I'm Neither the Mastermind nor the Villain

Chapter 18

Today is the very day the Academy is attacked by terrorists.

For now, I haven't told Sunghyun about this fact.

If things go according to the original story, there will be a few casualties, but since I'll be running around hunting monsters, there's no need to worry.

It's a bit cruel to say, but whether those people live or die isn't really my concern.

What mattered to me were the protagonist's group, Kim Gabyeol, and myself.

If you say I'm twisted, I have nothing to say, but what can I do.

I've always been like this.

-Beep, verified.

I passed through the school gate.

Warna Academy is difficult to enter, but the merit of passing is just as certain.

Because the Academy has a vast amount of data on supernatural abilities, and it's constantly being updated.

Naturally, there are always those who covet the Academy's knowledge.

To stop people trying to sneak in and steal information like that, the first line of defense is that school gate.

Only enrolled students or the Academy's faculty and staff can pass through it.

Couldn't someone just climb over the wall?

Well, if anyone tries to climb over, the various magics installed on the wall will knock them out and bind them on the spot.

Then the person in charge will get an alert, capture the intruder, and that's it.

So how does a terrorist attack happen?

If they just push through with sheer numbers, they can get in.

It's an unavoidable limitation.

If you simply trample over those knocked out by all the magic, what can a mere wall do?

Of course, in most cases, it just means there's one more unconscious guy on the pile, but if there's a demon contractor, it's possible.

Not the low-grade demons that dark mages usually contract with,

I mean demon contractors who have pacts with high-level demons.

The day of the attack, the atmosphere was heavier than usual.

It probably wasn't just my imagination.

With all sorts of monsters awakened, slowly and stealthily advancing toward the Academy, how could the air be light?

Small animals like squirrels never leave their hideouts.

Insects and birds frantically flap their wings, trying to get as far away from here as possible.

Dogs and cats tremble in fear, and fish dart about restlessly.

Would you believe all of that was happening only near the Academy?

To some, it might seem like trivial changes.

They might just think it's all a coincidence.

That their dog is just feeling a bit off today,

Or that the birds are just flying more than usual.

But to me, it's different.

All these things were nature's way of warning me that something big was about to happen.

Probably spirit summoners or those with strong affinity for animals have sensed something about this situation too.

Keen mages or martial artists must also be feeling some ominous sensation.

I entered the classroom.

The scene was no different from yesterday.

'When exactly does the attack happen again?'

I know it's today.

But I don't know what time it'll occur.

It's probably in the morning...

*

-Creak.

Teacher Lee Gilyoung entered through the front door, not in shadow form but looking like an ordinary human.

"Everyone seems a bit subdued today. Same here. Somehow, the air feels heavy. Still, I have announcements to make,

Dormitory applications will be accepted until this Friday. Probably, everyone who applied on Sunday will get a text message. That's all from me."

And with that, Teacher Lee Gilyoung left after saying only what he needed to.

"Are you going to stay in the dorms?"

Kim Gabyeol asked me.

"Hmm... probably not. There are too many restrictions in the dormitory, you know?"

"True. Then I guess I won't stay either."

Huh, did Kim Gabyeol stay in the dorms in the original story?

Maybe she did, maybe she didn't. I'm not sure.

Probably not.

*

-Thud.

"So, looking at this paragraph, the message the author intended is..."

-Thud.

-Thudthudthudthudthud!

"What's that? What's going on?"

"It's coming from outside, right?"

"Huh? Hey! Look over there!"

"What the heck?! What is that?!"

"Those are monsters!"

"What do we do? I didn't bring any weapons!"

"Everyone quiet! Observe the situation!"

Sounds reached my ears.

The noise of monsters charging at the wall outside the Academy.

The murmurs of the students.

The shouts of a teacher who couldn't stand the chaos anymore.

All sorts of sounds mixed together in a chaotic symphony pounding in my ears.

'Looks like they've arrived.'

I slowly got up from my seat.

[There are quite a lot of monsters. At this rate, they could surround the entire Academy. Contractor, were you aware of this?]

"Not really."

Actually, I was, but I lied.

"What's happening?"

Kim Gabyeol asked as she stood up with me.

"I don't know either. But I have a feeling something big is about to happen."

Just then, a warning siren blared from the classroom speakers.

[Warning, warning. This is not a drill. A large number of monsters have invaded the Academy.]

I approached the window to check how many monsters there were.

The other students had already gathered by the window, watching the monsters pour in.

-Boom!

A massive fireball fell from the rooftop onto the monsters.

