Chapter 102
Chapter 102
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: Academy Assault: Begerton Antares (2)
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Begerton Antares was an exceptionally brilliant researcher.
No one had ever told him that, but the doctor himself harbored not the slightest doubt about it.
After all, the monumental achievements he had piled up could fill several bookshelves.
Overwhelming results. Remarkable research efficiency.
If he wasn't an outstanding researcher, then what was he?
Of course, the world denounced his exploits as those of a madman, but to the doctor, they were all trivial matters.
At least, none of them were enough to deny his status as a brilliant researcher.
“……Stop. No entry without authorization.”
And for a brilliant researcher to visit a prestigious academic institution was, without question, a model and beautiful act.
Unfortunately, the guard at the academy's main gate didn't seem to share that sentiment.
Clank.
The guard's spear shaft blocked the doctor's path.
While adjusting his monocle, the doctor's gaze drifted past the spear to the splendid buildings rising beyond.
“This place really does have top-notch facilities, just as I'd heard!”
“…….”
“This should be more than adequate for holding lectures. It might even surpass most magic towers.”
Heh heh heh.
Having finished appraising the academy's facilities, the doctor nodded with a smile.
It was certainly a suitable place to house talented successors.
The hidden ancient ruins underground were an added bonus worth extra points.
Swish.
Just as the doctor, still gazing at the buildings, stepped forward again.
“…….”
Clank.
The guard's spear shaft blocked him once more.
The guard was stopping the doctor from entering through the main gate.
A chilling smile crept across the doctor's face as he turned his gaze toward the man, who met it with a look of clear displeasure.
“I told you to stop, but you don't understand plain speech.”
“Dear me. My hearing must be going.”
“Show your seal or identification, state your business, and I'll call someone to verify your identity.”
Irritation laced the guard's voice as he addressed the doctor.
The doctor responded with utmost courtesy.
“Very well. You may address me as Doctor.”
“……What? Doctor?”
“I've come to explore the ancient ruins beneath this fine academy. I do hope we can have a pleasant time.”
Right after the doctor revealed his identity.
The guard stared at him in dumbfounded confusion.
His expression suggested he doubted what he'd just heard.
But the doctor pressed on, demanding entry with unabashed confidence.
“That should cover my introduction. I've stated my business, so how about letting me through now?”
The guard stood there flustered for a good ten seconds in response to the doctor's brazen demand.
Blink, blink.
After blinking repeatedly, the guard glared at him and snapped in a sharp tone.
“Are you messing with me? This place is full of scholars, so what kind of doctor are you……!”
“Of course, I am a doctor.”
“Shut up! Stop with the nonsense and hand over your seal or ID before I drag you to the guards!”
Thud.
The guard, seething with rage, shoved the doctor back with his spear shaft.
He seemed to have realized the doctor was toying with him.
As he pushed the doctor away, the guard called out to his comrade.
“This guy's a total lunatic who won't listen……!”
“Should we just haul him to the guards?”
“Yeah, that sounds like the smart move.”
Grumbling complaints spilled from the guard's lips.
Having ignored repeated warnings, the doctor was about to get a thorough beating and dragged off.
“Well, no helping it. Time to end the fun.”
Watching the guards, the doctor decided to drop the playful act.
Swish.
In his place, the doctor's hand rummaged through the bag he'd brought.
As his hand delved into the massive pouch, the guard who had lowered his spear grabbed the doctor's shoulder.
“What now? Finally going to show your ID?”
The guard's patience had reached its limit.
He gripped the doctor's shoulder with crushing force.
His heated voice boomed alongside the menacing grip.
“You should've shown your ID from the start instead of pissing me off!”
“…….”
“This time, you're pulling out that ID! Or else you're coming with me to the guards to check if you're really a doctor or just some village bum……!”
Swish.
The guard's voice cut off abruptly.
It was due to the icy glare piercing him from beyond the monocle.
“Title.”
A grotesquely distorted pupil.
An inhuman, eerie gaze revealed itself.
“Please, address me as Doctor.”
“Urk……!”
“If you make that mistake again, even I won't know what I'll do.”
Ah, ah.
A trembling voice escaped the guard facing the doctor.
The doctor's suddenly altered gaze felt like it was clutching his heart.
The doctor's mana began surging outward in waves.
“…….”
“…….”
The guards fell silent, staring at the doctor.
Swish.
By now, the doctor's hand emerged from the pouch, clutching a wriggling mass of flesh.
A sacrificial offering to absorb the backlash of grand magic.
Something the doctor had specially prepared for today's operation.
“No need to worry too much. Begerton Antares is a most merciful man; I won't kill just anyone.”
“…….”
“Of course, I couldn't come empty-handed. So I've brought plenty of gifts for you all.”
Heavy footsteps echoed from around the academy.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boooom!
The chimeras the doctor had prepared to seize control of the academy were on the move.
As the guards paled in terror, watching the mad doctor, Begerton Antares.
The doctor raised the pulsating flesh with a twisted smile.
“Now, let's begin the special lesson.”
Crack!
The wriggling mass burst in the doctor's grasp.
* * * * * *
Roan Adenov, a second-year in the academy's Knight Faculty.
He was the second son of a prestigious knightly house and a top student coveted by countless knight orders.
