Chapter 152

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 152

Chapter Title: Manifestation Magic Becomes My Specialty

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Suddenly, manifestation magic had become my specialty.

After parting ways with Yoon Ha-young, I was left alone in the park clearing.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I considered heading back to the dorms, but I wanted to cool my head and spend some time by myself, so I stayed in the park.

Glancing around, I started seeing students trickling back into the school grounds one by one.

Among them were some shedding tears in sorrow.

Even though I'd saved more people than in my previous life, the news of deaths still left a heavy weight in my chest. There was no helping that.

What if it had been someone close to me?

I'd be suffering just like them.

The story would only drag us into graver situations as it progressed.

It wouldn't be strange at all if someone died in an accident along the way.

Still, I'd have to run even harder to prevent that from happening.

I let out a deep sigh and pulled out my smart student handbook.

There were a bunch of messages waiting.

From Lee Seo-jun, Yoo A-ra, Shin Young-jun, and others.

Choi Seo-yoon's messages were piled up pretty high too. Quite a few missed calls as well.

She probably had no idea what went down inside the dungeon, so these must be messages of worry.

[I'm alive.]

I fired off a quick survival notice and hopped onto the internet.

A reply from Choi Seo-yoon came right away, but I'd check it later.

Right now, there was something else I wanted to look into immediately.

Logging on, the internet was blowing up over today's terrorist attack, just as expected.

I scrolled through the portal site, then clicked on one article.

「The terrorist incident at Korean Sorcerer Academy has been resolved. However, they failed to locate Chris—or rather, Jeong Hyeon—and Kim Hye-chan, who were disguised as demons. The association is struggling with the search.」

It was an article saying they hadn't found Jeong Hyeon—aka Chris.

But there was one odd detail.

They hadn't found Won Hyeok either. Something was off.

Won Hyeok was the one I'd taken care of. There should have been a body.

"...Did Jeong Hyeon take the corpse?"

It was possible.

He might have snatched it to figure ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out what happened.

In this world, autopsies could reveal a ton of info.

"Should I start incinerating bodies from now on?"

I'd let my guard down. Autopsies weren't handled much in the original story, so I hadn't paid it any mind.

Especially not villains doing them.

Lately, it felt like the villains kept pulling moves I hadn't anticipated.

"...It probably doesn't matter much."

The Child of Prophecy's existence was something the demons learned about in the original anyway.

I slipped the smart student handbook back into my pocket.

Now, time to check those messages from when I took down Won Hyeok earlier.

At the same time, today's karma gains and points popped up before my eyes.

True to form for taking down an S-rank villain, the karma and points haul was decent.

1.8 karma ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and 15,000 points.

Not a bad result, but it didn't feel like a massive windfall.

I'd spent points preparing for today's incident: two demon detection compasses and one superior concealment potion.

A whopping 40,000 points gone, leaving me 25,000 in the red.

"Tch."

Still, I'd resolved the incident that worried me most, so I had to call it a win.

Plus, taking out the target yielded an unexpected bonus.

Super Regeneration.

It was exactly what it sounded like—a regeneration trait.

This power wasn't unique to demons; some monsters and sorcerers had it too. That's why super regeneration was classified as a "trait" rather than a "skill."

But since this wasn't the genuine article, it wasn't quite as potent.

It came with a duration and cooldown.

Still, it was an incredibly useful ability, and I was in a good mood because of it.

"I'd love to test it out."

But I hesitated to try. Cutting off my own body part? How many people could do that stone-cold sober?

Sure, I'd self-harmed for traits before, but slicing off a limb was a whole different ballgame.

"Tch."

An opportunity would come eventually. In real combat.

"Right."

There was one more harvest.

The Infinity Mask.

The root of all evil in this world—a class-1 illegal magic artifact—had fallen into my hands.

The ways to use it were endless.

How should I put it to work?

"Hmmmmm."

I sank deep into thought.

Late into the night.

Jeong Hyeon finished the autopsy on Won Hyeok's corpse and returned to the Ten Demon Society's hideout.

As he entered, numerous demons lurked in the shadows, gathered without even a summons.

They'd come to hear the full story of the day's events.

"You're finally here."

Someone spoke from the darkness.

"Jeong Hyeon, what the hell happened?"

Amid the S-rank demons surrounding him, Jeong Hyeon calmly opened his mouth.

"Lord Won Hyeok's sudden actions threw the plan into disarray."

Jeong Hyeon calmly explained what he'd gone through.

Won Hyeok's outburst. And how it led to students hiding, derailing the plan.

From his perspective, he had a point—he even showed footage of Won Hyeok.

Maybe because Won Hyeok's reputation wasn't great even among the Ten Demon Society.

The anger aimed at Jeong Hyeon quickly shifted to Won Hyeok.

"Tch. In the end, the old fool botched it."

"I saw it coming ages ago."

"Serves him right."

Even with a fellow demon dead, there wasn't a trace of sorrow in their voices.

If anything, some seemed relieved. As the demons stirred, a low voice echoed from the darkness.

"Quiet."

Everyone shut up instantly. It was the Demon King.

Jeong Hyeon immediately knelt before the king.

"Jeong Hyeon. I have many questions. Did the Child of Prophecy kill Won Hyeok?"

"The autopsy revealed traces of mana I'd never felt before. I suspect it's the Demon-Slaying Power wielded by the Child of Prophecy."

