Academy’S Gumiho Is A Magical Genius [EN]: Chapter 262

Academy Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Episode 262

Academy Gumiho is a Magic Genius 262

An Isolated Daily Life (2)

Leohnardt’s morning starts early.

Before the sun even thinks about rising, the mansion is already bustling with activity.

Preparing breakfast with practiced speed, cleaning up the dust that settled overnight, and putting the final touches on everything to welcome the family’s heir.

By then, the morning sun is just beginning to peek over the horizon.

But Leona was different.

“Soup? That smells amazing. I’ll take extra today,” she declared.

“Yes, miss. I’ll be sure to pack a generous portion for you. Oh, and I’ll include some whole wheat bread as well. I know how much you enjoy dipping it in your soup.”

“That’s why you’re the best chef. You know me so well.”

“Of course. I’ve prepared your meals countless times; it’s only natural I’d know your preferences.”

Leona’s morning routine was unique.

She woke up even earlier than her father, a man renowned for his diligence and integrity, and made her presence known in the bustling kitchen. This had been going on for so long that Leona had developed a comfortable, chatty relationship with the chef.

“But for the past six months, you’ve been eating school lunches in a faraway land, so I haven’t had the pleasure of cooking for you.”

“Don’t worry. There are still two weeks left until the end of vacation. I’ll savor every meal until then.”

“Conversely, doesn’t that mean you won’t be eating my food in two weeks? You can’t imagine how sad it makes me not to be able to provide you with your daily sustenance.”

“It can’t be helped. School life is essential. There are educational institutions of that caliber in Europe, but none offer as much comprehensive experience as Chilseong Academy.”

The world’s top 5 academies.

Chilseong Academy was one of them. The others were located in England, the United States, China, and another in Korea.

Although Korea boasted two of the world’s top 5 academies, the other one was often overlooked. This was because, compared to the other four, the level of practical experience offered by Chilseong Academy was unparalleled.

Especially with its expansive grounds and diverse natural environment.

Students attending Chilseong could learn an immense amount in just three years. That’s why even students from England often preferred to attend Chilseong Academy, located in a distant foreign country, rather than a closer institution.

Leona felt the same way, and the chef understood this perfectly.

“Then how about becoming the head chef at Chilseong Academy? That way, you could make my meals for the next three years, and you could add a prestigious line to your resume, stating you were the head chef of a world-renowned academy for three years.”

“Oh, miss. Is it really that easy to accomplish?”

Chilseong Academy only hired the best.

Of course, the chef currently conversing with Leona was also a top-tier culinary artist.

However, he had no intention of relinquishing his secure position as the ‘Leohnardt family’s chef’.

Just consider the salary and benefits of this role.

He could never bring himself to leave this place.

“Do you know how many cooks apply there? It’s a place where only the most accomplished and proven talents can even hope to enter.”

There was another reason.

To work in the kitchen of Chilseong Academy, one needed to have already honed their skills to perfection. Whenever the kitchen advertised openings, countless great chefs applied, seeking to further their careers.

The chef felt he was too old to undertake such a demanding challenge.

So, he decided to end the small talk and begin plating the food to place it on the table. This was much more his style.

Leona carefully observed the chef, who was ladling soup with a warm smile, and then she spoke.

“…You just mentioned that only verified top talents can enter Chilseong.”

“Yes, I did.”

“Then, conversely, is it possible for someone who isn’t verified to enter?”

‘What is this young lady trying to ask?’

The chef, who had been listening attentively, tilted his head in confusion.

“Huh? Well, I suppose it’s theoretically possible. But since they have to prepare meals for geniuses from all over the world, their growth rate would have to be exceptionally rapid.”

“How rapid are we talking about?”

The chef pondered Leona’s words.

It was a sudden question, but he did his best to provide a thoughtful answer. He had never been to Chilseong Academy, but he had a general understanding of their standards.

“Probably roughly… Two dishes a day. Even if it’s a dish they’re learning for the first time, they’d have to cook more than two dishes perfectly. Of course, they’d have to create delicious dishes when all the ingredients are available, and they’d have to coax the best taste even when ingredients are scarce.”

In addition, preparing enough food for thousands of people was a given. Leona nodded at this and said.

“That’s basically saying that you can’t even knock on Chilseong Academy’s door unless you’re already a fully accomplished chef.”

“Yes, or you’d have to be a monster with extraordinary talent. Does such a person even exist in the world?”

“There is.”

“Yes?”

The chef asked, as if he had misheard her.

At this, Leona recalled that day.

Even now, the eerie purple flames were still vivid in her memory.

She remembered the genius who effortlessly controlled that cursed fire.

When she first saw him, she assumed he was a parachute [someone who got in through connections] who had gained entry to the academy through connections and money, but he had evolved into a powerful individual who far surpassed her.

“There was. There was such a person.”

* * *

Seungwoo retrieved Anemone’s Heart.

Baek Hyeon-ah was aware of the object’s existence.

However, she never imagined that he would willingly hand it over to her. After all, its abilities were too significant to dismiss it as a mere trophy.

「Anemone’s Heart」

Rank: Legendary

Description: A bright red gem heart created by plucking the first anemone that grew in the distant land of Greece. It shines like a jewel but is, in essence, a heart—an artificial organ that can replace both human and beast hearts. Anyone who wears it will receive a ‘blessing’.

The blessing is focused on beauty and magic, and it is impossible to alter this effect to other abilities. When a magical creature wears it, it assists the target as a semi-permanent magic production organ.

