Academy’S Gumiho Is A Magical Genius [EN]: Chapter 80

Academy Gumiho is a Magical Genius – Episode 80

Academy Gumiho is a Magical Genius Episode 80

Housemate (5)

Immediately after heading in different directions from the First Elder,

I took in the scenery of the mansion, contemplating how to reclaim and manage this place someday.

“Perhaps it’s because it’s an old mansion. There are just too many rooms, uselessly for show. Once I regain all the rights, I need to reduce the number of rooms and change their structure and usage.”

—Contractor.

“What’s wrong, Tamamo? Is there something you want to ask?”

Tamamo, like a spirit, was diligently following behind me.

After hesitating for a moment, she spoke hesitantly.

—Do you know what the Inferno is?

“You were hesitating that much just to ask that? I thought you were going to ask something important.”

I was momentarily taken aback by the simplicity of the question, as her tone suggested she was pondering something significant.

—Hmm? If the Inferno isn’t a big deal, then what is? By the way, it’s fascinating. How did humans in this era find out about the afterlife? Perhaps they’ve developed some kind of resurrection magic.

“…Um, excuse me. You’re not seriously mistaking the Inferno for the Buddhist hell, are you?”

—…Huh?

“Huh?”

What, was she really mistaken?

As I stared at Tamamo with a look that questioned her sincerity, her face turned as red as a beet.

—Hahaha… There’s no way I wouldn’t know that.

“Right? I thought you were really talking about the afterlife. How would a living person know about the afterlife?”

—Of course. Contractor, aren’t you being too rude? How could you think I would make such a mistake?

Tamamo continued, her voice trembling.

How could I think that? I can roughly tell from what you say.

She’s so bad at lying, she couldn’t even pull off a scam.

“Okay, sorry. Anyway, you asked what the Inferno is, right?”

I changed the subject to avoid unnecessary trouble.

“Yotun’s Inferno, or just the Inferno. It’s one of the three un-cleared dungeons in South Korea that’s considered impregnable.”

—An un-cleared dungeon… I have a question. What exactly is a dungeon in the first place?

“…Do I have to explain from there?”

I guess ‘dungeon’ is an English word.

It seemed Tamamo didn’t quite understand, so I briefly explained what a dungeon was.

“A dungeon is a kind of alternate dimension where monsters live. Dungeons contain all sorts of monsters, plants, animals, and unknown environments.”

—And?

“The magic stones you get from killing monsters there are a major resource in the modern world. Of course, the corpses of monsters and special plants and minerals that can only be found there are also valuable.”

Tamamo raised her hand to ask a question.

—Then this world must not have to worry about resources? Since dungeons are alternate dimensions, there shouldn’t be a shortage of land either.

“Ah, that’s not the case. Dungeons randomly appear in random places, and if they’re left unattended for too long, a phenomenon called ‘dungeon break’ occurs.”

—Dungeon break? There are so many foreign words that it’s hard to understand. Can’t you make it a little easier to understand?

“Simply put, it’s a phenomenon where the dungeon itself explodes. The space that confines monsters, plants, animals, and the environment collapses, and its contents assimilate with reality.”

For example, a city in Greece lost a great deal of infrastructure when a dungeon with a volcanic background collapsed, forming a huge volcanic city.

Actually, it would have been fine if they had only lost infrastructure.

The real problem with dungeon breaks is that the monsters inside attack civilians, causing casualties.

“So, no matter how valuable the resources inside a dungeon are, players, guilds, and associations aim to clear and close the dungeon whenever possible.”

—Now I roughly understand what a dungeon is. They are created randomly, and the inside is an unknown world. All sorts of resources come out of them, but if left unattended for a long time, the inside of the dungeon assimilates with reality, so they must be eliminated in advance. Is that right?

“Yes, you’re right. As a side note, the three un-cleared dungeons refer to the three dungeons that no guild has been able to clear, no matter how hard they try.”

—Then isn’t that dangerous? If you can’t clear them for a long time, as you said….”

She swallowed her words.

The story after that was obvious even without saying it.

Tamamo, who swallowed her words, recalled a conversation in her head.

It was the conversation I had with the First Elder just now.

‘Yotun’s Inferno. Have you finally gone mad, Master? Are you finally thinking of ending your life, which has been full of atrocities?’

‘I’m not planning on dying yet.’

‘Master, that’s what they call suicide. Suicide isn’t just jumping from a high place.’

‘You think I’d die from just jumping from the air?’

‘That’s what I’m saying. We don’t die that easily. But what’s more dangerous than free-falling from the air is what you’re saying you’re going to do now.’

Fifth Elder and First Elder.

They were powerful figures she had rarely seen in her long life.

