Academy’s New Guard is Unusual - Chapter 86

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 86
‘A Security Corps member.’
The Crown Prince fixed his gaze on the man standing at the far end of the classroom.
The man was dressed as a security guard. Yet something about his face seemed oddly familiar.
It was strange.
The Crown Prince had an excellent memory.
Precisely because of this, he made a conscious effort not to notice things that weren’t important.
It was wasteful to squander mental energy on trifles.
So the Crown Prince only remembered what mattered.
To matter to him, one had to be at least “the heir of the Magic Tower Coalition” or “the Next Holy Sword of the Church.”
Yet a mere Security Corps member looked familiar.
It was strange.
What was stranger still was that this Security Corps member had gotten the answer correct.
‘He got lucky.’
The Crown Prince actually felt entertained.
In truth, since no one else had answered, he’d been growing bored.
A worthy opponent was the spice that made victory taste sweet.
‘After all, I’ve already studied Black Magic up to the advanced level.’
The Crown Prince had completed every advanced course before even enrolling at the academy.
The Imperial Family must be superior and perfect. Among them, the Crown Prince must be even more so.
Just then, Dracov resumed the lesson.
The Crown Prince maintained a relaxed posture while concentrating fully.
Shortly after, Dracov threw out another question.
“Then what is the principle behind the Enfeeblement Curse?”
Enfeeblement was quite a high-tier curse.
Asking about its principle was something that might appear in an advanced class.
To ask such a thing in a basic lesson—
It was terribly bad taste.
Yet this time, too, that fellow raised his hand.
“Ahem, two of you again. Will you yield this time as well?”
Dracov grinned at the Crown Prince.
This was a question a mere Security Corps member couldn’t answer.
Besides, this time he had to explain the principle. He couldn’t just guess like before.
It would be even more thrilling to see him fail before the Crown Prince provided the correct answer.
The Crown Prince nodded.
“I’ll yield.”
“Thank you.”
The man spoke without a trace of gratitude in his voice.
“The principle of Enfeeblement is to obstruct the flow of life force.”
He answered briefly.
It was a flawless, perfect answer without the slightest flaw.
“Ahem, correct. Excellent.”
At Dracov’s praise, the Crown Prince’s eye twitched.
Enfeeblement was content from Advanced Black Magic Studies.
That a mere Security Corps member knew this?
It made no sense.
Something was wrong.
‘Could he be in cahoots with the professor?’
The Crown Prince eyed Dracov suspiciously.
He had a rather rat-like appearance, and that face was nothing if not sinister.
It was clear he’d conspired with this Security Corps member to make the Crown Prince look foolish.
Dracov continued the lesson.
This time he discussed the relationship between Black Magic and demons.
Up to that point, the flow was standard.
The problem was—
“Ahem, can anyone explain the principle of the Collapse Curse?”
The level of difficulty in Dracov’s question had become staggeringly high.
Collapse was a high-tier curse. The Crown Prince had only heard its name.
It was content that appeared in Specialized Black Magic, which the academy’s graduating class took.
To ask about a high-tier curse in Basic Black Magic Studies—
The Crown Prince found himself turning around without thinking.
The man had his hand raised.
‘He knows the principle of the Collapse Curse?’
It was a high-tier curse even he didn’t know.
A mere Security Corps member couldn’t possibly know it.
It should have been that way—
“All material objects possess a nature that maintains their form. The principle of the Collapse Curse is to alter that nature.”
The man explained flatly, as if it were nothing at all.
‘Ha, just spouting nonsense.’
The Crown Prince scoffed silently. It was clear the man didn’t really know but raised his hand anyway and said whatever came to mind—
“Correct. Ahem.”
At that point, the Crown Prince’s eyes crumpled against his will.
The Crown Prince had been forced to be perfect from birth. Because of this, many sought to diminish him.
So—
‘He’s clearly orchestrating this.’
There was no way around the conclusion that the professor was in league with the Security Corps member.
“Ahem, you’re a Black Magic major?”
