I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy-Chapter 492

Meanwhile, at the gates of Stella Academy, where Cheon-Hwang-Jeong Pal-Wol and Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol lingered, hoping to meet Baek Yu-Seol...

At that moment, Baek Yu-Seol was in the middle of personally apologizing to Commander Arain of the Knight Order and requesting the disbandment of the deployed forces.

Stella, which had been on the verge of deploying its full military resources, including airships, to address the presence of the Divine Moons, received yet another urgent report.

“...A swarm of monsters is set to pass through Arcanium’s airspace?”

“Yes. Thousands of monstrous birds have been sighted in transit.”

“Why? There must be a reason for such a movement.”

“Likely... a war between dark mages is brewing in a nearby city. We’ve confirmed the opening of numerous portals in the area.”

“How dare they.”

Arain’s expression hardened into a cold scowl. The dark mages had already disrespected Stella’s defenses once. Now, it seemed, they underestimated Stella entirely.

“Based on the detected dark magic, this war will be on a considerable scale. What are your orders?”

“Are all the portals open yet?”

“Not yet.”

“Then if we deploy immediately, we can arrive before they finish mobilizing. We’ll intercept and crush them completely.”

Arain nodded at her lieutenant, signaling the order. The knightly forces, originally prepared to confront the Divine Moons, received new directives and began launching airships.

In the end, although the initial mobilization had been caused by the Divine Moons, the effort wasn’t wasted.

Thanks to their presence, the knights were ready to sweep through the dark mages’ battlefield before anyone else.

"...There’s no way the Divine Moons acted without intention. Perhaps they wanted us to stop the dark mages’ war."

Arain briefly entertained the thought, silently honoring the Divine Moons for their supposed foresight. Unfortunately, she couldn’t have been more mistaken.

The Divine Moons were far less thoughtful than anyone could imagine.

“Prepare for full-scale war. Even if both factions of dark mages attack us, we’ll annihilate them with overwhelming force.”

Thus, the massive force originally assembled to confront the Divine Moons was redirected to suppress the dark mages’ impending battle.

This swift intervention dramatically altered the course of the upcoming dark mage war, setting a chain of events in motion that no one could have anticipated.

***

The quest “Sleeping Elf in the Forest” was not part of the main story, yet it had garnered praise from numerous players.

As expected of Baek Yu-Seol, who had a habit of mashing the ESC button to skip through every story scene, he had no memory of the quest’s details. Thankfully, the entirety of its information was stored in his Hummingbird Glasses.

What concerned him, however, was that no player had ever mentioned Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol being part of the quest.

In hindsight, this made sense.

Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol would have stayed hidden from the world, avoiding any interaction that could reveal her existence.

After confirming through conversation that this was indeed the Sleeping Elf in the Forest quest, Baek Yu-Seol noticed Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol’s restless demeanor and tilted his head.

“What’s troubling you?”

“...The truth is, the only reason I’m even wandering outside right now is because of Hoe-Gong Si-Wol’s orders. Normally, I’d be working on persuading Cheon-Hwang-Jeong Pal-Wol or fulfilling his other commands by now.”

“Are you so uneasy about doing nothing?”

“O-Of course! I don’t fully trust you yet, nor do I have a 100% guarantee you’ll help me... I need to find a way to save myself, just in case.”

Baek Yu-Seol chuckled internally. While Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol looked like a child and sometimes behaved like one, her concerns were reasonable and grounded.

“Can you tell me what that order is?”

Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol hesitated before closing her eyes and blurting out in resignation.

“I’m supposed to kill the Dark Magic King.”

The absurdity of her words left Baek Yu-Seol momentarily speechless.

Kill the Dark Magic King? Was that even feasible? Even if it were, would it be wise? Intervening at that level would undoubtedly trigger restrictions that her body might not survive.

“That’s impossible.”

“W-What? Are you saying I’m weaker than the Dark Magic King?”

“It’s not about strength. That’s something you’d only know after fighting him.”

“Even saying that is insulting! I’m a Divine Moon!”

“That’s beside the point. Do you think your body and mind could withstand killing someone as powerful as the Dark Magic King? Have you considered the restrictions placed on you by the Founding Magician?”

“U-Um... Hoe-Gong Si-Wol said he’d temporarily lift those restrictions...”

Baek Yu-Seol sighed, massaging his temples.

Through conversations with other Divine Moons, he had learned about the nature of their restrictions. From what he understood, Hoe-Gong Si-Wol couldn’t simply toggle them on and off at will, contrary to what Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol seemed to believe.

“Why are you looking at me like I’m pathetic?”

“Hehe. That’s the look of someone who knows better~!” Cheon-Hwang-Jeong Pal-Wol’s teasing voice cut in.

“I never said that,” Baek Yu-Seol replied, rubbing his face and swiftly changing his expression.

“Listen carefully, Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol. Hoe-Gong Si-Wol has already abandoned you.”

“W-What?”

