The S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy - Chapter 11

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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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Chapter 11

“For the First Generation, stepping into a Gate was an adventure in itself. Someday, perhaps—”
The Chancellor’s voice had grown animated as he spun out his tales of bygone exploits.
‘I don’t need to sit here listening to stories I’ve already heard.’
Sa Hyeon cracked his neck from side to side, lifting his torso away from the chair’s backrest.
“Are we done here?”
“…Well, I’m still going—”
The Chancellor answered with obvious reluctance.
Looking at him spin out his pointless reminiscences, it seemed he’d already said everything that mattered.
“I’ll use Lee Ha Je’s office, then.”
Might as well start digging through there.
There could be some clue waiting to be found.
The Chancellor’s expression grew uncertain, his brow furrowing slightly.
“Ah, well, Professor Lee Ha Je’s research office may not be in a usable state.”
“It’s sealed off?”
“Not exactly that, but…”
“Then it’s fine.”
As Sa Hyeon rose from his seat, the Chancellor awkwardly stood up alongside him.
Passing by the Chancellor, Sa Hyeon reached out and tapped the back of his neck lightly, twice.
The youngest member of the field team had become Academy Chancellor.
“You’ve gone far.”
“Huh?!”
The Chancellor rubbed the back of his neck, his face going blank with bewilderment.
A sensation at once familiar and strange—oddly intimate.
‘Why does this tap feel so familiar?’
He turned to look back at Sa Hyeon, but the man had already opened the door and was stepping out of the Chancellor’s office.
“I—I’m sorry! Let me go ahead!”
Hae Sung stifled an internal cry as he bowed quickly at the waist.
Then he hurried after Sa Hyeon.
“Sa Hyeon! You shouldn’t go that way!”

* * *

The Academy lacked for nothing.
From every conceivable sports facility to entertainment amenities.
Situated far from any residential area, everything needed could be found within the campus grounds.
It was vast enough to accommodate it all.
Yet Hae Sung guided him without a single wrong turn.

[Lee Ha Je | Combat A-rank]

Two figures stood before the research office entrance.
“…Ah, if it’s like this…”
Hae Sung stared blankly at the office door for a moment, then carefully chose his words before speaking again.
“This would be rather difficult, wouldn’t it…?”

[I won’t forget you.]
[I was always grateful. I will remember forever.]
[I will walk the path you left for us. Rest well.]
…….

