Chapter 78: The Approaching Ones (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 78: The Approaching Ones (1)
With Shin Yu-jeong at training and Im Na-eun in another class, I walked across the campus alone.
Today’s first class was ‘Understanding of Basic Lightning Magic.’
Having been here once before, I arrived at a leisurely pace, entered the lecture hall, and took an empty seat…
For some reason, the atmosphere felt distinctly different from yesterday.
To be precise, the number of people looking my way had noticeably increased.
It seemed to be the effect of the magic I’d showcased during the Basic Monsterology practical.
Perhaps because I’d lived in the public eye for so long as the National Hunter, I could clearly read the emotions in their gazes.
The most prominent among them was curiosity.
At the time, I hadn’t noticed because I was a little out of my mind, having shown no real ability until then. But after it was all over, I understood.
“That was a bit much…”
The Three-Ball… no, the Overcook magic, created by compressing three of the most basic Ball-series spells.
In many ways, it deviated far from the common sense of magic.
Layering spells without interfering with the existing ones, and creating and maintaining three separate spells one by one.
Not only was it far removed from the magical theory one would normally learn, but it also possessed a level of destructive power that a freshman just entering university shouldn't be able to display.
That’s why they were all acting like this.
As mages, they were curious how it was possible, so they kept glancing over, but the impact I’d made yesterday was so overwhelming that they couldn’t easily approach me.
“Hmm.”
I was conflicted.
Should I hold back from now on, or should I just do as I please without worrying about what others think?
Until a few days ago, I’d thought I should restrain myself as much as possible, worried about the unbearable threats that might come if I stood out too much.
But after letting loose just once, I had a change of heart.
I decided I should just live as I pleased.
When I started this new life, I hadn’t resolved to live a long life by walking on eggshells around others.
To live as my heart leads.
Wasn’t that the one and only thing I had etched into my soul?
“Scary, so scary.”
This is why old habits are so frightening.
To think I was already considering laying low, worrying about a future that hadn’t even arrived.
“Restraint…”
I still needed to practice it.
But I would no longer force myself to bow down to others.
I would show what I could reasonably show, and I would savor the reactions that followed.
Whether they were positive or negative.
Just as I was making a resolution that would have a momentous impact on my future, the lecture hall door opened.
“Good morning.”
My head naturally turned toward the soft, alluring voice.
Indeed, her attire was just as seductive.
A black dress that revealed her figure, paired with the audacious combination of a garter belt and stockings.
Was she planning on becoming the sex symbol for the virile twenty-year-old freshmen?
Her looks were no less striking.
Dark violet hair that revealed a purple sheen whenever the sunlight hit it, alluring eyes that slanted slightly upward, and long, almond-shaped eyes.
Blood-red lipstick and the mature air of a woman in her late twenties or early thirties.
From head to toe, her overall impression was that of a fox.
Not just any fox, but one with several tails.
Not quite a Gumiho… maybe a three or four-tailed fox?
“I’m Professor Baek Hyeon-a. I look forward to working with all of you this semester, okay?”
Her voice was coquettish.
“Yes!”
“We look forward to it!”
The voices of the captivated male students echoed throughout the large lecture hall.
“Alright, let’s start with attendance check.”
She called out the names in a low voice, making eye contact with each student.
The whole process took only three to five seconds per person.
My turn came quickly.
“Student Kim Do-jin?”
“Here.”
I answered curtly and, like the students before me, made brief eye contact.
I expected her to naturally move on to the next person, but then…
“Hmm… you look better in person.”
A small voice escaped with a sensual hum.
“…Excuse me?”
Confused, I asked again, but she just smiled and shook her head.
“It’s nothing. Next up is…”
“……”
What was that unsettling feeling?
Before I could even ponder the question that had popped into my head, the attendance check was over.
The Magic Department already had the fewest students, and since classes were divided by elemental affinity, the number of people here was extremely small.
“The magic we’ll be learning together today is…”
I wanted to see a new spell, a new mana arrangement.
No, even a spell I already knew would be fine, as long as it wasn’t Lightning Bolt, which I had already mastered completely…
“Lightning Bolt!”
Wow, this is going to be so much fun!
* * *
Lightning Bolt.
In truth, it wasn’t a suitable spell for the first lesson in basic magic.
Was it because the difficulty was low? No.
It was the opposite; the difficulty was high.
Fire Ball, Air Ball, Water Ball, and so on.
Compared to the other elemental Ball spells, Lightning Bolt boasted a level of difficulty that was a step above.
