Chapter 48

### Chapter 48: How to Steal a Wizard's Woman (1-32)

Luna shouted at the assistant professor.

"What, what are you doing!?"

The assistant professor said from a distance.

"Just stay still, and it will be over soon."

Luna was being held by a giant golem's hand.

It was a golem made of sand.

Luna followed the assistant professor, who entered a forest.

She had not been paying attention in class today and had completely missed the warning not to go to the forest training ground.

She cautiously followed the assistant professor, who was dragging her into the forest.

Despite the skill gap, she was confident because she could already cast a wind escape spell.

But the assistant professor suddenly stopped, quickly snatched her bracelet, and pushed her into a pile of sand.

Then, the sand quickly formed a golem that bound Luna with one hand.

"What, do you think you can get away with this!?"

"What kind of talk is that, professor? Hahaha!"

The assistant professor laughed mockingly at Luna's words.

'First, the restraint is weak. If I can just get rid of this golem!'

She needed to do something to break free.

Luna tried to focus and cast a magic circle.

But because she usually relied on her bracelet to cast magic circles, her attempt was shaky and the circle was scattered by the wind.

"Hahaha. I heard you were a top student, but you're just a smart-aleck!"

'Grr... I need to focus... focus...'

Luna ignored the assistant professor's provocation and concentrated.

Not relying on the bracelet...

Just as she was about to draw a magic circle with her own mana, it happened.

Flash!

"What, what is this!?"

"Ah!?"

Just as Luna was about to draw the magic circle with her finger, the circle was already in front of her, glowing sky-blue and aimed at the golem.

'It's done!'

Luna's face lit up with a bright smile despite the urgent situation.

But she immediately realized the situation.

'This is enough!'

She cast the 'Wind Blade' spell, pouring her mana into it.

Swish!

Although the blades were not very destructive, they flew threateningly towards the golem.

'Even if it's just a sand golem, I can use this chance... Ah!?'

"What, what is this...?"

The golem, which should have been cut to pieces and fallen, continued to tightly hold Luna without a scratch.

"Ugh... Haaak!"

"Fu... Fuahaha!"

The assistant professor suddenly laughed and shouted at Luna.

"No matter what you did, it was entertaining. If you had used magic as soon as you were caught, you might have escaped by now, but alas."

Luna couldn't understand what the assistant professor was saying.

"If your mana hadn't been completely drained by the golem, that is."

"Mana golem?"

The assistant professor had been bringing female students to this place for years and terrorizing them in this way.

Students caught by the golem initially thought this was just a harmless guy, but soon found their mana being drained, leading to exhaustion.

Once he confirmed the female student was exhausted, he would release the golem and threaten to expose her to the school, using her as his toy for three years.

Moreover, since the mana golem was not part of the first-year curriculum, most students didn't even know it existed.

It was a despicable act that he had never failed in years.

"Luna Schtauffen, do you know what happens when you experience mana exhaustion?"

"Ugh..."

Luna tried to cast a magic circle again, but her head started to spin.

She was entering a state of mana exhaustion.

The assistant professor, seeing this, continued his explanation with satisfaction.

"First, you'll feel weak. Then, your vision will blur and you'll feel dizzy."

"Ugh!"

The assistant professor continued calmly, as if giving a lecture.

"From that point on, it's almost over. You won't be able to use mana even if you want to. And as you continue to be drained... "

"Haa... Stop it..."

"You won't even be able to open your mouth."

Luna's face was already pale, and her head was drooping.

"Don't worry, mana exhaustion will wear off in an hour. But..."

"Haa... Haa..."

"I'll make you feel good while you're still conscious."

Tears welled up in Luna's eyes from the injustice.

She had just fallen in love for the first time.

But the thought of losing her first experience to someone she despised was unbearable.

Luna's body went limp, and she regretted it.

'If I had known, I would have confessed.'

"Alright, this is done..."

Just as the assistant professor approached Luna with a satisfied look, a man's voice came from behind.

"What are you doing?"

"What, what is this!?"

The assistant professor turned around, startled by the sound of someone approaching.

Luna, with her blurred vision, struggled to lift her head and look.

In her hazy vision, a person appeared.

"Crazy, the rumors were true. No, you're even worse."

It was Seong Suho.

***

While heading to the lecture room to get a few more minutes of sleep, I overheard a name I couldn't ignore in a conversation between female students.

"Luna, I hope nothing strange is happening to her."

"Ah... I doubt it..."

"What are you talking about?"

"Me?"

I listened to the whole story from the female students.

'...The assistant professor, he was supposed to be fired, right?'

[That's correct. There's a possibility he might do something to Luna Schtauffen.]

I asked the female students to do one thing and ran towards the forest training ground.

When I arrived, there was a dense forest.

"Damn, this is too big."

[This might not be the right place...]

Rustle.

A commotion was heard from inside.

"There!"

When I arrived, the situation was exactly as I had predicted.

The only thing I hadn't expected was the golem.

Luna was being held by the golem, and the professor was standing a distance away, laughing maniacally.

When I arrived, he was extremely flustered and started babbling.

"Hey, you, what are you doing here! Get out now! Then I'll pretend I didn't see this!"

"What are you talking about? If you leave now, I'll pretend I didn't see this."

"Y-You! How dare you talk to a professor like that!"

The assistant professor was more angry about his authority being challenged than his actions being exposed.

