Academy’S Gumiho Is A Magical Genius [EN]: Chapter 49

Academy Gumiho is a Magical Genius – Episode 49

Academy Gumiho is a Magical Genius Episode 49

Academy Ghost Story (4)

Seo Yerin’s eyes gleamed with conviction.

‘Lee Ji always had that look, and Seo Yerin having the same look holds great significance for me.’

‘Regardless of our master-disciple relationship, she will at least learn my spear techniques.’

She isn’t the type to reject teachings.

She learns anything she can.

Her dedication to spear techniques, as well as her dabbling in healing magic, proves it.

Seo Yerin is a student thirsty for knowledge.

I don’t know much about Lee Ji’s family, but since Seo Yerin is a main character, I know a bit about her background.

‘The granddaughter of the Divine Spear and a self-made individual with power rivaling the protagonist.’

Despite being born into a prestigious family, she received only a basic education.

The family’s philosophy is to obtain what you want through your own power.

If you don’t fight for it, you don’t learn or gain anything.

That’s why she’s obsessed with teaching and learning, and why she’s fanatical about the Seven Stars’ classes and grades. Eve’s mention that she consistently ranked around 4th in the entire school, both in written and practical exams, from enrollment to graduation, supports this.

─I thought it would be fun to include a character like a bookworm. But somehow, she became a monster excelling in both martial and literary arts. No matter how I think about it, it seems like a balance issue, so I took away her communication skills, but she became a strange character.

She possesses talent and power equal to the protagonist in a novel.

That alone allows one to infer how amazing Seo Yerin is.

The protagonist is the center of the novel. The core of the scenario, bringing about all events and accidents.

Having power treated as equal to such a protagonist is beyond amazing; it’s incredibly valuable. Teaching her is incredibly fortunate.

Thinking about it, I should have done this sooner.

Why did I insist on becoming stronger myself?

‘It wasn’t necessary to be the protagonist; I could have nurtured students with a sense of justice and talent.’

I recalled why I ended up shouldering the responsibility.

Wasn’t it because so many people, innocent people, died when the protagonist was at the center of the scenario?

If so, I could have nurtured other heroes instead of myself.

There was no need to lament my dying body and unusable skills anymore.

If I pass on all the skills I’ve learned, they might not be able to defeat the final boss alone, but they can certainly take care of the other villains.

‘The problem is time and effort.’

Nurturing a hero to replace the protagonist isn’t easy.

They need the strength to drive Kyle into a corner and the responsibility and morality to match. It’s definitely not a task that can be done in a short amount of time.

But if I can do it, I should.

Princess Maker, or rather, Hero Maker?

I had a feeling it would be quite a long-term project.

Well, to have guys who can’t even deploy a Combined Attack Formation gain responsibility and decent skills, I’ll have to aim for after graduation.

“Are you confident you can follow my teachings well?”

“……Yes.”

She’s been speaking curtly since earlier.

I know she’s naturally a passive conversationalist, but this isn’t the attitude to have towards an elder.

Still, she’s improved compared to before, so I, as an adult, should be patient.

I patted Seo Yerin’s shoulder and confidently promised to teach her everything I could.

She didn’t hide her subtle delight.

I wonder how long that joy will last.

‘A week…… no, wouldn’t even a day be difficult?’

My training method will be very different from typical training.

Since I have to teach my skills from the basics in a systematic way, it will be on a different level from the training she has done so far, at least.

I can be sure that her current joy will turn into anger if she trains all day.

Seo Yerin looked up at me with a thrilled tone and expression, unaware of my inner thoughts.

“Then…… should I call you Master from now on?”

“Uh, Master is a bit much……. Can’t we use another title?”

“……Huh? Usually, if someone teaches you their skills…… they’re your master.”

“You don’t need honorifics, just speak normally.”

That’s true, but I don’t really like the title ‘Master.’

It feels like a title someone like me shouldn’t have.

Seo Yerin tilted her head as I scratched my head, feeling burdened, and Lee Ji, who heard our conversation from afar, blurted out.

“You’ve finally become Teacher’s disciple, ah, you didn’t like that expression. Teacher’s student!”

“……Teacher?”

