Academy’S Gumiho Is A Magical Genius [EN]: Chapter 62

Academy Gumiho is a Magical Genius – Episode 62

Rank Test (2)

Magma Tortoise.

As the name suggests, it was a land turtle-shaped monster carrying magma on its back.

It was a large monster, similar in size to an average studio apartment [a small, self-contained living space], and just its appearance in this space instantly raised the temperature and caused cracks in the floor.

It had powerful attacks using magma and a ferocious nature, so it had been registered up to the 5th Circle [a ranking system for magical power and skill], but due to its slow movement, typical of a turtle, which didn’t suit its ferocity, it had also been classified as a 6th Circle.

Therefore, the rank ultimately decided by the association was 5.5 Circle.

It was judged to be an ambiguous level that didn’t quite fit into either category.

Thud!

The floor vibrated as the Magma Tortoise took a step forward.

Even though I knew it was a simulated creature created by the facility, its intimidating presence was undeniable.

A normal player would have gulped and felt nervous, but…

The first emotion I felt upon seeing it was curiosity.

“It’s quite big. It’s very realistic for an illusion, isn’t it?”

I was busy observing it from every angle.

The intimidation coming from its studio-apartment-like size?

My life has been so eventful that I wouldn’t be nervous about something so trivial.

At least, if you want to make me nervous just by your size, you have to be about the size of an average apartment building.

That’s about the size I need to feel a sense of crisis or tension.

That size is neither small nor big.

Rather, it just looks like an easy target because it’s so slow.

The more targets like that, the better, but unfortunately, they say that one is the maximum in the B-class.

“Why on earth are they throwing such a powerful monster at me in the B-class test…?”

“You never know. They said they caught the mastermind of the academy incident on the spot in the news last time. He must have some decent skills.”

“Come on, even so, the Magma Tortoise is too much.”

Association employees were arguing outside the test room.

At first, the prevailing opinion was that he could pass, but after seeing the opponent, many employees reluctantly changed their minds to the opinion that he could not pass.

That’s because the opponent is the Magma Tortoise.

The title of an average 5.5 Circle, maximum record 5th Circle, high-level monster is not something you can easily get. Because of this, the Magma Tortoise is often used in A-class tests as well.

Whatever the case, the test has begun.

[The test begins.]

The simulated Magma Tortoise charged at me.

─Ughhhhhh!!

Opening its hard mouth, a howling sound, boiling with heat, erupted from within.

I immediately shaped mana and formed magic in response to the roar, which had considerable concussive force, if not piercing power.

「Flame」

Whoosh!

The basic magic that simply released flames touched the Magma Tortoise’s body.

Even though I invested a considerable amount of mana into the flames, it was swallowed by the magma flowing through its body, only increasing its firepower.

I guess low-level fire magic won’t work.

「Pyrokinesis」

Whoosh──!

Flames with form surrounded all sides, becoming a huge barrier.

If this were ordinary flames, I could have jumped in at the risk of burns, but unfortunately, this is a wall of flames with a tangible form.

You can’t pass through it unless you break it physically.

─Ughhhhhh!!

A louder howling this time.

The wall of flames shook greatly for a moment due to the deafening noise that struck my eardrums and brain.

“If things go wrong, I can just make another one.”

I put another barrier on top of the barrier.

The people watching from outside the test room let out sounds of pity.

No matter how many solid barriers you make that only have mass and no other utility, you can’t inflict meaningful damage.

“His judgment is too bad. His mastery of magic seems high, but he seems to have too little experience in magical combat.”

“He’s going to lose. Why did a pyromancer act so recklessly in fighting a Magma Tortoise?”

“It’s about time for it to dominate the field.”

Thump, no sooner had they finished speaking than the Magma Tortoise stomped its front feet, shaking the ground. Then the floor cracked and magma gushed out.

This is why the Magma Tortoise received the high rank of 5.5 Circle.

It transforms the surrounding terrain into an area advantageous to itself.

As time passes, the magma will seep deep into the ground, turning it into a fiery hell that won’t even allow the opponent to stand.

At that moment, everyone expected defeat, but the person in question showed no reaction even after seeing the sticky magma.

Rather, he was smiling.

The fact that magma has begun to cover the ground is not a big problem.

It shouldn’t have forgotten.

What the raw material of this barrier is.

“Just because you’re carrying magma on your shell doesn’t mean you’re not damaged by flames.”

Unless you’re a ghost or a spirit, you’ll have flesh.

And flesh burns and blazes in flames.

No matter how strong the skin and shell are against fire, I don’t think the internal organs and bones are resistant to fire.

「Pyrokinesis」

The wall of flames surrounding the Magma Tortoise wriggled.

The tangible flames with form became a wall woven with long, sharp thorns and spears. There was nowhere for the already doubly surrounded guy to escape.

Now, from here on out, it’s a battle of durability.

Crack!

The thorns and spears of flame pierced through the skin.

The flames that slowly cooked the blood vessels and flesh gradually dug into the flesh and began to target the bones. The Magma Tortoise began to writhe in pain, forgetting even the control of the magma.

It looks like a turtle put in a hot pot.

Dragon and Phoenix soup is good.

Then shall we close the lid now?

I stretched my hand up into the sky.

At the same time, intense flames that stole heat from the surrounding magma covered it like a pot lid. A bizarre series of magic that looked like cooking a monster.

