(TN: It seems I made quite the mistake in mixing “disciplinary committee” with student council. I never came across the term disciplinary committee before, so I assumed the author meant student council. I forgot that in anime there is actually mention of the disciplinary committee with student council. Very very sorry; now it has been corrected in every chapter.)
******
If you were to think of a fire fist, the first thing that might come to mind was the [Fire Punch] used by fire mages.
It was a magic attack that surrounded the fist with flames, but its destructive power was not particularly impressive.
This was especially true considering the generally poor physical abilities of mages.
Using this skill didn’t require much beyond mana.
It was a case of a low-risk, low-return attack.
On the other hand, [Inferno Fist] was an extremely high-risk, high-return spell.
Instead of merely surrounding the fist with flames, it infused the flames into it.
In the process, everything that constituted the fist—the flesh, muscles, blood vessels, bones, and even the magic circuit—was burned.
And since it causes massive burns to your fist every time you use it, you can only use it once in a while when accompanied by a powerful recovery item.
Ignoring this and casting it four or five times in succession would turn your fist into black charcoal and then crumble away.
The payoff for this risk was overwhelming destructive power which would make [Fire Punch] seem like a mere matchstick flame in comparison.
If one could neutralize the risks of this formidable skill and harness its benefits…
That would be a jackpot.
I decided to learn it right away since there was no need to carry it around with me.
Handling a prohibited skill book always required caution, but I was an exception.
Elemental penalties couldn’t harm me after all.
[Using ‘Skill Book – Inferno Fist’.]
[Acquired ‘Inferno Fist (C)’.]
As expected, it was a C-rank from the start.
It must have been a skill book confiscated from the third years.
Dang Gyu-young asked her club members.
“Did you get everything?”
“Yes, noonim.”
The temporary storage had become noticeably emptier than before.
This was because many prohibited items had been moved to the inventory of the thieves club member.
However, these items couldn’t yet be considered fully stolen.
It’s not over until they safely escape.
“Let’s go.”
We used the same route they had infiltrated as their escape route.
And we returned to Practice Room A passing through the corridor.
Before we quickly descended the circular staircase outside the window of Practice Room A.
Geum Jo-han’s clone was still patrolling the same spot with a dazed expression.
Now, we just needed to get out of this place.
Although I couldn’t see their facial expressions as they were covered by masks, everyone seemed more alert.
But then,
– Kukukuku
Just as everyone started to pick up speed, a wooden door suddenly sprung up in front of us.
The door opened and a male student walked out.
“Where are you hurrying off to?”
“……!”
He wore a second-year tie pin and a disciplinary committee armband.
In one hand, he held a large emerald crystal ball.
He was a wood mage who was skilled in both wood and earth magic.
The twins seemed to be familiar with him as they took turns speaking.
“Kwak Seung-jae…”
“It’s you again…”
“You always pop up wherever we go.”
“I keep dreaming about that wooden door, you know?”
“This old school building isn’t your private room; you can’t just come and go as you please.”
As the wood mage manipulated a small transmitter, the girl with the tablet immediately jammed its signal.
Next, he raised his free hand above his shoulder.
A bright light shot up, only to be swallowed by an encroaching shadow.
“……!”
The mage’s eyes sparkled as he spotted Dang Gyu-young, who had sent the shadow.
Perhaps deciding it was pointless to hide her face any longer, Dang Gyu-young threw off her mask and waved her hand.
“Good to see you, Seung-jae?”
“Good to see you too.”
The wood mage whose name was Kwak Seung-jae immediately bowed.
“Can’t you just let us go?”
“I will let you go, but,”
He gestured toward the wooden door he had just opened.
“Before that, would you mind accompanying me to the disciplinary committee room for a moment?”
“To spit out everything we’ve eaten?”
“It was never the property of the thieves club in the first place, was it?”
Dang Gyu-young’s smile deepened.
“…Then I guess we’ll have to break through.”
“If you think you can.”
“Are you that confident?”
“How could I confidently claim to win against a senior like you?”
“That’s right. It would take a third year to match me. The axe guy is out of the picture, and the others are likely occupied with external requests. And Slit-eyes is… not in sight, is he?”
It seems that’s how things have turned out.
I wondered why everything was resolving so easily. Just then, it occurred to me that there weren’t many third-year disciplinary committee members left in Dragon Slayer Academy at the moment.
The “axe guy” must be referring to the guy with the Hell Axe that was blocking the entrance to the temporary storage.
And “Slit-eyes” would be the disciplinary committee president, Oh Se-hoon.
Kwak Seung-jae responded in a calm tone.
“The president is momentarily occupied with other matters. He should be back shortly.”
“Can you hold us off until then?”
Although the shadows swirled menacingly, Kwak Seung-jae was not intimidated in the slightest.
The unshaken belief in his eyes caused Dang Gyu-young’s expression to grow more serious.
“This time, given the circumstances, we had to seek external help.”
Kwak Seung-jae stepped aside, and through the open wooden door, another person walked out.
