I Became the Genius Mage of the Martial Academy

My head is ringing. My whole body is weak, a sense of exhaustion washing over me.

‘What is this?’

When I came to my senses, I was staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.

My confusion was brief as something appeared before my eyes.

Clear Murim Academy.

“What?”

As I unconsciously questioned it, the string of letters shattered and slowly faded into the air.

‘What in the world is going on?’

At the unusual reaction, I got up and sat on the edge of the bed.

I couldn’t understand the current situation.

‘I was definitely in the middle of playing a game.’

But I had woken up in a strange room out of the blue.

When I lifted my head, someone was calling me from the direction of the room’s entrance.

I couldn’t hear well, so I reflexively frowned and asked.

“Yes?”

“Y-you’re awake? Young Master!”

Only when the person raised their voice could I hear their words.

But Young Master?

As I remained silent, not understanding, the man bowed his head as if at a loss.

“Since the Young Master did not rise, I took the liberty of entering!”

His way of speaking was strangely polite.

To the point of being burdensome.

I was about to wave my hand dismissively when I looked at my own hand.

A long, pale white hand that had lost its color. A strange hand.

“…Who am I?”

At those words, the other person flinched and studied my expression.

Seeing him tremble with a nervous face, it seemed he thought I was scolding him for my use of polite language.

But I was asking because I genuinely didn't know.

Soon, the man, who had been swallowing dryly and rolling his eyes, raised his voice as if he had figured out the cause.

“You are Zhuge Cheonwu, the third son of the great Zhuge family!”

It was a completely unexpected answer.

‘The Zhuge family? This isn’t some martial arts novel, is it…?’

At that moment, the memory of ‘Murim Academy’, which I had accidentally run at the end, flashed through my mind.

‘Don’t tell me I’ve entered the game?’

I narrowed my brow at the incomprehensible situation. Then, perhaps judging that my response was unsatisfactory, the man, who I presumed to be a servant, raised his voice.

“Of the great Five Great Families, the most prestigious Zhuge family’s…!”

“That’s enough.”

I stopped the man who was about to further embellish my reputation and fell into thought. Murim Academy, and among them, Zhuge Cheonwu was one of the early-game villains.

An annoying scoundrel who relied only on his family name.

He was a character who played the role of a villain who gets taught a lesson after being sarcastic without having any abilities.

‘Damn it.’

I didn’t know why I had entered the world of ‘Murim Academy’, but there was a more urgent problem at hand.

My current physical condition was the absolute worst.

After clenching and unclenching my trembling fist for a moment, I slowly took a deep breath and assessed my body’s condition.

I could feel it instinctively. My dried-up energy veins, dulled senses, and a congenitally weak body meant I didn’t have much time left.

‘My body was really created according to the settings.’

If I just sit here and do nothing, I’ll die soon.

‘The blurry vision and deaf ears must be from [Dulled Senses], and the complete lack of vitality, is that [Mana Severance]?’

I remembered when I was setting the stats and talents. The body, plastered with an absurd amount of debuffs, was certainly close to a living corpse.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

The biggest problem was that my main talent right now was [Absolute Magic]. This was strictly a martial arts world, but my talent was magic.

Then, I suddenly remembered I had kept the servant waiting and asked.

“Why did you come looking for me? Was it just to wake me up because I woke up late?”

As if Zhuge Cheonwu’s habits were ingrained in my body, the condescending tone came out smoothly.

“Th-that is, today is the start of the Murim Academy exam, so I was told to wake you….”

“What?”

I had no idea today was the entrance exam day.

I hurriedly tried to get up from my seat, but the dizziness I felt made me sit back down on the bed as I asked.

This frail body made even standing up difficult.

“How much time is left until the exam starts?”

“Half a shichen [one hour].”

My head throbbed. My current physical condition was the absolute worst.

All the promising young martial artists who had trained hard would be gathered, and there was no way I could pass with a body that might not even be able to lift a sword.

“Get ready immediately.”

But I couldn’t go back to the Zhuge family.

The scoundrel third son, Zhuge Cheonwu, was an abandoned child even by his family. If I went back, far from receiving the family’s support, I would probably be put under house arrest for the shame of failing the exam.

‘If I get confined in this physical state, that’s the end.’

Just imagining it sent a cold sweat down my back.

I’m not kidding, I would actually die. In a situation where my lifespan is decreasing even when I’m doing nothing, being confined would be no different from a death sentence.

There was only one way for me, who was burdened with a time-limited life and numerous overlapping debuffs, to survive.

To grow the talents that can neutralize the debuffs and overcome them.

‘And most of all, that thing at the end was probably….’

The message to clear <Murim Academy> that I saw as soon as I opened my eyes. I still didn’t know what was what, but one thing was certain.

To find the reason I came here and to reach that arrogant message window, I first had to clear the task given to me in this world.

In that case, the first thing I had to do was simple.

