Chapter 70

Chapter 70: Back to the Academy (1)

The Pacific Dungeon raid.

The expedition had begun without anyone knowing, but its conclusion was grand.

News spread across the world that an SS-rank dungeon had appeared and that the Awakened terrorist organization SH had been defeated.

Those facts were on countless people's lips for quite some time.

─They say the SS-rank dungeon that appeared in the middle of the Pacific Ocean has been conquered.

─Wow, what a relief.

─But can an SS-rank really be raided this easily?

Some claimed it was American propaganda.

Considering the Dragon's Roost that had once threatened all of humanity, it did feel like it had been resolved far too easily.

On top of that, SH was a somewhat unexpected element.

Those suspicions were put to rest once the expedition released its data.

The Video Magic and Communication Magic newly created during this expedition.

All data captured through them was made public.

─Impressive.

─If monsters like those had crossed over to Earth... ugh, just imagining it is terrifying.

The ones most thrilled by the data release were the scholars.

An expedition composed of humanity's finest was more than sufficient as research material — it overflowed.

The academic world estimated that papers covering this expedition as their subject would easily fill a truck.

─They developed this kind of magic during the expedition?

─That's insane. This is something that will elevate humanity by an entire tier.

Communication Magic and Video Magic also drew major attention.

Through these, countless pieces of data would be produced in the future, and preparations for dungeons would become far more thorough.

If that came to pass, Heroes would be able to prepare for dungeons more efficiently and swiftly.

The same went for my lectures.

With raid footage from various dungeons being published, wouldn't the kids breeze through the remaining exams?

"That's a bit of a problem."

An Seri asked.

"What's a problem?"

"I went and made something pointless, and now the exam difficulty's gone down."

"Pointless? It's a gift you gave us, Professor. Right?"

"That's right!"

"Yeah."

When An Seri sought agreement from the other kids, they all expressed their consent enthusiastically.

Well, this is something. Judging by their reactions, I really did do something pointless.

After the expedition ended, we all returned to where we belonged.

My office, which I hadn't seen in a while, was the same as ever.

When word spread that I was back, the students swarmed in like bees.

An Seri, Seo Dayun, Baek Seolhwa.

Song Seokhwan, for the record, had apparently been dragged home.

"Still, there is one good thing about creating those spells."

"A good thing?"

"I can check how you all did on the exam."

While I was at the Pacific Dungeon, the third exam had proceeded on schedule.

TA Cheon took my place as the proctor.

TA Cheon had some unreliable aspects, but not to the degree where I couldn't entrust an exam to her.

Instead, I'd sent mana-enchanted Mana Stones to Korea so the footage could be recorded.

An Seri let out a shriek.

"W-wait! Can't you just not watch it?"

"Why?"

"Because it's embarrassing......"

An Seri's reaction was somewhat puzzling.

According to the data I'd received, C-team's score was A+, the highest score.

Seo Dayun gave me a hint.

"Seri's upset because she didn't get first place."

"She's not a child, how immature."

"Immature?! Do you have any idea how important that is?! I can't accept not being in first place!"

The team that had beaten C-team to claim first was B-team.

Baek Seolhwa, who had created a new skill, was strong.

She had perfectly fulfilled her role as Control Tower, leading the party.

The heroine of that victory, Baek Seolhwa, was elegantly enjoying coffee on the opposite sofa when she quietly tossed out a remark.

"Contesting the results is an ugly thing to do."

It was an obvious provocation.

The sound of teeth clenching hard came from An Seri.

Ah, she's angry.

An Seri forced a sweet smile onto her face and spoke.

"My, aren't you a little too excited over one lucky win?"

"Our party won twice. Yours, once."

What Baek Seolhwa was referring to was the number of times each had finished an exam in first place.

An Seri was incensed by the underhanded fact-based attack.

"Hmph~ It'll be three soon enough."

"That won't happen. I'm taking first in every remaining exam."

"Y-you two, don't fight."

When the atmosphere heated up, Seo Dayun squeezed in between them.

Both of them turned and glared at Seo Dayun simultaneously.

"What?"

