The S-Rank Warden Devours the Academy - Chapter 65

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

Episode 65

The live chat exploded in a frenzy of messages.

-???????
-wtf
-Martial Arts lost??
-wow

Before the shock of Go Gyeol’s victory had even faded.
The second pair of competitors was called to the Arena.
Ha Jae-yun from Combat Class A and Go Yoo-gwon from Martial Arts Class C.

-lol the Martial Arts Class are all broken characters fr
-this one’s a lock
-is this a punching bag vs boxer matchup
-this round’s gonna be wild

While the spectators watched, anticipation crackled through the stands.
“Go get ’em, Jae-yun! Go out there and tear it up!”
Tae Eun-o slapped Jae-yun’s back enthusiastically.
Gulp.
Jae-yun’s throat tightened as tension wound through his muscles, and he swallowed hard.
His fingers trembled slightly.
‘…Can I actually win?’
Go Yoo-gwon had been a renowned boxer even before he entered the Academy.
Compared to him, Jae-yun was…
As he steadied his breathing and clenched his fists.
Buzz.
The watch on his wrist vibrated softly.
A message appeared on the small screen.

[Mom: Honey, don’t push yourself too hard. If it feels dangerous, please forfeit. Your siblings and….]

A long string of text came back to him.
“……”
The rigidity drained from his face, and his trembling eyes hardened with resolve.
‘…No.’
I can do this too.
“Yes. I’ll win and come back.”
Jae-yun exhaled sharply and climbed into the Arena with determination blazing across his features.
“Waaaaaaah!”
“Tear him apart!!”
Voices cascaded down from the Spectator Stands.
In the center of the Arena, Jae-yun and Yoo-gwon faced off.
Yoo-gwon adjusted his white Hand Wraps and fixed him with a merciless gaze.
The air pulled taut between them.
‘…Don’t be afraid.’
Jae-yun steeled himself and dropped into his stance.
Ding—
The Sparring Match bell rang.
In the same instant, Yoo-gwon pushed off the ground and surged forward.
A charge without hesitation.
‘Meet it head-on.’
Jae-yun gritted his teeth and braced himself.
Trust my Trait.
The stronger the attack, the more material it gave him for a counter.
Even heavy blows left him numb but dealt no lasting damage—he could endure.
You’ve trained hard over the past two weeks, so you’re much more conditioned now.
‘…Of course, getting hit by Yeom Sa-hyeon hurts….’
The thought of yesterday’s one-sided beating made his breathing feel oddly lighter.
Go Yoo-gwon threw a punch.
Whoosh!
Ha Jae-yun raised his guard.
The moment the impact reached his arms.
“!”
His eyes flew open.
It hurt!
‘…Why does it hurt?’
The pain was far sharper than he’d anticipated.
Go Yoo-gwon’s jabs came relentlessly.
Bang, bang!
Ha Jae-yun absorbed them all on his forearms, yet sweat poured down his face.
Wasn’t his Skill working? Had his Trait suddenly deactivated? Or was it his opponent’s new Skill?
Even as anxiety hammered through his chest, his mind raced ahead.
Ha Jae-yun found his opening and threw a counter.
Thud!
All the accumulated impact exploded at once.
“Ugh.”
Go Yoo-gwon slid backward, driven back.
The hesitation lasted only a moment.
He adjusted his footwork and closed the distance again.
‘…My Skill seems to be landing….’
So why does it hurt so much?!
Ha Jae-yun gritted his teeth and blocked the punches.

Meanwhile, below the Arena.
“Hmm, relentless as always….”
Hae-seong’s face twisted as he watched Ha Jae-yun take the hits.
A thin crease formed between his brows, as though he himself were the one being struck.
Yeom Sa-hyeon, watching the match with his chin propped on his hand, narrowed his eyes.
‘Why is he fighting like that?’
Go Yoo-gwon kept throwing only jabs.
Fast and precise, but delivering no finishing blow.
As a result, Ha Jae-yun accumulated only minor damage.
It was a sluggish rhythm where both fighters burned through stamina alone.
Then Yeom Sa-hyeon’s gaze fixed on one detail.
Go Yoo-gwon’s hands.
‘That aura is foul….’
His brow furrowed with disapproval.
“What’s that on his hands?”
“Ah, you mean the Hand Wraps that student Go Yoo-gwon is wearing?”
Hae-seong’s gaze shifted to the white Hand Wraps on Go Yoo-gwon’s hands.
“They look like ordinary protective gear at first glance….”
Narrowing his eyes, he deployed his Skill, and an item window materialized before him.
‘Those are the items the Master brought out during his special lecture.’
But there’s nothing particularly unusual about them….
His gaze, scanning rapidly downward, stopped at the bottom line.

