Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: Terror (3)
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The magical energy emanating from the magic circle inside the Hall of Honor was incredibly potent.
Countless artifacts were on display within. There was more than enough material for a bomb.
I'd initially planned to block the explosion with a rune barrier, but if it absorbed all that immense mana and detonated, even my magical power wouldn't hold.
Creating a sturdy barrier required that much mana in return.
So, the solution I'd chosen was to destroy the artifacts.
An explosion without the artifacts' mana could easily be contained by my rune barrier.
The artifacts were exhibited throughout the building.
There wasn't time to pick them off one by one, so smashing the entire structure would be faster.
⚡ UNIQUE SKILL ⚡ Spiral Twists mana into a helical form to harden it, then compresses it into a spinning spherical shape.
Requires extremely advanced mana control. Deals greater destructive power when driven in close rather than thrown.
[Spiral] was the skill I'd created to pierce an ogre's defenses.
A helical sphere spinning at tremendous speed grinds the target to pieces upon impact.
It was my go-to for foes or objects with high defense.
This time, I planned to leverage [Spiral]'s multitude of strikes.
This wasn't something I could solve by scorching it with hot flames, flooding it, or summoning massive ice blocks or boulders.
The building might crumble, but the small artifacts would survive intact and still form the bomb.
That's why I chose [Spiral].
It could grind even the tiniest artifacts to dust.
But the original [Spiral] was designed to bore through an ogre's gut, so it was small.
The usual palm-sized [Spiral] wouldn't suffice to demolish the Hall of Honor.
I needed to scale it up.
I envisioned a typhoon.
A wind that swept through, leaving nothing but ruins in its wake.
I incorporated the surrounding air into the flow, making it faster and larger, like a true typhoon.
Kwaaang! Kagagak!
I manifested [Spiral] in my hand.
Thanks to my awakening, my casting speed had become instantaneous, in the blink of an eye.
Woooong!
As I infused mana into my [Spiral], it began drawing in the surrounding air.
I imbued the magic circle's core formula with the will of destruction and imaged a tornado ravaging the ground.
"W-What is that…?!"
Gil Steven, standing beside me, seemed to sense things were going off the rails.
Kaduk! Padaduk!
Sssst!
The sound of air clashing rang out as the [Spiral] growing from my hand slipped beyond my control.
I raised my hand toward the sky, expanding the [Spiral] further.
"Hoo."
Accelerating the air flow transformed the [Spiral] into a massive disc-like form.
'This thing looks like it'll really pack a punch.'
The Hall of Honor at the academy.
It housed Victoria Academy's operational records to date, portraits and statues of alumni, and donated artifacts—all on display.
Now that I was moments from demolishing it, I wondered if I should, but… it was too late.
If I didn't destroy it, the damage would be far worse.
Besides, honestly, I had no nostalgia or pride attached to it.
"Ahh… Master… I'll somehow…"
Gil Steven, mana-drained and exhausted, still grabbed my pant leg to stop me.
This crazy fanatic bastard.
Shweeeek!
I hurled the destructively spinning [Spiral] toward the Hall of Honor.
Kwaaaaang! Kadududuk!
Kwaagwang!
In an instant.
The [Spiral] slamming into the Hall of Honor kicked up massive clouds of dust as it began sucking the building in.
Winds whipped in all directions, blowing away nearby street vendors.
Soon, with a kwaduduk! the core supports snapped, and the Hall began to collapse.
The pillars holding the building couldn't withstand the [Spiral].
"He's insane… This magic is different from Master's… and something else…"
"Agh, this crazy old geezer."
Gil Steven was now clinging to my shoe.
No choice but to take him alive now.
Hand him over to the association as planned.
Kkaduk! Kkaduduk!
With eerie sounds, the Hall of Honor wasn't just collapsing—it was pulverizing into powder.
Fragments of the building, statues, paintings, and artifact shards rained from the sky.
All in less than ten seconds.
"Whoa…"
As the massive roar threw people into chaos, they began turning their attention this way one by one.
"W-What?! The building collapsed!"
"Terrorism! It's terrorism!"
It was undeniably tremendous power.
A single skill had reduced a massive building to rubble.
In the distance, professors were rushing over, unclear on the situation.
Min Ye-ji and Im Sol were at the forefront.
I patted down Gil Steven's pockets.
As a brainiac type, he always carried contingencies for every scenario.
In the game, he dropped pretty good rewards too.
Sruruk!
