Chapter 97
Chapter 97
Academy’s Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Chapter 97
There were various hypotheses for why shrine arts had fallen into obscurity.
Most were heavy on imagination and light on evidence, but if I had to pick the most prominent one...
It was the theory that in Japan, the birthplace of shrine arts, the blind adoption of Western culture led to a prioritization of Western magic, causing shrine arts to fade away.
This was currently the most credible explanation in academic circles.
As evidence, records of shrine arts had mysteriously vanished even from Japan's ancient imperial family and high-ranking houses.
Even from the branch family of the Heavenly Fox Baek Clan, said to be the origin where the first shrine arts were bornthe cradle of shrine artsthey claimed that Tamamo no Mae's shrine arts had been forgotten along with the flow of time.
Shrine arts that had clearly been deliberately erased.
Adding a motive to that background made it the leading hypothesis.
And in modern times, those shrine arts had been reduced to deciphering tiny inscriptions on ancient artifacts.
There were fewer than a hundred such examples.
And yet, those very shrine arts...
had been revived right here, right now.
"You mastered something like that? No wonder your recent moves have been so unusual."
"Shrine arts are tough to counter because there's so little information on them. Maybe even the Epnell flower garden incident or the terrorist attack were pulled off using shrine arts."
While some TAs offered calm opinions on these shrine arts they'd never seen before, most professors were wildly excited.
Especially those who specialized in magic as their life's workprofessors in magical studies or related fieldsshowed immense interest.
Artifact obsessives and archaeologists were prime examples.
"Shrine arts! From which country?!"
"Not southern barbarian stuff. Looks Japanese to me."
"Japanese shrine arts... Could it be the primordial ones?!"
"We don't know yet! Whether it's the original or a derivative branch, what's certain is that it's one of the few intact shrine arts in modern times!"
They pulled out thick glasses and magnifiers from who-knows-where and started scrutinizing me. As if amplifying their vision with mana wasn't enough.
Having confirmed the survival of shrine arts lost to distant history, they were snorting with excitement.
From afar, they looked like total perverts.
Actually, up close, they still did.
"Professors, you're ruining all the dignity and gravitas you've maintained until now."
"Professor Ya-cheol, I always liked your mature vibe and speech... but now you just look like my otaku brother who loves anime..."
"Well, it must be that impressive, right?"
"Wait, what's a shrine art anyway? Isn't it just like magic?"
Students were even starting to feel repulsed by the professors.
The professors had completely forgotten their decorum in their extreme excitement.
If their excitement stemmed from the thrill of unknown knowledge...
Then in this place, out of earshot of their voices...
The arena interior was filled with a completely different kind of excitement.
The primal thrill from combat and struggle.
Mu-gung, having lost his reason, was utterly consumed by it, while I felt the excitement and simultaneously thrilled at the double benefit of gathering various samples on shrine art applications.
'I felt it in that clash just now. No need to combine with magic. Shrine arts alone are enough to handle him.'
The pact with Tamamo.
One shrine art per day, thirty per month. Having mastered thirteen so far, I'd been waiting for a chance to use them in real combat where they fit perfectly.
A perfect opportunity had arisen, but who would've thought it'd be against a berserker like this.
'...Actually, even better.'
Mu-gung had exceptional abilities but, in his excessive excitement, wasn't using his head for clever tactics or strategies. He was the perfect punching bag.
People say if your body's tough, you don't need your brain.
But that depends on the opponent.
Before someone more adept at handling cards and situations than you, a sturdy body loses its meaning.
...Of course, if it's sturdy enough beyond that, it doesn't matter.
'Mu-gung isn't there yet.'
Among the realms that divide martial artists, he was at the upper peak level.
Not only higher than Seo Ye-rin or Seong Yeon-hwa, but his experience and prestige built over thirty years were impressively formidable.
Still, it fell short of breaching an iron fortress that tolerated not a single defeat.
Only the sky above can rival an iron fortress.
Yet even skies have skies above them.
Only the heaven beyond heaven.
And as far as I knew...
There were fewer than the fingers on one hand who possessed such talent in this world.
'Even that alone is incredible.'
Genius refers to those born with talent so belovedand enviedby the heavens.
That's why there's even the joke that geniuses die young because the heavens hate them.
But heaven-beyond-heaven talent...
Is a talent so lofty and wondrous that even the heavens can't handle it.
A talent that might appear once per centuryand this world had five.
'And yet, as the scenario progresses, tens of millions die in this world.'
It really hit home just how insanely difficult this novel was.
Five heaven-beyonds.
Even five skies gathered couldn't avert sacrifice.
And here I was, trying to change such a world.
I'm pretty stubborn.
'But I have no choice.'
Even knowing it's stubbornness, some things can't be given up.
For me, that's my oath.
The oath to never die, forged from my comrade's blood and sacrificethe oath to save all humanity.
For that oath...
I would give anything.
Even if it meant dismantling the iron fortress I'd built my whole life.
I had to save the people.
And ultimately, the world.
That alone was the reason for Baek Seung-woo's existence.
* * *
Mu-gung's mind was hazy.
His physical abilities had leaped several stages by donning shadow armor, but at the cost of his reason evaporating.
Even so, one sentiment pierced through.
"So friggin' annoyiiiing!!"
His slurred speech dragged on.
Madness and rage lurked within that slur.
