I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy-Chapter 447

The fact that all the priests of the Gray Moon Church were Darklings no longer posed a problem for Baek Yuseol.

Criminal Darklings were different from those who simply lived as priests.

Darkling priests?

It wasn’t unusual.

The religions in this world were incredibly diverse, with almost no commonality in doctrines or beliefs.

Some religions even permitted murder, making them fundamentally different from the religions of Earth.

The Gray Moon Church, for instance, had its unique practices. It revolved around worshipping the Twelve Lunar Deities to gain mysterious powers. As a result, it often attracted those seeking strength and fame.

In the original game, Darklings occasionally appeared as priests of the Gray Moon Church. In fact, Professor Raydin—Stella Academy’s most infamous Darkling spy—had specialized in Lunar Magic, despite not being officially aligned with the church.

“You’re a mage from Stella, yet you seem to have no prejudices,” remarked one priest.

“You’re known as the ‘Darkling Butcher,’ but you seem calmer than I expected,” added another.

“I only kill Darklings who have committed crimes,” Baek Yuseol replied calmly. “I have no reason to attack the innocent.”

“Well... it’s good you trust us, but not all priests of the Gray Moon Church are so trustworthy.”

“...Are there other branches of the Gray Moon Church?”

“Of course. You’ve heard of the so-called ‘Darkling Lord,’ haven’t you? That guy is practically the overlord of the entire Gray Moon Church.”

Baek Yuseol was taken aback. He had no idea.

Then again, the mysteries surrounding the Darkling Lord were never fully resolved in the original game, so perhaps it was natural for him to be unaware.

“We’ve distanced ourselves from all that and live separately now. Still, you should be careful.”

As they continued discussing Darklings and the Gray Moon Church, Baek Yuseol carefully observed the temple.

‘Why does a place like this even exist?’

Its structure didn’t resemble a church at all. There wasn’t a single human worshipper in sight; it was entirely made up of Darklings.

While their level of devotion to their faith was unclear, the question remained: Why maintain the guise of a church while acting as the mafia of the region?

Pretending to be a church to conceal their identity didn’t make sense, especially since no one could even approach this temple.

‘Something’s not right.’

Baek Yuseol narrowed his eyes.

This wasn’t simply a temple built for the worship of the Gray Moon.

Though he lacked concrete evidence, he felt oddly confident in his suspicion.

‘This feels...’

“We’re here,” one of the priests interrupted.

Baek Yuseol looked ahead to see a massive door covered in ominous, grotesque carvings.

“Is this where the priest who tracked the Witch Queen resides?”

“Yes. It’s been a while since we’ve come here ourselves.”

“A while...?”

“Step aside. We need to pray.”

The two priests stood before the door and began chanting. Their voices were strange, like the sound of wood being scratched. Baek Yuseol couldn’t make out the words, but it seemed to be some form of prayer.

Wuuuum!

As the prayer continued, the magical engravings on the door began to glow with a grayish hue, and the entire door shimmered faintly.

“You may enter now.”

“Huh? But the door didn’t open,” Finarette remarked from behind.

Without hesitation, Baek Yuseol strode forward toward the firmly shut door, followed by Cyclen. Finarette, though hesitant, trailed after them.

Squish!

Baek Yuseol walked into the door as if passing through a veil and disappeared.

“Ooooh...”

Impressed, Finarette hurried to follow Cyclen, but when she tried to pass through:

Thud!

“Ugh!”

She smacked her forehead against the door and fell to the ground, groaning.

“...If you cannot pass through this door, it means you are a witch,” said one of the priests, glaring down at her.

“We won’t attack you out of respect for Baek Yuseol’s goodwill, but once this is over, you must leave immediately.”

The priests spoke with a stern and threatening tone before disappearing through the door.

“Wait, wait!” Finarette cried, grabbing the hem of one priest’s robe.

Whoosh!

To her surprise, she was pulled through the door alongside them.

The priest glanced at her in bewilderment as she flipped him off and ran to Cyclen’s side.

“This place...”

Baek Yuseol, who had entered first, frowned at the eerie atmosphere of the chamber.

‘What is this...?’

The space was dark and oppressive.

Unlike the gray tones outside, the chamber was dominated by red magic circles and dozens of candles flickering atop them.

“This looks... like some kind of witch ritual,” Cyclen observed, gesturing toward a figure seated at the edge of the largest magic circle.

“Actually, it is a witch ritual. Specifically, a curse formation,” the priest explained.

“A curse formation?”

“You’ve heard of the old folk tales about sticking nails into dolls to curse someone, haven’t you? This is the advanced version of that. Modern witches have refined and optimized it for maximum efficiency.”

Baek Yuseol’s gaze shifted to the figure at the edge of the magic circle.

Draped in a navy robe, the figure sat motionless, head bowed. They didn’t even glance at Baek Yuseol or Cyclen, looking more like a lifeless corpse.

“The world is full of tragic individuals,” the priest said softly. “Especially those tied to witches. They always seem to try to escape their fate.”

“Witches?”

Cyclen frowned as the priest nodded.

“You’re peculiar yourself. A witch hunter who fell in love with a witch. A witch who grew fond of a witch hunter. Even humans who became witch hunters out of love for a witch.”

Now that it was pointed out, Baek Yuseol realized there wasn’t a single normal person among their group.

“That seer over there is no different. She was originally... a witch.”

“A witch?!” Finarette exclaimed.

