Magic Academy's Genius Blinker - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Dungeon Practice (2)

A few days had passed since the semester officially began.

One thing I realized while attending Stella was that it was incredibly rigorous, far beyond comparison to high school or university in Korea.

If my physical stamina weren’t at a superhuman level, I might have collapsed already.

“As you all know, 90% of the world’s population learns magic, but less than 20% of them can use offensive magic. Such offensive magic should never be used without a ‘license.’ Do you know why that is?”

“Isn’t it because offensive magic is dangerous?”

“That’s correct. But there’s an even bigger issue: you never know where the magic might go.”

Magic is dangerous. It’s incomparable to the possession of firearms on Earth.

Misuse of fire magic could burn down an entire building, mishandling water magic could cause a construction site to collapse, and there have been tragic accidents where earth magic hit a passerby, leading to instant death.

“Offensive magic must be handled more precisely than any other magic. That’s why all of you are required to take this class, ‘Mana Orbital Mechanics.'”

Professor Kaleim wrote three words on the board.

“Offensive magic is categorized into three main types.”

‘Shooting,’ which is fired from the caster’s body.

‘Target,’ which generates magic at a designated coordinate.

‘Area,’ which strikes an entire designated range.

“Each type of magic has its pros and cons. Shooting magic can be rapidly fired at the enemy with immediate trajectory adjustments, but the enemy can dodge or block it. Target magic can guarantee a hit if the enemy notices it too late, but it is weaker, and the coordinate designation is very complicated, making it difficult and requiring a long casting time. What about the characteristics of area magic?”

“It attacks the entire range, hitting multiple targets.”

“Exactly. However, it is very inefficient in mana consumption, making it difficult for mages with low mana capacity to use. From today, you will learn orbital mechanics focusing on shooting and target magic for dueling. You’ve studied formulas to death in middle school, right?”

“Yes!!” voices shouted from all around. They were eager to stop studying formulas and get into actual practice.

“Unfortunately, you’ll have to memorize orbit formulas today as well.”

Sighs were heard, but there was no choice. The professor needed to properly train students by following the curriculum.

“Well then, let’s solve this problem.”

Professor Kaleim wrote a problem on the board.

[There is a person named Cheolsu running south at a speed of 12.6% from a distance of 760m to the north. Calculate the trajectory and expected observation distance required for Yeonghee to hit Cheolsu with the water-type magic ‘Water Air Force.’]

That’s right. Orbital mechanics is mathematics.

“Is there any student who would like to come up and solve this problem?”

T h is w a s co pi e d f r o m ki n gmt l .o r g
Students frowned at the mention of water-type magic.

Water magic required the understanding of fluid dynamics, which was infamous and complicated enough to be avoided by most mages. Only those specializing in water magic had an in-depth knowledge of it.

Asking someone to solve it directly felt more like torture than a problem.

“Just looking at the problem makes me want to throw up…”

“What is this Cheolsu, some kind of superhuman? How can a person run 12 meters per second…”

Most students turned their heads, avoiding eye contact.

I stared blankly at the back of the professor’s head.

‘His hairstyle is really fascinating.’

Professor Kaleim had a uniquely bald head at the back, shaped like a U. To be more precise, it resembled the graph of y=ax (a>0), with the quadratic coefficient forming a positive parabola.

Expressing individuality through a quadratic function graph on his head. He was undoubtedly born to do mathematics.

“Baek Yu-seol?”

“Y-yes?”

I stammered in surprise, not realizing I was being called. Could the professors at Stella read minds?

Luckily, it seemed that wasn’t the case. Professor Kaleim tapped the board and said,

“You were the only one who made eye contact with me. Come up and solve it.”

“…Yes.”

* * *

“…Well done. You solved it so easily. Do you major in water-type magic?”

“No.”

“To simplify the Riedi-Hybok equation like that, it’s remarkable.”

“Yes.”

Baek Yu-seol solved the formula much more easily than expected.

He solved it almost through mental calculation, so quickly that Professor Kaleim was visibly startled but couldn’t hide his admiration.

It was an exceptionally fast problem-solving speed, even in Stella, where geniuses gathered. It was almost at the level of a university student, or even a professor.

“Alright… Good. Then, do these problems as homework for the next class.”

As soon as the lecture ended, Baek Yu-seol quickly left the classroom.

…And Aiselle, who had been silently observing him, followed him.

After tailing him for several days, she was convinced.

Although he entered as the last-ranked student, his brain seemed to work quite well… maybe even exceptionally well.
Thi s wa s c o p i e d f ro m k i ng m t l .o r g

“Excuse me.”

“…?”

When Aiselle called out, Baek Yu-seol, who was hurrying away, stopped. Seeing her, he frowned, clearly annoyed.

“What now.”

“Even when looking at my face, you make that expression?”

