Episode 32: Got Hit, So I’ll Hit Back
There are all kinds of ability users in the world. Most of them pass through the Continental Academy.
And among them, some choose to settle at the Academy entirely. Rather than being used as weapons by their nations, they decide to live as educators or advisors.
Kallun, a staff member from the Academy who joined Abel, Seria, and the two noble ladies’ squad today, was exactly one of those cases.
“Nice to meet you all. I’m Kallun. Ah, I’m not a full professor yet, so no need to call me ‘Professor.’ Just speak comfortably.”
He was an ability user assigned to safely evacuate the Imperial citizens remaining in the village.
Kallun’s ability was in the mental domain—specifically, hallucinations. It was a particularly rare type of power.
Not only was it rare to see in person, most people hadn’t even heard of it. Even Seria looked surprised, so it was impossible for Abel to stay quiet.
“Welcome, Mr. Kallun. We’ve been waiting for you. I heard you use hallucination-based abilities—could you possibly demonstrate how they work on me, just once?”
“Huh? Hahaha! The professors did say this year’s freshmen were bold, and Abel, you’re no exception! That’s quite the joke!”
“…I wasn’t joking.”
“…He’s not joking.”
Hallucination powers aren’t some light drink to sample. What kind of guy even asks that?
Kallun looked to Seria in disbelief, but she didn’t say anything, already used to Abel’s behavior.
Turning to the side in confusion, he noticed the twin princesses were looking at Abel with admiration, clearly impressed by his “manly” boldness—only making Kallun’s headache worse.
Worried that Abel might actually start begging to be hit with a hallucination, Kallun quickly added:
“Mental-type abilities use a lot of stamina. That’s why so few can handle them properly.”
“So if you waste it carelessly, you might fail when it really counts.”
“Exactly. I understand your thirst for knowledge, Abel. I was once a student myself. But this is a live operation—we’ll have to save the learning for later.”
At Kallun’s persuasion, Abel reluctantly swallowed his curiosity. As he said, mental-type users were rare.
Which meant if you didn’t gain experience the moment you met one, you might not be ready when it truly mattered.
And Kallun was an ally. Since there was no risk of life or death, Abel could’ve learned a lot from him.
But for now, combat was the priority. Ahead of them were enemies who had attacked the Academy—mixed in with innocent villagers.
Abel remembered why he once staked his life on his ability: so he wouldn’t become one of the innocent who died. With that in mind, the villagers’ blood must not be spilled.
“Then Mr. Kallun will use his hallucination ability to evacuate the villagers, and we’ll eliminate the enemies in that gap. Could your ability also be used to confuse the enemy?”
“If I were a master of the mental arts, yes. But at my current level, I can only affect non-ability users—and even then, only push them toward certain actions.”
“So it’s not absolute compulsion, but more of a suggestion?”
Even that was valuable information. A critical distinction became clear.
It wasn’t forcing someone—it was nudging them. If the hallucinated person recognized something was wrong, the illusion would shatter easily.
And if someone was trained in abilities, they’d likely detect the anomaly and brace themselves early on.
As expected, all abilities had strengths and weaknesses. They could be nearly unbeatable—but never truly invincible.
And yet, this was such a perfectly crafted superpower world—so why, Abel lamented, did it have to be structured like a romance fantasy?
“What about targeting the evening hours? That’s when the villagers should be moving around.”
“That’s a good suggestion, Abel. Do the rest of you agree?”
Seria quickly nodded—no further discussion needed. Irshu and Tarshu glanced at her, then whispered they agreed as well.
Seeing that, Kallun gave Abel a look of impressed admiration.
Even squads formed by close friends often split in opinions at critical moments like these.
How much credit and what role someone played in such a mission often determined not only their reputation within the Academy but also their future prestige in society.
Because of that, it was common to see people subtly trying to outdo each other.
But that wasn’t happening here.
Kallun concluded the reason must be that Abel was an exceptional young man. He already had some accomplishments—so it made sense.
‘Maybe… this kid could even help me get officially appointed as a professor?’