The office door—even the doorknob—was covered entirely with memorial messages.
Wreaths of flowers lay piled thick around the base of the door.
“Difficult, nothing.”
There was a perfectly good memorial hall elsewhere. Why had they done this here?
Sa Hyeon began peeling away the papers stuck to the doorknob without hesitation, then pushed the door open.
“Oh no! Sa Hyeon!”
Whether Hae Sung was startled or not, Sa Hyeon stepped slowly inside.
He gathered the scattered notes, and Hae Sung followed awkwardly in his wake.
Thanks to the sealed exterior covered in note after note, the interior appeared preserved just as Lee Ha Je had left it.
The inside seemed to be kept exactly as Lee Ha Je had used it.
“This works.”
Sa Hyeon surveyed the space with an impassive gaze.
A broad, unobstructed window directly ahead. A work desk in front of it.
“We should start by organizing.”
Hae Sung spoke, glancing around the assistant’s desk along the wall.
Sa Hyeon nodded and pointed to Lee Ha Je’s desk.
“Don’t touch that one. I’ll handle it.”
“Oh… are you sure? It looks like there’s quite a lot to organize.”
Lee Ha Je’s desk certainly held more clutter than the others.
Sa Hyeon shrugged.
“I don’t mind.”
Besides, I’m only searching through things anyway.
I don’t have much of my own to bring, and I won’t be staying at the Academy long.
“Yes, understood.”
Hae Sung responded dutifully, then promptly pulled a large moving box from his Inventory.
Why anyone kept such things in an Inventory was beyond him.
Sa Hyeon left Hae Sung to his bustling about, instructing him to place everything that needed clearing into boxes, and turned his attention to the desk’s surface.
The most eye-catching object was a trophy topped with a crown-like figurine.
Beneath it, small lettering was inscribed.
“Popularity Award?”
They give Hunters all manner of things.
Sa Hyeon tossed the trophy into the box without hesitation.
He casually checked the framed photo beside it and stopped short.
A familiar group photograph.
Four figures, covered in dust, sat atop the remains of a collapsed building.
Hae Sung, peering over his shoulder at the photo, spoke up.
“First Generation rankers.”
……
The era when Creatures first appeared.
The entire world was lawless.
New Awakeners emerging daily, and Gates appearing without end.
It was four S-rank Hunters who drove stabilization through that chaos.
Sa Hyeon’s eyes caught on one figure in the photograph.
The hooded figure with whose arm Lee Ha Je had linked arms.
Shadows obscured their face, making identification impossible.
“Most of them are dead now.”
Sa Hyeon threw the frame into the box.
Hae Sung barely caught it before it broke, then carefully placed it inside.
Once Hae Sung returned to his work, Sa Hyeon resumed his search.
He opened the desk drawers one by one.
The first drawer held items that appeared to be from class use. The second contained fan letters and gift packages.
Nothing of note.
The moment he reached for the last drawer—
Clunk—
Something caught. The drawer was sealed shut, solid and immovable.
‘Must be sealed with a magical stone or a Contract Skill.’
Sa Hyeon’s lips curved into a slant smile.
Why lock only this drawer?
Thoroughly suspicious.
His grip on the drawer tightened.
Soon the line of his jaw sharpened into stark definition.
Crack—shatter!
The drawer he gripped issued a cascade of splintering and breaking sounds.
Hae Sung, focused on his cleaning, went wide-eyed.
“? Did you hear something breaking just now…?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“How could I not be curious?”
Sa Hyeon gave a vague answer and pulled open the last drawer again.
The drawer creaked, sliding limply open.
At last, the hidden object came into view.
Black and circular….
“…A hat?”
A black hat with a visor.
Of course it was no ordinary hat.
Sa Hyeon placed the hat on his head and caught his reflection in the window.
His face had changed—different features entirely.
It was an item meant for disguising one’s identity.
‘Why would he hide something like this? Was he leading a double life?’
For someone like Lee Ha Je, who’d always treated people with brightness and honesty, this was an incongruous thing to own.
He’d need to dig deeper.
The moment he tucked the hat into his Inventory.
“…!”
He discovered a Tablet hidden beneath it.
The battery was barely clinging to life.
Sa Hyeon dropped into the chair and examined the Tablet.
A clean device with only basic apps installed.
He clicked on the notepad icon first.
But―

[Screen Locked]

A prompt appeared demanding a password.
“I can’t break into this.”
Sa Hyeon clicked his tongue and searched for other information, but found nothing of note.
He’d need to find the password somehow….
As he pondered and clicked on the album.
“!”
He found a recently captured article clipping.
An article with a date stamp from five years ago.
The content was familiar to Sa Hyeon.

[National Hero ‘Veil’ Dies in Awakener Rampage]
Veil, South Korea’s first S-rank Awakener and the nation’s top-ranked hunter, died this morning during an operation.
The Hunter Association announced in an emergency briefing this morning that ‘during the suppression of an A-rank Gate, Veil and three fellow operatives who were deployed alongside him fell in combat.’
Abnormal phenomena were detected in the Gate’s energy during the incident, and rescue teams―

Sa Hyeon’s eyes narrowed as he read through the article, then stopped.
After exhaling slowly and turning his attention back to the screen, he belatedly noticed blank space beside the article.
Checkmarks and handwritten notes scattered throughout the article.

-Fierce Battleground
-Gate energy, red light?

