The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 64

“P-Please spare me….”

Professor Divert Grunui clutched his throat, his face drained of color.

Drip. Drip.

With blood pouring out profusely, it was clear he wouldn’t last long.

Han Siha shook off the professor, who clung desperately to his arm.

Professor Divert’s face contorted in frustration.

When things didn’t go his way, he began spitting out vile words.

“You… disgusting wretch, abandoned even by your own family….”

“….”

“How dare you! Where do you think—!”

Whatever he was babbling about didn’t matter.

‘It’s neither my family nor my story.’

Han Siha only concerned himself with taking care of Basilus, who had flawlessly completed his mission.

But it wasn’t just Professor Divert who was in bad shape; Han Siha was also struggling.

The only fortunate thing was that his mind was still functioning sharply.

“koo!”

Basilus brought the staff over to Han Siha.

The screams that had echoed through the air meant someone would soon come looking.

He needed to leave quickly.

But there was one thing he had to finish first.

Last time, he let it slide, but this time, he had no intention of doing so.

If he let him go, he’d just come back.

Swoosh.

Han Siha calmly brought the staff to Professor Divert’s neck.

The professor forced a crooked smile.

“Do you think you can kill me?”

“You seem different from the man who was just begging for his life. If you had pleaded one more time, maybe I would’ve changed my mind.”

“…!”

Professor Divert’s expression turned desperate again.

Han Siha instinctively took a step back, sensing that the professor might try to grab his leg again.

“Pathetic to the end, I see.”

Like a mere extra in the Academy, he was pitiful, disgraceful, and cowardly to the point of infuriating.

Han Siha gritted his teeth.

He had never harmed anyone before.

Let alone kill someone.

A wave of revulsion welled up inside him.

But there was no time for hesitation.

Crack.

Without a moment’s delay, Han Siha unleashed his magic on him.

“Who’s there?!”

Just then, commotion erupted outside.

Thud.

Leaving the lifeless Professor Divert behind, Han Siha bolted.

“Basilus, run!”

* * *

Han Siha quickly scanned his surroundings.

Unfamiliar hallways and rooms.

It seemed he wasn’t in the underground area of the Magic Department as he had thought.

‘Is this Professor Divert’s secret mansion?’

He tried to escape as quickly as possible, but not knowing the layout slowed him down.

In the end, he failed to slip away unnoticed.

Four guards, who appeared to be Professor Divert Grunui’s men, blocked his path.

Basilus cried out in distress.

“koo!”

It seemed things wouldn’t end peacefully.

Han Siha, staggering slightly, gripped his staff.

Boom-.

With a low incantation, one of the guards was flung outside. Although they were heavily armed, they seemed to be ordinary people with no defense against magic.

Maybe he should be thankful that this wasn’t a den of dark mages.

“Capture him!”

No, there wasn’t time for such calm thoughts.

Han Siha, seeing the familiar ropes, slipped away smoothly.

The exit was far away. Who knew how many more guards awaited outside, making the situation far from ideal.

‘Should I try jumping out the window?’

Given his condition, it wasn’t the best choice, but it was more realistic than brazenly breaking through the main entrance, which could be swarming with guards.

Whoosh.

As Han Siha turned a corner, the remaining guards shouted and gave chase.

One, two, three.

Three were following.

Two more were rushing from the left.

After finishing his scan, Han Siha turned another corner and ran.

“Don’t let him escape! He’s heading for the back door!”

The unnecessarily large mansion was an unexpected boon.

As he quickly climbed the stairs, Han Siha felt a sudden sense of foreboding and tilted his head slightly.

Swoosh-.

An arrow whizzed by, narrowly missing him and embedding itself in the wall.

‘How many of them are there?’

“Blast.”

Han Siha drew upon the last of his magic and chanted the spell.

The five guards bunched together were instantly swept away by his attack.

“Aaagh!”

Even as his legs continued to run, Han Siha could feel it.

His magic was nearly depleted.

‘Damn it.’

“Basilus!”

Basilus unleashed a breath attack on the guards blocking their path.

In a crisis that almost saw them captured, Basilus’ breath attack saved Han Siha.

“Aaaah!”

“Damn! That, that dragon!”

Burn it all down, for all I care.

