I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy

December website update

The rumors about the new professor for the Understanding Dark Magic and How to Counter It class, Scarlet, spread rapidly. 

Since it was a mandatory subject, most of Stella’s cadets were taking this course, and having been previously taught by an old, dull professor, the students couldn’t help but be intrigued by a professor with a youthful and charming appearance.

Matching their expectations, Scarlet soon became a beloved professor among the students. 

Though some of it might have been due to her charm magic, Scarlet’s playful way of speaking made her endearing to most of the students.

"… Professor Scarlet?"

Sitting idly at his desk and staring out the window, Ma Yu-Seong perked up his ears when he overheard the interesting topic.

"Yeah. Aren’t you attending the Understanding Dark Magic and How to Counter It class today too, Ma Yu-Seong?"

Ma Yu-Seong smiled at that. 

If Baek Yu-Seol or Flame had been there, they would have teased him, saying,’This guy doesn’t even know what classes he has today!’ 

But, since he was the top student, his classmates assumed he couldn’t be so absent-minded and continued chatting.

"She honestly looked like a middle schooler though."

"Middle schooler? Wow! She must be really young-looking."

"That’s what I’m saying."

"But isn’t there something strange about it?" 

"What’s strange?"

"When a mage reaches a high level, they do look younger, but they can’t look like a child again. That’s a whole different realm—what they call 'rejuvenation.'"

"Oh…right?"

"A supreme mage who reaches the class 9 might transcend human limits, but… How can a professor look like a middle schooler?"

As Ma Yu-Seong smiled and posed this question, his friends exchanged stunned looks.

"… You’re right."

It was an obvious question they should have asked, yet they hadn’t even considered it—almost as if someone had compelled them not to.

Seeing his friends' serious expressions, Ma Yu-Seong drew a conclusion.

"Oh, so maybe she really is a middle schooler? If she’s some kind of prodigy, it might be possible, right?"

"Ah… Yeah. That’s true! Come to think of it, we don’t even know which university or tower Professor Scarlet graduated from."

"She might be incredibly skilled but lack experience because of her age."

"Learning from a middle schooler…"

"It’s a little embarrassing, but also pretty impressive."

Watching his friends accept his nonsensical theory so readily, Ma Yu-Seong’s expression hardened. 

Were they truly foolish enough to believe something so absurd? 

No, that wasn’t possible. Whether in Class C or D, everyone at Stella Academy was an elite, a genius.

A spell so powerful that it could block the thought processes of the brightest minds here…

This entire academy was swayed by the magic of a single individual.

‘Did it not work on the other professors?’

For a large-scale suggestion spell like that to blanket Stella, it would need to be weakened to affect everyone equally.

‘Why are they just letting this happen?’

Stroking his chin as he pondered, Ma Yu-Seong quickly reached a conclusion.

‘The academy must have some backing. It couldn't be the principal who approved this… So the answer is likely Vice Principal Archie Hayden.’

Having reached that conclusion, Ma Yu-Seong stood up from his seat.

"I have the next class, so I’ll get going."

"Alright!"

"Let me know how Professor Scarlet’s class goes afterward! I don’t have it this week."

"Got it. I will."

Though his next class was the Understanding Dark Magic and How to Counter It class, he had no intention of attending it right away. 

He wasn’t foolish enough to face a mysterious mage capable of using such powerful magic without any preparation.

———

In the Primordial Mountain Range, the Land of the Dead Giants.

This place was untouched by humans for over a hundred years. It was now filled with over 300 mages chanting spells. 

In the sky, nine monoliths, each linked to branches of the World Tree, floated while radiating nine different colors of light. 

With each spell cast by the mages, the light intensified, forming a massive, dome-shaped barrier.

"Cough…!"

One mage collapsed while foaming from the mouth, and the magical response team quickly ran to carry him away. 

The strenuous process of layering double and triple seals day and night had pushed them to their physical limits.

The medical team dispatched by the Magical Disaster Response Association was shocked to learn that the woman who had fainted was a revered class 7 mage.

