Chapter 587: Superhero (1)

Silence, deep as the grave, filled the classroom.

Priscilla held her breath, quietly observing Leopard.

Leopard still held the shotgun, but so far, showed no sign of killing students or attempting any other trick. However, to any student who showed a suspicious sign, Leopard mercilessly fired the shotgun, inflicting injuries severe enough to render them immobile.

“Ugh…!!”

“It hurts…”

Groans and a thick scent of blood seeped from various spots.

Bang!!

[If you use even a shred of mana, I won’t let it slide. Understand?]

Leopard, who had shot both thighs of another student, leaving them collapsed and unable to move, issued a chilling threat.

[If you wait quietly, a negotiator will arrive to take you. Until then, don’t utter a word. Understood?]

There was no reply.

This was because Leopard had already made an example of the undergraduate students who had answered such questions, turning them into bullet-riddled sacrifices.

But Priscilla, undeterred amidst the slightly intimidated students, slowly began counting.

‘Eight. Nine. And the last one…’

Counting the numbers to herself, she confirmed something, then caught her trembling breath and slowly rose from her seat.

“I don’t think I can do that.”

[…You.]

Leopard’s eyes flashed, seeing Priscilla suddenly stand up.

That terrible and filthy appearance, as if wearing the head of a living beast.

But Priscilla steadied her mind, determined not to let her composure be shaken by the outward appearance.

What she had faced when a Guido Cult missionary infiltrated the school, long ago, had been far more horrifying than this.

She always thought of the calm response her assistant professor had shown, and she had longed to emulate him.

She couldn’t let her resolve falter here and ruin everything.

“You’re not a negotiator; you’re just waiting until your side’s objective is complete.”

[Didn’t I tell you to shut up?]

Even as Leopard immediately aimed the shotgun at her, Priscilla simply exhaled deeply once more.

“No negotiator or police will come to rescue us. From the start, they wouldn’t have intended to inform the outside world and take hostages.”

Priscilla glared at Leopard as she spoke.

“The fact that they targeted Rebatenon Magic University, not just any other educational institution, means they intend to…!!”

Bang!!

The bullet from the shotgun struck Priscilla’s upper body directly.

Her waist bent sharply forward, and she collapsed onto the spot.

“Kyaaah!!”

“Priscilla!!!”

It was the first time Leopard had aimed and fired at a student’s head and chest.

Amidst the students who couldn’t hide their agitation, Leopard muttered coldly.

[For a student ignorant of the world, your mind works surprisingly well.]

“…”

[I said I had no intention of killing you, but that doesn’t mean I won’t. Do you still not understand the difference?]

Leopard walked unhesitatingly across the lecture hall, which felt as if it could explode at any moment, and spoke.

[If you utter another word, from now on, blood will be…]

Whoosh!!

At that moment, Priscilla, who had fallen forward, suddenly dashed forward with all her might.

A blood-stained textbook fell from her arms.

Despite taking precautions, having heard from Lennok that the shotgun’s power was intentionally reduced, she couldn’t avoid injury.

Without even trying to hide her pained grimace, she gritted her teeth and charged straight towards Leopard.

[…One shot wasn’t enough, it seems. Do you intend to make a dying struggle?!]

Leopard immediately raised the shotgun and pulled the trigger again.

This time, the target wasn’t her sternum, but her forehead. Would she be able to endure the pain and move if her head was pierced?

Click!

But the moment Leopard pulled the trigger, only the hollow sound of a spring echoed repeatedly from the shotgun’s magazine.

[…!!!]

Only then did Leopard’s expression drastically change, realizing Priscilla had known the shotgun’s magazine was empty. But Priscilla, throwing herself to the floor, slid past Leopard and reached for the area below the stage.

She picked up a water bottle that had fallen to the floor, sprayed its contents over her head, and at the same time, drew up mana to deploy a water current spell.

The accelerated water droplets, shot upwards, struck Leopard’s back.

Thud!!

[Gah!!]

