“As a cadet of the Seoul Potrait Academy, as a sword and shield protecting the world, and as a seeker of the truth of the universe, I solemnly swear to move forward ahead of all and safeguard peace.”
The auditorium, larger than most school fields, was vast.
Standing tall on the stage in the middle of this grand space, a female student—representing the new academy entrants—raised her right hand and read the declaration.
Even considering the common belief that developed magical abilities enhance one’s appearance and physique, she was a striking beauty.
Her jet-black hair gleamed like ebony, and her pale, snow-white skin stood out.
Despite her young age as a freshman, she exuded an air of composure that captivated the audience.
—And then, I felt it.
Dark magic.
This wasn’t an illusion.
I had cut down tens of thousands of demons and utterly annihilated dozens of devils before they could resurrect.
Aside from the demons, the devils, and their direct perpetrators, no one knew them better than I did.
If this were a fantasy continent, my first instinct would have been to draw my sword and cut off one of her limbs right then and there.
But this was an unfamiliar world to me.
There was still too much I didn’t know to act rashly—I had to be careful before deciding to sever a head.
“Ah, that person…”
“Wow, I can’t believe she’s in the same class as us this year.”
And yet, what had I been doing just moments ago?
A thorough market investigation.
Or, to be more precise, an inheritance process.
Those who had already finished their background checks on the students would, of course, know who had entered as the top-ranked freshman.
I absorbed the information spewing from the nearby gossipers.
Her name was Cheon Juyeon.
She was the heir to a secretive martial sect known as Yeongrak Jeilgyo, a group that gained fame when their former grandmaster stopped an S-rank dungeon break near the academy.
A sect shrouded in mystery—I couldn’t ascertain their full history, but they were undoubtedly one of the top-ranking combat organizations.
And now, the heir to such a sect had suddenly appeared on the stage in this auditorium.
“I don’t understand.”
With a slightly irritated mood, I fixed my gaze on Cheon Juyeon as she descended from the podium.
I didn’t deny the fact that she, despite possessing dark magic, had been chosen as the freshman representative.
Nor did I feel the urge to interrogate her anymore.
From what I had gathered, it seemed like everyone here already knew about her dark magic.
“Oh, Goddess have mercy. A dark mage?”
The former grandmaster was supposedly an SS-rank dark mage.
This world had a high regard for magic studies and a mix of various supernatural abilities, which meant they were surprisingly tolerant of ominous black mana.
In fact, the current trend in the hunter industry was necromancers, who combined forces with their summoned creatures to solo dungeons.
Solo dungeon raids, all by themselves.
No wonder—there was some unknown skeleton anime sitting at #1 on Netflix.
I understood this logically, but my heart was the problem.
As a hero who had spent his life hunting down dark mages, adapting to this new reality was proving to be… difficult.
No, if I were being honest, I wasn’t even sure my head fully understood it either.
“How can they trust those black magic bastards who resort to human sacrifices whenever they hit a wall?”
“Skeleton summoning is trendy, seriously…?”
I felt a twinge of betrayal as I overheard a female student muttering,
“I wanna be an SSS-rank necromancer making a trillion won a year, too.”
On paper, I had officially graduated high school, but in reality, I had only attended up to my first year.
“Not that I have any intention of going back.”
Even if my physical age was uncertain, my mental age was well over thirty.
There was no way I was going to sit in a classroom with a bunch of kids who spent all day making dirty jokes.
In that sense, attending this pseudo-university—this Academy—was actually a welcome change.
The only issue was that, since it was my first time at a university, I had little knowledge of how things worked.
Of course, this wasn’t an ordinary university.
It was a specialized institution in another world—naturally, the norms would be completely different.
I’d heard that attendance at the entrance ceremony wasn’t even mandatory.
Clearly, bringing over common sense from my previous world wouldn’t be entirely reliable.
Still, just like how a middle schooler stepping into high school for the first time might feel a sense of nervous anticipation, I felt the same now.
Elementary school, middle school, high school—
This Academy was an entirely different universe from the realm of mandatory education.
Becoming a part of this institution gave me a strange sense of tension.
“‘The Balance of Order and Causality’ smiles warmly, saying they are also looking forward to this.”
Just like the Goddess who reappeared as soon as I lifted my mental block on her, I, too, was filled with both nervousness and excitement as I took in my surroundings.
Once the entrance ceremony concluded, the freshmen were directed to separate rooms according to their respective majors.
Which meant… from now on, I would be surrounded only by the people I’d be spending the next few years with.
“Combat Studies students, please proceed this way.”
Since the Academy was an institution designed to train future hunters, the Combat Studies Department was the most prestigious major.
They’d split us into classes based on the nature and level of our abilities, and I was placed in Class 1.
Unlike high school classrooms, this one was tiered like an auditorium, which was interesting.
Also, being in the first-ranked class gave me a strange sense of satisfaction.
“I heard there are all sorts of majors here—Artifact Crafting, Hunter Politics, Alchemy, and more.”
But honestly, none of that interested me.
If there was one thing I had learned after years of grinding through battle, it was that people should stick to what they know.
