Chapter 318
Chapter 318
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 319
Chapter Title: Victory Over the S-Rank Demon
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A voice called out, and I turned my head.
Ellen stood frozen in place, staring at me with wide, round eyes.
Her gaze held shock and astonishment, along with a whirlwind of other complex emotions.
“…N-No way. How could this…”
Ellen muttered again, as if she couldn’t believe it.
I looked at her for a moment before turning my eyes back to Hyeon-gyo.
No matter what she was thinking, I didn’t have time to explain each detail.
My top priority right now was to put out the most urgent fire first.
“P-Priest!”
Ellen’s cry rang out again, but I ignored it and approached Hyeon-gyo.
Normally, I wouldn’t dream of doing anything else while using Rune’s Binding, but thanks to the effect of Moon’s Blessing, I could manage slow movements.
As I drew closer, his voice reached me.
“Urgh! You bastard—!”
Hyeon-gyo was still twisting his body, trying desperately to break free from Rune’s Binding.
He thrashed with the ferocity of someone ready to kill me on the spot, but until he shattered the binding, he wasn’t going anywhere.
I passed by him and went to Han Se-yeon.
I checked her thoroughly for any injuries, and fortunately, there were no signs of harm.
“…Kim Sun-woo. What the hell are you?”
Hyeon-gyo’s voice came from behind. It was laced with rage, but subdued, as if he’d already sensed his defeat.
“…You’re Kim Jin-woo, aren’t you?”
I turned around without answering.
His pitch-black eyes glared at me, still brimming with hostility.
“Answer me!”
“Hoo…”
Instead of replying, I let out a short breath and checked my condition.
My mana was nearing its limit.
Even with my stats boosted over fourfold by Moon’s Blessing, it wasn’t enough to sustain the massive mana drain of Rune’s Binding.
No point dragging this out. Time to end it.
I summoned another orb of light.
Woooong!
A pure white glow floated above my palm.
But with this level of mana, I couldn’t even scratch him.
As I focused to pour in more power, the orb fizzled out—paat!
“…Ugh.”
Dizziness hit me all at once.
Trying to maintain Rune’s Binding while casting another spell had overloaded my brain.
Even with Moon’s Blessing, combining [Rune’s Binding] with other magic was too much.
In that moment, doubt flickered across Hyeon-gyo’s face.
…
Then a smile crept onto his lips.
“…I see. You’ve hit your limit too.”
A hint of leisure returned to his expression.
“Of course. No one could keep using magic like that forever. You’re just human after all… Kuhaha…”
I had no idea why he was so thrilled, but Hyeon-gyo burst into loud laughter.
He must think I’d reached my mana limit.
I released Rune’s Binding.
The tendrils restraining his body instantly dissolved into sparkling dust and scattered lightly into the air.
Suddenly freed, Hyeon-gyo grinned.
“…That binding spell was impressive. The best one I’ve ever seen. But great power always comes with a heavy price. You couldn’t maintain it to the end.”
“…Keep yapping.”
I summoned the orb of light again.
Without Rune’s Binding active, it formed much more easily.
Hyeon-gyo’s face twisted in momentary panic.
I extended my hand and aimed at his head.
Woooong!
In response, Hyeon-gyo spewed black demonic energy.
Black smoke billowed from behind him, forming dozens of sharp black thorns.
Demonic energy amplified by his berserk state. He’d poured every last drop of his power into it.
And then.
Pang—!
Our spells shot toward each other at full force.
A massive magical shockwave swept through the surroundings.
My body was pushed back as I summoned a barrier with all my remaining mana.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwang! Kwaaaang—!
The thorns slammed into the barrier, shaking it violently.
A relentless barrage of thorns kept coming, forcing my body backward.
This was on a whole different level from his previous attacks.
But could I endure it? The answer was yes.
I gritted my teeth and poured all my focus into the barrier.
It teetered on the brink of shattering but held.
Finally, the thorn assault stopped.
Silence settled in.
As the rising smoke cleared and visibility returned, Hyeon-gyo’s form came into view.
He stood there grotesquely, his head completely gone.
The orb of light I’d fired before erecting the barrier had struck his head dead-on.
A message appeared before my eyes.
[You have achieved the ‘Solo Subjugation of an S-Rank Demon’ feat.]
[You acquire 10,000 points as a reward.]
[You have subjugated the S-Rank villain, ‘Hyeon-gyo’.]
[A major change in the future has been detected.]
[Karma increases by 1.5.]
[You have triumphed in combat against the target!]
[Due to the effect of Victor’s Dispatch, all stats increase by 1, Mana Control proficiency rises by 3%, and Light Attribute proficiency rises by 10%.]
[You have battled and subjugated numerous demons.]
[Your body ‘evolves’ to adapt to combat against demons.]
[A faint trace of ‘Demon Slayer’ is infused into your mana.]
“…Hoo.”
Only then did I truly feel my victory.
An overwhelming sense of relief and satisfaction flooded through me, beyond words.
Today, I had subjugated an S-Rank demon for the first time—entirely on my own.
After the fight with Hyeon-gyo, I immediately checked Han Se-yeon’s condition.
“…Mm.”
She was drenched in cold sweat and hadn’t regained consciousness.
She let out occasional pained groans, and when I touched her forehead, it burned like a furnace.
There wasn’t a single wound on her body.
What was going on?
“S-She seems to be in mana overload…”
Ellen crept closer, mumbling hesitantly.
Mana overload.
The opposite of mana exhaustion, it occurred when someone was exposed to intense mana waves.
Wizards had some resistance to it, but ordinary people did not.
Of course.
Hearing that explained Han Se-yeon’s suffering instantly.