"Even someone of her caliber couldn’t withstand it…"

"While others have been working in shifts, she hasn’t rested for days."

"She’s… Incredible."

Considering this was a matter involving the ‘Twelve Divine Moons,’ it was only natural for mages to exert every ounce of strength.

"But the sealing is almost complete."

"Yes. The Elf King, the Dwarf King, and the Principal of Stella are truly extraordinary."

Despite the immense difficulty of setting the first seal, they had managed it with just the power of those three alone. 

Mages marveled at their greatness, realizing that while it took a thousand of them several days to establish the second and third seals, those three had done it by themselves for the first.

"Now that it’s nearly finished, let’s give it one last push."

Just as the mages felt a glimmer of hope and renewed their efforts…

"Hey. What’s that in the sky?"

Someone shouted while pointing upwards.

"What are you talking about?"

Blinded by the sun’s glare, it was hard to see the sky. Shielding their eyes with their hands, people squinted to look up.

The nine sealing stones.

In between them… A man with gray hair was walking through the air.

"Who… Who’s that? Who’s that man?"

"Why is an outsider here?"

"Bring him down immediately!"

The security team leaped into the air with power jumps and launched their spells to intercept him, but the sky twisted into a sphere, absorbing all the magic.

"What…?"

Their surprise was short-lived, as the space twisted again, and they realized that the magic they had just fired was now being reflected back at them. They quickly tried to defend.

Boom!

"Aaaargh!"

The magic didn’t just target the security team—it scattered in all directions and even harmed the mages who were in the middle of the sealing process.

“Damn it… He’s a spatial mage! Avoid using projectile magic that he could absorb!”

The mages waved their staffs, casting a different type of spell. If he was reflecting absorbed magic, what if they created the magic directly at the target’s coordinates?

“…Nice try.”

However, the gray-haired man didn’t react at all. That was because all of the mages’ spells struck empty space instead.

Boom!

A fire spell aimed at the man’s forehead suddenly exploded on the ground, ice spikes sprouted from random places, and compressed air blasts ended up choking the very casters. 

‘Coordinate disruption!’

A defense unique to spatial mages. It was meant to evade targeted magic.

But… This was excessive.

“To disrupt coordinates on such a wide scale!”

To their knowledge, only one person had the spatial mastery to control an area wide enough to redirect magic launched from several hundred meters in the air to the ground.

Elthman Elwin.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

“No way…”

“A class 9…Grand Mage?”

The idea that there might be another class 9 spatial mage in the world aside from Elthman Elwin was unheard of.

“I don’t appreciate being treated as a mere mage.” 

With a snap of his fingers, all the security team members flying toward him crashed to the ground, as if their flight magic had been forcibly canceled.

He then raised both hands, gathering mana with all his might. As he clenched his fists, the sealing stones began to drift apart.

Crack! Crack!

The branches of the World Tree connected by Florin started to tear, and the light from the sealing stones flickered ominously.

“No. It can’t be!”

“Stop him now!”

The mages tried firing spells at the gray-haired man, but nothing reached him. Instead, the spell trajectories were completely disrupted, causing them to attack each other, only increasing their losses.

“This can’t be…”

As the hopeless situation caused some mages to fall to their knees, the entire space suddenly began to glow with a soft blue light. It was a spectacular sight, as if a small aurora was covering the whole array of sealing stones.

“You’re getting annoying.”

For the first time, the gray-haired man, who had ignored all spells until now, frowned and stepped back.

A rumbling sound echoed as the torn sealing stones began to mend. Descending from the sky was a young-looking boy with long silver hair.

Elthman Elwin.

Smiling with childlike innocence, he addressed the gray-haired man.

“Twelve Divine Moon, Fawn Prevernal Moon. You’re pretty handsome, aren’t you?”

Fawn Prevernal Moon didn’t respond and silently stared at Elthman Elwin.

“A human who knows a little something about handling space. I see.”

“‘A little something’ is harsh.”

Eltman spoke lightly. Though he was aware that the situation was grim.

‘This is bad. I just wanted to return to Stella and take a break…’

Eltman was already exhausted from building the powerful sealing magic. 