Han Siha’s cold gaze seemed to convey this sentiment.

Basilus, despite his initial shock at the unprecedented hostility, followed Han Siha’s orders faithfully.

The mansion’s flames spread to the first floor, and acrid smoke filled the air in an instant.

Han Siha slipped through the smoke.

“Where did he go?!”

“He’s a student from Ardel Academy. If you see anyone who looks young, just capture them.”

“Kill him if you have to!”

“Where’s Professor Divert?!”

“Aaaagh!”

Han Siha covered his mouth, controlling his breathing as he searched for an exit.

Even in the chaos, Han Siha maintained his composure, directing Basilus.

Even if the Tamer’s legs were bound, his hands could still launch an attack.

Basilus was, in effect, his own hands.

“Screeech!”

Basilus relentlessly pursued the fleeing guards.

Basilus finally cast his newly acquired skill, .

In an instant, every place his feet touched erupted in searing flames.

“Kyaaaah!”

“It’s a dragon! A dragon!”

“H-How do we kill it…!”

“Capture the Tamer. We have to kill that bastard to stop the dragon!”

To the guards, who had never faced a dragon before, it was like a scene from a horror movie.

Of course, it was a hellish moment for Han Siha as well.

He couldn’t stay hidden in the smoke forever.

Han Siha steadied his breath and ran again.

“There he is!”

Please, please, please.

Just let me get through that window.

Han Siha gritted his teeth and finally leaped.

“Aaagh!”

“Die, you bastard!”

Swoosh-.

A sharp spear thrown from a distance flew straight toward Han Siha’s back.

His magic, which had been protecting his body, was now gone.

A scream echoed through the mansion.

But it wasn’t his own.

“Screeech…!”

Han Siha, who had safely landed atop the window, wore a cold expression.

Basilus, who had been trailing behind Han Siha, collapsed to the ground after biting and killing two guards.

It happened in an instant.

“Kiing….”

A sharp spear had pierced through Basilus’ back.

His eyelids quivered; it wasn’t a wound that could be healed, even if treated.

Han Siha unconsciously frowned.

“Damn it.”

He hadn’t even ordered him to do anything.

Han Siha’s eyes, which had remained calm—or rather, forced to be calm—since executing Professor Divert Grunui, now wavered significantly.

At that moment, a loud voice pierced through the tragic scene.

“Capture him quickly! Get over there now!”

He couldn’t save him.

This painful yet swift judgment flashed through Han Siha’s mind.

But,

If he couldn’t save him and had to leave him behind…

“Ah.”

An inexplicable look of regret flickered in Han Siha’s eyes.

“Capture him swiftly! Kill him if you must!”

As four arrows were simultaneously fired, Han Siha gritted his teeth and, clutching Basilus, leaped over the wall.

* * *

“Han Siha!”

“Adela…?”

The dark forest path.

The mansion was now far behind them. The flames had not yet been extinguished, and it seemed the mansion would soon be completely consumed by fire.

They must have been delayed searching for the already dead Professor Divert Grunui inside, and the few guards who followed were dealt with by Basilus.

That was the only consolation.

At least they had successfully evaded capture.

But Han Siha hadn’t expected Adela to be waiting for him here.

“I thought you were going to die….”

Adela ran to him, uncharacteristically emotional.

“Why did you recklessly go there alone? Are you out of your mind?”

“Sorry. But I survived, didn’t I? That’s what matters.”

Staggering, Han Siha let out a faint smile and lowered his head.

Adela, eyes wide with concern, held onto him.

His lips were swollen, and his complexion was pale. Adela asked worriedly.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“You don’t look so good.”

Lee Han bit his lower lip and pulled a recovery potion from his bag.

Han Siha waved it off and asked for something else.

“Rather than that, I need mana.”

“A mana potion?”

“Sigh… I think so. I can’t do anything without it.”

Han Siha let out a bitter laugh.

It had been a decision made for survival, but it felt irresponsible. He was powerless.

Basilus had risked his life to save him, yet he couldn’t save Basilus.

The image of Basilus collapsing, trembling, was still vivid in his mind.

Han Siha grimaced as he swallowed the mana potion.

“Basilus, how is he?”

Instead of answering, Han Siha bit his lip and looked down at the suffering Basilus.

