Chapter 1151

〈 Chapter 1151 〉 1151. The Academy’s Savior

With Ryuhana standing before me, I infused mana into the Azure Dragon Spear in my hand. Water began to form around the spear, defying gravity as it swirled unrealistically in every direction. Watching the chaotic flow of water, I felt as though we were submerged beneath the sea.

“You are worthy to challenge the trial. Shall we begin the Trial of the Azure Dragon?”

“I accept the challenge.”

The swirling water gathered in midair, forming a gateway to the dungeon.

I glanced at Ryuhana. With determined eyes, she nodded and placed her hand on my shoulder. The dungeon promptly sucked both of us inside.

“Special Dungeon, ??? has been entered.”

Another ??? special dungeon… Of course, this must be Laplace’s doing again.

My teeth clenched. If I ever get the chance, I’ll kill Laplace.

•••

Ryuhana and I found ourselves at Namsan Tower.

Once again, we appeared in Seoul. It’s the place most familiar to me for undergoing trials, so it makes sense that the setting would be here.

For the same reason, the previous dungeon’s background was also Seoul. Ryuhana had lived in Seoul all her life before moving into the dormitory.

“Ryuhana, let’s stick together this time.”

Last time, due to unforeseen variables like Laplace, I allowed Ryuhana to act alone.

“Got it.”

She calmly nodded, but her fiery gaze burned with determination.

I gazed out over Seoul with the Azure Dragon Spear in hand. This version of Seoul feels off—there aren’t enough tall buildings, and despite it being a weekday, there are surprisingly few people at Namsan Tower.

‘Seoul… it’s in shambles. Parts of the city look broken, like they haven’t been repaired.’

The atmosphere of what should be Korea’s most vibrant city was eerily cold.

I asked a nearby person about the current year.

“Ryuhana, you’ve probably noticed already, but this dungeon also takes place in the past. Anywhere you’d like to visit?”

Ryuhana tilted her head toward Seocho-dong.

“…No, there’s nowhere I particularly want to go.”

“In that case, how about we check out the Academy? The old Academy, I mean. Aren’t you curious?”

My real goal is Seong Hali. In this timeline, she should still be attending the Academy.

“This is just a dungeon. What’s the point?”

“I’m curious about what the old Academy was like. Changing this world won’t affect reality, but we might uncover some forgotten facts. Though, considering this could be an alternate timeline, it might differ entirely.”

“Alright. Let’s go to the Academy.”

We descended from Namsan Tower and headed toward the parking lot. After surveying the area, I approached a luxury sports car, smashing the window and forcing the door open. Ryuhana blinked in surprise at my aggressive actions.

“Is that really okay?”

“This world has no connection to reality. Everything here—people, objects—is fake. Don’t forget that.”

I sat in the driver’s seat while Ryuhana took the passenger side.

“How do you plan to start it?”

Of course, breaking into a car doesn’t mean it’ll move without starting it, and starting it requires a key.

‘If I use hacking, it’ll work…’

I tapped my wristwatch. Click-clack. The watch shattered into pieces, reforming into a small humanoid figure.


It’s changing.

“Behold, this body has arrived!”

Makina appeared with her hands on her hips, chin arrogantly tilted upward. While summoning spirits contracted within the dungeon was impossible, bringing them in together wasn’t prohibited.

“…Fairy?”

A small human-shaped being about 60cm tall with an adorable appearance. Due to its cute looks, even Ryu Hana seemed to think of it as a fairy rather than a spirit.

“I’m a mechanical spirit. A rather special one.”

“Hi! I’m Makina! And you are?”

“…Ryu Hana.”

“So your name is Hana! What a nice name! Nice to meet you!”

Makina raised her tiny hand. Hesitantly, Ryu Hana also raised hers. Their palms of different sizes overlapped. Click!

“Makina. Start the car for me.”

A bit of mana drained away.

Vroom.

The car started. I firmly gripped the steering wheel.

“You can’t even start the car? Should I drive instead?”

“I’ll handle the driving, so just sit still, please.”

“Hmph.”

Makina sharply turned her head away from me and plopped herself onto Ryu Hana’s thigh. Ryu Hana looked flustered but didn’t seem to mind. Makina’s cute appearance had won her over as well.

“Let’s go! Knight Gender! I’d love to see how well you drive!”

“I’ll make sure to give you a comfortable ride.”

I was confident in my driving skills. I wasn’t the old me anymore. I could have easily won a racing competition.

As I stepped on the accelerator, I quickly brought the speed up to 100km/h.

“Oh, not bad.”

“…Too fast.”

Makina enjoyed it while Ryu Hana’s face stiffened. She held onto Makina with one hand and tightly gripped the door with the other.

‘Oops.’

I immediately slowed down. We weren’t here for fun. It would be troublesome if the police followed us.

“What? Why did you suddenly slow down? Speed up!”

“Shut up.”

I lightly ignored Makina’s complaints and maintained an appropriate speed.

“Hana. Doesn’t Knight Gender suck at driving? If I drove, we’d be going twice as fast. Ah, I want to show you my driving skills. Knight Gender! Let me drive!”

Makina kept chattering nonstop. Ryu Hana gently stroked Makina’s head like someone petting a fragile kitten. Makina didn’t avoid her touch. She must’ve gotten used to Ha Gender often patting her head.

