Academy Bully in Charge, Chapter 32
[Magic & Martial Arts Academy — Headmaster’s Office]
The room maintained an awkward silence so profound that one could hear each other’s breathing.
The first to rise from his seat was Sama Jin. He broke the silence with a voice laced heavily with his characteristic annoyance.
“This incident is not a matter that can be easily overlooked.”
All the professors’ attention focused on Sama Jin. Though he should have felt burdened, he even raised his voice as he spoke.
“Do you think it makes any sense that the professors, myself included, failed to detect such an incident early on?”
“Professor Sama, this is not a gathering to determine who is at fault.”
The middle-aged woman at the head seat spoke in a low voice. Her voice carried an unknowable dignity and aura.
No matter how sharp and uncompromising Sama Jin was in all matters, he could not talk back to her.
The academy’s headmaster, Cardo Majin.
She was the eldest and highest-ranking person among anyone present in this room.
Sama Jin clicked his tongue and turned his head away.
The eyebrows of several senior professors who saw that action twitched. But due to the solemn atmosphere, no one stepped forward to point it out.
Withdrawing her gaze from Sama Jin, Cardo Majin turned to Armut.
“Dean Armut, I arrived in haste and did not hear the detailed circumstances, so would you please explain?”
“Yes~ I understand.”
Armut nodded, rose from his seat, greeted the professors with a slight bow, then opened his mouth.
“To put it simply, it is an incident where enrolled students and those on a leave of absence gathered to ambush freshmen~”
Armut’s tone and gestures were ludicrously mismatched with the severity of the matter.
“Whether they are freshmen or enrolled students, if it were a simple duel there would be no problem at all, would there? Rather, have you not said that professors gain much from such duels?”
“That is correct. But……”
Armut wiped the smile from his eyes and spoke with them slightly opened. The next words from his mouth were shocking.
“After analyzing the flow of mana, traces of anesthetic scrolls and slave brands were discovered.”
The professors let out low groans collectively. Slave brands and anesthetic scrolls were strictly controlled under international law, even more so than narcotics.
“What of the possibility of collusion with outside forces?”
“That has not yet been determined.”
A faint wrinkle formed between Cardo Majin’s brow, which had been smooth as porcelain. She clicked her tongue lowly and asked.
“Tsk, what is the condition of the victimized students?”
“Four students suffered bruises. A student named Elia was hurt the most severely, but fortunately, it was not an injury that would leave lasting aftereffects.”
Cardo Majin nodded impassively.
“Then where are the perpetrator students now?”
“Well, that is……”
Armut paused briefly, let out a heavy sigh, and continued in a low voice.
“They have all disappeared.”
“Disappeared?”
“Literally, they all vanished without a trace. Without a trace~”
“Spatial magic?”
“If that were the case, there would be residual mana flow left behind, but there is none.”
“……Understood.”
Armut finished speaking and sat down.
The moment he sat, the professors all began to speak, one after another.
“No, to think they couldn’t even find the culprit……”
“More than that, is it true that slave brand artifacts were used?”
“Just where did those things come from……”
“Shouldn’t we report this to the Alliance immediately?”
“Nonsense! The Mage Tower must be informed first!”
Meanwhile, Dan Gye-hong was in a terribly foul mood. He glared blearily at Ju Dong-bin, the Student Affairs Dean seated across from him, with his one remaining eye.
‘What the hell has this so-called Student Affairs Dean been doing?’
He gave a rebuke to Ju Dong-bin, who was sitting across from him, in a gruff voice.
“Hmph, the Student Affairs Dean just warms the seat—what exactly does he even do?”
“Look here, Senior Dan, your words are too harsh. Do you think this is solely the Student Affairs Office’s fault?”
“Then whose fault is it? Ours, for concentrating on classes?”
“It is a problem with the academy’s discipline itself. Is it not wrong that immunity privileges exist in this day and age?”
Ju Dong-bin’s words meant that there was no point in monitoring since they couldn’t arrest students even if their wrongdoings were discovered.
‘In short, isn’t it saying that he didn’t bother monitoring the thugs who use immunity privileges as an excuse to run wild in Jangan City?’
Dan Gye-hong snorted upon hearing Ju Dong-bin’s words and pointed to his eyepatch.
“Is that what you bring up as an excuse? I, with only one eye, dare say I could detect crimes better than you lot.”
“Senior Dan, are you done talking?”
“No, there’s more left.”
“What else do you have to say……”
Dan Gye-hong cut off Ju Dong-bin and made a gesture as if stabbing both eyes.
“I still have to say that your two eyes are garbage.”
Ju Dong-bin shot up in anger at Dan Gye-hong’s words. He glared with a momentum as if he might throw a punch at any moment.
“Shall I gouge out your remaining eye as well?”
“Oh? Try it if you dare. Do you think your fist could even reach me?”
“The old man has gone mad wanting to die.”
“The brat of a greenhorn is climbing without knowing how high the sky is.”
Dan Gye-hong drew a dagger from his breast and held it in a reverse grip. Ju Dong-bin, who had donned gauntlets at some point, also infused his fists with internal energy.
Just as the two were about to clash at any moment.
Slap!
Someone slammed the table.
Turning their heads, they saw Cardo Majin with her eyes closed, rapping the table with a clenched fist.
“Quiet.”
It was a light word, but the momentum contained within it was anything but light. A cold drop of sweat ran down Ju Dong-bin’s nape, and a chill ran down Dan Gye-hong’s spine.
Dan Gye-hong, who had drawn his dagger, and Ju Dong-bin, who had been gathering internal energy in his fists, both helplessly sheathed their weapons and sat down.
Having calmed the two, Cardo Majin called for Jegal Mokyeon.
“Cheonnoe.”
“Yes, Headmaster.”
