Magic Academy's Genius Blinker - Chapter 93

Chapter 93

Maizen Tiren (1)

If the 1st layer had a green theme, the 2nd layer yellow, and the 3rd layer purple, then the long-awaited forbidden 4th layer had a pink theme.

I took a moment to observe the landscape of the 4th layer. Of course, I wasn’t admiring it emotionally but rather aligning the map and terrain using the [Bulbul Glasses].

“I can roughly figure out the path…”

Throb!

A headache forced me to take off the glasses and press my temples with my thumbs.

Maybe it was because I had been wearing the glasses non-stop for two days, but the mental strain was extreme, resulting in a severe headache. It was so bad that even my Intuition wasn’t functioning properly.

While other mages used mana to solve everything, I only had my mental strength left, and that was currently depleted.

When mental strength is low, it feels like my head is constantly buzzing, the headaches are severe, and it’s impossible to control the Blink’s distance or activate Intuition.

‘Maybe I should rest for a bit…’

The Divine Beasts in the 3rd layer were generally friendly due to my affinity, but it was questionable whether that would hold true in the 4th layer. I was grateful they weren’t attacking on sight.

I sat down comfortably, closed my eyes, and regulated my breathing.

Like mages who meditate, I could also recover some fatigue and increase mana circulation to some extent through meditation.

In this case, I was doing it to recover my mental strength.

“Phew…”

After about an hour of rest, the headache subsided. There was no rush as there was ample time, but since the 4th layer was quite dangerous, I decided it would be better to quickly find a heart and get out.

Th i s w a s c o pi e d f ro m k i n g m t l . or g
The 4th layer had no clear directions.

Whether by design or because it was an incomplete space, an ordinary person would easily get lost here.

So, I took out the [One Wind Flower] that I had asked Flame to bring.

Thanks to its [Absolute Sense of Direction] trait, this flower always pointed in one direction and had been used as a compass substitute from ancient times to the present.

Unlike compasses that frequently malfunctioned in areas with strong electromagnetic fields, the One Wind Flower always pointed east, no matter where it was.

I activated the Terivon Sword and proceeded cautiously, observing various Divine Beasts.

What I thought was a hill turned out to be the shell of a giant turtle Divine Beast, and a massive whale floated through the air, while a deer with luminous blue eyes glared at me before disappearing.

Unlike the nearly transparent Divine Beasts below 5-Star, those at 4-Star and above had distinct forms.

Ooooo…

From far in the sky, a sound like a ship’s horn echoed.

It was scary, but somehow, the place felt mystical and reverent.

While moving with heightened senses, my Intuition responded to something.

Zing!

It was in the direction I was heading.

As I cautiously approached, the grass parted, revealing a woman sitting on a rock, humming.

In an instant, it felt like plum blossoms were swirling around me. The whole world turned pink, and I felt a dizzying sense of floating as if flying through the blue sky.

A massive castle floated in the air, surrounded by plum blossoms, glowing red.

Amidst it.

A woman sat.

Dressed in a pure white robe, with white hair, and pointed fox ears on her head.

Shutting my eyes tightly, I took a deep breath.
T h i s wa s c o p i ed f r o m k i n g mt l . o r g

‘It’s definitely not a human…’

Nor a Divine Beast.

That’s what I had been looking for, the first target.

One of the Twelve Divine Moons, Red Spring March.

It wasn’t the main body, but one of its nine clones.

Focusing my mind, the world returned to normal. The woman, pretending nothing happened, spoke to me.

“Hmm? A human? What brings you here?”

Barefoot, she gracefully walked towards me as if dancing. Her face, which closely matched my ideal type, made my heart flutter momentarily, but I steadied myself.

The figure before me wasn’t human.

I mustn’t be deceived.

I had practiced for this moment.

‘Inhale…!’

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. Mana in the air surged into my body, driving away the ‘charm power.’

Thanks to my Mana Leakage Syndrome, I could instantly expel all the mana implanted in my body by the opponent.

Zing!

T hi s was copied fr o m k i n g m tl. o rg
My Intuition flashed, momentarily revealing the true form of the woman as a fox.

“Oh?”

Of course, I couldn’t completely resist with my current mental strength, and the fox turned back into a woman… but at least I avoided being charmed.

Mental magic activated by implanting mana into the opponent’s body doesn’t work on someone with Mana Leakage Syndrome, where there’s no mana in the body.

Even though it was an advanced charm magic, I could momentarily see through the woman’s true nature with my Intuition.

Watching me avoid her gaze, she licked her lips and smiled faintly.

“Huh, a young human but quite impressive. If it were any other man, he would have rushed at me, dropping his pants.”

