The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 168

Long, straight hair peeked out from beneath the woman’s robe.

Even with the moonlight streaming through the window, Adela couldn’t see the woman’s face.

Adela swallowed nervously and took a step back.

The woman had said she just wanted to talk.

A hasty attack might backfire, so Adela lowered her wand.

However, her guard remained fully up.

“You’re a cautious child.”

There was no mockery in her tone.

Rather, it was as if the woman found herself amusing. A soft, mysterious laughter came from beneath the robe.

“You don’t need to be so scared.”

The woman spoke in a calm voice.

“I came to tell you something interesting.”

“….”

“Something you’ve probably wanted to hear.”

Something she’d wanted to hear….

“What is it?”

Adela asked, her voice trembling.

Her tone was thick with suspicion.

‘What’s her game?’

Her instincts were screaming not to trust anything this woman said.

It was a psychological battle.

She had to ignore whatever this woman said, as it could be an attempt to rattle her emotions.

Adela made up her mind and glared at the woman with a stony expression.

But then, a single phrase that Adela could not ignore slipped from the woman’s lips.

“You’re from Katablam, aren’t you?”

Adela’s expression turned ice-cold.

A wound she had carried her entire life.

Adela had never heard anyone else mention it before.

She wanted to avoid being labeled as the “child who survived the cursed village.”

That’s why she had only ever told Han Siha. Because of that, her peers might have dismissed her as a commoner, but they never called her cursed.

It wasn’t information that just anyone could access.

How did this woman know? And what was her purpose in bringing it up?

The woman in the robe spoke again.

“Wouldn’t you like to know who did that to your village?”

The whisper of a devil.

The moment those words hit her ears, Adela felt a strange sensation, as if all the strength were draining from her body.

She had to admit it.

Those words were enough to shake her.

Even though she knew it was an obvious ploy, Adela faltered for a moment.

“You… you know who did it?”

Adela’s voice quivered, unlike her usual self.

She had fought for over a decade against an invisible enemy, seeking vengeance.

But she had never found the true target of her revenge. She had spent over ten years in meaningless battles, fueled by that unfulfilled rage.

The demon who killed her family and destroyed her village.

If only she knew who it was….

Maybe then, she could escape the hellish nightmare, if only a little.

Adela swallowed dryly.

It was a sweet lie, one she felt drawn to believe.

‘Could it be true?’

Even if it wasn’t true.

‘It wouldn’t hurt to listen, would it?’

There were no records anywhere.

Katablam had been erased from the map, and no one had ever taken responsibility for what happened.

Adela desperately wanted to know the ugly truth.

Even if it was Pandora’s box, she felt she had to open it.

“Do you want to know?”

The woman in the robe seemed to understand Adela’s emotions, smiling slyly as if she were hiding something.

But for now, Adela’s desperation outweighed her unease.

Staring at the woman’s enigmatic smile, Adela spoke.

“Yes, I want to know.”

A strange light flickered in the woman’s eyes.

“You must have waited a long time. So, will you seek revenge if you find out?”

“Yes.”

“You’ll destroy the family, slaughter them all, erase them from this world completely. You’ll return to the same pain you felt, won’t you?”

“….”

“Whoever they are?”

“…What?”

There was something unsettling about her question, and Adela hesitated.

Destroying the family, annihilating every last member.

Repaying the pain she received in kind.

It was the definition of revenge that Adela had always envisioned, yet an uncomfortable feeling gnawed at her.

Was it just her imagination?

For a fleeting moment, Adela felt as though she had opened Pandora’s box, one she could never close.

“Then I’ll tell you.”

It was already too late.

The moment Adela nodded, the woman moved like the wind.

In the blink of an eye, she was so close that Adela couldn’t even sense her approach.

With a voice as smooth and sweet as honey, the woman whispered seductively.

“Castica.”

“W-what?”

A statement that defied belief.

No, a statement Adela desperately didn’t want to believe.

“It’s that boy’s family.”

Her heart stopped.

* * *

The Magic Generation exam consisted entirely of essay questions.

Han Siha calmly scanned the questions and began to write his answers.

The overall difficulty was high, but he knew the answers.

Starting with the first question, Han Siha picked up his pen.

1. Describe the pathological causes of Magic Circuit Twisting.

If a defect develops during the formation of the circuit valves, it can result in circuit twisting and stenosis.

Han Siha used examples from dragon and werewolf magic circuits to explain the consequences of circuit twisting and moved on to the next question.

2. Is the magic used in dark magic identical in composition to regular magic? Describe its origin.

This question matched what Han Siha had explained to Seymour while searching for obsidian.

The magic used in dark magic is identical in composition to regular magic and can be analyzed from an elemental perspective.

3. Explain the stages of the formation process of magic from a developmental standpoint.

Magic is generated in the magic islands.

The process can be described in five stages.

