Academy's Genius Extra Chapter 21

Inside the Bible Museum.

Biblical figures made of mannequins stood there.

Between them.

Two figures that were not plastic darted back and forth.

From the very first glance, they defined each other as enemies.

The battle that began without a word only grew fiercer.

<With children, see with your own eyes….>

Half of the catchphrase hanging between them snapped off and fell.

<Expe… experi… Bible wo… adventure>

Sssss.

The catchphrase that hit the floor melted away.

As if it had touched a powerful acid.

The one who melted the catchphrase grinned.

“Hoho…. Child, are you going to keep running. If you are not stupid, you should have realized by now that you cannot win.”

“Do not make me laugh. I am Cadet Yoo Eunha. I may run, but I never give up.”

“Aha. So you are stupid.”

The two ran again.

The ones locked in pursuit were Yoo Eunha.

And an unidentified nun.

No.

To be precise, only Yoo Eunha was running.

Shaaaak!

The nun was moving by wriggling a huge tail instead of legs.

Kaaaak!

The nun’s mouth opened wide, spewing the deadly poison that had melted the catchphrase.

Yoo Eunha quickly changed direction, but part of the poison touched her body.

Sssss!

Yoo Eunha tumbled and hastily tore off her shirt.

She really did not want it touching her….

Even though she reacted immediately.

In that brief moment, the poison burned through the shirt and scorched Yoo Eunha’s skin.

Near her right elbow turned pitch black.

“Crazy…. That unit.”

Yoo Eunha is a healer.

And not just any healer, but the top of the healing department.

If it were a simple burn, it would not be a big issue, but considering the opponent’s form….

This was not simple acid.

The kind that travels through the bloodstream and destroys the body.

Poison.

And deadly poison at that.

“Pretty quick, kid. I wanted to melt that pretty face of yours….”

“Do not joke. You did not even get close to my face.”

“It is fine. It is only a matter of time anyway…. My procedures are precise. I will melt your face thoroughly.”

The nun flicked out a long tongue and circled around.

What could be seen beneath the skirt where legs should be was a long snake tail.

Hoo.

She was a troublesome opponent for Yoo Eunha.

‘Lower-body submissions will not work….’

The matchup was bad….

The field Yoo Eunha excelled in was close combat.

Fights against opponents with proper arms and legs.

Because that made it easier to read the .

But a tail….

Just the fact that the opponent had a tail instead of legs twisted the flow.

That S-shaped movement interfered with her reading.

In the meantime.

They had only faced each other for a brief moment.

And yet.

Gush.

Blood poured out from Yoo Eunha’s right arm, from the scorched area.

“…? What is this.”

The one startled was the snake-tailed nun.

Her eyebrows shot up.

Her poison should not have produced that kind of effect.

Gush!

Even more blood spilled from Yoo Eunha’s arm.

Anyone watching would think she was badly injured, but….

“You…. You are doing something interesting.”

“Hoo… hoo….”

Yoo Eunha’s unique ability.

Yin and Yang.

She was regulating the internal flow of her body, expelling blood infused with poison.

“Heehee…. Go on, try it.

It will not be easy.”

The snake-tailed nun was skilled in this kind of fight.

A so-called professional.

A villain who made a living doing evil, and as such, she had plenty of data.

The moment poison takes hold, the win rate jumps to eighty percent.

Against a rookie like this, even more so.

Then flash.

In Yoo Eunha’s left hand, a splendid staff appeared.

It resembled a monk’s ceremonial staff, yet was inlaid with countless Ottoman-style jewels.

Entrance rank thirteen.

A piece the healing department professors had gone to great lengths to secure for the top-ranked healing student who had entered with outstanding results….

Closer to a treasure than a mere weapon.

Gulp.

The snake-tailed nun swallowed.

A strange light entered her torn pupils.

She had come to make money anyway, so grabbing a bonus would not be bad.

“Two treasures in one day. Life really does have days like this….”

“Reverse… reverse it. Circulate it in reverse….”

Just as the snake-tailed nun expected, the toxicity was overwhelming.

Judging that emergency treatment like before would not be enough, Yoo Eunha spun the staff.

She tried to draw out the mystery within it, but….

“Circulate it….”

Yet her movements looked oddly unstable.

Seeing that, the snake-tailed nun snickered.

“You are quick, and you throw a good punch. But that staff. Not so much. Heehee…. You are way off. You are better off just using your body.”

“Hey. I am good at punching and healing, both.”

“Do not make me laugh, half-baked. You cannot even do single-task properly, let alone multitask.”

“…I will do everything well. I can do it.”

“Sssslip-. Just stand right there. I will melt your heart so you will not need healing.”

Just as the snake-tailed nun was about to lunge forward.

Bang!

A bullet flew in from afar.

Shaaaak!

The snake-tailed nun dodged it, truly like a snake.

She twisted her body with a flexibility no human could possess.

“Damn…. How did she dodge that.”

The snake-tailed nun turned toward the shooter with grotesque pupils.

“You are…. as expected….”

It was a familiar face.

A stray she had seen in the corridor a few days ago.

