I Got a Fake Job at the Academy

Chapter 825 - Side Story 98: Transcendent (1)

Rudger gazed at the successful creation before his eyes. He had called it a chimera with a hint of emotion, but it wasn't exactly wrong.

This place is a laboratory. An artificial environment is created, and animals are raised there. And through experiments, animals are forcibly turned into spirit beasts.

Successful spirit beasts come to reside in the outer forest beyond the laboratory. They make their nests there, serving as a kind of breakwater to prepare for any enemies that might come from outside.

In the laboratory that has become as solid as a fortress, data is accumulated. Various beasts transform into spirit beasts, and standard values and fluctuation ranges according to individual specimens are observed and controlled.

'The accumulated data is comprehensively compiled and then transplanted into humans.'

Forcibly evolving beasts into spirit beasts was only one process. The true purpose lay in human evolution.

'This is a very complex problem.'

Beasts become spirit beasts because it's difficult to expel the mana stored in their bodies. Mana not harming the body only applies when it's at an appropriate level.

If it keeps accumulating and accumulating, eventually problems arise in the body. Just as a vessel cannot hold water beyond its capacity limit.

As a result, among beasts with massive amounts of mana accumulated in their bodies, 99 out of 100 usually sicken and die. Rather than making bones strong, mana penetrates into the bone marrow and collapses them from the inside.

Muscles repeat only expansion without contraction, and blood vessels swell as if about to burst. The fragile fabric of a living being cannot withstand the energy of mana.

'But very occasionally, an individual is born that surpasses all those hardships.'

That's precisely a spirit beast. A separate species that ultimately succeeded in evolution amid the crisis of death.

Spirit beasts thus become able to handle mana and also gain special abilities suited to their individual characteristics before evolution.

External elements retain their pre-evolution appearance. However, considering their size, strength, and status, they could be said to be existences that have transcended several stages.

Yes. The evolution that a single living being accomplished over tens or hundreds of millions of years. They implemented it in a short time through the power called mana and forced experimentation.

'And they applied that to humans. The thing before my eyes is an aggregate of data from countless beasts.'

It's not called a chimera for nothing.

A Spirit Person born through the spirit beast transformation project or a new human.

It thrusts its fist toward this direction.

Just as the tip of the fist blurred, a ray of light flew aiming for between the eyebrows. Rudger set his sword stick vertically without batting an eye.

-Kwang!

The fist couldn't pierce through the sword stick. Conversely, the sword stick also couldn't scratch the fist.

Golden light exploded like a volcano, trying to tear Rudger apart. However, the shadows rippling around Rudger easily swallowed such golden light.

The Spirit Person's expressionless face frowned for the first time.

"What exactly are you? Even if you're a person from the Holy Kingdom, you shouldn't possess this level of power. Moreover, that's not the power of holy law." 

"You're only noticing that now?" 

"Rather, it's closer to magic. Don't tell me... were you a sorcerer?"

It seems people in the old days called mages sorcerers. Or perhaps it's what that thing specifically calls them.

Instead of answering, Rudger swung his sword stick greatly. Compressed blue mana surged over the blade of the swung sword stick.

The Spirit Person tried to endure it with its bare body, but soon changed its mind and retreated backward.

Immediately after, black shadows formed where the Spirit Person had been, and from there several sword stick blades burst out, piercing through the air.

"What was that just now?"

The Spirit Person seemed unable to understand Rudger's magic. It was inevitable. Because when one blade was put into a shadow, it magically separated and burst out as more than 10.

The Spirit Person stared at Rudger with heavily sunken eyes.

"You used spatial movement simultaneously with dimensional splitting." 

"You figured that out immediately after seeing it once?"

Rudger clicked his tongue. A brain that understands the modern language system from just a few exchanged words of conversation. Even when magic is used, it can easily figure out what principle it was activated by.

Even so, normally one would be flustered seeing magic that transcends space, but it showed no such thing.

"It seems you automatically suppress hormonal reactions too."

Just as the Spirit Person analyzed Rudger, Rudger also analyzed the Spirit Person.

The shadows spread on the floor surged like waves and swallowed the Spirit Person.

-Pyeong!

A golden pillar surged up, piercing through the shadow like an awl. The Spirit Person that burst out from the bottom of the shadow displayed a brilliant flight in mid-air before flying toward Rudger like a missile.

Rudger lightly tapped the floor with his sword stick.

The ground swelled up, and a giant ice warship burst out.

-Bwaaaaang!

The warship shooting out with a light sound wasn't just one. It instantly multiplied to more than 10, becoming a scale befitting a fleet.

[That's the Heavenly Sea Icebreaker I created!]

Lexer admired Rudger's magic.

Originally, the warship should have rammed straight into the target, but Rudger's magic didn't do that. The warships floated in mid-air and then pulled out cannons made of ice from the ship's sides.

-Peobeobeobeobeng!

With cannon fire, the ice cannons scattered frost powder. The shooting ice bullets aimed for the golden trajectory decorating the air.

The Spirit Person tried to evade with a sneer, but stiffened its expression seeing the shot ice cannonballs get swallowed by shadows.

The cannonballs swallowed by shadows burst out from shadows in different positions, aiming for the Spirit Person again.

Even when avoided, space changes and they track again. Just as the number of shooting cannonballs gradually increased and the space to evade even in mid-air became limited, that moment arrived.

Rudger stretched out his hand.

The cannonballs made of ice all stopped at once in mid-air. They became a giant crystal sphere surrounding the Spirit Person.

Rudger clenched the hand he had extended.

-Kwajik! Kwajijik!