“Where is my sword and equipment? There must be some I brought for the exam.”

I asked the servant. In the story, he used such items to torment others, so he must have them now too.

‘Right now, my strength is weak.’

So I had no choice but to borrow the power of a weapon that held a strong aura in itself.

“Ah, I understand. But why do you ask for them?”

“Isn’t it obvious I have to take the exam?”

I answered irritably. The mental debuffs were somewhat overcome by the opposing talent, Will of the Extreme, so this was probably Zhuge Cheonwu’s original personality.

But then, an unexpected answer came back.

“Ah, that… Young Master’s exam is tomorrow. It’s just that the overall exam starts today. Y-you said you wanted to see the level beforehand yesterday, so that’s why I came.”

The servant answered with a nervous expression. He probably thought the original Zhuge Cheonwu would have known.

Even though he had said the right thing, seeing the servant so anxious about being reprimanded made me understand even better what kind of person Zhuge Cheonwu was.

Even so, I couldn’t help but be flustered by the unfamiliar anger boiling inside me.

One of the debuffs I had chosen before, [Anger Management Issues], had activated. When it overlapped and activated with [Intermittent Debuff Enhancement], it was quite difficult to endure.

“Hoo.”

First, I took a slow, deep breath. I suppressed the impulsive anger with [Will of the Extreme] and forced myself to think positively.

There was still a day’s grace. It might only be a day, but it was better than nothing.

After letting out a sigh, I ordered the servant.

“Bring all the promissory notes and weapons I received from the family when I came here. If there are any elixirs, bring those too.”

“I understand!”

Afraid of being found fault with, the servant quickly closed the door and left. Only then did I grab my face with one hand.

‘One day.’

I have to come up with something by then.

I sat down and closed my eyes.

Thanks to the talent of Absolute Magic, I could feel the energy inside me as if I could grasp it. But perhaps because of Mana Severance, the energy in my body was so scarce it was almost non-existent.

‘Then where did all the mana stats go?’

Even with Mana Severance, the mana from the stats themselves shouldn’t have disappeared. I expanded my energy sense and examined my entire body.

‘Was it here.’

I narrowed my brow at the tingling sensation. The mana was clumped in my heart.

‘Did it stagnate because it couldn’t flow?’

No wonder my heart felt stuffy. The high mana stat I had set had backfired and become a poison.

It was working together with the time-limited life debuff to eat away at my body even more fatally.

‘First, I’ll solve this.’

Ironically, if left like this, I could fall into mana poisoning at the same time as mana severance. To use a modern medical analogy, it was like having terminal high blood pressure and extreme low blood pressure at the same time.

There was only one way to solve this situation.

‘Create a circle.’

Only with a circle that could stably circulate mana could I resolve the mana concentrated in my heart.

‘The problem is that I don’t have enough mana to create a circle.’

Because of Mana Severance, creating a core in one go was next to impossible.

‘I need additional mana.’

No matter how absolute a talent is, it can’t create something from nothing.

To create a circle, I first needed enough mana to fill my dried-up energy veins.

As I expanded my energy sense from within my body to my surroundings, I could feel the surrounding energy in even greater detail. However, as I expanded my energy sense, one thing became certain.

‘There’s almost no mana?’

The mana concentration in this world was quite thin.

Instead, I felt several flows of power that gave a similar feeling, and this seemed to be what other martial artists called ‘qi’.

Perhaps thanks to the talent of Absolute Magic, I could feel it instinctively. Mana and qi had the same origin.

However, while mana was a refined, formless power that was easy to transform and rarely seen naturally, qi was a type of power that was difficult to transform because it already had certain properties and acted on the flow of the world.

‘This is bad.’

With only the scarce mana in the air and the mana in my body, I couldn’t form a circle.

And decomposing the power already flowing in the form of qi into pure mana was also impossible.

Extracting pure mana by decomposing qi would require a huge amount of mana. It was putting the cart before the horse.

“Damn it.”

I cursed out of frustration. Of all places, to end up in ‘Murim Academy’ and be in this state. It would have been different if it were ‘Magic Knight Academy’.

‘Wait a minute?’

I reversed my thinking.

Could this actually be an opportunity?

In this world right now, I am the only mage. Only I can use magic. The advantages that come from that would probably be beyond imagination.

While other talented people are devoted to martial arts, I will be the only one walking the path of a mage. With the best talent, [Absolute Magic].

‘It’s worth a try.’

Thinking that, I slowly opened my eyes. Just then, the door opened from the other side.

“Young Master! I’ve brought everything!”

What the servant brought were high-value promissory notes, a sword for the exam, and daggers from the Zhuge family that exuded a strange aura.

Unfortunately, the elixir I needed most right now was not there. Well, it was unlikely that something so precious would be here.

“Is this all?”

“Yes. This is what we have in reserve, the other promissory notes are with the Young Master.”