“Yes, I’ve studied it somewhat.”
“Somewhat, I see. How amusing. Ahem, then how do you touch an object’s nature?”
“To use the Collapse Curse, a high-tier curse, you must place the stroke of the ‘form’ character last.”
“Ahem, a flawless answer. Why are you working as a Security Corps member? Have you given no thought to being a Black Magic instructor? Ahem, I’ll treat you very well.”
“My apologies.”
“Ahem, don’t be like that. I truly would treat you well.”
Dracov had offered the Security Corps member a position as an instructor during the very lesson.
Moreover, when the Security Corps member declined, he even pressed further.
“Professor, you’re too much. You’re just teasing him.”
“It’s because the Security Corps member is being so pushy—”
Other students chuckled. They seemed to think Dracov was teasing the Security Corps member.
It made more sense to assume the professor was joking than that he’d offer an instructor position to a mere Security Corps member.
But to the Crown Prince, it looked different.
Professor Dracov was ‘genuinely’ asking the man for an instructor position.
“Ahem, all the instructors here are blockheads. I’ll pay top salary, so come work for me.”
Those desperate eyes could not possibly be joking.
‘Did he really answer correctly?’
Then a loud sound rang out. It was the bell signaling the end of class.
“Ahem, it’s over. Here, take this. What is your name?”
“It’s Grave.”
“Right, Grave. Here.”
Dracov held out a bread pouch he’d pulled from his bag toward the man.
‘Grave, is it.’
The Crown Prince, who had been glaring at the Security Corps member, committed that name to memory.
* * *
‘He’s really angry.’
I glanced sidelong at the Crown Prince and clicked my tongue.
Though I’d unintentionally provoked him, it wasn’t entirely bad.
‘The Crown Prince’s competitive drive is extreme, after all.’
The Crown Prince was the type who absolutely had to be the protagonist.
A degree of provocation could explosively accelerate his growth.
The Crown Prince would study every high-tier curse between now and next class.
Moreover, I could prevent his gaze from turning toward Evangeline.
Just then, I grabbed the bread pouch Dracov was handing me.
“Ahem, are you truly not interested in the instructor position?”
Dracov’s eyes gleamed. He looked exactly like a rat who’d found cheese.
“I’ll give it some thought.”
“I’ll treat you well.”
“Yes.”
As I took the bread pouch, I flicked my finger slightly.
An Aura shot out so fast it was invisible, piercing through Dracov’s bag.
Crack—a faint sound of something breaking.
I’d destroyed the detonator of the Mana Stone Bomb.
This prevented the Republic operative from triggering it arbitrarily.
However, I couldn’t let my guard down. There was the possibility of a timer mechanism.
I needed to secure Dracov’s bag.
The problem was that Dracov wouldn’t willingly give me his bag.
No matter how much Dracov had offered me an instructor position, he wouldn’t hand over his bag.
So—
‘Gate Opening.’
I quietly intoned it in my mind.
I didn’t fully open the gate. It was a subtle Gate Opening, merely the level of grasping a doorknob.
The other students didn’t even notice.
However, Dracov was an advanced-level Black Magic practitioner.
Dracov’s eyes widened to their limits as he stared at me.
In his gaze lay shock, fear, and reverence.
Unlike other professions, Black Magic practitioners maintain a clear hierarchy.
If the demon your opponent contracted is of higher rank than the one you contracted, a certain superior-inferior relationship is established.
I don’t know which demon Dracov contracted, but the odds of it ranking higher than the one inside me were slim.
Of course, possessing a higher-ranked demon doesn’t mean you can command the other party like a subordinate.
Still, you can issue simple commands.
I spoke to Dracov.
“I’ll take the bag.”
Dracov nodded blankly.
So far, everything went as expected, but the problem was—
“It’s all yours, all of iiiiit!!!”
Dracov’s reaction was quite extreme.
He screamed with his head pressed to the ground.
‘What is this—’
I was considerably taken aback, but what mattered now was the Mana Stone Bomb.
