Chapter 39 – Rule 18: The Leader Thwarts the Villain’s Plan (3)

 

A tale from long ago.

 

Before humanity conceived the notion of ‘magic power’, a colossal gate appeared in the Pacific Ocean, connecting to another world.

 

The gate first released a majestic demon draped in golden sheep, followed by a torrent of mysterious monsters imbued with extraordinary powers.

 

These enigmatic beasts ravaged, consumed, competed, and thrived, transforming the earth into their own wild domain.

 

In the process, billions of humans lost their lives.

 

Nothing could stop them.

 

Human technology, including nuclear weapons, proved ineffective against the beasts.
Each monster wielded an inexplicable and mysterious power.

 

Humanity named this power, which surpassed scientific technology, ‘magic power,’ and accordingly, named the monsters wielding it ‘magical beasts.’

 

The helpless massacres had already been imprinted into the genetic memory of humanity.

 

The fear instilled by the beasts was a poison, a lethal dread to humanity.

 

Only those who overcame this fear became explorers, venturing outside the cities. However, most could not, and thus they vividly felt the terror conveyed by verified threats.

 

“Aah…”

 

A male student’s legs gave out, causing him to fall to the ground.

 

His entire body trembled.

 

The emotion reflected on his face was fear.

 

It emerged instinctively, imprinted into his very being, regardless of his will.

 

A skeletal beast, its bones imbued with eerie magical power, charged at him. It was the terror of human history.

 

The student couldn’t muster the courage to fight back. The amount of magic he sensed already far surpassed his level.

 

Other students were in similar predicaments.

 

Running away.

 

Panicking.

 

Giving up and awaiting death.

 

They were busy being terrified at the sight of the beasts.

 

The unique ability, necromancy.

 

Magic Formula Type 1, ‘Summon the Dead.’

 

This magic formula, using the passive skill ‘Sixth Sense’ from the unique ability, communicated with and summoned the contracted spirits.

 

The summoned spirits couldn’t handle magic due to the lack of magic circuits in their bodies.
In other words, the corpses of magical beasts, whose skeletons were more robust than humans, were perfect minions.

 

Thus, the necromancer had made many contracts at the magical beasts’ graveyard, guided by the Head Principal.

 

Most magical beasts did not communicate and followed only their instincts. As long as they could move again and crave flesh, they didn’t mind living as skeletons.

 

Hence, the army of the dead that appeared at the practical evaluation site was entirely composed of magical beasts.

 

Whirr.

 

Click, click.

 

Sensing the crisis, the security robots assigned as exam supervisors transformed into combat mode. The lamps that once shone now gleamed with a determined light.

 

These were AI robots managing the overall infrastructure of Academy City.

 

They had no biological sense of fear.

 

[Groar!]

 

The skeletal beasts, engulfed in the necromancer’s magic, charged. The security robots fought back, but some met a futile end as their metallic bodies were torn apart.

 

Not all skeletal beasts possessed equal strength. They weren’t identical entities. The beasts that the security robots couldn’t handle targeted the students.

 

However, the security robots weren’t the only forces prepared at Ahsung High School.

 

Bang!

 

Kim Deok-soo, a member of the Disciplinary Committee, struck a magical beast with his truncheon, breaking through the magical skin covering its spine. It was a strike imbued with the elemental power of solid rock.

 

He was the committee member who, after once being involved with delivering food to the needy alongside Lee Se-Ah, shared what happened to the expressionless junior, Han Seo-jin.

 

A skeletal beast attacked again, but Deok-soo repelled it with multiple consecutive swings of his truncheon.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Deok-soo shouted to the student who was almost caught by the beast. The rescued student nodded, teary-eyed.

 

“Th-thank you….”

 

“Whew.”

 

Deok-soo quickly scanned the surroundings as he gathered his truncheon.

 

The extreme tension turned into cold sweat, running down his cheeks.

 

No matter how brave he pretended to be, Deok-soo was just an ordinary person. He moved only because he was part of the Disciplinary Committee. He wanted to flee at any moment.
But.

 

─ ‘This is a message to the Disciplinary Committee. Emergency Response Level 4 issued.
Due to the barrier, support is limited. Everyone, prioritize protecting the students.’

 

The solemn instruction from the Disciplinary Committee Leader, delivered through the radio, crossed Deok-soo’s mind.

 

Level 4 was the highest response level.

 

It meant facing the emergency with the resolve to sacrifice lives and ensuring the students’ safety at all costs.

 

Other committee members must also be exerting themselves in such a crisis, so he couldn’t afford to be ruled by fear.

 

A sense of duty.

 

Responsibility.

 

Comradeship.

 

Numerous emotions suppressed his fear.

 

These were the reasons the committee members, including Deok-soo, could fight against the skeletal beasts despite their trembling bodies.

 

However, such emotions alone didn’t translate into combat strength.

 

“Over there, behind you!!”

 

“!”

 

The rescued student spotted a beast stealthily approaching like an assassin and shouted urgently.