The S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy - Chapter 33

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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 33

“To think there’s a force strong enough to deflect your Skill…”
The Association President’s expression hardened into a rigid mask.
Was there really someone in this country capable of repelling Sa Hyeon’s attack?
“Can you track them?”
He stared directly at the gravity of the situation, then handed Sa Hyeon a handkerchief.
“I’ll give it a try. Even if it costs me a few Potions.”
Sa Hyeon wiped the blood from around his mouth and hands with the handkerchief, then looked down with obvious displeasure.
“Mmmph! Mmgh!”
The Summoner, his mouth still sealed, was babbling incoherently.
Sa Hyeon withdrew his hand with an irritated gesture.
His glove was damp, as expected.
He grimaced and wiped the saliva from his glove using the Association President’s handkerchief.
“Sir! If I may offer my own Potions—I have plenty in my Inventory! Please, just say the word and I’ll give you everything!”
The Summoner cried out, rattling his restraints in frustration.
“…You have that many Potions?”
The Association President’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.
“There are any number of suspicious things about this…”
Sa Hyeon muttered under his breath with a heavy sigh.
‘It looks like he’s been Awakened less than six months.’
“Return Stones from the Gate, and all those items—where did they come from?”
He stared at the man’s golden eyes as if trying to pierce through them.
Potions—items you couldn’t even purchase without a Hunter License—and Return Stones worth hundreds of millions of won, all carried by someone like this…
Sa Hyeon recalled a fragment of conversation he’d glimpsed in the man’s memory.

—The item?
—Too bad. I really wanted to study that core.

A voice distorted beyond recognition—gender indeterminate.
‘So that one is the mastermind.’
Sa Hyeon had expected the man to clam up and resist.
Even with some memories sealed, Interrogation shouldn’t be hindered.
He was adjusting his left glove and reaching toward the blond man’s head when—
“Oh, our organization provides those for us!”
The Summoner answered without hesitation.
“…What?”
“An… organization?”
The answer had come far too easily.
Now it was Sa Hyeon and the Association President who found themselves taken aback.
…And he didn’t even use a Skill? Just broke like that?
Sa Hyeon let out a hollow laugh and examined the Summoner’s eyes carefully.
“What’s the organization called?”
An organization with that much capital—was it one of those groups making waves lately?
The Summoner answered the pressing question readily.
“It’s called the Geoheng-ja.”
Sa Hyeon’s eyebrows rose sharply.
“…The Geoheng-ja?”
“I’ve never heard of them before…”
The Association President’s throat tightened as his eyes narrowed.
It was certainly a grandiose name.
“What do they do?”
The Association President swallowed hard at Sa Hyeon’s question.
Any organization with that level of resources and power would be troublesome to deal with.
Tension settled over the study.
The Association President was bracing himself for the emergence of a new criminal syndicate when—
The Summoner spoke.
“It’s a gathering of those who revere the Mirror Executor, or ‘Geoheng-ja’ for short!”
“…….”
Hack, cough! Cough, cough!
The Association President choked on his own saliva, gasping properly.
“…Worship? What are you talking about?”
What kind of ridiculous….
Sa Hyeon questioned his own ears.
Behind him, the Association President scrambled frantically for water, but the summoner pressed on with grim resolve.
“Following the Interrogator’s methods, we believe in setting the world right by any means necessary—disregarding the distinction between ends and means. In other words, we are those who inherit the will of the Mirror-Faced One.”
“…Are you just spouting this nonsense because you’ve given up on everything?”
Sa Hyeon examined the summoner from head to toe as if witnessing something obscene.
At his cautious words, the summoned one recoiled in denial.
“That couldn’t be! What kind of fool would lie about their own safety!!”
…Or maybe he’s simply insane.
Sa Hyeon drew a sharp breath through his teeth and nodded slightly.
Through all these years, countless criminals had passed through his hands, each surrendering their truth.
Whether someone was lying—he no longer needed to use his Skill to know.
His pupils trembled faintly, but his gaze remained unflinching, meeting Sa Hyeon’s eyes directly.
Those transparent, luminous golden irises seemed to flicker with unusual brightness.
The sign of truth.
That such a horrific organization existed at all.
‘I wish it were a lie….’
The headache that had faded was returning.
Either way, his mouth remained open, so Sa Hyeon needed to extract everything he could.
Sa Hyeon pressed his brow and parted his lips.
“Why are you searching for the core I took?”
“I simply follow orders from above. I was told the mission parameters are set according to the Interrogator’s principles.”
So he was mechanically carrying out commands, ignorant of the true circumstances.
Even under Sa Hyeon’s relentless scrutiny, the summoner’s eyes burned with fervent intensity, unwavering.
“How long have you been active with this group?”
“…About three months now.”
His ready flow of answers suddenly halted.
Sa Hyeon pressed further.
“When did you Awaken?”
“That’s….”
The summoner’s face clouded with difficulty. He narrowed his eyes, then moistened his lips and spoke.
“I… don’t remember clearly.”
“You don’t remember when you Awakened?”
The Association President cleared his obstructed throat and voiced his confusion.
Awakening typically arrived with excruciating pain as the body underwent transformation—no Awakened One existed who didn’t remember it.
Sa Hyeon exhaled softly.
“So it starts here….”
The beginning of the gap in his memory.
“Tell me everything you do remember.”
At this, the summoner straightened, meeting Sa Hyeon’s gaze with sudden resolve.
“From where to where should I speak?”
Sa Hyeon tilted slightly, a faint smile crossing his lips.
“From your name to your age. Everything about who you are.”