A dungeon that people of this era, where such powerful figures exist, cannot clear.

—We need to prepare thoroughly. If something goes wrong, not only will you die, but I might disappear along with the ring.

“It’s okay, I have a plan. By the way, judging by your questions, there weren’t any dungeons in your era?”

A question asked without any thought.

—At least there weren’t any in the era when I reigned. It’s not in the old records either, so I think dungeons are a recent concept.

“…Ah, I see.”

I suddenly fell into thought.

My head became complicated when I heard the answer to the question.

How much has changed in the thousand years since her death?

System, Status Window, Dungeon.

None of these seem to have existed in her time.

But for modern humans, these three are very natural and obvious concepts.

Being connected to the system from birth and receiving a status window is a perfectly natural thing. As a result, in this world, mothers of newborns naturally brag about their children’s magic power or health stats.

So-and-so’s son has F+ health since birth. Oh my, Cheol-su next door already has D- agility at the age of 5. I wonder if a marathon runner will come out of this neighborhood.

Conversations like that are commonplace here.

Thoughts chased after thoughts, spreading into deeper contemplation.

I was thinking in my head and naturally moved my steps to the Lord’s chamber.

It was because I thought I should quickly move the thoughts in my head to a notebook or paper and record them.

In the process, Tamamo kept talking to me.

To hide that I was ignoring her words and focusing on my thoughts, I roughly agreed and nodded.

As I opened the door to the Lord’s chamber and entered, Tamamo’s hand came up to my shoulder.

—Oh my, I didn’t know you wanted my teachings that much.

“…What?”

—If you lose your life in a place called the Inferno, the ring on your finger will be lost. So you accepted my offer to teach you magic right now.

“Wha, when did I…?”

—You just nodded and said you understood. Surely… you’re not thinking of denying it, are you?

I did say that.

That’s why you shouldn’t do other things when people are talking, and you should listen properly.

I rebuked myself and thought it wasn’t a bad offer.

If she asks a question, I answer sincerely.

In return, she teaches me a spell.

Conversely, if I ask for a spell, she demands knowledge in return.

A mutually complementary relationship where each fills the other’s shortcomings.

However, on the other hand, it was a relationship where they might try to tie each other’s necks with conditions at any time. The more questions she asks, the more Tamamo becomes the weaker party, and conversely, the more I ask for teachings, the more Tamamo becomes the stronger party.

In such an ambiguous relationship.

Tamamo said with a happy look, saying that she had already paid the price for the question about the dungeon.

—My disciple. I’ve never had a disciple even in my old age. To think I’d have a disciple after death. My life is so tragic. Anyway, as long as I’m teaching, I’m the master. I can be harsh, right?

It seems she’s not just happy that she paid the price.

Tamamo was wearing a joyful smile, as if she was planning to thoroughly exploit me.

She showed a confident appearance, saying that she would teach me the basics that I needed most right now.

Oh, I’m nervous.

* * *

On the wide desk in the Lord’s chamber.

Tamamo spoke in a serious and firm tone, like a lecturing professor.

—What do you think you lack compared to other foxes, especially those called the First Elder and Fifth Elder?

“Hmm, maybe the number of tails.”

—No, not at all.

Tamamo made an X with her hand, saying it was wrong.

By the way, I didn’t know it was possible for a spirit to be in front of me.

I guess as long as it’s within a certain range, there’s no problem whether it’s a spirit or a possessed spirit.

—The number of tails belongs to the ‘result’ caused by what you lack compared to others, Contractor. I can’t say it’s a completely wrong answer, but if you don’t know the ‘process’ and ‘reason’, you’ll never be able to achieve greatness.

A tone that was not only firm but also confident.

So I asked.

“Is it that bad? What do I lack compared to others?”

—It seems you just disposed of the answer I gave you along with the earwax in your ear. Well, it’s okay. I can explain it again.

“You’re being very sarcastic.”

—Speak properly. It’s not that I’m being sarcastic, it’s just that you don’t know what someone of my race should know.

Tamamo looked at me with a look that said, ‘You don’t even know this?’

At the same time, she created a Fire Orb in her left hand and an Ice Orb in her right hand.

The small jewels in her grasp.

They contained intense fire and cold energy.

I finally realized what Tamamo wanted to say.

“The harmony of Yin and Yang? It’s theoretically correct, but with my current body, it’s impossible to achieve the harmony of Yin and Yang….”

—I already know. Solar Meridian Blockage, right? That’s why I made this judgment.

The harmony of Yin and Yang?

Impossible.

For ordinary mages or martial artists, they could have taken a step forward by achieving the harmony of Yin and Yang, as she said.

