The Villain is Too Good at Sniping

30. Classes and Daily Life (2)

Unlike the first class, which was our first meeting with the instructor, the atmosphere of the second class was extremely tense.

The silence in Classroom 3 was oppressive, with only the sound of the chalk scraping against the blackboard filling the air. This was because the instructor of “Basic Understanding of Magic” was a person who had a notorious reputation even outside of Arsene.

As the students sat in their seats, exchanging glances, the instructor turned around from the blackboard.

“I am Magic Professor Viernel Fon Evanports Einsberg.”

The second son of the renowned magical family, the Einsbergs, Viernel Fon Evanports Einsberg.

In Arsene, he was known as… ‘Professor Vien’.

“It seems like you all have a lot to say.”

Tak-

The sound of the chalk scraping against the blackboard made the students flinch.

“I know what you’re thinking. Why do you have to take a magic class even though you’re not majoring in magic? Some of you might have chosen a different path because you’re not talented in magic.”

This was the first time I had attended Professor Vien’s class, and as expected, his tone was quite arrogant.

No wonder he had a bad reputation even outside of Arsene. There was even a rumor that he had ripped apart a student’s assignment and scolded them.

However, the reason he was able to continue teaching without any problems, moving around the magical tower and actively participating in activities, was because Professor Vien’s magical abilities were truly exceptional.

In this world, a mage’s ranking was determined by their magical achievements.

The ranking system, which was divided into seven tiers, was similar to the tier system in games.

It was as if each tier was inspired by a different motive from a certain religion, which was the foundation of the sacred temple’s teachings.

First, there’s the lowest rank, Angelus, which is represented as 1st tier in the game. Esili Silvergarden and Elin Beonard, who are sitting far away, belong to this category.

Next, there are Arcangelus and Arhes, which correspond to 2nd and 3rd tiers. These are the average ranks that most magicians in the story possess. Up to this point, it’s possible for an ordinary person without any magical talent to reach through effort.

However, from the 4th tier onwards, it’s different. From the 4th tier, you can’t surpass without the help of talent.

Professor Bearn, who is standing on the podium now, is a 4th-tier talent, but in reality, he has abilities that exceed 5th tier. At least in Arsen, there are few people who can match Professor Bearn’s pure magical prowess.

Above that, there are 6th and 7th tiers, but they almost only exist in theory, so it’s unlikely to encounter them in reality. If you really look for them, you might find Lara Stillhaiden, who will reach 6th tier in the distant future.

“First of all, even if you’re in the combat department, you need to learn the basics of magic. Since Arsen’s policy is like that, students who can’t accept this can leave now.”

A 4th-tier talent is speaking, and it’s not something a student can refute.

Professor Bearn says that if you don’t like it, you can leave the classroom right now. However, leaving the classroom in this situation is equivalent to being on Professor Bearn’s bad side, and it’s unclear what kind of repercussions will follow.

Professor Bearn has many connections with various magic towers. A single careless comment from the professor can make your fate go awry. It’s connected to magic.

So, the students have no choice but to endure Professor Bearn’s lectures, even if they’re boring and always get scolded. They’re sacrificing their present for their future. It’s quite admirable.

“Then, let’s consider it as everyone’s agreement.”

With a gesture, hologram-like letters appear on the blackboard.

“You all have your own dreams, and most of you will become hunters after graduating from Arsen. So, Arsen’s educational policy is geared towards nurturing hunters who can contribute to the world.”

As Professor Bearn said, becoming a hunter after graduation was also part of my plan.

“In a world where magic has become widespread, hunters who can’t handle magic are eliminated. Therefore, ‘basic understanding of magic’ is a compulsory course that you must take to avoid falling behind after graduation.”

Even in the combat department, basic understanding of magic is necessary. Even in the Esperant, which is hostile to the Hunter Association, basic magic is taught.

If you attend any educational institution other than Arsen, magic classes would be a required course, just like the mandatory education system in Korea up to middle school.

Magicians need to understand combat, and vice versa. That’s why most hunters on the front lines have a basic understanding of magic.

In other words, basic magic like hemostasis, barriers, and magic amplification.

Professor Bearn’s lectures are divided into basic, intermediate, and advanced courses, and “Basic Understanding of Magic” belongs to the basic course.

Students like Lara Stillhaiden, who are majoring in magic, will move on to the intermediate course after completing the basic course, but since I’m in the combat department, I only need to take the basic course.

Considering the original story’s progression, I probably won’t be able to finish Professor Bearn’s lectures.

But I need to attend classes. There’s a lot to learn from Professor Bearn, anyway.

Of course, that’s only limited to magic.

“Alright, let’s focus.”

Professor Bearn doesn’t use beam projectors or other devices. He prefers to do things himself instead of relying on machines.

—

Professor Bearn just lightly snapped his fingers, but it seemed like the air in front of the blackboard was rippling, and then a massive amount of magic exploded, covering the entire classroom.

“What?!”

“What’s going on?!”

Most students were shocked by the sudden magic surge. Some even closed their eyes.

When they opened their eyes, the 3rd classroom had transformed into a completely different landscape.

A destroyed road, a collapsed building.

Cars that had been burned to a crisp.

It was clear that we, who had been in the classroom, were now in the middle of a ruined city.

It wasn’t a large-scale spatial move. It was just an illusion created by Professor Bearn’s specialty, his hallucination magic.

However, the scenery before our eyes was too gruesome and devastating to be dismissed as an illusion. Most students turned away, and some repeatedly dry-heaved.

“Don’t be afraid. If you become hunters, you’ll see this kind of scenery every day. You need to get used to it.”

Professor Bearn walked calmly on the destroyed asphalt, and we followed him.

