I Became an Unknown Professor at the Academy - Chapter 24

The appearance of Baek Woo-jin, unchanged from the last time they met, completely froze Kang Hana’s thoughts.

However, Kim Kyung-ho, who was also startled by the sudden situation, quickly snapped out of his daze and began turning his thoughts at a furious pace, as if his life depended on it—something he hadn’t experienced since his active days in the field.

‘Why the hell is that guy here…!!’

Kim Sung-won, the chief financial officer, and the document in his hand.

Kim Kyung-ho’s gaze shifted to Kim Sung-won, who was standing next to Baek Woo-jin.

A young man with a large build that made one look up.

‘…… There’s something about that guy.’

Even though it had been a long time since he retired and stopped going into the field, it made no sense that he, an awakener, hadn’t sensed the presence of the two men approaching.

As evidence, he couldn’t feel any energy from the two men standing before him.

‘First of all—’

“Kim Sung-won.”

Before Kim Kyung-ho could desperately come up with an excuse, Baek Woo-jin called out to Kim Sung-won first.

“Yes, Professor.”

‘…… Huh?’

Kim Kyung-ho was shocked to see Kim Sung-won, who usually treated professors like monsters and cursed at the magicology professors whenever he had the chance, bowing politely to the young man.

However, his shock was short-lived.

“I’ll take care of things here, so go and call the head of the faculty.”
“Yes, sir.”

As Kim Sung-won turned to leave to call the head of the faculty, who was absent today, Kim Kyung-ho quickly shouted to stop him.

“Wait!!!”
“Let’s just get this over with cleanly.”
“What, what?! Wait… Kim Sung-won!!!”

Kim Kyung-ho desperately called out to Kim Sung-won, who was leaving the room, but he clicked his tongue and left without a care in the world.

‘Damn it……!!’

He wanted to run after Kim Sung-won, take the document from his hand, and stop him, but the young man standing before him was a distraction, making it difficult for him to act.

The reason was that Kim Sung-won, who usually treated professors like monsters, had shown such polite deference to the young man.

Of course, he couldn’t cause a commotion within the Academy either.

In the end, Kim Kyung-ho concluded that he couldn’t do anything unless he dealt with the young man standing at the door. Just as he was about to speak—

“Kang Hana.”
“…… Yes?”

Kang Hana, who had been dazed by Baek Woo-jin’s sudden appearance, snapped out of her trance and flinched at the sound of her name.

“Go and gather everyone.”
“Umm… all of them…?”
“All of them.”
“Oh, um… okay… yes, sir.”

As she nodded like a ghost-possessed person and started to move, Kim Kyung-ho grabbed her arm and said:

“Hey!! Don’t gather everyone!! Go and stop Kim Sung-won, you idiot!!!”

Something cracked in Kim Kyung-ho’s wrist as he grabbed Kang Hana’s arm, and he quickly covered his own mouth to stop himself from shouting.

“Go.”
“Yes, yes……”

She responded more to Baek Woo-jin’s honeyed voice than to Kim Kyung-ho’s glaring eyes, and she quickly ran out of the room.

Clack—

The door to the chief supervisor’s room closed again.

“Ugh! Ugh!”

Kim Kyung-ho, whose wrist was completely broken, covered his mouth with his broken arm, his face turning pale.

‘W-What the…?!’

The magic within his body had completely escaped his control and was now controlling his body instead.

“Kim Kyung-ho.”
“Ugh?!”

The pain in his brain made him frown, but his scattered thoughts suddenly returned to him, as if they had never left.

He glared at the man who had called his name, his eyes narrowed.

No matter how much he had messed up, this was clearly crossing the line. Even if he was fired from his position as a professor, he had to—

“Before I gouge your eyes out, relax your body.”
“……”

The anger in Kim Kyung-ho’s eyes, as if he was about to glare a hole through Baek Woo-jin, slowly lowered to the floor.

The pain and the shame of being outmaneuvered by such a young man had caused his anger to flare up, but his instincts and experience quickly suppressed it.

The first and second generations of awakeners.
In other words, the time when gates and awakeners first began to appear.