“So what about your face?”

“Whenever I look at my face, I feel all my stress melt away.”

“You give me stress though.”

No wonder. Baek Yu-seol had been stressed recently, sensing Aiselle following him around with her Intuition.

“That’s not the point. What class are you going to next?”

Aiselle asked brazenly, and Baek Yu-seol felt baffled.

“Why do you keep asking? Are you interested in me?”

“What are you saying? That’s gross.”

“I find you more gross.”

After saying that, Baek Yu-seol started to walk away again, but Aiselle hurriedly blocked his path.

“J-just a moment.”

“…What now.”

“Um… I looked into the classes you’re taking.”

“You investigated me? I’m not into high schoolers like you.”
T hi s w a s c o p i e d fr o m k i n g m t l . o r g

“…You’re a high schooler too, aren’t you?”

Oops. Realizing his slip, Baek Yu-seol remained silent, and Aiselle continued.

“Anyway, I found that all the classes you’re taking are easy to get good grades in.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Baek Yu-seol had strategically chosen classes that required minimal time and effort while allowing him to get good grades. He also took alchemy and magic engineering to level up his skills.

“Where did you learn such strategies?”

“What do you mean, where? Just follow what I do.”

Aiselle sighed, visibly frustrated.

“New Moon Studies might be easy for you to get an A+ in, but if I take other subjects, it would affect your grades too.”

T h is w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n g mtl . o r g
“What?”

Baek Yu-seol was slightly surprised.

With so many problems of her own, she was worrying about lowering someone else’s grades because of her involvement.

“Hmm, your grades are already at the bottom, but it wouldn’t do if I interfered, would it?”

Her mature thoughts were commendable, but her manner of speaking was too prickly.

“Anyway, could you recommend one lecture that’s good for grades?”

“Why should I recommend anything to you?”

This w as co p ied f r om k i n g mtl . or g
“That’s why I prepared a trade.”

“A trade?”

Kids these days really like trades. Where do they learn such materialistic tendencies?

‘I thought Aiselle was supposed to be a penniless beggar at the start…’

Knowing his doubts, she quickly continued.

“Do you know anything about the secret of the ‘Old Tower Ghost Story’ in this school?”

“What?”

A familiar term came up.

“I… do know about it.”

“Oh, really? It’s a rare knowledge. The old building is gone now, and the area is sealed off, making it inaccessible. But actually…

“Wait.”

Feeling it wasn’t right, Baek Yu-seol quickly stopped her.

As she said, it was indeed a significant piece of information. Depending on who heard it, it could be highly beneficial or abused.

In the game, Flame used this information to significantly increase her favorability with her male lead.

That meant Flame knew about it in the original novel, and Aiselle knew it too.

Aiselle must pass this valuable information on to one of the male leads, not an extra like himself.

“It’s a scary story, right? I don’t want to hear it. It sounds boring.”

“…It’s not a scary story. Are you afraid of ghosts? That’s childish.”

“Never mind, I’ll tell you for free.”

So don’t waste that valuable information. Baek Yu-seol swallowed his words.

Anyway, the fact that Aiselle was sincerely trying to make a trade was enough for him.

Even if she was annoying and made people angry, she was fundamentally the kindest and most just, yet unfortunate person in this world, a fact Baek Yu-seol knew well.

“Hmph, you acted like you wouldn’t tell me anything earlier. Why the sudden change of heart?”

“Well. Normally, I wouldn’t tell, but I’ll make an exception because you’re pretty.”

“You said I wasn’t pretty earlier.”

“Just take it like that.”

“Hmph, so what are you going to recommend?”

“It’s not directly related to grades, but it’s really good for you right now. Take ‘Meditation in the Abyss’ as a liberal arts course.”

Although it wasn’t well-known yet, meditation was incredibly important for a bishop-position mage who poured destructive magic into a wide area at once.

Understanding the formulas and calculations was essential, but ultimately, the control of mana came from the heart.

“Meditation? It’s not a popular liberal arts course. From what I’ve observed, you seem to have a hobby of meditating…”

“No, I don’t.”

At this point, the importance of meditation was not yet recognized. Aiselle’s reaction was understandable.

But in a little while, most bishops would spend several hours a day meditating. That’s how important meditation was for a bishop.

Thinking about it, Baek Yu-seol felt a tingling sensation in his head.

‘Wait, I’m a mage too, aren’t I?’

Recently, Baek Yu-seol’s growth had stagnated. Without episodes or monsters in the school, there was no way to gain experience points.

He was increasing his strength through training, but that was the limit.

Why hadn’t he thought of training like other mages?

In the game, Baek Yu-seol consistently trained his Mana Leakage Syndrome, perfecting the circulation of mana within his body, leading to his awakening.

