Chapter 134…
“Then does that mean Woojin is at headquarters right now?”
At my question, Kim Pyeong-on, who was driving, nodded.
The car he was driving sped along a national highway lined with familiar scenery. It put me at ease.
Naturally so.
We were on our way to my second home.
“Yes. As soon as we arrived at the academy, he took Master Jegal Sang and headed straight to headquarters. You asked him to set up a barrier or a magic circle, right?”
“That’s right. He left before the accident even happened. So the lightning brat didn’t even know an accident had occurred.”
At the sudden voice from the back seat, I turned around.
Two women were sitting there.
“…I know that already. Pyeong-on told me earlier. Why are you so hung up on the word ‘accident’?”
I spoke to the woman gazing out the window.
It was Rebecca, sitting beside Seo Gyeoul.
“Huh? I’m not hung up on it.”
“…Sure, let’s say that.”
Something about her reaction felt odd.
But thinking about it again, I could understand her behavior.
“Well, it was a major accident.”
Not wanting to dwell on it, I straightened my posture.
Then I gently stroked the dark blue egg resting on my lap.
The “Egg of the Abyss,” obtained from the Garden of All Things.
It was finally about to hatch.
Its surface was black, but depending on the angle, a faint blue sheen shimmered—like the deepest part of the ocean.
“Alright. We’ll check if the barrier’s properly set up, pack our things, and then all head for the Tower.”
Thrum—
I felt a faint vibration beneath my palm.
The thing was squirming.
“……”
Feeling that sensation, I stared blankly out the window.
Rows of roadside trees passed by at high speed, like a time-lapse.
All the while, I kept stroking the egg.
Before I knew it, my wandering thoughts halted at the incident from earlier.
— You’re not an academy professor anymore.
— This means you’re dismissed from your post as of today, as the price for deceiving me, the chancellor.
I’d been slightly taken aback.
Of course, I did have to quit being a professor. I had to climb the Tower.
But I hadn’t expected it to end so abruptly—especially in the form of dismissal.
So I hesitated for a moment, and then…
— Why? You’re going to climb the Tower anyway, Professor Kang.
— If you quit after only a week, people would gossip. Strange rumors would spread right away.
She wasn’t wrong.
And if my reputation took a hit, the Seonyang Five Greats—who had been crushed since that match—might start stirring again.
— That’s why this picture is the prettiest for you, Professor Kang. I dismissed you unilaterally, as chancellor.
— I’ve already found a replacement professor. Ma Eunmok, the second son of the Yaksha family head of the Dokkaebi Guild. Skilled, good personality—he’ll teach the students well.
Madam smiled as she exhaled cigarette smoke.
That smile held consideration.
It was clear she was trying to save me from an awkward situation.
It puzzled me. She had no reason to go this far for me.
So when I asked “Why?” she answered like this:
— Hmm… let’s call it an investment.
— So just climb the Tower comfortably, Professor Kang. No need to feel sorry for the students. I made all the decisions as chancellor.
After finishing her words, she waved her hand dismissively.
It was a clear signal telling me to leave.
Without adding anything further, I bowed and left the command center.
After roughly cleaning up the scene, I headed for headquarters with my companions—bringing us to the present moment.
“Why are you treating me so well again in this life… I’m grateful, but sorry.”
Even before my regression, Madam had cherished me like a child.
And now it was happening again in this life.
“Fine. I’ll repay it.”
I can’t live indebted to others.
Whether the debt is born of malice or goodwill.
“Uh, boss.”
Kim Pyeong-on’s voice snapped me out of my reverie.
“I just heard a sound… from inside.”
He glanced at the Egg of the Abyss on my lap. I looked down at it too.
Given how sharp his senses were, there was a high chance he was right.
Brrrr—
“…!?”
The vibration was definitely stronger than before.
The blue glow grew more vivid.
“Looks like it’s about to wake up.”
“Boss, do you know what’s inside it?”
“Well, this is my first time with this thing too. The description says ‘a kin of the Abyss,’ so… maybe a water-attribute magical beast?”
At my words, Seo Gyeoul spoke up for the first time from the back seat.
“Then couldn’t it be a dragon? Eastern dragons are usually closely tied to water.”
“Oh, that’s possible too.”
Kim Pyeong-on nodded.
Rebecca folded her arms and cut in.
“No. It’s not a dragon. I think it’s a dragon.”
“Hmph, dragon or dragon—”
“Idiot. You’re an idiot because you don’t even know the difference.”
“You little—! I may not look it, but I used to be a government official living off state pay, you know?! Anyone who wanted to enter the White Gate needed my approval!”
“Showing off in front of a master.”
“……”
At Rebecca’s remark as she looked at Seo Gyeoul, Kim Pyeong-on clammed up.
Perhaps because of that, Seo Gyeoul broke the brief silence.
“How big do you think it’ll be? Small, like Seongsik was as a baby?”
“Well, judging by the egg’s size… but we can’t rule out the possibility that it’ll be human-sized.”
At my answer, Rebecca’s eyes sparkled.
“Human-sized? Then a humanoid magical beast?”
“That’s right. There are legends of beautiful mermaids in the deep sea.”
Seo Gyeoul said, patting Rebecca on the head.
With even more confidence, she shouted:
“I get it! Then it’s a pretty dragon!”