“Yes, Teacher prefers to be called Teacher rather than Master.”

Seo Yerin looked up at me with an expression that seemed to ask if she really had to call me that.

Is it just my imagination, or is she looking at me with a look of annoyance?

I was suspicious, but I nodded in affirmation.

“Okay……. Then I’ll call you Teacher…… from now on.”

“Then you’re a classmate now. Ah, that’s too bad. If we both had a master-disciple relationship with Teacher, you would be my junior sister.”

“But…… we don’t.”

“That’s why I’m saying it’s a shame. It would be fun if you were my junior sister. Ah, would the dynamic become strange if the senior brother is weaker than the junior sister?”

“……You’re noisy.”

“What did you say?”

Seo Yerin started bickering with Lee Ji.

How cute, kids grow up fighting after all.

……Did Master feel this way when he saw me and Eve growing up?

Lost in a sense of nostalgia, reminiscing about the past.

There was a subtle presence.

It was quite different from the squirrel from earlier, no, completely different.

‘……Something’s wrong.’

A presence that even my senses honed on the battlefield, even my high-ranking senses, couldn’t detect.

A presence that came into my sixth sense, which captures the essence of all things that I couldn’t figure out.

─Whoosh

I felt the wind.

Since it’s right below where the canyon and valley intersect, it’s natural for the wind to blow, but this is a bit different.

The wind felt less intense in one particular area.

As if someone was standing with their back to the wind.

“……It was there.”

“Teacher? What did you just say?”

“Get behind me, you two.”

I walked in front of the students.

The place where the wind was blowing, where something was standing.

I moved my steps towards that place.

Those kids are lotteries with guaranteed wins in the distant future.

So, my role is to prevent the lottery from being scratched until the time is ripe.

‘Until that day comes, my role is to teach the students and twist and block the progress of the scenario.’

The work to be done was no different from before.

Being exploited by the professor as a teaching assistant, staying up all night studying magic every day.

Skillfully playing politics between the family and the guild, twisting the scenario and blocking the protagonist’s intervention.

Only one goal has been added.

To teach the students.

To reduce the predetermined sacrifices, even by a little, through them.

It would be nice if they could defeat the final boss too.

I’m not really expecting much from them.

Just that much is enough.

The rest is for the adults to do.

Stomp, stomp, I thought as I walked forward.

The guy right in front of me isn’t a big problem.

The real problem is the guy who might be hiding somewhere, just eavesdropping.

This is a means to effectively threaten such a guy in case he’s hiding.

I chose to take off my gloves as that means.

Taking off the gloves is a kind of shamanistic act. It meant taking off a layer of something bigger with the gloves.

Swish, I took off the black leather gloves.

[You have unequipped ‘Ordinary Black Gloves’.]

[As the gloves are unequipped, the suppressed aura is released all at once!]

[Due to the released aura, the purple fox eyes naturally open.]

[The ‘Foxfire’ illuminates the darkness cast by the purple flames throughout the area!]

As the purple flames blazed like a lamp, as if receiving a spotlight.

The tail in front of the flamboyantly burning fire began to sway proudly. The tail, swaying without knowing its owner’s heart, seemed quite excited.

That’s not a spotlight.

* * *

Suddenly, a whirlwind struck.

The students, startled by the sudden phenomenon without any warning, gripped their weapons tightly. Lee Ji was sweating profusely, thinking it might be a paranormal phenomenon caused by a ghost from the mysteries.

Lee Ji stared straight ahead with trembling eyes.

She felt that the person who caused the whirlwind was at the center of the whirlwind right in front of her.

She was staring intently ahead with a very nervous heart.

The cause was surprisingly anticlimactic.

“……T-Teacher?”

Her teacher, who had bestowed learning upon her, and her supervising professor, was at the center of the whirlwind. From what she could see, it didn’t seem like he had intentionally caused it, but it seemed like an updraft had occurred due to the release of a large amount of magical power.

Whatever the case, the fact that it had nothing to do with ghosts made Lee Ji’s legs buckle.

“No, Teacher! Even if it’s a test of courage, isn’t this event too much?”

“…….”

“Um…… Teacher? Are you ignoring me?”