*Heart’s Vitality

The artificial heart provides vitality to the whole body along with fresh magic. It can make even a sick child jump out of bed and run through the meadow all day long.

*Adonis

Transforms the target’s appearance to be more beautiful according to the universal standard of beauty. If the appearance is already complete, it transforms internal organs, including magic circuits, to be more beautiful and stronger.

*Heart with Hope

It is a perfect substitute for the heart. It can be replaced with an artificial heart in case of heart-related diseases or organ damage for some reason, and it is also possible to replace it with a healthy heart to produce more pure and abundant magic.

This held even greater value than an artificial heart, at least for Baek Hyeon-ah.

Originally, it meant surrendering free will and decision-making power to a mere tool used by humans.

“…Are you really going to give this to me?”

“I wouldn’t have taken it out if I didn’t intend to give it to you. Put it on quickly while the kids are sleeping.”

“It’s not like it’s a ring; why are you telling me to put it on quickly?”

“Stop talking nonsense and put it on. Look at the tips of your fingers right now. Your magic is flickering.”

It was true. Baek Hyeon-ah’s eyes widened as she looked at the tips of her fingers.

Like her eyes, her fingers were shimmering, like a mirage. An illusion that would vanish with a wave of her hand.

Baek Hyeon-ah, seeing her fading fingers, took the heart from Seungwoo’s hand without another word. Then, she slightly opened her clothes and slipped the heart into the gap.

There was no need for a special surgery to remove her breasts.

No matter how beautiful a woman’s form she assumed, Baek Hyeon-ah’s essence was 「Doppelganger」. It was merely a skill.

Such a skill was attempting to manifest a body.

Although it was a body made of magic that didn’t require sleep or sustenance, it was the moment when a semi-permanent body was born, one that no longer had to fear collapsing over time.

‘It settled near the heart as soon as I placed it in my chest.’

Seungwoo, who had been watching Baek Hyeon-ah quietly, widened his eyes.

The corners of his eyes slowly turned purple, and soon his entire pupil sparkled with purple light.

「Yoma Eye」

The color of the pupils changes, and the perception of the world shifts.

Colorful lights disappear, and only black and white fill the world.

In the normally colorless scenery, only blue light stood out.

The movement of magic.

Following the blue sparkling light, he observed Baek Hyeon-ah’s transformation.

‘The heart is in place properly. But the blood vessels are the problem. She’s only been imitating so far, so she probably hasn’t considered what the human body actually looks like.’

「Anemone’s Heart」, had settled into the correct position.

However, since it was ultimately a heart, it needed to be connected to numerous bundles of blood vessels to supply magic along with blood. Baek Hyeon-ah had imitated his body almost perfectly, but because she didn’t understand the principles and structure of the human body, she didn’t know how to properly integrate the new heart.

Srrr.

As that precious time slipped away, the magic that constituted Baek Hyeon-ah’s body scattered little by little.

‘I can’t just stand by.’

He grasped her shoulder and slowly released his magic.

A heterogeneous red magic.

The magic brimming with 「Solar Meridian」’s energy reached Baek Hyeon-ah’s heart, flowing against the natural direction of the blood vessels. The magic that arrived at the red gem heart slowly rotated and began to guide the blood.

The blue magic seemed impatient with the pace, which was neither slow nor fast.

It started to move erratically, but the red magic began to embrace the magic in the blood, as if it instinctively understood it.

The magic that moved through the blood vessels tapped the important meridians and circulated throughout the body. After that, when the red magic vaporized like naturally disappearing smoke, Baek Hyeon-ah’s body began to function naturally.

She was breathing like a normal person.

And that breath would not cease easily in the future.

‘At least she won’t die young from old age.’

Not dying easily means…

It means that there is ample time to care for the children as a nanny.

Baek Hyeon-ah, who no longer had to struggle against time, opened her eyes and carefully stroked the heads of the children who were lying on her lap, offering no words of thanks.

She seemed to understand clearly that raising the children well was a greater expression of gratitude than any words could convey. And I preferred that side of her much more than empty thank yous.

Baek Hyeon-ah stroked the baby’s forehead.

A small horn grew on the baby’s forehead.

Two strands of horns more beautiful and captivating than those of a devil or a goat.

Baek Hyeon-ah, who stroked the horn, spoke.

“Aren’t you going to name her? Are you going to keep calling her ‘baby’?”

“Name?”

Seungwoo asked, looking like he didn’t know what she was talking about.

At this, Baek Hyeon-ah said.

“Erzebet calls the child ‘sister’. I call her ‘our baby’. Others may see it as simple terms of endearment, but we know. We call her that because there is no name to define the child before it is a title.”

“So you’re asking me to name her?”

“Yes.”

A name.

It’s not that I haven’t considered it at all, but I don’t know what name to give her. Above all, my naming sense is notoriously bad.

I might like it, but everyone else hates my naming choices.

In fact, these are all just excuses.

Well, I could come up with something if I really wanted to.

‘I don’t know yet.’

It’s true that the children are so precious that I risked danger to find a nanny to protect them.

But I don’t know if it’s simply affection.

To raise them to be strong?

To prevent them from growing up to be villains?

Perhaps there is no single right answer among the possibilities that come to mind, so I couldn’t rashly commit to anything.

“…I’ll think of something soon. Give me a little time.”

Naming the baby.

I’ve never seriously considered this before in my life.

I don’t even fully understand my own heart.