I Became the Academy’s Genius Shikigami Summoner – Chapter 219

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏𝟗

Between the massive rock faces, we soon encountered a space that resembled an ancient temple with elaborate carvings.

“. . .To think she made all of this by herself. Just what level of skill would that require?”

Shin No-eul let out an admiring chuckle, while the rest of the party cautiously examined the space within the rock face.

「𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙩?」

The structure was certainly similar, but upon closer inspection, there seemed to be subtle differences in its design.

One thing was for sure, though: we had finally found the correct path.

“I suppose we’ll be getting closer to solving the maze from here on out.”

“. . .Does that mean this is where the real challenge begins?”

Shin No-eul’s words were spot on. The trials that awaited us from this point onward would likely be more difficult than simply fighting a guardian.

Regardless, we had to move forward.

“At least this room seems to be empty.”

A vast space with nothing but an ornate door.

Since there was only one way to go, we maintained our vigilance and proceeded cautiously.

“Then, I shall open it.”

Creak.

Screech.

The second space that unfolded before us consisted of a strange platform that resembled a modern-day chessboard.

However, everything had been destroyed to the point where its original form was no longer recognizable.

“This is. . . . . .”

“Hmm. Does this mean someone has been here before us?”

It was hard to believe, but it seemed like the only possible explanation.

And I already knew of one being who could have done such a thing.

「𝙓𝙞𝙖𝙤 𝘾𝙝𝙚𝙣.」

I had thought that she would have had a hard time surviving on her own, but it seemed that she had somehow managed to overcome the trials.

She probably hadn’t managed to completely solve the maze, but it was still quite disconcerting.

“. . .I guess we should hurry a little.”

With that, we quickly passed through the room and headed for the next gate.

However, its condition wasn’t much different from the previous room.

「𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛?」

We exchanged bewildered glances, then, as if by unspoken agreement, moved in unison to the next room.

Soon, a vast plain unfolded before our eyes.

“Ugh, the sunlight. . . . . .”

“It seems this place is free from any traces of destruction.”

As Echinacea Lianqi had said, the condition of this gate was pristine. It could have been because there was no need for combat here, or perhaps Xiao Chen had also failed to overcome this gate.

Since there was no point in worrying about it now, we decided to take our time exploring and gathering information.

“Oppa, there’s nothing here.”

“Same here. It just looks like a simple meadow.”

The party’s opinions were largely the same.

In the end, it seemed that we had to look beyond what was visible to uncover the truth here.

「𝙇𝙚𝙩’𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠.」

Although this was all a virtual reality, the concept itself was born from the human mind.

Perhaps this was a stage that had already been conceived when I was still there.

There was no need to overcomplicate things.

I just had to calmly assess the situation and uncover the truth.

「𝙄𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚?」

I first summoned Sahwanjae, who had previously displayed his remarkable abilities, but this time, he shook his head as if to say he didn’t know.

It seemed that we had to find the answer ourselves from here on out.

「𝘼 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙤𝙬 𝙛𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙨, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙢 𝙨𝙪𝙣𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙨.」

At least there was nothing strange about what we could see.

However, that didn’t last long. I soon discovered the problem.

“The sun is rising in the west.”

“What?”

“Huh? How did you figure that out?”

Even if the sun were really in the west, there was no way to determine that for sure in a place where the compass didn’t work.

After all, almost every method of determining direction relied on the sun as a reference.

“It’s simple if you recall the scenery outside the rock face.”

“No, are you saying you memorized that. . . . . .”

I wouldn’t have normally paid attention to something like that myself.

However, the unique structure of the massive rock face, which was designed to completely block out the sun, had made me more observant.

Thinking about it now, that too must have been a preparation for the current gate.

「. . .𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙞𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙠.」

I let out a small sigh, and the party looked at me with expressions of disbelief.

But it couldn’t be helped. Having played countless notorious games, including the Exorcism series, I had developed a bit of a persecution complex when it came to these things.

In fact, it had helped me this time.

“The sun is rising in the west. . . . . . What does that mean?”

Seo-ah tilted her head, and the party members fell into deep contemplation.

However, the answer was simple if you looked at it the right way.

“The sun serves as a guidepost for all paths.”

The fact that the sun was rising in the opposite direction meant that we too had to go in the opposite direction.

In other words, the correct answer was most likely to go back, not forward, to retrace the path we had come.

Without hesitation, I turned and opened the door that led back to the previous gate, and the party silently followed after me.

Creak.

Screech─!

“. . .Doesn’t it look exactly the same?”

