I Became the Must-Have Character of the Academy City - Chapter 107



106 – The Magic Bullet

Rohan’s skill structure was transforming.

Evolving with each step he took.

Back when Weakness Infliction was at Level 1, certain things were impossible. Direct contact was always required, and only physical properties could be assigned as weaknesses.

From the moment Weakness Infliction reached Level 2, he could choose which property to assign as a weakness. He escaped the restriction of solely physical properties.

Yet, the reason I stubbornly clung to physical properties as the only weakness.

Simple.

Because my control over fire felt clumsy compared to an attack or strike enhanced with mana, and I felt it held no advantages.

And, climbing one more step to Weakness Infliction Level 3.

I gained wings.

[Weakness Infliction – Lv.3]

◇ Imbues the target with vulnerability to one property.

◇ When attacking a target inflicted with a weakness, a debuff is applied with a fixed probability.

The description changed from ‘contact with the target’ to simply ‘the target.’

The debuff lost the qualifier ‘minor,’ and the probability shifted from ‘low probability’ to ‘fixed probability.’

‘This is huge.’

Knowledge flowed in naturally, based on the changes.

Perhaps I was recalling something forgotten.

The sensation of being able to fire skills and mana seeped into my consciousness.

I could have fired with my bare hands, but the realization dawned that the most harmonious tool for the skill was the pistol I already possessed.

“A bullet becomes a carrier, laden with the imposition of weakness.”

If imposing a physical weakness ended right away, the expectation of penetrating even the strongest foes would exist.

But now, something else must be imposed.

Recalling what Omega and Juyeon had planned with Hex, the weakness to impose is fire.

There is no doubt. This choice is right a hundred times over.

“Hah…”

Supported by Ichinose, he finished aiming.

He pulled the trigger.

*Bang!*

The bullet, unleashed by Rohan, traversed the void.

That bullet contained a power that defied reason.

In truth, it was a power one could call a magic bullet.

*

“Rot, then!”

Omega’s arm pulsed. The dragon’s head opened its maw wide!

The dragon, now just a head, roared, condensing a vast amount of magical energy.

— *Khaaa!!!*

Juyeon instinctively knew what attack was coming, gripping his sword tightly.

Flames engulfed his entire body.

[Necrotic Breath]

A dragon’s breath that called forth death and necrosis.

A swirling vortex tinged with murky green was violently unleashed.

Juyeon’s greatsword resisted the decay, flashing with flames.

[Exploding Flame Cross Sword]

Within the green fog that rose like sea mist, flames drew a vivid cross, asserting their presence.

–––*Kwaaang!!!* A dazzling explosion erupted, swallowing the entire breath and suppressing it.

“Uwahahaha!!!”

Omega forced his way through the explosion, brandishing his sword.

*Clang! Kaang! Ching!*

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The simple swordsmanship was fierce.

The mid-fight insertion of monsters as an attack. Impossible to ignore, naturally.

Juyeon continued his offense and defense, instantly replaying the battle thus far.

Comparing it to the past.

‘Nigh perfect fire resistance. How, though?’

Was his opponent withstanding his flames simply through increased ability? Or perhaps due to some mysterious drug, administered in large quantities?

No, something felt… different.

‘He must have done something to his body.’

It was like trying to subdue a lava-dwelling monster with fire.

But abandoning fire wasn’t an option.

Too many restrictions.

If he didn’t willingly restrain and manipulate his power, the taut balance would easily tip in the other direction.

Kaga-ga-gak!!!

Blades scraped against each other, ringing out with a metallic shriek.

These brief moments of close-quarters strength were when the most moves were exchanged.

“Khehehe, this is fun!”

“…”

The flow of mana, gaze, muscle movements, the position of his feet.

Everything related to the fight painted illusions, hiding true attacks.

A time where each of them desperately fought to seize the advantage.

“!? “

In the midst of it all, Juyeon noticed.

Ichinose Yui and Rohan, still holding their ground even after Noah Frozenheart and Corinne had left.

‘Why haven’t they left…!’

Juyeon was bewildered by Rohan, who was aiming a pistol.

It was a cruel truth, but Rohan’s attacks had virtually no chance of harming Omega.

His courage in confronting such a fearsome enemy was commendable, but impossible to praise.

Without the talent to infuse projectiles with mana, the gun was meaningless.

Even a normal pistol’s killing power was negligible at this distance.

As Juyeon continued to feel both dismay and confusion…

‘Could it be?’

The mana coalescing in Rohan’s pistol felt palpable.

An unknown skill, disrupting the natural order.

Juyeon had felt it firsthand in his duel with Rohan, and could discern it even from afar.

‘…Is it possible for Rohan’s ability to break the stalemate?’

A near-prescient sixth sense that those who have reached a certain level sometimes experience.

Juyeon decided he needed to seize the thread Rohan was attempting to weave.