Back then, it was a time when might ruled over law.
And Kim Kyung-ho was a second-generation awakener.

He instinctively realized that the words that had just come out of Baek Woo-jin’s mouth were not a simple threat.

Despite the excruciating pain in his broken wrist, Kim Kyung-ho clenched his teeth and remained silent, not even letting out a whimper.

Baek Woo-jin continued, stepping closer to Kim Kyung-ho until their breaths intermingled.

“You’re an awakener too, so you know. It’s only difficult the first time. After that, you just get used to it.”

Stealing something.
Killing someone.

If one does it willingly, not forced, humans eventually adapt, get used to it, and become skilled at it.

They learn to move stealthily to avoid being detected.
They strengthen their legs and feet to avoid being caught.
They develop their dexterity to extract what they want.

Killing someone.
Learning the most suitable fighting style for oneself.
Strengthening one’s body to avoid death.

Greed is no different.
Little by little, one expands one’s territory.
All for one’s own gain.
One’s sense of guilt erodes away without one even realizing it.

“Kim Kyung-ho.”

Baek Woo-jin took a step closer to him and spoke in a low voice.

Their breaths mingled, so close that they could feel each other’s presence.

Kim Kyung-ho looked down at the shadow cast by the man before him.

Baek Woo-jin said quietly:

“Be content with what you have and leave for a quiet place.”

Kim Kyung-ho’s magic gathered in his left chest, slowly pressing against his heart.

“If you want to live a long life, that is.”

**

On the other hand, the professors and staff members who had been finalizing the preparations for the upcoming exam looked at the person who had gathered them and blinked.

“Everyone is here……”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes……”

Kang Hana nodded to Kim Sung-won, who had taken her place in finalizing the preparations.

“What’s the reason for gathering us here?”

At that moment, the most senior professor among them stepped forward and asked Kim Sung-won.

On his left hand was a brown ring.

Not only that, but all the professors gathered as supervisors for the exam were wearing brown rings.

The brown ring was the lowest of the three-tiered ranking system.

Kim Sung-won looked at the professors gathered behind him and said:

“The chief supervisor asked me to gather you, so don’t ask me any questions.”
“…… Is the Chairman coming?”

The position of chief supervisor was usually held by the Chairman.

However, the Chairman was extremely busy, so he rarely showed up in person, which was why the professor was so surprised that he asked for clarification.

“That guy went into a 12-level gate this summer to get an artifact as a prize, so he isn’t going to show up here.”
“……?”

Kim Sung-won waved his hand dismissively and said:

“Starting this year, another professor will take over as chief supervisor, so just assume that and wait.”
“……”

Everyone at the Academy knew what kind of person Kim Sung-won was, so the professor just closed his mouth and returned to his original position.

“Hmm?”

Kim Sung-won suddenly checked his smartwatch and took out his smartphone from his pocket, walking towards the back of the hall.

-Hey, Choi. Stop dicking around and get to the main hall quickly…

As Kim Sung-won left, everyone’s gaze naturally shifted to Kang Hana.

“Hey, Kang Hana. Is it true that someone other than the Chairman has become the chief supervisor?”
“…… I’ve never heard of it either.”

It was true.
She had just gathered everyone because she was told to do so, and she knew nothing more.

“Damn… Is the Chairman bringing in some retired old fart from a big guild again?”
“I’m busy as hell, and what’s with this assembly, fuck…”

Complaints erupted from various corners. If it had been another professor’s instruction, Kang Hana would have reacted no differently.

‘He’s the same as he was back then……’

The only difference was his attire.
He was exactly the same as he had been eight years ago.

Messy hair, large glasses, and a deep voice.

‘…… No, snap out of it, Kang Hana.’

Now wasn’t the time to be distracted by a man.
If she wasn’t careful, she might get entangled in that incident herself.

She subconsciously rubbed her wrist, trying to hide her anxiety.

It still felt sore, as if Kim Kyung-ho had gripped it quite tightly.

‘…… It was broken, wasn’t it.’

She had heard the familiar sound of bone cracking when Kim Kyung-ho grabbed her wrist.

Kim Kyung-ho’s reaction had confirmed it as well.

‘I wonder why he’s here now.’