He was a handsome man with light brown hair slicked back.
He was a third-year student and he wore a single emblem on his chest instead of the disciplinary committee armband.
It was the emblem symbolizing the student council president.
In his hand, a pair of dark gloves shimmered with topaz.
Dang Gyu-young frowned.
“…Song Cheon-gi.”
“So you start this semester with theft as well.”
“And what wind brings you here to help the disciplinary committee? You’ve always been such a lazy a**.”
“That’s none of your business.”
While the two were exchanging sharp words, shadows writhed on Dang Gyu-young’s back and they formed letters.
– Kids, get out of here on your own.
The situation was rapidly deteriorating.
Members of the disciplinary committee began arriving from every direction.
This included first-years like Han So-mi and Song Cheon-hye, as well as some second-years who I didn’t know.
It was only a matter of time before we were completely surrounded.
Before this, Dang Gyu-young had to create a small gap.
This gap was our only chance to attempt an escape.
“Enough talk, Dang Gyu-young. Disarm yourself and willingly come to the disciplinary committee’s room.”
“And if I refuse?”
– Rumble
Song Cheon-gi silently raised his mana and even that small action caused a faint sound of thunder.
“We will enforce the rules of Dragon Slayer Academy.”
“Hmm…”
Dang Gyu-young pondered for a moment with her chin in her hand.
A few seconds of silence followed.
The onlookers watched silently.
Dang Gyu-young then lowered the hand that was propping up her chin.
Suddenly, she flashed a mischievous smile.
“No way—!”
Shadows burst out in all directions.
At the same time, someone shouted,
“Run!”
Members of the thieves’ club darted away and scattered in all directions.
Kwak Seung-jae stood still, his gaze fixed intently on the crystal ball as he issued his command.
“Don’t let a single one escape.”
***
“Huh? Where did he go?”
Han So-mi raised a question mark above her head in confusion.
She had been closely following me, but her reaction was understandable since I vanished in an instant.
She dashed here and there, frantically searching, then darted off in another direction to look.
Of course, such efforts were in vain to locate me.
‘I did well to borrow this.
The invisible ghillie suit I borrowed from Seo Ye-in was proving its worth.
“???”
Han So-mi was perplexed as she aimlessly searched for me in the wrong places. Realizing it might be better to go help other members of the disciplinary committee club instead, she quickly left the area.
Her innate skills were exceptional, but she was ignorant about the dark side of the martial arts world.
The purpose of Dragon Slayer Academy was to mitigate such weaknesses after all.
She would learn in time.
The problem is that earth mage…
Kwak Seung-jae, was it?
Reconsidering how he had precisely blocked the thieves’ club’s escape route…
I’ll be caught soon.
It seemed that a battle was inevitable.
Still, to prevent further interference from others, it would be best to put as much distance between us as possible.
I picked up my pace again and started running.
***
Kwak Seung-jae gazed into his crystal ball.
To be more precise, it was not a crystal ball but an Orb made by processing a large emerald and was a masterpiece of the Emerald Magic Tower.
Inside the orb, seven red dots were visible, one of which represented Dang Gyu-young who was engaged in battle nearby.
– Rumble! Boom!
Lightning streaked and blades of shadow whirled in the air.
However, the outcome of this battle seemed predetermined and hardly worth his attention.
So his focus was on the other dots.
Two had stopped moving, apparently subdued.
Three were being closely pursued by other members of the disciplinary committee club.
But there was one red dot.
It wasn’t being chased and was steadily moving further away.
It seemed like he would have to take action himself, so he cast a spell.
– Kukukuku
A large wooden plate materialized and settled on the ground.
Kwak Seung-jae mounted it, and as soon as he did, hands that sprang from the ground began to support the plate and swiftly moved forward.
In an instant, his field of view rapidly changed and he was quickly closing the distance to the target.
And eventually, he completely caught up.
To the naked eye, there seemed to be nothing there.
But Kwak Seung-jae’s orb shone brightly.
kukung!
The ground in the distance began to protrude sporadically.
It was a spell he had cast as a warning to stop the fleeing opponent.
Kwak Seung-jae uttered a phrase in a dry tone,
“Come out.”
The air writhed and a masked person revealed themselves.
Optical camouflage ghillie suit.
He wondered how the thieves’ club had managed to get their hands on such an expensive item.
Or perhaps they had stolen it.
An invisible ghillie suit would have easily evaded the pursuit of first-year students.
Yet, the way Kwak Seung-jae had been able to track him down was…
The masked person glanced toward one side of the ground.
As if he was aware of something there.
Kwak Seung-jae nodded his head.
“That is correct.”
From the earth, a very small earth gnome suddenly popped its head out.
A lower spirit of the earth, a gnome.
Kwak Seung-jae had scattered gnomes extensively around the old school building.
With the help of these gnomes, he read things invisible to the eye through the earth.
It was similar this time.
Just before the members of the thieves’ club began their escape, he had attached a gnome to each of them, making it possible to track them.