Rummaging inside his coat, I found a pouch.
I stashed it inside my cadet uniform and greeted Im Sol and Min Ye-ji.
"Ho-yeon, what happened…? Why did the building collapse?"
I grabbed the collapsed Gil Steven by the scruff and hoisted him up.
"I caught a Pandemic executive. Had to bring down the Hall of Honor to stop his terrorism."
"…What?"
Maybe I skipped too much.
Padaduk! Paduk!
As I tried to explain, the magic circle activated amid the building rubble.
A section buried under the debris that [Spiral] hadn't erased was finally triggering.
I'd planned to block it with my rune barrier, but with this many professors around, no need for me to step in.
"Explosion! Get back!"
At my shout, the professors who'd sensed the magic began layering shield spells.
Kung. Kung. Kung. Kwaang!
Moments later, massive blasts echoed inside the shield spells.
Building remnants shot skyward, and a ringing hum filled my ears.
"Argh!"
"It's fine! We're safe here!"
The massive explosion within the barrier.
Thanks to the preemptive measures, it ended by crumbling the Hall's remains.
"The academy's Hall of Honor…"
One professor muttered, staring at the rubble.
Having endured both my [Spiral] and the explosion, the once-proud Hall was reduced to unrecognizable powder.
"…That explosion would've absorbed the artifacts' mana and escalated into something bigger, so I neutralized it preemptively. Had to collapse the Hall in the process."
"Impressive handling, Ho-yeon."
No one responded at first, leaving it awkward, but luckily Im Sol backed me up.
"We'll handle the cleanup. And I'll nominate you for commendation on the terrorism response, so don't worry."
"Thank you, Professor."
Thanks to Im Sol's consideration, I could slip away.
I bowed and left the terrorism scene.
These incidents were always a hassle in the aftermath.
*
Watching Lee Ho-yeon disappear, Min Ye-ji whispered quietly to Im Sol beside her.
"Sol, did you see Lee Ho-yeon's magic?"
"…Of course."
"Triple attribute. Definitely wind."
"Yeah. No doubt."
The magic that toppled the Hall of Honor.
It was unmistakably wind-elemental.
"Anyone else see it besides us? We professors got here first, right?"
"The building collapsed in under five seconds from casting. Probably not."
The professors were busy with rescues and guiding people.
Min Ye-ji and Im Sol had sought out Lee Ho-yeon after things settled, so they'd seen it first.
"Triple attribute… Second in the world? What do you think, Sol? Fate, maybe? Fits your ideal type. A guy better at magic than you."
Even in serious talk, Min Ye-ji couldn't resist teasing.
But that kept the mood light, easing Im Sol's expression a bit.
"Shut up."
"Sol~ I worked hard this time, so it's okay if I approach Cadet Ho-yeon, right?"
"…Do what you want."
Im Sol licked her dry lips.
Multiple attributes.
The sole domain where genius mage Im Sol reigned supreme.
Dual attributes were rare.
And mages who could simply use three or more were exceedingly scarce.
But Im Sol was the first to master three or more perfectly.
She'd even surpassed triple, wielding talent for all attributes—true multiple attributes.
A woman blessed by magic.
That was her reputation in the World Magic Association.
'Ho-yeon…'
Im Sol had never believed in "woman's intuition," but today it felt strangely real.
For some reason, she sensed Lee Ho-yeon had multiple attributes like her.
Everything about him so far had exceeded her expectations.
'But this is just greed… right?'
Even as she thought that, Im Sol couldn't quell her desire.
*
"Damn it. All that unnecessary hassle."
Should've just killed him quick.
Trying to extract some info led to this mess.
Still, capturing Gil Steven early was a big win, and I stopped the terrorism cleanly, so not bad.
Pouring too much mana into [Spiral] left my head throbbing a bit… Hm.
"Oh right, the pouch."
The pouch I'd looted from Gil Steven earlier.
In a game, this'd be prime drop time for good loot.
I pulled out the pouch.
A red pouch emblazoned with the familiar Chinese character for "fortune."
Reaching inside, I felt a piece of paper.
"What? Paper?"
Carrying a deed or something?
Pulling it out revealed a familiar-looking contract.
📜 Hell's Contract 📜 Grade: Mid-High A contract from Hell with powerful binding force. As long as Hell's eternal flames burn, no one can break it. Exception: High-ranking Hell nobles. "…What the hell is this?"
Why would Pandemic have a Hell's Contract?