He started to cast a red magic circle with his staff.

"You won't just be expelled, but buried as a corpse forever!"

I thought he would try to cover up the incident and run away, but it seemed he wanted to make it even bigger.

'Really, he's completely insane.'

[Mr. Suho, be careful. He's still an assistant professor and can manipulate the situation to get you in trouble.]

From what I could see, he was indeed the kind of person Armonia described.

There's a perfect remedy for such a person.

'Alright... I can't do it! Let's go!'

[?]

I quickly raised my arm and shot a steel ball at the rapidly forming magic circle.

Clang!

"Kiaaaah!!"

A pig's scream echoed.

(XX: You devil!)

I'm not the devil; he is. I just poured a holy water baptism on him.

The assistant professor was lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth and trembling.

He was clutching his groin with both hands.

I approached the assistant professor and stepped on his back with one foot.

"Phew, he's going to be fired anyway. It'll be fine."

[Mr. Suho...]

"Hmm?"

[We need to save Luna Schtauffen quickly.]

"Since this guy is in this state, it should be... Ah?"

I thought the golem would stop once I took out the person who created it.

But a completely different situation was unfolding.

"Aaaah!!"

The golem, instead of stopping, tightened its grip on Luna and started causing chaos in the forest.

It then slowly approached me.

Luna, with a pale face, struggled to speak.

"Mana... Run... Away..."

I thought the golem would stop once the caster was subdued.

"What! This thing!"

[Mr. Suho, it's a mana golem. We need to run.]

"This is?"

It was the creature I had heard about in class today.

The special magic professor had clearly said that a mana golem was deadly to students like me and Luna.

"Damn, I need to shoot again."

I aimed at the golem's head, which was slowly approaching, and shot a steel ball.

Clang!

Thud!

"What!?"

I had clearly hit it.

If it were sand, it should have scattered.

But the steel ball was blocked by a blue barrier and shattered before it hit the golem's head.

Armonia was shouting in a way she never had before.

The golem, which was almost at my location, was still approaching.

Armonia kept telling me to run in my head.

...Run?

Don't be ridiculous...

There must be a way...

I took out a superconductor bullet I had received yesterday from my pocket.

I placed the silver bullet on my finger and prepared to shoot.

Armonia tried to stop me.

I immediately created a magic circle on the assistant professor's back.

Mana Drain.

It was a spell that was considered useless and discarded due to its poor efficiency.

But if used simultaneously with a spell, it was the best spell.

The golem started to absorb my mana as well.

I focused and aimed at the golem's chest.

"Armonia! Restore my mana now!"

[Understood.]

I felt mana filling my body instantly.

Twelve coin-sized magic circles lined up on either side of the silver bullet.

The magic circle I was using was the one that had caused me mana exhaustion before.

Unlike the four shabby magic circles I had used before, this one was lined up in a long, golden, and magnificent barrel.

"Six slots, go!"

[Mr. Suho, that's!]

The moment I created the magic circle, the assistant professor started to scream inhumanly.

"Kraaaaaaah!!!!!"

While the pain in his groin had sounded like an animal's scream, this one sounded like a wail from the depths of hell.

The problem was that not only his mana but also mine was being drained.

Fortunately, his mana was being drained much more heavily, so mine was only being drained to a survivable level.

And at the moment of preparation.

The twelve magic circles on either side heated up and started to emit a massive current.

Despite my trembling hands, my aim was still on the golem's body.

"Now!"

Clangggg!!!

The superconductor was launched, emitting a sound wave far different from the steel balls I had used before.

As soon as I shot, the birds in the forest took flight from the shockwave.

I lowered my arms and looked at the golem.

"Haa... Haa..."

The golem's blue barrier... was broken.

But...

It... it...

The golem, after being hit by my shot, took a few steps back but was still intact.

"Haa... Haa... What, what is this...?"

[Mr. Suho, it's the core! The barrier is broken, but the core is still intact.]

"Haa... Where... Ah..."

I remembered the professor's advice on dealing with a mana golem.

(The unique feature of a mana golem is its core. Most golems have their core in the center. The reason is that this chest is very thick and stable, like our heart.)

And he said the core of a mana golem moves around inside the sand.

(Why is the core of a mana golem designed to move? The reason is that the core serves as a mana drain. The core is always... )

"Haa... Haa..."

I barely managed to lift my arm while my body was limp.

A steel ball was on my hand.

I was aiming at... Luna.

She was already past exhaustion and unconscious.

I aimed at her and told Armonia.

"Mana... Haa... Haa... Fill... me..."

[No! If you use that ability now, you won't be able to recover!]

Despite Armonia's cries, my mind was already set on shooting.

The professor's final words echoed in my head.

(The core is always in a place where it can efficiently absorb mana.)

My aim, which had been on Luna, was now on the sand in the golem's finger...

"!"

Clang!

I aimed at the black core.

The power was much weaker than the shots I had used before.

But the golem collapsed, and sand started to pour out.

Luna, buried in the sand, was visible.

I needed to get her out...

But my body wouldn't move.

No, it couldn't move.

Armonia was shouting something, but I couldn't hear what she was saying.

My vision started to turn red.

I could feel something flowing from my nose and mouth.

Blood was dripping on the ground.

I couldn't tell if my vision was red or if the liquid was red as I fell to the ground.