The S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy - Chapter 43

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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 43

The predator’s gaze cut through the air with a keen, piercing light.
“…No, I said I’m sorry!”
Even as Gyeol offered another apology, Akhinonyx rumbled low in his throat, unsatisfied.
Grrr—
If he’d had hands, he would have seized Gyeol by the collar right then and there.
Gyeol let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand roughly through his hair.
Then he shouted at Yuwol again.
“…This isn’t the time for this! There’s a way to clear all the monsters at once, so just cooperate!”
Akhinonyx was the only one who took no damage from the Wire Spider’s Electric Current.
No—he was actually enjoying it.
Still young for an A-class Summoned Beast, but a Spirit Beast with the potential to grow to S-class.
According to his plan, the four of them didn’t need to waste strength on pointless efforts.
But Yuwol seemed unmoved.
“I have no intention of cooperating.”
This guy really….
Faced with those eyes that looked at him like he was some peddler, Gyeol bit down hard on the curses rising in his throat.
Then.
“Five minutes elapsed.”
“!”
Sahyeon announced the remaining time.
Monsters so numerous they were impossible to count.
If a third Wave of monsters added to this, failure was as certain as fire.
The encirclement of monsters closing in.
Gyeol stepped backward, biting his lip.
‘But there’s no point if these bastards won’t even listen!’
That fanatic wouldn’t even pretend to listen unless the teacher said it—
In that moment, a flash of inspiration struck Gyeol.
This will definitely work.
Gyeol spoke with certainty, his lips moving.
“…Are you going to fail on your first lesson and disappoint the teacher?”
“!”
Yuwol’s eyes, which had been dull, widened.
The teacher cheat code works every time.
Gyeol pressed his advantage, suppressing the smile that threatened to break across his face.
“Show them you can succeed and live up to expectations.”
“…….”
Yuwol’s pale brown eyes finally turned toward Gyeol.
“What’s the plan?”
Nice.
Gyeol inwardly cheered and gathered the others.
“Tae Eun-o, Ha Jae-yoon! Come here for a second!”
“What? I’m busy!”
“Yes, yes! Coming!”
Jae-yoon rushed over immediately, while Eun-o grumbled but hurried toward them, his hair streaming behind him.
“Tae Eun-o, use the strongest Wind you can muster and drive the monsters into a corner.”
“Huh? What’s this about all of a sudden?”
“Three minutes left.”
Sahyeon’s voice pressed down upon them.
Gyeol shouted urgently.
“No time to explain—just do what I say!!”
“Honestly. You’re always like this—no rhyme or reason.”
Eun-o shook his head and drew up the air currents.
The wind that had been swirling around his body stopped for an instant, then—
Whoooosh—!
A gale tore through the Corridor.
Helpless against the fierce current, the monsters were lifted effortlessly into the air.
In a single moment, the swarm of Wire Spiders was swept to one side.
But the gust’s effects weren’t limited to the monsters alone.
“Ahhhhh!”
Jae-yoon, flattened against the floor to escape the wind, and Yuwol, clinging to a pillar with a grimace on his face.
Gyeol, hanging from Jae-yoon’s back, narrowly avoided disaster and reproached him.
“Hey, Tae Eun-o! What are you doing sweeping us up too!”
“Oof! Sorry! I can’t control it that precisely yet!”
Eun-o laughed heartily.
“…But I’m keeping it going for now!”
Gyeol shouted loudly, deliberately provoking the monsters.
Trapped by the wind, unable to budge, they thrashed their legs uselessly—yet still shot their Wires toward him.
But Eun-o’s gust flung the Wires back, and they began tangling with each other.
Soon the Wires wrapped around the monster swarm, wound tight and dense.
“…That part’s done, at least.”
Now only one final strike remained.
“Now!”
Gyeol caught Yuwol’s eye.
Yuwol exhaled softly and opened his mouth.
“Akhinonyx.”
His yellow ears perked and tilted.
But the creature ignored him, stubbornly planting itself beside Jae-yoon, who was blocking the monsters’ escape route.
‘How was I supposed to convince him now…?’
“One minute,” Sahyeon announced, counting down.
Gyeol racked his brain and resorted to his final gambit.
“You dumb cat! Can’t you hear me?!”
Whip—instantly, the creature’s head swiveled.
His yellow eyes flashed with lethal intensity.
‘…Great. I’m absolutely terrified.’
He’d apologize later.
Gyeol deliberately flicked a contemptuous thumb.
“Come on then, if you’re mad! Take a swing!”
Grrrrrrowl—!
Akhinonyx roared with fury and charged straight at Gyeol.
At the same moment, electricity condensed along his whiskers.
Gyeol bolted full-speed toward his target—the center of the web.
Behind him, Akhinonyx’s high-voltage Current shot forth.
Just before the azure Lightning Bolt struck the back of Gyeol’s head—
“Huff!”
Gyeol ducked low, hurling himself to the ground.
His head missed, but the attack slammed dead center into the web.
KRAAAAAACK—!
A deep blue Lightning Bolt raced along the tangled web like veins, spreading in all directions.
SKREEEEEEE—!
Beneath it, the electrocuted monsters convulsed.
The Corridor filled instantly with acrid smoke and the reek of burning protein.

As the sparks died, silence fell over the Corridor.
Hazy smoke drifted down.
“Ugh, I can’t see a thing!”
Eun-o, coughing, conjured a breeze that swept the smoke away in one go.
Then the scene came into view.
“…Done.”
Gyeol let out a clean breath.
The monsters, charred black.
Total annihilation.
Jae-yoon drew an astonished gasp.
“Wow… wow….”
“Ha! This actually works?”

