[{"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-3":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},1319722,1753,"Chapter 3","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-3",3,"\u003Cp>Chapter 3\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sudden conversation with the Heavenly Demon was enough to throw my mind into complete disarray.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I forced my drained body to move and sat on the bed to catch my breath, the dizziness that clouded my head finally began to settle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The immediate problem I had to deal with was retrieving the Heart of the Demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Heart of the Demon was a quest item that only appeared in the later stages of Become a Hero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Pandemonium itself was an organization of demon worshippers, it was obvious why they were after it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Heart of the Demon granted tremendous power to whoever consumed it, much like the Philosopher’s Stone, and it was also used as a catalyst for crafting powerful magic or artifacts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, for an ordinary person, it was a relic of pure evil corrupting the user, driving them to ruin, and ultimately devouring their soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I played Become a Hero, demons who consumed the Heart of the Demon were always a pain to deal with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks to their overwhelming power, erratic attack patterns, and insane regeneration that restored health through blood absorption, I had to reload my save file more times than I could count.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it really the right choice to retrieve such a thing for them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Delivering the Heart of the Demon to Pandemonium was no different from strengthening their forces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, I’d be turning an already hard-mode situation into hell mode.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But refusing wasn’t an option either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pandemonium would never just let me go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had never shown mercy to failures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since I was meant to be the vessel for the descent of the Great Lord of the Archdemons, they wouldn’t kill me though what they’d do instead might be worse than death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I hadn’t inherited the memories, I might have considered resisting. But now, with the knowledge of Pandemonium’s cruelty and the atrocities they had committed engraved into my mind, I couldn’t help but hesitate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why on earth did those perverted game developers even include such a setting?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After much thought, I finally made a decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d hand it over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least for now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The current point in time was about a week before the start of the Academy’s semester the beginning of the game’s main storyline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That meant stealing the Heart of the Demon was part of an event that took place off-screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Failing the mission would be ideal...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that would be the same as admitting to Pandemonium that I was incompetent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since I’d been reincarnated as one of Pandemonium’s mid-ranking officers, I planned to make full use of that advantage for the sake of achieving a happy ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like sabotaging them from within, or uncovering their plots before they could act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, once I fell out of Pandemonium’s favor, even that sole advantage would disappear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That couldn’t be allowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In summary, I had to become a key agent within Pandemonium while secretly acting as the hidden force working toward a happy ending, without letting anyone at the Academy find out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how I looked at it, it was an utterly insane level of difficulty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what could I do?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It had already begun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moonlight shattered and spread across the sky that night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The winter cold hadn’t completely faded, and my breath rose in pale clouds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amid the forest of tightly packed buildings stood a massive structure resembling an ancient temple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncharacteristic for the heart of Seoul, it looked like a Greek temple had been transplanted there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the Seoul Artifact Museum, where the Heart of the Demon lay dormant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>According to the setting, the Seoul Artifact Museum was a fortress famed for its impenetrable security.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To make matters worse, the Hero Association was located nearby, making it a place no one had ever successfully infiltrated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Entering such a place without preparation would’ve been pure madness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, the Seoul Artifact Museum was a familiar location to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, it was one of the special stages in Become a Hero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a defense-style event, where players had to prevent a massive demon raid attempting to steal precious artifacts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of that, I knew the museum’s structure like the back of my hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, that alone wasn’t enough to pull off a break-in. I had to spend the entire night planning the security layout and escape route.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, if not for the inherited memories, such a thing would’ve been impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I checked the time on my wrist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>2:50 a.m. the moment right before the guards changed shifts, when vigilance would be at its weakest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took off my coat and loosened up my body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though I had inherited this body’s memories, this was my first time moving it directly, and my hands trembled slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the possession, I was someone who’d never even stolen anything—let alone done something this physically demanding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I focused my mind, following the guidance within the inherited memories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, the shadow beneath my feet deepened and began to ripple ominously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shrrrrkk!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black shadow rose from the floor and coiled around my body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As it covered every inch of me, it began to solidify into a distinct shape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the transformation ended, I turned on my phone’s front camera to check my reflection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This appearance...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was clad in pitch-black armor, like a dark knight straight out of a fantasy novel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the same armor the Final Boss wore in Become a Hero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing myself in the form of the very Final Boss I had once despised gave me a strange feeling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hiding my body in the darkness of night, I cautiously moved toward the museum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The security was as tight as expected, but thanks to my preplanned route and the infiltrators Pandemonium had already planted, I managed to enter the museum smoothly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even from afar, the museum had been an impressive sight but seeing it from the inside was breathtaking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Towering pillars that seemed to hold up the sky, and countless artifacts on display.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each of them was worth billions, some even hundreds of billions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, most of them were merely refined replicas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, seeing in person what I’d only experienced through a computer monitor before...