No scent, no distinctive traits, yet someone who had instinctively set off alarm bells.

“Should have dealt with you in the corridor after all….”

“Then do it. You did not, though. Pathetic.”

More bullets flew.

Not a single one hit.

The snake-tailed nun’s movements were anything but ordinary.

“Kim Pirate. Be careful. This snake is insanely strong.”

“Yeah. Do not worry. It is not our first meeting, and I know her better than anyone. But I have a plan.”

A stray.

Kim Pirate.

Sometimes Kim Seongtae.

A man with many names.

His real name was…. Kim Seungtae.

Kim Seungtae turned his back.

“Hey, snake-tail. Sorry, but the artifact you are looking for. I already stole it.”

“What, you mean the artifact….”

“I am making a run for it.”

Kim Seungtae ran at full speed.

His direction was the .

The snake-tailed nun’s tail scales bristled.

***

Inside the Old Testament Exhibit Hall.

I ran like crazy.

Of course, I did not have time to grab any artifact.

“What could possibly be in this cheap exhibition hall.”

I ran into the Bible Museum and, as expected, the snake-tailed nun was literally a snake.

Yoo Eunha was in danger.

While I was secretly lining up a sniping opportunity on my own.

Two treasures in one day.

Just hearing that, I made a rough guess.

That snake had come here to steal something.

And had not stolen it yet.

“I guessed, and it actually worked.”

Shaaaak!

I heard the sound of the snake-tailed nun chasing me from behind.

Maybe it worked a little too well….

“I regret this….”

I activated the Necromancer’s Eye.

Bright enough to see even the auras beyond walls.

A terrifying green aura approaching through the corridor.

From even farther away, Yoo Eunha’s aura emitting flashes of healing light.

And here….

Near me.

Very faintly.

From one of the mannequins displayed in the <Old Testament Exhibit Hall>.

There was something subtly holding an aura.

An aura coming from the mannequin itself.

Is this what the snake-tailed nun was after.

Ssssss!

The snake-tailed nun slithered into the entrance of the Old Testament Exhibit Hall.

I hid behind the suspicious mannequin.

The snake-tailed nun relaxed.

“What is it, aaah! It is right there, isn’t it? Heeheeheehee. Putting on airs.”

“Snake tailed nun. Just one question.”

“Oh my…. You know very well. I cannot let you live.”

“No, not that. Even if you disguise yourself, a tail is still a tail. What does it feel like to wear shoes with your tail?”

“Ssssss…. Curious? Shall I teach you?”

The nun’s pupils split long and narrow.

Ah. Was that a sensitive question. Looks like it really hit a nerve. Living as a beastfolk is no easy thing.

Especially an individual like this….

Such beastfolk live openly subjected to discrimination and contempt. Very different from cute and cuddly crow professor.

The snake tailed nun approached.

And I took a hostage. I wrapped an arm around the neck of the aura emitting mannequin and pointed my gun.

I am sorry….

Shepherd King.

King David….

“Heh. Do not come any closer. Do you want to see King David in pain?”

I grabbed the one to one scale King David made of plastic and stepped backward.

King David, who looked like the KFC old man, seemed startled, maybe just my imagination.

“Shaaaah!”

The snake tailed nun was not just startled, she looked ready to tear me apart. Her tail swayed in an S shape.

“Heh! Don't come closer!”

I fired six shots wildly at the snake tailed nun. A chill ran along my fingertips. But not a single shot hit.

One tenth of my spirit energy had been converted into <Precision>. One tenth of the crystallized finesse that Han Taepyeong had honed.

One tenth.

With just that, I had taken down a truckload of fanatics, but I could not beat her.

“It cannot be helped…. Is this the limit of a side character.”

I am not a genius.

If you get technical, only one tenth of me is a genius.

And one tenth did not seem to be enough. I was not shocked.

I know very well that I am just a side character.

The arm wrapped around David’s neck. That hand gripped cold bullets.

With the other hand, I held Lucy and reloaded.

It did not even take a second.

“Ssssss?!”

The snake tailed nun dodged the bullets easily, yet she could not come closer.

Because of the hostage.

The aura emitting mannequin.

This King David was without a doubt the treasure the snake tailed nun was looking for.

I fired six shots and reloaded. The hand holding the bullets throbbed with pain.

Still, another failure to hit.

The snake tailed nun’s species.

Lamias are born with a snake’s flexibility and agility, but among them, this one was especially skilled.

She must be pretty famous.

Right now we were playing Tom and Jerry with David between us….

The problem was that Tom was extremely angry. She looked ready to catch me and rip my skull open.

A Tom who does not let his guard down is the strongest….

“You cannot use your venom, right? Because <David> might get hurt.”

“Calling it <David>…? Honestly…. I do not know how much you actually know….”

The snake tailed nun slowly narrowed the distance as she spoke.

“You act like you know…. Yet something feels off, our little rat. Heehee….”

Do you really know.

The snake tailed nun pronounced each syllable clearly.

I do not.

But I cannot say that honestly.

“I do!”

I diligently wasted bullets. By now, both my hands were throbbing.

