I Became the Genius of the Gigant Academy - Chapter 23:

The assault on the Wall of Glory had a devastating effect on the Empire, as Abel had predicted. It wasn’t that the enemy was overwhelmingly powerful or the defenses were particularly weak; it was the emergence of an entity with unique abilities that hasn’t been discovered yet and their intelligence.

It meant that the strategy for dealing with the Colossus and its forces would have to be thoroughly changed from the foundation. Even after a few days, there was still a lot of confusion.

Abel was given a few days of rest, along with the other cadets in the special class, with the promise of a great reward later. So far, it was expected, but there was one thing Abel wasn’t expecting at all.

‘It’s incredibly burdensome.’

Flaming red hair. He had an equally red beard, sharp eyes, and massive muscles that showed through his clothes. And a grim appearance. It was easy to recognize who it was. Abel cautiously opened his mouth.

“It is an honor to meet you, Duke Del Kior…”

The Duke of Del Kior. He was the lord of the Duchy of Del Kior and Hannah’s father.

‘Why on earth–’

Abel hadn’t expected a private audience with the Duke. The Duke’s visit to the Academy wasn’t all that unusual, as the Duke was known for loving his daughter incredibly, so it’s not unexpected that he’d come running to the Academy within a month after hearing about his only daughter’s near-death experience.

‘The question is, why did he single me out for a private meeting?’ 

Abel looked nervously at the Duke of Del Kior.

“Hmm”

The duke looked at Abel while stroking his beard and then spoke.

“You said you are Abel Klein, right?”

“That’s right.”

“They said that the damage would have been much if it wasn’t for you.”

“Oh, that… I just did the best I could do in that situation.” Abel stuttered for a moment, but thankfully, he could respond politely.

The Duke was silent for a while, then suddenly took out something and placed it on the table.

“I look forward to your future performance. This is my personal gift.”

“Ah… thank you.”

The suddenness of the situation took him aback, but he was able to respond in time.  But what happened next was even more baffling because as soon as the Duke heard Abel’s answer, he stood up.

“Well, then. I’ll see you later,” He said, walking out the door.

Abel stared blankly at the door, lost in thought,

‘Why did he call me here?’ 

His mind seemed to be stuck on a situation he couldn’t understand. Abel scratched his cheek, and without thinking, he reached out to the pouch on the table and opened it, and an exclamation escaped his lips.

“Whoa. This is crazy.”

Inside were a bunch of gold coins.

»————- ★ ————-«

It was easy to see why the Duke of Del Kior had asked for a private meeting and why he had suddenly presented him with a pouch of gold coins. It wasn’t long after he had finished his meeting with the Duke that Hannah came to him.

“Whoa. You sure my Dad didn’t say anything weird?”

“Yes. But can I really have this?”

“Sure, he gave it to you. So, of course, you can take it. As long as you don’t say anything weird.”

Hannah said that and quickly left, saying she needed to catch up with her dad. This was what she said to Abel when she showed up unexpectedly after the meeting.

After the events of the Wall of Glory, Hannah had a conversation with the Duke and told him about Abel’s exploits. Hearing that, the Duke showed interest in Abel and asked for a private meeting with him as soon as he arrived at the Academy.

Abel watched Hannah’s back as she walked off into the distance and thought to himself, ‘She has a similar personality to the Duke.’ 

Especially in the way she says what she wants to say and then walks away. Abel looked at the pouch in his hand and stuffed it into his pocket first. It was a good thing, because the more money he had, the better. Even though he received some support from Count Klein, it was still nice to have a lot of money at his disposal.

‘It’s good I know where to spend my money on.’ 

Abel thought to himself as he slowly walked away. He hadn’t showered since he woke up, and his stomach rumbled from his time alone with the Duke. He went to the cafeteria, intending to eat first, but as soon as he walked in, the eyes of the cadets who were eating were focused on him.

There were many cases of him receiving attention before, but now cannot be compared to then. This time around it was on a whole different level.

‘I’ll get used to this.’

He didn’t feel overwhelmed or smug about it. This was nothing compared to what he had planned and aimed for.