But the essence of this magic is not cooking.

The motif of the magic is the medieval torture device, the Iron Maiden [a coffin-shaped device lined with inward-pointing spikes].

The Iron Maiden, a coffin with iron nails densely embedded inside.

The infamous, cold iron torture device was reborn in modern times as a red-hot magic. I wasn’t too difficult to make because I had a knack for torture.

It looks like a pot on the outside, but.

What matters is the contents.

I slowly lowered my outstretched hand. I felt a sensation at my fingertips as if I were closing a heavy pot lid.

As soon as the lid was closed.

「Pyrokinesis─Iron Maiden」

KWAHHHHHHHHH──!!!

The thorns of fire poured down from all directions, without distinguishing between up, down, left, and right.

Hundreds and thousands of bright red thorns of fire pierced the Magma Tortoise’s shell. The thorns pierced through the bones and reached the internal organs, crushing, cooking, and burning everything.

The impact not only shook the ground but was also felt outside the test room.

The association employees and students who watched the scene were more dumbfounded than surprised.

Unlike them, who were taken aback, my expression wasn’t very good.

“…How boring.”

It should have been an easy opponent for a 5.5 Circle, and it should have been an incompatible opponent for me, who mainly uses fire magic.

It died too easily than I thought.

I guess I was overestimating the standards of this world.

Anyway, thanks to moving my body for the first time in a while, I was getting impatient.

Since I’m taking the test, I wanted to have a more proper fight.

The opportunity to objectively evaluate myself regarding consecutive battles was a bonus.

“Um, is there anyone in charge over there?”

─Ah, yes, yes! I’m here. Is there anything you’d like to say…?

“No, that’s not it. Um, I wonder if I should go up and say this.”

─Then come up and tell me… Ah! I haven’t cleaned up yet. Just a moment, I’ll clean it up right away!

When I spoke into the air, an answer came back.

As I heard the flustered and urgent voice, everything in the area began to disappear as if they were hurriedly cleaning up the trash. Not only the Magma Tortoise’s corpse but also the magma that it had laid on the floor and even the traces of my magic disappeared neatly.

It was proof that the test was over.

‘This looks pretty useful.’

The magic that creates illusions.

It’s basic to manifest illusions that are infinitely close to living things in reality, and it seemed to be a considerable skill to erase all traces of my combat activities by treating them all as ‘illusions’ and just flicking my fingers.

I wonder what it would be like if I learned that magic.

The door opened in front of me as I seriously pondered the synergy and harmony of fire, telekinesis, curses, and incantations.

As I came out of the door, the same scenery as before and the changed expressions of the people came into view.

Until just now, everyone had been looking at me with no expectations, but now they were all surprised and had wide eyes.

In particular, the reactions of the students were noticeable.

Lee Ji-na, who had moved with me in Efnell’s flower garden before, and Noh Yoo-ra, whom I had saved from the 5th Circle monster, hadn’t changed much from before. They were just nodding and applauding with expressions that they had believed in me.

Seo Ye-rin, who had sprained her ankle during the attack and hadn’t been able to watch my battle properly, blushed and clenched her fist above her head, saying that it was better than expected.

Isis and Sung Yeon-hwa were greatly surprised and sparkled their eyes, saying that I was amazing. It seemed that they hadn’t expected my practical skills at all, but fortunately, I seemed to have done better than their expectations.

Lastly, Isabel opened her mouth with an expression that she absolutely couldn’t believe.

“Did you… take stimulants?”

“Stimulants?”

Is she talking about poisonous herbs?

Suddenly, I felt the bag I had put in my pocket.

The seven types of poisonous herbs that I brought to eat from time to time today. Each of the poisonous herbs, which has excellent effects on paralysis and sleep poisons, has a strong analgesic effect and at the same time has a stimulating effect that raises magical power and magical events by one level, but…

Of course, I didn’t use them in the test where objectivity is important.

I’m not so petty as to cheat on the test. Unless it’s the original owner of this body.

“Of course not, why would I take stimulants? Why, should I get a test? There’s a place in the association that does drug tests.”

“That… right? Right? Whew, that’s a relief. I thought you had become stronger through illegal drugs.”

“What’s that… ah.”

I know why the word stimulant came out of her mouth.

She is now suspecting that the magic I performed in the test room was done with the power of doping. Well, it was a natural suspicion since the base of my magic is low-level to intermediate-level magic.

I have learned intermediate-level fire magic, but when it comes to efficiency, I use low-level magic more often.

“Well, never mind.”

“What do you think of me?”

“A fiancé breaker. A piece of trash who hits his fiancée.”

“…”

It’s not been a day or two since I’ve been in trouble because of her unanswerable attacks every time I talk to her. It’s about time I got used to it.

As I couldn’t refute her words, a woman in a suit ran towards me from afar.

She was the association employee who had spoken to me and answered me through the speaker in the test room.

“Congratulations on passing the B-class test! Your license is scheduled to be issued within an hour, and oh right. What was it that you wanted to say earlier?”

Is she a newbie?

Her speech is a bit awkward, but the kids next to me are much more awkward, so I nodded nonchalantly and said.

“It’s nothing much.”

“Yes, yes.”

“Is there a test for a higher rank?”

“……Yes?”

Is it really nothing?

She looked at me with that look.