[Latent Ability: ???]

“!”
…Latent Ability?
“That can’t be right?!”
Hae-seong’s eyes widened in shock.
He brought equipment like that into the sparring match?
Hae-seong pushed himself to his feet.
“Yeah, there’s definitely something going on here.”
Yeom Sa-hyeon cleared his throat and folded his arms across his chest.
‘Let me watch a little longer….’
Meanwhile, Hae-seong contorted his sharp features into an ugly scowl and shifted his position.
“Referee!”
Hae-seong pressed close to the edge of the Arena and called out.
“According to the regulations, aren’t item usage forbidden except for protective gear designed to prevent internal injuries?”
But the referee didn’t tear his eyes from the two fighters on the Arena floor and replied without turning.
“All participant equipment has been inspected in advance. Please refrain from causing a disturbance and return to your seat.”
“That can’t be right!”
Hae-seong raised his voice.
“The Hand Wraps that Go Yoo-gwon is wearing—they’re not just protective gear! They have a confirmed Latent Ability!”
“…Excuse me?”
The referee was just turning his head when—
“Hae-seong.”
A calm voice.
Hae-seong’s movements froze.
He turned to look back. Front row of the faculty section.
“The match is ongoing.”
The President closed his eyes lazily.
“Lodge your protest through proper channels afterward.”
……
Hae-seong let out a breath of disbelief.
If there really was Cheating happening, couldn’t a dangerous situation develop?
Yet the President’s gaze remained unmoved.
‘…Does he know something?’
Hae-seong felt an ominous premonition and glanced back at the Arena.
In the meantime, Ha Jae-yun continued taking blow after blow.
Smack, smack, smack!
His breath came up to the tip of his chin.
The presence or absence of pain had completely altered the flow of combat.
The certainty that he could endure wavered, and pain accumulated, seeping through his entire body.
“…Ugh.”
It was difficult to keep his wits amid the onslaught of attacks.
His vision swam.
Simply blocking was enough to make his mind grow distant.
“-Jae-yun-!”
Amid the ringing noise that shrieked loudly in his ears, a familiar voice came through faintly.
“-Concede now!”
Hae-seong’s voice.
Was something wrong?
But….
Ha Jae-yun pressed his lips firmly shut.
‘I will not forfeit. Never.’
The taste of blood spreading in his mouth.
Never…!

* * *

Crack, crunch!
Knuckles drove through empty air.
Ha Jae-yun’s chest, arms, face….
Once. And again.
Something was odd.
The dull vibration traveling up through his hands.
His arms should have begun to ache by now….
Yet his speed was only increasing.
The pain faded, and the surrounding noise grew distant.
His rapidly beating heart seemed to thunder loudly in his ears.
A stumble.
Ha Jae-yun’s body swayed ever so slightly.
‘Done.’
Go Yoo-gwon’s mouth twisted upward.
He pulled his fist back.
His arm whipped in a curve.
Thwack!
“Ugh…!”
Ha Jae-yun was driven backward.
But he didn’t fall.
Staggering, he gritted his teeth and held his ground.
Heat rushed up through his hands.
Yet exhilaration outweighed the pain.
“Vicious, aren’t you.”
Go Yoo-gwon let out a short laugh.
“…….”
Ha Jae-yun’s eyes flashed.
Once more he compressed the damage into his fist and drove it forward.
Whoosh!
The punch connected squarely with Go Yoo-gwon’s jaw.
His head rang as though he’d been driven into a massive truck.
Whine—bang!
He flew back and slammed into one of the Arena’s pillars.
“…x.”
He wiped the blood from his mouth and got up.
His hands, wrapped in Hand Wraps, burned like fire.
Yet the smile playing at Go Yoo-gwon’s lips only deepened.
Ha Jae-yun was breathing heavily—whether from exhaustion, it was hard to say.
‘Looks like he’s finally spent.’
Go Yoo-gwon grinned and stepped in with quick footwork.
“Let’s end it here.”
Whoosh.
Seizing the gap in Ha Jae-yun’s guard, he drove his right hand upward as if pushing off from the floor.
The strike landed cleanly on the jaw.
“Hck.”
Ha Jae-yun exhaled sharply.
‘Got him.’
Go Yoo-gwon smiled thinly and gathered all his strength into a single point.
Stepping in with his right foot, he drove in—
Bang!
His left hand extended.
His fist, curving deeply inward, drove in as if pressing down on the jaw.
“!”
Ha Jae-yun’s head snapped back.
For an instant, his body flew through empty air.
And then.
Thud.
Ha Jae-yun’s body finally gave way.

