I Became the Only Non-mage in the Academy

Chapter 222: The Heavenly Demon (2)

“The air is nice.”

Kim Seo-hyun said with a smile.

To be honest, life here was nothing but uncomfortable. The place was full of insects, most of the people encountered here seemed doubtful in terms of cleanliness, and the food wasn’t tasty. Life here was—

However, Kim Seo-hyun could smile pleasantly.

It was nice that her grandfather was here, but what was even better was being with the person she liked.

‘I’d rather have them step aside in this case.’

Kim Seo-hyun erased that unpleasant thought.

Still, being able to have him all to herself without other women around was something.

Over the past three months,

Kim Seo-hyun felt that she had grown closer to Lee Seo-ha than others. Physical contact between them had now become natural.

Kim Seo-hyun was well aware that the relationship between Hong Yu-hwa and Lee Seo-ha was not ordinary.

Their connection seemed sudden, but since Lee Seo-ha was in a position to choose anyone to be with, Kim Seo-hyun didn’t find it strange.

‘At first, I hated it to death.’

When she realized that, something like a dark flame surged within her chest.

For the first time, Kim Seo-hyun became aware of her feelings. It was jealousy.

But now, it didn’t really matter anymore.

Kim Seo-hyun believed that distance weakened the heart. Over the past three months, during a not-insignificant amount of time, she had closed the distance with Lee Seo-ha.

They had gotten close enough that even physical contact didn’t feel awkward anymore. Lee Seo-ha didn’t mind being touched by women at all, but Kim Seo-hyun didn’t know that.

Anyway, though not too close, compared to before, there was a tremendous change in their closeness.

And by now, Hong Yu-hwa’s distance must have also increased.

…At least, that’s what she wanted to believe.

“They say it’s a battlefield, but a fight won’t break out right away. The two forces are in a standoff, aware that they’ll eventually clash. Both the orthodox and unorthodox factions want to delay the battle as much as possible, and even the Demonic Sect is trying to put off the fight.”

“Why is that?”

“The orthodox and unorthodox factions, along with the imperial family secretly aiding them, seem to have some preparations that aren’t finished yet. The Demonic Sect, on the other hand, has been instructed by the Heavenly Demon to focus on the search, so they’re concentrating on that.”

“The Demonic Sect must be impatient due to their demonic arts, right?”

“That’s a common misconception. People think that mastering demonic arts makes you impulsive because demonic energy invades the mind. But the Demonic Sect has found some way to mitigate that side effect.”n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Her grandfather looked at her.

Perhaps he was expecting her to ask how they managed that.

Even though Seo-ha knew most things, she wouldn’t know about this.

“The demonic arts used by the Demonic Sect are called Madu. However, they aren’t demons. The mana they use is slightly tainted by foreign energy, which they call demonic energy, or magi. Still, once you reach the level of the Heavenly Demon, you become an undeniable demon…”

Kim Seo-hyun stopped speaking there, as they got closer to the city.

Something inside her was whispering.

-Devour it.

It was the monster within her.

She turned her gaze to where the monster was staring.

‘Is it there?’

When the Thousand Sorcerer headed to the battlefield—

Kim Seo-hyun felt it instinctively.

When she arrived in this place, when she heard the name Murim and the existence of the ‘Divine Maiden,’ she had a feeling she would meet something resembling herself.

The ambiguous expression that Namgoong Sang-a had when she first saw her came to mind. That expression had soon turned into one of certainty.

She recalled the faint emotion hidden in her eyes.

Disgust.

It was a primal kind of disgust.

The kind of disgust that appeared when humans no longer regarded someone as human. That was what filled Namgoong Sang-a’s eyes, mingled with faint pity. She probably felt the same about herself.

When Kim Seo-hyun confirmed the existence of the Divine Maiden, her heart sank.

She feared that if her secret was revealed, Seo-ha might come to hate her.

Despite being so afraid—

Kim Seo-hyun sneered.

If she saw that existence with her own eyes, or even just hearing about it, she would express disgust.

Because it was related to her origin, the darkest part of her past. It was something she never wanted to face again.

The kind of primal disgust one feels when seeing another human exactly like oneself, in the same form.

---

The group quickly reached their destination.

When you entered the city, you were usually greeted by many busy people.

Unlike the countryside, where everyone had their own tasks, they had no choice but to move about busily.

However, the atmosphere in the city was dark.

People seemed to be on alert for something, and there were warriors scattered everywhere.

“New faces, huh? Who are you?”

“Wearing sakkat? Are you demonic followers?”

Various people picked fights with them. Despite being on the outskirts of the city, this was the reality.

Lee Seo-ha and Kim Seo-hyun suppressed them adequately, concealed themselves, and infiltrated the city.

“There are so many people.”

“…”

Lee Seo-ha looked at Kim Seo-hyun.

Kim Seo-hyun wasn’t listening to him. Her attention was focused elsewhere.

