Magic Academy's Genius Blinker - Chapter 121
Chapter 121
The Korokoro Tribe’s Village (4)
The top newspaper in the magical society, Magician Planet. Though not officially part of it, ‘Clickin,’ who had made a name for himself by reporting multiple sensational scandals to Magician Planet, was recently tailing a certain mage as a paparazzo.
‘Stella Academy cadet, Baek Yu-seol.’
The boy gained significant media attention when it was revealed he co-authored the solution to the Random Aeration Cross Formula with the genius alchemist, Alterisha.
Before that, he had preemptively blocked a necromancer’s attack, preventing a catastrophic disaster, and later defeated a 6-Risk Dark Mage in the Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree.
Even though he was a Stella cadet, the numerous extraordinary achievements he had accomplished in just half a year made it clear that Clickin wasn’t the only one chasing him.
As proof, he had exchanged a few secret signals with ‘colleagues’ on this very train.
However…
‘I’m different from those guys on a fundamental level!’
Those trash journalists would snap a provocative photo and instantly write a sensational headline to induce misunderstanding.
Unlike them, Clickin took pride in always presenting the world with the facts, backed by solid evidence.
The public’s right to know!
To fulfill that right, journalists put their lives on the line and fight tirelessly.
Stalking a mage required exceptional disguising and infiltration skills, as well as bold courage that could face death.
But look now.
Faced with a ‘real’ subject, those pitiful fools couldn’t even touch their cameras and were kneeling, trembling in fear!
‘Grr…!’
No wonder.
Clank! Even as the train violently shook and rattled along the tracks, that man walked down the corridor without any disturbance.
‘The Mad Magic Gourmand, Calavin’
A notorious mage killer who once terrorized the dawn streets painted in deep violet.
As someone who knew better than anyone how to kill mages, he had murdered hundreds of magic warriors and devoured their corpses in a gruesome and horrifying manner that chilled many to the bone.
After disappearing ten years ago, it was widely rumored that Calavin had been killed by someone…
T h i s w as c o pi ed f ro m k i n g m t l . o r g
‘No doubt! That’s Calavin!’
The legendary mage killer had reappeared as a Dark Mage.
And he was confronting the three most promising cadets of Stella Academy.
Ma Yuseong, Hae Wonryang, Baek Yu-seol.
Each of them was an incredibly famous teenage mage, and they were facing the worst killer…
‘This is a scoop…’
He would die.
Staying here would mean getting caught in the crossfire.
Not even bones would remain.
But despite knowing this, Clickin forced his trembling hands to reach for the camera and press the shutter.
‘Even if I die, I have to capture this…!’
The astonishing professional spirit as a journalist allowed him to resist even the killing intent of the Dark Mages, making his fingers move.
“Crazy!”
“Unbelievable! Are we fighting in mid-air?!”
Crash!!
Clickin managed to capture the scene of the Stella boys opening the train door and jumping off the cliff, followed by the Dark Mages tearing through the train walls and leaping out after them.
Clank! Clank!
His heart was still pounding.
T h i s was co p ie d f r o m ki ng m t l. o r g
His hands trembled so much that he could barely check the photos he had taken.
But Clickin was a pro.
Instead of wondering ‘Am I alive?’ he focused on confirming ‘Did I get the shot?’ with superhuman concentration, checking the film in his camera.
T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n gm t l .or g
‘…It’s a scoop!’
He had captured the Dark Mages chasing the Stella boys in a raw, artistic manner.
* * *
When Stella cadets become second-year students, they officially receive ‘missions’ and can be dispatched externally.
At that point, the ‘Betelgeuse Knights’ of Stella Academy will continuously monitor or protect the cadets’ locations.
The knights operate in small groups and often move discreetly to avoid being noticed by the cadets.
However.
Such missions are usually assigned to ‘lower knights.’
Betelgeuse Knights, 3rd Magical Escort Battalion, Senior Knight and 6-Class Magic Warrior, Baydo.
For the first time in a long while, he had been assigned a mission to directly manage cadets.
‘What a hassle…’
Baydo was extremely displeased with receiving a mission typically given to lower knights with little experience.
Sending a 6-Class senior knight to manage mere cadets was a severe waste of manpower.
However, since it was Instructor Lee Han-wol who personally requested this mission, he couldn’t refuse it.
Lee Han-wol, with his background as a former ‘top-class knight’ and commander of the knights, had a significant seniority advantage.
But… it wasn’t a bad mission. It was quite interesting.
