The S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy - Chapter 18

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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 18

The boss monster fell without resistance to the incoming Summoned Beast.
Eun O shielded his eyes with one hand, peering through the billowing sand and dust.
“Oh~ two in one shot! The efficiency is insane!”
“…Chita, I have to say, I feel a bit sorry for them….”
As Jae Yoon scratched his cheek, Chita twisted his lips and shrugged.
“Who knows. It’s a Summoned Beast—can’t guess what it’s thinking anyway.”
The sand and dust gradually settled.
A small shadow writhed and scrambled unsteadily to its feet.
The Summoned Beast’s eyes were spinning in circles.
Soon after, the lizard boss regained its senses.
Its narrow pupils fixed on the Summoned Beast.
Sshhiiiiing—!
The lizard flicked its tongue menacingly.
The Summoned Beast, as if indignant, slammed its tail repeatedly against the ground.
“Ha ha, these two are about to throw down, aren’t they?”
Eun O’s face lit up with intrigue, as if he were about to pull out popcorn.
Sa Hyeon shook his head and spoke.
“Stop the chatter and stay hidden quietly.”
Then he gave a quiet signal toward Hae Seong.
Hae Seong, who had been lazily assessing the situation, came to his senses belatedly.
“Y-yes!”
Catching the intensity in Sa Hyeon’s gaze, he immediately snapped to attention and gathered the students into one spot.
“We’ll fall back.”
Jae Yoon nodded quickly.
“Yes, yes!”
“Aw! I want to join in too!”
“There you go again with the nonsense.”
Only after Chita had dragged the reluctant Eun O away from the scene did Sa Hyeon exhale slowly and turn his attention back to his target.
Sshhiiiiing—!
Crackle—crack crack!
The lizard and the Summoned Beast faced off.
Despite the size difference being at least four or five times in the boss’s favor, neither showed any sign of backing down.
‘Perfect timing.’
Sa Hyeon’s lips curved upward as he kicked off without hesitation.
The distance between him and the two monsters closed in an instant.
At that moment, the lizard’s pupils stretched wide, and it locked onto the approaching Sa Hyeon.
The spines covering the lizard’s entire body bristled sharply.
And then.
Whoooosh—!
Spines shot forth like a torrential downpour.
The Summoned Beast nimbly dodged out of the way.
But it found itself blocked by the one-meter-long scorpion-type monsters guarding the boss’s flanks.
Sa Hyeon, by contrast, charged forward calmly.
He slipped through the gaps between the flying spines, letting the barrage slide past him.
A scorpion-type monster stood in his path.
Sa Hyeon rolled and plucked a spine that had lodged in the ground.
Swoosh—!
With each swing, the count climbed by one.

[E-Grade or Higher Monster 277/300]
….
[E-Grade or Higher Monster 289/300]

With Sa Hyeon and the Summoned Beast hunting, the numbers were filling quickly.

[E-Grade or Higher Monster 300/300]
[You have succeeded in the Monster Hunting Quest.]

[Boss 0/1]

At last, the first quest achieved.
Now only the boss remained.
The target had drawn impossibly close.
Then came the massive shape, rushing toward him like something unleashed.
It moved as if a bus were bearing down upon him.
“Uglier than I’d have preferred.”
Sa Hyeon’s brow furrowed in an instant.
The boss’s jaw opened wide.
A red point swelling deep within its throat.
Whoosh—!
Then came a torrent of flame, blazing outward.
Sa Hyeon pressed forward without hesitation, swinging the Thorn in a wide arc.
Boom!
The inferno split into two.
He cut through the gap between them and leaped forward, his hand extending.
The boss’s narrow pupils dilated.
It twisted late, attempting to spring away, but the moment had already passed.
Crash—!
His fist plunged into the hardened skull.
The sandy ground caved in beneath the impact.
In the haze of dust, the boss lay sprawled, consciousness scattered.
“Finally quieted down.”
Sa Hyeon hummed with satisfaction.
He removed the glove from his right hand and placed his palm against the boss’s head.
Soon the eyes began to glow red.
A familiar memory surfaced as he rifled through the boss’s mind.
Fragmented images flickered rapidly across Sa Hyeon’s consciousness.
An Oasis, crimson light, cold water, hard stone, and….
“……!”
It struck then.
A wave of revulsion surging from the depths of his heart.
It burned as if his entire being might melt away.
His body went numb, his vision blurred and distant.
It was a sensation he knew all too well.
‘…It must have fused with the core.’
The troublesome Red Mana Stone appeared to have been absorbed into the boss’s core.
‘I was prepared to tear through its insides, but this might turn out to be fortunate after all.’
Even among Gate bosses of the same type, core locations varied with each encounter.
But this creature’s core placement was unmistakable.
“It’s been thoroughly riddled.”
The heart, the head, the neck—everywhere.
All the places where a lizard-type monster’s core should logically be had already been destroyed by some mysterious sniper.
Only one location remained intact.
The base of its tail.
‘No point dragging this out.’
Sa Hyeon’s red eyes faded back to gray.
Sweat traced along his jaw.
The moment he removed his hand from the creature’s head.
Bang—
A bullet grazed past his ear.
The boss’s body convulsed sharply, briefly.
Then movement ceased entirely.
“This bastard….”
The bullet had struck true, hitting the lizard’s spine.
A shadow leaped forward immediately above it.
A Summoned Beast.
The moment Sa Hyeon bared his fangs, about to bite out the core—
Whoosh—!
Sa Hyeon hurled a Spine at the Summoned Beast like he was throwing a spear.
The creature flinched and stumbled backward, evading the attack.
Sa Hyeon seized the opening and drove forward.
Then he seized the embedded violet core and tore it free.
Splat! Red blood sprayed everywhere.
Ding—

[Boss Hunt Quest cleared.]
[Gate Clear completed.]
[Tallying score….]

