I Became The Only Healer In The Academy [EN]: Chapter 282

282

Perhaps this was the strongest demonic beast Seonghyun had ever faced.

The owner of the First-Class Gate possessed the incredible ability of creation and demonstrated great power, but they were still slightly inferior to the Delegate.

Thinking back to the owner of the First-Class Gate, they fought by imposing numerous restrictions on their opponent rather than enhancing their own strength. The Delegate, however, displayed a completely different combat style.

They possessed immense speed and power, along with an overwhelming amount of magical energy that felt almost limitless.

‘If only it weren’t for this strange feeling…’

This feeling, originating from the depths of the Gate, was becoming increasingly unpleasant and oppressively unsettling.

However, Seonghyun could see nothing. He only sensed magical energy fluctuations emanating from within.

“Indeed. You are strong for a vessel.”

The Delegate raised their sword, pointed it at Seonghyun, and said,

“But not strong enough to disregard me.”

One of the Delegate’s defining abilities was the subtlety of their magical energy.

Reflecting on the abilities of the demonic beasts he had encountered so far—creation, sealing, replication, and so on—they all seemed to possess limitless value.

In contrast, the Delegate’s ability appeared insignificant, but as always, its value depended on the user.

The Delegate didn’t just subtly manipulate magical energy; they could conceal it completely.

Regardless of its size, perfectly.

“Entertain me.”

The thin line of magical energy he had seen when rescuing the Vice-Chairman earlier.

However, unlike before when they hadn’t drawn their sword, this time the magical energy emanated directly from the blade.

“Was this something anyone could use?”

“What are you talking about?”

This line of magical energy approaching Seonghyun was white.

Indicating that it was cutting through dimensions as it advanced.

If it were any other hunter, they would only see a fleeting white line appear and vanish in the air.

Of course, they would vanish as well, never to be seen again.

That magical energy couldn’t be blocked by simply releasing magical energy.

The only options were to evade it completely or to counter it with similar force.

Seonghyun swung his sword, matching the trajectory of the magical energy line.

After his elevation [ascension in power], he could now imbue his strikes with magical energy and cleave through dimensions without needing to use a special technique.

In a fleeting moment, two entirely different magical energies collided, and as if they had never existed, they perfectly neutralized each other and vanished.

“This is… remarkable. I didn’t expect your martial prowess to be this significant.”

Normally, when two massive forces of magical energy collided, they would create a tremendous explosion.

But this was an exception.

It required matching the opponent’s magical energy without the slightest deviation.

This was only possible by matching not only the quantity but also the density and the inherent properties of the magical energy.

With only one difference.

That the magical energy was wielded by different individuals.

Everything else had to be identical to achieve such a result, and the Delegate’s expression grew increasingly grim.

‘Is the Third-Dimensional Master behind this?’

He had suspected something was amiss ever since he received the offer to create the Gate long ago, and it seemed they had indeed tampered with the vessel.

Otherwise, the vessel could not have surpassed the initially predicted limits of growth so drastically.

‘It wasn’t just fast.’

The vessel, which he had thought was growing rapidly, was not just growing fast but was practically a mutation.

And behind this was the Third-Dimensional Master.

It didn’t matter anyway.

If the goal was to break the vessel, it would have been a failure, but the objective was suppression.

And that had been achieved. From the moment they entered this Gate, the plan was half successful.

“Now, there’s not much time left…”

However, the sound of rupture that should have been heard a while ago was absent.

“This is…!”

He didn’t know what the problem was, but it was clear that something had gone wrong, so the Delegate immediately tried to return.

He needed to identify and resolve the issue right away.

‘What on earth…’

“Where do you think you’re going?”

He hadn’t fully grasped the situation, but he hadn’t heard the rupturing sound that had been tightening his heart for a while now.

Perhaps there was a problem on that side.

—————————

The Vice-Chairman, who was about to leave the Gate as Seonghyun had instructed, couldn’t bring himself to leave, feeling as if something was constantly tugging at him.

It wasn’t a distinct sensation, but he periodically felt a ticklish feeling.

“…I should just check and leave.”

Clearly, Seonghyun had told him to return, and the Vice-Chairman knew that was the best and safest option, but he couldn’t ignore the ominous feeling that kept stimulating his senses.

As with most people, his ominous premonitions tended to be quite accurate.

The Vice-Chairman didn’t recklessly head into the Gate’s interior.

Seonghyun’s arrival meant that the Delegate couldn’t afford to pay attention to him.

Perhaps diverting their attention might create an unexpected opportunity.

And so, as if possessed, the Vice-Chairman ventured deeper and deeper.

The closer he got to the interior of the Gate, the stronger the ticklish sensation became.

“That’s…”

A demonic beast sat on the floor, focusing its mind.

Even at a glance, it was clear that this demonic beast was beyond the Vice-Chairman’s capabilities.

Perhaps it was similar in level to the boss that had emerged from the Fourth-Class Gate.

However, the demonic beast didn’t seem to notice the Vice-Chairman’s presence.

