Chapter 236 – Genius (2)

The members of the class were still dazed when I pulled the senior out into the hallway.

Before stepping out fully, I briefly turned my head to see their faces. Fortunately, some of their eyes were starting to show signs of life again. They were beginning to come out of the shock.

I let out a faint sigh. Though it would still take time for them to recover completely.

I closed the door gently and walked over to her, standing by the window frame.

“Senior.”

“Yes.”

She answered with a forced smile. I looked at her for a moment and rubbed my forehead. They say you can’t spit at a smiling face, and with her looking like that, my words caught in my throat. But they had to be said.

I spoke.

“I was the one who approved you becoming the teacher of the Heavenly Class. Technically, you made the proposal, but in the end, I gave it the green light. And that makes me responsible for the consequences.”

I crossed my arms and leaned sideways against the wall. The cold seeped into my shoulder. From that position, I continued.

“That’s why I didn’t want to question your teaching methods. Honestly, I don’t think I’m in any position to lecture you on how to teach. So even when you said that crazy line about ‘dying twenty times a day,’ I let it go.”

I hardened my tone. From here on, I wouldn’t sugarcoat it.

“But if there was a ‘hidden agenda’ disguised as a class, then I can’t stay silent. Even if it’s part of the curriculum. Those kids joined the Heavenly Class solely on my word. If someone uses that trust as a mere ‘resource,’ then as the founder of this class, I have to intervene.”

“……”

“I’m not demanding you tell me everything. In fact, I don’t care what you’re hiding. If I really cared, I’d have asked the moment you called me Demon Lord. And, well—if it truly bothered me, I wouldn’t be talking to you now. I’d have settled it with fists.”

I’m the kind of guy who solves things with violence before words.

“But the more I think about it, today’s class clearly had a personal agenda. I’m not talking about the ‘dying twenty times’ part. I trust you’ll moderate that. The problem is, you made me draw my sword against them. And you know I don’t do things halfway.”

She nodded slowly. I went on.

“See, you knew exactly how I am, and yet you cast me as the butcher. That means you admit that today’s class had another purpose.”

I pushed off the wall and stepped closer.

“So tell me, Senior. What was it you were trying to confirm during today’s class?”

“……”

She met my gaze. Though it was winter, her eyes held the color of spring.

Silence lingered in the hallway until she muttered, resigned.

“Kang Geom-Ma, since when did you get so good at reading people? Last semester, you were incapable of empathy. The more I get to know you, the more of a mystery you become. You’re impossible to figure out.”

“I wasn’t that bad at empathy.”

She let out a dry laugh.

“Then maybe it was common sense. Either way, you’re right. It was clearly my mistake. Even if it was class-related, I had a personal motive. That’s disgraceful behavior for an educator.”

Her smile vanished completely. Then she bowed deeply, nearly forming a right angle.

“I’ll apologize to the students later. But first, I had to apologize to you, the one in charge of this class.”

“There was no need to go that far.”

I scratched my head, uncomfortable, and ended up just nodding.

“Alright. I get it.”

She slowly straightened her back. The eyes—those mint-colored eyes—did not lie.

“So then.”

Wanting to clear the awkward air, I asked directly.

“What were you trying to figure out with that class?”

“Hmm…”

She paused to think. It felt like I could hear her thoughts turning. But soon she sighed, as if she’d made up her mind.

“Before I get into that… Kang Geom-Ma, do you know the difference between a blessing and magic?”

“Blessings strengthen the body. Magic manipulates elements using mana, right?”

“I’m not talking about textbook definitions.”

She shook her head and continued.

“In theory, ‘blessings’ are powers lent to humans by the gods. While magic uses corrupted energy. But after decades wandering the Demon Realm, I’ve come to the conclusion that that’s false.”

“…?”

“A blessing is not power granted by the gods.”

She said it without any change in tone, as if shattering an absolute dogma.

“Isn’t it contradictory? The gods supposedly vanished during the mythic age. So how can they be lending us power? I think the power we use doesn’t come from the gods.”

“Then you’re saying…”

“Yes. I believe that ‘blessings’ are essentially the same as the ‘magic’ demons use. The reason humans can’t manipulate elements like they can is because something—or someone—is preventing us. That’s why our magic became flawed, degenerating into what we now call ‘blessings.’”

In short, blessings are leftovers of magic. And the power humans believe to be divine is in fact no different from the demonic power they so despise. If this conversation were made public, it would cause a global scandal—and not a good one.

I asked her.

“So you’re saying blessings don’t exist?”

