I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy - Chapter 34

"Argh!"

Crack, crackle!

A cage of pure white bones erupted from the ground.

It was an almost cheat-like magic that activated in just 0.5 seconds, trapping its target instantly.

The only way to counter it was to react swiftly and escape.

[Flash]

Baek Yu-Seol barely managed to evade behind a rock, only to face a spinning, sharp bone spear coming at him.

Whirr!

The bone spear went through the rock like a drill, fortunately missing Baek Yu-Seol's head.

“Huff, huff…”

He breathed heavily.

He had almost died.

No… he felt like death might claim him soon.

But his opponent was equally exhausted.

Having exhausted most of his mana expanding his domain, lost a skeleton general connected to his neural network, and suffered internal injuries while attempting to summon it, his condition was dire.

[Flash]

Crack!

As proof, Sa Bae-Hyuk's bone shield, which shouldn't have even scratched under Baek Yu-Seol's weak Teripon Sword, was now dangerously fragile.

Of course, part of this was due to Baek Yu-Seol's efforts.

‘It’s because I brought a lot of cola potions prepared only to deal with the necromancer.’

Technically called 'Calcium Dissolution Liquid,' this potion weakened bone magic and melted protective barriers.

‘This pesky rat...’

Fast. Too fast. A mage who used Flash. It was an enemy he had never faced before.

Every time he tried to grab him with bone claws, Baek Yu-Seol would already have relocated. If he created bone walls to trap him, Baek Yu-Seol would leap into the air and attack from above.

Whenever Sa Bae-Hyuk dropped his guard, Baek Yu-Seol exploited his blind spots. No matter how much he reinforced his shield, Baek Yu-Seol would find the slightest gap to strike.

'If only I were at full strength...!'

‘In that case, no matter how fast he is, I would have been able to catch him right away. The current situation is the worst.’

Despite his resentment, he had no choice but to make do with what he had.

"Bone Pierce!" Sa Bae-Hyuk conjured dozens of bone arrows in the air, aiming them at Baek Yu-Seol.

Thwip! Thwip! Thwip! 

Dozens of arrows flew in an instant, but Baek Yu-Seol used Flash to evade.

'As expected!’

After using Flash once, the minimum delay between using the next Flash was 1.5 seconds! 

It was the delay caused by the preparation to calculate the distance and for resetting Flash.

‘Now!'

Sa Bae-Hyuk fired an arrow that he had intentionally spared in his arsenal.

Baek Yu-Seol, reacting too late, deflected it with his Teripon Sword. However, his mana detection faltered, and he could only slightly alter its trajectory.

Thunk!

“Ouch!”

It grazed his shoulder causing blood to trickle out.

Despite Sa Bae-Hyuk’s weakened state, he was still a Class 5 mage.

‘...But that just means this is the best a Class 5 mage can do.’

Clenching his teeth, Baek Yu-Seol scattered flame potions from his waist pocket. The flames, barely at Class 1 level, didn’t harm Sa Bae-Hyuk much.

However, the thick smoke was excellent for obstructing vision and causing confusion.

Baek Yu-Seol hurled a dagger coated in oil, then used Flash to appear behind Sa Bae-Hyuk.

Sa Bae-Hyuk threw a potion at the dagger, and a small explosion occurred.

"Damn it!"

Sa Bae-Hyuk hurriedly raised a bone shield, but in that brief moment, Baek Yu-Seol closed the distance and plunged his sword into Sa Bae-Hyuk's side.

Thud!

"Kuhhh...!”

He missed the vital spot he aimed for, hitting the side instead of the waist. As Baek Yu-Seol tried to retreat, he realized too late that his Flash was still on cooldown.

‘Oh crap!’

The consequences of seizing that moment without a plan came swiftly.

A bone spike shot up beneath Sa Bae-Hyuk's foot, piercing Baek Yu-Seol’s thigh. Clenching his teeth, Baek Yu-Seol forcefully leaped backward, landing on one knee.

'Ugh...!'

In all his battles, he had never endured such an injury. The searing pain felt as though his leg were aflame. Despite his sheer will keeping him conscious, moving was nearly impossible.

Sweating profusely, Baek Yu-Seol gripped his Teripon Sword tightly. But he couldn’t use Flash.

To use Flash, he needed to perform a Flash motion cancel, but the pain made it impossible to concentrate.

It wouldn’t work.

Most of his mental strength was being used to endure the pain, and his sixth sense was not activating. His head throbbed intensely.

'Damn it...'

Desperate for a solution, he noticed Sa Bae-Hyuk wasn’t in great shape either. After continuously casting magic and sustaining internal injuries, if Baek Yu-Seol could find just one opening, he could end this fight.

‘But, how?'

He had no potions left, no throwable items, and fleeing was out of the question. His usual distraction strategies wouldn’t work.

Crack!

Sa Bae-Hyuk summoned a bone spear in his right hand, clutching his bleeding side as he staggered toward Baek Yu-Seol. His stance was riddled with vulnerabilities. If Baek Yu-Seol could use Flash just once, he could decapitate him instantly.

‘If only I could use Flash once. Only once…’

‘Ah.'