In the game, it was just a repetitive ‘click to auto-train’ feature to gain experience points…

But now it was reality, and he could do it himself.

In the game, skills leveled up through repetitive grinding. But in reality, experience points were scarce and there were limited ways to earn skill points.

So, repetitive training was the answer.

With that realization, his mind felt clear.

I’m a mage. I need to train like a mage. Feeling better, Baek Yu-seol spoke to Aiselle.

“My master was a bishop, and he amplified his magic power several times through meditation. Normally, I wouldn’t tell this to anyone, but I’m telling you.”

“Master, really. I guess being pretty helps. Thanks. I wish it was directly related to grades, but I’ll give it a try. I had one liberal arts slot left anyway.”

After finishing the conversation, Aiselle quickly disappeared somewhere.

‘It was worth telling her…’

Thinking about how the future might change because of this action made him a little scared. But it felt wrong to leave a girl who was destined to be unhappy alone, so Baek Yu-seol didn’t regret his action.
T his w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n g m tl . o rg

Moreover, who knows? She might realize something through meditation and reward him handsomely later.

…Maybe.

But that wouldn’t happen.

‘She’s a beggar like me right now.’

He quickly gave up the thought.

* * *

After classes ended, I returned to my dormitory and stared blankly at the empty room.

“The dormitory is really spacious.”

Stella Academy required all students to live in dormitories. These dormitories were also graded, from Class F to Class S.

This dormitory system was like the ‘My Room Decorating’ feature for players, but for me, it was my only real home. My hometown had burned down, so I had nowhere to return to.

The rooms used by Class F and Class S weren’t much different. They were all 20-pyeong two-room structures with similar furniture and fixtures.

Class F to E had four students per room, Class D to C had three, Class B to A had two.

And the prestigious Class S had single rooms, assigned to the highest floor.

The hierarchy of mages, determined by the height of the floors, was already being implemented from school.

‘It’s lucky to be assigned to Class S and have a room to myself, but it’s a bit lonely.’

Still, there were advantages.

Sitting cross-legged in the middle of the room, I recalled the previous conversation.

‘Meditation.’

Meditation was very important for mages. And I, too, although I could only use one magic, was still a mage.

Why had I thought of Blink and Mana Leakage Syndrome as mere skills?

While hunting or clearing episodes could raise my stats through experience points, I could also raise my stats and skills through training.

I had almost no experience with exercise in reality, and using ‘mana’ was entirely new. I needed to become more familiar with mana. This couldn’t be achieved with skill levels alone.

‘It’s not just about stats.

This is reality, and I must adapt to my body.’

I still didn’t fully understand my body. I couldn’t know everything through status numbers alone. I had to move and feel it myself.

‘Blink in the game and Blink in reality are very different.’

Similarly, the auxiliary skills to be handled using Mana Leakage Syndrome would also have to be controlled purely by my intuition.

I lagged behind other ‘geniuses’ in many aspects.

I couldn’t handle magic, had the weakest stats, and had just begun to learn to control mana.

In the game, Baek Yu-seol used his Mana Leakage Syndrome, which constantly circulated mana, to explosively amplify the energy and manifest ‘sword energy (劍氣),’ becoming a genius.

Although his genius wasn’t highlighted much, he was the first and only ‘Sword Master’ to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship in a world full of magic.

T h i s w as c o p ie d f r om k in gm t l. o r g
And I must walk the path that another ‘me’ once walked.

Ssss… Hooo…

With each breath, I felt mana enter and leave my body.

T h i s w a s c o p i e d f rom k i n g m tl . or g
The total amount of mana inhaled with each breath. And the total amount of mana exhaled.

The internal circulation of mana was solely determined by my breathing.

In other words, breathing functioned like a controller for managing mana.

If I gradually increased the amount of mana taken in with each breath, I could achieve higher efficiency someday.

The amount of mana that was equivalent to a spoonful in one breath gradually increased. Tiny as it was, like a grain of millet, I could now breathe in more mana than before.

‘Skills don’t just level up by accumulating experience points.’

The more you use and utilize a skill, the higher its level rises.
Th i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k in g m t l . o r g

So, wouldn’t it be possible to raise the skill through training?

Skipping dinner, I focused on meditation, heightening my senses for Mana Leakage Syndrome to the maximum.

Late at night… or rather, early morning.

As the sun began to rise, I opened my eyes and felt my newly enhanced senses.

The feeling of Mana Leakage Syndrome was entirely different from when it existed solely as a skill.

The sensation Baek Yu-seol, who lived with Mana Leakage Syndrome since childhood, must have felt.

I was now experiencing a very small part of that sensation.

T h is w a s c o p i e d from k ingmt l . o rg
[Skill ‘Mana Leakage Syndrome’ level has increased.]

[Skill ‘Blink’ level has increased.]

End of Chapter