The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 167

Han Si-hyuk’s Investigation Room.

Adela sat uncomfortably on the sofa, sipping the hot chocolate Han Si-hyuk had offered her.

Han Si-hyuk, his fingers interlocked, asked her, “You had a dream?”

“Yes, a rather unsettling one.”

“Hmm.”

She had sensed a presence after waking from her nightmare.

She claimed she had come out to investigate that presence and somehow ended up wandering all the way to the hallway.

Adela swirled a marshmallow in her mouth and asked, “You weren’t near the dorms, right?”

“I have no reason to go there.”

The investigation room was quite a distance from the dormitory.

So Han Si-hyuk was curious as well.

“And you, even if you felt a presence, you didn’t have a reason to come all the way here.”

Under Han Si-hyuk’s questioning, Adela scratched her head awkwardly.

“To be honest… I don’t really remember. I was half-asleep, and somehow ended up walking here.”

“Is that so?”

“I didn’t feel like I’d come far.”

Adela placed her cup down with a clink and looked directly at Han Si-hyuk.

Han Si-hyuk, appearing to weigh the possibilities, stared blankly into space, murmuring to himself. After a moment of contemplation, he spoke cautiously.

“A mage capable of manipulating illusions might have passed through.”

“…A mage?”

“Your nightmare, my vision… it’s too much of a coincidence.”

Why were the two of them made to meet like this?

Han Si-hyuk couldn’t grasp the reason, but it was clear that Adela had been lured here as if under a spell.

Though not skilled in magic, Han Si-hyuk was well-versed in theory.

Illusion magic.

It’s a magic type that is quite complex when used on a large scale.

Since Adela and he were not in the same location, if it was an illusion spell cast on just the two of them, it would mean someone had targeted them specifically.

Han Si-hyuk voiced the most plausible scenario.

“Maybe they’re still nearby.”

“A mage capable of inducing nightmares?”

Adela asked with wide eyes, and Han Si-hyuk trailed off.

“…It’s just a guess.”

It would take a skilled illusionist to fool even Han Si-hyuk.

Whatever their intentions were, it wasn’t likely to show up soon if it was just some childish prank.

“It’s dangerous, so be careful.”

“Yes.”

Recalling the disturbing vision he had seen, Han Si-hyuk gave Adela a warning.

“…”

In any situation, all a seer can do is watch.

They cannot interfere.

* * *

Much had transpired in the Arkenent territory.

Although we didn’t return with a truckload of what we wanted, we still managed to gain something.

I carefully picked up a fragment of obsidian that had been left on my desk.

“There we go—whoa…!”

No sooner had I touched it than the voices started pouring in from all sides.

“Is this all of it?”

“Is this obsidian?”

“I can’t feel anything from it.”

“Is it a bust?”

Hey, shut up, you idiots!

I let out a deep sigh as I glared at Seymour, who had made the last comment.

“This was all that was left.”

This piece of obsidian was something we managed to wring out of Count Dwayne.

Most of it had already been delivered, and only a few samples remained.

It was a rather crude outcome for having combed through an entire village.

Natalie, sitting on her workshop chair, tilted her head.

“Could it be… that the obsidian resource has been depleted?”

“They say coal will run out in a few decades!”

“…I remember learning in geography that obsidian deposits are scarcer than coal.”

“So, has it already run dry?”

Natalie and Seymour muttered seriously among themselves.

Though it wasn’t as extreme as resource depletion, their discussion wasn’t entirely off the mark.

While this amount of obsidian could be used to make an artifact sample, it was nowhere near sufficient to harness significant magic power.

So, I handed the obsidian to Seymour.

“Enough of that. I need your help.”

“What?”

“I need you to amplify it.”

“Huh… what?”

Seymour recoiled as if not comprehending what I was asking, but this task was well within his capabilities.

“Who else but you?”

He hadn’t joined the Necromancy Department for nothing. Seymour’s mana naturally resonated more intensely with dark magic.

Thus, he was the perfect candidate to amplify the magical energy of the obsidian and draw out its true power.

Of course, Seymour had misunderstood and seemed horrified.

“You said not to use dark magic!”

“I didn’t tell you to use dark magic.”

“You’re telling me to amplify this… evil energy here?”

“I said to boost the magic power, not to offer your head as a sacrifice. When did you become such an idiot?”

“…‘Idiot’? That’s harsh.”

Magic power itself isn’t inherently dangerous.

The ominous connotations and such are just misconceptions created by people.

Magic power alone isn’t enough to wield dark magic.

It’s only natural that Seymour, who didn’t know this, would react negatively.

I calmly explained what he needed to do.

All he had to do was use his unique mana to amplify the magic emanating from the obsidian.

Other than using it for our entry pass, we had no other plans for this obsidian, so that should suffice.

“…Alright.”

Good, he listens.

I felt relieved seeing Seymour nod as he grabbed the obsidian.

However, we still needed to investigate the obsidian’s delivery site.

Solia and I carefully analyzed the information we had obtained from Count Dwayne.