An idea suddenly struck him.

‘If I can’t cancel Flash...'

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to roll and crawl backward faster than Sa Bae-Hyuk’s approach.

“Are you planning on running away again? You can't use Flash, can you? You have no idea how pathetic you look!”

Ignoring Sa Bae-Hyuk’s taunts, Baek Yu-Seol kept rolling and crawling.

Covered in dirt and with his wounds bleeding profusely, he didn’t stop.

And finally.

He reached the position he wanted and turned to face Sa Bae-Hyuk.

The distance between Sa Bae-Hyuk and Baek Yu-Seol was exactly 13 meters.

So, there was no need for Flash cancellation.

He held his sword upright in front of him.

"Uhh...?"

Realizing something, Sa Bae-Hyuk hurriedly tried to defend his chest with his arms.

But he was too late.

[Flash]

In a mere 0.1 seconds, Baek Yu-Seol closed the 12-meter gap and plunged his sword into Sa Bae-Hyuk’s chest.

Thud!

‘Not deep enough.’

The weakened mana output of the Teripon Sword failed to pierce through Sa Bae-Hyuk’s shield completely, but retreating wasn’t an option.

“Arghhhh!!”

Slightly pulling back the sword, he drove it forward again with all his strength.

Thunk!

This time, the blade sank directly into Sa Bae-Hyuk’s heart.

***

Whoosh! Boom!

Hong Bi-Yeon’s flames exploded as her group delivered the finishing blow to an elite skeleton. While they managed to eliminate three elite skeletons, two more still remained.

She bit her lip as she surveyed her team.

'This isn't good...'

Everyone was at their limit. The sudden surge in enemy forces had left them in a dire situation.

‘Now, all we can do is hold on.’

Ideally, they should have already defeated the guard units and joined Baek Yu-Seol’s team, but things never went as planned.

"Princess! Urgent news! Things are just as bad over there. Baek Yu-Seol is fighting the necromancer one-on-one!"

"What?!"

They also said that things didn't go according to plan, and for some reason, Baek Yu-Seol ended up being in charge of the necromancer alone.

By now, the Stella students, scattered across the battlefield, should have been handling the necromancer's forces. But was there anyone who could possibly help him?

“Do you think Baek Yu-Seol can hold on by himself until we get there?”

Baek Yu-Seol was officially a Class 1 mage. Yet his opponent was a Class 5 necromancer.

The disparity was akin to a child wielding a toy against an adult armed with a blade.

But there was no time to intervene.

They also had to deal with dozens of skeletons in addition to two elite skeletons.

Hong Bi-Yeon’s feet were firmly tied.

“Princess…” 

“…We can’t worry about that right now! Focus on the enemies in front of us!”

At her words, the group members raised their trembling hands. Their visible shakiness betrayed their rapidly depleting mana. Despite this being their first real combat experience, they had persevered admirably so far.

The other team wasn't doing well either.

Flame hugged Jecky, who had a wound in her abdomen, and stepped back, gritting her teeth tightly.

Boom! Crash!

Hae Won-Ryang smashed three skeletons with his staff, only for five more to replace them immediately.

‘This isn’t working…’

Defeating a necromancer with only thirteen students was proving impossible.

‘There's no way… No hope.’

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

A skeleton struck Hae Won-Ryang with a club, sending him sprawling backward. Flame rushed to his side, spreading a protective shield around them.

Boom, bang!!

“Ugh...!”

The skeletons began pounding relentlessly on the light shield. It was too cramped for three people, and cracks soon began to form.

With their mana reserves completely drained, counterattacking was impossible. Flame, clutching Jecky and Hae Won-Ryang close, bowed her head in despair.

“Please, someone please…”

Help us.

Those were the words she wanted to say.

Suddenly, the relentless noise ceased. For a few seconds, there was silence.

“…Huh?”

Sensing something strange, she slowly raised her head.

"What is this...?" The numerous skeleton soldiers surrounding her all stood still.

As if time has stopped.

Moments later.

Like dolls with a broken thread, all the skeletons crumbled to the floor with a crash. 

“This… can’t be...!”

Struggling to her feet, Flame helped Hae Won-Ryang and Jecky up and moved cautiously, leaning on her staff for support.

Nearby, Hong Bi-Yeon and her group - Eisel, Dok Cheol-Gwang, and Ban Di-Yeon - were also staggering forward. They, too, realized something had changed.

They finally reached the center.

Right then.

They saw an unbelievable sight.

A sword, glowing faintly with a colorless halo, was embedded in Sa Bae-Hyuk’s chest. It was gripped tightly in Baek Yu-Seol’s hands.

The scene signified only one thing.

'Baek Yu-Seol defeated the necromancer.’

As that realization sank in, someone collapsed to the ground. One after another, like dominoes, they all fell.

“We’re alive. We survived…”

“Hooh...”

How the hell did a freshman in his first year defeat the necromancer?

Those questions didn't matter at that moment.

They had survived, and that alone filled their hearts with relief.

“Woohoo!!!”

Cheers erupted. Some cried, others embraced one another in joy.

At last, they could let their guard down and celebrate.