[Stella 1st Year S-Class]
[Ma Yuseong, Hae Wonryang, Baek Yu-seol]
[Escort them closely]
Typically, lower knights would manage anywhere from ten to thirty dispatched cadets.
But this time, unusually, a senior knight was tasked with closely escorting just three Stella cadets.
And they were first-year cadets.
T h i s wa s cop i ed f r o m k ing m t l .o r g
Not just any cadets, but the three most promising boys from the S-Class, making Baydo not consider this time boring at all.
‘I wonder if there was really a need to use me…’
Baydo, who had casually boarded the front car of Tozmik Ho, yawned widely. He felt no sense of urgency. Dark Mages wouldn’t act in such a public place.
If Dark Mages acted in such crowded areas, they too would suffer significant losses… and there were no such bold Dark Mages these days.
So, he thought he could just sit back and monitor the location displayed on his Magic Screen.
Tracking their location was also easy, as dispatched Stella cadets were given a ‘Stella Badge,’ a tracking device.
The cadets could refuse to wear it, but pressing the badge in an emergency would instantly call for escort support, and not wearing it came with penalties at the store, so most cadets chose to wear it.
‘If anything happens, they’ll call…’
…He thought comfortably, until about ten minutes ago.
Just as he had dozed off, a loud red light flashed on the Magic Screen.
“What, what…”
Startled, he checked the signal on the screen. Someone had undoubtedly sent a distress signal via the badge.
‘A distress signal from the train…?’
As he pondered that, he felt an overwhelming amount of dark mana emanating from the back of the train. Even Baydo momentarily felt pressured by the formidable dark mana.
‘Damn it!’
He had thought it was just a short vacation, but now trouble had erupted.
After hastily sending a ‘support request’ signal, he grabbed his wand and prepared to move to the back car. But realizing he didn’t have enough time to run, he decided to smash through the ceiling and leap atop the train, sprinting towards the rear.
Clank! Clank!
“What is this…”
The incident had already ended.
Half of the train’s rear car was torn apart.
Th is w a s c op ied fr o m k i ng m tl . o r g
Passing trembling passengers clutching their cameras like photo club members, he leaped skyward.
Crash!!
Using Super Jump, the advanced form of Power Jump, he pushed off the air and surged forward, spotting two silhouettes in the distance.
‘Those guys…!’
Thud!
Stopping at the edge of a cliff, Baydo pointed his wand at them. They turned around, sensing his mana.
Their expressions were filled with cold anger, making even Baydo tense up.
‘No doubt. Azmick, and Calavin…!’
He had heard they disappeared, but why were they active here of all places?
“Oh my. A knight from Stella is here? But what to do. I’m not in a good mood today. Would you kindly leave?”
“Depending on your answer, I might just do that.”
Baydo checked the screen on his wristwatch. The cadets’ signals had completely vanished.
“The cadets in the last car… what happened to them?”
Even as he asked, Baydo already knew.
‘They must be dead. All three of them.’
It was a painful thought.
Each of the three boys was a prodigy, highly anticipated, but due to his mistake, they met their deaths.
Or perhaps, it was more accurate to call it a natural disaster.
Who could have guessed that the most notorious Dark Mages would be on this train?
However.
The answer he received was completely unexpected.
“We lost them.”
“…What?”
“I said we lost them, you bastard. Damn it. I need to rip you apart to calm down…”
“Calm yourself, Azmick. You haven’t even prepared your ‘nails’ properly.”
Calavin restrained her.
“If you were fully prepared, it’d be one thing, but not now.”
Azmick still couldn’t calm her excitement, baring her elongated fangs, but Calavin had no intention of fighting now.
Calavin, who had once been notorious as a mad killer, had operated undetected for years.
Why?
Because behind his mad nickname was thorough calculation.
‘This isn’t good.’
Having released dark mana, magic warriors were likely converging on this location. If they fought Stella’s knight now, with Azmick unprepared, they risked getting captured after a prolonged fight.
T h i s w a s c o p ie d f r o m ki n g m t l . o r g
“…The mission is a failure. Let’s withdraw.”
Ultimately, following Calavin’s suggestion, Azmick also retreated, leaving Baydo utterly baffled.
“What is this situation…”
The fact that the Dark Mages left was one thing, but originally…
‘Did mere first-year cadets survive an encounter with those guys?’
T h i s w a s c op ie d f r o m k i n g m tl. or g
The Stella badge still showed no response, but it was possible they had moved beyond a certain distance.
Also, there was no reason for the Dark Mages to lie in anger.