A mysterious obsidian delivery site located in the treacherous Odryse Mountains, and the fact that merchants were frequently heading there.

It didn’t seem like an ordinary situation, and Lee Han, who had been listening intently, finally spoke up.

“There’s something there.”

The atmosphere grew serious.

Seymour added his two cents.

“Let’s go there right away!”

“Huh?”

Wait a minute.

“Yeah, we need to check it out before it disappears somewhere!”

“All the clues will be there, won’t they?”

“Absolutely.”

My plan to attack their base wasn’t exactly a mild one, but these two—Seymour and Yoon Haul—were just as extreme.

As Seymour and Yoon Haul passionately declared their intentions, Adela suddenly jumped in between them.

“Before that!”

She slowly lowered her hands, calming the excited Seymour and Yoon Haul.

“There’s something important.”

“What is it?”

Maybe she was going to say we needed to be cautious since their base might be nearby.

I had been thinking along similar lines, so I held my breath, waiting for her to speak.

But then.

Adela said something completely unexpected.

“We’ve got midterms coming up.”

Right.

“Midterms…”

“Midterms are important…”

“Midterms are… unavoidable.”

Obsidian or whatever, we still had to take our exams.

Such was the grueling reality of life at K-Academy.

I rubbed my chin and concluded neatly.

“Let’s talk about this after midterms.”

We decided to spend the time until then gathering information on the Odryse Mountains, and the meeting came to a close.

* * *

“The smart-phone circuit design is done… I’ll leave it at this for now and finish it later.”

Ever since Aaron’s attack, Adela had felt the need for a smart-phone even more keenly.

That’s why, despite it being a busy exam period, she was devoting herself to the smart-phone’s development rather than focusing on her midterms.

Late at night, Adela stared at the circuit design Han Siha had worked on, holding her throbbing head.

Even after returning to the dormitory, she spent a long time pondering.

“The circuit is perfect; it’s just the screen that’s the issue…”

The circuit was made from dozens of alloys.

It was not just complex but also so innovative that it evoked awe.

How could Han Siha have come up with this himself? Adela thought he might be a genius.

She continued to look at Han Siha’s research file for a while.

If she could just create the screen, which Han Siha had named the ‘display,’ the device would likely function.

But that was the most difficult part.

“How am I supposed to input messages with my hands? How is that even possible?”

Her head was about to burst.

Adela let out a heavy sigh and pushed the smart-phone plans aside.

“I should study.”

Professor Wigor’s exam on Magic Generation was scheduled for the very next day.

With the massive amount of material to cover, it was clear that even pulling an all-nighter wouldn’t be enough, so she couldn’t delay any longer.

Hoo—

Adela opened the thick textbook and turned to the first page.

[Chapter 1: Understanding the Origin and Generation of Magic]

: Magic takes the form of the four basic elements that constitute all things—air, water, earth, and fire. Magic flows through internal circuits and is expressed differently depending on individual traits.

Chapter 1 was manageable, as she had already learned similar content in Professor Grint’s Practical Magic course.

Adela’s hands flipped through the textbook quickly.

“This is easy.”

—or so she thought, but Adela quickly retracted that statement.

[Chapter 2: Formation of Magic Circuits]

: The formation of magic circuits begins at the magic islands of the mesoderm, where new circuits sprout and develop…

Slam.

Adela quickly shut the book.

“Where’s the cheat sheet?”

She grabbed the previous year’s exams she had received from Won and Han Siha, the academy’s informants.

Adela smiled with satisfaction as she held the material in her hands.

Midterms were meant for cramming, after all.

“Mhm.”

Until the early hours of the morning, Adela stayed in her seat, poring over past exam papers.

She marked potential questions and urgently crammed them into her mind.

It was then, as she remained intensely focused without moving an inch.

Whoosh—

An ominous wind blew.

* * *

“Huh?”

The night she had run into Han Si-hyuk in the hallway.

It felt just like that moment, so Adela jerked her head up.

How could wind enter the dormitory when all the windows were firmly shut?

Adela glared at the fluttering curtains.

“Who’s… there?”

Someone was inside.

Adela instinctively drew her wand.

‘It’s dangerous, so be careful.’

Han Si-hyuk’s warning echoed in her mind.

She had thought the academy was safe, but the intruder had managed to enter the dorm itself.

Adela took a step back and asked again.

“Is someone there?”

Sssrrrk.

The curtain rippled, and then, suddenly, a human figure slipped out.

“Aaaah!”

Adela screamed instinctively and was about to unleash her magic when—

A woman’s voice stopped her.

“I mean no harm.”

A woman in a black robe jumped down from the window frame.

An unidentified mage, who had suddenly entered the academy dormitory where outsiders should never have access.

Was this the mage Han Si-hyuk had speculated was manipulating illusions?

Though clearly someone to be wary of, Adela hesitated to attack recklessly.

“…”

The woman, her face hidden by her robe, spoke in a calm voice.

“I came to talk. Lower your wand.”