The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 152

After leaving the audience chamber, I was immediately seized by Han Si-hyuk.

His face drained of color, Han Si-hyuk hurriedly walked, only to stagger and lean against a wall once we were sufficiently far from the chamber.

Breathing heavily, Han Si-hyuk waved his hand frantically and asked.

“What the hell… What happened back there?”

“Hmm?”

“What did you do that made you get summoned to the Emperor, with your head on the line, almost getting yourself killed?”

Han Si-hyuk grabbed my shoulders and raised his voice.

I brushed his hands off and responded with a smirk.

“Wow, that’s exactly what I was going to ask you.”

“What?”

“‘Just grant him a chance… and execute him cleanly?’”

“…!”

“Really? Is that something someone who calls himself my brother would say?”

“Well… I thought that was the best I could do….”

If Han Si-hyuk’s judgment was right, crossing Emperor Linia could easily lead to an untimely death, so I understood he was trying his best.

But thinking about it more, I was genuinely pissed. I had almost died!

To avoid provoking Emperor Linia, I had to suppress my emotions.

The more you begged for your life, the more that crazy woman wanted to end it. I just tried to keep my face straight.

Honestly, it was terrifying!

And yet, you just went ahead and poured fuel on the fire?

Han Si-hyuk clenched his teeth and demanded.

“So what happened? What exactly did you do? Tell me.”

“….”

“Quickly.”

Even as a Seer, Han Si-hyuk couldn’t see everything.

He wanted to know what had gone down in the banquet hall, and I scratched my head as I casually answered.

In short, it went like this.

“I told her she was disgusting.”

“…? To whom?”

“….”

Han Si-hyuk’s eyelids twitched.

“No… No way… You….”

I smiled and confirmed his suspicions.

“To the Emperor.”

“Are… are you insane…?”

Han Si-hyuk could barely string his words together now.

“I asked her how valuable her life was. She couldn’t answer. I guess it wasn’t that valuable, huh?”

“You… You’re a real nutcase, aren’t you?”

Hearing it summarized like this, I had to admit I was probably insane.

Emperor Linia might have never heard anyone call her disgusting since she came to power.

Maybe that’s why she let me live?

You’re the first brat to talk back to me like that, she must’ve thought.

“Sigh… ha.”

Han Si-hyuk slowly lowered his trembling hands and took a deep breath.

After hearing the full story, his response was:

“…How did you survive?”

Yeah, good question. How did I survive?

—

Back in Han Si-hyuk’s office.

Han Si-hyuk took out the documents Emperor Linia had bestowed upon him.

Although Han Siha’s reckless actions had given him quite the scare, they had also helped reveal the core of the incident.

The Katablam Unsolved Case was essentially resolved.

The event had been carried out under the Emperor’s orders, with Han Taesu executing those orders.

Knowing who was responsible didn’t mean they could be punished.

“A thousand people died… by the Emperor’s command.”

Han Si-hyuk had seen the horrors of the Katablam Unsolved Case firsthand.

He bit his lower lip so hard that he could almost taste blood.

“Did it really have to come to this?”

To catch a single dark mage, the decision was made to annihilate the entire village.

And it wasn’t a small village—no, a thousand innocent lives had been taken.

Just as Han Siha had said, a feeling of disgust welled up inside him.

But did he have the right to condemn Han Taesu when he himself had been too cowardly to say anything in front of the Emperor?

If he had been given the same orders, would he have disobeyed them?

Han Si-hyuk shook his head with a bitter smile.

He already knew the answer.

It was a case that had to be buried; in reality, it had lost all meaning.

It was no longer worth delving into.

Still, one thing nagged at him.

Han Si-hyuk took a deep breath and recalled Emperor Linia’s words.

‘There’s something in there that you need to see.’

Han Si-hyuk pondered what that might be.

Eventually, he decided he had to see it with his own eyes.

[Regarding the Handling of the Dark Mage Nox in Katablam]

Han Si-hyuk turned the first page with trembling hands.

It was the case file from the time, held only by the Emperor—a record from over a decade ago.

Because everyone had died in the incident, Han Si-hyuk felt his heart sink as soon as he read the first line.

It was completely different from the investigation files he had previously received.

[A dark mage infiltrated the Katablam district.]

[An entry into Katablam is required.]

“Sigh….”

[The dark mage Nox’s unique ability is stealth. He is hiding among the villagers of Katablam. Identifying him seems impossible.]

“Nox?”

There was Archant, whose unique ability was teleportation.

Archant had been a particularly troublesome dark mage to deal with.

But if the ability in question was stealth?

A dark mage hiding among a thousand people would be far from easy to handle.

Han Si-hyuk frowned, the severity of the case clear.

The report skipped forward two months.

[A unit from the Archent Count’s domain was deployed. All were killed.]

It seemed there had been support from Count Archent.

Given the level of troops that would be deployed in such a situation, they were likely elite soldiers, yet they were all wiped out.

[Nox attempted to infiltrate the Imperial Palace but failed. He retreated back into the Katablam district.]