"We're not fighting?"

Seo Dayun, a herbivore placed before two predators.

Her shoulders trembled pitifully.

Seo Dayun sent me a pleading look, but I turned my head away.

Getting caught in the crossfire was the last thing I wanted.

"S-so... ah, has everyone heard the legend of the Academy?"

"What?"

"What kind of random nonsense is that?"

Seo Dayun started scrambling to change the atmosphere.

It was a completely out-of-left-field topic, but it succeeded in drawing everyone's attention.

Her effort was admirable, so I decided to play along.

"A legend?"

"Yeah. They say that long ago, there was a god at the Academy."

"A god?"

Three voices overlapped.

A god, of all things.

It was a world with Awakened, monsters, and Evil Gods, but the existence of a proper god was somewhat hard to believe.

An Seri immediately denied it.

"Where in the world would a god exist?"

"Why wouldn't there be a god? Priests who follow religions use Holy Power."

An Seri answered Seo Dayun's question.

"The prevailing academic view on Holy Power is that it's energy manifested from a kind heart, a spirit of service — not power bestowed by a god, you know?"

"But Abraham gets stronger every time he recites a prayer."

"That's what I'm saying — it's not bestowed by a god, it comes from the heart. If a god existed, would they only give enough power to heal people? They should just sweep all the monsters away themselves!"

Opinions on An Seri's argument were typically split down the middle.

People who didn't believe in religion argued that if a god existed, it should have saved us from the monsters.

People who believed in religion claimed that mana itself was proof of a god's existence.

After all, mana hadn't existed before the monsters appeared.

For those reasons, religious conflict and debate were far more intense in the game's world than in the original one.

Even I, who had cleared the entire game, didn't know whether a god existed or not.

What I did know was that there were transcendent beings in a position similar to a god.

The being that had brought me to this world.

Who had brought me, and for what purpose?

At first I'd been resentful, but now my feelings were complicated.

I didn't dislike this world.

The world inside the game, to which I had once devoted everything, was far too dear to me.

Moreover, the precious bonds I'd forged with the people of this world were something I wouldn't trade for anything.

Even if I returned to the original world, I could say with certainty that I'd cherish and long for these memories for the rest of my life.

If there was a god of this world — the one who had brought me here — they could answer me.

Why I came here.

What I should do going forward.

Whether I'd have to return to the original world once my role was finished.

I was curious about all of it.

"Dayun, could you continue the story about the god?"

"It's all made up anyway, so why are you curious?"

"I'm telling you it's not! Ugh... anyway, the Academy has a legend."

Seo Dayun cleared her throat twice, then spoke.

"They say there was an omnipotent god at the Academy — a god who looked up at the world from the highest place. But one day, a tall tower appeared in the world."

"A tower?"

"Yeah. The god left the Academy and entered the tower. And then it lost its power and fell. That's why it lost to the devil, and Gates overran the entire world!"

"What kind of story is that?"

"The moral of this story is that bad things happen when you leave the Academy."

What an absurd ending.

What kind of god falls just because it entered a tower?

The story had a setup but no development, climax, or resolution — it would've been better not to have a story at all.

"As expected, that wasn't worth listening to."

"Agreed."

The two spoke coldly.

Seo Dayun's expression crumpled, but the atmosphere had softened somewhat, so her objective was more or less accomplished.

An Seri said.

"Seo Dayun's been reading nothing but weird books at the library lately, and now all she does is spout nonsense."

"The library?"

"Yeah. She says she goes to study magic, but she just reads novels all day."

Seo Dayun let out a screech.

"Wh-when did I ever! I study hard and only oc~casionally take a break, okay?"

"Oh, is that so? Did you get that story from a book too?"

"No. Abraham told me this one."

"Your source is already a mess."

Looking back, all three of them came to my office often, but I think this was the first time all three had been here together.

The pairing of An Seri and Baek Seolhwa in particular was unusual.

An Seri and Seo Dayun were obviously best friends, and I'd seen Seo Dayun and Baek Seolhwa together from time to time, but this was the first time I'd seen An Seri and Baek Seolhwa actually talk to each other.