But due to the “Solar Meridian Blockage,” even the subtle harmony of Yin and Yang that a living body naturally achieves has long been tilted towards Yang energy.

It is impossible to harmoniously balance this distorted balance with ordinary methods.

There is only one way to do this within my knowledge.

That is.

“Are you trying to create a Tai Chi [the ultimate state of balance between Yin and Yang in Taoism] or something?”

Tai Chi.

The ultimate pursuit in Taoism.

The complete union of Yang, which shines brightly and warmly on everything like the sun outside the clouds, and Yin, which covers everything darkly and eerily like the sun in the clouds.

What is achieved through this is Tai Chi, the origin of all things in the universe and the primitive itself before heaven, earth, and man were established.

Records that ancient people and sages aimed for transcendence by achieving such Tai Chi are revealed in various historical records of each country, making it a very old ancient concept.

—Tai Chi, that’s not bad either.

“…Are you serious?”

—If you can melt Tai Chi into your body, there’s nothing better than that. It completely embraces the Yang energy that has blocked all your blood and the Yin energy that you must possess to become a Gumiho, and even elevates it to a distant realm.

“You speak well, but you know it too. To realize Tai Chi is….”

It’s crazy.

In the records, those who tried to realize Tai Chi all died without exception, unable to harmonize Yin and Yang energy.

—I know it well. Those who tried all died, and I’ve actually witnessed the scene several times. Tai Chi is just something I brought up, so let’s stop here. Let’s stop chatting and move on quickly. We need to move on to the next stage quickly.

“…Huh?”

Tamamo, who created a semi-transparent jade throne using magic, sat on it, propped her chin, and crossed her legs, said.

—You just saw me make an Ice Orb, right? Just follow along and make it. The formula that becomes the framework of the spell is not difficult, so you can follow along quickly.

“But because of the Solar Meridian Blockage entangled in my blood, I won’t be able to achieve the harmony of Yin and Yang.”

—Don’t worry about that part. What I want is not to improve your constitution, but just to correct the extremely skewed balance. Huhu, don’t be so nervous.

She wore an expression that suggested she doubted he could do it even once today. That’s how much she knew that even if it was basic, the entry difficulty of the spell she taught was very high.

That’s natural.

Even in the era thousands of years ago when all kinds of spells and sorcerers roamed, it was considered the best ancestral spell.

It was normal to have difficulty even entering, let alone mastering it.

It certainly would have been.

“….”

Once, twice, three times.

……

One hundred and seventieth time.

One hundred and seventy-first time.

The man in front of her repeatedly squandered, filled, and squandered the magic power of a lake-like depth that would not easily dry up.

Tamamo looked at her contractor and fell into thought.

—His skill is unusual. At this rate, he might really master the basics today.

His heart contained magic power like a lake, but the meridians surrounding it contained heat like the sun.

It is natural that if you draw water from the lake, it will boil hot even if it does not evaporate immediately. Therefore, his magic power was now optimized for the fire system.

Conversely, the spell to create an Ice Orb was the worst match for his body.

It was natural that he couldn’t do it even if he wanted to.

To think that he would break that logic in three hours.

Unbelievable growth.

She seemed to know where this growth came from.

‘Hmm… it was definitely said to be the talent of the “Magic Saint.”‘

She recalled Seungwoo’s status window details that she had secretly peeked at.

An unforgettable word.

It openly revealed that he had the qualities of a saint.

Saint, the final destination of an ideal human figure with outstanding wisdom and virtue.

A saint must be a noble person who is admired and respected by all people.

Therefore, a saint must have no flaws.

The story is not much different even if it is a saint of magic.

If there are ten thousand magicians, they must be the best among those ten thousand. If the teachings are still lacking, they must be the most sparkling and brilliantly talented magician among the magicians.

That is the Magic Saint.

Is that why?

The precision with which Seungwoo handles magic is improving in seconds as time goes by. It is clear that the growth rate is subtle when viewed in seconds.

After about an hour, he gathered dust and made a mountain [a Chinese proverb meaning small efforts accumulate over time to achieve great things].

—To think he had this talent. If I had known this, I wouldn’t have offered a deal of one spell for just one question or story. Huhu, I feel like I’ve been scammed.

Tamamo saved her words and looked at her contractor.

Right now, it’s just a faint spark, but if he fully inherits all the ancestral spells, and eventually inherits the madness of the Gumiho that originated from her.

How will he act?

—No matter what action he takes, there will be no time to be bored.

Even though I feel like I’ve been scammed, I have more expectations than displeasure.

How long has it been since I felt this feeling?

Tamamo slightly raised the corners of her mouth.

She smacked her lips, looking forward to the future. A sensation similar to eating fried tofu udon lingered around her lips.