Chapter 155
After all the classes had ended for the day...
Chun Ga-eun let out a deep sigh.
Even though it was finally time to get off work—the happiest part of the day—she couldn't smile at all.
To her, going home was no longer a time to rest.
If anything, she'd rather stay and teach a few more classes.
Her hand slipped into her pocket.
Who would've thought she'd end up playing babysitter despite it being completely unlike her?
Internally, she cursed Yoo Sung-woo for leaving her with such a burden.
'That damn bastard. He dumped his little sister on me and hasn't contacted me once?'
In Chun Ga-eun's mind, Yoo Sung-woo had already become the world's most shameless scoundrel.
Another sigh drifted out like smoke.
The thought of going home made her dizzy, so she pulled another cigarette from her pocket.
At present, Chun Ga-eun was acting as No. 66's legal guardian and personally guaranteeing her identity.
That had been one of the conditions of her agreement with Yoo Sung-woo.
Naturally, neither the Association, the Guilds, nor the Academy had remained silent.
They were planning to admit someone of unknown identity into the Academy.
On top of that, she'd been rescued from one of Pandemonium's laboratories.
Which meant...
She could very well be a Pandemonium spy.
Of course, Chun Ga-eun knew that was merely an excuse.
The real reason the Association and the Guilds opposed her admission was simple.
After the Hell Manifestation incident at the Academy, the Academy had lost the public's trust.
And now they wanted to accept No. 66, someone who possessed powers unlike anything seen before.
No. 66 manipulated Demonic Energy.
She could even reproduce the abilities of the Monsters she consumed.
Her appearance resembled that of a horrifying chimera.
Naturally...
People couldn't help but reject such a being.
In short, the Association feared the risks—and the damage to the Academy's image—that would come with accepting No. 66.
Thus began a fierce battle of wills between Chun Ga-eun, the Association, and the Guilds.
Truthfully, Chun Ga-eun would have preferred to abandon No. 66 altogether.
But she couldn't.
She had promised Yoo Sung-woo she'd fulfill his request.
While she was desperately searching for a solution...
Seo Da-hee, the Student Council Vice President, proposed an idea.
Publicize No. 66's tragic story.
Hearing it, Chun Ga-eun thought it wasn't a bad idea.
What the Academy leadership and the Association feared was the loss of the Academy's authority and prestige if No. 66 were accepted.
But what if they turned that concern around and introduced her to the public first?
Fortunately, No. 66's tragic past was more than enough to move people's hearts.
A young woman who had spent her entire life enduring inhumane experiments inside a Pandemonium laboratory.
Then...
She was rescued by Heroes.
She gradually recovered her humanity and returned to society.
Wasn't that the perfect story?
Though they were effectively using her as propaganda to restore the Academy's reputation, it would also prevent the persecution Yoo Sung-woo had worried about.
Even if No. 66 caused problems...
People would inevitably view her with sympathy.
After all, she had spent her entire life as nothing more than a test subject and had never been given the chance to develop proper social skills.
Thus...
No. 66's tragic story spread throughout the country.
Its impact far exceeded anyone's expectations.
Her heartbreaking story enraged countless people and fueled hostility toward Pandemonium.
And that wasn't all.
Donations poured in to support No. 66.
A national petition was launched on her behalf.
Without exaggeration...
There was practically no one in South Korea who didn't know about No. 66.
It was only natural.
The video had spread through Chun Ga-eun's social media account.
After all, who was Chun Ga-eun?
She was one of the highest-ranking Heroes in the world.
There were only a handful of people like her across the globe.
Each of them possessed power equivalent to a nation's military.
Each had earned immense achievements and were celebrated as Heroes who had saved their countries.
Every statement they made became a major issue.
Every opinion they expressed had the potential to spark controversy.
Someone like her had personally uploaded a video about No. 66 to her social media.
There was no way it wouldn't attract attention.
Crushing the cigarette beneath her shoe, Chun Ga-eun stood up.
'Maybe I shouldn't have done that after all.'
Uploading the video had succeeded in getting No. 66 accepted into the Academy.
However, the Association and the Academy leadership, both unhappy with the decision, had imposed several conditions upon Chun Ga-eun.
First.
She would personally serve as No. 66's guardian and remain by her side.
Second.
She would take full responsibility for every incident No. 66 caused.
Third.
She was never to leave No. 66 alone.
Fourth.
If No. 66 ever went berserk or showed signs of cooperating with Pandemonium, Chun Ga-eun herself would dispose of No. 66 and resign from her position as an Academy Instructor.
There were several additional clauses.
But those four were the core conditions.
Remembering that meeting, Chun Ga-eun ground her teeth again.
'If I ever see that idiot again, I'm going to kill him.'
No matter what...
If he was really her older brother, he should've visited at least once.
Because of the agreement she'd made with the Association, Chun Ga-eun had no choice but to spend most of her time looking after No. 66.
Leaving the smoking area, she headed toward the Student Council room.
As both an Academy Instructor and someone occupying an important position, Chun Ga-eun couldn't remain beside No. 66 twenty-four hours a day.
Instead, the Student Council Executives took turns watching over her.
The moment she opened the Student Council room door—
"HEY!"
"Someone stop her already!"
"Dan Chun-woo! Just calm down first!"
Chaos erupted inside.
Dan Chun-woo had one hand gripping the hilt of his sword as though he were about to draw it at any moment.
Park Siwoo had wrapped both arms around him from behind, trying to restrain him.
"Why is she so ridiculously strong?! Somebody help me!"
"I'm going to cut her down."