The monsters hit by the fireball were engulfed in flames and collapsed.

And giant fireballs kept raining down from the rooftop.

It seemed the mages were launching fireballs from up there.

But more monsters kept appearing than were being eliminated.

Trees sprouted from the ground to form barricades,

And giant ice spirits froze monsters, yet still the monsters kept pouring in.

Now and then, monsters clearly larger than the others began to appear.

Monsters even bigger than the elephant-sized one I saw yesterday.

Those must be the strongest monsters.

As the powerful monsters appeared, the momentum shifted in their favor.

The barricades were breached, and more monsters poured in than were frozen.

At this rate, the Academy entrance will be breached soon.

I turned my gaze back inside the classroom.

The Korean teacher was reinforcing the walls and door with enhancement spells.

Kim Gabyeol was helping with that.

[Attention. All students, please evacuate to the auditorium. Teachers, please guide the students as quickly and orderly as possible.

Repeating. All students, please evacuate to the auditorium. Teachers, please guide the students as quickly and orderly as possible.]

"Kids! Evacuate to the auditorium! Follow me!"

Hearing the announcement, the teachers and students all began evacuating to the auditorium.

I followed at the very back with Kim Gabyeol.

There is a bridge connecting the main building to the annex where the auditorium is located.

So, you can enter the auditorium directly from the main building without having to exit and re-enter.

This bridge is made of special materials and enchanted, making it extremely durable.

Even if a monster larger than that elephant charged it with full force, it wouldn't be completely destroyed.

Up to this point, there were no problems.

The auditorium was built to prepare for unexpected wars or terrorist attacks, so it was sturdier than any other building in the Academy.

And activating certain mechanisms would turn it into a perfect shelter as a bonus.

But the problem was that while evacuating to the auditorium, a horde of monsters eventually broke through the main building.

Just as the teachers and students were nearly at the auditorium connected to the main building, the monsters invaded.

It had become a time attack with a strict time limit.

I looked back.

The evacuating students were lined up following us.

Since the monsters had infiltrated the main building, there couldn't be much time left.

The Academy was so big that it took too long to reach the auditorium.

Still, the Academy's size wasn't only a disadvantage.

Because it was so spacious, it took quite a while for the monsters to reach this area.

And the corridors were wide enough for many students to evacuate simultaneously.

How did the original story unfold at this point?

Running after Class 1 as they evacuated, I racked my brain.

So, the protagonist was trying to evacuate, and then?

The bridge ahead collapsed, and he encountered the monsters.

When exactly did that bridge collapse again?

-KWAANG!

While running down the corridor, suddenly the wall beside me shattered with a loud crash.

"...Damn."

Slamming on the brakes, I barely stopped in time and saw a huge monster that had smashed through the wall with its head.

The monster was so big that even though only its head had entered, the space was filled tight, and it couldn't get its neck or body through.

-GRORORORO!

The monster roared.

"Kyaaaaa!"

"Shit, what the hell is that?!"

The path was instantly blocked.

And then instantly cleared again.

The vice principal had suddenly appeared and killed the monster.

Jumping down from the rooftop, the vice principal had sliced the monster in half with a single strike, then yanked its head out of the wall with brute force and shouted.

"First years! Are you all right? As you can see, the Academy seems to be under attack. If any of you are confident in battle, stay behind and help us take these things down!"

The students who recognized the vice principal, Kang Geonche, immediately brightened up.

"If it's the vice principal's orders!"

"We will obey immediately!"

Hearing that, the students confident in combat stopped evacuating and began free-falling from the bridge after the vice principal.

The vice principal was a very famous martial artist.

Martial artists admire powerful martial artists.

They respect and follow them.

So the students trained in martial arts, who had that mindset ingrained, leaped off the bridge first to kill monsters and assist the vice principal.

Since they were martial artists, they wouldn't get hurt even falling from that height.

And then the mages, who usually didn't get along well with those martial artists, followed after.

"Damn those muscle-brained idiots...! Guys, let's go too! We can't lose to them!"

The mages descended slowly using wind magic.

Seeing the mages jump off as well, the summoners and spirit summoners gained courage and jumped off the bridge together.

Not far away, I saw Seonghyeon jumping down and Lee Jiwoo slowly descending while clinging to a bird-like spirit.

'No wonder so many students got injured.'

Even considering their youthful recklessness, this seemed far too rash.

"Haa...."

"This is why those muscle-brained fools who only know how to fight..."

"Forget it, let's just hurry up and evacuate."

The teachers and the non-combat students could only sigh as more than half the students left without any chance to stop them.