Tae Eun-o exhaled sharply, caught off guard.
Akhinonyx seemed quite fascinated by the sight of his Electric Current flowing along the spider’s web. So fascinated, in fact, that he bounded excitedly through the Corridor.
‘How much time is left?’
Gyeol suddenly looked up.
The moment he turned to Sahyeon, his eyes widened visibly.
Sahyeon’s finger was already hovering over the red button.
“Third Wave begins.”
Click.
“!”
No rest for the weary, apparently.
Gyeol clenched his teeth and adjusted his grip on the Short Sword.
Screeeee—
Monsters poured out once more, right on schedule.
But this time was different.
They’d already figured out the method.
Having witnessed the power of coordinated assault with their own eyes, the group no longer hesitated.
“Tae Eun-o, push them in!”
“Roger!”
Whoooosh—!
Tae Eun-o herded the monsters forward without hesitation.
Whether from overusing the skill or the Wind’s intensity weakening, three or four slipped through, but he didn’t dwell on it.
The small fry could be mopped up later.
Now it was Gyeol’s turn to step forward.
The spiders, without fail, shot their Wire at him.
Web after web, woven even more intricately than before.
Just as the pattern completed, Gyeol was about to call for Akhinonyx—
Growl—
Akhinonyx, already trembling with anticipation, unleashed a Lightning Bolt skyward.
Crack-crack-crack—!
Blue light raced along the web; the Lightning Bolt detonated in a brilliant flash, splitting the air with an ear-piercing roar.
Above the charred corpses of the monsters, thick smoke curled upward.
At the broken ends of the Wire, stray sparks still crackled.
“…Okay, now we just need to clean up the stragglers!”
At Gyeol’s shout, Tae Eun-o rolled up his sleeves and flashed a grin.
“Nice! This is a piece of cake!”
Barely five minutes had elapsed since the third Wave began.
Four monsters remained, or five if you counted the one pinned down by Sahyeon.
“At least we’ll skip the remedial lesson.”
Sahyeon stood, his tone flat and matter-of-fact.
The deep crimson glow that had saturated his eyes began to fade.
Scratch-scratch—!
The monster that had been serving as Sahyeon’s seat bolted, seizing the moment to escape.
Bang!
Yuwol’s index finger tightened lightly on the trigger, and a compressed Mana Bullet shot from the barrel, leaving a blue afterimage.
The projectile grazed past the fleeing spider’s neck.
Zing—
At the slightly off trajectory, Yuwol’s brow furrowed in displeasure.
“Tae Eun-o, your chaotic Wind is interfering with my aim.”
“What the—?”
Tae Eun-o, who had been about to rush forward on a wind current, stopped short, bristling.
“My skill IS Wind. What do you expect me to do? Why are you blaming me for your lousy aim?”
“I see. Then next time I’ll be more careful to shoot in your direction instead.”
“! You absolute psychopath—hey—”
While the two bickered back and forth.
Gyeol and Ha Jae-yoon methodically dispatched the remaining monsters one by one.
And two minutes before the third Wave ended.
Thump.
“Victory!”
Tae Eun-o let out a whoop of triumph and collapsed flat on the floor.
The hunting ground was left thick with acrid powder smoke and dust.

* * *

The class ended in thirty minutes.
After sending the exhausted students away, Hae Sung gazed blankly down the Corridor.
Scorch marks blackened the walls in places, and monster corpses lay scattered across the floor.
“They actually pulled it off….”
When Sahyeon had first set the count at twenty, Hae Sung assumed he was deliberately trying to drive the students all night without mercy.
But they’d finished this quickly.
Sahyeon brushed dust from his sleeve with casual indifference as he asked, “The analysis went smoothly?”
“Yes, of course!”
Hae Sung’s eyes shone as he rattled off each student’s skill application methods and the synergies of their cooperation.
He even added improvement suggestions for each.
Sahyeon listened to his report with an impassive expression, then leaned askew against the wall and posed a question casually.
“So, how would an Awakener with no special offensive skills handle a Wire Spider?”
Hae Sung fell into thought for a moment.
Thousands of frames stored in his mind flickered rapidly past.
Soon he found the answer and spoke without hesitation.
“The Wire Spider pauses its movement for just an instant before firing its skill. That moment appears to be when it’s most defenseless. By targeting that instant and striking the head-chest junction—its weakest point—with precision, it should be easily subdued.”
“Not bad.”
Sahyeon’s praise was brief.
Yet at those few words, Hae Sung’s expression brightened noticeably.
He laughed sheepishly, rubbing the tip of his nose with his index finger.
After all, he’d done nothing but observe from within Sahyeon’s comfortable shelter.
“This much is nothing. The hard part is actually putting it into practice.”
“Since you seem to have grasped it perfectly….”
Sahyeon peeled himself from the wall and continued languidly.
“Remember what you just said.”
“…Pardon?”
Hae Sung’s heart lurched to a stop.
He would have preferred not to understand.
But he resented himself for grasping his intent so quickly.
Sahyeon raised his hand toward the Control Device.
“Three should do it, I think….”
“Pardon??”
Beep, beep, beep.
3.
The Control Device’s number was recalibrated.
Hae Sung’s anxious gaze drifted aimlessly.
Sahyeon’s palm pressed down on the red button without mercy.
“Now just put what you said into practice.”
Beeeeee—
Clank.
Hae Sung’s head turned with a wooden creak.
Beyond the open cage.
Eyes that gleamed with hunger fixed themselves on him with deadly precision.
“……Eh?!”
Hae Sung cried out as if screaming.
“Am I supposed to fight them too?!”

Baek Ruga
Publisher
DaOn Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yoon Tae-ri
Cover

Thud

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260512043.0044

© 2026, Baek Ruga

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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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