“…Thank you for the compliment. May I ask who you are?”

She was one of the Twelve Divine Moons.

They possessed the most powerful force in the world of Aether World. Even legendary dragons would bow to the Divine Moons, so I couldn’t afford to relax.
Thi s w a s co pi e d f r om k i n g m t l . o r g

“Me? As you can see, I’m a yokai. Also a Divine Beast, a Divine General, a Divine Spirit, and a Divine Moon. Is that enough explanation?”

“I understand who you are.”

“Ahaha, so what brings you here?”

“That is…”

“If you don’t speak honestly, I will eat you.”

As her red eyes playfully glared at me, my Intuition gave a fierce warning.

A single mistake, and I would die.

“…I came to get a heart.”

“Oh, a heart. What kind of heart?”

“A Divine Beast’s heart.”

“Hmm~ So you intend to kill a Divine Beast and take its heart?”

“No. I don’t have the strength to kill a Divine Beast. I planned to take an unclaimed heart from the ‘Divine Beast Graveyard’ deep inside.”

Upon hearing the term ‘Divine Beast Graveyard,’ the fox’s expression sank.

“There are no hearts there.”

“…I still have to check.”

“Why?”

I pondered for a moment.

This woman had the ability to distinguish lies. But if I said I was taking it for my own benefit, my head would probably be chopped off immediately.

Something plausible, but not a lie.

‘There is one.’

The primary reason I came to get a heart was for Spirit Leafanel. She had given me a strange wooden pendant necklace as a token of our friendship.

I hurriedly took it out of my bag and showed it to Red Spring March’s clone.

“To save my friend.”

“That is…”

Red Spring March’s eyes widened. Spirits never give tokens of friendship to just anyone. Although I wasn’t particularly close to Leafanel, I was the only human who could save her, which is why she gave it to me.

“I see… so that’s how it is. Interesting. For a human to form such a relationship with a spirit means you’re no ordinary human.”

Among the Twelve Divine Moons, Red Spring March had a special affection for Divine Beasts. That’s probably why she used her charm to lure many Divine Beasts here to ensure their safety.

The 4th layer.

This unique space was entirely created by Red Spring March within the roots of the World Tree, luring Divine Beasts to form a small kingdom.

From a human perspective, it seemed coercive and like a zoo, but her decision was correct. Many Divine Beasts had escaped the clutches of the Dark Mages.

But as a result of creating this space, Red Spring March could no longer engage in outside activities.

Although she conveyed her will by bestowing ‘blessings’ with part of her power… the results weren’t always positive.

One of the misfortunes caused by this was the Elf King Flowerseorin.

Due to the overwhelmingly strong charm power bestowed upon her, Flowerseorin couldn’t even engage in any external activities, unaware of why she was in such a state.

“Well, alright. If that’s the reason, I can give you a heart. You are a friend of the Divine Beasts. Moreover, I can sense a faint Divine Beast scent from your breath, indicating a close relationship. Ufufu.”

She laughed sinisterly while covering her mouth with her hand, seemingly imagining something.

T h i s w a s c o p ied fr o m k i ngm t l . o r g
That was just because I had breathed a lot next to Leafanel…

“However.”

Suddenly, she dropped her expression, sighed, and shook her head.

“To be honest, I’m tired of it.”

“…What?”

“I can no longer trust humans.”

“Wait, why all of a sudden…”

“There have been many humans like you throughout history. Heroes who fought for Divine Beasts, fairies, and us… the Divine Moons.”

She spoke with a distant, wistful look in her eyes.

“Their ends were miserable. In the end, they too betrayed us. We have formed deep connections with many humans. And were betrayed.”

“I…”

“Why. Do you want to say you’re different? I’ve heard that dozens, hundreds of times. I’m tired of it. Tired of humans.”

Hmm…

I somewhat expected such a rejection.

In the original game, Red Spring March was notoriously difficult to conquer. The method to inherit her abilities was simple yet challenging—meeting the required stats.

For Red Spring March, it was raising Divine Beast affinity and mental strength, but my stats fell short.

However, my goal this time was simply to let Red Spring March recognize my existence. It was too early to conquer her.

I thought I could at least get the Divine Beast’s heart.

But she was this thoroughly uncooperative.

“My friend is dying… Please, save her.”

“You humans are short-lived. Divine Beasts may lose their memories but are eternal. Even after you die, she will remain asleep forever, and I will go to save her then.”

“No, can’t you just come with me now?”

“That’s impossible. Creating this space consumed most of my power, and now I can’t move.”

Ah, this frustrating woman.

