Chapter 376: A Clue (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 376: A Clue (3)
The moment she heard the word “Hexagram,” I saw her eyelids tremble.
It was only for an instant, but she couldn’t fool my eyes.
“What… what are you talking about? Digging for information? And what’s Hexagram?”
Her innocent expression, as if she had no idea what I was saying, was quite impressive.
A talent that would have made her a star if she’d gone into acting.
But it was too late.
“Come on, let’s not waste our energy. Why don’t we have a frank conversation?”
It was a suggestion made in the hopes of avoiding a pointless waste of time, since I already knew everything.
“I really don’t know what you keep talking about. The only ‘frank conversation’ I can imagine having with you, Student Do-jin, is a physical one…?”
Baek Hyeon-a tried to seduce me, subtly pressing her chest against me.
As she did, the waves of mana flowing around her began to slowly change.
An ultimatum.
Her intent was clear through her mana—if I didn’t back off, she would attack.
I grinned at her and spoke.
“Heh… you know what?”
“What is it?”
“Your attempts to seduce me today felt… different from usual.”
“……?”
Baek Hyeon-a frowned unconsciously.
She must have thought her performance was perfect by her own standards.
But that was only on the surface, in her tone and actions. The atmosphere and emotions I felt from her were quite different than usual.
Instead of that sticky-sweet intensity that felt like it would cling to you at a touch, there was a certain plainness.
My heart, unmoved by an act that wasn’t genuine, registered it as nothing more than a duty.
There was only one reason her feelings could have changed so drastically in just a few days.
“It’s because I’m no longer someone you desperately need.”
She must have been told that I’ve gone from a recruitment target to a target for elimination, should the need arise.
“What do you think? Isn’t that pretty solid proof….”
Crackle!
Before I could finish, the sound of crackling lightning echoed loudly.
It was an advanced spell, completed with the mana she had been gathering throughout our conversation.
Electric Nova.
The magic circle she had been explaining to me in detail just a moment ago was now drawn in the air.
Crackle!
Zap!
Electric currents began to gather above the completed magic circle in the air.
As if to prove her old title, “Specialist in Lightning Magic,” was no exaggeration, her casting speed was incredibly fast for such an advanced spell.
Fzzt…!
Soon, a completed sphere of electricity was aimed at me.
At the same time, her expression changed.
A gaze so cold it was chilling.
“I’m surprised, Student Do-jin. I never thought you’d have figured out my identity.”
I replied to her impressed tone with a smile.
“I have a reliable informant.”
She gave a cold laugh.
“You must have quite the informant. Very few people know about us.”
“I paid a pretty steep price for it.”
The bead filled with bad karma I gave in exchange for the information was something they had to buy, no matter the cost.
For us, for whom karma (業) is power, that bead is as good as an elixir.
And not just any elixir, but one with an effect far superior to those that occasionally appear on the market.
If I had sold such an item for money instead of information, I could have easily gotten a high-rise building in the middle of Gangnam for it.
As if reading the bitterness in my expression, she pressed me with an even stronger tone.
“For someone who paid such a high price, you’ve been remarkably reckless.”
“In what way?”
“You should be able to tell just by looking at the current situation.”
In response to my question, she gestured with her chin toward her spell and continued.
“You were too arrogant, coming here with no preparation. You should have at least made sure your opponent was completely subdued before spouting off like that. Then, at least, you wouldn’t be in this situation.”
Looks like she’s been living under the title of “professor” for too long.
To think she’s pointing out my mistakes one by one in a situation like this.
But she was wrong.
No, she didn’t understand the situation at all.
“So, what are you going to do to me with that magic?”
A flicker of hesitation crossed her eyes.
“…We’ll see.”
She had chided me for being reckless, but she was being just as reckless herself.
The hesitation slowly seeping into her eyes and actions was proof of that.
Of course, there were a few reasons for her reaction.
First, it was highly likely the organization hadn’t issued an order to eliminate me.
Digging deeper, they might have even been ordered to observe me, not eliminate me.
Han Ju-hee.
This was assuming she held a high position within Hexagram, of course.
While I didn’t know her exact relationship with Hexagram, I was certain her position was by no means low.
Both in terms of ability and personality.
She was not the type of person to be subservient to anyone.
The second reason lay in the spell she cast.
“If you fire that, this building will be blown away, won’t it?”
“……”
The advanced spell, Electric Nova.
The sphere, created by compressing an enormous amount of electricity, was an area-of-effect spell that would annihilate not only its target but everything in the vicinity.
Its range was more than enough to blow away the entire Magic Department building, which was practically wallpapered with defensive magic circles.
Her eyes, which had been glaring at me, widened slightly, as if she sensed something strange in my composure, even with such a dangerous spell aimed at me.
“…You guided me into casting Electric Nova.”
Correct.
There’s no better way to sound out a Magic Department professor’s intentions than with magic itself.
Especially if that magic was her specialty.
Since her active days, Baek Hyeon-a had been known as a specialist in lightning magic.
Electric Nova was a spell that had served her well, allowing her to make significant contributions every time she participated in a large-scale dungeon raid.
And she had just spent a great deal of time teaching it to me, reinforcing the shape of the magic circle in her body and mind over and over again.
So much so that it would have remained as an afterimage in her mind for some time even after the lesson ended.
In other words, it was no coincidence that the spell she chose to overcome this crisis was Electric Nova.