“What we use is already established under that name, so they exist. What I mean is, they don’t originate from the gods. Though even my theory has gaps. For example, I still can’t explain the ‘Blessing Awakening.’ But this year, I started to get a clearer idea of what it really is.”

Suddenly, she poked me lightly in the abdomen. I stepped back, startled. She gave a faint smile.

“What I wanted to learn from the subdimensional class was about the ‘entity’ you draw your power from. I’ve seen you use it before, but I thought I’d get a clearer picture if you fought Leon, the Hero. And after today, I’m almost certain.”

Then, she gave her conclusion.

“The only human who truly manifests a ‘blessing’ in its original form is you, Kang Geom-Ma. The one truly chosen by the gods isn’t Leon. It’s you.”

***

Meanwhile, in the Heavenly Class.

Speedweapon, who had somewhat regained his strength, was rubbing his temples vigorously. Just minutes earlier, he had experienced death.

“Ugh… just thinking about it…”

The first thing he did when the fight ended was check between his legs. He was worried it might be yellow and wet. Thankfully, no disaster had occurred. If it had, he would’ve been teased for the rest of his life.

He sighed in relief and looked around. Though everyone looked shaky, at least they were no longer trapped in the pit of shock.

Seeing that left him even more impressed. He felt a renewed respect for Kang Geom-Ma.

‘How the hell did he defeat all of them?’

The so-called Heavenly Class, a name he himself had come up with, truly lived up to its “heavenly” title.

Each member was someone who would have stood out above the rest in any other generation. They weren’t just exceptional—they were true prodigies, likely to be celebrated their whole lives.

‘I barely qualify as talented, if that.’

Speedweapon was quite objective about himself. But here, talking about talent or genius was meaningless. Before the immensity of Kang Geom-Ma, everyone was equally powerless.

‘I knew we’d lose, but still…’

It was logical. Kang Geom-Ma was one of the Seven Stars. The successor of the Swordmaster, considered humanity’s strongest. Some even said he was stronger than the Swordmaster in his prime—and not without reason.

If you looked at the enemies Kang Geom-Ma had faced—top-class magical beasts, demons, corpse commanders… monsters terrifying enough to freeze your blood just imagining them. And he had annihilated them alone. How could anyone beat someone like that? It wasn’t bravery—it was recklessness.

“…Even so.”

They had hoped to at least land a scratch. They were seven from the so-called golden group. It wasn’t that far-fetched to think they could open an opening.

They say not even the best can win against everyone at once. But that too turned out to be an arrogant illusion.

It wasn’t just that they lost—they couldn’t even touch him. Even though he was clearly holding back, they were just hitting air. And in mere seconds, they were toppled like LEGO blocks.

He didn’t hate him. He didn’t even resent him. It was simply too overwhelming. He didn’t even feel frustration. On the contrary, his respect for Kang Geom-Ma grew even deeper.

‘The power he has now doesn’t compare to when he fought the Demonic Sirens or the Bull King.’

And yet, it was puzzling. Kang Geom-Ma was no longer at a level that could be compared with the strongest humans. He was something else. Something capable of facing even a Corps Commander.

“Seriously, was that a blessing? What kind of blessing lets you handle a sword like that?”

In the hero society, asking about someone’s blessing was one of the greatest taboos.

It was like asking for a bank account number. It was even clearly stated in the hero law, “Avoid revealing your blessing to anyone outside your family.” But he couldn’t help his curiosity anymore.

Was what he used really a blessing? It didn’t seem like mere physical enhancement.

Maybe it was something beyond blessings. A different kind of power?

While Speedweapon was lost in those thoughts, he heard Rachel muttering beside him.

“If I apply Geom-Ma’s movements to the spear, the Mura family’s technique would stop relying so much on brute force…”

Rachel mumbled, motionless as a statue. Her unusually serious face puzzled Speedweapon. What was up with her?

“The stealth attack from behind was too obvious to Geom-Ma. Maybe if I’d attacked from above or head-on…”

This time, it was Chloe. She took deep breaths as she reviewed the fight. And she wasn’t the only one.

“The Nibelung family’s swordplay is too rigid. In contrast, Geom-Ma moves his body with complete freedom…”

Abel was doing it too, recalling every move. Speedweapon let out a chuckle. How foolish he’d been to underestimate them.

All of them had been born with exceptional talent. And though they were utterly defeated today, they weren’t demoralized. They were analyzing the loss, trying to learn from it. They would get back up and push their limits even further.

What’s more, they wanted to be like him.

Even knowing it was an unattainable goal, they were still trying to get closer.

They didn’t just stand there looking up. That’s why they were true geniuses.