Academy’s Undercover Professor-Chapter 314: The Path in the Darkness (1)

The demon Basara was furious.

The vessel he had so desperately longed for had been right in front of him.

But some meddlesome brat had ruined everything.

Not only had he failed to seize the Saint’s body, he ended up inside the body of a mere girl who looked like a greenhorn.

There could be no greater humiliation.

As Basara fumed over yet another twist that hadn’t gone his way, he suddenly felt a flicker of confusion.

[What’s this?]

He checked the body he had unintentionally possessed—and his eyes gleamed.

Ordinarily, a human body containing his power would crack and collapse like drought-stricken earth.

Power one couldn’t control was indistinguishable from a curse.

And yet... this body was completely unaffected.

More than that—it was in perfect condition.

Because it was strong?

No. If it was just about physical resilience, then Luypholdt’s body would’ve been the ideal choice.

There was only one explanation for why this one remained intact.

Its latent potential far surpassed all others.

[Remarkable. Her magical potential is far beyond even Luypholdt’s. She may be weak now, but in just a few years, that talent will bloom fully.]

The peak Luypholdt had tried to reach through inhumane experiments... was nothing more than a milestone Flora would naturally reach in time.

That’s how exceptional Flora’s talent was. A once-in-a-century prodigy.

[Originally, I had planned to take the Saint’s body...]

But this? This felt like stumbling upon a gem by pure chance.

Basara began spreading his power throughout Flora’s body.

The most urgent task was to seize control of her mind.

Basara was a demon of temptation and mental domination.

Erasing the psyche of a mere student and turning her into a mindless shell would be laughably easy.

And this girl—Flora Lumos—harbored quite a bit of darkness within her heart.

Despite her exceptional talent, she had never been acknowledged by her family, and suffered from deep emotional trauma.

She masked herself in pride and strength, but inside she was fragile—easily wounded by the smallest criticism.

To Basara, she was the perfect prey. Easy to control.

He didn’t even need her mind.

He moved to erase Flora’s sense of self.

[What...?]

But things didn’t go as planned.

Flora’s delicate, faint sense of self pushed back against his will with fierce resistance.

If he forced his power further, he might actually lose control of the body instead.

[Well. Considering her talent, I suppose some resistance is only natural.]

Basara decided to postpone erasing her.

From the look of things, she wouldn’t be taking back control anytime soon.

He poured his demonic energy into Flora’s body, drawing out its potential to the extreme.

As he began adapting to it, the world before his eyes changed.

[The colors I see... the scents I smell... Truly extraordinary. To sense mana so vividly—this body is incredible.]

Having fully taken over Flora’s body, Basara let a pleased smile curl on his lips.

Perhaps due to the demon’s influence, Flora’s appearance changed slightly.

Her navy-blue hair turned pitch-black, like the sky of a night devoid of stars.

Her skin gained a glossy sheen, and an eerie allure gathered around her eyes.

Her irises burned with the demon’s signature vivid yellow.

Clenching and opening his new hand, Basara turned to face Rine—who was staring in disbelief.

* * *

A violent storm of darkness swirled around Flora.

Rine, her skin crawling from the sheer terror, couldn’t tear her eyes away from the sight before her.

Once the storm subsided, Flora emerged—looking unharmed.

But something was clearly wrong.

Her hair had changed color, and more than that—her entire presence had shifted.

“...Who are you?”

Rine asked without even realizing it.

The figure looked like Flora, but behind her surged an inky, writhing shadow.

That shadow—it was nearly identical to what Rine had seen underground.

She instinctively understood.

That wasn’t Flora.

Something else had taken her body.

Basara, now within Flora, placed a slender finger to her lips and smiled at Rine’s question.

“Hmm. How curious. Why is the Saint of this era wandering around without any guards? And it seems she hasn’t even awakened her full power yet.”

“......”

Rine didn’t understand what the demon was talking about.

Saint? Awakening?

Just as she was about to ask, a sharp pain stabbed through her eyes.

“Urgh!”

“Hm. Even your Judgment Eye is underdeveloped. Seems I’ve awoken in a rather pitiful world.”

Basara muttered as he gazed over the buildings of the capital.

Suddenly, he wondered—

What heights could he reach with the power of this body?