“Why are you surprised? He’s been manipulating you all along, holding onto your weakness to control you. Once you’re no longer useful, he’ll discard you.”

“But... I’m still a Divine Moon. I can’t be that disposable!”

“Sure, he found you useful enough to give you a task. Killing the Dark Magic King is no small feat. But after you’re done? He’ll toss you aside.”

Baek Yu-Seol spoke with exasperation, even as he felt disbelief at the situation.

To think Hoe-Gong Si-Wol would use another Divine Moon as a pawn, only to dispose of her after.

Yet... was it even appropriate to call them “equals”? Hoe-Gong Si-Wol always seemed fundamentally different from the other Divine Moons.

And even now, I can’t be sure Hoe-Gong Si-Wol intended for Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol to succeed.

What if the real plan was for her to fail? If Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol doubted him enough to refuse the task and prioritize her own life, wouldn’t that align with a hidden scheme?

Possibilities swirled in Baek Yu-Seol’s mind, but there was nothing definitive to conclude at the moment.

“I planned to research the Fragment of the Otherworld during this break, but...”

Given the current situation, priorities had to shift. The Divine Moons took precedence.

“Fine. Let’s head out immediately.”

“W-What? Right now?”

“Is there a problem?”

“N-No, I just didn’t think you’d act so quickly. Don’t you have other things to do?”

“I do. Plenty.”

Baek Yu-Seol shrugged as though it didn’t matter, meeting her gaze.

“But I’m no fool. Resolving a Divine Moon’s issue takes precedence over everything else.”

Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol looked moved, though Baek Yu-Seol truly meant nothing beyond what he had said. If she weren’t a Divine Moon, he’d have handed her a waiting ticket and told her to queue up—his workload was mountainous.

“We’ll head out, but I’ll need some help.”

“Help?”

“Yes. Based on what you’ve told me, your sister is likely located at the ‘Abandoned Twelfth World Tree.’ Am I right?”

“The Abandoned World Tree...? I’m not sure.”

“I’m certain. The quest related to this takes place in that area.”

Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol’s eyes widened in realization.

“It’s a natural fortress. The forest itself attacks all intruders, making it impossible for anyone to reach the elf inside. Even Hoe-Gong Si-Wol must have had reasons for leaving your sister there.”

The pieces clicked together in Baek Yu-Seol’s mind. The quest location, the curse, and the reason for Hoe-Gong Si-Wol’s involvement—it all made sense now.

"Ah, so that’s how it is... As expected, you’re impressive. To deduce all that from just the information I shared..."

“The important thing is, if I go into that forest, I won’t even have bones left to bury.”

“What?”

“What do you mean by that?”

Cheon-Hwang-Jeong Pal-Wol and Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol simultaneously widened their eyes in surprise.

“While the body of a Divine Moon might not be affected by the forest, I’m different. If the entire forest, with its consciousness, decides to attack, I won’t stand a chance. And on top of that, the forest’s ability to twist itself into a labyrinth would make it nearly impossible to navigate.”

Ja-Ryeok Il-Wol’s pupils darted around nervously, suggesting she only half-understood his explanation.

That wasn’t unexpected; Baek Yu-Seol hadn’t spoken to be fully understood. He just wanted to make it clear that charging directly into the forest wasn’t an option.

“We’ll need someone who can navigate /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ the Abandoned World Tree. Someone reliable.”

The first candidate to come to mind was, of course, Kkot-Seorin. However, constantly relying on her felt unreasonable. After all, using the ruler of the elves as a mere guide was nothing short of shameless.

Jelliel, another high elf skilled with forests, was a consideration, but she’d likely face even greater resistance from the Abandoned World Tree due to her pure elven aura—unless she were the Elf King herself.

“No, anyone from humanity will face resistance, no matter who it is. If it’s not Kkot-Seorin... I’ll need another solution.”

Baek Yu-Seol shifted his thoughts, abandoning the idea of finding a navigator.

Instead, he realized the situation called for a more scientific and modern approach.

The Abandoned World Tree’s forest, though inaccessible to him now, had been a prime farming ground for veteran players in the game.

Its resources were unparalleled. Rare minerals and legendary-grade gemstones, impossible to find anywhere else, were buried within its bounds.

What if he could leverage those treasures to mobilize a powerful group?

A group highly sensitive to the scent of money.

A group like Jelliel’s Starcloud Trading Company, or any similar organization that would move heaven and earth for rare gemstones. They’d come armed with cutting-edge equipment, militarized units, and the determination to...

...quite literally burn the Abandoned World Tree’s forest to the ground if necessary.

Only one entity came to Baek Yu-Seol’s mind that could accomplish such a feat.

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“The Alchemist Guild.”

Though Althericia often wore a pure, innocent facade, Baek Yu-Seol knew her fiery passion for alchemy would ignite the moment she learned of a new, undiscovered material hidden in that forest.

For an alchemist like her, no forest was too sacred to incinerate in pursuit of knowledge and resources.