I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy-Chapter 481

The journey to find the Green Tower Lord was proving to be more arduous than expected. Not only did the location of the tower constantly shift, but it also frequently appeared in hazardous areas.

Scarlett and Baek Yuseol at least had the advantage of the Green Tower Lord sharing its location with them, allowing them to get close. For ordinary mages, however, reaching the tower wasn’t even a consideration.

“It’s strange. Solving the client’s request was hard enough, but finding the client afterward is even more difficult...”

In truth, the request itself hadn’t been easy, but the extended journey to find the Green Tower Lord made such complaints inevitable.

As Baek Yuseol sat in the moving train, staring out the window with a bored expression, a question suddenly came to mind.

“By the way, Scarlett, do you always have /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ this much trouble meeting the Green Tower Lord?”

“Hmm?”

Scarlett, half-reclined on her seat and surrounded by an impressive amount of food from the dining car, stopped mid-bite, her eyes widening at the unexpected question.

“Now that I think about it... I don’t think I’ve ever had to find him myself.”

“What? Then how do you meet him?”

“Well, whenever I leave my place, Toa comes to me as a projection.”

A projection, unlike Scarlett’s avatar, was an advanced spell that could appear anywhere but had no physical influence.

This allowed Toa to meet Scarlett wherever she was, though the interesting part was that she never initiated the contact.

“I never had to summon him. Whenever I started to think I needed him, he’d just show up. He knew me very well!”

“And yet, this person hasn’t contacted you even after all this time?”

“...Now that you mention it, that is strange.”

Scarlett tilted her head in confusion, a thought finally dawning on her.

“Why isn’t he reaching out when he knows his master is going through all this trouble to find him?”

“The answer seems obvious,” Ludric interjected, crossing his legs and speaking with a thoughtful air. “He’s probably aware that he might end up clashing with his master.”

“...I see. That makes sense.”

Ludric’s explanation resonated with Baek Yuseol, and even Scarlett seemed to accept it.

Their group—a combination of Ludric, Baek Yuseol, and Scarlett—was not exactly friendly toward Toa Legron. Even someone oblivious to subtleties could pick up on that.

Clink!

Scarlett, who had been busily moving her spoon, suddenly froze mid-motion.

“...So, Toa plans to oppose me?”

Though she had considered the possibility, confronting it as a reality made her feel an unexplainable heaviness in her chest.

“Hmph. If that’s the case, things might get a bit troublesome.”

“That’s true,” Baek Yuseol agreed.

“Troublesome?” Scarlett tilted her head, puzzled.

“Why would that be troublesome?”

“Well, now that he knows we’re coming for him, he’s not just going to sit around and wait.”

“Right. He’s likely to retaliate,” Ludric added.

“Oh, if that’s the case...”

Scarlett was about to reassure them.

Toa Legron hated involving innocent people, so as long as they remained on the train, they would be safe.

However—

Clunk! Screeeech—!

A sudden screeching halt jarred the train, and the sound of grinding metal filled the air.

Screams erupted as passengers were thrown about, but Baek Yuseol’s group remained calm, stepping out into the corridor.

Ludric, walking steadily through the violently shaking train, clasped his hands together and gathered mana before releasing it.

The train’s interior expanded, becoming as large as a soccer field, and the scattered passengers were pulled to the center of the space.

Scarlett used her magic to secure them, binding them safely to prevent injuries. With that, the civilians were rescued without further harm.

Baek Yuseol observed their surroundings before asking, “This is one of those magic spells where the inside is larger than the outside, right?”

“More or less,” Ludric replied.

“Wow...”

Baek Yuseol, recalling the sci-fi dramas of his youth, gazed at the train with sparkling eyes before heading to a window.

“Could you check outside? I’ll search for any remaining injured passengers here.”

“As the youngest, I suppose physical labor is my responsibility,” Baek Yuseol said with a grin.

Ludric smiled faintly, pulling a pipe from his pocket and lighting it.

“Still, be cautious. If Toa Legron has devised a way to hinder us, even you might find it difficult to handle.”

“I always prioritize safety,” Baek Yuseol replied confidently before opening a window and sticking his head out.

The train’s exterior was much smaller than the vast interior. The contrast was certainly strange.

Climbing up the side of the train to the roof, Baek Yuseol spotted a gloomy, blackened area in the distance ahead.

“...It’s not a monster. Is it some sort of magic? I can’t see it clearly.”

Something peculiar seemed to be intentionally distorting the focus of his vision. As Baek Yuseol crept along the train’s roof, an eerie sound rose from below.

Chhrrrrrk!

“...What’s that?”

A black liquid was spreading along the train tracks, creeping up the sides and gradually enveloping the train.

Baek Yuseol quickly pulled out his sparrow-shaped glasses and put them on. A message appeared.

[Unknown Entity from the Hidden World]

Something not of this world.

Connected to the Hidden World.

The description was simple, and it didn’t take long to deduce its nature.

“Is this... trying to merge the train with the Hidden World?”

This was different from a standard Gate. A Gate was typically a spherical portal formed in empty space. But this—it was like a liquid, flowing and moving with a life of its own.

“What the... something like this exists?”

Realizing the liquid was attempting to consume the entire train, Baek Yuseol turned back toward Ludric.

But before he could act, the black liquid surged up, splitting the train in half.

“Ugh!”

He hastily moved backward to avoid the attack, but a problem arose.

He had become separated from Scarlett and Ludric, who were in the rear cars of the train.