Success messages bloomed before him all at once.
Sa Hyeon dismissed the window without much interest, then examined the core in his grip carefully.
A dense, solid mass that filled his entire hand.
‘Abnormally hot, though….’
It seemed nothing strange would happen if a human touched it.
Grrrrr—
Then the Summoned Beast, ears flattened against its head, let out an indignant growl.
Sa Hyeon let out a scoff of dismissal.
“You bite that, you’re done for.”
Whatever was dangerous for monsters would be just as deadly for Summoned Beasts.
That lizard looked like it had been in considerable pain.
‘Ungrateful creature.’
Sa Hyeon clicked his tongue and turned his attention back to the core.
Who should he entrust this to?
The Hunter Association couldn’t be trusted. He needed someone who actually understood anomalies like this….
While Sa Hyeon was lost in thought—
“Wow, if only it hadn’t been ranked up, I could’ve taken it!!”
Eun O came running over, clicking his tongue in regret.
The rest of the party approached one by one.
“Man, is that poison on the Spine?”
“Whoa, whoa… it looks even bigger up close….”
Behind Jae Yoon’s horrified expression, he crept forward hesitantly.
“…Sa Hyeon! Are you all right?”
At Hae Seong’s shout, Sa Hyeon let out a small exclamation.
Right—that one was here.
Sa Hyeon landed lightly on the sand.
“Can you use your Appraisal Skill right now?”
He held out the core in his palm, and Hae Seong nodded vigorously.
“Yes, of course!”
Hazel eyes studied the violet stone intently.
Soon, Hae Seong’s Skill data was shared with Sa Hyeon.

[Item Information]
Grade B Mana Stone extracted from the core of Ignis Moloch.
Name: Grade B Mana Stone
Attribute: Fire
Absorption Efficiency: 41%
Durability: 42%
Purity: 53%

“Hmm, pretty standard Grade B stats….”
Hae Seong, reading through the window slowly, tilted his head in confusion.
“Wait…?”
His gaze stopped abruptly on the last line.

(! Infection Rate: 12%)

“Infection Rate?”
Confusion clouded Hae Seong’s face.
Gyeol, who had sidled up next to him and leaned in to listen, let out a puzzled breath.
“Do Mana Stones have an attribute called infection?”
“They don’t.”
Sa Hyeon answered with certainty.
His gaze fixed on one point.
The Summoned Beast, still glaring intently at the core held in Sa Hyeon’s hand as if targeting it.
There was a good chance these creatures had secretly infiltrated this Gate precisely because they’d sensed this abnormal phenomenon.
Of course, a monster’s core was precious material worth hundreds of millions.
But pushing forward to clear the Gate without authorization suggested their purpose was definite.
“…It seems like that Summoner also knows about this phenomenon, doesn’t it?”
Hae Seong ventured a similar guess.
There were cases where non-Awakened Ones awakened after consuming Mana Stones, or where an Awakened One’s grade improved.
But it was typically only a single grade increase, and the success rate was a meager 0.1%.
Moreover, the side effects from failure were considerable.
Blindness to death.
Because of that danger, consuming Mana Stones was currently banned by law.
But monsters were different.
In the early days when Gates first appeared.
As the Hunter Association was established, various research was conducted.
As far as Hae Seong knew, there were no documented cases of monsters consuming Mana Stones and undergoing grade changes.
Jae Yoon, standing beside him, nervously moistened his lips.
“Then… they knew this would happen in advance?”
“Not yet.”
Sa Hyeon shrugged.
It seemed to know something, targeting the core relentlessly, but judging by how it kept trying to bite the core directly and run off, it didn’t appear to know the details.
Wouldn’t we find out more by questioning it directly?
“In any case, they seem to be quite an experienced and formidable fighter.”
Hae Seong spoke with a hardened jaw.
“But where on earth is that Summoner…”
Gyeol’s eyes widened as he furrowed his brow and scanned the surroundings.
Following his gaze, Jae Yoon cried out urgently.
“Hey, hey! Chita’s running away!”
The Summoned Beast backed away stealthily, then quickly disappeared from sight.
Eun O jerked upright and shouted.
“Shouldn’t we catch it?! You said it was suspicious!!”
Sa Hyeon casually tossed the core into his Inventory and answered dismissively.
“No need to rush.”
Ding—
A notification chimed.

[Score Compilation Complete]

“We’ll see it anyway.”
“Huh? How?”
Eun O blinked.
Right then.
White light flashed beneath Sa Hyeon’s party’s feet.
“…Uh? What’s this now?”
The moment Eun O, peering downward, voiced his confusion.
A new window appeared.

[Transferring to Reward Zone]

S-Grade Instructor Devours the Academy Episode 18

Author Ji Eun Yi
Illustrator Baek Ruga
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yoon Tae-ri
Cover Design
Tong

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260512043.0019

ⓒ2026, Baek Ruga

※ This e-book is protected under the copyright laws of the Republic of Korea.
Without permission from the author and publisher, no part or whole of this work may be reprocessed in any form.

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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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