Thanks to that, I could tell their compatibility was absolutely terrible.

"If you've had your fun, go attend your lectures."

After placating and sending the kids off, I stepped out of my office as well.

Today was a fairly packed day.

First, I headed for the Mage Tower.

***

The Mage Tower I hadn't visited in a while was the same as before.

But I had changed beyond comparison to how I used to be.

"It's been a while, everyone."

"Professor Cha, welcome back."

"You've been doing so well lately that it's become hard to see your face."

The Mage Tower professors welcomed me.

These were the professors who had taught me how to use the equipment back when I was a greenhorn.

They were people whose kindness overflowed to the point of making the recipient uncomfortable.

Professor Park, the most senior member of the Mage Tower, called me over.

"Since you're here, grab a dumbbell and get started."

The other professors then began setting up various equipment.

The settings were slightly more intense than what I'd done the last time I was here.

I smirked.

"Will this level be enough?"

They were heavy-duty machines, but for me now, they were light.

When I hoisted the dumbbells with ease, the professors were surprised.

"You've improved a lot since we last saw you."

"Then how about we re-measure Professor Cha's Big Four?"

The Big Four referred to the four most fundamental elements in magic.

First, the earth attribute.

The human lower body and the ground shared a close relationship.

The reason, apparently, was that the distance between the earth and one's lower body was often short.

Because of that, earth magic primarily used the mana circuits in the lower body.

"Hup. Here, barbell."

Maintaining proper form when training one's lower body circuits was extremely important.

The same was true for other training, but earth attribute training in particular risked destroying the circuits throughout your entire body if your form broke down.

"Start light at 300?"

"You think that's going to be enough? Put more on."

"Oh? Then let's go with 500."

I received the bar, settled it on my shoulders, and took my stance.

It was a hefty weight, but not unbearable.

I drew on the power of the mana circuits in my lower body and moved.

"Ooh!"

"Professor Cha, you're pretty good!"

"Next, let's go with 600."

They swapped the plates on both ends of the barbell and I started again.

This one was a bit heavier too, but I lifted it comfortably.

"When did this guy get so strong?"

"At this rate, he could go toe-to-toe with Yeonsu and win."

"Come on, hyungnim. No matter what, you can't compare me to the youngest."

It wasn't enough yet.

The mana circuits inside me were screaming that this couldn't possibly be the limit.

I was just about to kick into gear for real.

"Put more on."

"Hm? Don't push yourself too hard."

"Yeah, Professor Cha. This much is plenty."

"I can do more."

At my request, a new barbell was brought in.

I powered through the new one just as effortlessly, and everyone's jaws dropped.

It was the same after that.

750, 800, 850......

The weight kept climbing, but my mana circuits handled it without a hitch.

"Th-that crazy bastard. When did he come back as a monster?"

"Even I can't lift that much......"

"At that level, he's better than I was in my prime."

My final earth attribute measurement came out to 1,050.

Even among the prodigious professors at the Mage Tower, it was rare for anyone to exceed 1,000 in even a single attribute.

That was a level that held its own against active A-rank Heroes.

The professors praised me in unison.

"Professor Cha, you must have been working those legs hard?"

"I'll say. At this point, Professor Cha might be an authority on the earth attribute alone."

I grinned and answered.

"No, it's my weakest attribute."

"Wh-what?"

"Let's move on to the next one."

Riding this momentum, I finished measuring all the other attributes as well.

My final Big Four total came out to a staggering 6,150.

"S-six thousand?!"

"Heh heh, this one's a complete lunatic."

Over six thousand.

At this level, I was above average even among A-rank Heroes.

Among a faculty composed entirely of retired Heroes, it went without saying.

When I'd first come to the Mage Tower, my impression of the professors was that they were stars in an unreachable sky.

But now I was in a position to look down at them.

"Those of you more feeble than the youngest should really step it up."

When I said it playfully, the professors shot to their feet.

"Are we just going to sit here and take that from the youngest?"

"I'll flatten that nose of his soon enough!"

"Gains! Gains! Gains!"

The professors swarmed toward the equipment and began working out.