To escape Makina’s annoying voice, I turned on the radio. Instead of an upbeat song, a calm female announcer’s voice came through.

-A gate has opened on Mapo Bridge and monsters have appeared. The Hero Association is responding. No evacuation alarm has been issued yet. Citizens near Mapo Bridge, please remain calm.

This news was boring. I switched the channel.

Static.

A male announcer’s voice came on.

-The evacuation alert in Daegu has been lifted. Citizens of Daegu can rest easy. Thanks to the quick response of the Hero Association, there were no casualties in Daegu. Heroes, thank you for your hard work! Because of you, Korea remains safe today.

Static.

-Jeju Island is approaching a typhoon and marine monsters have been spotted. Citizens of Jeju, please prepare for evacuation. Once again, citizens of Jeju, please prepare for evacuation.

Static.

-Monsters sighted in Gangneung…

Static.

-Currently, Wando is isolated…

Static, Static!

I kept switching channels. There wasn’t a single station playing music. All were news broadcasts. Only 30% of the news was good; the rest were monster-related disasters.

‘I knew the ’90s were quite chaotic… but to this extent?’

I glanced out the car window again. The asphalt road was cracked, some buildings were partially destroyed, streetlights and trees were toppled, and the pedestrian walkways were flipped over. Upon closer inspection, Seoul felt desolate and was in complete disarray.

‘And above all, for being Seoul, there are too few people. At this level of damage, recovery won’t be easy…’

An inexplicable uneasiness lingered.


While sensing the energy, I steadily made my way to Maruhan Academy in Gangwon-do.

•••

The academy building was slightly different from modern ones.

The location was the same, but the building looked old and small. The area that should have been a bustling town was eerily empty.

“The town forming in front of the academy only happened in the early 2000s, so this scenery makes sense.”

I boldly drove into the academy entrance. A security guard was standing there. He slowly walked toward the car – he looked like an active-duty hero.

“This is Maruhan Academy. Are you affiliated with the academy?”

“Can’t you tell by our uniforms? These are academy student outfits.”

“…Why does a student… gurk!”

I used “Flash” to stab the guard’s neck. The guard instantly collapsed dead after a brief moment of carelessness. I got out of the car, put the guard’s body in the trunk. The entrance CCTV was being controlled by Makina. It was convenient there was only one guard since it was lunchtime.

I opened the gate and got back in the car. Ryu Hana’s face had stiffened.

[Ryu Hana Affection Level: 31]

The affection level I’d raised over the past two weeks through sparring dropped by 4 points.

“…Did we really need to kill the guard?”

“We’re outsiders without identification. And as I said before, this world isn’t real. Don’t forget that.”

“…There were ways to sneak in.”

“It’s impossible because of the barrier. You know that.”

“…”

Ryu Hana seemed about to argue but gave up and tightly shut her mouth.

The sports car entered Maruhan Academy and parked in the parking lot.

Stepping onto the academy grounds felt awkward. The air here was different from how I remembered it twenty years ago – heavier, maybe even suffocating. I unconsciously scratched my neck. Makina flew over and clung to the back of my head.

Since she’d surely start yelling if I said anything, I decided to ignore her.

“Ryu Hana, is there anywhere you want to go?”

“Not particularly.”

Ryu Hana really seemed uninterested in this past version of Maruhan Academy. I nodded.

“We should at least get a general layout first. Let’s walk around.”

My destination was the Combat Studies Department.

Though the Spirit Studies Department was likely thriving in this era, Seong Hali, who possessed the Spirit Devourer trait, would be in Combat Studies instead.

“I don’t want to enter the crowded main building… and we should avoid the cafeteria since it’s lunchtime.”

First, I headed toward the Combat Studies building I remembered. There stood a newly constructed large building. Looking through the windows, I saw students holding bows – it was the Archery Studies Department.

I called out to a passing archery student.

“Hi, do you know where the Combat Studies Department is?”

The student looked at me curiously.

“You don’t know what Combat Studies is?”

“Because I’m not in Combat Studies. I’m in Magic Studies.”

Crackle.

A spark jumped between my index finger and thumb. Seeing the electricity, the archery student nodded, mistaking it for magic.

“Magic Studies students not knowing about Combat Studies makes sense. The Combat Studies Department is over there.”

“…It’s on the back mountain?”

“I heard from a Combat Studies friend that the back mountain is a good environment for training or something.”

“Thanks for telling me.”

After thanking the archery student, I headed toward the back mountain.

At my Maruhan Academy, there was no back mountain – instead, the Swordsmanship Studies Department was located there. They must be planning to remove the mountain and build new buildings in a few years.

“Judging by the appearance of the Swordsmanship Studies Department, something big must happen in a few years.”

Combat Studies and Swordsmanship Studies had always been bitter rivals, growling at each other whenever they met. Cooperation between them was extremely rare.

As I approached the back mountain, I could see the Combat Studies building. Despite its rustic appearance, the building was as large as the main administration building.

Just then, someone came out of the Combat Studies building entrance. It was a well-built female student with long black hair and pale skin.

Seong Hali.

She saw me and her eyes widened in surprise.