Chapter 29: The Finally Revealed Downfall of the Notorious Baek Jooseok

“I want to tear open the mouths of liars and kill them.”

[Lightning Storm]

-Bzzzzt

As I cast the spell, Han Seongjun, the vice-guild master of the Valdena Guild, was engulfed in electricity. But I didn’t stop there.

[Absorb]

After absorbing enough of his mana,

[Teleport]

[Gravity]

-BAMMMM

I slammed his head into the ground.

Then, I looked at the rest of the Valdena Guild members. There seemed to be at least 30 of them.

I spoke in a low, cold voice as I looked at them.

“You Fuckers. You’re all criminals anyway, aren’t you?”

-BOOMMMM

“D… damn it… take cover!”

-Whoooosh

-Slash

“AAAAARGH!”

-Bzzt

An icy storm and lightning surged around wildly, along with ice spears.

Sometimes, I used teleportation to smash heads into the ground, absorbing and releasing mana as I went.

In no time, dozens of swordsmen were left as cold corpses.

“Hah…”

After killing the rest of the guild members, I approached Han Seongjun and grabbed his head, lifting him up.

“Ugh…”

He groaned in pain.

“Hey, you’re the vice-guild master of Valdena, right? Your name is Han Seongjun.”

“Y… Yes, that’s right…”

He obediently responded to my words.

“You, did you know that one of your comrades destroyed the Intranet Master Key?”

He nodded and spoke.

“I was the one who gave the order myself. It was crucial evidence, so I told them to either hide or destroy it, and that they’d be killed if it was discovered later. I assume that’s why they destroyed it.”

Although his orders differed slightly from what I overheard in the cave, it didn’t matter. After all, I had already killed the one who broke the Intranet Master Key.

I concentrated mana in my hand, adding pressure as I spoke to Han Seongjun.

“Han Seongjun, the destruction of the Intranet Master Key has put me in quite a difficult situation.”

“Wh… what do you mean by that…?”

“You know a guy named Choi Juwon, right? The one who used to be an S-Class instructor at Helmunt Academy?”

“Yes… I’ve come across the name in some reports. I don’t know his face, but I’ve heard of him.”

“That’s me.”

Hiccup

Han Seongjun was so startled that he even hiccupped as he looked at me. I continued speaking to him.

“You know the Intranet Master Key you destroyed to help cover up for Chancellor Baek Jooseok, right?

That was the only piece of evidence that could clear my name. You’re aware that Chancellor Baek Jooseok framed me, aren’t you?

But guess what, you even destroyed both of the backup keys. What am I supposed to do now?”

“I… I’m sorry… I really am…”

BAM

SQUISH

I slammed his head into the ground again before continuing.

“I’ve thought about it—what I should do next. But the answer was pretty simple. If there’s no physical evidence, all I need is a testimony, right?”

“Han Seongjun, go turn yourself in to the NPS. Tell them Chancellor Baek Jooseok ordered you to destroy the evidence, that he used the Intranet Master Key, tampered with the records, and framed me.”

“But… if I do that, I could end up dead…”

“Are you scared of Baek Jooseok’s revenge? That’s funny. You’re not scared of the guy standing right in front of you?”

Screech

I pressed his face harder into the ground, and he let out a pained groan.

“Ugh… Please… isn’t there another way? If you just tell me… I’ll do anything…”

“Nope, no other way. I’m Fucking pissed because I need to clear my name, but your guild member destroyed the only evidence that could prove my innocence.

So now, you have to take responsibility and help me. Got it? And just so you know, if you refuse, I’ll shove an ice spear through your throat and kill you right here.”

…

“You’d actually be better off getting locked up at the NPS. No matter how powerful Baek Jooseok is, he can’t kill you if you’re imprisoned there. So, what do you think? Are you going to do as I say, or do you want to die now?”

“I-I’ll do as you say. But… if I do this, will you really let me live?”

“Yes. I’ll spare you. But, of course, I’m not just going to trust a worthless piece of trash like you.”

-[SSS] [Covenant Circle] is now activated.

• Covenant Circle: The spellcaster and the subject can set conditions and results for the pact.
  Both parties must agree to the terms, and once the covenant is made, no magic can break it.
  When the [Conditions] are met, the [Results] will be enforced without exception.
• Please specify the [Conditions] and [Results].

“Condition: If Han Seongjun disobeys even one of the things I’m about to tell him.”

I spoke in general terms first, then provided the details.

“Han Seongjun, you are not allowed to share any details about today that could reveal my identity.

You are also forbidden from seeking revenge against me. And once I release you, you have five hours to turn yourself in at the NPS.

You will testify that Baek Jooseok tampered with the Intranet Master Key and framed Choi Juwon to cover up his actions,

and that he ordered you to destroy the Master Key to hide the evidence.”

-The condition has been set.

Then, I entered the result.

“If you break the [Condition], you will die instantly.”

• The [Conditions] and [Results] of the Covenant Circle have been entered. To confirm mutual agreement, please infuse your mana. Whooong

As I infused my mana first, Han Seongjun hesitated, fumbling without infusing his.

“I’ll give you 3 seconds. If you don’t infuse your mana by then, I’ll just kill you, so decide.”

At that moment, Han Seongjun squeezed his eyes shut and infused his mana.

Mutual agreement has been confirmed. The effect of the Covenant Circle will now be applied.

I spoke with a smile.

“Just in case you’re too much of an idiot to understand, I’ll let you know—this is SSS-grade magic. Don’t even think about trying to break it or do anything stupid like disobeying the conditions. You’ll die instantly. Got it?”