The water current spell shot upwards didn’t stop there, shattering the projector support on the classroom ceiling.

Crash!

The collapsing projector and lighting supports from the ceiling pressed down on Leopard’s body like a cage.

Priscilla, who had violently rolled sideways to narrowly escape the collapsing supports, cried out.

“Assistant Professor!!”

“I know…!!”

Cassia, who had been observing the situation with a tense expression, didn’t miss the opening.

The remote control authority over the lecture hall’s internal facilities, granted to magic university professors. Using it, she simultaneously moved the lectern and classroom chairs, ramming them directly into Leopard.

Crash-bang-boom!!

All sorts of structures and supports collapsed and fell, burying Leopard.

Boom!!

Shattering the closed classroom door with a shockwave spell, she quickly shouted to the students.

“Everyone, run!!”

“Help the injured get up…!!”

“There’s a bunker for radiation exposure in the underground lab of the lecture hall. Let’s go there!!”

The students, having apparently thought things through on their own, immediately shared their destination and began evacuating without further instruction.

Immediately after, Leopard, having smashed through the randomly rising and lowering mechanical devices within the classroom, stood up.

Slam!!

[Did you think such a petty trick could trap me?!]

“But we bought time, didn’t we?”

Priscilla, clutching her shoulder with a pained expression, managed a weak smile.

[You…]

Leopard glared at her in annoyance, then quickly regained composure.

Cassia, who had returned after evacuating the students, swallowed hard at the sight.

‘They regained their composure faster than I expected. This person is dangerous…’

There was no trace of the urgency, tension, haste, or anxiety typically associated with a terrorist.

The eyes of an operative, solely focused on eliminating variables in the process of pursuing a thoroughly planned objective.

Priscilla was also keenly aware of this.

‘This entire incident is a meticulously planned and prepared operation. It’s not some impulsive crime. It’s closer to a premeditated one.’

The shotgun Leopard used was modified to maximize the number of rounds per magazine by reducing its power.

And Priscilla, whose sister Mila worked in the mercenary industry, had heard from Mila about the usual number of rounds such shotguns typically held.

Through this, when only one round remained, she had deliberately provoked Leopard to be hit by the bullet, then aimed to subdue them in the single moment Leopard was off guard.

Unfortunately, it only served to buy time for the other students to escape.

‘What should I do here? How…?’

In the worst-case scenario, Priscilla had even braced herself to fight and hold Leopard back alone, potentially being taken hostage again.

But it was uncertain if she could even stall long enough for the escaped students to properly call for outside help.

In a situation where they didn’t know how many Ghost God Palace sorcerers were present within the school, the only way to successfully alert the outside world to the terror attack and resolve the situation was…

As Priscilla quickly racked her brain, Cassia bit her lip and stepped in front of her.

“Priscilla, get behind me.”

“Assistant Professor Cassia…”

Cassia drew up mana, her face set with grim determination.

“I’ll buy you time; please find a way to contact the outside with the escaped students.”

“Assistant Professor, but…!!”

Having spent over half a year in the same lecture hall with Cassia, Priscilla knew that Cassia was a mage primarily suited for research.

Though she had achieved high Hierarchy through her exceptional talent, the essence of Cassia’s talent did not lie in combat.

Rather, it was in pursuing gradually improved results through the study and combination of mana theory, and formalizing them.

Cassia was an outstanding mage, but her personal combat ability and motor skills were practically non-existent.

Knowing this, Priscilla understood just how reckless Cassia’s words were.

But Cassia, with a resolute face, pushed Priscilla by the shoulder without looking back.

“You know the internal structure and terrain of the school better than I do, having worked at Rebatenon for less than a year.”

“…”

“Your judgment and decisiveness just now were far superior to mine. I’m not the one who needs to move in this situation.”

Whoosh!

Cassia, her face hardened, spoke as she painstakingly chanted a shockwave spell from her fingertips, gathering its vibrations.

“Go, quickly!!”

Priscilla gritted her teeth, clutching her shoulder, and ran down the corridor where the students had fled.