‘How did they manage that?’
He had heard many stories of extraordinary first-year cadets. Tales of geniuses blessed by the gods entering as freshmen this year were all too common.
But still, they were just inexperienced freshmen.
Even he couldn’t figure out a way to escape from them, only pathetically buying time.
“Ha, hahaha…”
“Knight! We came in a hurry after receiving the call!”
“Where are the enemies?!”
Magic warriors from other units, who had received the support request belatedly, arrived, but Baydo couldn’t say anything.
‘I’ve heard the word genius many times, but to think it would be to this extent…’
Caught between admiration and helplessness, Baydo could only laugh.
“Knight…?”
The magic warriors, still bewildered by the situation, could only look around in confusion.
* * *
Meanwhile, Baek Yu-seol, who had fallen into the dungeon, clutched his head and groggily got up. Unlike himself, who had fallen in an awkward position, Hae Wonryang and Ma Yuseong were lying on the ground in a refined posture.
“Ugh…”
They belatedly got up, quickly drew their wands, and guarded their surroundings. Thankfully, they detected no dark mana or killing intent, letting out a sigh of relief.
“I thought I was really going to die…”
Baek Yu-seol nonchalantly dusted off his shoulders and stood up. Watching him, Hae Wonryang was somewhat taken aback.
“Does this situation not bother you at all?”
Despite encountering Dark Mages and nearly being driven to the brink of death.
Even the usually composed Hae Wonryang had been so tense that his mind went blank, yet Baek Yu-seol had calmly timed the dungeon entrance’s opening and accurately leaped in at the right moment.
Seeing him stand up so nonchalantly made Hae Wonryang wonder if he was really a fellow first-year.
“Well, yeah.”
No matter how many incidents Baek Yu-seol had recently experienced, it was unlikely he could remain this calm. It was probably thanks to Red Spring March’s ability, which fully displayed its effect.
The ability to relax and maintain composure no matter what happens. But Hae Wonryang, unaware of this, couldn’t help but sense a certain aura from Baek Yu-seol.
A calmness that constantly seeks the next move for survival and victory, regardless of the situation.
It was like… the mental space one would expect from a seasoned veteran who had gone through countless battles.
‘…I’m overthinking.’
Thi s wa s c o p i e d f r o m k i ng m t l. o rg
Realizing this, Hae Wonryang felt a sense of self-reproach.
He had done nothing but rely on Baek Yu-seol in that situation.
Hae Wonryang hated losing more than anything.
Especially…
To Ma Yuseong and Baek Yu-seol.
Feeling a distant gap from Baek Yu-seol for some reason, Hae Wonryang stood up abruptly to erase that thought. Although his hands still felt sweaty from the lingering tension, he could overcome this much.
“Let’s go.”
“Hey, where are you going?”
“We’re in the dungeon now. We need to start the strategy immediately. We’ll finish today.”
“What? Hey, even with the mob sections, finishing in one day is tough.”
But Hae Wonryang didn’t respond and strode forward. Baek Yu-seol had no choice but to look at Ma Yuseong, who merely smiled faintly.
“No matter how you look at it, finishing in one day is a bit much…”
Baek Yu-seol had meticulously prepared for this dungeon strategy. Or rather, the players on Earth had laid out a perfect route.
T hi s wa s c op i e d f ro m k i n g m t l .o r g
Efficient mob handling, sections that could be ignored, how to skip numerous traps, and how to safely attack the boss monster by handling altered traps.
But even if they utilized all those strategies, it would take at least two days.
‘One day is impossible.’
Thinking this, Baek Yu-seol followed Hae Wonryang.
…And exactly one day later.
[Dungeon ‘The Korokoro Tribe’s Village’ has been cleared!]
Roar!!
Watching the Korokoro Tribe Chief fall with a scream, Baek Yu-seol couldn’t hide his astonished expression.
“Is this even possible…?”
The time was significantly faster than the shortest record achieved by top players.
Yet Hae Wonryang didn’t seem entirely satisfied.
For the first time, Baek Yu-seol realized he was with ‘true geniuses.’ Even the results produced by Earth’s geniuses tapping on computer keyboards could be easily surpassed by real geniuses giving their all.
“You guys are real monsters.”
Baek Yu-seol blurted out without realizing it, and Ma Yuseong and Hae Wonryang stared at him in disbelief.
Judging by their expressions, it seemed to mean, ‘Isn’t that something you should be saying about yourself?’
T hi s w a s c o p i e d fro m k i ng m t l . o r g
End of Chapter
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