"...I see."

The king sighed. Seongjin had cost them another key demon asset.

Won Hyeok was the Ten Demon Society's eldest, a living piece of their history.

"This isn't good. Even with Demon-Slaying Power, a mere 18-year-old human... I never imagined they'd triumph over Won Hyeok."

Everyone nodded.

The situation had shocked them too.

His power ranked high even among the society.

"Not for nothing the 'Child of Prophecy.' The previous king's prophecy holds true after all..."

The king sighed again.

The Child of Prophecy was still a bud, not yet bloomed.

Yet they'd slain an S-rank demon. Who knew what threat they'd become once grown? Unimaginable.

"Any other traces?"

"Yes."

"What?"

"Beyond the Demon-Slaying Power, I found traces of various spells."

"Various spells? That's valuable intel. A clue to what type of sorcerer the Child of Prophecy is."

"Yes. Investigation shows the Child of Prophecy uses light-attribute manifestation magic."

"Is that their main specialty?"

"No. My guess is their true specialty lies elsewhere."

A separate specialty, despite wielding light-attribute manifestation.

Fitting for the prophesied child—anything but ordinary.

"What is it?"

"Support magic. And... an exceptionally skilled support specialist, at that."

Due to yesterday's incident, the 'Second Midterms' were canceled.

The Korean Sorcerer Academy, which had vowed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠no recurrences, faced massive backlash after another breach.

The academy always got a raw deal, but this time, they truly had no excuse.

The teacher, Chris, was a globally renowned magic education consultant.

From the academy's view, they'd hired a vetted expert. Bad luck was the only explanation.

Today, a memorial service began in the grand auditorium for the tragically deceased students.

In the somber atmosphere, every student attended without fail.

Amid countless cameras and reporters, student speeches continued.

—We are in shock. Eight friends lost their lives, and two more were injured. The students of Korean Sorcerer Academy...

The students focused intently on the lengthy speech with wide, clear eyes.

Next came speeches from Magic Association sorcerers.

—Demons have deeply rooted themselves in human society. Their methods grow ever more brutal and cunning. Furthermore...

To sum up the long speeches: they'd bolster security to prevent repeats, thoroughly investigate the incident, and punish the culprits.

...Time passed, and the memorial ended. Students poured out of the auditorium.

"Sigh. What a mess."

"Tell me about it."

Even the usually cheerful students couldn't muster smiles today.

As they began to disperse...

"Class 2-A, gather up."

Shin Young-jun rounded up Class A.

Once assembled, he forced a smile and suggested,

"Enough moping. How about we all grab lunch together?"

"Yeah, let's do it."

"I'm in."

Everyone agreed. I had time, so I joined too.

Soon, we arrived at a restaurant. It was the same barbecue joint Class A had hit last time.

Six per table.

At mine: Lee Seo-jun, Yoon Ha-young, Shin Young-jun, Lee Hyeon-ju, and Yoo A-ra.

A table of main characters.

"This sucks."

"Forget it. Don't dwell. Oh, right—so what happens with the exam now?"

"Probably replaced like last semester's. And we've got three days off for mourning."

Shin Young-jun and Lee Hyeon-ju chatted. Meanwhile, meat hit the grill.

Sizzle...

The searing sound made my mouth water.

Lee Seo-jun reached for the tongs to grill. I snatched them first.

"I'll do it."

"Why? I can handle it."

"Nah. You suck at grilling."

"Hoho..."

Lee Seo-jun shut up, out of excuses. He poured water into an empty cup and set it on the table.

Probably felt awkward doing nothing.

Pathetic.

As I grilled diligently, a voice drifted from nearby.

"Heard one of the infiltrating demons vanished."

"Yeah. Apparently a demon corpse went missing. High-rank one, too."

"Hey, what if one of us took it down?"

The chatter from the next table pierced the wall.

I glanced over. Yoon Ha-young was lips sealed, desperately acting natural.

It was obvious. She might as well advertise suspicious guy here.

To loosen her expression, I placed the first done piece on her plate.

"Eat."

"Huh? Oh?"

Yoon Ha-young snapped to, looking at me. She nodded.

"Mmm. Thanks."

She popped the meat in, chewed thoroughly, swallowed, and beamed.

"Tasty."

Her face finally relaxed.

I chuckled and kept grilling.

Then Shin Young-jun across from me eyed me weirdly.

"...Why prioritize Yoon Ha-young?"

I dropped the next piece on his plate.

"Sorry for overlooking you first."

"Too late."

Shin Young-jun growled in mock drama.

"Right, Kim Seon-woo. You took down a demon yesterday and rushed off. Where'd you go?"

Yoo A-ra chimed in from diagonal.

Demon takedown—probably when I offed a B-rank in front of her. Shin Young-jun perked up.

"Oh yeah. You said you got one demon in the dungeon, right?"

Everyone at school knew I'd claimed a B-rank demon in the dungeon.

I'd told the association investigators myself.

We were even getting commendations soon, me and Lee Seo-jun.

"Couldn't leave it to the others. Situation was dire."

"Hmm. I see?"

Yoo A-ra nodded at my answer. Then I felt eyes from across—Lee Seo-jun, giving me a meaningful look.

After eating, I split from the group. Had a place to be.

The land I'd bought two months ago.

Portaling to Gangwon Province, I hiked a rugged mountain path for about 30 minutes.

Finally, I reached my destination.