I Became an Unknown Professor at the Academy

First-Year Dormitory.

The newly established alchemy workshop’s materials storage.

The central leisure district.

Two abandoned old buildings, long deserted by students and professors.

These are the places that have collapsed due to the Demonic Bomb.

“Maybe I should’ve spared one.”

The masterminds behind today’s terrorist attack were all gathered in the first-year dormitory, but with the explosion of the Demonic Bomb, they were wiped off the face of the earth—without even a trace of bone dust left behind.

The sole survivor among their ranks was Park Mi-na, who now knelt before me, bowing her head and begging for her life—ultimately renouncing her faith of her own accord.

Before today’s attack began, her mission was to attend this gathering and report everything discussed.

In other words, the ones who were originally supposed to die were not the nobodies in the dormitory—but her.

The Demonic Bomb that exploded in the first-year dorm was supposed to have been relocated here through Kang Mu-seok before detonation.

From this, I could confirm that Fantasia held a higher position than both Park Mi-na and those now-dead fools.

At the same time, while the intended outcome had always been for Park Mi-na to survive alone, suspicions wouldn’t be directed at her.

The responsibility for managing the Demonic Bomb wasn’t placed on Park Mi-na—it was on Fantasia.

More precisely, on Park Min-jung, who knew absolutely nothing.

.

.

.

【We will temporarily adjourn this meeting.】

Claire’s voice, clear and resolute, reached even my seat.

The high priests seated at the round table were soon joined by a swarm of clerics.

Beside Claire, I could see Lee Yesol, her face stiff, lips parting slightly as if to say something.

Only the students, completely isolated from the outside world by twelve layers of protective barriers and various warding spells, remained bewildered.

“Professor.”

A voice rang out behind me—one thick with complex emotions, but dominated by anger.

Jayden.

“Kang Hanna.”
“Yes.”

I stood from my seat and turned around.

Standing beside Jayden, Kang Hanna—who had never once shown signs of unease—now had a flicker of tension in her gaze.

“Gather all the students in one place and return the confiscated items to them.”
“Understood.”

Without hesitation, she turned and leaped downward.

“And Yoon Do-sik?”
“He’s in my lab.”
“He’ll be quite a sight when he hears the storage room has exploded.”
“…He’s going to lose his mind.”

Jayden’s tightly clenched jaw twitched slightly.

“Call every combat instructor we can reach. When Lee Hyuk and Cheon Ji-ho arrive, assign personnel accordingly and conduct a thorough search of the academy.”
“Understood. But… what about the Chairman?”
“He’s not the kind of guy to die a dog’s death somewhere—don’t bother worrying about him.”
“Ahem… I’ll get right on it.”

Jayden pulled out his smartphone and dashed off.

Turning away from him, I walked toward the students who had begun gathering around Kang Hanna.

.

.

.

BZZZZT—!!

Just a few steps later, I felt a small vibration in my pocket.

[Baek Hana]

Her hearing is sharp—she must’ve heard the explosion.

[W-Woo-jin!! Something big just—]

“It’s nothing major.”

[…When are you coming home?]

The urgency in her voice, so close to rushing out the door, vanished in an instant—settling into an almost eerie calm.

“Before dinner. Stay inside the mansion and don’t go anywhere.”

[…Okay.]

“I’m hanging up.”

[…Yeah.]

Her final reply, filled with nothing but pure worry, made me chuckle.

“Having sharp instincts can be a problem too.”

The turmoil of Emptiness, triggered by my emotional fluctuations, had been unusually rampant.

Suppressing it had been an ordeal—so much so that I had to draw upon all of my Innate Mana, which I had accumulated ever since the Fairy Incident.

And even that hadn’t been enough.

To finally restrain it, I had to call upon Greed, which had remained dormant until now.

The price was clear.

Even now, the metallic taste of blood lingered in my mouth.

Unlike during the Scales Incident, my soul wasn’t damaged—but just the added fatigue alone had been enough to make me cough up blood.

Not that it was unexpected.

After all, I had torn away a piece of my soul to save someone who should have died.

In other words, my balance had already been broken.

With my foundation collapsed, there was no way things could be the same as before.

The only surprise was the extent to which the backlash affected my physical body.

But that was all.

Just a minor difference.

Nothing had truly changed.

.

.

.

By the time I had gathered my thoughts and descended, Kang Hanna had already assembled the students and briefly explained the situation.

I turned toward the hundred or so gathered before me and spoke.

“If any of you have received calls from family or students outside the academy, you should have some idea of what’s happening out there.”

A few students—those who had been gripping their vibrating smartphones—instinctively nodded.

“According to academy regulations, students are to be sent home if an internal crisis occurs. However, due to the special circumstances, I will give you a choice.”

Silence fell as the students focused on me, some still clutching their ringing phones tightly.

“One option is to stay here. You will be provided with temporary accommodations in the vacant upperclassmen dorms. The other is to leave the academy—after proving that you are not Cult Worshippers. The decision is yours.”