This wasn’t a problem limited to Lightning Bolt, but one that stemmed from lightning magic itself.
Mana converted into Lightning Energy possessed greater kinetic energy than any other element.
Thanks to this, it had superior speed and destructive power, but it also came with a distinct disadvantage.
Its difficulty was at least one level higher than other elemental magics.
Crackle!
“Ugh!”
A blue bolt of lightning flashed from the hastily drawn magic circle before vanishing.
The face of Kim Yun-sik, who had boldly attempted it, contorted in an instant.
The students around him began to murmur.
“Ah, he failed…”
“If even Kim Yun-sik can’t succeed on the first try, can anyone?”
Kim Yun-sik.
The undisputed ace of the Magic Department’s first years.
The fact that he had failed meant it wouldn’t be easy for anyone else.
And just as expected…
Following his failure, a parade of failures ensued among the students.
One student even had to be rushed to the infirmary after a small spark of lightning energy landed on his palm.
With two-thirds of the class having already failed, complaints began to surface.
“Lightning Bolt on the first day… isn’t it too soon?”
“I know, right? A senior who took this class last year said they started with Lightning Missile.”
Baek Hyeon-a resolved these complaints with her charm.
“Oh my… I heard this year’s freshmen were exceptionally talented, so I guess I pushed a little too hard. What should I do…?”
Her eyes welled up, her voice trembled.
“N-No, not at all! It’s because we’re not good enough!”
“That’s right! If anything, we should be the ones apologizing!”
“Everyone…”
The male students’ complaints were quashed before they could even begin.
However, it wasn’t completely over.
Her tears were only effective on men.
The female students tried to protest, but they only exchanged glances, unable to step forward openly.
It was obvious that if they spoke up now, with the boys acting like this, they would just be cast as the villains.
“Shall we start again, then?”
“Yes!”
“Let’s do it! Fighting!”
In the end, the complaints died down, and the practical session resumed.
They boldly drew their magic circles, but all that came out was a faint crackle of fizzling lightning.
She consoled those who failed, pointed out their mistakes, and gradually made her way to the back of the room.
‘Almost there.’
From the very beginning, her destination had been right here.
But there were limits to what she could do as she pleased.
She had followed the proper steps, making her way up to this point.
And finally.
She reached her destination.
In front of Kim Do-jin, the very person who had made her deviate from her pre-planned curriculum.
He had piqued her interest from the moment she first saw him.
When she had called his name for attendance and met his eyes, all she saw were heavy, sunken pupils, far too deep for a twenty-year-old freshman.
His emotionless gaze, devoid of any feeling, had almost sent a shiver down her spine.
At the same time, she grew curious.
What on earth was he hiding inside?
Concealing her thoughts, Baek Hyeon-a spoke to him with a radiant smile.
“Student Kim Do-jin. Do you think you can cast Lightning Bolt?”
“I’ll give it a try.”
His expression was impassive.
Although he said he would try, his tone was filled with a conviction that didn’t seem to consider the possibility of failure in the slightest.
Magic began at the tip of Kim Do-jin’s finger.
Twenty-four lines were drawn perfectly, without a single error.
From that alone, the success of the spell seemed certain.
As the magic circle emitted a dazzling light, a sphere of lightning, crackling erratically, formed above his hand.
It was a sphere of purple electricity, distinctly different from the blue lightning the other students had produced.
Murmurs began to spread.
“He succeeded in one go, even when Kim Yun-sik failed…”
“Well, he’s the guy who already combined Lightning Bolt with other spells in a real fight.”
“I guess we have to say Kim Do-jin is the ace of the first years now, right?”
While the others praised him, Baek Hyeon-a’s excitement began to cool.
It was perfect, flawless in every way.
But it was ordinary.
‘This isn’t it.’
The Lightning Bolt she had seen in the video was larger than this, and the casting speed was faster.
In other words, he had deliberately slowed his casting speed…
Her excitement had subsided, but her interest in him only grew deeper.
It seemed he didn’t want to reveal everything in front of everyone. If that was the case…
“Excellent work! Everyone else failed, but you succeeded, Do-jin.”
“Uh… I think I just got lucky…”
Her words drew everyone’s attention to him, and he tried to brush it off, but Baek Hyeon-a had no intention of letting it end there.
“Hmm~ A diligent student deserves a reward, right? Hmm, what would be good…”
“No, you really don’t have to give me anything…”
“I’ve got it! Come to my office after class today. I’ll prepare a special gift just for you… You can’t forget, okay?”
“……”
An explosion of jealous glares erupted from the surrounding students.