The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 148
Blood Wolf Demon.
He was renowned.
Even in the Abyss, where only the strong resided, he was of officer rank.
‘He’s the leader of the group Erich belongs to.’
The reason I anticipated his appearance was because I knew from the storyline that Blood Wolf Demon was Erich’s direct superior.
‘In truth, the Abyss is more of a loose alliance among notorious villains, so the term “direct superior” isn’t quite accurate.’
Due to this nature, the members of the Abyss primarily operated on individual play.
If someone fell, they would only mock the deceased as a fool, devoid of any notions of loyalty or revenge.
However, the Blood Wolf Demon I was on my way to meet was an exception.
‘He’s not just a “leader”; he harbors the ambition to become an “administrator”.’
An administrator refers to the highest-ranking officers in the Abyss.
Closest confidantes of the ‘Lord’.
Thirsty for recognition, he has caused all sorts of trouble.
It must have been Blood Wolf Demon’s plan to collaborate with the other Three Evils to infiltrate Erich into Ruby.
‘Creepy.’
Late at night, close to midnight.
I looked around and shivered.
I was walking in the deepest part of the slum.
The place where the Dragon Stronghold stood.
“Isn’t that Professor Van? What brings you here?”
“I have some business.”
“Should I call for Master Lyran of the fourth, or perhaps, Master Dark Hero of the third?”
For the record, it seems the Massacrist Mage is called the Dark Hero.
Thinking it a fitting nickname, I shook my head.
“No, my destination is the second castle.”
“!!”
The castle’s gatekeeper looked at me with startled eyes.
“That’s… very dangerous. You might not know, Professor Van, but the second castle is incomparably horrifying compared to other places.”
I knew that.
As previously explained, the Four Dragon Stronghold is divided into four sections, just as its name suggests.
The fourth castle, where Lyran reigns as lord, is a refuge for rebels.
And the third castle, recently overtaken by the Massacrist Mage as lord, is a haven for villains.
Both the third and fourth are terrifying places, but those who know say.
The true darkness of the Dragon Castle lies in the second and first castles.
I absolutely agree.
‘Places where not even footsteps should tread.’
But this time, I had no choice.
“Okay. Open the gate.”
“…Understood. Please make sure to return alive. In case, if you have any last will prepared, entrust it to me.”
A terrifying farewell.
It’s not just a simple threat. The gatekeeper truly believes I might not return alive.
Considering what kind of place the second castle is, the reaction was natural.
‘Don’t freak out. You’ve meticulously planned this operation. You can make it back alive. So… ugh, damn this plans, should I just run away? How did I end up in such a place!’
For the first time in a while, my cowardly instincts flared up.
‘Damn it, once I get Head Diego on my side, the academy is mine! For a sweet future, bear with it!’
Will such a bright future really come for me? I doubted for a moment but forced myself to stay positive and moved forward.
I passed the familiar fourth castle of the rebels, and the third castle, the hideout for villains.
Honestly, just the third castle was scary enough to make me want to pee.
‘Could you not look at me like I’m an easy prey, licking your lips? Your lord is my disciple, you know? How did the Massacrist Mage even conquer this place?’
And then.
I arrived at the long-awaited second castle.
Whoosh!
The atmosphere changed.
The tension swirling around the fourth castle of the rebels.
The damp evil that made the nape of my neck moist in the third castle.
The second castle had none of that.
It was just a place where ordinary poor people lived.
If anything, their appearance was much better. Not like the poor, but similar to a normal middle-class street.
But there was one difference.
Fear.
Not just any fear, but a terror engraved into their souls, under which everyone was suppressed.
“Who, who are you?”
“Are you from the Association?”
Even at the sight of me, who obviously posed no harm, they were tense enough.
Considering the ‘reality’ of this place, it was natural.
Then, a laughter mixed with high notes was heard.
“Who might this be? Could it possibly be Professor Van the Legend? Delighted to meet you. I’ve heard from my friend Puppeteer that he’s indebted to you. What brings you to this place?”
A beauty with an innocent appearance.
I swallowed hard.
A familiar face.
The Witch of the Dead Sea.
As you might guess from her calling the Puppeteer a friend, she was a member of Abyss.
But that wasn’t all.
Sshhrr.
A window opened, and a figure swathed in bandages directed their gaze at me.
Ghost Blade.
A super-powerful villain of Level 7 and, similarly, a member of the Abyss.
In the distance, an old-looking kid peeking over at us while playing chess was the villain knight, ‘The Torturer’. He was just like the other two before him.
Even the woman receiving treatment in a shabby clinic, looking at me.
She was the Duchess Beth, the Witch of Tyranny from the Abyss.
Seeing even one of the Abyss’s lot was rare, yet here were four on the street.
It was unbelievable, but possible here in the second castle.
The Witch of the Dead Sea smiled gently and said,
“Welcome, to our sanctuary.”
Indeed.
This place was the headquarters of Abyss.
* * *
‘To think that the headquarters of Abyss is right in the heart of the Free City.’
It wasn’t implausible.
A large city is indeed a good hiding place for villains.
Originally, this second castle was the headquarters of a different villain group, but Abyss wiped them out and took over.
The officials of the City knew about it, but were too afraid of the backlash to do anything but turn a blind eye.
‘Compared to the true nature of the first castle, the headquarters of Abyss might actually seem quite dull.’
I thought of the first castle and shivered slightly.
I just hope I never have to go there.
“Welcome to Abyss! Did you know? I’m actually a fan of yours, Professor. I was investigating you and ended up admiring you instead.”
“Didn’t you say you were a friend of the Puppeteer?”