Jegal Mokyeon rose from his seat and answered with his head bowed.
“If word of this spreads outside, how great do you think the repercussions will be?”
“Leaving aside the academy, trust in the Martial Arts Alliance and the Mage Tower would plummet. In the worst case, the royal family might attempt to interfere under the pretext of an investigation.”
Cardo Majin closed her eyes as if pondering something.
“Hmm……”
Shortly after, Cardo Majin opened her eyes and rose to her feet. All the professors’ eyes turned to her.
“I will bury this.”
“Yes? What do you……”
“I mean we will bury this matter. Externally, let us say it was a conflict among students due to a power struggle.”
The professors rose collectively and objected to her words.
No matter that Cardo Majin held the authority to decide the academy’s important affairs, this simply was not right.
“No, Headmaster. No matter that you are the Headmaster, this doesn’t seem right.”
“That’s right. Given the gravity of the matter, we must inform the Martial Arts Alliance and the Mage Tower.”
“Please reconsider.”
Among them, the loudest voice was indisputably Karis’s.
‘They’re going to cover this up without even finding those who put my nephews in that state?’
She had remained silent because she lacked seniority, but she couldn’t help but intervene when such a nonsensical decision was made.
Having heard all their objections, Cardo Majin looked at the professors in turn. The professors, who dared not meet her eyes directly, subtly lowered their gazes.
“No matter what you all say, my opinion remains unchanged.”
“What do you—!”
Clap—
Cardo Majin finished speaking and clapped her hands.
At that, all professors except a few lost consciousness and collapsed like deflated balloons.
Only Armut, Na Hyeok-jung, Dan Gye-hong, Jegal Mokyeon, and Bang Baek-tong remained. Armut winked at Dan Gye-hong, who hadn’t lost consciousness.
“Oh~ Professor Dan, your mental fortitude is still formidable.”
“Keh-keh, anyone watching would think I’m older than you.”
“Huhu~ you’re such a tease.”
Cardo Majin, who had already gathered her things and risen, spoke to the professors who had not lost consciousness.
“I have manipulated their memories, so the other professors will not be able to accurately remember today’s meeting.”
“Oh~ as expected, the Headmaster’s mental magic is fearsome.”
Armut exaggeratedly opened his mouth as he spoke.
“Dean Na, Dean Armut. Please swiftly identify who the culprit is. Cheonnoe, Professor Dan, and Divine Physician, please assist the two of them as much as your power allows.”
“Understood.”
“Understood~”
“Keh-keh, you’re working this old man too hard—”
Cardo Majin finished speaking and vanished from her seat. Then Armut also broke into a grin, left a wink for Na Hyeok-jung, and disappeared.
Bang Baek-tong watched the direction they had disappeared with an envious gaze. Then he nudged Jegal Mokyeon in the side.
“I should have learned magic. Can you move like that with your formation?”
“Not a chance.”
“Sigh, let’s go too.”
Once Jegal Mokyeon and Bang Baek-tong left the room as well, only Na Hyeok-jung and Dan Gye-hong remained.
As if he had been waiting for only the two of them to remain, Dan Gye-hong stepped forward in front of Na Hyeok-jung.
“Look here, Dean Na.”
“……?”
“During today’s meeting, you didn’t say a word at all……. Did you perhaps know about this matter?”
“I knew.”
Na Hyeok-jung’s voice was calm as he spoke without even turning his head toward Dan Gye-hong. Dan Gye-hong felt rage rise but suppressed it and asked.
“Huh, then why, why on earth! Didn’t you capture them earlier?!”
“To get to the root of this.”
“Are you saying you deliberately used the students as bait?!”
“……”
Was it an affirmation? Na Hyeok-jung said nothing.
“Dean Na, no—Brother Na!”
Eyes wide, Dan Gye-hong rushed forward and grabbed Na Hyeok-jung by the collar.
“Come to your senses. The grief you felt when you lost your son!”
“……?”
“The hearts of parents who lost their children will be no different. How can you, of all people who know that, do such a thing?!”
“Dan Gye-hong, you are crossing the line today.”
“The one who crossed the line first was you…… kuk.”
Na Hyeok-jung turned his head and glared at Dan Gye-hong with eyes sharpened like blades. Dan Gye-hong’s breathing quickened under that gaze.
Soon, blood began to flow from Dan Gye-hong’s nose, and his mind went blank as if white paint had been splashed inside it.
However, Dan Gye-hong, struggling with all his might, did not so much as blink and continued to force out his words.
“I’m telling you—do not use students for your revenge.”
Na Hyeok-jung lightly stomped his foot.
Thud—
Dan Gye-hong’s knees trembled under the pressing momentum. Unable to endure for long, he fell to his knees.
His body was in a submissive posture, but only his eyes did not lose their fighting spirit.
“Heuk…… Remember well…… that you came here…… not as an avenger…… but as a teacher.”
Gradually, Dan Gye-hong’s consciousness faded. His exhausted hand fell away with a thud.
Having withdrawn his momentum, Na Hyeok-jung approached Dan Gye-hong, who had collapsed with froth at his mouth. He replaced the eyepatch that had somehow come loose, then held the fallen man in his gaze.
“You remain unchanged.”
The man who rushed at those bastards to help find my son, even losing an eye in the process. I know you deliberately spoke such cruel words to bring me to your senses.
‘However, if I can only find the enemy who killed my son, I will sacrifice not only the academy’s students but everything within my power.’
Even if that should be my own younger brother who trusted, followed, and relied on me.
Na Hyeok-jung wiped the corner of Dan Gye-hong’s mouth with his sleeve. Then he lifted him up and seated him in a chair, speaking softly.
“I’m sorry. I cannot remain the same.”
His steps as he turned and left the room looked especially lonely.