The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 176

The child who was supposed to kill his son had come to save him.

Han taesu couldn’t help but think this as he watched Adela cut down the dark mages.

She was a prodigy destined to become a grand magician one day.

Her innate talent was now coupled with the fundamentals she had learned at the academy.

Adela, with swift movements, struck down those charging at her, slashing through them without hesitation.

Han taesu watched her in silence.

While he was grateful Adela had come, he knew she couldn’t win this fight alone.

The legion of dark mages that had incapacitated Han Siha, Solia, and Seymour wasn’t something Adela could handle on her own.

The battle would only end when the one using clone magic was found.

Even as he watched Adela struggle, Han taesu didn’t have high hopes.

He felt gratitude, of course.

And there was still… some lingering guilt in his heart.

But feelings wouldn’t determine the outcome of this fight.

‘I need to help.’

Han taesu took the brunt of a dark mage’s magical sphere.

He had to get to Adela, no matter the cost. His son, essentially incapacitated, needed protection.

Driven by urgency, Han taesu ignored the enemies rushing at him.

Magical spheres rained down from behind.

Though his barrier blocked some of the attacks, it was only a matter of time before it failed.

Han taesu gritted his teeth, doing his best to endure the pain that was washing over him.

‘I have to back her up.’

Meanwhile, Adela was reaching her limits.

She couldn’t cut down all the enemies with just an old sword.

Even from a distance, her exhaustion was evident.

The dark mages’ eyes gleamed with greed as they focused on capturing Han Siha, and the majority of their forces had now shifted toward Adela.

If she fell, this battle would be lost.

Adela’s eyes shone with determination.

But sometimes, that kind of determination was just reckless bravado.

That’s what Han taesu thought.

Until he got close enough to see the sword in Adela’s hand.

“Th-That’s…”

Han taesu’s eyes widened involuntarily.

He had assumed she was simply fighting with an old sword.

But the weapon Adela was clinging to so desperately was the Cursed Sword of Waves.

The very sword that had devastated her village.

‘How did she get her hands on that?’

No, more importantly—

This was the heirloom of the Castica family, a sword that an outsider shouldn’t be able to wield….

Yet faint traces of magic were emanating from the sword in Adela’s grasp.

The Earth Mage.

Living up to that title, Adela was wielding the Earth’s sword.

No, she knew how to wield it.

Han taesu stood frozen in disbelief at the sight.

His eyes met Adela’s.

Was it hatred, revenge, regret, or forgiveness?

Her gaze was a complex mix of emotions that he couldn’t decipher.

Then—

Adela raised the sword high above her head.

She wasn’t just holding on against an impossible fight.

She was luring the dark mages towards her.

To bury more of them.

To protect more people.

Just as Han taesu had done over a decade ago.

Adela gritted her teeth and drove the sword into the ground.

The earth trembled violently as if it would swallow everything whole.

Rumble—

The dark mages, terrified by the ominous shaking ground, belatedly began to retreat.

“It’s a trap, you bastards!”

“Ahhh!”

But it was too late. The ground gave way beneath their feet, gaping open as if trying to swallow the dark mages whole.

The terrain beneath them collapsed entirely, sinking into the depths.

In the midst of screams and wails, Adela plunged into the collapsing earth without hesitation.

* * *

Adela pulled Han Siha and Solia from the ground.

Han taesu stood at the edge of the ruined engagement venue, silently watching her.

She had leaped into the crumbling ground at the last moment.

And she had managed to save his son.

Han taesu didn’t know how to describe what he was feeling.

He had taken everything from this girl.

The fact that she held that sword meant she knew the truth.

So why?

Why did she save his son?

Standing before such a child, how could he even lift his head?

Han taesu had failed to do what even a child could.

He had buried innocent people in the ground because he couldn’t act.

His chest throbbed painfully.

It hurt so much he could barely breathe.

This feeling—

Han taesu realized too late that it was guilt.

“Ah….”

Adela’s tear-filled eyes met his own.

“….”

In the silence, where no one could find words to speak—

Step, step.

Adela walked towards Han taesu, gripping the old sword tightly.

Han taesu wouldn’t have been surprised if Adela used that sword to cut him down.

“….”

But instead of charging at him, Adela gazed down at the blade in her hand with an unreadable expression.

With great difficulty, she spoke.

“I’ve waited ten years to cut you down with this sword.”

He knew.

Han Si-hyuk might not remember anything, but this girl remembered every moment of that time.

If anyone else had held that sword, they would have killed him without hesitation.

“I wanted to see you lose everything.”

“To see you buried in the same ground as those people.”

Han taesu nodded as he looked at Adela.

“…I suppose you did.”

It wasn’t feigned understanding or false sympathy.

Han taesu spoke as little as possible.

Adela bit down on her lip hard enough to draw blood.

“You’re someone who buried innocent people in the ground. You deserve that kind of pain.”

“You and your son… you should both feel the pain I felt… and regret your choices back then.”

Adela had planned on doing just that.

She had endured ten years solely for revenge.

It was the reason she kept living.

“But… but….”

Adela shook her head violently.

“I can’t do it.”

Thud.

The old sword slipped from Adela’s grasp.