A hesitant voice rose from the crowd.

“I-I have… a question…”

A male student raised his hand with a tense expression.

“Lim Kyung-soo.”
“Y-Yes, sir!!”

The student, whom I had left alone due to his late-blooming nature, lifted his head and answered loudly.

“Too loud.”
“…I’m sorry.”

Then, returning to the clumsy demeanor he usually showed in practice and lectures, he lowered his head.

“What is your question?”
“…C-Can we possibly bring our families to the academy?”
“Not allowed.”
“I-I thought so…”

There wasn’t even a need to consider it.

I could list multiple reasons on the surface, but the fundamental one was that if I allowed one, others would start coming in droves.

Chaos was not something I was willing to tolerate.

“If there are no other questions, those choosing to stay should sit down, and those leaving should remain standing.”

As soon as I finished speaking, only a few students sat, while the rest chose to remain standing.

The once-sacred temple had been attacked, and even the academy, protected by a barrier, had suffered a terrorist attack. That wasn’t all.

Outside, the countless guilds were in complete turmoil due to the large and small damages caused by the demonic explosives.

If they prioritized their safety here while leaving their families outside, it would be difficult to face them properly later.

“Step forward, one at a time, starting with the student at the front.”

The first to step forward was Lim Kyung-soo, the same student who had raised his hand earlier.

“Lim Kyung-soo.”
“…Yes, professor.”

Perhaps because he had taken my lectures for a year, despite his nervous state, he made an effort to speak as clearly as possible without stammering.

“Are you a worshiper?”
“No, I’m not…”
“Do you know anything about this terrorist attack?”
“N-No, I don’t…”
“Understood.”
“…T-That’s it?”

When I nodded, he looked up at me in surprise.

“D-Don’t I need to swear in the name of a god or be verified by the other priests…?”
“Lim Kyung-soo.”
“Y-Yes, sir…!!”
“Shut up.”
“……”

Only then did he realize his mistake and immediately shut his mouth, standing at attention.

“Did you lie in response to my questions?”
“N-No, absolutely not.”
“Then keep quiet and step aside.”
“Yes, sir…!!”

With the quickest movement I had ever seen from him, he moved to stand beside Kang Han-na.

After that, I had the remaining students go through the same set of questions as Lim Kyung-soo, lining them up next to Kang Hanna. Then, just as I was about to question Park Min-jung, the child of Fantasia involved in this terrorist attack—

“…Wait a moment.”

A man with thick eyebrows and a build similar to Ahn Hyun-do.

A parasite who calls himself the God of Struggle.

“Make it brief. Get to the point.”
“…Are you really going to let them go without a proper verification?”
“A proper verification.”
“Yes… If there’s a worshiper among them, they could become the seed that grows into an even greater disaster. So—”

【Shut up.】

“Guh…!!”

The reason why Claire has always operated alone was right in front of me.

Rather than entrusting her back to an idiot who couldn’t even tell when to step in and when to step out, she likely found it more efficient—and less mentally exhausting—to act alone.

【Verification, you say. If verification means swearing by the name of the insect you worship, then I refuse.】

“Urgh…!!”

So he gets agitated just because he’s received some divine blessing?

How laughable.

【Do you think I would entrust the students to worms who would brand them as worshipers and pass divine judgment just because they felt offended?】

Beings who could only exist because of humans, yet looked down on them.

Those who, out of mere displeasure, would label even non-worshipers as worshipers and impose divine punishment.

“Haaah…!! Haaah, haaah…”

When I returned control of the magic I had taken, he gasped for breath and staggered backward.

I turned away from him and faced Park Min-jung, who was frozen stiff.

“Are you a worshiper?”
“…N-No.”
“Do you know anything about this terrorist attack?”
“N-No, I don’t…”

I nodded and then turned to Kang Han-na, who was inexplicably in a battle stance.

“Take responsibility for escorting the students outside.”
“Yes.”
“Park Min-jung.”
“…Y-Yes?!”
“Why are you just standing there?”
“A-Ah, t-thank you…!!”

As the last student, Park Min-jung, joined the group, Kang Han-na gave me a slight nod before leading the students out of the meeting hall.

“Professor.”

A voice that significantly eased my irritation made me slowly turn around.

Claire walked up to the now-flustered servant of the God of Struggle, who had turned red with suppressed anger, and spoke.

“I may need to step out for a moment.”
“Have you found Xiao Zhan’s location?”

Her blue eyes wavered slightly.

“…Yes.”
“There must be two locations.”
“…Yes, two.”
“Tokyo and Busan. Correct?”
“……”

She silently nodded once, her gaze still unsteady.

“I’ll go to Japan. And—”

I gestured toward the ones watching us from a distance over Claire’s shoulder.

“Send Diana and those guys to Busan.”
“…Then what about me?”

Her voice rose slightly, as if caught off guard.

Leaning in close to conceal the faint taste of blood still lingering in my mouth, I whispered softly into Claire’s ear.

“I’ll be back before dinner.”