Notes that appeared to have been written hastily by Lee Ha Je.
‘Was this accident also at the Fierce Battleground?’
And red light in the Gate’s energy….
Sa Hyeon rolled his tongue, brooding over Lee Ha Je’s notes.
“Um. Sa Hyeon.”
Hae Sung’s voice shattered the silence.
“Time’s running out.”
Sa Hyeon lifted his head.
The wall clock read 4:45.
Fifteen minutes until the Gate test.
“…There’s still work to be done.”
He couldn’t risk being punished by the Association head with a Contract Skill for slacking off.
Sa Hyeon reluctantly closed the Tablet and placed it in his Inventory.
“These are the documents related to today’s test.”
Hae Sung handed over crisp sheets of paper.
A signature was stamped in the approval box at the upper right.
It appeared to be Lee Ha Je’s.
“He’s made his signature as flashy as a celebrity’s.”
Sa Hyeon shook his head at the ostentatious flourish and continued reading.
The students’ information was listed at the top.
Ability stats exceeding B-rank.
The Chancellor’s confident claim seemed not to be a lie, at least.
But the stronger the power, the more critical the control that wields it becomes.
They’d need several months of training before they could pull their weight in the field….
Sa Hyeon’s eyes, moving slowly down the page, stopped abruptly at one entry.

-Eun O, A-rank, Day 7 of Awakening

“…An Awakener of one week goes into a Gate.”
Is he out of his mind?

* * *

A vast Training Hall with a domed ceiling.
“Do you think we’ll be okay with the test today…?”
Jae Yoon murmured hesitantly.
His massive frame was hidden behind a pillar, though not hidden enough—his silhouette was plainly visible.
Behind him, wine-colored hair suddenly poked out.
“You’ve got this, buddy! Think about your ability!”
Eun O patted Jae Yoon’s back encouragingly.
But the one who actually took damage was….
“Ow!! My hand!!”
Eun O himself.
“I’m so sorry….”
Jae Yoon apologized, his eyebrows drooping.
Crack-crunch—
At that moment, the pillar Jae Yoon was gripping began to crumble like a biscuit.
Gyeol, who had been watching the scene while curling his short, bristly hair with his forefinger, let out a sigh.
“If you get demerits again this time, you’re facing suspension.”
“Eek!”
Jae Yoon jumped back in alarm, spreading his fingers wide.
The pillar was already marked with five distinct indentations from his fingers.
“This can’t be…!”
Jae Yoon was dismayed.
Jae Yoon possessed an ability to absorb damage and rebound it outward.
But he still lacked control, having damaged campus property more than once as a result.
Gyeol clicked his tongue and glanced at his wristwatch, exhaling softly.
“But can we really trust the instructor who’s coming today?”
Jae Yoon swept up the debris scattered at the base of the pillar as he spoke.
“Wasn’t it said that the person who’s coming today was the one who dealt with the Creature that appeared recently—Falcon?”
“That’s just rumor. Nothing’s been confirmed, is it? If Professor Lee Ha Je were coming along, that’d be one thing, but on what grounds do we follow this stranger?”
“Oh come on, you’re just scared to enter the Gate, aren’t you?”
Eun O laughed mockingly, and Gyeol’s expression hardened.
“That’s ridiculous. Do you not know who Jae Yoon is?”
“…! That’s too much….”
Jae Yoon’s shoulders trembled.
“Hey, hey. Why are you getting so gloomy all of a sudden?”
Gyeol visibly flustered and turned his irritation on Eun O instead.
As the Training Hall grew noisy,
Eun O hummed casually, gazing out the window.
A perfect day for our first Gate exploration!
Then two figures crossed his field of view, crossing the courtyard toward the Training Hall building.
“Well, if you’re curious whether they have real skill or not―”
When Eun O opened his mouth, the commotion died down, and Jae Yoon and Gyeol’s gazes snapped toward him.
Eun O turned to look at his two friends, a pleased smile spreading across his face.
“We can verify it right now.”

S-rank Instructor Devours the Academy Chapter 11

Author
Baek Luga
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yun Tae-ri
Cover Design
Thomp

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260512043.0012

ⓒ2026, Baek Luga

※ This e-book is protected under the copyright law of the Republic of Korea.
No part or whole of this work may be reproduced or modified in any form without the permission of the author and publisher.

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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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