The sword that had once buried her family was now used to save the son of her enemy.

It was miserable.

She had been played by the very people she despised, and it filled her with regret.

Why, then, did she feel relieved?

Adela gritted her teeth as she looked at the fallen Han Siha.

All she had to do was take one step forward, close the distance to Han taesu, and slit his throat.

Han taesu himself was standing still, almost inviting her to do so, offering his life in exchange for saving his son.

But Adela couldn’t bring herself to do it. She just glared at him.

“If I kill you here… If I… end you now.”

“Then it really would be irreversible.”

Adela took a shaky breath.

“I don’t want that.”

When Han Siha woke up, she wanted to be able to face him.

She didn’t want to become an eternal enemy wielding a sword against him.

She didn’t want to see that resigned expression ever again.

As much as she wanted to kill Han taesu,

She wanted to save his son even more.

“So spend your life feeling guilty towards me.”

And so,

Adela decided to forgive the one she couldn’t forgive.

* * *

The night she learned the truth, the robed woman came to her room.

Having disappeared without a word and reappeared after a month, she shamelessly made an offer.

“I’ll give you a chance for revenge.”

She whispered like a devil into her ear.

No, perhaps it was not the whisper of a devil but the whisper of salvation.

Adela had learned everything, and Han Siha had confessed it all.

“Sniff…”

Tears blurred her vision; she couldn’t see anything clearly.

The betrayal of knowing he had known everything and remained silent. The seething anger engulfed her completely.

The one she should have killed at all costs was the one closest to her.

Adela didn’t want to believe it. She tried to deny it.

But the more she tried to deny it, the clearer it became in her mind.

“Isn’t it disgusting?”

The robed woman smiled as she spoke.

“They buried an entire village alive, and no one was punished. They’ve even forgotten it happened.”

“Haa… Ha.”

“Adela, do you remember every fly you swatted ten years ago? Of course not. Who would live their life bothered by every insignificant thing? To them, we are just like those flies.”

“….”

“They don’t remember. Han Siha wouldn’t have felt the need to tell you. To them, it’s an insignificant matter.”

“That can’t be true.”

Adela clenched her fists tightly.

Those eyes she saw, that guilt—it couldn’t have been meaningless to Han Siha.

“If what you say is true, why did he hide it?”

Because he felt guilty.

Because he felt so guilty he couldn’t bring himself to speak.

Adela believed that was the reason, but the robed woman shook her head.

“You still expect too much from nobles.”

“….”

“If you do, you’re the only one who’ll end up hurt.”

The robed woman, sitting by the window, spoke with a somber tone.

She hadn’t come to mock Adela. She was here to present her with a noble plan.

“Adela, tomorrow we will attack the engagement ceremony.”

Adela’s eyes widened.

“Our target is the son, not the father.”

“What?”

“If you want, I will allow you to bring down Castica with your own hands.”

“W-Wait!”

Adela sprang to her feet.

The tears that had blurred her vision had dried in the early morning breeze.

The alluring voice spoke to Adela.

“The choice is yours.”

“Adela, let’s hope we don’t meet as enemies tomorrow.”

Before Adela could even grab the hem of her robe, the woman leapt from the window.

That was last night.

* * *

The infirmary at the Academy.

White curtains fluttered, obscuring the view.

Han Siha had been lying there for three days straight.

Slowly, he lifted his heavy eyelids.

“Ugh…”

His mind was still groggy, but he knew who was sitting in front of him.

Adela was looking at him with concern, just as she had back then, sitting beside him.

Han Siha moved his mouth, feeling the gritty texture of something inside.

“Is this… choco pie…?”

“It’s dirt.”

Ah.

Han Siha jolted upright.

“Ugh!”

Suddenly, his mind cleared completely.

No wonder his mouth felt so dry.

Han Siha scowled as he rinsed his mouth with water.

Though his memories were hazy, he vaguely recalled being buried underground.

In that desperate situation where even Han taesu had been struggling, Adela had saved him.

“Ah.”

Thanks to her, he was alive.

Han Siha, slowly piecing everything together, anxiously looked at Adela.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?”

Han Siha had borne the brunt of the battle alone.

Before she had arrived, he had pushed himself to the brink.

He had even collapsed.

Adela looked at him, incredulous, but Han Siha remained unabashed.

[Light of Healing].

He didn’t have this power for no reason.

Han Siha rolled up his sleeve, revealing a scrape from a stone.

With a gentle touch, a soft white glow enveloped his arm.

The wound that had been there just moments ago disappeared completely.

Though the ability wasn’t perfect for internal injuries, it quickly healed minor external wounds.

Displaying his increasingly adept control over the ability, Han Siha grinned with satisfaction.

“See that?”

“What?”

“Worry about someone who actually needs it.”

His words were laced with playful bravado.

“What’s that supposed to mean? I’m really worried, you know?”

Adela couldn’t help but chuckle at his cocky remark.

At that moment, their eyes met.

Their gazes crossed in the empty space between them.

Neither could find the words to speak.

“….”

There are emotions that can be conveyed without words.

And right now, this was one of those moments.

The two sat in silence for a long time, feeling the unspoken understanding that connected them.