How deep must her distrust of humans be to say she’ll handle it herself while unable to move?

I couldn’t recall the story of how Red Spring March was betrayed by which human, but those humans seemed really detestable.

“If you can prove you are worthy of being a friend to the Divine Beasts, that you would sacrifice your life for them… maybe then…”

That’s a bit too much.

No matter what, my life was most precious to me.

T h i s w a s co pi e d f rom kin g mtl . o rg
“I don’t want Divine Beasts to give their hearts to humans. They will eventually get hurt.”

“Yes…”

I didn’t expect her to be this stubborn.

I should have avoided coming to Red Spring March.

No, that’s not true.

To gain Red Spring March’s ‘blessing,’ showing my face regularly is important. Though she isn’t friendly now, this effort will eventually bear fruit.

‘…I have to find another way to get the heart.’

What should I do?

While I pondered.

Suddenly, a shiver ran through my entire body.

[A variable has occurred in the episode.]
Th i s w a s co pi e d f ro m k i ng m t l .o rg

[‘EP007 Arshuane’s Dark Mana Route’ is progressing.]

A message popped up.

‘…Even Arshuane has progressed.’

I expected this. It was probably a variable caused by my presence. But there’s no need to worry. Hong Bi-yeon will handle Arshuane’s Dark Mana Route in some way.

If it’s too dangerous, I can just return immediately.

[The variable has been resolved.]

As expected, Arshuane’s Dark Mana Route was resolved quickly. I stopped worrying about it and tried to have a few more words with Red Spring March…

[Warning! Due to your interference in the storyline, a significant butterfly effect has occurred.]

[‘Episode 8 Dark Mana Erosion’ has been advanced and merged with the current episode!]

[The difficulty of the episode has increased significantly!]

A flood of messages startled me.

“What…?”

[Episode 7~8]

[Familiar Contract and Dark Mana Erosion]

I stumbled back with my mouth agape.
Th i s w as cop ie d f r o m ki n gm tl . o rg

Episode 8. That’s the episode where Professor Maizen Tiren fully succumbs to Dark Mana and goes berserk. Why is that happening already?

I hurriedly put on the glasses to check, and Professor Maizen’s erosion rate had surpassed 50% and was now approaching 80%.

‘What is… why all of a sudden…?’

Episodes fundamentally occur in connection with the protagonists, so it wouldn’t be happening in a place I don’t know.

Professor Maizen must have succumbed to Dark Mana somewhere in these roots of the Heavenly Spirit Tree, where all the protagonists are gathered.

‘Damn it, Maizen is succumbing to Dark Mana here.’

Th is w as c o p i e d f r om ki n gm tl . o r g
Many variables have occurred, but none have affected the episodes themselves.

But an episode happening a step earlier?

I couldn’t foresee or prepare for this. I didn’t know when or how it would happen.

‘This is… because of me.’

I had been working to hasten Maizen’s Dark Mana erosion. But I didn’t expect her to succumb to Dark Mana here:

It’s still impossible for the protagonists to defeat her.

In the original game, the storyline involved allies weakening Maizen so that the player could defeat her.

But none of those ‘allies’ are here because the episode’s location has changed.

Therefore, someone here must become the ally.

…Who else could it be?

The only one here who can help the protagonists is me.

“What is this…”

Red Spring March seemed to have sensed the Dark Mana and looked around in confusion.

“Oh, no, Dark Mana shouldn’t have invaded yet…”

Her space was still incomplete. That’s why she had thoroughly set up a barrier to block Dark Mana.

But now a Dark Mage had blatantly invaded, no wonder she was so flustered. She had lost most of her original power and couldn’t move.

Seeing her cover her mouth in shock, I shouted urgently.

“Where is it!”

“W-What are you saying…”

“Tell me where the Dark Mana is! I’ll stop it!”

“No, you can’t. You can’t stop it at your level. I must call my child, Flowerseorin…”

“There’s no time for that! Just tell me the location!”

T h i s w as co p i ed f r o m k i ng m t l . o r g
My polite tone turned into a shout, and Red Spring March was greatly flustered. She seemed unable to maintain her composure, as most of her memories and self were dormant.

What an irony.

Red Spring March, one of the Twelve Divine Moons.

One of her strongest weapons was her ‘unshakable mental fortitude,’ yet she was panicking from a single Dark Mage invasion.

Seeing her weakened state pained me, but there was no time to dwell on it.

“Over there… over there, Dark Mana is corrupting my children…”

That was enough.

Grabbing the [Resentful Branch] tightly in my right hand, I dashed towards the direction she indicated without hesitation.

End of Chapter