“Hmph.”

For the first time, Juyeon’s lips curled upward in front of Omega.

But the arc morphed into a blatant sneer directed at Omega.

Omega must be aware that Rohan was gathering mana.

And yet, he seemed unconcerned.

“Can’t you feel it? Flee now if you wish to live. My students are not to be underestimated.”

“Have you dipped your toes in politics or something? You’ve learned to use your tongue!”

“He who stands still cannot follow the new winds. Learn to lower the neck that only gazes at the sky.”

“Silence! You think such an attack will work? Focus on me!!!”

Bang!

The sound rang clear.

The bullet Rohan fired flew forward, seeking change.

──Ting! It struck Omega, but failed to pierce, falling uselessly.

“A trivial gesture… Ugh!?”

Omega showed signs of panic at the strange sensation spreading throughout his body.

He had finally recognized that an unknown change was occurring within him.

“I told you. Flee if you wish to live.”

Juyeon, gripping his greatsword, saw Ichinose Yui hastily fleeing with the slumped Rohan.

The battle resumed immediately.

[Blazing Inferno Truth]

A crimson slash flew at Omega.

Both Juyeon, who launched the attack, and Omega, who blocked it, instantly recognized the altered situation.

‘The feel is different!’

It wasn’t Juyeon’s imagination. Omega was noticeably disconcerted.

His resistance, while still formidable, couldn’t be called airtight.

He had fallen to merely enduring.

‘There’s no way Rohan’s curse lasts this long. It definitely has an end.’

Missing this opening was unthinkable.

Ju-yeon made his judgment and began burning his flames at maximum power.

[Unleashed Dormant Fire (潛火解放)]

Activating the embers built up within his flesh all at once.

His crimson hair flared spectacularly, shot through with brilliant yellow light.

“Trying to force such a pathetic conclusion…!”

Above Omega’s head, a blue sphere materialized.

A lifeform created by Hex to oppose Ju-yeon.

A mass ceaselessly generating cold, driven only by its remaining instincts.

[Glacial Cosmos]

Freezing the surrounding space with a crackle, filling it with frigidity.

Its user, Omega, was also affected, making prolonged use impossible.

‘That damn brat…!’

Omega exhaled a cloudy breath, a result of the encroaching cold, and vowed.

Ju-yeon, of course, but also that whelp. He had to kill them both no matter what.

Once the battle was settled, he would capture the boy at all costs.

‘If all else fails… regardless of the outcome, I must return alive.’

He had to inform Hex, and everyone else, about that thing’s existence and abilities.

“Daydreaming in the middle of combat? Your luck is excessive.”

Ju-yeon, wielding his greatsword, came hurtling in.

Clang!

The descending greatsword.

He managed to block the strike, but enduring the gushing flames was proving too much.

He could feel it; something was definitely wrong with his body after taking the bullet.

“Kuh…!”

“Die.”

Ju-yeon ignored the encroaching chill, burning his own body with endless flames.

He swung the blade relentlessly.

Dying effort made to seize the chance.

Crack!

And the fissure appeared.

Omega’s hardened skin tore, the Crimson Flames seeping in.

The scales of victory tipped hard.

“KRaaaK!!!”

Burning agony flooded his body.

Omega screamed, unable to bear the pain. Past nightmares revived.

“I told you, didn’t I? This time, I won’t let you escape.”

[Severance]

One strike, the greatsword fueled by all the strength in his core.

Tearing deep, it sent Omega’s arm flying.

[Rend]

He followed through, slashing downward.

He aimed to cleave him in two, but Omega’s desperate struggle only resulted in a gash across his shoulder.

“Huk! Huk…!”

Distance widened, stark terror reflected in Omega’s eyes.

Would he feel pity, even now?

Juyeon did not cease his assault.

Only one step to close the gap.

[Fire Point]

The greatsword impaled Omega’s abdomen with brutal force.

[Ashes of the Setting Sun]

A flash of light erupted before Omega’s eyes, then his legs were severed.

[Release]

[Cut]

[Reap]

[Break]

[Punish]

[The Hollow]

A succession of cleaves and thrusts, clean enough to etch into swordplay’s history.

Omega, mouth agape in pain, silently manipulated mana.

[Frost Nebula]

The blue orb suspended in the air aimed for Jooyeon’s back without a sound.

“Your resistance is premature. You should have waited longer.”

As if expecting it, Jooyeon evaded the ambush.

Jooyeon would not be elated or careless for seizing the advantage.

Only calmly advancing, step by step.

The last.

[Dragon Slayer]

A scarlet flash grazed Omega’s neck and the blue orb in a burst.

“Gah…!”

Omega, who had fought Jooyeon to a draw in Abyss City and fled, deceased.

A resolution that, had Rohan witnessed it, would have elicited joy mingled with a complex feeling toward this unexpected turn.