If it had been an ordinary spear, Basilus might have been fine. But this spear was infused with magic. It seemed to have pierced his heart.

In his rush to escape, Han Siha hadn’t been able to properly treat him.

There hadn’t been any tools to help, nor the time.

Basilus’ condition was critical.

Han Siha himself was drained of mana and covered in blood, but Basilus was in an even worse state, with blood pouring out of him.

Basilus let out a pitiful whimper.

“Kiiing… kiiing….”

It seemed Basilus was holding on due to being a dragon, but he was still just a hatchling.

And even dragons die when their hearts are pierced.

That was only natural.

There still seemed to be no hope.

“koo….”

Basilus’ eyes met Han Siha’s.

Han Siha stroked Basilus with a sorrowful expression.

“Basilus… I’m sorry.”

“koo….”

Basilus’ body trembled.

Adela looked at Han Siha with a pained expression and asked,

“What happened? How did this happen?”

“He took the spear trying to save me. Could you pass me a recovery potion?”

“Huh? Oh….”

Adela hurriedly pulled out a potion and handed it over.

Han Siha tried to feed the trembling Basilus the recovery potion.

But there was no sign of improvement.

Lee Han spoke in a calm tone.

“He’s lost too much blood. It’s been too long.”

If even a recovery potion couldn’t help, it meant there was no hope.

Han Siha clutched his throbbing head.

His heart began pounding rapidly, as if it would burst.

Fragments of unpleasant memories stabbed at him. It felt like a loud buzzing was about to fill his ears.

‘If you think it’s impossible, don’t even try. Are you crazy? If the patient dies during surgery, it’ll only ruin your reputation.’

‘Nowadays, guardians raise hell over every little thing. If you lack skill, be smart and know when to back off, idiot.’

Ugh.

His head felt like it was going to explode.

But,

It helped him hold on to his sanity a little.

Han Siha, with a determined expression, spoke in a low voice.

“I’ll try.”

“What do you mean, try?”

“A wound like this… can’t be healed.”

Lee Han’s firm words followed.

Logically speaking, now wasn’t the time to be worried about a dragon.

Hatchlings were expensive, but if you wanted to, you could always get another monster.

What mattered more was taking care of Han Siha.

Objectively speaking, his condition wasn’t good either.

Blood was still flowing from his wounds.

Han Siha slowly poured the recovery potion onto Basilus’ trembling body.

“Kii… kiing….”

It wasn’t working.

Lee Han grabbed the potion and stepped in front of Han Siha.

“Let’s go back. You’ll collapse at this rate.”

“Just once more.”

“This is just a potion, not a miracle. Even a god couldn’t save him.”

“No, I’ll save him.”

Han Siha had held back to protect his reputation, but all he got in return was scorn.

If the outcome was going to be harsh either way, he might as well have taken the risk.

Adela looked at Han Siha with worried eyes.

He looked like someone who wouldn’t be stopped by anyone’s will right now.

‘This is foolish.’

He could barely take care of himself, yet he was showing this much affection for a mere pet.

Maybe this was what made him truly Han Siha.

But she wanted to stop him.

They could lose Han Siha too if things went wrong.

“The potion from the competition, do you still have it?”

“You’re out of your mind.”

“Yeah. I think I’ve lost it a bit. But I’ve never been normal, so why are you surprised now?”

Han Siha gulped down a mana potion, followed by a sip from the rare potion.

“Ugh.”

He was already beyond what his body could handle, but he was pushing through.

The potion containing Devil’s Herb made him feel like he was about to get drunk.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but you’re really….”

Come to think of it, he might be a bit drunk.

Han Siha let out a faint smile and focused his mana on his fingertips. Not just recklessly pouring it out, but delicately.

It was different from how he usually handled his mana.

There was something he had to create—not for art, but for survival.

‘What is that?’

A sharp glint of metal appeared at Han Siha’s fingertips.

A strange object, like a clamp, rested on his palm.

Next, a small knife, barely capable of killing a person, emerged.

Lee Han, who had been sitting in a resigned manner, blinked in surprise.

Han Siha’s hand trembled slightly.

He took a deep breath.

“Hoo….”

Han Siha whispered to himself as if chanting a spell.

“I’m starting.”

No matter what happened.

He had to save him.

—

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