"She doesn't know any better! She didn't mean it!"
Seeing the scene, Chun Ga-eun frowned deeply.
Ever since No. 66 had arrived...
The Student Council had become like this almost every day.
No. 66 would either cause trouble or make some kind of mistake.
Then everyone else would scramble to clean up the mess.
Actually...
Things had improved tremendously compared to the beginning.
When she'd first arrived at the Academy, she'd constantly unleashed her power while desperately trying to escape.
That incident alone had nearly caused the Academy leadership and the Association to reject her admission altogether.
If the Academy hadn't stepped in to suppress the media at the time...
It would have become a massive scandal.
Fortunately...
No. 66 now understood her own situation.
She knew she wasn't supposed to reveal her powers to others.
She knew she absolutely must never hurt anyone.
Unfortunately...
Understanding her circumstances didn't magically grant her social skills.
Which was why incidents like this kept happening.
Chun Ga-eun's low voice echoed through the Student Council room.
"What happened this time?"
"Ah..."
The noisy room instantly fell silent.
Everyone turned toward her.
With an awkward smile, Park Siwoo began speaking.
"Well..."
"That beast tried to chew on my treasured sword."
Dan Chun-woo cut him off with a growl.
"The treasured sword personally given to me by my grandfather."
He looked genuinely furious.
A rare flush had spread across his face.
"Don't be so harsh. She just didn't know."
"Ignorance is no excuse. Do you even know how valuable Mu-a is? If I put this sword up for auction, it would sell for tens of billions... no, hundreds of billions of won."
"But the sword wasn't damaged."
"Instead, my grandfather's sword went into that filthy thing's mouth."
Chun Ga-eun quickly pieced together what had happened.
Apparently...
No. 66 had picked up Dan Chun-woo's treasured sword, Mu-a, and started licking it.
Because she possessed the Power of Predation, she occasionally put objects containing powerful energy into her mouth.
'She destroyed most of the things she found at first, too.'
Rubbing her aching forehead, Chun Ga-eun sighed.
"At least it doesn't sound like a major incident."
"Not a major incident? Mu-a was a sword personally wielded by my grandfather! If defiling it isn't a catastrophe, then what is—"
"Enough. I'll lend you my treasured sword. You know better than anyone that it's every bit as valuable as Mu-a, the Sword Emperor's sword."
During the Special Class lessons, Chun Ga-eun had already learned the personalities and weaknesses of every Student Council Executive.
The moment he heard her offer...
Dan Chun-woo immediately calmed down.
Even his speech became polite.
"Do you truly mean that?"
"If you want, I can show it to you right now."
After thinking for a moment, Dan Chun-woo answered,
"I would prefer to admire it alone under the best possible conditions."
"...Uh, sure."
Everyone around him looked at him with completely dead expressions.
Dan Chun-woo, meanwhile, seemed genuinely pleased.
Watching the way he looked at her...
Chun Ga-eun inexplicably felt goosebumps.
Bang!
At that moment, the Student Council room door burst open.
"In-Instructor! Instructor Chun Ga-eun...!"
Yoo Iseo stood there, breathing heavily as she urgently called out.
The moment Chun Ga-eun saw Yoo Iseo's tense expression...
She instinctively realized something had happened at the Academy.
If the matter had reached her...
It wasn't something minor.
At that moment, everyone's devices vibrated simultaneously.
A notification appeared.
[Demons have appeared in the Academy Main Building. All Cadets are instructed to remain where they are and wait until the Demons have been subdued.]
Seeing the message, Chun Ga-eun frowned.
Things had been quiet for a while.
Of course...
She had expected some sort of retaliation after Lord Biden's defeat.
But an attack this bold...
Were they declaring outright war on the Academy in response to Lord Biden's death?
Otherwise...
There was no reason they would invade so openly.
Deciding there was no point wasting any more time, Chun Ga-eun immediately left the Student Council room.
Yoo Iseo hurried after her.
"What's the situation?"
"We still don't know the enemy's identity or their numbers. However... the amount of Demonic Energy detected by the Academy's Barrier and the Demonic Energy detection system is..."
She couldn't finish her sentence.
Chun Ga-eun sensed the anxiety hidden behind her words.
"Don't tell me... one of Pandemonium's High-ranking Executives came because of what happened before?"
"..."
Chun Ga-eun couldn't answer so easily.
After all...
A High-ranking Executive of Pandemonium had never been defeated before.
Which meant...
Yoo Iseo's fears might actually become reality.
Carrying their own anxieties, the two hurried toward the source of the Demonic Energy.
When they arrived...
Academy security and Heroes from the Guilds had already sealed off the area.
Someone who appeared to be in charge approached Chun Ga-eun.
"The concentration of Demonic Energy at the scene is too dense. We haven't been able to enter."
"I'll go in myself."
With that, Chun Ga-eun drew her weapon and surveyed the area.
An overwhelming concentration of Demonic Energy blanketed the surroundings, as though corroding space itself.
Its density was several times greater than that emitted by ordinary Demons.
She frowned.
Just then...
Seo Da-hee pushed through the crowd toward her.
"I-Instructor! Um... inside there..."
Calming the panicked Seo Da-hee, Chun Ga-eun spoke.
"I'll handle it. Calm down."
"N-No, that's not what I meant...!"
Seo Da-hee desperately tried to say something.
But Chun Ga-eun ignored her and stepped into the Domain of Demonic Energy.
Watching her disappear inside...
Seo Da-hee swallowed the words that had nearly escaped her lips.
'The Demon who invaded the Academy is Yoo Sung-woo!'