To make matters worse, the train had stopped within a tunnel, and the black liquid was now blocking the entire space, leaving no clear path forward...

...Or maybe there is.

His decision was swift and precise.

Baek Yuseol swung his sword multiple times toward the top of the tunnel, carving a hole just large enough for him to pass through. The structure quickly collapsed, sealing the opening, but it didn’t matter. Baek Yuseol used Blink to slip through to the top of the tunnel in less than 0.2 seconds.

Once outside the tunnel, he prepared to swing his sword downward to break through, but the sight of the entire area stopped him in his tracks.

This is enormous.

The entire area within a radius of several dozen meters, not just the train, was engulfed by the black liquid.

This wasn’t something a normal mage could pull off.

Toa Legron... You’ve been using your brain, haven’t you?

Both Ludric and Scarlett were individuals supremely confident in their own abilities.

Ludric, the pinnacle of spatial magic users, could traverse any distance with ease. Scarlett, the Witch Queen, had risen to the top of the magical world with just her spells.

Given their personalities, it was likely they approached any situation leisurely, even against powerful foes, with an air of superiority.

Toa must have anticipated their overconfidence and factored it into his plans.

That’s why Toa Legron didn’t bother to confront them directly.

Instead, he’s trying to swallow everything into the Hidden World. Clever, but...

Baek Yuseol closed his eyes, focusing his concentration to its maximum. Another Baek Yuseol had once warned him not to do this, but he ignored it.

He could cut through space.

And that included the Hidden World.

“Hup!”

The blue light of his sword, Cheongpungmyeongwol, transformed into a silver glow, extending into a long, radiant blade. In an instant, it sliced through the black substance of the Hidden World that had enveloped the tunnel and train.

Shrrk!

It took less than a moment.

A mere fraction of a second—no more than 0.5 seconds.

But it was enough for Baek Yuseol to carve open the space, creating an opening.

Flash!

Ludric, not missing the opportunity, teleported everyone inside the train—civilians included—out of the tunnel in a single movement.

“Whew. That’s quite an interesting trick,” Ludric remarked as he emerged from the tunnel, whistling and brushing his hair back.

Even without Baek Yuseol’s help, Ludric would have found a way to escape. The process, however, would have been far more tedious.

“Thanks to you, I saved myself the trouble. I didn’t expect someone to cover an entire train in the Hidden World like that. That’s madness.”

“I figured you’d come out on your own.”

While Ludric and Baek Yuseol remained composed, Scarlett stared at the black, writhing substance on the train with a grim expression.

“...How is something like this even possible?”

She reached out to touch the black liquid. It writhed and moved like a viscous fluid, but Scarlett could sense its true nature.

“This... is space itself.”

The black substance wasn’t some unique material from the Hidden World.

In fact, calling it something that flowed out of the Hidden World was a misnomer.

It was simply a phenomenon where the Hidden World had lightly stained this one.

“Space, huh. That makes sense,” Ludric said, his expression turning serious. And it was no wonder.

“I can’t manipulate space to this degree. Making it flow like liquid... This is beyond comprehension.”

“...I may have underestimated Toa’s power.”

Scarlett’s expression grew tense as she spoke.

“Toa might have already surpassed me at my peak.”

“What? Is that even possible? Scarlett, you reached the limit of humanity.”

“...I thought so, too.”

Her wording—thought so—indicated uncertainty.

“Yes, it’s true that the Witch Queen reached the highest point humanity can attain. But... that doesn’t mean it’s the absolute limit for everyone.”

After all, there was precedent for beings like the First Magician, who had transcended the constraints of causality and reached an extraordinary realm.

“Are you saying the Green Tower Lord might have surpassed you and reached a level similar to the First Magician?” Baek Yuseol asked in disbelief.

But Ludric shook his head.

“Not quite. If he had the power of the First Magician, he would’ve easily torn us apart.”

Instead, Toa Legron’s actions seemed aimed at hindering them rather than outright defeating them.

“In other words, he’s achieved power that surpasses the limits of humanity in certain aspects, but he hasn’t yet mastered it.”

“...So we’re heading straight toward an opponent who’s already a monster,” Baek Yuseol said, a chill running down his spine as the gravity of the situation hit him.

—This could work to our advantage.

“Bronze Twelve Moons?” Baek Yuseol called out.

—Yes, it’s me.

Bronze Twelve Moons appeared abruptly, wearing an amused expression, seemingly intrigued by the situation.

—There’s no way he’s reached the level of the First Magician. That kind of power is far beyond his reach.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

“I see.”

—Which is why this is actually a good thing. If you’re exposed to someone who’s exceeded the limits of humanity, you might experience a breakthrough yourself.

“I have no intention of fighting him.”

—You don’t have to. Just being near him and observing how he manipulates mana from the Hidden World will be enough... to change you completely.

Baek Yuseol swallowed nervously as he watched Bronze Twelve Moons’ confident expression.

“How can you be so sure...?”

At this, Bronze Twelve Moons looked at him as if the answer were obvious.

—Why am I so sure? Because you’ve already transcended humanity’s limits.

“...What?”

—Your body, devoid of mana. From the moment you were born, you shattered the rules, limits, and walls this world had imposed. You’re already living beyond its constraints!

Bronze Twelve Moons continued explaining how encountering another transcendent could lead to further realizations, but Baek Yuseol barely registered the words.

I’ve already surpassed the limits...?

For some reason, only that thought echoed in his mind.

Today, more than ever, Baek Yuseol could hear the pounding of his own heart, louder and clearer than before.