* * *

His name was Yu-weol.
A half-blood with an American mother and a Korean father.
Before his Awakening, the young Yu-weol, whose exotic features made him stand out wherever he went, had been called a “promising marksman.”
Every time a bullet struck the center of the target, people applauded, and his parents beamed with pride.

-I’ll become a non-Awakened operative who supports Hunters!

Yu-weol’s gun barrel had pointed toward only one dream.
But that peace shattered in an instant.
The Second Dungeon Break had occurred.
Seven years after the first Gate appeared, disaster struck again. The world had barely regained its order when chaos engulfed it once more.
The fragile system that had been painstakingly built crumbled, and black fissures began appearing at random across the city.
But the boy was not pushed into hell by monsters.

-…….
-…….
-…Mom? Dad….

Lawless brigands exploited the chaos to plunder and murder.
It was the Hunters—those who should have protected us—who took his parents’ lives.

-They’re members of a Crime Guild operating in organized fashion. In times like these, arrest is difficult and punishment is harder still.

Even with swollen eyes, clinging and pleading, all he received was cold indifference.
Losing family to a Dungeon Break was so common that everyone turned a deaf ear to his anguish.
The more Yu-weol appealed for justice, the more helpless he became, and despair tightened around his throat.

Years passed.
The second Dungeon Break ended.
Everyone hailed the Hunters who had safely suppressed it as heroes.
The world was gradually returning to normalcy.
But Yu-weol remained trapped in that hell.
In the moment when bitter hatred was consuming his soul, he made a decision.
If the law would not judge them, he would deliver judgment himself.
That day, Yu-weol picked up a gun he had set down long ago.
The day he found the assassin guild’s headquarters.
He climbed to the rooftop of a building across from theirs.
A major intersection in the sprawling city.
Their base occupied a high-rise building surrounded by others, bristling with enormous electronic billboards and flashing screens.
Through transparent floor-to-ceiling windows, he could see the luxuriously appointed guild office within.
Now Yu-weol’s gun barrel pointed toward vengeance alone.
Ready to pull the trigger the moment anyone appeared.
But as the sun set, the guild building remained dark and silent.
The moment Yu-weol removed his eye from the scope in bewilderment.
The massive screen above the building blazed through the darkening night.

[The Age of Lawlessness has ended… “Mirror Mask” dismantles five Crime Guilds in just one week]
[“Mirror Mask” Interrogator’s ruthless questioning sparks controversy over a 0% Recidivism Rate]

On the screen, “he” appeared—a figure wearing a grotesque mask.
An overwhelming force that swept away criminals the authorities had abandoned.
Watching order restored by that merciless hand, Yu-weol trembled.
The one hero who had pulled him from hell.
Yu-weol’s darkness lifted.

