[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss":3,"chapter-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-20":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","I Became the Academy’s Final Boss",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1319739,1753,"Chapter 20","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-20",20,"\u003Cp>Chapter 20\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason Dan Chun-woo was called the scoundrel of the great Swordmaster family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he had been accustomed to a life of having everything from a young age, he was steeped in extreme individualism and a superiority complex, believing himself to be the center of the world and the noblest being of all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heaven above, earth below—only I am supreme.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the phrase that most accurately defined Dan Chun-woo’s mental state at the moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just look at him now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kim Ye-seul thanked the guy who blocked the fireball, yet he didn’t even pretend to hear her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, he kicked off the ground and broke formation on his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, where are you going!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before we could even say another word, his figure had already vanished far beyond the cityscape, and a bombardment of fireballs from the Imps began to pour down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, screw the points and everything else—as long as he got away, that’s all that mattered?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I began circulating the Asura Divine Art, which I had preheated in advance, and almost at the same time, fireballs rained down from the sky like a torrential downpour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kyaaaah!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Get lost!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kim Ye-seul screamed in terror, and I swung my arm through the air, releasing the energy of the Asura Divine Art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the fireballs filling the sky froze in place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flame of the Asura Divine Art was the karmic fire that burned sinners in hell—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>a higher concept than ordinary flames.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To exert dominance over lesser flames was as easy as blowing one’s nose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kki... kkireuk?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bewildered Imps soon realized their fire attacks were useless and revealed themselves from all directions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were short like children, covered in black fur.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With eyes as red as blood, each of them held a trident as tall as themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kick, kikirik.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kirik, kik, kikik.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even at a glance, there were hundreds of Imps appearing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“H-how are we supposed to...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the overwhelming number of enemies, Kim Ye-seul dropped to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo wasn’t much different—gone was his earlier arrogance, and now he was trembling uncontrollably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Get a grip! They’re just Imps!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“B-but...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Did you forget these are all holograms? You won’t really die, so do something!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A forest of blazing buildings, and before us, hundreds of Imps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heat and impact of the fireballs they threw were indistinguishable from the real thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the pain was vividly real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The stage, as if truly alive, swallowed them whole.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At my words, Kim Ye-seul steadied herself on her staff and slowly stood up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was clear that her mana hadn’t fully recovered; her body was still trembling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn it. No choice, then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We’d have to gamble everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I turned my gaze toward Park Min-seo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“During orientation, you said you could fight like me as long as you had a weapon. Was that all just bluffing?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“S-shut up!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His face flushed with humiliation, and he gripped his weapon so tightly it looked like it would snap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It looked less like anger or courage and more like desperation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And my job was to shape that desperation into something useful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you’re only good at running your mouth, then do yourself a favor—stay out of my sight and live quietly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What did you just say?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grinding his teeth, he glared at me as if ready to explode.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fire in his eyes blazed so fiercely it felt like he might swing his sword at me instead of the Imps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Can’t have that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Otherwise, prove it. That self-righteous Dan Chun-woo cut down flames, and I blocked them. Even Ye-seul here used defensive magic. What have you done?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unable to stand my words any longer, Park Min-seo let out a furious roar and charged at the Imps, just like Dan Chun-woo had earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, I grabbed Kim Ye-seul by the nape and followed after him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“W-wait, what?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stick close! Just make your mana flare or something—anything to draw the Imps’ attention!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even in her panic, Kim Ye-seul did her best, unleashing bursts of unstable mana from her staff that flashed erratically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I, too, released waves of flame around us with the Asura Divine Art.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“W-what good will this do?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s buying time!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At my words, Park Min-seo and Kim Ye-seul glanced at me in confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’re stalling until Dan Chun-woo destroys the Mana Stone!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That bastard?! He’s probably dead by now!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh? So now that he’s not here, you’ve got the guts to talk trash about him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Kim Ye-seul clenched her eyes shut, continuing her spells as if she thought the same thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed they both believed that Dan Chun-woo, who’d rushed out earlier, was dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there had been no notification that a teammate had died yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which meant—he was still alive somewhere out there on the field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course he was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As much of a self-centered, insolent bastard as he was—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the kind who ignored orders like they were beneath him—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he wasn’t stupid enough to lose sight of the situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More than that, he was the grandson of the Swordmaster himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Playable Character always had superior stats compared to regular ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no way he’d be declared dead just for being alone in a place like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Think about it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Siwoo had managed to destroy the Mana Stone during a monster wave by himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Park Siwoo could do it, you think Dan Chun-woo couldn’t?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because at this point in time, Dan Chun-woo was stronger than Park Siwoo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, what we had to do now was endure until Dan Chun-woo destroyed the Mana Stone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And act as if our stalling was part of some grand strategy—to deceive the instructors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Just stay alive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stepped forward and thrust my fist into the endless black tide before us.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A karmic flame erupted, piercing through the horde of Imps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then everything will fall into place.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo, having forgotten even to swing his weapon, simply stared at Yoo Sung-woo at the forefront of the formation, who was crushing the Imps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every time he threw a punch, gaping holes tore through the black tide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In contrast, though he had charged at the Imps first, Park Min-seo now found it difficult even to block the ones right in front of him from the very rear of the formation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An Imp’s trident pierced through his shield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Startled, Park Min-seo swung his sword in fury, cutting through the Imp that broke his guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn it, you bastard!