“It’s too early to judge.”

As I had said many times, we couldn’t trust what we saw.

If this puzzle could be solved simply by returning to the previous gate, then those who were lucky enough might have passed through without ever knowing the truth.

I walked straight through the ruined space and opened the next door, finally arriving back at the very first space.

“Don’t you think it’s strange? To have such a large space with no setup at all.”

In other words, the path to the next gate was here. That was my guess.

“That makes sense. There’s definitely something unnatural about it.”

Just then, Seo-ah, who had been nodding her head, confidently walked toward a spot.

It was in front of the female statue adorned with decorative vases that filled the first room.

“Did you figure something out?”

“Yes, Oppa. I actually thought it was strange from the beginning.”

Seo-ah was pointing at the laurel wreath that was worn on the woman’s head.

「𝙄 𝙨𝙚𝙚.」

It wasn’t easy to notice at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the laurel wreath was facing the wrong way.

And the message it conveyed was exactly the same as the situation we had just encountered.

“Why, grains have always been held in high regard for ritualistic purposes, regardless of the country?”

With that explanation, Seo-ah poured the grains she had collected from the fourth gate into the vase.

Thud.

Rumble!

With that, a huge vibration echoed through the air, and the floor in the center of the vast room slowly began to split open.

What emerged from it was a staircase-like passage that led underground.

“. . .I guess I can’t keep up with these kids these days.”

Shin No-eul, who had been on guard, was the first to take the lead, and we followed after her cautiously.

After we had proceeded for some time, shadows flickered and began to send intense warnings my way.

The expressions of the party members hardened almost simultaneously.

“It seems this won’t be easy.”

“Oppa, from here on out, countless overlapping spells. . . . . . They share some similarities with the knowledge left behind by the witch, but I can’t understand them at all.”

I couldn’t grasp the exact details either, but just the suffocating aura that permeated the air was enough to give me a sense of what lay ahead.

「. . .𝙃𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡?」

We remained vigilant and steeled ourselves as we continued to move forward.

What unfolded before us was an old wooden door.

“. . .Really. There’s a limit to how annoying you can be.”

Its appearance was shabby, but the ominous feeling it emitted was incomparable to any of the gates we had encountered so far.

I gulped and opened the door and stepped inside, and this time, the interior of a massive mansion greeted us, as if it had appeared out of nowhere.

And the differences from the previous gates soon became apparent.

“Oppa, the door. . . . . . .”

“Does that mean we can’t go back from here?”

It was a chilling situation, but in a way, it was also a positive sign.

Whatever the case, it meant that we were finally getting closer to our destination.

“By the way, this mansion is quite interesting.”

“Hmm. It looks quite spacious from the outside. And it doesn’t feel good.”

“I guess it’s another treasure hunt in the end.”

We still didn’t have enough information. Judging by its size, it seemed like it would take a considerable amount of time, but for now, we decided to look around the mansion and search for clues.

“We’ll split into three teams. Sophia and I will take the third floor, Team Leader and Seo-ah will take the second floor, and Echinacea Lianqi, please investigate the first floor.”

At those words, Echinacea Lianqi gave me a meaningful look, but I calmly turned my gaze away and headed toward my destination with Sophia.

It was risky to have her explore such an unknown place alone, but it would probably be an exception in her case.

「𝙄𝙛 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙞𝙩, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙫𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙜𝙪𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛.」

The third floor we arrived at had a long, rectangular corridor with two passageways branching off at each end.

There were already more than ten rooms along the corridor, and it would take more than an hour or two to examine them all thoroughly.

I sighed at the daunting task, when once again, shadows flickered and sent me a warning.

And exactly five seconds later, Sophia, who had sensed something, quietly assumed a battle stance.

“. . .The third room on the left. There’s someone there.”

I could sense it too. It was very subtly concealed, but if I concentrated my senses, I could detect the refined killing intent within it.

「. . .𝙎𝙝𝙚’𝙨 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜.」

I could feel her strength through my skin, even though we hadn’t even met face to face. She wasn’t an opponent I could be confident of defeating.

“. . .Should we attack first?”

“No, let’s wait for now.”

Since the opponent had already detected us, it would be too risky to act first.

Creak.

Bang!

After a few minutes of this standoff, the opponent must have changed their mind, because the door to the room, which had been tightly shut, slowly opened, revealing someone in shabby clothing.

“. . .What the heck? Am I seeing things?”

It was Xiao Chen, a member of Yahwak who had lost to me in the Black Forest and had fallen behind in this Blinding Mountain.

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