Usually, students benefit from teachers—but sometimes, it’s the other way around.
With hope that he’d be in the latter category this time, Kallun waited for evening to fall.
***
The sun was slowly setting. The time to begin the operation was drawing near.
Unaware of the situation, the villagers busied themselves preparing for dinner.
The men were returning from the fields, the women were tending fires outside, and the children, having just parted ways with their friends, were heading home holding their parents’ hands.
“It’s time, Mr. Kallun.”
At Abel’s signal, Kallun took a deep breath. He fixed his gaze on every single villager he could see—one by one—and cast hallucinations upon each of them, guiding them away from the areas where enemies were believed to be hiding.
Some suddenly thought they wanted to take a quick walk before sunset.
Others decided to stop by a neighbor’s house to chat instead of heading straight home.
A few felt like taking a stroll with their child or spouse.
One remembered he had forgotten a farming tool and rushed back to the field.
Each person fell into a hallucination subtle enough to accept—nothing suspicious.
Thanks to that, no one even came close to the village warehouse where the enemies were likely hiding.
“Mmm…”
But Kallun’s expression kept twisting with effort. His face turned pale, drained of color.
Even though all he was doing was sitting still and using his ability, it was clearly taking a toll.
Mental-type powers really do consume an enormous amount of stamina.
Abel learned something new once again and checked the sword at his hip.
“Let’s begin. Lady Irshu and Lady Tarshu, please stay here and protect Mr. Kallun—and be prepared just in case. As for Lady Seria…”
Originally, Abel had planned to leave Seria with Kallun and the two noble ladies while he went in alone.
It wasn’t because he didn’t trust her strength. In fact, he actually wanted to push her into real combat at this point.
Still, there was one reason he hesitated: the Four from the other side of the village.
‘If I take Lady Seria with me, they’ll definitely chew me out later—“Why did you drag her into danger?” Just thinking about hearing all that already gives me a headache.’
But when he voiced those concerns, Seria strongly objected.
She pointed out all the training they’d done together and argued that she had changed too.
Besides, if they wanted to end the fight before civilians got caught up in it, it made sense for her to help.
So Abel steeled himself to endure the Four’s nagging and decided to take Seria along.
“Let’s head to the village together for now. If anything happens along the way, focus on evacuating the villagers first.”
“Yes, Abel. Ah! One second. Kids!”
Around Seria, red butterflies started fluttering like flames.
Most flame-type users only dealt with fire, but Seria’s power was something else—fire that was, and yet wasn’t, quite fire.
No matter how many times Abel saw it, it was fascinating.
“I’ll send a few with you. They’re not strong, but they’ll help.”
“Thank you. You remember the plan, right? It’s best not to let too much distance form between us.”
“I know.”
When the moment comes, the plan should stay simple.
From here on out, it was all about direct confrontation.
Abel drew his sword and rushed toward the place where the enemies were believed to be hiding.
He put some distance between himself and Seria, but considering their fighting styles, this was actually safer.
By now, the Four on the other side should also be making their move.
Abel guessed that Rel was probably playing the same role he was.
Ideally, they would strike at the same time, but without a way to coordinate, it would be hard to get the timing perfect.
So Abel decided to strike first.
He kicked down the warehouse door and stepped inside.
Since it was evening and there were no lights inside, it was pitch dark—but the butterflies Seria had sent acted like small torches.
“Wh–What the?!”
The sudden light disoriented the enemies, who had adjusted to the darkness.
They could’ve reacted immediately, but even a momentary loss of one of their senses was enough to make them hesitate.
Fortunately, the enemies hadn’t expected this side to attack.
If they had, they wouldn’t have hidden in the first place—they would’ve already made a run for it.
“What do you mean, ‘what’? You bastards.”
None of the enemies seemed as powerful as Julien, whom Abel had fought before,
But they were good enough for sharpening his skills.
Abel raised his voice boldly:
“I’m just an extra here to farm some trash mob XP.”
Naturally, the supremacists all looked completely baffled—wondering what kind of nonsense he was spouting.
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