Han Siha’s hands moved swiftly as he answered, knowing the material well.

4. Describe the elemental components of magic’s four fundamental elements in detail.

….

In addition, there were a total of seven similar questions.

The exam time was an hour and a half.

Han Siha left the exam hall satisfied, having filled out nearly a page for each question.

Most of the other students were struggling, clutching their heads in frustration, so he was confident he’d score well.

Just then, Lee Han patted Han Siha on the shoulder and stood beside him, speaking in a teasing tone.

“How’d it go?”

“You look like you did well yourself, huh?”

Lee Han didn’t deny it; he nodded instead.

As the top student of the Magic Department, his answer was straightforward.

“I was up until five yesterday. They were all questions I’d seen before.”

“You practically pulled an all-nighter.”

“Not really. But if I want to get into the Magic Tower, I need to keep my grades up until graduation.”

“Oh.”

I thought he’d been too busy dealing with the cube to study for exams, but somehow he still managed to prepare until five in the morning.

The protagonist who could juggle fighting monsters, fending off dark mages, and still acing his exams…

Reading about it in the books didn’t prepare me for how bizarre it actually was.

The world could be on the brink of destruction, but here he was, keeping up with his grades!

Fighting off monsters and dark mages while studying for exams!

This academy was truly the embodiment of a K-Academy story.

Han Siha felt a bit dizzy.

“…I guess that’s how it is.”

The protagonist had to think about his career, after all.

“But it’s driving me crazy.”

Han Siha scratched his head and turned around. Walking toward them was another familiar face.

Adela, trudging out of the back exit after her Magic Generation exam.

Han Siha and Lee Han waved at the same time.

“Adela!”

She stopped, hearing her name.

“Are you hungry?”

It was lunchtime.

Han Siha, planning to take Basilus out for a bite, approached Adela with a welcoming smile.

But then.

“…Are you feeling unwell?”

Up close, Adela’s face was pale, drained of color.

Her expression was stiff, as if she were unwell. Han Siha asked in concern, and Adela quickly shook her head.

“No.”

A faint smile lingered on her lips.

She was trying to reassure Han Siha, but the smile felt forced, almost like a mask, and it made Han Siha pause.

“You don’t look okay.”

Adela waved her hand dismissively.

“I’m fine. I need to go back, so I’ll head off first….”

“Oh. Yeah… okay. You go ahead.”

Adela hurried away.

Han Siha, having missed the moment to stop her, stood there blankly.

He couldn’t just hold back someone who seemed unwell, but the expression Adela had worn was one he had never seen before, and it left him feeling unsettled.

What was that?

It looks as if she’d lost something important.

A deep sense of loss etched on Adela’s face.

Han Siha muttered worriedly.

“Is something wrong?”

“Who knows.”

Standing beside him, Lee Han shrugged indifferently.

“Maybe she bombed the exam?”

* * *

Her name, her face, her identity.

Words from someone whose true nature was unknown.

‘It’s that boy’s family.’

Adela bit her lower lip as the woman’s words echoed in her mind.

She knew far too much.

Not only did she know that Adela was the sole survivor of Katablam, but she also knew that Adela’s only weakness was Han Siha.

That was why Adela couldn’t trust her.

Someone who knew too much could wield fabricated truths to manipulate their target.

“It’s ridiculous.”

It couldn’t be true.

It’s just… couldn’t be.

Adela clenched her fists tightly.

“She was just trying to stir things up.”

Yesterday, she had been caught off guard and listened stupidly, but when she thought of it as an attempt at divisive manipulation by a dark mage, it all made sense.

If the goal was to fabricate a convincing story to incite internal conflict, it had failed.

When she met Han Siha today.

Adela felt a deep sense of guilt for even momentarily suspecting the Castica family.

She was so furious with herself for being shaken by those words that it was almost laughable.

So.

She couldn’t bear to face him.

“Stupid, Adela.”

Adela mumbled to herself, bowing her head.

“Really stupid….”

Though she berated herself, she didn’t plan to dwell on the emotion.

If it was a misunderstanding, she would correct it.

Doubt could be dispelled through certainty.

Adela looked up at the nameplate hanging on the door.

Her expression was resolute.

[Han Si-hyuk’s Magical Investigation Office]

A place she had frequented throughout the vacation. She’d visited countless times in her role as an assistant, but today her purpose was different.

Adela took a deep breath in front of the nameplate and carefully opened the door.

Han Si-hyuk was a competent investigator; he could help her. He would dispel this ridiculous misunderstanding and reveal the truth.

She would not avoid it anymore.

She was ready to confront her fears.

Adela knocked gently on the inner door.

Han Si-hyuk, seated neatly and flipping through an investigation file, lifted his head slowly, sensing the presence.

Adela approached with a smile.

“Investigator.”

And then.

She brought up the reason for her visit.

“I’m here to request an investigation.”