The priests shot her a disapproving look before continuing.

“She chose to become a witch hunter despite being a witch herself. It must not have been an easy decision, which is why she’s hiding in a place like this.”

“Not easy, huh...”

Baek Yuseol looked skeptical. Considering the number of unconventional cases he’d encountered, this didn’t seem particularly unusual.

“To defy one’s fate requires immense willpower,” the priest added, closing his eyes.

“Or... the intervention of an even stronger will,” Cyclen muttered, her tone heavy.

Cyclen had # Nоvеlight # broken free of her fate through sheer determination.

But what about Baek Yuseol and Finarette?

“What about you two?”

“Uh... well...”

Neither of them could answer right away.

Could they truly claim they had forged their own paths?

“I’m... not sure...”

“In that case, you, too, have been shaped by someone’s intervention. Whether that’s fortunate or unfortunate, only time will tell,” the priest concluded.

Baek Yuseol stayed silent, deep in thought.

Baek Yuseol hesitated for a moment before slowly opening his lips to speak.

“I try to shape my destiny... but I feel like I’m not succeeding.”

“...Then it’s likely that you possess a strong will of your own, while also being influenced by an even stronger will,” replied the priest.

“A stronger will...”

Baek Yuseol felt as though he understood, vaguely, what that “stronger will” might be.

Now, it felt as if he could faintly see the path he needed to take, the direction he had to follow.

“Interesting...”

Startled, Baek Yuseol lowered his stance as a voice suddenly echoed from ahead.

“Not dead yet, I see,” Cyclen quipped, her tone amused.

Baek Yuseol stiffened and nodded with a firm expression.

A figure draped in a navy robe slowly raised its head, locking eyes with him.

“What’s this...?”

The gaze was pure and clear, making it hard to discern whether the figure was a boy or a girl. The face was mostly obscured by a veil, but it was easy to guess that the person was quite young.

However, the eyes...

The eyes held the weight of centuries, their ageless depth betraying a wisdom and experience far beyond the figure’s apparent youth.

Baek Yuseol had dealt with enough beings whose appearances did not match their true age to recognize this immediately.

“To think that a child blessed by the stars would find their way here. The world is full of surprises.”

“...You say I’m blessed by the stars?”

“Yes. Are you unaware? All the stars in the night sky are watching you... isn’t the weight of their gaze suffocating?”

Baek Yuseol instinctively looked up.

“What...”

He had thought the space was completely enclosed, but to his astonishment, the ceiling above was wide open.

The night sky glittered with countless stars, their radiance so vibrant it seemed strange that none of it reached into this chamber.

“This place is beyond the reach of the stars. For us seers to live long lives, we must avoid the sin of ‘Heaven’s Revelation.’”

“Heaven’s Revelation...?”

“Yes.”

As Baek Yuseol swallowed dryly, the figure who called themselves a seer smiled mischievously, raising their eyes in a sharp arc.

“The Library of Stars.”

The Library of Stars. Also known as the Constellatio Project.

“We seers read the past, present, and future from there. Your past and future, as well....”

“My past... Do you know something about it?” Baek Yuseol asked, unable to hide his nervousness.

He was desperate to know more about his past, the version of Baek Yuseol who had existed before arriving in Aither World.

But the seer shook their head.

“If I had read all your secrets, I’d already be dead.”

“...Then what do you know?”

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“I know that there’s a woman you’re desperately searching for. And... I know where she is.”

Baek Yuseol’s eyes widened.

The seer chuckled gleefully, stretching out an arm to point toward the center of the magic circle.

“So why are you hesitating? I’ve prepared this ritual in anticipation of your arrival. How much longer will you make me wait?”

Still bewildered, Baek Yuseol nodded and approached the magic circle.

“Shoes off!” the seer barked.

“...Yes.”

A meticulous and peculiar seer.

But Baek Yuseol had no choice but to comply. Without the seer’s help, there was no way he could find Scarlet.

“Scarlet! Oh, Scarlet! The woman you’ve fallen for is the Bloodstained Witch Queen? How intriguing, tragic, and disgusting!”

Raising both arms, the seer ignited the candles surrounding the circle. A foreboding red light began to seep from the runes etched into the ground.

“You! Surely you know that finding her will come at a price!”

Baek Yuseol didn’t know that.

“You’ve come prepared, haven’t you?”

He hadn’t.

“Well, then, let’s begin!”

“Wait, hold on—!”

Ignoring Baek Yuseol’s protest, the seer clapped their hands, activating the ritual.

“Ugh!”

A gut-wrenching sensation overcame Baek Yuseol as if his entire body were being crushed. Clutching his head, he clenched his teeth against the nausea.

“Concentrate! Picture the one you love and the one who loves you!”

‘Damn it...!’

Cursing the unbearable pain and the seer’s demands, Baek Yuseol summoned all his willpower and focused on Scarlet’s image.

‘Please... please...!’

With his eyes shut tight, he poured every ounce of his being into visualizing Scarlet.

Suddenly, the crushing weight lifted, replaced by a strange lightness.

“Gasp!”

Instinctively, he sat up, his face contorted in confusion.

“What...?”

Chirp, chirp!

The sound of birdsong reached his ears.

Whoosh...

A cool breeze brushed past him.

A vibrant blue sky stretched endlessly overhead, and the lush green fields rolled out before him.

“What is this place? Is this where Scarlet is supposed to be...?”

It seemed the seer’s ritual had gone wrong.