“What’s it matter if one more is dead? Anyway, could you do it for me? Your signature tone of voice!”
“…Do not mock me. My great light will trample over your darkness.”
“Wow!! It sounds even more weird hearing it in person. I like it even more now. Can I have your autograph?”
“…I refuse.”
“Tsk, I even like your haughty attitude.”
The Witch of the Dead Sea giggled.
I didn’t want to engage with her, but the Witch of the Dead Sea was too formidable to ignore.
Fortunately, it seemed she did not harbor any hostility towards me.
“Actually, Professor Van, you’ve helped me before.”
“??”
“You gave that annoying sister Beth a piece of your mind. How satisfying that was!”
I could see the Duchess of Beth grinding her teeth.
It seemed she was treating the core injury she received from me in Amethyst, here in the Abyss headquarters.
“As a token of gratitude, I’ll guide you. Consider it special treatment, ahem. You came to meet the leader Blood Wolf Demon, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“The leader Blood Wolf Demon is in the convention center inside. Ah, the convention center is a meeting room only for the officers. Right now, the only officer here is the leader Blood Wolf Demon, so he’s playing king all by himself. Funny, isn’t it?”
Important information was thrown in.
It was what I had been suspecting.
‘As expected, the Blood Wolf Demon is the only officer-level member here.’
An unexpected truth.
But not strange.
As explained earlier, Abyss is a coalition of individual villains.
Each villain has their own abode.
This was true for officer-level members as well, and the headquarters was only used for gathering when necessary.
‘If there were other officers here, given his objectives, he wouldn’t have invited me here.’
“Apart from the officer-level, there are a total of 7 friends currently at the headquarters. They all suffer from extreme laziness, so they wouldn’t bother about what’s happening around them.”
“Why are you explaining this to me?”
“Because it seems fun? You came here to kill the Blood Wolf Demon today, didn’t you? I wonder how you’ll pull off the miracle! Looking forward to it!”
“…….”
Absurd, but that was the collective consciousness of the Abyss lot.
A group of people who would rather trample on the faces of their dying comrades than treat them.
“Here we are. If you can, please kill him brutally. The Blood Wolf Demon trying to play the god when he’s just a leader, he is very very annoying. So, go Van the Fight Dragon, Go Fighting!”
Convention Center.
A tidy building that seemed out of place in the slum.
Though it was only about the size of a small commercial building.
‘I can do this.’
I took a deep breath and creaked the door open.
* * *
Right after Van entered the Convention Center.
The Witch of the Dead Sea, still smiling, said,
“What do you think?”
A response came from thin air.
I’m still observing.
“Hehe, I’m surprised. Even if Professor Van the Legend is famous, I never thought he would catch the Administrator’s attention.”
The Witch of the Dead Sea had lied to Van.
While it was true she didn’t care what happened to the Blood Wolf Demon, it wasn’t true that there were no other officers present.
The Administrator.
An upper echelon officer of Abyss was watching Van.
“Will you kill him?”
I haven’t decided yet. I will observe what happens inside and then make a decision.
The brief reply followed.
If he proves to be worthless, then it would be right to kill him.
* * *
Tsug Tsug
My heart pounded with nervousness as I entered and saw a face I had seen while progressing through the storyline.
Pale skin.
Beautiful, but with bloodshot eyes full of greed.
It was Blood Wolf Demon.
An officer-level leader of Abyss.
“You actually came here. I can’t tell if you’re brave or just mad. Haha. This is interesting.”
The Blood Wolf Demon wasn’t a villain of tremendous charisma.
His appearance seemed somewhat diminished due to the greed flickering in his eyes.
‘But his power is real.’
I’ve become somewhat desensitized to the strength of others after facing so many formidable individuals.
Yet instinctively, my skin crawled.
It meant he was among the most powerful opponents I had faced.
‘He’s a Lv. 7 Grand Master.’
For reference, levels are classified into several groups.
Lv. 1 and Lv. 2 are beginners.
Lv. 3 and Lv. 4 are individuals who fully contribute their own power. Most people belong to this stage.
Lv. 5 and Lv. 6 are classified as strong. It’s not for no reason that from Lv. 5 onwards, titles like ‘High Knight’, ‘High Mage’ are used. Most of the academy’s professors are also of this level.
From Lv. 7 onwards, it’s the domain of the super-strong.
‘It feels like there are too many due to the Age of Chaos. Especially among the villains.’
The reason Lv. 7 is called super-strong is because of the incomparable power they possess compared to lower levels.
From Lv. 7, the gap within the same level widens significantly, and titles are finely distinguished.
Lv. 7 General Master. (Lower)
Lv. 7 Expert Master. (Intermediate)
Lv. 7 Grand Master. (Upper)
Lv. 7 Ultimate Master. (Supreme)
‘From Lv. 7, some even classify levels internally. Like Master Level 1, Master Level 2, and so on.’
Meaning, the Blood Wolf is at the upper echelon of Lv. 7, reaching the ‘Master Tier 3’.
An entity absolutely unapproachable for me, who can’t even face a regular Lv. 7.
Accordingly, he asked with a voice full of leisure.
“Do you know why I asked to see you?”
“You want to turn me into a vampire and make me one of your minions, don’t you?”
“Keke, yes. You know exactly.”
“How about we negotiate?”
“Keke, it seems you’re scared now that you’ve come here. Too late. The thought of turning a bloodline of the Grand Ecclesia family into my minion excites me.”
“No, you shall hear my conditions. Kneel before me and apologize for all your sins up to now, and commit yourself to death; I’ll mercifully grant you it without pain.”
“…….”