Han Seongjun nodded while crying. I smiled and continued.

“Make sure to do well from now on, alright? You wouldn’t want me to regret sparing your life, would you?”

Step, step

As I was about to leave, I turned back and spoke to him again.

“Oh, and make sure to clean up these bodies yourself before you turn yourself in.

If someone else finds you, just say you got into a fight with an unidentified guild.

You won’t be able to mention me anyway, thanks to the Covenant Circle, so handle it well.”

“Understood…”

I left Han Seongjun behind, staring blankly at the ground with tears streaming down his face.

‘I should’ve done this from the start. Normally, something like this would’ve taken months of headaches, but by using force, it was over in less than an hour.’

Thinking that, I covered myself with the [SS] Perfect Invisibility Cloak and left Baek Jooseok’s residence, heading back home.

Beep, beep, beep

Clunk

When I unlocked the door, which was protected by a magical security system, and entered, I felt all the strength drain from my body. Did I do the right thing? Could there have been another way?

‘Don’t waste time on useless thoughts.’

I shook my head. Then, for the first time in a while, I pulled out the phone I used back when I worked as a lecturer at Helmunt Academy under Chancellor Baek Jooseok.

-Unread messages [4,792]

‘They sure sent a lot.’

I opened the messages and started reading through them one by one.

[Die, you piece of trash.]

[You always looked shady. I guess your appearance was spot on after all.]

[Pathetic bastard. Is spying on others what all men enjoy?]

[I never liked you from the start. You acted all high and mighty, always trying to teach everyone like you knew everything. Serves you right.]

[Pathetic and disgusting.]

[Why were you even born? You’re just wasting oxygen, you vermin.]

[As expected from an orphan. Your behavior is disgraceful.]

[Just kill yourself already.]

[Idiot. You’re a disgrace to Helmunt Academy.]

[You Fucking bastard.]

[That bastard was always acting high and mighty, now he’s screwed.]

[Why don’t you just die? If it were me, I’d have killed myself out of shame.]

[Don’t ever show your face around here again, you idiot.]

I went through every single message without missing one. Not a single message was supportive. Not a single one.

I couldn’t understand it. Not a single person believed in me or sent any words of encouragement. How did it come to this?

‘Is it because I didn’t treat my students well? Or was my reputation already so Fucking to begin with? No.’

I was an S-rank instructor. To become an S-rank instructor, you need to meet several requirements.

One of them is receiving an [Academic Achievement Satisfaction Evaluation] of S from over 90% of your students for six consecutive months.

In other words, I consistently received S-rank satisfaction ratings from more than 90% of my students for over six months.

So why, among 521 people, wasn’t there a single message of support or belief in me?

Given my excellent evaluations, it should be normal for at least one person to believe me when I say I’m innocent.

‘I don’t get it. Fuck. This is just Fucking. From now on, these people are nothing to me. I won’t bother thinking about them.’

Thinking that, I opened the internet on my phone.

‘By now, there should be an article.’

It had been about 10 hours since I parted ways with Han Seongjun, the deputy guild master of Valdena.

If he turned himself in within five hours, then after going through questioning and other processes, the news should have been released by now.

Swipe Swipe

I refreshed the page several times, but no articles came up.

‘Ha… Fuck. Looks like Baek Jooseok really has bribed a lot of people.’

Considering that the [SSS] Covenant Circle was still active, it meant Han Seongjun hadn’t broken the agreement.

He had definitely turned himself in, hours ago. In that case, the reporters stationed at the NPS should have already received the information.

But it seemed like the ones who Baek Jooseok had bribed were delaying and trying to cover up the story.

I switched to Natube, where things were less controlled. There, I saw a familiar face at the top of the trending videos.

‘Jang Hyena. So she’s become popular enough to hit number one in trending.’

I checked the video’s title and couldn’t believe my eyes.

[Jang Hyena Exclusive! Chancellor Baek Jooseok’s Wrongdoings Exposed! Under Investigation for Illegal Intranet Use! Confession from Valdena’s Deputy Guild Master!]

I clicked on the video, and there she was, dressed in a black suit, speaking.

“Hello, everyone. We have received some shocking information.

This comes from none other than the testimony of Valdena’s Deputy Guild Master. According to Han Seongjun,

Chancellor Baek Jooseok has been using the academy’s intranet master key for personal gain and has been bribing several guilds to cover it up.”

“In the process, Chancellor Baek Jooseok shifted the blame onto the former S-rank instructor, Choi Juwon, according to Han Seongjun’s testimony.

The NPS has stated that in order to confirm this, they will forcibly access Helmunt Academy’s intranet and verify the claims.”

“While they mentioned that it may take several months to investigate, as the intranet master key has been destroyed,

given the various pieces of evidence submitted by Valdena’s deputy guild master, it seems likely that these accusations are true…”

Though she didn’t know that I was Choi Juwon, she must have posted the video thinking it could gain traction. Still, I felt a deep sense of gratitude.

‘I’ll have to repay her later. Even though she didn’t know it was me.’

The ball that Jang Hyena had set in motion spread across the country.

[Breaking News! Chancellor Baek Jooseok’s Controversial Use of the Academy’s Intranet! What Will Be His Punishment?…]

[All the Allegations Against Chancellor Baek Jooseok Explained…]

[The Former S-rank Instructor Choi Juwon, Who Was Wrongfully Dismissed. What Has He Been Up To?…]

And that news quickly reached my former students at Helmunt Academy as well.