I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy-Chapter 489
Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon.
Though she had once been granted the authority to intervene in the world, she had done nothing with it.
Or rather, she couldn’t.
Her own power had been far too meager. Unable to influence events, she had been reduced to parasitizing others merely to survive.
“Kyaaah!!”
A scream.
Boom—!
The sound of something collapsing.
To Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon, these sounds reached her ears like a quiet hum, as if muffled by a veil of calm.
While everyone else fled in chaos, she alone walked steadily toward the heart of the battle.
The city of Karzan.
After suffering a humiliating defeat at Baek Yuseol’s hands, she had settled in this remote village to begin anew.
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Karzan was a tiny rural town located on the outskirts of the Scalven Empire.
Despite its vast territory, the Scalven Empire lacked the manpower to fully protect its rural borders. Inevitably, when black mages struck, their response was delayed.
And so, the town became the stage for another chapter of the Black Mage Great War—a cruel twist of fate for its unfortunate residents.
"Kugh—!"
"Somebody save us!"
"Where are the magic warriors?!"
Amid the chaos, humans screamed as they fled, while the black mages slaughtered them mercilessly.
Yet the black mages' true target wasn’t humans.
Their real goal was each other’s destruction.
The small size of the town meant the invading forces weren’t massive, but among the clashing hundreds of black mages, several were 7-Risk tier—far beyond the capabilities of the few local magic warriors.
Faced with such an overwhelming threat, the magic warrior manual outlined only one course of action.
“Abandon the city.”
The era when magic warriors fought heroically to the death had long passed.
Now, they fought for profit and self-preservation, not ideals of justice or righteousness.
In such situations, their choice was clear.
“Cease all combat and retreat.”
It was a cold, rational decision.
No, it was a logical one.
Magic warriors were only human. Survival was necessary to fight another day.
But not everyone agreed.
Some magic warriors who had called Karzan their home refused to abandon it.
“Damn you! If you run, the town will be completely destroyed!”
“And if we stay and fight a losing battle, what’s left for us? Nothing!”
“You coward...!”
Even as the black mages fought amongst themselves, humans turned on one another, tearing each other apart with hatred.
Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon walked past them, her expression serene.
She didn’t flinch when explosions roared past her, grazing her cheek.
Once, even the smallest wound had frightened her, despite her status as one of the Twelve Crescent Moons.
Because back then, she had lacked the strength to protect herself.
Now, things were different.
Not only could she protect herself, but she could also safeguard this town—her home.
“Hey, you shut-in magician! Where do you think you’re going? Get over here! I’ll give you a ride in my carriage!”
The voice came from behind.
It was the landlady of the repair shop where she rented her one-room apartment.
Though the woman constantly scolded and gossiped about her, she had brought an automatic carriage to save her when she saw Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon walking straight into danger.
Looking at the landlady and the villagers glancing at her anxiously as they fled, Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon smiled faintly.
‘Not everyone hates me, after all.’
Reassured, she made her decision.
She could protect this town with a clear conscience.
Pulling back her hood, she revealed her face.
The fleeing villagers and even the landlady in the carriage gasped in astonishment.
Even in the midst of chaos, her golden hair shimmered under the sunlight, tinged faintly red from the explosion's glow. Her radiant golden eyes gleamed with resolve.
“Please wait here,” she said with her old confident smile.
“I can’t let the building collapse before I’ve paid my rent, can I?”
“W-what are you—?!”
Rising vertically into the air, she shot toward the battlefield.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A symphony of magic erupted as the bodies of black mages were torn apart in a flash.
Though her spells were technically Fourth-Class—low by Crescent Moon standards—her sheer magical energy exceeded that of a Ninth-Class magician.
For nearly a thousand years, she had honed her meager mind control ability to its peak, accumulating immense magical reserves.
In the past, her power had been shackled by the constant use of mind control.
Now, she wielded it freely, channeling her strength into something far greater than parasitism.
“Ha-ha-ha! Die, all of you!”
“What is that thing?!”
“That power is beyond measure!”
Her laughter rang out as the battlefield erupted in chaos, her golden light standing as a beacon amid the carnage.
The Battle of Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon.
Her fighting style was far from what one might call heroic.
Instead of the goddess-like figure that people imagined, she resembled a brutal harbinger of slaughter.
It wasn’t as though she was using spectacular magic, either. The most she unleashed were chaotic barrages of Third-Class spells, which, despite their modest classification, carried devastating power. The black mages were utterly overwhelmed, scattering in panic.
But from a distance, how did it all look?