Lee Seo-ha followed Kim Seo-hyun’s gaze.

A woman was staring at them. Even though they had hidden themselves, she looked directly at them.

‘…’

For a moment, Lee Seo-ha stood still, as if speechless.

He was too shocked.

He calmly observed the woman.

She had hair as white as snow. She wore a fine silk robe embroidered with a golden dragon. But more than anything, this woman resembled Kim Seo-hyun in every way.

Twins.

There is a term for identical twins, born looking almost exactly alike in both appearance and body.

But this was different.

It was as if they were manufactured in a factory, two identical beings. The only differences were the color of their hair, their eyes, and perhaps their hairstyle.

“Hm? What have you been staring at all this time…?”

The Divine Maiden.

She was staring at Kim Seo-hyun. Her face was almost identical to Kim Seo-hyun’s. Though their hair and eye colors were different, it was clear she was the same kind of being.

The Divine Maiden’s eyes were lifeless, as though programmed like a doll, reacting in a reflexive manner when she recognized something.

Lee Seo-ha slowly began to loosen up. Thump, thump. His blood began to surge. He knew what this feeling was.

It was the same feeling he got when he was near Kim Seo-hyun, resonating with the dragon’s heart within her.

Now, it was resonating with the Divine Maiden.

‘No way.’

Lee Seo-ha recalled Kim Seo-hyun’s past.

An entity created by the Murim to ensure they wouldn’t be forgotten. A homunculus, made from various materials based on a dragon’s heart.

But he couldn’t think of Kim Seo-hyun as a homunculus.

During the process, she inherited power from a certain god, and through that, she awakened the strength to even slay outer gods on her own.

The collection of all martial arts.

That could be considered her true identity.

‘Does she have nothing?’

Through his seven-colored eyes, there was nothing visible. Even the stars didn’t sense anything special.

Lee Seo-ha calmly observed the woman who resembled Kim Seo-hyun—no, the woman who was identical to her. This must be the Divine Maiden they spoke of.

But he couldn’t hastily come to any conclusions.

He couldn’t sense the same thing that lingered within Kim Seo-hyun.

“Two Divine Maidens…?”

“Wait, that face—isn’t it the same as the one the Heavenly Demon has put a bounty on?”

“The condition was to capture her alive at all costs. I’ve heard that even reporting her could earn enough for several generations to live in luxury…”

The surrounding warriors quietly stared at them.

Lee Seo-ha paid no attention to them. The shaman was one thing, but he was also observing the beings around her.

‘Roughly… three of them are like those parasite hosts and SS captains.’

He measured his opponents’ strength compared to his own.

And he quickly made an estimate.

In this case, it would be better to wipe them all out at once.

Just as he was calculating that, he felt another presence that wasn’t inferior to theirs.

“I’m rather disappointed. Is this all the level of people gathered to face the Heavenly Demon?”

A new woman appeared. She had flaming red hair and eyes.

There was a voice that echoed unpleasantly in one corner of his brain. Where had he heard that voice before? He pondered.

“That flaming red hair and eyes! Pho… Phoenix! It’s one of the Heavenly Demon’s Four Divine Envoys!”

“A… are they really going to start a war?”

Only then did Lee Seo-ha recall the deeds of Phoenix from a corner of his memory.

Because of that creature, China was thrown into chaos.

“What? That man… isn’t he the one the Heavenly Demon has been looking for?”

While destroying various Chinese ruins, he unleashed ancient relics.

“We’ve saved the trouble of searching. Now that I’ve completed the Heavenly Demon’s mission, shall I take care of these ones here?”

After killing and killing again, they even had to summon the apostles, making it all the more troublesome.

Lee Seo-ha smiled faintly as he looked at Phoenix.

“Se… Seo-ha?”

“Over there, the Plum Blossom Sword Master and the Wudang Sword Immortal. Since I’m in a good mood today, you’d better leave while I’m being polite…”

Before Phoenix could finish speaking,

Lee Seo-ha stirred the stars within him. Black energy radiated in all directions. The people around him looked at him with shocked expressions.

“Th… this is the Energy of Defying Heaven?”

“H… how does he have the same power as the Heavenly Demon?! Is this why the Heavenly Demon has been searching for him?!”

“N… no! This isn’t the Energy of Defying Heaven! This is something fundamentally…!”

Chaos spread in all directions.

Lee Seo-ha calmly looked at Phoenix. Phoenix was staring back at him.

“Y… young lord…?”

And then, Lee Seo-ha landed in front of Phoenix.

The stars within him rotated. The light they emitted was faint. Using his full power on them would be a waste.

“I’ve been wanting to meet you.”

“W… what?”

“To kill you properly this time.”

With Lee Seo-ha’s words—

BOOM!

It was as if a bomb had dropped around Phoenix. A deafening explosion spread out, creating a crater around her.