“…Should I help her?”
Ellen asked cautiously.
“No need.”
I brushed her hair back once, then placed my hand on her forehead.
Focusing my mind, I sensed the rampaging mana surging through every corner of her body.
For a normal person, mana overload could be fatal.
I had to control it before things got worse.
“Hoo…”
After a short breath, I slowly began regulating her mana.
It started responding to my will.
Controlling someone else’s mana was extremely dangerous—like performing open-heart surgery.
No room for error.
Thus, I untangled the knotted mana inside her, one by one.
Her mana resisted at first, but my precise control subdued it quickly.
About five minutes passed like that.
Han Se-yeon returned to a peaceful state.
“…Phew.”
Fortunately, I’d succeeded without a single mistake.
My prior experience taming mana while consuming elixirs had helped greatly.
Now Han Se-yeon was stable too…
Which left the biggest headache.
I turned to Ellen.
She flinched violently at my gaze.
Her trembling pupils fixed on me as she bowed deeply at the waist.
“T-The Rune Clan’s Ellen greets the Priest…”
She’d completely bought that I was the clan’s priest.
Fair enough—after seeing my combat prowess and Rune’s Binding, it was a natural conclusion.
Still, I never imagined she’d find out while I was in Kim Sun-woo’s form, of all things.
How should I handle this?
“…Priest?”
With no reply, Ellen asked again.
A flurry of thoughts raced through my mind in that brief moment.
And I reached a decision.
“…I tried to keep it hidden to the end, but it seems I’ve been exposed.”
After much deliberation, I decided to play the part of the clan’s priest.
It was far easier than explaining how a non-clan member could use Rune’s Binding.
Ellen’s eyes widened hugely.
“Y-You really are the Priest…?”
[Latent Trait, ‘Overimmersion’ activates!]
“That’s right… I am the Priest of the clan.”
Ellen prostrated herself flat, slamming her forehead to the ground.
I swear I heard a thud.
“P-Priest, forgive my insolence!”
Her devotion to the priest was as intense as ever.
It felt burdensome at first, then a bit annoying, so I decided to tease her a little.
“I’m deeply disappointed.”
At my curt words, Ellen lifted her head slightly. Her eyes quivered.
“I don’t know your reasons, but you joined hands with a demon for your own gain.”
“T-That’s…”
Ellen fell silent, out of excuses.
“I’m sorry…! For the clan’s revival, to obtain the secret art, I just…”
“That’s an excuse.”
“…Urk.”
Ellen slammed her forehead back down.
Thud! She lifted it again.
“…But Priest, why are you here as a student at the academy?”
The question I’d been dreading finally came.
I swallowed hard and answered.
“…Infiltration.”
“Infiltration…”
Ellen cried out in a voice thick with emotion.
She pondered for a moment, then spoke.
“…I see. All those demon terror incidents at the academy… You resolved them all, Priest!”
Ellen interpreted my words to suit her narrative.
It was a pretty convincing take, so I nodded.
“…Yes. I infiltrated to uproot the evil hidden in the school.”
Her eyes trembled once more at my words.
“Then ‘Kim Jin-woo’ is another of your identities, Priest?”
“…Kim Jin-woo?”
“I overheard the demon earlier. He called you Kim Jin-woo. And Kim Jin-woo uses the same abilities as you, doesn’t he?”
She’d pieced it together that far?
I hesitated again.
Should I reveal the Kim Jin-woo card too?
Half-baked lies would unravel quickly. Better to commit fully.
“Yes. Kim Jin-woo is me.”
“As I thought…! So you’re hiding even more identities beyond Kim Sun-woo?”
Ellen slammed her head down again.
“Forgive my rudeness until now!”
She must have remembered how sharply she’d treated “Kim Jin-woo.”
I thought for a moment, then nodded.
“I deceived you too, so I understand. You’re forgiven on that front.”
Her expression brightened a little.
“…However.”
“…?”
“Teaming up with a demon is still disappointing, no matter how I look at it. Especially since we share the same blood.”
“Aaah! I’m sorry!”
Ellen banged her head again—thud!
I worried she’d draw blood.
“I’ll cut ties with Han Se-jin today!”
“No. Stay under Han Se-jin.”
“…Pardon?”
Ellen looked up.
With the situation irreparably tangled, I planned to turn it to my advantage.
“Han Se-jin joined hands with a demon. Given his greed, cruelty, and lust for power, who knows what threat he poses to humanity.”
“…As expected. You knew that far?”
“As Priest of the clan, I’m assigning you a mission.”
“A mission?”
“Monitor Han Se-jin. Report anything suspicious. Deceive him thoroughly so he never suspects.”
Ellen stared at me. Her eyes quivered with fervor again.
I met her gaze, then turned to Han Se-yeon.
“I plan to make Han Se-yeon the head of the Han family.”
A message popped up.
[You have achieved the ‘Clan Deception’ feat.]
[You acquire 3,000 points as a reward.]
At that moment, intense mana warped the surrounding space dramatically.
The ritual circles etched into the floor and stone slabs began to glow.
Deciphering the floor ritual, I realized what was happening.
Someone outside was probing the rift to enter.
I glanced at Hyeon-gyo’s corpse on the ground.
If people found it, there’d be endless problems.
I needed to seal lips beforehand.
“Ellen.”
“…Yes?”
“The Special Task Force will burst in soon.”
“…Ah, yes. Should I say I took down that demon?”
I shook my head.
That would paint a target on her back from demons and Han Se-jin.
I could avoid that while settling a score.
“When the Special Task Force arrives, tell them: ‘Kim Chang-hyun’ took down the demon.”
I decided on petty revenge against Kim Chang-hyun.