Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Academy Without Choi Juwon [Regret] (2)
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Kim Siyeon asked with an angry expression.
"Baek Hyunseo. You saw the video from yesterday, right? There was testimony that your dad framed the instructor. You really didn't know anything?"
Baek Hyunseo had gotten a new phone not long ago. She had felt the need to communicate in various ways. So Kim Siyeon naturally assumed that Baek Hyunseo, the daughter of the person involved, would have heard all the uproar surrounding Baek Seok.
"I... um... I..."
Baek Hyunseo looked around at the people nearby. Faces filled with disgust toward her. It felt like they were looking at trash. She thought she had to reveal the truth. But seeing their expressions, she couldn't bring herself to speak it.
Baek Hyunseo wanted to avoid it. She wanted to run from her own responsibility.
If people learned the facts, she was terrified of the criticism that would come flying her way. She had vowed time and again to tell the truth, but when the moment arrived, she realized how arrogant her thoughts had been.
'Looking at their reactions... if they knew the truth, they'd all abandon me...'
The friends she thought she had, the ones who had worried about her when she was hurt—they were now staring at her with such cold expressions. And she hadn't even admitted yet that she knew about the intranet incident in advance.
'I don't know why, but no testimony has come out yet that I accessed the intranet without permission...'
She thought her sins would be more than enough once the intranet server was forcibly opened later. Unauthorized access by an individual was a serious crime. She had no idea how her father would respond afterward, but regardless of his actions, she instinctively knew her future held nothing but dark despair.
'I just can't bring myself to say it...'
Too afraid to say no or yes, Baek Hyunseo simply chose silence.
At that moment, Yoon Seulgi stepped forward to mediate.
"Siyeon... please don't be too harsh. I'm sure Hyunseo didn't know either."
Kim Siyeon glared at Yoon Seulgi.
"Stay out of it. Baek Hyunseo hasn't answered properly yet. Baek Hyunseo. Answer quickly. Did you know?"
"I... I didn't know."
Baek Hyunseo had unwittingly lied. Her whole body turned pale with fear.
Kim Siyeon let out a deep sigh.
"Haa... right, there's no way you knew first. If you did, you would've told us. No one in their right mind would pretend not to know unless they were crazy, right?"
Kim Siyeon pressed Baek Hyunseo again, as if confirming once more. Lee Haru came over and stopped her.
"Siyeon, that's enough now. It's not Hyunseo. I get that you're upset, but instead of blaming someone, we should decide how to move forward."
"Haa... yeah, you're right... Haru, what should we do?"
Lee Haru spoke in a sunken voice.
"We have to apologize..."
Kim Siyeon shot back.
"Isn't it too late for that?"
"Of course it is... Instructor Choi Juwon treated us so well... He must feel so betrayed and disappointed. If I put myself in his shoes, I can't even imagine the pain. Hundreds of people he trusted betrayed him—not just one. He begged us to believe in him with tears when he left..."
"Haru, should we at least send a text?... With even President Baek Juseok arrested, I think we owe him that much."
"Yeah... let's send a text at least. He probably won't reply..."
Right then, as they were talking.
"What are you all doing there?"
Yang Hangil approached from afar.
He looked irritably at the huddled group of students. His mood was extremely foul.
The day before, the NPS had raided and searched Helmont Academy.
- Our investigation found nothing unusual. Sorry for the inconvenience. However, there is one issue.
- Ha, is there still something left to say? If nothing turned up, just leave. What issue?
- Mr. Yang Hangil. It's about you. We reviewed the evaluation records of the students in your class, and since you took over as instructor, all their stats and overall abilities have shown a clear decline. Helmont Academy receives full national support. You need to deliver meaningful educational outcomes for the students. The academy earned its [Prestigious] title because your practical magic course had top-notch results nationwide for several years. If this continues, the national [Prestigious] title might be revoked soon.
- Wh-what are you saying? There's no such thing as granting and then revoking a prestigious academy title!
- It's not just the title. For an academy with the national [Prestigious] title, failing in your duty to efficiently train mages while drawing a high salary is a clear crime. You could face national-level sanctions.
- What nonsense is this? Do you think you can treat me like this? I'm one of the few mages in Baal Guild. Our guild master won't stand for it.
- Mr. Yang Hangil. Are you underestimating us? We know everything worth knowing. We've been in the field long enough. Do you think Choi Seung-hyun, who obsessively favors swordsmen, would move his forces for a mage like you? I don't know why he accepted you into the guild, but from what we've seen of him, he won't do anything for you.
The [Prestigious] title was granted by the nation only to the top academies for mage training support. Once awarded, it brought even more benefits, additional dungeon entry tickets, and various privileges.
Naturally, a [Prestigious] academy saw its reputation and enrollment soar.
Yang Hangil was now in a desperate crisis. The Helmont Academy he had desperately joined was on the verge of losing its [Prestigious] title. And he himself was being evaluated for dereliction of duty.
Of course, even more critical was the bet with Choi Juwon.
- Input condition: After Yang Hangil assumes the role of practical magic instructor, raise disciples' overall ability scores by at least 3%. Also, disciples must receive B-grade or higher on academic achievement satisfaction evaluations. Duration: 6 months. Fulfilled if achieved even once.
- If condition not met: Completely annihilate Yang Hangil's semen, remove one testicle, and cause baldness.
The most important part of Choi Juwon's conditions: After taking the [Practical Magic] instructor role, raise disciples' overall abilities by at least 3%.
If students' abilities were 100 when Yang Hangil started, they needed to reach 103 or higher. But now, they had dropped to around 90. He now needed to grow them by 13, not 3.