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each time he swung his sword recklessly, an Imp’s head flew off, but still, they kept coming, trampling over the corpses of their fallen comrades.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though he knew they were just holograms, he could feel fear slowly consuming him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How much time had passed?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Five minutes? Ten? Thirty?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he continued cutting through the endless horde, his sense of time began to blur.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how many he cut down, it never ended.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Imps were spawning faster than he could kill them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was overwhelming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Am I going to die here like this?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>KWAANG!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, a huge explosion thundered nearby, and a wave of searing heat brushed across Park Min-seo’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Get it together! Your side’s defense is collapsing!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At Yoo Sung-woo’s reprimand, Park Min-seo’s face twisted in irritation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shut up! Mind your own business!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you fall, we all fall!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catching his breath for a brief moment, Park Min-seo began swinging his sword again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘That monster… he doesn’t even look tired.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yoo Sung-woo was clearly handling far more Imps than he was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Kim Ye-seul had run out of mana and couldn’t use magic, Yoo Sung-woo was covering for her as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And whenever it seemed like they were being pushed back, he’d unleash an explosion to wipe out the Imps in one go, even giving them time to catch their breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching that, Park Min-seo trembled in humiliation and frustration at his own incompetence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Park Min-seo, Yoo Sung-woo was someone who had gotten a perfect score on an exam purely by luck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the instructors mistook that lucky result for actual ability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo couldn’t understand those instructors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure, Yoo Sung-woo’s skills were impressive—he’d admit that much.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But wasn’t it all possible only because the instructors went easy on him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He believed that anyone with his level of talent could have done the same under similar circumstances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet after that, Yoo Sung-woo had started associating openly with the freshman representatives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was when a shadow began to take root in Park Min-seo’s heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then one day, when he saw the black badge pinned to Yoo Sung-woo’s chest—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo felt something inside him collapse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Student Council.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An elite group that every cadet at the Academy dreamed of joining.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he had gotten in? That kind of guy?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Filthy jealousy began to burn inside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had been rejected immediately during the document screening stage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that guy?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The same guy who had only gotten full marks because of luck?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enraged by the unfairness of the world, Park Min-seo was consumed by anger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, during the start of practical training, he found himself assigned to the same team as Yoo Sung-woo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He considered it a golden opportunity—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chance to expose Yoo Sung-woo for what he really was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when the practical started, nothing went as he had expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The monsters made of holograms were far more realistic than he’d imagined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their attacks were brutal, and every movement reeked of murderous intent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every time he faced that raw malice, Park Min-seo forgot that these monsters weren’t real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fear consumed him; his whole body trembled, and he could barely move, let alone fight properly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And of all people, it was Yoo Sung-woo who had snapped him out of that fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At some point, Park Min-seo’s wildly swinging sword stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t even tell if the emotion boiling inside him was anger, inferiority, or shame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heat from the karmic flames made his face burn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone shouted at him, but Park Min-seo didn’t listen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The darkness that had long taken root in his heart began devouring his emotions and growing rapidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That darkness, nourished by humiliation, inferiority, and shame, began to consume him whole.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And at that very moment—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A beautiful voice echoed from somewhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A voice so lovely, he felt he had never heard anything like it in his life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>— Child, I can feel your pain and suffering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>— Do you wish to become special like those before you?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if hypnotized, Park Min-seo nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone once said—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A demon appears most beautifully when a human is at their ugliest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It shows up like hope in the depths of despair, only to drag the person deeper into darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo saw a light shining brilliantly within the dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>— I shall grant you power. The power to shine brighter than them all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Park Min-seo stopped moving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That idiot!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t even hold out a little longer before retiring? For the sake of our scores and the bet, I couldn’t allow a single teammate to drop out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Snap out of it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I grabbed him by the collar and yanked him out of the barrage of attacks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, I stepped forward and unleashed a blast of karmic flame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flames surged outward, pushing the Imps back for a brief moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I seized him by the shoulders and turned him toward me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, you son of a— …what the?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something was off about him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes were unfocused, and he was muttering to himself as if possessed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sharp sense of déjà vu hit me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No way…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I slapped him hard across the face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>SMACK!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His neck twisted sharply from the blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Startled, Kim Ye-seul grabbed my hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“W-what are you doing?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait—it’s fine. I’m fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, Park Min-seo came to and stopped her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cracked his neck a few times and then apologized to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sorry. My mind wandered for a second.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he tightened his grip on his weapon again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in that short moment, something about his aura had completely changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mana enveloped his sword, radiating a blue light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The exhaustion from fighting the endless Imps had vanished entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked like a completely different person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if he had been… corrupted by a Demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was about to say something to him when he turned toward the Imps, ready to charge—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>BEEEEEP—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bell signaling the end of the practical session rang out, and the holograms around us began to fade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dan Chun-woo had destroyed the Mana Stone.\u003C\u002Fp>",2093,"2026-06-05T19:04:26.586Z",1,"novelbin.me","453a92ecba7868b7750ddcc45d6ab1161bdf48b7ed162731f1b174beee770712","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-21","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-19",137,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-cover.jpg"]