She had searched for him so much.

Kang Hana, who had decided not to think about Baek Woo-jin, found herself filling her thoughts with him again.

Clack.

The sound from behind startled the hall, and the noisy auditorium suddenly fell silent.

Kang Hana, too, snapped out of her thoughts and tensed up.

“…… Huh?”
“Kim Kyung… Ho… Professor…?”

People who had been grumbling a moment ago now looked stupidly wide-eyed, their mouths slightly agape.

Kang Hana, unable to contain her curiosity, turned her head slightly.

‘What the hell……’

While she didn’t make a stupid face like the others, she was no less shocked.

Kim Kyung-ho, his right hand swollen, his face pale, walked out with a look of sheer terror.

‘He’s completely terrified……’

Kim Kyung-ho, who usually exuded a wild aura and, to be frank, had a dirty-looking face, now looked like a man facing death as he approached the door of the hall.

And.

“Is everyone here?”
“Huh?”

Kang Hana, startled by the sweet voice right next to her, blurted out a foolish response.

Baek Woo-jin, standing next to her, asked again:

“I asked if this is everyone.”
“Ah, yes. Everyone, everyone is here.”
“Good.”

At her answer, Baek Woo-jin nodded once and turned to face the others, who were still staring at him.

Boom—!!

The auditorium, designed to never shake unless the ground itself split, trembled violently.

“What, what’s going on!”
“Is it an attack?!”
“The equipment, the equipment!!”

The hall became chaotic in an instant.

Baek Woo-jin opened his mouth.

【Be quiet.】

His voice, as clear as if whispered right next to their ears, carried a strong force that compelled obedience.

“……?”
“Oh……”

The chaotic hall quickly returned to silence, even more swiftly than it had become chaotic.

Baek Woo-jin looked at the people gathered before him and continued:

“I gathered you here to give you a warning and an opportunity.”

Someone might have had questions, but with Baek Woo-jin’s voice, which naturally carried a sense of authority, no one dared to interrupt him. They just listened with half-dazed expressions.

“Kim Kyung-ho, who just left, will be dismissed from his position as a professor today. The reason is that he attempted to manipulate the evaluation of a specific examinee.”

Some knew this already, while others were shocked to hear it for the first time.

“If you confess now, I promise that it will only result in a simple dismissal.”

Baek Woo-jin looked directly at the professors wearing the brown rings, one by one.

“Also, if anyone knows about this matter, report it to me. No evidence is required. Just tell me the fact.”

Baek Woo-jin turned to Kang Hana and threw the sky-blue ring at her.

“Huh……?”

Kang Hana caught the ring instinctively and looked up at him.

“Your rank will be lowered to brown, but you will take over Kim Kyung-ho’s lectures from now on.”
“…… Huh? Me… me…?”

Baek Woo-jin nodded once and turned back to the others.

“This is the opportunity I’m giving you. I’ll give those of you with brown rings the opportunity to raise your rank. If you don’t like that, you can ask for something else.”

Squeak—

Just then, the back door of the hall opened, and Kim Sung-won entered with a middle-aged man with a head full of hair, but they quickly backed away when they sensed the atmosphere inside.

Baek Woo-jin turned and said:

“Don’t worry about retaliation.”

He adjusted his glasses, which had slipped down slightly, and grabbed the doorknob of the chief supervisor’s room. Then, he spoke in a low voice:

“I’ll make sure you never cross paths with them again.”

With that, Baek Woo-jin entered the chief supervisor’s room again.

Even after Baek Woo-jin left, none of those present, including Kang Hana, moved or spoke.

They just stared blankly at the door of the supervisor’s room, as if bewitched.

Swoosh—

Amidst the strange silence that had fallen over the hall, Kim Sung-won and Choi Seok-hee, the head of the faculty, quietly slipped in.

“What are you all standing around for? Get back to work and finish up. Hey, you professors… Hmm, tsk tsk.”

Kim Sung-won clicked his tongue at the professors and staff who were standing there dumbly and quickly retreated into the chief supervisor’s room.

At that moment, one of the professors muttered as he watched the closing door of the supervisor’s room.

“I wonder if that guy is human……”