Florin had fainted long ago and was taken away by high elf knights, while the Dwarf King, who insisted he’d be fine with just a beer, had ultimately passed out as well.

With the other mages unable to land any effective blows on Fawn Prevernal Moon, they were of no help in this situation.

‘Even at my best condition, I couldn’t beat that man.’

If Elthman Elwin was a spatial mage, Fawn Prevernal Moon was practically ‘space’ itself. 

Even if his own master, Rudrick of the New Moon Tower, showed up, taking on that man would be a struggle.

He needed to buy time.

To regain a bit of stamina and mental strength, Eltman began speaking to Fawn Prevernal Moon.

“Why are you interfering? You all despise each other. That’s why I was trying to put him to sleep. Done you like that?”

Fawn Prevernal Moon narrowed his eyes and replied, “We must meet.”

“Hm~ Really? I didn’t expect you to be so close. But even Dusk Soil Moon wouldn’t want to wake up someone who’s asleep, right?”

“This is the only time he can be awakened.”

“But you know it too—Twelve Divine Moons are… never supposed to meet. That’s a rule made by the ‘Progenitor Mage.’ Are you planning to break it?”

“A rule….”

Fawn Prevernal Moon scoffed. 

“That kind of rule has been broken tens of millions of times already.”

“Tens of millions of times?”

Since the Twelve Divine Moons appeared in this world a thousand years ago, there had been no record of them ever meeting each other. At least, that’s what Eltman knew.

“A human mind cannot comprehend this.”

“Hey. I’m pretty smart for a human! Explain it. If it makes sense, I’ll let you go along with your plan. But you should know—I can be a real pain if I want to.”

Eltman avoided provoking Fawn Prevernal Moon by pretending he could win. Instead, he aimed to avoid a direct fight and persuade him through words.

After watching Eltman with his lips pressed tight, Fawn Prevernal Moon appeared to decide it would be easier to pass without further interruptions and spoke slowly.

“As fate decrees, all Twelve Divine Moons must gather.”

“And what happens if you gather?”

“The Eternal Night will awaken.”

“… Is that good news for us?”

“It is.”

“Really? Can I trust you on that? An unending Eternal Night sounds terrifying to me.”

“It is your role to walk the path set by fate. If you do not wish to incur the wrath of the constellation, you will comply, Grand Mage.”

“The wrath of the constellation…”

Eltman didn’t expect any positive news from Fawn Prevernal Moon. Every tale, legend, and myth agreed on one point: the Twelve Divine Moons should never meet.

But why?

Why did every story, legend, and myth unite in preventing a meeting of the Twelve Divine Moons?

It was obvious.

Because the moment they gathered, a great disaster would ensue.

“You are rare among humans to have tasted the will of the heavens. You know that fate cannot be defied.”

“Yeah. I know it well.”

“Then do not obstruct us. Stand aside.”

Fawn Prevernal Moon assumed Elthman Elwin understood by now. For him, following the natural order of things was a given, and he assumed the Grand Mage would accept that.

But there was something even Fawn Prevernal Moon didn’t know.

The human will to survive… is stronger than expected.

Eltman’s lips curled up. Though his eyes weren’t smiling at all. They looked dead, almost hollow.

“Sorry. After hearing your story, I can’t let you do this.”

“…  Are you saying you’re willing to face the wrath of the constellation?”

Elthman Elwin grasped space with both hands.

“The human will to survive transcends even fate, Fawn Prevernal Moon. Even if that means defying the will of the gods.”

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Goal: 20 Bonus Chapters to Celebrate 300 Chapters of Flashing Genius!

I’m beyond excited to share that we’ve reached an incredible milestone: 300 chapters of Flashing Genius! When I first started translating this novel, it was just me, my laptop, and a passion for this story. Back then, I never imagined that this book would receive so much attention.

To celebrate, I’m setting a Kofi goal for 20 bonus chapters of Flashing Genius. Once we reach our target, I’ll release these bonus chapters. Every tip, pledge, or share makes a /zenith677/goal?g=0