“It is King David! The legend of a salesman who rose from shepherd to king! Special skill, cracking skulls with a sling!”

Shepherd King.

David.

Even if you combine the Old and New Testaments, it is hard to find someone who received as much love and trust from God as he did.

Not just one or two revelations, but practically a hot line to heaven.

Right now, he was only my hostage.

…How did I end up like this.

I tried to stop a hostage situation and became the hostage taker instead. Maybe because of the lighting, King David’s face looked gloomy.

“I am not going to get divine punishment for this, right…?”

This is just factory made plastic. Even if divine punishment strikes, it would probably be plastic level punishment….

[Lucy… waaah!]

[Lucy… so scary!]

“Lucy, what am I supposed to do if you act like that too!”

I am scared too!

Even if it is plastic. Even if it is factory made. Divine punishment is still scary.

The snake tailed nun closed the distance.

I kept firing factory enchanted bullets.

“Uaaah! I am shooting! I can shoot!”

“Haaam.”

The snake tailed nun looked rather bored. She had figured out my level.

She realized I had no ultimate move, no hidden trump card.

And that I had no intention of destroying this plastic hostage. Without a hostage, I would be finished anyway.

“Snake tailed nun. It is probably something like this, right? A petty thief by trade, sneaking in here for a big score this time, disguising yourself as a nun. That must have been tough. Nun life was super boring, right? But if I pull the trigger here, will you even get paid? Ah. Beastfolk wages? Kick.”

“Sssssr…. As expected, just a brat? That is not how you do a hostage situation…. Your tongue is way too long. So cute I want to gulp you down in one bite, but it is work hours…. Should I melt the flesh first and just take the heart?”

Kyaaaah!

The snake tailed nun opened her mouth wide.

She was going to use venom.

Why. If venom melts the hostage….

Ah. It is the kind that can melt.

I realized too late. Not just slings and shepherding. David has another kind of legacy.

The keeping of ‘a certain object’.

A trajectory formed toward me. The venom would pour out soon.

But before that.

I moved with precision.

Lamias sometimes mistake themselves for dragons.

Aside from being cold blooded, they are not similar at all, yet at crucial moments, lamias obsess over using a breath.

As if they were dragons.

The snake tailed nun puffed up her venom gland to the limit. I aimed precisely at her Adam’s apple. The one moment when her flexibility and agility dropped.

A precise six shot burst.

One of them grazed the snake tailed nun’s jaw.

Kak!

As the bullet brushed past the venom gland in her jaw, the snake tailed nun hurriedly shut her mouth. The trajectory that had been covering me vanished.

“You, you damn bastard! You scarred my face…!”

Blood and venom flowed down from the snake tailed nun’s jaw.

“I will not forgive you! None of this matters anymore!”

“Huh.”

“Yeah, let us play, you little rat!”

“Uh….”

“I will shove my tail into your navel and make it come out your mouth!”

The snake tailed nun erupted in fury. The scales across her entire body rose at once.

I thought it was a new pattern.

“Huff…. huff…. huff….”

Achoo!

The snake tailed nun sneezed.

“Then next, the eyes. Achoo!”

A series of sneezes. The tail flailed as the scales moved on their own.

“What is this… achoo!”

Even the swelling rage seemed to cool completely. The snake tailed nun trembled as she touched her jaw.

Little by little.

Clearly.

Frost was forming on the spot where she had been grazed.

“It just grazed me…?”

The snake tailed nun looked unable to understand.

Yes. It grazed.

But the grazing wound was only the tip of the iceberg. It was a graze created after countless misses.

What happened to all those misses. They were not meaningless like F-COM.

Slowly.

The snake tailed nun twisted her waist and looked around.

Frost.

The Old Testament exhibition hall was covered entirely in ice crystals.

I had been wasting ammunition nonstop.

Ammunition so over spec that it had been deemed unusable.

Without rest, I fired over a hundred rounds.

“Wow, it is chilly. Right?”

[Lucy… totally fine achoo!]

[Lucy… not cold achoo!]

[Lucy… runny nose! Snff….]

If we were like this, a lamia would be much worse.

In most cases.

One advantage creates one disadvantage. By that rule, the lamia race’s flexibility is not free. It comes with a clear weakness.

Just then.

From far away, someone came stomping down the hall.

“Where are you! Fake nun! I am done self healing! Top of the healing department, Yoo Eunha, is coming out! I will not go easy this time!!!”

That booming voice meant she was fully healed. The second round was about to begin.

I had roughly applied the balance patch.

“Hotfix… no, cold fix? Something like that.”

[Lucy… navel safe!]

[Lucy… super boring!]

“Nun, I am busy so I will be going first. Good luck.”

“Noo….”

I ran out the back door.

In the opposite direction of where Yoo Eunha was coming from.

“Youuuuu!”

The snake tailed nun shouted. But she could not chase me as well as before. She was too busy shivering and rubbing her shoulders.

Lamias sometimes mistake themselves for dragons.

Still….

In being cold blooded, they are exactly alike.

“The price of gaining flexibility.”