Leaving behind the clash of magic and the roar echoing from the classroom, she quickly set out to find the escaped students.

‘The air-raid shelter located within the lecture hall’s underground laboratory…!’

Though prepared for somewhat dangerous or extreme demonstrations, the bunker was equipped with an emergency communication network that could contact the outside in case of unforeseen circumstances.

For now, that was virtually the only place she could rely on.

Priscilla quickly dashed down the central staircase of the lecture hall, unhesitatingly passed through the storage rooms and hangars, and headed towards the corridor behind which the underground bunker was hidden. At that very moment…

[Ah, so you’re the girl named Priscilla.]

The scent of blood strongly assaulted her.

Other students swayed, barely leaning against a wall in the corridor.

The figure of a sorcerer wearing a monkey mask, squatting with a hand under his chin, gazing this way.

And behind the Monkey, the form of a massive ritual circle, stained with crimson blood.

“Gasp, gasp…!!”

On that ritual circle, several blood-soaked humans were gasping for breath.

She’d been caught.

As Priscilla realized this and took a step back, unable to even properly breathe, Monkey spoke.

[I was wondering why the Pig wasn’t returning from wherever it was wandering, and it turns out it was dead in a corner of the lecture hall,]

“…”

The sorcerer wearing the pig mask. The one who left, saying they needed to take Evan, was dead.

‘Assistant Professor Evan…’

Monkey gazed intently at Priscilla’s face and tilted its head.

[Elephant utterly hates having its work interrupted, so I thought I’d erase the Pig’s corpse first, but then all these friends suddenly came rushing out.]

‘Mana is…’

A powerful sense of exhaustion within her body, accompanied by the feeling of her mana being forcibly siphoned.

[Your friends here, thinking it was you dying, were surprised and called out your name. You have good friends.]

Every time the sacrificed individuals on the ritual circle struggled, it greedily devoured the mana of Priscilla and the other students.

Priscilla didn’t recognize anyone by face, but they were probably all university staff as well.

[Just a moment longer. It’s more efficient to sacrifice civilians first, then mages, you see.]

Through the monkey mask, it felt as if the sorcerer was grinning.

[You’re next.]

“…”

Only then did Priscilla understand why the sorcerers had held the students hostage and made no attempt to contact the outside world.

These individuals weren’t holding students hostage to demand something or attempt a trade with the outside.

They were merely using the students, who had awakened mana and learned magic, as ingredients to perform an unknown ritual in this university.

‘No, if this happens, before I even reach the bunker…!!’

CRAAAASH!!!

At that moment, the lecture hall building shook violently, and thick dust erupted from outside the windows.

Beyond the shattered corridor window, the immense figure of an elephant could be seen.

With eyes dyed red, it roared madly, exuding a chilling, malevolent aura.

Monkey, completely unfazed by the elephant, sighed with its hand under its chin.

[They’ve already brought out the evil spirit before we’re even properly ready, what a mess. And why is the evil spirit so angry… Hmm?]

Monkey tilted its head, seeing someone standing in front of the house-sized elephant spirit.

[Was there a student like that among the hostages?]

“As-Assistant Professor Evan…!!!”

The other students also widened their eyes, seeing the pale-faced young man through the collapsing lecture hall building.

[Ahahaha, there was an assistant professor! What can a human do alone against a spirit…!!]

At that moment, something descended before Lennok with terrifying speed, accompanied by the illusion of a chilling lightning bolt.

Boom!!

The figure of a small fox spirit, emitting crackling electricity from its entire body, its four tails spinning wildly.

Between the sharply rising whirlwinds of electricity, a brilliant blue light flashed from its eyes, as if the fur on the spirit’s body was standing on end.

From within the spirit’s body, which had glowed a faint sky-blue, a deep, sea-like indigo radiance rippled outwards, shimmering across the small fox spirit’s entire form.

A weighty presence, ceaselessly scattering indigo electricity like a ripple.