If I had to describe it, it would be more accurate to call it a thoroughly planned outcome.
Finally grasping the full picture, she smiled faintly and opened her mouth.
“Hoo hoo hoot… you really are amazing, Student Do-jin.”
Pure admiration, devoid of any sarcasm or mockery, poured from her lips.
“That’s why I wanted to recruit you. I was willing to use everything at my disposal.”
“…For someone who wanted me that badly, it seemed like physical seduction was your only method.”
She replied with a bewitching smile that didn’t fit the situation.
“That’s because, of all the things I possess, this was the only thing I thought would catch your eye, Student Do-jin.”
Her tone was full of pride.
She failed anyway, so what’s she so proud of…
“I may have failed to get you into bed… but you enjoyed it, didn’t you?”
“No? I didn’t?”
“Lies. I know you were busy stealing glances at my chest every time we talked.”
“…Well, um.”
Honestly, that was beyond my control.
When those large breasts were pressed against me, revealing that elegant valley so clearly, what man on earth could look away?
“But that ends today.”
The woman who had been so friendly just moments before now smiled bitterly.
“Your plan was brilliant. The moment I fire this spell, you will die, and this building will vanish without a trace.”
If the building was turned to dust by the torrent of electricity, everyone inside would die.
Everyone except for one person: Baek Hyeon-a, the caster of the spell.
“If that happens, I’ll no longer be able to live as a professor. I’ll become a villain, not a Hunter, and spend the rest of my life on the run.”
Whether she wanted it or not.
During her time living under the guise of a professor, she had done her best.
The content of her lectures was excellent year after year, and she never neglected her students.
Satisfaction always follows when one does their best, no matter the task.
By now, she had clearly grown quite fond of her identity as a professor and the life that came with it.
Enough to make her hesitate even after her identity was exposed.
“But if you think that’s enough to stop me, you’re mistaken.”
Do you really think I can’t fire it? her even colder gaze seemed to ask.
“Of course not.”
My plan might give her pause, but it couldn’t stop her actions entirely.
Worst-case scenario, even if the building collapsed, everyone inside died, and she became a villain, she could just flee to another country and live under a new identity. Who would know?
Knowing that, I had only ever hoped for one thing.
Hesitation.
If I could just delay her pulling the trigger by even a single second.
“That’s all I need.”
“What—!”
Before she could finish her word, I kicked off the ground.
There’s one thing people get wrong about me.
I once saw a video on Mitube called ‘10 TMIs about Kim Do-jin’ when I was bored, and it said something.
‘Kim Do-jin possesses superior physical abilities for a mage.’
But that’s not it.
KWAANG—!
I shot toward her with explosive speed, generated by stomping a foot packed with mana into the ground.
Startled for a moment, she quickly steeled herself and tried to fire the spell, but…
“Ta-da.”
Too late.
In the fleeting gap created by her hesitation, I threw a punch.
My target was her abdomen.
THWACK!
“Keuk…!?”
I didn’t bother holding back.
Because breaking the concentration of an A-rank Hunter requires more than just a moderate blow.
Struck by my uppercut, her body lifted into the air.
After a brief moment of flight, her body fell ungracefully to the floor.
“Ugh…!”
The hand that had been aimed at me was now clutching her abdomen, the source of her pain.
I felt a momentary pang of guilt, but it couldn’t be helped.
I couldn’t afford to be half-hearted and have both of us get hurt, could I?
If someone has to get hurt, it’s better for one person to take all the pain. Yup, yup.
I walked over to the groaning woman, crouched down, and asked in a worried tone.
“Are you okay? You were really surprised, weren’t you? I’m sorry.”
Baek Hyeon-a struggled to lift her head, looking up at me with contorted eyes.
They say a pretty woman is pretty no matter what she does, and she even looks pretty in pain.
…Is this how people become sadists and masochists?
Ah, now’s not the time for thoughts like that.
“Professor.”
“……”
“Honestly, your current life isn’t so bad, is it? You get to research magic with a steady stream of funding from a stable job, and you don’t have to get your hands dirty… right?”
Her face twisted even more.
“And… you’re the one who ruined it, aren’t you?”
“Uh… did I?”
Maybe I did, maybe I didn’t.
No, since she was living under a false identity anyway, wasn’t it a life that was bound to end at some point?
But since I moved that end date up… I guess I am somewhat responsible… maybe?
Well, let’s just say I ruined it for now.
“I haven’t completely ruined it yet. The building is still standing, and for now, no one else knows your identity but me, right?”
In short, there was still plenty of room for her to return to her old life.
“I’ll protect that life for you.”
A faint light, along with a hint of suspicion, appeared in her eyes.
“…Assuming I do what you want, I suppose.”
“Because there’s no such thing as a favor without a price.”
“If you want information on the organization… give up. Do you really think a low-level member like me wouldn’t be under some kind of restriction?”
She wanted to help but couldn’t, is that it?
I expected as much.
For an organization of this scale to remain unknown, the effort involved must have been beyond imagination.
However, every restriction has a loophole.
“You don’t have to give me information. Just… live as you have been. Teach your students, do your research, and sometimes, leave work early in the evening to meet with your ‘friends.’”
She would know.
She would know what I was talking about.
After a moment of thought, she finally asked.
“And if I refuse… what will you do?”
Refuse.
I hadn’t really considered that possibility.
If she did… hmm.
I wiped all expression from my face and answered her.
“You’ll have to die.”