Beyond the mangled high-speed bus, a dark, distorted space was visible.

The portal in front of us, similar to the one I saw in the Geord Academy, was enormous. The portal in Geord Academy was only large enough for one person to enter, but this one was much bigger. It was a distorted gate that could swallow a small villa whole.

“What you’re seeing now is a Gate incident that occurred 20 years ago in a certain city.”

Professor Bieren raised his staff. The hunters fighting the demonic beasts were at the place his staff was pointing to. It was a scene recreated with illusion magic.

As demonic beasts poured out of the gate, the hunters were lying on the ground, wounded. Most of them were so busy attending to the wounded that they didn’t even notice the demonic beasts approaching from behind.

In the end, blood splattered everywhere. By the time the mages sent from the Magic Tower arrived, most of the hunters had already been incapacitated.

Professor Bieren snapped his fingers again, and the illusion disappeared. Only the empty road and the demonic beasts lingering around remained.

“As you can see, demonic beasts won’t wait for you to leisurely apply medicine or provide emergency treatment. If you had even learned basic first aid, this tragedy wouldn’t have occurred. If you had mastered barriers, you might not have been attacked in the first place.”

Coincidentally, Professor Bieren’s teaching was similar to that of Esperanza.

Esperanza’s assassins basically worked alone, worrying about being caught.

Therefore, the assassination training curriculum at Esperanza also included understanding magic.

In my case, my magical power was sadly lacking, barely meeting the minimum requirements.

“That’s why the Education Department has included basic magic understanding in the regular curriculum.”

If he had started with that statement, it wouldn’t have sounded so arrogant.

“You may not be interested in magic, but you must learn basic magic. If you can’t, you’ll be held back, and if you’re held back repeatedly, you won’t be able to graduate.”

Leaving a brief warning, Professor Bieren struck the ground with his staff, and we returned to classroom 3.

“Professor Bieren! I have a question!”

A male student boldly raised his hand.

Professor Bieren narrowed his eyes, as if wondering what kind of person this was.

“Your name is Kyle, isn’t it?”

“Yes! I’m A-4, Kyle Ivanstear!”

“This time, I’ll let it pass, but from next time, it’s better to introduce yourself before asking a question. Go ahead.”

It seemed like Professor Bieren was about to sigh, and this might be the first time for Kyle this semester.

“So, what happened to the Gate incident 20 years ago?”

This time, Professor Bieren let out a deep sigh.

“Thanks to the Magic Tower’s support, the Gate was successfully closed. I recommend you refer to your history books before asking questions.”

There were snickers from various parts of the room. However, with a single glance from Professor Bieren, they all pretended to cough and fixed their expressions.

Just as Professor Bieren was about to turn around…

Ka- boom!

Someone burst into the classroom. Professor Bieren frowned.

“I’m sorry I’m late, Professor! I’ve organized everything you said!”

At first glance, the young man looked like a student from Arsen, but his face didn’t resemble that of a teaching assistant.

Assistant Professor Exion was carrying a large stack of documents and looked identical to his appearance on the screen.

Instead of speaking, Professor Bieren pointed to a corner of the classroom with his eyes. Assistant Professor Exion looked like a scolded student, awkwardly walking up to the podium. He took a deep breath.

“Hello, students. Nice to meet you. I’m Exion, Professor Bieren’s assistant and Arsen’s teaching assistant. Please take care of me from now on!”

Assistant Professor Exion smiled and greeted everyone, but no one responded to him.

Only I, who happened to make eye contact with him, gave him a light nod.

***

As we walked down the corridor after finishing the second class, I felt a familiar presence behind me.

Tick-tock-

I listened to the sound of footsteps, but it wasn’t Kail or Airi. I pretended to check the time, lifting my left hand.

The face I glimpsed on my watch was Serin Anett.

She was acting as if she didn’t know anything, gazing out the window, but I’m an assassin from Esperanza. As an assassin, my trained senses wouldn’t let me ignore this situation, no matter how hard I tried.

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Serin Anett was following me. I didn’t know why, but if I had to guess, it would be something like a coincidence.

Impossible, right?

I pretended to go down the stairs, waiting in the corner for Serin Anett to come out. As she emerged, I timed it perfectly and burst into the corridor.

Serin Anett was startled, taking a few steps back. She was in a precarious position, as if she might fall over at any moment, but she quickly regained her balance.

“What are you doing, alone?”

“Si-on… Illyeonheart.”

Serin Anett, who had been as stiff as a robot, stood awkwardly.

“It’s just a coincidence that our paths crossed.”

“You haven’t said anything yet.”

“I’m speaking up first, just in case you might misunderstand.”

Serin Anett shot back, then brushed past me and went down the stairs, her movements stiff and unnatural, as if she was trying to avoid me.

Even just seeing her back, it was clear that Serin Anett had inadvertently revealed her intentions.

I had anticipated this to some extent, but my bad premonition always seemed to come true, causing problems.

The performance of my [Intuition] trait was almost as good as clairvoyance, allowing me to catch on to this situation perfectly. Even if I didn’t have Intuition, I would’ve known anyway.

Why? Because the situation I’m experiencing now is a scene from the original story.

-What’s going on, Serin?

-It’s just a coincidence that our paths crossed.

-Huh? Really?

-I’m speaking up first, just in case you might misunderstand.

Back then, it wasn’t me but Kail who was the target.

Zing—

I checked my watch, feeling a light vibration, and saw a message.

Congratulations. You have been selected as ‘Reto’.

Someone is helping you with your school life. If you discover your ‘Peltus’, you’ll receive additional points.

It seems Serin Anett has become my Manti, not the protagonist Kail.