* * *

“-Yun, hey Ha Jae-”

A voice echoing dimly.
Inside a black void of vision.

“-Ha Jae-yun!”

The voice grew sharper.
His blurred vision gradually brightened….
“-Come on, Ha Jae-yun!”
“…Huh?”
Jae-yun’s consciousness returned.
Eun-o’s face was pressed close to his, looming in his field of vision.
“Are you alright?! How many fingers am I holding up!”
Eun-o held up his fingers and waved them rapidly before Jae-yun’s eyes.
“…Three?”
“It’s a V, you bastard! You’re still seeing double, aren’t you?”
Eun-o’s voice felt distant, as though it were coming from underwater.
Jae-yun sat up slowly, still dazed.
The Arena was alive with movement and noise.
“Student Jae-yun, are you alright? Do you remember what you were doing just now?”
A medical attendant met his gaze and spoke with professional concern.
What was I doing…?
“Sparring, I suppose…”
At his mumbled reply, the attendant exhaled with relief.
“Good. Any pain anywhere?”
Pain everywhere, probably. I took a beating all over.
Jae-yun was about to give a thoughtless answer when—
Flash.
Yoo-gwon’s eyes flashed before him—the moment before consciousness had slipped away.
Those pupils, gleaming with subtle light.
That memory snapped his mind into focus.
“The sparring match?! Why did I—!”
“It just ended! But you held on pretty well, Jae-yun!”
Eun-o thrust his thumb up in encouragement.
It’s over…?
Jae-yun’s heart sank.
“No… that can’t be right.”
So I lost. My chance to prove myself, gone.
His throat tightened.
“Don’t lose heart, man! There was something weird about the match anyway. I’m pretty sure Yoo-gwon was cheating. Hae-seong’s furious right now.”
Eun-o huffed and turned to look back at the referee’s platform.
Jae-yun’s gaze followed naturally.
“-So let’s verify it right now, okay?”
“Since we’re still broadcasting live, maybe we should wait until it’s over.”
Hae-seong was protesting with the referee.
His usual composed demeanor had vanished—he had swept his hair back and was raising his voice in agitation.
‘I’ve never seen Hae-seong like this before…’
Jae-yun blinked, bewildered.
Meanwhile, the Spectator Stands were in an uproar.
“Woooo!! Yoo-gwon’s insane!!”
“I knew it!”
“Now this is getting good~!”
Yoo-gwon soaked up the roaring applause as he returned to his seat.
Jae-yun clenched his jaw.
“-Let’s take you to the Medical Ward now.”
“…I’m fine.”
Despite the attendant’s suggestion, Jae-yun cut them off curtly.
There was no way he could rest now, not after losing the match.
He suppressed his bitter disappointment and struggled to his feet on unsteady legs.
‘At least I should watch the rest.’
After receiving basic treatment, Jae-yun took his seat in the stands.
“You did well, Jae-yun.”
Yeon patted him reassuringly as he waited for the next match.
“-Now, the next sparring match!”
The announcer raised the microphone.
The remaining four competitors were Eun-o and Yu-wol from Combat Class A, and Jun-hyeon and Tae Jun from Martial Arts Class C.
Their faces appeared on the scoreboard one by one.
And then, a round Mana Stone began to glow.
“-The next match pairs Shin Jun-hyeon from the Martial Arts Class with…!”
The camera panned a beat too slowly.
“Lee Yu-wol from Combat Class A!”
Roooaaaaaaar!
Ooooooh!!
The roar erupted from the crowd.
As if they’d been waiting for this moment, the Spectator Stands erupted into chaos.
At last—the S-rank stage.
Yu-wol’s impassive face loomed large on the scoreboard.

S-Rank Instructor Devours the Academy, Chapter 65

Author
Baek Ruga
Publisher
Daon Creative
Planning / Editing / Production
Yun Tae-ri
Cover Design
Thorne

UCI
G720:N+A036-20260512043.0065

ⓒ2026, Baek Ruga

※ This electronic book is protected by the copyright law of the Republic of Korea.
No part of this work may be reproduced or adapted in any form without permission from the author and publisher.

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