The ice that looked like a giant iceberg compressed with the Spirit Person at the center. A mass that could make one small iceberg compressed in an instant to a size about 3m in diameter.

-Kwang!

However, golden light flashed through the cracks of the ice sphere. With a massive explosion, the sphere exploded and scattered ice fragments in all directions.

The Spirit Person, emitting golden radiance from tattoos all over its body, glared at Rudger.

"As I thought. Those tattoos weren't carved for nothing."

Beasts each chose evolution suited to their individual bodies. Then what about humans who became Spirit Persons?

Humans run slower than wild beasts. Their nails and teeth aren't sharp, and they have neither wings to fly in the sky nor gills to breathe underwater.

All they possess is a brain that knows how to use tools and fingers for precise work.

Even if mana is injected to forcibly evolve them, there were many insufficient parts to greatly gain biological advantages.

The tattoos were a kind of auxiliary body to fill those insufficient parts.

Indelible tattoos are carved deep in the skin. Those are magically processed and reinforce the human body itself so that mana flows through it better.

It's not just mana. As can be seen from the part that absorbed the artificial sun's energy, those tattoos simultaneously help absorb and use energy.

With just that, humans can obtain the energy needed for a day just by basking in sunlight, without eating food.

The Spirit Person didn't respond to Rudger's words. Instead, it only glared at Rudger with eyes burning with golden flames.

As if lasers might shoot from its eyes. No, it's not a misconception.

-Pisyung!

Two rays of eye light shot toward Rudger. Rudger wrapped shadows like a cloak and then swung it to absorb it inside space.

"Right. I knew this would happen."

It might have thought it was an unexpected surprise attack, but Rudger had vaguely anticipated it.

The Spirit Person is an existence that forcibly turned a human into a spirit beast. Mana at a level humans cannot endure is injected into the body, and the body strengthened by drugs and experiments is forcibly evolved.

'Spirit beasts evolved after learning survival methods at the end of accumulation because they couldn't expel mana.'

Then what about humans? Can humans not expel mana? That's not the case.

Rather, humans accepted mana and handled it in a way called magic. Then are mages the crystallization of evolution that humans pursue? That's not it either.

Magic is nothing more than the result implemented through one method. The experiment they pursued wasn't such a simple thing.

'It's to elevate existence itself one level higher.'

Mages store mana in their bodies in places like the heart. Or they spread it evenly throughout the body.

'What they pursue is for all magic power to dwell in each and every cell.'

As a result, vast mana dwelt even in the eyes, and it manifested in the form of magic eyes.

At first, I wondered if it wasn't an existence similar to Mina, but the more I learned, the more different it was. Mina was chosen by mana and handles it by accepting it and making requests.

The Spirit Person was the opposite. The Spirit Person dominates mana itself and controls it by force. Not just mana, but anything related to energy without discrimination.

And it also possesses magic eyes that would normally be difficult to have acquired.

'Would it be just magic eyes?'

The Spirit Person moved its lips and opened its mouth.

[──.]

Some word in ancient language, not modern language. Just by speaking, a strange crack occurred in mid-air.

-Kwaching!

The crack grew larger, and from within, a golden torrent poured out.

"Magic eyes and word spirit."

The golden torrent surged like a tidal wave, trying to swallow Rudger. He tried to raise shadows to use as a breakwater to block it, but it wasn't easy. The golden torrent was a massive energy by itself. More was being added than the shadows could swallow.

The Spirit Person's attack didn't stop there. When it spread its palm, a golden magic circle appeared. Simultaneously, light burst out like flames from the artificial sun and began to be absorbed into the magic circle.

The magic circle was implemented in a complex manner and repeatedly grew larger.

While Rudger was blocking the golden torrent, ominous energy wriggled from the center of the completed magic circle.

"That's a bit dangerous."

He recalled the technique the World Tree used to gather light from the entire surrounding area and shoot it all at once. This, if anything, was more sophisticated and vicious than that because none other than the artificial sun's energy was being used.

"I tried to fight while protecting the ruins as much as possible, but with this, I can't even pay attention to the aftermath, can I?"

Rudger muttered as if regretful, then extended his arm toward the Spirit Person. The Spirit Person's eyebrows twitched as it watched.

Along with the action similar to its own, there was plenty of intent to somehow block this side's attack.

Does it not know what this is and is trying to block it? The Spirit Person shook its head. While exchanging blows with Rudger, he knew how strong he was.

Judging him as dangerous and trying to kill him the moment it saw this man wasn't because it felt bad for no reason.

Its transcendent comprehension judged Rudger as very dangerous because if he's not eliminated here, it cannot achieve its purpose.

That's why it's using this power with the resolve to destroy this precious ruin, this laboratory.

Well, it's regrettable that it'll be destroyed, but it's okay. After all, it, the successful creation, is alive and well like this.

And it remembers all the experimental processes. As long as it survives, resumption is possible at any time.

So now, it just needs to block whatever Rudger is trying to do.

At that moment, the Spirit Person's eyes widened.

Massive mana surges around Rudger. It was at a level where it couldn't understand where such mana had been latent.

Pure output doesn't reach the artificial sun. But the moment mana is fitted together around Rudger and takes on some form and composition.

Energies collided with each other, creating an even greater power. Power called forth new power, creating one flow under near-perfect control.

-Pajik!

Pitch-black lightning sparked in mid-air.

"That time I made it by looking at the answer sheet."

Before anyone knew it, on Rudger's palm, black lightning that seemed like it would cross space was generated.

"But this time will be different. Because this is the real thing."

The unprecedented realm of the 8th circle that humans in history had never reached. And the transcendent-grade magic that only a mage of that realm could unfold.

Dark Thunder (暗雷).