“…That’s a bit much.”
I shook my head.
The combination didn’t match at all.
The words “pretty” and “dragon,” that is.
And considering the term kin of the Abyss, it was far more likely to be something closer to a kraken or a deep-sea monstrosity.
“We’ll find out soon anyway. It won’t be long before it hatches.”
“Well… in any case, I hope it’s a support type.”
Kim Pyeong-on, who’d been quiet until now, cautiously spoke up.
“Our guild doesn’t have a supporter. Same goes for the magical beasts you keep, boss.”
“That’s true.”
Seo Gyeoul agreed.
“Having a pure support-type beast would definitely help.”
“Well, honestly, I don’t really care what comes out.”
I said, looking at the Egg of the Abyss.
The egg trembled faintly once again.
It felt like it was answering me.
“Just wait a little longer. You’ll be out soon.”
And so, as we traveled, we passed the time throwing around various guesses about the Egg of the Abyss.
Kim Pyeong-on predicted an attack-type, saying things always turned out opposite to what he expected.
Seo Gyeoul stuck with a support-type.
And only Rebecca stubbornly insisted on that strange “pretty dragon.”
I just listened with a smile.
We’d know soon enough.
A familiar sight came into view.
Before we knew it, the car had arrived at the entrance to the guild headquarters.
The uphill dirt road leading inside, trees thick on both sides.
It reminded me of when I’d visited this place with my students not long ago.
“Rebecca.”
“Yeah, Guildmaster.”
“My kids… they’re all really safe, right?”
Rebecca looked at me like I was ridiculous.
“Guildmaster, that’s the third time you’ve asked. I already told you three times I evacuated them to a ‘safe place.’”
“…Ahem. Right.”
“Do you want to talk to them that badly? I can put you on the phone.”
“No, no. As long as they’re healthy, that’s enough.”
I waved my hands hurriedly to stop her, then looked down the lone path leading to headquarters.
The students’ faces came to mind, one by one.
“Of course, all sweaty and grimy faces, but…”
Maybe because of that—
Though it was only a week, I’d grown quite attached.
“They’ll all grow up well.”
I’d known from the start.
That my time at the academy wouldn’t be long.
Climbing the Tower was my clear objective, and I was prepared to sacrifice everything for it.
But after teaching them and watching them change in response to that teaching, they’d somehow stepped right into my inner circle—only for me to realize it now.
“That was reckless…”
Which was why I’d refused Rebecca’s offer of a call.
I was afraid that if I heard their voices again, I might hesitate—if only a little—about climbing the Tower.
Afraid I might waver.
And if I called, the students would ask.
Why did you quit so suddenly?
When are you coming back?
How could I answer those questions?
“After I’ve taken my revenge? Or after I reach the top of the Tower?”
Who knew when that would be?
I didn’t want to make promises without an end in sight.
It was better to cut things cleanly.
Shhhh—
At that moment, the car passed through the headquarters’ barrier.
I felt something like a transparent membrane brushing past the vehicle—a faint resistance, like passing through thin plastic.
It was the boundary of the formation Jegal Sang had set up.
It seemed more thorough than I’d expected.
Not long after, we arrived in front of the main gate.
I opened the car door and stepped outside.
“Phew—”
Cool forest air filled my lungs.
It was clean air, completely different from the exhaust-tainted city atmosphere.
But then—
“Huh?”
Something felt off.
Was it because of the formation?
Just a moment ago, I’d felt nothing, but now I could sense many presences inside the headquarters building.
And not just a few—quite a lot.
The flows of mana varied.
But they all shared one thing: no hostility at all.
If anything, it felt festive.
An excitement like the night before a festival was spilling out from inside.
Because of the tangled energies of the formation, it was hard to read the flows in detail.
“…What is this?”
I turned to Kim Pyeong-on and Rebecca.
“Pyeong-on. Other than Woojin and Master Jegal Sang, is anyone else supposed to be here?”
“…I don’t know?”
Kim Pyeong-on avoided my gaze.
His eyes darted around.
A classic sign of lying.
“Rebecca?”
“I don’t know either.”
Rebecca turned her head away as well.
The corners of their mouths twitched upward ever so slightly.
Proof that they knew something.
“These brats…”
What kind of prank had they pulled now?
Still, I felt a bit relieved.
If they knew something, at least it meant whoever was inside wasn’t an enemy.
And if it were truly dangerous, Kim Pyeong-on wouldn’t be wearing such a relaxed expression.
He wasn’t good enough an actor to fake calm in a crisis.
“Haa… fine. I don’t know what it is, but I’ll play along. I’ll be fooled.”
With a sigh, I walked across the garden.
The crunch of gravel broke the quiet air.
The closer I got to the front door, the clearer the presence inside became.
And its nature felt familiar.
“…Huh?”
A suspicion crossed my mind.
The corners of my mouth lifted on their own.
A smile spread across my face.
I grabbed the front door handle and swung it open without hesitation.
Boom!
Pop-pop-pop!
Celebratory confetti cannons went off, showering the air with colorful paper.
And beyond them, students’ voices rang out.
“Congratulations on your journey, Professor!”
A unified cheer of encouragement.
Students filled the entrance hall.
Every single one of my Class A students was there.