“Is this... real? That shut-in, hysterical, crazy spinster magician is massacring the black mages...?”
“I can’t believe it!”
“How is this even possible...?”
The villagers, who had mocked her for years, now watched in disbelief as she tore «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» through the black mages that had terrorized them. It was impossible to see her as anything but a force of retribution.
The black mages, for all their might, couldn’t withstand a Crescent Moon for long.
Realizing that continuing to fight would only lead to further losses, one faction of black mages retreated, prompting the other to abandon their pursuit.
In the end, one person had ended the battle.
“Haa....”
For Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon, it was her first taste of victory.
It was chaotic and clumsy, her combat a far cry from refined. But her overwhelming magical energy had brought the black mages to their knees.
No skills, no grandeur—but a win was a win.
And wasn’t that what mattered most?
“Baek Yuseol always said survival and victory were what truly counted.”
Breathing deeply, she savored the moment.
A liberation like this—who else in the world could possibly understand it?
For now, she could bask in her triumph.
Crackle!
BOOM!
“Guh...?”
The world spun.
For a moment, her thoughts froze. She couldn’t process what had just happened.
Yet her Crescent Moon instincts activated on their own, overriding her conscious hesitation. In an instant, her senses sharpened, pulling in every fragment of information.
The electric surge, the searing pain in her abdomen, the bruises across her body, the debris of the structure she’d been blasted into—all of it painted a vivid picture.
She pieced it together quickly.
“Someone... ambushed me.”
Her trembling hand moved to her abdomen, where a violet bolt of lightning pulsed like a deadly fang, embedded in her flesh.
It wasn’t hard to deduce the attacker.
“Magnetic Crescent Moon...!”
Gripping the bolt with her bare hand, she yanked it free, the wound in her abdomen glowing with residual electricity. Her body, lacking blood, did not bleed. Even if it had, the lightning’s heat would have cauterized the injury instantly.
With time, the wound closed entirely, her body regenerating itself.
Her expression hardened as she rose into the air, eyes fixed on a figure high above—the girl with shimmering violet hair.
Magnetic Crescent Moon.
She stood with her hands on her hips, smirking confidently.
“Hey, loser. Looks like life’s been treating you well lately. Got guts, running around like this.”
She gestured toward the ground, her mocking smile brimming with disdain.
It was a look Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon knew all too well—a sneer she had endured for centuries.
To Magnetic Crescent Moon, she had always been nothing more than prey. Weak, powerless, easy to dominate.
Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon felt her fists tremble. Her old fears resurfaced, threatening to overwhelm her. But she bit her lip, forcing the terror down.
“I’m a mental Crescent Moon,” she told herself. “Just act. Like I did when I met Baek Yuseol.”
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and when she reopened them, she was someone else entirely.
Her usual meek demeanor was gone.
With a graceful sweep of her golden hair, she tucked it behind her ear, revealing her radiant, confident smile.
“Life’s been good,” she said, gently patting her abdomen. “Your lightning used to hurt so much more. Now? It’s nothing.”
Her words struck a nerve. Magnetic Crescent Moon’s brow furrowed ever so slightly.
“You’ve lost your mind since getting beaten to a pulp by Baek Yuseol, haven’t you?”
“Beaten to a pulp? Me?”
“That’s right! Do you think I don’t know how you got humiliated because of your solo act?”
“Humiliated? No. I’ve never been beaten by Baek Yuseol. I simply came to my senses and sided with him.”
Magnetic Crescent Moon clicked her tongue. “A mental Crescent Moon, persuaded by some lowly human... pathetic.”
“That ‘lowly human’ isn’t something you can dismiss so easily,” Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon retorted. “Your precious Returner of the Void proves that every time he loses to him.”
Her words were sharp, biting.
“You should watch your mouth,” Magnetic Crescent Moon snarled. “If the Returner—”
“What? Kills me?” She smirked. “If he could, why am I still alive? Unless... could it be he’s too scared of Baek Yuseol to make a move?”
Her voice dripped with taunting confidence.
Magnetic Crescent Moon’s fists trembled. She wanted to shout, to deny the accusation outright. But her silence was telling.
The truth stung too much to refute.
Heavenly Emperor’s August Moon’s smile widened.
“Isn’t it true?”
She had no evidence. Her claim was pure bluff, a desperate improvisation to escape the situation.
Yet that single lie sent ripples through Magnetic Crescent Moon’s thoughts.
“Could it be... that even the Returner of the Void fears Baek Yuseol?”
A seed of doubt had been sown.