Han Si-hyuk, sweating from the tension, turned the page. His fingertips slipped slightly from the dampness of his anxiety.

If a dark mage was brazen enough to directly infiltrate the Imperial Palace, it had to be a significant matter.

Han Si-hyuk was familiar with their operational methods.

Regardless of what they did a decade ago, dark mages operated solo under two conditions.

Either they were expendable or they were exceptionally skilled.

Nox seemed to belong to the latter category.

[A unit from the Castican domain was deployed. A hundred casualties occurred.]

[Nox seems to be preparing to use all the villagers as sacrifices for a large-scale spell.]

[If left unchecked, greater damage will be inevitable. We must stop him.]

A dark ritual with a thousand sacrifices.

The more sacrifices, the greater the spell’s power.

The exact nature of the spell wasn’t recorded, but with that many lives at stake, it was undoubtedly something horrific.

Han Si-hyuk turned the page with trembling hands.

[Katablam has been surrounded.]

[It is impossible to identify Nox.]

Here, the Empire made its decision.

One thousand people set to become sacrifices versus the safety of countless others.

Disgust welled up inside Han Si-hyuk.

He clenched his teeth.

It was nauseating to think that, had he been there ten years ago, he might have made the same choice.

Han Si-hyuk confirmed the Emperor’s order, written in a single line.

[It has been decided to bury the entire village alive. Han Taesu will be dispatched to handle it.]

“Sigh… Damn it.”

Everything Han Siha had suspected was true.

Han Si-hyuk squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.

The horrifying outcome was likely identical to the first case file he had received.

A village buried whole, with no survivors—everyone dead.

But when Han Si-hyuk turned to the next page, he froze.

[Two survivors]

This record was made two years after Nox had been dealt with. They must have only discovered the survivors much later.

Han Si-hyuk muttered to himself, almost in disbelief.

“They buried the entire village alive… How could there be survivors?”

[Information on the survivors will be detailed below.]

[Monitored for two years, no anomalies observed.]

They had submerged the village in the dead of night while everyone was asleep.

It was strange enough that there were survivors, and if they were alive, they couldn’t have been ordinary people.

Flip—

Han Si-hyuk hurriedly turned to the next page.

Then, he slowly removed his hand from the document.

“This… this child is….”

[Adela Stevia]

It was a familiar name, accompanied by a photograph of a young girl.

Taken over a decade ago.

Yet, the photo still captured her lively eyes and the bold presence that seemed inherent to her.

Han Si-hyuk recognized the face immediately.

“Adela?”

She was the one who had come in as his office assistant.

A mage of the earth, and a promising student at Ardel Academy.

“Why is Adela… here?”

When he calculated the timeline, it even matched roughly with when she had awakened her unique abilities.

“So that’s what happened. Did she awaken her abilities at this time?”

Now Han Si-hyuk could finally piece together Adela’s tragic backstory.

She was the child who, with nowhere to go, spent her entire break flitting in and out of his office.

Adela had no home to return to, no hometown.

She had lost her parents, her family, her village.

And the person who caused it all was…

Han Taesu.

Realizing this, Han Si-hyuk wanted to reject the document in front of him.

Han Si-hyuk had seen Adela’s potential.

She was a child who could grow into a Grand Mage.

Someone who could surpass not only himself but even Han Taesu.

A child with that kind of power…

If she found out the truth, could she remain still?

Would she seek to destroy Castica and exact her revenge?

Han Si-hyuk thought of Han Siha and Adela, who had grown so close while often bickering.

If all these truths were revealed, their relationship could never be the same.

They would inevitably hurt each other.

They would be forced to try and kill each other.

And neither of them would have a choice in the matter.

Their relationship was destined to be this way.

Han Si-hyuk shook his head and pulled out the Katablam Unsolved Case file from the drawer.

This was the file from his investigation.

Under normal circumstances, it would be handed to Adela to help her understand the case.

“No. Absolutely not.”

Adela must never know.

She must never be allowed to take an interest in all of this.

It happened over a decade ago. It was tragic, but he was sure it was best to let it stay buried.

Rip—

Han Si-hyuk tore the Katablam case file apart.

Two pieces, four pieces, eight pieces.

Today, this case would be buried in the investigation room.

If he was the only one to bury it, then it could be kept hidden.

“Sigh… Damn it.”

Rip—

Han Si-hyuk thought to himself as he breathed heavily.

Adela should have died there.

Because she survived, she became an even more dangerous child.

For the sake of the Empire, and for the sake of his own brother…

The child who should have died was still alive.

Han Si-hyuk picked up the documents that the Emperor had given him once more.

There was one more survivor who should have died.

“…This needs to be burned.”

With a decision to burn it after confirming, Han Si-hyuk turned to the next page.

The second survivor.

The photograph was frayed and tattered, showing a person who had been in rough shape when found.

Han Si-hyuk involuntarily widened his eyes in shock.

“…!”

He took the photo in his trembling hand.

“This… This is….”

It was a familiar face.

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