I grabbed the bag first and looked around the classroom.
Thanks to Dracov’s outburst, most of the students were looking at him.
Among them, a few were looking at me instead of Dracov.
One was the Crown Prince, one was Evangeline. The third was a student of utterly ordinary appearance.
Operatives of the Republic are typically unmarked. Even if their parents are operatives, supposedly you wouldn’t know.
Republic operatives don’t show their hand even with a sword through their body.
Yet this one couldn’t hide his shock.
That was only natural—he’d invested considerable money in that Mana Stone Bomb, and it had failed to function.
‘Kyle.’
I checked his name tag, then moved toward the door.
As I tried to leave, Evangeline blocked my path. With her hands clasped together prayerfully, she cried out earnestly.
“Please give me the bread! I’m begging you!”
Evangeline’s gaze was fixed on the bread pouch in my hand. A faint trace of drool hung from her lips.
Evangeline loved bread. So much so that she slept hugging it.
If I didn’t give it to her, she’d definitely hound me about it.
“Here.”
“Waaaaah!”
I tossed the bread pouch upward and hurried away.
I had no idea when the Mana Stone Bomb might detonate.
‘Somewhere no one would notice the Mana Stone Bomb going off—’
Since we were in the main building, students crowded the surroundings.
There was only one place without spectators.
The bathroom.
Fortunately, the bathroom was empty. I entered the farthest stall and opened the bag.
The bag glowed with radiant light.
‘High-Grade Mana Stones.’
High-Grade Mana Stones are things you cannot buy even with money. Yet the bag was filled with such stones.
The Republic had made quite an investment. I could understand why that Republic operative had looked so panicked.
I removed all the stones except for one that served as the focal point of the magical circle.
“Kuga.”
“Kuga!”
Kuga darted out from my shirt pocket with impressive speed and swept the stones into its mouth. The speed was remarkable.
Suddenly, I grew curious about what would happen if I put a Mana Stone Bomb in Kuga’s mouth.
“Kuga! Kuga!”
Kuga shook its head urgently. It clearly wouldn’t eat such a thing.
Then the light of the magical circle erupted in full intensity.
“Step back.”
“Kuga!”
I placed the bag on top of the toilet and summoned a massive Aura.
My Aura, pulled to its absolute limit, shimmered like heat haze.
Soon the bag began to swell, and powerful mana burst forth in all directions.
I wrapped the bag in my Aura. My Aura held it tight like a shield.
The swollen bag soon ruptured.
Bang! The mana explosion struck my Aura violently.
The mana blast couldn’t break through my Aura.
However, I couldn’t cushion the impact entirely.
Thud. A heavy shock assailed me.
I gritted my teeth and held firm.
Soon the explosion subsided.
‘Clean.’
I straightened my disheveled clothes and stepped outside.
Hanswell was waiting outside.
“What has happened! There was a loud noise—”
Hanswell, who had rushed over urgently, checked the stall where I’d been.
Awe appeared in Hanswell’s eyes upon seeing the toilet completely shattered by the blast.
It was a very different sort of awe from when I’d revealed myself as a Sword Saint.
“Y-Your Majesty, Sword Saint!!”
Hanswell, glancing back and forth between the toilet and me, dropped to his knee and cried out.
‘Damn it.’
I ignored Hanswell and left the bathroom.
Two people were waiting in the corridor.
One was Evangeline. With her face smeared with breadcrumbs, Evangeline held out some bread.
“Eating it all is a bit much! Here!”
Despite her words, her face showed she deeply regretted sharing.
“Just eat it yourself.”
“Really? Can I really eat it?”
I ignored her and turned my gaze away.
Beside Evangeline stood Dracov.
When our eyes met, Dracov dropped to his knee and cried out.
“Master!!”
Evangeline’s eyebrows twitched up and down.
“Oh? I know this! I’ve seen it in a book!”
Evangeline cried out, flinging breadcrumbs everywhere.
‘Damn it.’
I pressed my temples firmly.
I was exhausted.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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