The servant hurriedly added, afraid of being scolded for not having enough. Thanks to him, I was able to find a bundle of promissory notes placed by my bedside.

A total of 5,500 nyang. As I vaguely remembered, a normal martial artist’s monthly salary was around 200 nyang, so this was a considerable amount.

For a mere third son who hadn’t even inherited a proper business to have this much as pocket money, the prestige of the Five Great Families was indeed great.

But all that is only enjoyable if you’re alive. I hurriedly asked the servant.

“Is there a black market nearby?”

“Yes? Yes, there is.”

“Good.”

The black market was a place where you could buy and sell anything. The prices were set by each branch, so everyone paid the same price. Of course, they didn’t let just anyone in.

I entrusted the Zhuge family identification plaque to the servant and said.

“Go, state my identity, and buy an elixir.”

“Yes?”

I also added that he should borrow money from a pawnshop using the daggers the servant brought as collateral.

“Whaat?!”

The man was surprised. He probably never imagined I would try to sell off the family’s belongings.

But I was calm.

“Borrow as much as you can with those as collateral. You should be able to get at least 2,000 nyang.”

In the actual game, if you defeat Zhuge Cheonwu and sell those daggers, you get about that much.

“With that, you should be able to buy a fifty-year-old He Shou Wu.”

As I recalled, the market price for a fifty-year-old He Shou Wu root at this time was around 7,000 nyang, so it shouldn’t be insufficient.

“B-but it’s a family item, how could I….”

“When did I say to sell it? I said to borrow against it as collateral.”

“Ah, I understand!”

The servant, who had been swallowing dryly at my threat, quickly retreated outside as if fleeing. It seemed that because I was a scoundrel with bad behavior, he followed even such absurd orders without complaint.

‘I can’t just sit still either.’

If it was the day the exam started, I couldn’t miss that event. It was one of the few chances to secure the minimum insurance for the upcoming entrance exam.

I stood up on my trembling legs.

“This is driving me crazy.”

I clicked my tongue at the state of my body, which was on the verge of collapsing from weakness.

If the talent of Limitless Martial Body hadn’t been supporting my body, I wouldn’t have been able to move properly.

There’s no time.

“Hey, you there!”

I hurriedly called for an escort and ordered an outing.

* * *

A short while later, the place I arrived at on my frail legs was an inn.

People looked at me strangely, with my pale complexion as if I would collapse at any moment and an escort in tow, but they soon lowered their eyes after seeing my clothes.

Amidst the gazes mixed with fear and caution, I walked to one side of the tavern.

It was a corner seat, but one from which I could survey the entire tavern.

There was already a customer there, but I was able to sit down without difficulty.

My escorting martial artist had taken care of chasing them away.

Because of that, the temperature of the gazes directed at me dropped a notch, but it couldn’t be helped.

The person who would lower the difficulty of the Murim Academy entrance exam was right here.

I glanced at the back of the old man’s head sitting at the table right in front of me. And I silently waited for things to happen.

The incident happened quickly.

“Ugh!”

A young man passing by the old man’s side glanced to one side and fell flat on the floor.

To others, it looked like he had simply tripped over his own feet, but he didn’t seem to think so.

The man’s face turned red as he shouted.

“You crazy old man! How dare you trip me?”

At that, the surrounding gazes instantly focused on the man. To anyone watching, he was the classic example of a ruffian blaming a weak old man after falling on his own.

Sensing the cold atmosphere, the man tried to build up his authority by revealing his name.

“I am Geum Chanbok, the second son of the Geummun Merchant Guild!”

‘A son of the Geummun Merchant Guild.’

Seeing that he used expensive blue dye, I thought he was the son of a fairly well-to-do family, but I didn’t expect it to be the Geummun Merchant Guild.

Since it was a fairly successful merchant guild here in Hebei, the other people around also lowered their voices of criticism.

Then, judging that his authority had worked, Geum Chanbok began to persecute the old man.

He was a typical petty person who believed he could save his own face by putting others down.

Of course, the more he did so, the colder the surrounding gazes became. Surely, all the customers in this inn would think that Geum Chanbok was causing a ruckus.

But I saw it. I saw him trip on a footwork that shot out for a moment. And the one who did it was the very old man who was being helplessly humiliated.

“Shouldn’t you stop?”

When I spoke up, the gazes of the inn, including Geum Chanbok’s, turned to me.

To be called a scoundrel just for swearing while riding on the coattails of the Geummun Merchant Guild. It was laughable.

“What are you? Where did some nobody come from to interfere? Get lost if you don’t want to die.”

Geum Chanbok seemed to feel that something was wrong as he looked at my attire, but he soon pushed forward with his surging spirit and momentum. My answer to that was simple.

“I am Zhuge Cheonwu, the third son of the Zhuge family. So, who is killing whom?”

At the momentary wavering in the opponent’s eyes, the corner of my mouth, which was staring at him, went up.

It was time to show him what a real scoundrel was.

(End of Chapter)