* * *

“…And that is my last memory before my Awakening.”
Yu-weol finished his account slowly.
“So you’re telling me you came to consciousness already active as an Awakened One?”
The Association President questioned him as if unable to believe it.
“Yes.”
Yu-weol replied curtly and nodded with indifference.
The Association President regarded Yu-weol with a troubled expression.
A boy who lost his parents to criminal Hunters and spent years consumed by hatred and resentment.
As the leader guiding Korea’s Hunter community, the weight of guilt settled heavily in his heart.
Meanwhile, Sa Hyeon gazed down at Yu-weol dispassionately and asked.
“When did your memories vanish?”
Clumsy combat technique, incompetence at controlling even his own Summons.
The clumsiness that made the S-rank designation seem hollow must stem from those lost memories.
Sa Hyeon recalled the solid barrier embedded deep within Yu-weol’s mind.
‘A non-Mental-type Awakened One couldn’t seal their own memories.’
Which meant they’d been sealed by someone else.
But who could that be?
Yu-weol answered with an earnest expression, eager to help.
“Yes, I’m certain it was the summer I turned seventeen, but when I came to my senses, it was winter! It looks like roughly half a year just vanished!”
Sa Hyeon’s eyes narrowed.
“…Seventeen?”
“Yes, I’m eighteen now!”
The Association President pressed his forehead and let out a sigh.
“Hmm… younger than I expected.”
Then he added in a heavy voice.
“Even if you’re a minor, an unregistered Awakening and illegal Gate infiltration are serious crimes. Punishment is unavoidable.”
At that, Yu-weol’s eyes gleamed as if he’d been waiting for this moment.
“I’ll accept any torture! If it’s from you, Interrogator, I’m ready to offer even my soul…!!”
“I don’t need your soul.”
Sa Hyeon cut off Yu-weol’s words cleanly.
“Anyway, even if you ended up in a cell now, you’d just spend your time staring at walls. I’m on extended leave topside for the time being.”
“W-what?! Why?! What do you mean, a prison without you, Interrogator?! That’s just hell!”
Whether or not Yu-weol’s face froze in shock, Sa Hyeon crossed his arms and fell into thought.
The purpose of the group targeting the core, and the sealed memories locked away in Yu-weol’s mind.
There was a mountain of information he wanted to unearth.
The seal had already cracked; with enough tapping at the fissures, it would eventually break open.
“I’ll have to take direct control of this myself.”
“!”
At Sa Hyeon’s words, Yu-weol’s gloomy expression brightened at once.
“You? You’ll take charge of Yu-weol?”
The Association President asked, bewildered.
He agreed that Yu-weol’s sealed memories needed to be uncovered, since there could be hidden circumstances involved.
But…
The Association President’s eyes widened in alarm.
“…Surely not there?!”
He had belatedly grasped Sa Hyeon’s meaning.
His expression grew grave, and he lowered his voice.
“Even so, wouldn’t that be too dangerous? An S-rank of unknown affiliation…”
“I wouldn’t let it come to that.”
Sa Hyeon’s lips curled slightly upward as he gave a light shrug.
“Interrogator?”
Yu-weol interjected carefully, his voice full of hope, into the conversation between the two men.
Sa Hyeon bent his knees to meet Yu-weol’s gaze directly.
“On the surface, don’t call me Interrogator. I hate getting tangled up in bothersome matters.”
“Then how should I…? Ah, then Savior, Absolute One, or perhaps Hero?”
“……”
Sa Hyeon gave a cold stare, as if questioning whether he was serious, then pulled a small key from his inventory.
Click—
The Binding Restraint wrapped around Yu-weol’s wrist, glowing with crimson mana, came undone.
Sa Hyeon watched quietly as Yu-weol rubbed his newly freed wrist in a daze.
Raise him well, and his own workload would naturally decrease.
The boy was an excellent resource to shoulder his tiresome duties.
Sa Hyeon’s mouth curved upward.
“From now on, call me Teacher.”
“…!”
Yu-weol’s golden eyes filled with astonishment and emotion.
“…I wonder if this will be alright.”
The Association President, watching this unfold, murmured low to himself.
The Academy was going to be far noisier than he’d anticipated.

S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy — Chapter 33

Ji Eun Lee
Baek Lua-ga
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yoon Tae-ri
Cover Design
Tonp

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260512043.0034

ⓒ2026, Baek Lua-ga

※ This e-book is protected under the copyright laws of the Republic of Korea.
No part or all of this work may be reproduced or processed 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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