A once-in-a-generation genius, said to be among the empire's elite in talent.
The brown-haired boy had made his name not just in the academy, but across the entire empire.
“…….”
At the moment, Roan was leaning against a pillar of the Magic Faculty building, quietly spending time alone.
Naturally, he hadn't come to the Magic Faculty for his own business.
The person he was waiting for was a student from the small Alchemy Faculty attached next to it.
“Roan, sorry to keep you waiting?”
“……Avery.”
Roan had been leaning against the pillar, eyes closed in quiet wait.
Soon, a familiar voice rang in his ears.
His childhood friend Avery had finished class and stepped out of the building.
Her dark green hair swaying, Avery looked up at Roan through her round glasses.
“What's got you looking so pensive?”
At her question, Roan's gaze fell to the pendant hanging around her neck.
A shimmering amethyst pendant at her nape.
The pendant she wore every day was a talisman made by one of her great ancestors, a legendary alchemist.
According to Avery, her family had long been renowned for alchemy.
But as time passed and fortunes declined, they now ran a modest workshop in a corner of the capital.
“I was thinking the Alchemy Faculty might be gone in a few years.”
“Ah… With enrollment dropping every year, it might really happen.”
“And that building's mostly Magic Faculty labs now anyway.”
Soon, conversation about the Alchemy Faculty flowed between Roan and Avery.
It was a familiar topic, given Avery's affiliation.
Step, step.
Avery's legs hurried to match Roan's strides as he walked ahead.
Their footsteps echoed side by side down the academy corridor.
“It's not just here—the popularity of alchemy is waning across the whole empire.”
“……Avery.”
“It's true; imperial alchemy is in decline.”
Perhaps because he'd waited until her last class ended.
By now, sunset was spreading across the academy sky.
Under the sunset draping the heavens, Avery's words continued.
“But you know, Roan, Grandpa always said I had incredible talent since I was little.”
“Well, yeah. Even the Alchemy Faculty professors say so.”
In the fading glow, Roan's eyes fixed on his childhood friend's profile.
The Avery he knew always brimmed with energy when talking about alchemy.
Today was no different.
A bright smile played on her lips in Roan's eyes.
“My ancestor was such a great alchemist he made the ‘Elixir’ long ago. Thanks to it, he lived far longer than most.”
“…….”
“Look at this! This pendant was made by that ancestor too. They say it's a talisman that can protect you once from dangerous magic.”
She pulled out the pendant—something Roan had seen countless times—and held it toward him, recounting a story he'd heard dozens of times.
The talisman said to be crafted by the Golden Hand, Teliber.
A cherished heirloom passed down in Avery's family.
An object Roan had encountered endlessly since childhood.
‘It looks like just a regular trinket, not a talisman.’
Of course, Roan had never personally verified its effects.
He'd even wondered if it was just an old ornament with a fancy tale attached.
After so much time, it might have lost any talismanic function.
“If I become a great alchemist like my ancestor someday, skilled enough to make the Elixir—”
Still, there was no doubt it was a priceless treasure to Avery.
Hoo.
With a soft breath, fragments of her ambitious dream spilled toward Roan.
“Then maybe I could bring alchemy back into vogue in the empire?”
The dream of a great alchemist.
And the return of alchemy's golden age.
Avery's dream was far too grand for a mere girl.
“…….”
But Roan didn't mock it.
He harbored something similar in his own heart.
Instead of ridicule, he stopped Avery mid-stride.
Swish.
He grasped both her shoulders and met her green eyes with earnest intensity.
“R-Roan… What is it all of a sudden……?”
“Avery, you can do it.”
At first, he just wanted to offer encouragement.
Simple words of support.
Enough to make her day.
But watching her under the sunset sky stirred an impulse.
“You'll definitely become a great alchemist.”
“…….”
“Because I believe in you—”
Memories of the past dozen years flooded Roan's mind.
Memories of walking together.
Memories of stargazing under the night sky.
Fleeting emotions and recollections overflowed as affection in his chest.
The beautiful sunset framed the boy from behind.
“So, if you become a great alchemist.”
“……Yeah.”
“And if the future comes where I become a knight worthy of standing beside you.”
Impulse ignited the fuse.
The boy's eyes turned to the alchemist.
Her eyes, seen through her glasses, reflected Roan with the sunset at his back.
And in that moment, as Roan was about to bare his feelings—
“Then, marry me—”
Crack! Shatter.
A sudden explosion rang from Avery's chest.
Their gazes froze at the unexpected noise, turning to its source.
The pendant Avery had worn for so long.
The talisman said to ward off dangerous magic had shattered to pieces.
“Ah…….”
“…….”
A sigh escaped Roan's lips as he stared at it.
And above their heads, the burning sunset began to darken.
Rumble.
Echoing thunder and swirling storms.
Roan looked up, sensing the anomaly.
“What in the world……!”
Beyond the encroaching darkness in the sky, a translucent barrier draped over everything.
—A barrier.
A massive boundary separating the academy's interior from the outside was manifesting everywhere.
A magic of overwhelming scale, the likes of which he'd never seen.
Roan's eyes widened in shock at the grand spectacle unfolding overhead.
“…….”
The boy dreaming of knighthood faced the harsh reality crashing down.
Something was wrong at the academy.
That was Roan's conclusion.