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was thrilling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If possible, I would’ve liked to take my time and enjoy the view.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I wasn’t a visitor. I was an intruder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Somewhere within this place lay the Heart of the Demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since it only affected demons, its true nature wasn’t yet known to heroes or ordinary people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before breaking in, I had briefly investigated and learned that the museum’s current exhibit theme was dedicated to one of the world’s top heroes the Sword Emperor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The exhibition featured his belongings and the remains of the monsters he had defeated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Heart of the Demon was among those remains, displayed in the main hall where the highest-grade artifacts were kept.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was my destination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To avoid being spotted by the guards, I cloaked myself in shadow and crept down the corridor toward the main hall only to hear voices echoing from a hallway ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What the hell are we doing in the middle of the night...?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn it, we’re guards, not laborers. Can’t believe we have to take orders from some girl who’s not even an adult yet.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shut up and carry that box properly. If you drop even one of these, we’re dead men.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, yeah, I know.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I leapt up and concealed myself in the ceiling’s shadows as two men approached, grumbling under their breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their heavy armament made it clear they were museum guards, but oddly enough, instead of weapons, they were each carrying a massive box.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Can’t believe this stupid bottle of liquid’s worth more than we’ll ever make in our entire lives...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They’re all precious elixirs, after all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ever since those so-called heroes started meddling around here, nothing’s been the same. Can you believe they sent some teenage girl here as ‘support’? The Association must’ve finally lost its mind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the continuous grumbling of one guard, the expression of the colleague walking beside him twisted in annoyance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I couldn’t help but frown as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If what they said was true, that meant an active hero had been dispatched here for support.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that case, quietly taking the Heart of the Demon and leaving would be impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time for a plan change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If things were going to get noisy anyway, it would be better to end this swiftly rather than waste effort trying to stay hidden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ugh! I–Intruder?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The guards who had spotted me grabbed their radios.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was already too late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a swift swing, my blade slashed through them, and they collapsed like puppets with their strings cut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had dulled the blade beforehand, so their lives wouldn’t be in danger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if I had inherited this body’s memories, I couldn’t bring myself to kill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ah, right—can’t forget this part.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I started picking up the elixirs that had fallen to the floor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each of these was worth anywhere from thousands to hundreds of millions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No way I was leaving that kind of money lying around.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was, of course, nothing more than spoils of war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I only took out the guards to speed things up—it wasn’t because I wanted the elixirs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seriously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>---\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Seoul Artifact Museum.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The control room there was in complete chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Red lights flashed, sirens blared, and numerous security systems connected to the museum were going down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’ve lost contact with the Rapid Response Unit!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Connection with Sector A Team has also been severed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reports of missing guards echoed one after another throughout the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing the reports, Lee Doo-hyun, the museum’s head of security and chief administrator, slammed his desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What the hell are all these guards doing?! You can’t even handle a single rat that’s snuck into the museum?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“S-sir, we can’t pinpoint the intruder’s location!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lee Doo-hyun frowned at the subordinate’s reply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before him floated a holographic map of the museum, projected by magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a near-perfect security system that displayed the museum’s status in real-time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were no blind spots under its surveillance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Magical defense systems, protective wards for the artifacts, and even round-the-clock CCTV monitoring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within the hologram, a single red dot appeared. As it moved, the countless blue dots around it began to vanish one by one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when guards represented by blue dots rushed to the red dot’s location, the red dot disappeared without a trace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The intruder struck, retreated, and systematically reduced the number of guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this rate, only the guards would continue dying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a moment of thought, Lee Doo-hyun made a decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Judging by the movement, the intruder’s heading for the main hall. Gather all available forces there and stand by.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sir? But then the artifacts’ security…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The subordinate hesitated, but Lee Doo-hyun’s tone left no room for argument.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At this rate, we’ll lose both our men and the artifacts. Better to consolidate our forces and sweep the area.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, the museum’s security wasn’t so weak that the artifacts could be stolen easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, the blue dots scattered across the holographic map began to converge toward a single point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they gathered, a massive blue cluster formed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Continue the search for the intruder. And... contact the dispatched hero as well.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Lee Doo-hyun disliked the hero sent as reinforcement, now wasn’t the time to complain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, a small red dot appeared among the dense cluster of blue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon seeing it, a glimmer of hope crossed Lee Doo-hyun’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every available guard in the museum had been gathered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how skilled the intruder was, they couldn’t possibly withstand such overwhelming numbers\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>or so he believed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the next instant, the blue dots surrounding the red one vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And despair spread across Lee Doo-hyun’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>",1967,"2026-06-05T19:04:26.586Z",1,"novelbin.me","eb7b768af718eeef815f90aab00fafe96f15729f8855310e83974614bd2fac30","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-4","i-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-chapter-2",137,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-became-the-academy-s-final-boss-cover.jpg"]