Domain Shattered, Clown's Heist
Han A-in cautiously opened her eyes. The sight that greeted her was a massive heavenly bell floating in the sky above, with Sa Mu-yeong standing beneath it, gripping a spear of pure white.
And instinctively, she knew. This was a Domain.
Han A-in thrashed wildly, but the bindings holding her body fast didn't budge an inch.
"Ugh…!"
Tears began streaming from her eyes unbidden.
"Hic… sob…."
I don't want to die. Her body trembled uncontrollably.
No matter how hard she tried to summon her mana, it refused to respond. She felt like an ordinary person.
As a mage, there was nothing she could do. All Han A-in could manage was glare venomously at Sa Mu-yeong through her tears.
A crushing sense of helplessness surged through her.
She felt the bitter limit of her own talent down to her bones.
Would it be easier to just give up? Like Father did?
That was when it happened.
KABOOM!!
A slashing strike tore through space toward Sa Mu-yeong. A thin line of light flashed like lightning, then erupted into flames that seemed ready to incinerate the world.
"…!"
Han A-in's eyes widened. She felt the power binding her weaken.
Crack!
Freeing herself, Han A-in used her staff as a crutch to stand. But her legs had gone limp, her pale, slender thighs quivering.
Thud.
"Kuh…!"
She collapsed right back down.
Raising her head, she saw dozens of slashes raining down on Sa Mu-yeong like mad. And the flames burned so fiercely it was questionable if they'd ever go out.
-KAAAAAAGH!!
Sa Mu-yeong's scream echoed. He thrashed wildly, trying to escape the inferno.
But no matter how frantically he flailed, the flames didn't fade.
-UAAAAAAGH!!
His screams gradually grew quieter until they vanished entirely.
Crack!
Cracks began spiderwebbing through the Domain.
BOOM!! Crackle-boom!! THUD!!
The arrogant heavenly bell crashed to the ground, the piled snow around it melted away.
Han A-in stared blankly at the scene.
She couldn't comprehend how it was possible—or how someone strong enough to deploy a Domain could be taken down so easily.
BOOM!!
The six wings had burned to ash. Wingless, Sa Mu-yeong slammed into the ground and began desperately crawling.
The slashes had severed his limbs, but he was still regenerating.
-Hah… hah….
But regeneration had reached its limit; his body slowly crumbled.
-U… ur….
Shing.
BOOM!!
Han A-in let out an involuntary laugh—not from joy, but absurdity.
"Haha…."
They say people burst into hollow laughter when faced with something overwhelmingly absurd. Just like now.
Congratulations! Defeated ??? and saved Orbis!
Reward: 5 Stats, 20000 A Coins
1st Grade Relic: Clay Ark…
"Nooo, that's not allowed!"
Thud!
A voice rang out from afar, exaggerated and theatrical. There stood a man in a ridiculous clown mask, flanked by a female clown with a scythe slung over her shoulder.
Her ample breasts jiggled with every movement.
The clown's gaze fixed on Sa Mu-yeong's ashen remains.
"No…! So pointlessly!!"
He collapsed, bursting into tears.
"Wahhh!!!"
A second later, he sprang up again.
"Hand over the relic peacefully, and there'll be no bloodshed."
The clown clasped his hands together pleadingly.
"Cl, Clown…!"
Tension filled the air instantly. Students drew their weapons—
"Wait! Hold on!"
The clown shook his head at the armed students.
"I'm a world-renowned clown. This atmosphere isn't fun."
He nudged the female clown beside him.
"How about trading it for this? Multi-purpose, you know."
"…."
A brief silence fell.
"…Fine then, no choice—Domain Expansion!"
The clown stomped the ground.
KABOOM!
The earth split, and the students' formation crumbled in an instant.
Even Yi Han-su was caught off guard, his eyes widening. But no Domain materialized.
It was a feint. The clown had stomped to disrupt their footing and charged straight at Yi Han-su.
"I'll take this."
In a flash, the Clay Ark was in the clown's hands.
The barrier enveloping Orbis began to fade. The sun had set, plunging the sky into darkness. As it vanished, heroes and medics swarmed in to handle the aftermath.
Reporters arrived too, initially blocked by Orbis staff, but eventually forcing their way through.
The barrier's immense scale and the absurdity of an Orbis raid—not once, but twice.
Crowds glared at Orbis demanding explanations, but the academy responded with silence. A week later, they issued an apology statement.
Reports identified the ringleader as the notorious criminal "Clown." The World Criminal Management Association raised his threat level and bounty.
The Relic Management Association demanded compensation for the loaned relics stolen from Orbis.
Stolen relics: 1x 2nd Grade, 2x 3rd Grade, 16x 4th Grade, 22x 5th Grade.
Total deaths: 8.
Among them was Sa Mu-yeong, a somewhat famous hero, sparking minor controversy. He was reported as killed fighting the Clown, drawing complaints from a few students, but the narrative never changed.
"Ugh… damn…."
An unfamiliar ceiling. I was in the hospital.
Having burned through my mana like crazy for the first time, I ended up hospitalized for a week with mana exhaustion.
Guessing I'd be bored, Yui-seol visited often.
-Tell her to come tomorrow too…!
Tyrbing spouted nonsense midway, but I figured it was backlash from forcibly lifting my penalty.
Tyrbing said it wouldn't be easy next time. When I asked why, it cited lack of power.
Apparently, it transferred my penalty to itself to break the shackles.
-Get a 'sword' relic ASAP.
I offered my black dagger, but Tyrbing raged that it couldn't eat trash like that.
Come to think of it, we could've just disarmed the gimmick for a clear… but I decided to forget it.
That might've gotten other students killed. Sa Mu-yeong barely used half the Clay Ark's power, yet it was a 1st Grade relic—instant death on a graze.
The gap widens insanely with higher grades.
"Hi?"
On my last day, Han Sia visited. Word was the 3rd years had been on an overseas gate training trip, just back.
Inter-nation teleports are restricted for various reasons, so it took ages.
"Want me to peel an apple?"
Han Sia smiled, but I shook my head. No appetite.
-Ask for bunny-shaped…!
Tyrbing's weird again—definitely overexertion side effects.
Surprisingly, Han Sia ignored me and made a bunny apple. As a top mage-sword hybrid, her peeling skills were leagues above average.
"Want me to feed you?" -Say yes…! "I'm good."
-No.
Luckily, my mana exhaustion was mostly gone, so I ate it myself. Footsteps approached from outside.
Step, step.
Like dragging slippers.
Slide!
The door opened, revealing Yui-seol in white socks and three-stripe slippers.
"You're out!"
One hand in her pocket, a bag on her arm, she strode in noisily. Han Sia and I turned to her.
Yui-seol blinked at us alternately.
"Huh?"
She stared blankly at Han Sia.
"…." "…."
Silence hung briefly. Han Sia broke it first.
"Hi?"
She tilted her head slightly right and waved lightly.
Seo Ji-ho halted before Yi Han-su's hospital room.
"…."
Having visited Cha Ryu-jin and Han A-in's rooms first, he sensed something off and stopped.