If you’ve spent decades making a living with a sword, then that’s what you should continue to do. It made no sense to suddenly pick up a hammer and change careers.
If I ever dabbled in other subjects, it would be as a casual elective or club activity, not as my main focus.
Politics? Alchemy? Same deal.
Since this room was filled only with the students I’d be studying alongside for the foreseeable future, I took my time scanning their faces.
Most of them were unfamiliar, but given that this was the Academy’s most prestigious department, it was packed with the top talents everyone had been talking about earlier.
The blue-haired girl with an icy expression? She was a genius from the Magic Tower.
The one with that massive chunk of metal beside her? A heir to one of the most famous noble families.
Even Cheon Juyeon, the freshman representative from the entrance ceremony, was here in Class 1.
And so was Japan’s genius spirit summoner.
It seemed like all the major figures were gathered in this one room.
“Hm?”
For some reason, our eyes met, and it felt… strange.
I had minimized my presence as much as possible—short of outright hiding—yet this person was still looking at me.
At first, I thought it might be a coincidence.
But when I subtly shifted to the side and those eyes still followed, I realized it wasn’t my imagination.
‘What the hell?’
For a brief moment, my inner social reject instincts flared up, making me wonder, “Are they interested in me?”
But I immediately dismissed the thought.
It was too early for delusions, and besides, the person in question looked too young—more like a junior or a younger sibling than a romantic heroine.
‘Oh, they’re frowning now.’
Still, there was something oddly cute about the way they scrunched their face, like a little cat throwing a tantrum.
I watched for a bit before shifting my gaze elsewhere.
Thud!
“Alright, is everyone here? No one ran home or hid in the bathroom, right?”
A voice rang out as the professor entered.
“Whoa, it’s Shin Arin.”
“A High-Ranker.”
Even in this room, the exposition junkies were at it again.
They were whispering, trying not to be overheard—but with someone of her caliber, there was no way she wouldn’t catch every word.
“Tsk, tsk. You shouldn’t be casually saying your professor’s name right in front of them,” she teased.
“I may be half a public figure, but starting today, I’m your instructor.”
She was an S-rank hunter, one of the top 100 in the world.
Shin Arin—recognizable by her light purple hair and the black eyepatch covering one eye—flashed a mischievous grin at the student who had spoken her name aloud.
“I’m not gonna make a big deal out of it, but be mindful when you’re in front of someone as powerful as me.”
“…Yes, ma’am. I’ll be careful.”
“Good. Since it’s the first day, I’ll let that slide.”
With that, she grabbed a marker and casually wrote her name on the whiteboard, scanning the room with a satisfied smile.
It was the look of a professor already spotting potential talents among her students.
For some reason, I was reminded of that old saying:
“Bad teenagers go to juvenile detention, bad college students go to graduate school.”
“I am strong.”
She said this matter-of-factly.
“And I believe you all have the potential to become just as strong.”
Her voice carried effortlessly through the room.
“This Academy for Supernatural Abilities was designed to nurture talents like yours. And I took this professor position to contribute to that goal.
So, to make sure you all grow into the strongest versions of yourselves—I’ll give it my all.”
“Whoa! Professor, you’re so cool!”
“Haha.”
Half a celebrity, half a professor—her class already felt more like a performance than a lecture.
After delivering her motivational speech, she smoothly transitioned into covering the necessary formalities for freshmen—things like campus facilities and course registration.
But then, with a playful smile, she rapped her knuckles against the desk.
“Ahem. While it’s important to take advantage of university resources and explore other lectures…”
But.
The moment she let that word slip, an unsettling magical energy stirred in the floor, walls, and ceiling around us.
“As warriors in the Combat Studies Department—as people who are meant to kill monsters—
I believe that in the end, what matters most is real combat experience.”
With a wink, Shin Arin snapped her fingers.
A brilliant blue light engulfed the entire classroom—a clear precursor to a spell.
Some students flinched, but no one panicked.
‘Wait… was I the only one who didn’t know this was coming?’
From their reactions, this seemed to be a well-known annual tradition.
“So,” she continued, “prove yourselves.”
The moment she spoke, the light exploded—and I didn’t resist.
After all, it seemed like she was setting up some kind of trial, and skipping out on it wasn’t an option.
As the spell successfully activated, I felt a brief sensation of floating—and then, suddenly, I landed on a vast grassland.
“Huh.”
A sudden change in location.
But large-scale teleportation magic consumed enormous amounts of mana, so that was unlikely.
Having fought countless demons and devils, I had long since mastered the art of analyzing magic.
It didn’t take me long to figure it out.
‘This is illusion magic.’
A type of barrier that temporarily grants the target a near-realistic sensory experience.
The fresh wind, the soft earth beneath my feet—they all felt vivid.
It almost felt like a picnic…
…until they appeared.
—Creak?
Twenty goblins, all armed with crude blades.
A hobgoblin warrior, towering over them.
Weapons in hand, they snickered as they closed in on me.
“Oh ho.”
I let out an amused chuckle.
It had been a long time since I’d faced such low-level trash.