Perhaps... he could once more fulfill his mission.

In that case, why not test it?

See just how much destruction he could wreak using this vessel.

“W-What’s happening?!”

“My head... it’s splitting...”

Confused murmurs erupted among the students and guards nearby.

“I suppose I’ll start by clearing this place out.”

With a snap of her fingers, a black vortex burst around her, scattering a wave of dark energy in all directions.

The black particles radiated pure malice.

At first, the people cried out in confusion—then, in an instant, were gripped by terror.

They dropped to their knees, trembling like leaves in a storm.

Rine clutched her aching head as she took it all in.

Basara let out a soft gasp of admiration as she watched Rine retain her reason even amid the thick miasma.

“As expected of a Saint. Even without realizing it, you aren’t affected by my power.”

Flora’s pale, slender finger pointed at Rine.

“In that case... I’ll just have to kill you myself.”

Black mana began to form at her fingertip.

It was nothing less than concentrated, high-density destructive force.

Something Rine had no way of defending against.

Knowing that, she staggered backward.

She didn’t know what had happened—but Basara clearly intended to kill her.

Which meant... if she could just get away—

“Oh, don’t bother trying to run.”

As if reading her thoughts, Basara shifted her finger’s aim with a seductive smile.

The roiling black energy veered toward the terrified crowd.

“If you run, I’ll kill everyone here. But if you don’t, I promise I’ll only kill you—and leave the rest alone.”

“......”

Of course, it was a lie.

Basara’s mission was to annihilate humanity.

But he said it anyway—just to toy with her.

And Rine knew it.

But even knowing that... she couldn’t bring herself to run.

Basara beamed.

“You’re a kind one. The owner of this body thinks the same of you, you know.”

She stepped forward slowly, toward Rine.

“That man who got in my way... he seems to care deeply for you. In that case, killing you might be the perfect way to vent.”

Basara morphed her right hand into a sharp blade.

The black mana at her fingertips expanded, twisting her hand into a beastly claw.

That claw was aimed directly at Rine’s heart.

“Goodbye now.”

And just as she thrust it forward—

Something shot out of Rine’s shadow and grabbed Basara’s wrist.

“P-Professor?”

Rine stared in disbelief at Ludger’s back.

He slowly rose from the shadow, cloaked in Ater Nocturnus.

His eyes, burning behind the mask, glared at Basara.

Basara didn’t seem displeased by the interruption.

On the contrary—she smiled slyly, as if she’d been waiting for this.

“Oh my. So you finally showed up?”

“That tone... You’re sounding more unpleasant than before.”

“I’m just adapting to the owner of this body. You know—out of respect. Don’t you think it suits me?”

Ludger didn’t answer.

Instead, he extended his right hand and aimed a palm at Basara.

Recalling the battle underground, Basara instinctively leapt back.

Only to realize a moment later—there was no mana behind that motion.

She scowled.

She’d been tricked.

While Ludger was still locked in place, he turned his head slightly to glance back at Rine.

“Rine. Are you alright?”

“Y-Yes. I’m okay. But... Professor, your appearance...”

Rine stammered, still not used to Ludger’s form cloaked in writhing shadow.

Ludger briefly checked her condition before turning his gaze back to Basara.

“I’ll deal with this one. You get everyone else out of here.”

Hearing that, Rine was quickly reminded of what truly mattered.

“Flora-sunbae... she protected me—and lost her body.”

“...I see.”

“Can you... save her?”

“That’s...”

Ludger couldn’t answer easily.

This was his first time ever fighting a demon that had taken over a human body.

There were too many variables to consider—beginning with the separation of soul and flesh.

And it wasn’t as if Basara would just stand by and let him attempt it.

In a situation where every second counted, could he really save Flora?

Even doubting that felt like a luxury.

“Don’t worry. I’ll end it quickly.”

Perhaps it was something in the way he said those few words—

Rine let out a small breath of relief and stood up.

As she slowly stepped away, Basara turned her attention back to Ludger.

She had been about to speak when Ludger suddenly cast a spell.

His shadow swallowed Basara whole.

In an instant, the scene around them shifted from the capital street—where the palace gates loomed in the distance—to an empty square.

The deserted Third Plaza.