Baek Seung-woo had been scurrying like a rat, then mimicked the technique he'd poured his life into. When Mu-gung struck with killing intent, it felt hollow, like hitting a cicada shell.
If he had that ability, he should've shown it from the start!!
Why give him false confidence of victory just to toy with him?!
Frustrated, Mu-gung bellowed.
It was heartfelt.
"Show me your true heaaaart!!"
"...Alright?"
As if his plea had reached me...
I nodded.
Then it should be fine to go all out, as you asked?
I was getting ready to end it anyway.
I didn't even voice the latter part.
My response reaching his body was faster than words.
No need to say it.
Shuuuung!!!
Fast.
Not teleportation or folding space.
But abandoning reason, his ultra-enhanced leg strength kicked off the ground once, shaking the arena floor.
In an instant, Mu-gung was behind me.
The moment his massive fist aimed for my small skull...
Step, step.
I stepped sideways.
Into his blind spot where the fist couldn't reach.
Step, step.
Long escaped from the fist's range.
Even after seconds and more steps, no fist came down on my head.
To begin with...
"Let goooo!!"
"Didn't you just say to go all out?"
Mu-gung wasn't moving.
His feet weren't bound by anything visible, yet his position had been fixed in place since earlier.
Something intangible and invisible was restricting his movements.
Mu-gung, his reason faded, could only flail, but the professors watching from the start were certain.
"Gravity magic."
"But since it's shrine arts, maybe that's why. Normal gravity magic would've cratered the floor around him from the field."
"It's fascinating. It feels like it's manipulating gravity only on him, not his surroundings. Is this the lost mystery of the East?"
Their analysis was spot on.
Mu-gung's body looked weighed down heavily.
A feat hard to achieve with standard gravity magic.
Professor Emilia licked her lips greedily.
"Ahh, I wanna study it so bad! Think he'd teach me if I offered my Senior TA or former disciple's position as collateral?"
"Isn't that too one-sided? At least guarantee a professor spot."
"No way I'd have that kind of authority to offer such a ridiculous deal."
"That's why I said it. It's the first intact shrine arts in 1,000 years of magical studies history. Don't you get it? The star of next year's magical studies conference is already set. Maybe the next decade."
The professors highly praised my shrine arts.
Given 1,000 years of history, it was natural value.
But honestly...
My shrine arts weren't that overwhelmingly powerful.
Like the cicada-shell proxy body or swapping two objects' positions, this gravity one was learnable in a day too.
Gravity was the same.
The art of attraction ().
The art of repulsion ().
Combined, they formed gravity ()two shrine arts.
Rare as magic that handles gravity is, it had unique utility and value.
'Didn't expect them to count as separate.'
Two combined into one shrine art.
Meaning the unpaired two counted as distinct shrine arts. So I used up two of my thirty free uses.
Wasteful expenditure, but worth more than the cost.
Simple calculations, and with enough mana investment, anything goes.
Look at Mu-gung right now.
His berserk-enhanced leg strength couldn't resist, pinned in place.
No need for more new shrine arts.
'I've used four shrine arts so far.'
Only some of the thirteen from Tamamo.
To reliably subdue Mu-gung, I'd judged two or three more necessary, but it felt a bit wasteful.
Shrine arts were my secret aces unknown in this era.
The more types and numbers revealed, the more opponents could counter, diluting their "secret" value.
So I wanted to hold back if possible.
They weren't mana-efficient either; my narrow vessels were filling up, breathing growing ragged.
'Still blocking by applying attraction to him and repulsion to the floor...'
Getting tiring to pin his feet with just these two.
Without pulling out more shrine arts, I couldn't win against Mu-gung.
All I'd used so far weren't for combat.
To end this duel, I needed magic.
A perfect one fit just right.
Gravity shrine arts synergized beautifully with [Telekinesis], no matter how used.
Target designation, range, powerenhanced across all applications.
In other words...
Pyrokinesis
Combined with my unique magic, it grew even stronger.
Tangible flames with form and texture were freed from gravity's influence. I split the roaring red flames into two streams, imprinting each with concepts of attraction and repulsion.
United, they formed massive flamesa grand fusion of magic and shrine arts embodying gravity.
Mixing in Fox Fire would be icing, but...
No need.
'This'll end it.'
Gravity, telekinesis, and flames metno more heart-pounding duel.
Just one-sided battering.
Roarrr!
Feet bound, each hit from tangible flames brought burns and physical blows.
Seeing Mu-gung battered, referee Namgung Seong-jin stood, microphone enchanted with [Voice Amplification] in hand.
With Mu-gung unconscious, the winner of this spar is Baek...!
His voice reached the vast stands and arena below. Hearing it, I intuited.
Mu-gung's twitching arm.
He hadn't given up.
You're one stubborn bastard.
Time to learn when to quit.
...in line with the original purpose of the duel, there will be no performance evaluation retry!
Namgung Seong-jin, his superior, missed Mu-gung's state.
The fight wasn't over.
This duel wouldn't end until one was on the brink of collapse.
Ignoring the chattering Namgung Seong-jin,
I grabbed the twitching arm trying to rise.
Krunch!
Ripped it off after vibrating [Telekinesis] for a clean cuteasy to reattach.
Losing one arm, Mu-gung fully collapsed.
Finally feeling victory,
"I win."
A perfect win without a shred of doubt.
No chance for reversal.
I alone decided this match's outcome, not the referee.
The stares like I was a psycho were a bonus, but stillmy victory.