“Hey, if you’re stupid, just stay still. Does that look like an event to you?”

“What are you talking about? That’s obviously an event…….”

As there was no answer to Lee Ji’s repeated questions, Isabel, feeling uneasy, hit Lee Ji’s shoulder.

At the same time, a smell that numbed the group’s noses spread.

Sniff, sniff, a disgusting stench of blood crawling through the nose and into the head.

A strong stench of blood, as if someone had taken out a liver from a corpse and taken a big bite, vibrated everywhere. Greatly surprised by the smell that struck their sense of smell, they raised their heads.

─Swish.

The wind blew again.

However, unlike the previous whirlwind, it was blowing eerily.

A strange wind that swept over the skin in a damp way.

At the center was a man.

The man’s face was a face the students knew.

Because it was their supervising professor, Baek Seungwoo.

It would be strange if they didn’t recognize him.

However, his appearance was quite different from usual.

The decadent impression that seemed sickly and powerless had suddenly changed like a sharp awl.

The eyes, which contained a brilliant light like a ruby, were still the same, but they were emitting a purple glow like an amethyst.

The students widened their eyes at the changed appearance.

They were greatly embarrassed by the suddenly changed appearance.

While all the students were staring blankly at Baek Seungwoo, Seo Yerin and Sung Yeonhwa glared.

The two were particularly sensitive to senses among the group, so they were able to objectively grasp Baek Seungwoo’s change. His change was not simply a slight change in appearance.

All the qualities that represented a person had changed.

You could believe that he was a completely different person.

As much as Baek Seungwoo, who had revealed his tail, had a completely different aura than usual.

Staring blankly at the figure, Seo Yerin recited.

“……Gumiho.”

The bloodlines of the Thousand-Fox Baekga [Thousand-Fox Baek Family] are commonly called demi-humans, but strictly speaking, that’s wrong. They are a race above demi-humans.

The more tails a fox grows, the closer it gets to the phantasmal species called the Mystic Creature.

Eventually, it is said that when it reaches the Nine-Tailed Fox, it is promoted to the Supreme Species or Absolute Species, comparable to dragons or high elves.

It’s just something that’s been passed down.

Even with just Lee Miho, the difference in status from ordinary humans was clear.

Whirr, suddenly flames soared from behind him.

The nine streams of fire that scatter curses by using souls as fuel, 「Foxfire」.

The flames of that curse cleared away the pitch-black darkness that could only rely on moonlight and flashlights.

Thus, the appearance of the opponent was revealed.

So I looked up at his face, but I couldn’t see his face.

It’s not that I couldn’t see his features because it was dark, but his face itself was covered in shadows.

It didn’t seem like a mask.

He didn’t seem to have any intention of taking it off.

“……Then I have to burn it.”

「Pyrokinesis」

Flames flickered in the air, lingering behind him like a tail.

The flames were composed of higher density and magical power than ordinary fire magic. Isabel, who was well-versed in magic, looked up at the sky.

“……The difficulty of the formula is intermediate, no, closer to upper-intermediate. Almost none of the original form remained.”

The magic floating in the air looked like a patchwork to her eyes.

A magic that only took care of power and efficiency. There was not even a minimum safety device to protect the magician himself inside.

Crazy, crazy.

Isabel also lost her fiancé and could be proud of living obsessed with magic, but she couldn’t even fathom how crazy he was.

That’s because that kind of magic is completely for suicide bombers.

Whirr──!!

A huge fireball with physical force.

With this size and mass, it would have the same force as a boulder of the same size. Baek Seungwoo threw it without any hesitation.

─Kwaaang!

The fireball was planted on the floor.

A roar and dust on a scale similar to a landslide spread all around. An attack that would turn ordinary wild animals into mincemeat and low-ranking monsters would lose their limbs.

Not only that, but as much as he threw a fireball made up of flames.

Sparks flew into the surrounding grass, causing burns.

Sniff, when I smelled it, I didn’t smell meat burning.

This means that the opponent who was hit by the flame either defended against the magic.

Stomp, stomp.

It means that there is no skin to be burned.

A shadow approaching us through the dark red smoke.

The guy was literally a ‘shadow.’