Chapter 27: The Genius, the Reason for a Racing Heart, and First Love (1)

Demons and humans are not equals.

The difference between short-lived and long-lived species can never be reversed.

Gamigin had believed this without a doubt his entire life. It was common sense that needed no explanation.

A human's lifetime is but the blink of an eye to a demon - a fleeting moment. Even if someone dedicated their entire life to accumulating experience, reaching their level would be impossible.

Before abilities honed over an eternity, the achievements of mortals lose all value.

'Surely that was supposed to be common sense.'

Yet now, that common sense was being denied before his very eyes.

He had been fine up until he first saw the meteors being dropped. Having heard how Marbas met his end, he had expected attacks of this magnitude.

He had even been fine when the human started copying spell formulas at will. He thought he could block up to three attempts, given that the opponent's magical power must have limits.

But when his opponent started haphazardly modifying the spell formulas - in that moment, he had no choice but to sense his own defeat.

Runic script arranged seemingly at random.

From the placement to the structure, everything was incomprehensibly chaotic and messy.

Yet each seemingly nonsensical element, when combined in complex ways, created meaning.

Why were half the spell formula components missing?

To induce failure and cause the magic to go berserk.

Why commit such a suicidal act?

To reap the benefits of the power boost from the berserk magic while transferring the rebound to the enemy.

Why did he think he could transfer it to the enemy?

Because he had already taken control of his magic circuits long ago.

Such precise theft that even he hadn't noticed.

He certainly hadn't let his guard down. Moreover, that guy who had only met demons a few times couldn't possibly know the detailed structure and system of demonic beings.

But as if that wasn't even an issue, the man had succeeded in hijacking control of the magic circuits.

Before he knew it, he was being forced to take on the risks that should have been directed at that man through the spell formulas.

'Even this alone is astounding enough.'

What was even more unbelievable was what the man was doing now.

A spell formula about to disappear after being used. The split second before its residual magic dispersed back into the atmosphere.

He didn't miss that fleeting moment, using the residual magic as material to construct another spell formula. Something theoretically possible but realistically impossible to achieve.

He constructed in less than a second what would take even an Archmage a full day to complete.

High-speed casting that transcends common sense.

The overwhelming efficiency gained from this enables the feat of casting the archmagic Meteor thousands of times.

[Unique Formula #1: Meteor Shower]

The man looked down at him with an arrogant smile.

A blatantly contemptuous gaze saying that no matter how much someone like you struggles, reaching me is impossible.

However, the emotion filling the demon's heart wasn't anger but awe. In this moment, he had no choice but to acknowledge that the common sense he had believed his whole life was wrong.

'Whether one is short-lived or long-lived doesn't matter at all.'

Even while living an infinitely finite moment, there exist humans who can overwhelm beings who live for eternity.

A true genius.

Before one born to stand at the pinnacle, the limitations of species meant nothing at all.

Hundreds, thousands of stars fall.

That noble light which was originally only meant to be gazed up at is pulled down to earth by the will of a mere human.

Gamigin smiled weakly at the sight.

[Well now, at this point I don't even feel frustrated anymore.]

He could resist if he tried.

Taking students hostage was possible too.

Attempting self-destruction would likely be quite effective.

But he felt no meaning in doing so. It didn't seem like he could win against that guy no matter what he did - at that point, the outcome of the battle was already decided.

[I'll quietly acknowledge it - this was my complete defeat.]

The loser is buried and the victor lives on.

He had no intention of arguing with the law of struggle now.

Gamigin quietly looked up at the sky.

The vast night sky. The rain of falling stars. He takes in that irritatingly beautiful sight with his eyes.

'Perhaps we really might fail.'

Just one variable.

Just one mere human.

Yet that one human might overwhelm all of us and change an immutable fate. That was Gamigin's final thought before closing his eyes.

A thunderous roar devours the earth.

A brilliantly dazzling light dyes the world.

The demon calmly accepted his end.

*****

The dimensional barrier magic protecting the students and me.

I release the barrier that barely managed to fulfill its role.

What appears before my eyes is devastated land unrecognizable from before. The scene is so wretched it's as if a meteor actually hit.

'Well, one did hit so I suppose that's natural.'

The demon who unexpectedly gave up resistance without a fight.

I saw his body unable to endure at the end, turning to ashes without even needing to confirm the kill.

I wondered if I went a bit overboard, but this was definitely the right answer. If I hadn't crushed his fighting spirit in one go, he definitely would have kept trying dirty tricks until the end.

'Well, looks like I managed to survive this time too somehow.'

Though he was an incomparably stronger opponent than any I'd faced before, I managed to win through cheating somehow.

Breaking through countless instances of Bad Luck to confirm survival once again.

As a bonus, I even managed to fulfill my childhood wish. Right now I should naturally be... regretting it.

I made far too serious a mistake.

'This is why I still can't get fired.'

I lost my composure and couldn't think calmly.

Getting excited at briefly fulfilling an abandoned dream, I forgot what the best course of action was.

Just one Sleep spell, no more no less.

If I had just cast that on the students and professors beforehand, I could have easily avoided the reputation increase penalty. I ended up stepping on an obvious landmine with full force.

'...Well, I did have my reasons.'

The frustration of not being able to use my carefully crafted ultimate spell formula because my magic power was lower than a 5-year-old's.

Going to the Magic Tower thinking I should at least teach it to others if I can't use it myself, only to be kicked out and told not to joke around.

The contradiction of being criticized for an unrealizable, delusional spell formula while being unable to demonstrate it myself.

I had so much pent up... How was I supposed to think of using Sleep magic to prevent them from seeing my battle? This Bad Luck is just too much.

'But making excuses now is pointless.'

Reality is extremely harsh.

Whatever the reasons, the fact that I made a mistake remains unchanged, so I prepared myself to face the consequences of my foolishness while looking around.

The piercing gazes I'd been feeling.

People staring at me with mouths agape.

After being dumbfounded for a while at the situation that far transcended common sense, they all gradually regained their ability to speak as they grasped what had happened.

"Professoooor!"

The Class A and self-study lecture students all rush towards me shouting cheers. My uniform gets covered in their tears and snot.

Having already been full of trust in me, their reaction was that while they were a bit surprised, they knew I could do it.

"Y-you. How on earth did you do that just now?"

Conversely, the professors and students who hadn't had much interaction with me still couldn't escape their shock.

Some pinched their cheeks unable to believe this was reality, some stared at me with horrified eyes as if I were some Cthulhu, some lost for words and stammering.

While their reactions were certainly polar opposites, either way my reputation was rapidly rising in real-time.

The difficulty of getting fired increasing in real-time.

But I had no choice but to accept it without complaint. This was a disaster I brought upon myself.

'S-still, this level should still be manageable.'

Falls from higher places naturally stand out more.

The higher my reputation rose, the greater the disappointment would be when I acted disgracefully.

So this much I can handle.

This much should still have been manageable...

Footsteps approached from afar. What appeared is the great Primordial Dragon walking towards me with her wings folded. But her expression was completely different from usual.

Lifeless eyes.

With a gloomy face, she bowed her head before me.

"I am unfit to be Principal. Please, Ryan, take my place as Principal of the Academy."

...Even I can't handle this much.