‘It’s there.’

This was the source of the constant ticklish feeling.

However, there was nothing particularly special to be seen, so the Vice-Chairman looked around further.

‘That demonic beast is all there is.’

After searching for a while without finding anything, the Vice-Chairman gave up.

Given the Delegate’s abilities, it would be impossible for the Vice-Chairman to find anything at his current level.

‘Did they draw something like a Jin [magic circle or array]?’

If it wasn’t a device, equipment, or something used by another demonic beast, then?

There was only one answer.

A Jin.

The Vice-Chairman was certain that a Jin was spread out around the demonic beast.

Otherwise, there was no way it would be concentrating its mind in such an open space, completely defenseless.

Now, there was only one choice left.

To somehow destroy the Jin, whatever it was, or to kill the defenseless demonic beast maintaining the Jin.

Thanks to Seonghyun, he had become stronger than he was in his prime, and even if the opponent was strong, he felt like he could kill it if it was defenseless.

“…No.”

One must always understand their limits.

If he couldn’t kill it in one strike, he would surely die.

Without accomplishing anything.

Having made up his mind, the Vice-Chairman began to focus his magical energy.

Slowly, so that the defenseless demonic beast wouldn’t notice.

The Vice-Chairman manipulated his magical energy to an extent he had never done before in his life.

His skin on his hand was distorting.

A hand that couldn’t be any more distorted anyway.

Thanks to Seonghyun, the magical energy he could wield and its power had increased significantly, but the limitations of his body remained the same, so his hand began to distort rapidly.

‘A little more.’

Enough to completely obliterate this area.

Enough to eliminate whatever was hidden or unseen.

The magical energy gathered in his hand was now causing pain.

The Vice-Chairman continued to manipulate his magical energy, maintaining only enough for a single swing.

After that, it didn’t matter if his arm burst, melted, or crumbled.

‘Please. Let me resolve this with this one strike.’

The demonic beast was still focusing its mind as he had first seen it, and the Vice-Chairman soon arrived in front of the demonic beast.

He didn’t know where the Jin was, but this was probably the center.

If he could create even a slight crack in the spot where the demonic beast was sitting, he might not be able to destroy the Jin, but he could inflict meaningful damage.

“Hah!”

Just before striking, the Vice-Chairman unleashed the magical energy he had pushed to its limit and slammed his fist into the floor right in front of where the demonic beast was sitting.

Thud.

It didn’t sound like a fist hitting the floor, but the result was different.

The floor around the Vice-Chairman’s fist began to turn inside out.

The ground that should have been much further down quickly rose to the top, and the ground that should have been on top instantly plunged below.

“Wh, what!”

Thanks to the commotion, the demonic beast, which had been concentrating its mind, opened its eyes.

What on earth was going on?

The Jin, which had been perfectly fine until just now, had all its arrays twisted by that one attack.

It could be restored, but that was beyond its capabilities.

To restore this Jin, only the one who had initially drawn it could do it.

“This… you insignificant human…”

Even though his arm was bursting and he felt excruciating pain, the Vice-Chairman’s expression was brighter than ever.

The demonic beast’s expression was more distorted than he had imagined.

Just by looking at that expression, he could tell.

That what they had been doing had been completely shattered.

“Heh heh… Seeing that expression, I don’t even need to ask if I did it right…”

“…”

The demonic beast tried to cut off the Vice-Chairman’s head as he was smiling.

However, it quickly retreated, as the magical energy of the Jin began to surge.

The magical energy of the Jin, which the Delegate had been operating without rest.

Since that magical energy was surging, the human would disappear without a trace even if it didn’t intervene.

“…What on earth…”

However, things didn’t go as the demonic beast had expected.

The surging magical energy of the Jin began to be absorbed into the Vice-Chairman.

“Kuaaaaaa!!!”

He didn’t even have the strength to scream, but the pain he was feeling now was beyond imagination.

A pain that felt like his body was being torn apart from the inside.

Paradoxically, unimaginable power was continuously entering his body, but it was a power he couldn’t possibly handle.

The demonic beast, watching this, withdrew the magical energy it had been using to deal with the Vice-Chairman.

Even from here, the gradually collapsing body was telling what kind of end was coming.

“You’re going to die anyway. A human can’t handle that power…”

At that moment, a chill ran down its spine.

It was a type it had never felt before, so it couldn’t think of a word to define this emotion, but one thing was certain.

‘I’m going to die.’

The tingling sensation running through its body was not something like joy or pleasure.

Just feeling the chill gave it the sensation that some part of its body had been cut off.

In a moment of instinct, the demonic beast gathered all its magical energy to block its back, but unlike what it had felt, there was no one behind it.

To be more precise, there was nothing that could be considered a living being.

‘This is…’

Magical energy as white as snow.

It wasn’t as thin as the magical energy the Delegate created, but there was no difference in its ability to cleave through dimensions.

“Vice-Chairman!!”

With the last voice of the vessel it heard, the demonic beast closed its eyes.