Basara looked around at the changed setting.

Not a single soul in sight.

She understood Ludger’s intentions immediately.

“How amusing.”

And yet, even knowing that, Basara had made no effort to resist Ludger’s magic.

Because she was completely certain—she wouldn’t lose.

She decided to indulge in the thrill of this little game.

“Are you sure you don’t want backup? It doesn’t look like you can handle this alone.”

“Even if there were people around, they’d only get in the way.”

“Really? Is that why you sent that Saint girl away?”

Basara chuckled quietly to herself, amused.

It was a smile no one had ever seen on Flora’s face before.

To Ludger, it was more sickening than it was strange.

“Liar. You brought us all the way here because you were worried about her, didn’t you?”

“You talk as if you suddenly understand me.”

“Well, I did sneak a peek at her memories when I took this body. I think I know what kind of person you are now. Even if you pretend otherwise, you care about people. Especially that girl. The one this body belongs to would be very upset, you know.”

“......”

Ludger gave no reply.

Not that Basara was expecting one.

She’d only said it to get under his skin.

And it was working.

Though Ludger’s expression remained unreadable, the hostility burning in his eyes had only grown sharper.

Even now—despite possessing a body of perfect talent—the killing intent radiating from Ludger made her skin crawl.

Basara laughed in delight.

“Are you going to kill me? If you do, this girl dies too.”

“If I must.”

“My, such a heartless teacher.”

Basara spread her arms wide, smiling seductively.

As if saying: go ahead, try it.

She was more than willing to entertain him.

Ludger took a step forward, ready to close the distance—

When a fierce storm of darkness erupted around Basara.

No technique, no skill.

Just raw, overwhelming power unleashed from a vessel refined to its utmost limit.

It alone was enough to consume the entire plaza.

The storm was so thick, even seeing a step ahead was difficult.

Ludger advanced slowly through the wind, keeping his eyes fixed on Basara.

The gale slammed into him with force.

It was only a few meters of space, but taking a single step felt harder than crossing a thousand miles.

And the closer he got, the denser the pressure became—exponentially.

His breath caught. His vision blurred.

His pace slowed.

Basara remained still.

Watching the man who had once driven her to the brink of destruction now struggle and falter—there was no greater joy.

Until now, Basara had always manipulated others' emotions as a demon, yet remained numb to her own.

She had believed emotion to be an unnecessary waste.

Now, she admitted: her former self had been a fool.

She hadn’t realized what she was missing.

But now, she knew.

Emotion was glorious.

Especially this—this rapture from watching a human writhe in desperation—

It was sweeter than a drop of water falling into a parched throat.

In this moment, Basara decided to set aside her so-called mission.

She would savor this.

Make it last.

How far would this man struggle?

And after seeing it through, she would show the original owner of this body his pitiful, broken end.

The thought alone was intoxicating.

She nearly lost herself in ecstasy just imagining it.

“Ahahaha! Don’t give up, Professor! One of your students is waiting so helplessly right now!”

Even in the swirling storm of darkness, her ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) voice rang sharply in Ludger’s ears.

* * *

Aidan was drifting in a deep sleep.

Floating alone in an endless black void.

He was aware this was a dream—yet his body resisted waking up.

What... was going on?

Just as that thought formed—

A flash of light cut through the darkness.

—Hey! Wake up!

...Who was that?

The voice sounded familiar.

But it wasn’t enough to shatter the darkness completely.

—If you fall asleep here, your face will freeze that way! And you always told me not to sleep on the floor! Ugh!

That familiar voice rang out again—

And from somewhere deep in Aidan’s core, a burst of energy surged to life.

His eyes flew open.

“Waaagh!”

Aidan screamed—

Because his solar plexus was throbbing with intense pain.

“Oh, oops. Did I hit you too hard?”

“...Professor?”

Aidan blinked up at Mandelina, his eyes round with shock.

“W-What the heck is going on...”

“Doesn’t matter. You’re awake now, that’s what’s important. Now get up. Here—your staff. Of course you made it look like a sword. Very you.”

“Wha? Why?”

“Why do you think?”

Mandelina hauled him upright and pointed to the massive storm of darkness raging in the distance.

“We’re going through that.”

“...Excuse me?”