'Fuck, why do their abilities keep dropping? It's not like there's a curse.'
Yang Hangil initially suspected Choi Juwon as the cause of the students' stat declines. Maybe he had cursed them. He used magic to inspect each one individually, but found no curses.
Of course, his level couldn't detect SSS-grade magic.
'If this keeps up, I'm really screwed. If they drop further, it's impossible to raise them in 6 months.'
When he first made the bet, Yang Hangil thought he'd win easily. 3% would take less than a month. But now, it felt like pouring water into a leaky jar—his path forward was bleak.
'Fuck. With a talented instructor like me teaching, why are their abilities lower than under that bastard Choi Juwon? It's because these disciples aren't talented enough to follow my teachings. They're lazy and incompetent.'
Denying reality, Yang Hangil shifted the blame to his disciples.
He shouted at the huddled students ahead.
"Why the hell can't you absorb my teachings? You idiot bastards. I think the reason you aren't growing is your weak attitudes. Like baby birds sitting with mouths open, expecting food without doing anything yourselves!"
Yang Hangil held his staff-shaped artifact as he spoke to them.
"From today, I won't teach you theory. You lot seem better off learning by experiencing magic directly."
Then, Kim Siyeon stepped forward.
"What do you mean by that...?"
"This."
[Lightning]
-Zzzt zzzt zzzt
In an instant, lightning enveloped Kim Siyeon.
"Kyaaak!"
-Zap
-Zap
Struck directly by Yang Hangil's spell, Kim Siyeon writhed in pain. The surrounding students watched in horror. No one dared step in; they stayed silent.
Yang Hangil approached Kim Siyeon step by step, speaking coldly.
"I just used Lightning—why didn't you deploy defensive magic? If not that, you should've at least raised mana to protect your body. Useless bitch. That's why you're not growing. Not just you, Kim Siyeon—the rest of you shouldn't expect gentle words anymore. Think of it as death if you don't grow."
"Kuh... ugh..."
Leaving Kim Siyeon collapsed and groaning on the ground, Yang Hangil addressed the other disciples.
"You're all adults, so take responsibility yourselves if something happens. Your lack of growth is your fault. From now on, follow my teaching methods to fix your flaws. If you don't grow, you die. Especially you beginners."
With an expression mixing irritation and anxiety, Yang Hangil gripped his staff, turned sharply, and said,
"Today's class is in the Magic Duel Arena. Beginners, be there on time. If anyone runs, I'll make sure you never set foot in this industry again. Don't even think about it."
-Step step
Lee Haru and Yoon Seulgi rushed to Kim Siyeon, watching Yang Hangil's retreating figure.
"Ughhh..."
"A-are... you okay, Siyeon...?"
"Siyeon, snap out of it!"
Yoon Seulgi shouted urgently.
"Is there anyone who can use recovery magic? Anyone, help!"
Then, Baek Hyunseo hesitantly stepped forward, pulled out her necklace, and channeled mana into it.
-Whoooong
Kim Siyeon's wounds healed in an instant.
"Kuh... that lunatic Yang Hangil..."
Kim Siyeon struggled to her feet and said to Baek Hyunseo,
"Baek Hyunseo... thanks. Even after I suspected you earlier, you helped me. I won't doubt you needlessly anymore. Anyway, a recovery artifact? Where'd you get something like that?"
Baek Hyunseo fidgeted before quietly saying,
"On my birthday... Instructor Choi Juwon gave it to me as a celebration... He said since I get hurt a lot from being clumsy, it'd help..."
The atmosphere fell silent in an instant.
Kim Siyeon spoke in a choked voice.
"Yeah... come to think of it, Instructor Choi Juwon remembered every student's birthday in his classes and gave artifacts each time... I got one too..."
Choi Juwon had always handed out mysterious rare artifacts of unknown origin on students' birthdays. Jokes even flew that he was a black market dealer. Kim Siyeon looked at the bracelet on her wrist.
Suddenly, she recalled the conversation with Choi Juwon on her birthday.
- Kim Siyeon, birthday today, right? Here.
- Wow, this bracelet is so pretty!
- It's called the Survival Bracelet. It disappears after one use, but you'll find a use someday.
- Huh? Something this pretty vanishes after use?! Then I won't use it!
- It auto-activates in specific situations, so hard not to use it on purpose?
- No way... it's too pretty... I'd be heartbroken if it vanished...
- Listen well in class, and I'll give you something similar next birthday. Don't worry.
- Awesome! You're the best, Instructor! But where do you even get these artifacts?
- Hmm... that? Artifact collecting's my hobby, so I gathered them bit by bit.
- Come on, some look too pricey to buy! You cover all your students—where do you get so many? From dungeons yourself? I heard you were an A-rank hunter briefly!
- Yeah, but just A-rank. Not gathered myself—friend in a high guild sells them to me. No place to spend money anyway.
- Hmm... suspicious. Anyway, thanks for real! Instructor!
Kim Siyeon, trembling, barely stood and muttered,
"What are we supposed to do now... With Instructor Choi Juwon here, we never imagined crap like this..."
Yoon Seulgi patted Kim Siyeon comfortingly.
"For now, us beginners should head to the Magic Duel Arena together... Who knows what he'll do if we're late..."
"Yeah... let's go..."
Then, Seo Yerin from the beginner class sniffled from behind.
"I don't wanna go... I'm scared..."
Lee Haru comforted Seo Yerin until her sniffling stopped, and they all began walking together.
Yoon Seulgi, Baek Hyunseo, Kim Siyeon, Lee Haru, Seo Yerin, and the other practical magic beginner students dragged their heavy feet toward the Magic Duel Arena where Yang Hangil waited.