“Abel!”

He put food on his plate and looked for a seat when someone called out to him. He turned and saw Daniel waving at him. It seemed he’d waited until he loaded his plate before calling him over. Next to him sat Charlotte and Lian. Abel walked over and sat down in an empty seat.

“How are you feeling?”

As soon as he was seated, Daniel asked a question. Abel nodded his head.

“Uh. I’m okay.”

After the battle, Abel passed out. It was because he used all the power he had and the power he didn’t have. Abel woke up 12 hours after he had collapsed, so it was only natural for him to be worried.

Even though he received the highest level of treatment throughout, his body was so damaged that the aftereffects remained. But fortunately, he was fine now because he got the cure as an extra reward for the quest.

“How are you?” Abel asked politely, as he poked his fork into his large chunk of meat.

“I’m fine too. But, my body aches from not being able to train.”

It’s not empty words, but Daniel looked fine at a glance even though he must have been quite overworked during the battle.  Of course, Abel knew why.

‘I envy you.’

Daniel has more than just monstrous physical strength. He has tremendous stamina. His being so energetic, even after training like crazy, shows that it’s not just his personality.

‘That’s why Daniel’s talent is indomitable.’ 

It’s an S-class talent that has a variety of effects. While Abel was thinking about that, Charlotte, who was sitting next to him, spoke.

“When I tell you to rest, I mean rest. I’m still aching all over.”

“Yeah… I feel like I’m going to die.” Lian chimed in from the side.

They both looked worse than Abel. Their bodies were bandaged and bruised. Abel would have been in a similar state if he hadn’t taken the separate treatment.

‘It’s a good thing we were given a break.’

Infamous Scans

All the special cadets at the scene were put on mandatory rest until two days later. No training was allowed, and they were to rest and heal. Daniel mumbled something about being stifled, then looked at Abel and said,

“By the way, I thought you were going out today?”

“Yeah, I’m just going out for a bit.”

Originally, students were only allowed to go out on weekends, but now, classes have been temporarily suspended due to the recent incident. It wasn’t just the cadets in the special class; many of the teachers had been summoned.

Many of the teachers were retired from active duty, but most of them had fought in the last great war, which meant they had a lot of experience dealing with gigants.

‘It’s not an incident that has anything to do with the Academy.’ 

Anyway, it gave Abel a chance to go out. Of course, not all cadets were given the right to go out freely. Abel had earned it and had been granted special permission at his request. While he was lost in thought again, Daniel and others began to speak.

“Maybe I should have requested to go out. Ugh.”

“Don’t go out and get into trouble, stay in your dorm.”

“What trouble will I get into?”

Abel continued to eat in silence amidst their grumping. He was the last to sit down, but he was also the first to get up.

“I’ll go first.”

“Uh, okay.”

After returning his utensils and being waved goodbye, Abel left the cafeteria and headed straight to his room. He showered and packed everything he needed before leaving the dormitory. As he exited the dormitory, he saw  cadets walking around the school in groups of twos and threes.

“Hey, look over there.”

“Huh? That’s him, isn’t it?”

He received as many glances and voices as he did when he entered the cafeteria, but Abel didn’t care and continued down the street. The academy was so large that getting to the main gate took him quite a while. It was a very short distance compared to where he was going to stop today.

“Hello”.

The good news was that he didn’t have to walk to his destination. A carriage sent by Count Klein was waiting for him at the front gate. The Count herself had sent the carriage for today’s outing. Abel bowed politely to the carriage man.

“Yes, sir. Thank you very much.”

“I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

After a brief conversation, Abel entered the carriage and told him his destination.

“Well, I’ll set off, then.”

Soon the carriage began to move slowly. After a long ride out of the Academy, the carriage stopped in a fairly remote spot.

“We’ve arrived.”

“Alright. Thank you.”

Abel stepped out of the carriage and looked around the familiar streets.

“I’ll be on my way, then.”

“Okay. I’ll be waiting for you here.”

After talking to the coachman, Abel strolled. It was a short distance to his destination. He had purposely asked to be dropped off far from his destination. He didn’t want to attract attention and wanted to walk a bit.