Judging by the reaction, this person seemed to have realized that fact long ago.
Driven by curiosity, Kwak Seung-jae asked.
“How did you know about the gnomes?”
“…….”
“Are you mute?”
“…….”
He’s clever.
He had identified all the members of the thieves’ club, so he could guess their identities even behind the masks.
On the other hand, this person was a complete stranger, so he wondered if he should listen to his voice, but the person quickly realized this and remained silent.
But it didn’t matter.
He could just subdue and check directly.
“It seems you have no intention of surrendering.”
“…….”
The masked person, instead of responding, flicked their fingers.
To Kwak Seung-jae, it came across as this:
– Stop wasting time and let’s fight already.
It was somewhat unexpected.
All the members of the thieves’ club were solely focused on creating an opportunity to flee, but this person was openly inviting a fight.
Sometimes things like this are also good.
The two stared at each other for a moment.
Then, the battle commenced.
– Boom!
As the orb glowed green, the earth surged up in an attempt to strike the masked person.
The masked person smoothly maneuvered their feet, weaving through the disjointed earth.
The level of their [Thief’s Step] was so exceptional that it appeared as though they were sliding across the ground.
The masked person quickly closed in, attempting to kick Kwak Seung-jae in the face, but,
– Thud
A wall of earth rose up, blocking the kick.
In the next moment, a heavy clump of earth fell from behind the masked person.
As if they had eyes on the back of their head, they stepped back just in time.
The retreating masked person’s hand flashed brightly and a bolt of lightning shot towards Kwak Seung-jae.
A hummingbird?
[Earth Gatling]
The earth-made gatling gun fired a barrage of densely packed dirt bullets.
It was a clever strategy that simultaneously targeted the hummingbird and the opponent.
However, the masked person again moved smoothly to evade it, and the hummingbird dodged the bullets nimbly before it landed on Kwak Seung-jae’s shoulder.
– Fzzzt!
“!!”
Kwak Seung-jae was a bit startled.
How excellent was the control for the hummingbird to exhibit such movement?
Instead of being paralyzed, one of the defensive spells he had set up earlier broke.
In his mind, Kwak Seung-jae sent silent praise to the masked person.
Impressive. But there won’t be a second time.
This decisive move would be the end of their battle.
Suddenly, a thin wall of earth surrounded the area.
This was to prevent the masked person from evading the next attack.
[Earth Gatling]
[Earth Gatling]
[Earth Gatling]
Multiple earth-gatling guns emerged from various points at the same time.
They unleashed hundreds of bullets towards the masked person.
[Crossfire]
– Tatatatatata!
The area within the earthen walls was engulfed in a thick cloud of dust.
“…….”
When the dust finally settled, Kwak Seung-jae fully expected to find the masked person lying defeated on the ground.
But the masked person just stood there.
Without a single scratch.
This person… is beyond my capabilities.
Kwak Seung-jae had a considerable amount of pride in his [Earth Gatling] spell, as it was one of his main attacks.
The fact that he had deployed several of them simultaneously without inflicting any damage meant that this opponent was, in his estimation, someone he couldn’t defeat.
He wondered where such a formidable opponent had come from.
Although it seemed highly unlikely that he could win, the course of the battle so far suggested he wouldn’t lose either.
His plan, then, was to keep the person engaged while waiting for reinforcements.
– Boom…
The distant rumble of battle reached his ears.
This signified that someone else from the disciplinary committee was engaged in combat.
The outcome of a fight between the disciplinary committee and the thieves’ club was predictable.
Soon, they would overpower their opponents and come to assist him.
The masked person momentarily diverted their gaze towards the distant commotion.
It seemed they too realized that their time was running short.
Silently, the masked person then turned to face Kwak Seung-jae directly.
There was a sudden shift in the atmosphere.
As he assumed his stance, the fist he clenched began to glow increasingly red.
Is he about to use a fire-type spell?
However, the color of the heated fist looked to be very ominous.
It was a deep, blood-like red, almost black, with flames flickering fiercely around it.
Chills ran down Kwak Seung-jae’s spine.
Could it be!
If his guess was correct, he couldn’t afford to take this lightly.
Kwak Seung-jae quickly withdrew all his spells and shifted to a defensive stance.
[Threefold Stone Wall]
[Strong Wall]
– Boom!
Three layers of stone walls rose up right in front of him and they thickened and hardened even more.
Feeling that even this was not enough, Kwak Seung-jae was about to cast an additional spell to strengthen the barrier.
Just then, the blood-red fist made contact with the first stone wall.
– Crash!
The wall got shattered, sending a tremendous wave of heat and shock toward Kwak Seung-jae.
All the defensive spells he had prepared, along with every piece of protective gear, accessories, and even his uniform, were instantly destroyed.
Kwak Seung-jae thought to himself as he tumbled and lay sprawled on the ground like a rag doll.
His suspicions had been correct.
The name of that skill was…
…Inferno… Fist.
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