Its appearance, shimmering as if it might transform into something else at any moment, like a life emerging from an egg, made the students call out the spirit’s name.

“Davi!!”

“You’re no match for it, run…!!”

[Oh, a spirit user? Ah, come to think of it, they did mention there was a researcher with a unique spirit.]

Monkey, who had seemed momentarily flustered, soon resumed its blatant sneer, observing the confrontation between the two spirits.

[One step will be enough. It’s pathetic to put something like that forward as combat. Don’t you think so?]

The size difference between the elephant and the small fox spirit was so overwhelming that comparison was meaningless.

The sight of the fox spirit, its four tails stiffly raised, glaring at the elephant, was indeed cute.

But conversely, the spiritual power emanating from the elephant as it stomped its feet was enough to not just crush the ground, but vaporize it.

The outcome was already decided, no need to confirm the victory or defeat.

The faces of the Elemental Studies students, who belatedly realized it was Lennok and that he intended to fight, also turned pale.

“Assistant Professor, if you confront a monster like that with Davi…!!”

“Professor, don’t worry about us, please escape outside quickly!!”

“If someone dies here…!!!”

No student was unaware of how famous Evan Vylun had become in recent years as a researcher.

Furthermore, the students currently trapped in the lecture hall were those who had attended classes with Evan since Aris was a professor.

They knew that it would be better for Lennok to secretly escape the school and find a solution rather than fight recklessly to save them.

But Lennok and Davi glanced back at the students, then immediately refocused on the elephant charging at them.

Bwoooooo!!

The elephant roared madly, its bloodshot eyes stomping the ground violently as it charged.

The small fox spirit and the researcher seemed poised to turn into a mere puddle of blood in front of it.

“What do I do, I can’t watch!!”

“Professor, please…!!!”

Unable to watch any longer, students tightly shut their eyes or turned their heads away.

[Elephant, bring them back alive if you can! A spirit user would be quite valuable as a sacrifice…!!]

At the moment Monkey, resting its hand on the broken window frame, excitedly let out a sound.

…Davi, its front paws tucked in and body tensed low, spun its tails furiously.

[Spirit Hierarchy Common Magic: Full Power Deployment!]

Whoosh!

A luminosity so intense it could fill the half-collapsed lecture hall’s courtyard and still have light to spare.

In the instant Monkey’s words abruptly cut off, sensing a chilling sliver of murderous intent from the vivid mana.

Flash!

A line of blue light, like a flash of lightning, streaked across their vision, and at its end, the small fox spirit landed softly, having already passed the elephant.

[Head Pat!]

Immediately after, the elephant’s head, cooked to a crisp, burned and fell from its massive body.

Thud!!

[…Huh?]

Monkey stared blankly for a moment, stunned by the completely unexpected outcome.

“W-we won!!”

“Davi!!!”

The students couldn’t believe it and cried out excitedly.

“Davi, you’re so strong!! I always believed in you!!”

“I’ll pray in gratitude every single day from now on!!”

“Spirit-nim!! Thank you for saving us!!!”

The small fox spirit, scattering thunderous light, bowed its head with dozens of cheers at its back.

[…Hehehe.]

An uncontrollable, satisfied chuckle escaped Davi’s muzzle.

[Ohahahahaha…!!!]

Though it tried not to show it, its four wildly twitching tails and wiggling shoulders revealed just how thrilled the cybernetic spirit was.

“Happy?”

Lennok lifted Davi with a gaze that mixed exasperation, but the small fox spirit’s mouth was already stretched into a wide grin up to its ears.

[It’s a very wise decision, Master!!! From today onwards, let’s become cool and strong superhero spirits…!!]

Davi flapped its limbs wildly, held by its body in Lennok’s hands.

Its familiar attempt to appear dignified, so as to hear the students’ compliments from behind more clearly.

“It’s not over yet, so focus. You see that moving there?”

But Lennok, setting Davi down towards the Monkey sorcerer, quietly whispered into its ear.

“One more time.”

[This time, I just need to pat that organic being’s head, right?]