningfully scorch bones or organs.
Pour on flames fierce enough to char the skin deep, or control them to steam it evenly inside like a pressure cooker. Either way.
Easier said than done.
Char the hide?
With the 4th Hierarchys tough hide and mana from its heart resisting, full incineration was tough.
If his stamina were higher, tuning power and range might work.
Not in his current condition.
Steam it evenly?
Mess up, and hed cook with it.
Damn, why was this so headache-inducing?
Burn.
With the incantation, ultra-efficient flames seared its flesh. But efficiency didnt mean power.
The flames were mere static to it.
Waaaaaah!
Jaws wide, it hurled its massive bulk at him.
Twisting its body, poised to spin.
Baek Seung-woo realized what it was planning.
Death roll: Clamp limbs with crushing bite force, then spin repeatedly with full body strengtha whirlwind of death.
Even for regular crocs, the combo of bite and spin shredded limbs. For a high-hierarchy like this? Worse.
Whooshhe yanked his arm back fast.
But his clothes snagged on its sharp teeth.
Not letting go, it sprang back and spun at high speed.
Kwangwangwangwang!
The rotation shattered the ground, shaking beyond the test room into the association building. The staff winced, thinking a normal player would be pulverized.
No way hes dead, right?
As negative thoughts crept in.
[Fox Fire rises.]
[A curse ripples through the area like mist!]
Roarrrrr!!
Flames erupted over its spinning body.
The ominous purple flames spread wildly, using it as fuel.
A low, resonant voice followed.
Burn.
Same incantation as always.
But different.
Fox Fire
[Pyrokinesis is infused with Fox Fire.]
[You can now grant form to curse-laden flames.]
Double Helix
[Mana alignment shifts to helical form.]
[Intersecting helices double mana efficiency and power.]
The purple flames in midair twisted like braided cord.
What emerged: a flame spear forked at the end.
The maximum strike he could land without harming his own body.
Fall.
An impromptu, imperfect incantation.
His throat locked up from it.
The helical spear in the air ballooned into massive flames, forking down like prongs piercing meat onto the Snake Dragon Crocodile.
No trace of 4th Hierarchy dignity left.
Baek Seung-woo controlled all the flames and heat, slaying the crocodile cleanly.
To prevent spread, he fully expended his vast A+ mana for the first time since arriving.
Drained of all mana, Baek Seung-woo collapsed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Exhausted beyond words.
He closed his eyes, catching his breath while subjectively assessing his prowess.
S-ranks tougher than I thought.
Hed breezed through B and A, underestimating it.
S-rank: the pinnacle grade humans could bestow, just shy of Ranker and High Ranker.
Baek Seung-woo had it within reach.
Add a few martial arts to his current skill, and hed surpass S easily.
Pure magic? A or above, S or below. Fair assessment.
Impressive for one month of study, but that was just combat power.
Magics depth was another matter.
The gap between S-rank, Rankers, and High Rankers is bigger than I thought.
Rankers: system-designated top dogs in their fields.
Swordmasters at their peak, flame mages specialized to the extreme, or healers whove saved hundreds of thousands in war.
Whoever dominated their domain became a Ranker.
High Rankers: standout geniuses among them, irreplaceable legends.
Unlike S-license, handed out for meeting power thresholds.
Beyond their fields.
Even compared across domains, spots reserved for the overwhelmingly superior top 100.
The higher I go, the steeper it gets. No end in sight.
He was learning incantations under Nam Hwa-yeon lately, but those lofty figures were still distant.
Only a month in, so naturally.
But testing like this objectively gauged his state, fueling impatience.
I want to get stronger faster.
Like this, he couldnt change a thing.
At least enough power to twist the scenario to his taste, even if not fully control it.
As an aside, the license ended at A-rank.
The moment the director tried issuing S-rank, the association head sensed something off and sent orders from above.
The captured director trembled, spilling everything hed done.
Whatever wind blew, he confessed pathetically, quite the sight.
Learning what happened, the superiors bowed to me and handed over the A-rank license.
S-rank was too rare worldwide to hand out lightly.
Apologizing for strict management, they hauled the director away.
All wrapped up in 15 minutes.
My five hours.
Lightning-fast compared to the wait.
Enough time for five rounds of games he usually skipped for lack of it.
Watching them depart in luxury sedans, I thought.
My five rounds.
It was almost time for the auction house.