‘It’s still the same.’

This was the same street Abel lived all his life. The street was the same as it had been before he left. It was no surprise.  It can’t really change within a month.

The streets were full of people sprawled out, drunk or high on something, even though it was the middle of the day, and some of them glared at him with red, bloodshot eyes.

“Turn it off then…”

Abel strode on, listening with one ear to the groans of the drunkards. If a stranger were to enter this street, they wouldn’t see anything good.  No one approached Abel hastily.

He had deliberately kept a sharp momentum since he stepped out of the carriage. He knew this street way too well because he belonged to this street until recently. No matter how low his life may be, he knows that no one will play with his life.

Kang, Caang-!  

After walking for a while, he heard the sound of metal banging in the distance.  Abel grinned at the familiar sound. As he walked to the place where he heard the sound, he saw a huge building that was incomparable to the shabby buildings around me.

He was used to big buildings now, but his jaw dropped when he first saw that building. Abel looked up at the workshop building and remembered his past. The first time he met Vulcanus.

‘I once asked him why a man with so much money will settle in a place like this,’  

Vulcanus’s answer was simple.

‘One is only a real customer if they are willing to come to a workshop in a place like this. I have no intention of accepting fake customers.’

Abel gave him a dumbfounded look that time when he heard his answer. Abel smirked and walked toward the workshop.

Kang-!

The sound of hammering grew louder as he approached. Abel saw the name of the workshop above the large door:

[Vulcanus Workshop]

It was a very simple name. Abel approached the building without hesitation, opened the door, and stepped inside. The first thing he saw was a wooden cash counter and a woman standing there.

“Come on….. Oh my!”

She spoke in a tone full of annoyance, and when she spotted Abel, her eyes widened.

“Abel?”

“Yes. I haven’t seen you in a long time.”

“What’s the matter with your tone? I told you to speak formally.”

The woman grumbled, but she didn’t hide her pleasure. Her name is Kaya. She works at the workshop. Her job is to scan customers. If a customer comes, she gets annoyed. When she gets bored, she spreads out and sleeps.

Abel had wondered why she hadn’t been fired, but the reason was deceptively simple. It was because Kaya was the daughter of Vulcanus. Abel smiled at Kaya and said.

“Okay, I’ll try. Where’s the boss?”

“He’s inside. Go in.”

“Aren’t you going to get mad at me for interrupting your work?”

“Since when do you care about that?”

“That’s true.”

Abel chuckled and nodded in response to Kaya’s profound answer. Kaya was the only one in the workshop close to his age, so he felt pretty close to her. Kaya waved at Abel as he headed inside.

“Come back alive.”

“I’ll try.”

Abel waved back and headed inside. He could feel the heat getting stronger as he stepped inside the door. Then there was the sound of people talking. The Vulcanus workshop is as busy as it is huge. Inside, large men were bustling about, and when one of them spotted Abel, he opened his mouth in surprise.

“Uh, Abel!”

“Abel?”

They waved their hands from where they worked, showing signs of welcome.

“Long time no see, everyone!”

Abel continued to walk inward, accepting greetings in moderation. When he arrived at the innermost part of the workshop, he finally saw the person he had come to see.

“Vulcanus.”

Kang, cang, kang-!

Instead of answering, a sharp noise pierced his ears. Abel crossed his arms as he watched Vulcanus, who was sweating and hammering. Vulcanus only raised his head after nearly 10 minutes of hammering.

“You came too soon.”

Abel smiled in response to Vulcan’s question.

“Did you receive the package well?”

“Yes. If it wasn’t for that, I would have told you not to interrupt and come later.”

He smiled back. Vulcanus is an excellent craftsman. And, like any great craftsman, they were obsessed with rare materials. Abel asked to move all the Telesiums he ripped off from Karl last time to be brought here.

“What the hell do you want me to make with 11kg of Telesium?”

“Isn’t that already decided?”

Abel gave him an answer, which he had thought of beforehand.

“A weapon. A huge two-handed sword, please.”

Abel wanted a particular offensive weapon.

[To be continued.]