The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 208

The Emperor’s cold gaze bore into Han Taesu.

The Castica family, a trusted pillar of the empire, was as good as founding fathers. However…

There were no eternal loyalties.

No eternal relationships.

The Emperor suspected Han Taesu of hiding something.

That’s why he had to press harder.

“Do you know where Han Si-hyuk is?”

“I do not.”

“Impossible.”

“We cut ties five years ago, and Your Majesty, that boy was never my son to begin with.”

Emperor Linia furrowed his brow and sighed.

“A convenient excuse that does nothing to convince.”

“….”

Han Taesu swallowed dryly, frozen in place. He could not afford to say anything rashly.

If the Emperor suspected Han Si-hyuk, he could easily place the blame on Castica.

Protecting Han Si-hyuk was an incredibly dangerous choice. Realistically, Han Taesu should have killed him on the spot.

But…

That wasn’t what was on his mind.

‘I truly have no idea where he went.’

Han Taesu could only hope that Han Si-hyuk was safe, even in the dire situation that threatened the very fate of Castica.

How ironic it was to think this way.

They were never a real family anyway.

Han Taesu let out a bitter laugh and spoke.

“Your Majesty.”

To the Emperor, who would continue to doubt him and the Castica family.

Han Taesu told the truth, not a lie.

“If I knew, I would have found him.”

He would have said his final goodbyes to the boy he would never see again.

That was Han Taesu’s honest thought.

His voice carried the weight of regret, and the Emperor, Linia, recognized that at least the emotion was genuine.

However, that did not free Han Taesu from suspicion.

The Emperor would continue to keep a close watch on the entire Castica family.

Perhaps revealing everything and confessing Han Si-hyuk’s possible locations would have kept him safer, but Han Taesu believed he had made the right choice.

Without solid evidence, the Emperor would not touch Castica.

Castica would remain the steadfast, loyal house it had always been, devoted to the Emperor.

Whatever command he gave, as long as it didn’t involve Han Si-hyuk, Han Taesu would follow without question.

He was a faithful servant, capable, and a model subordinate.

And Han Taesu believed his own child would be the same—because that was the identity and the raison d’être of Castica.

It was at that moment of confidence that the Emperor’s decree came down.

“I intend to abolish the Necromancy Department.”

“What?”

The sudden command.

The face of Han Taesu, who had resolved to obey any imperial order, froze.

“There will be significant backlash.”

“Of course. They’ll think it’s the only place where they can find a footing.”

But the Emperor didn’t care about such resistance.

“It won’t be as big a problem as you think.”

He would suppress any worms with force if necessary.

Emperor Linia spoke with a chilling expression.

“If they resist, eliminate them without mercy.”

It took Han Taesu a long time to process the meaning of those words…

Only after thinking it over again and again did Han Taesu realize.

“You mean… the students?”

He was about to commit a sin far worse than Katablam.

* * *

Something was very wrong.

No, it was completely and utterly wrong.

Fabian, his face pale with fear, ran through the corridors. There was no safe place left in the academy, so he covered his face with a hood, constantly looking around for danger.

Leaning against a wall, Fabian tried to catch his breath. He had hidden himself on the rarely frequented fifth floor, but even that didn’t feel safe.

Grinding his teeth, Fabian muttered under his breath.

“Everyone’s gone mad….”

“They’ve completely lost it….”

His lips quivered with anxiety as he muttered, biting his lower lip in frustration.

Fabian had only one reason to be on the run.

Just last week, his classmates, who seemed perfectly normal, had completely lost their minds.

“They’re talking about tearing down the school…”

And more than that.

They were talking about overthrowing a corrupted nation.

If anyone had been in their right mind, they wouldn’t have been planning what amounted to treason so boldly at school.

And the first target of their madness was Fabian himself.

The same friends he had laughed and joked with had suddenly decided he was a threat because of his royal lineage and tried to capture him.

He had barely escaped.

He could have been killed.

Fabian no longer knew what those maniacs would do next.

The entire school had gone insane.

There was no place the Necromancy students couldn’t reach. They were constantly searching with sharp, predatory eyes, ready to cause trouble at any moment.

Fabian needed to find a safe place, somewhere the Necromancy students wouldn’t follow. Somewhere that wouldn’t escalate things further.

There was only one place in Ardel Academy where even the bravest of them wouldn’t dare to cause trouble.

At that moment, a person flashed through Fabian’s mind.

Han Siha….

Fabian made a quick decision.

“This is a stupid idea.”

They weren’t friends. They weren’t on good terms either.

All Fabian could recall were memories of getting beaten up.

Getting punched while working on a group project because he was stupid.

Getting pounded in duels, one-sidedly.

Why were all his memories of Han Siha about getting hit?

But in this desperate moment, the only person he could turn to was Han Siha.

And so Fabian found himself standing here.

In front of the Magic Department dormitory.

Specifically, in front of the room where Han Siha and Won stayed.

Fabian stared at the door for a long time before finally making up his mind and knocking.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Han Siha!”

Save me. Help me.

Whatever it takes, just stop this madness.

“Han Siha!”

Fabian gritted his teeth and called out desperately.

“Let me in!”

* * *

“What is it?”

Seriously, what the hell is this?

Han Siha frowned, staring at Fabian, who was awkwardly standing in front of his door.

The sudden noise in the dead of night, the desperate knock at the door, and Fabian’s frantic plea for help all felt like a strange, disjointed dream to Han Siha.

Han Siha waved his hand dismissively, staring at Fabian standing awkwardly outside his door.

“You and I… Are we close?”

“No.”

“Then are we close enough for you to come knocking on my door in the middle of the night?”

“Well… That’s…”

Fabian faltered, knowing that Han Siha wasn’t wrong. He had considered this on his way over, but hearing it put so plainly stung.

“You just want me to let you in for a bit?”

“….”

“But that ‘bit’ is going to turn into a whole week, isn’t it?”

Fabian’s plan was to crash in someone else’s dorm room, mooch off of them for a week without contributing anything. He must be out of his mind.

Han Siha clicked his tongue, shrugging his shoulders.

“Get lost.”

“W-wait!”

Thud.

Fabian quickly shoved himself into the crack of the door, desperately trying to plead his case.

Even though they weren’t particularly close, and he knew Han Siha didn’t owe him anything, Fabian gathered every ounce of courage he had left.

“I know what happened to Betty was terrible, but… I don’t think the Necromancy Department was involved.”

Han Siha, who was already irritable, frowned. He didn’t want to hear another word about Betty’s death, especially from someone like Fabian.

“And? You didn’t come here just to say that, did you? Are you suddenly the spokesperson for the Necromancy Department?”

“No, but…”

Fabian bit his lower lip, hard. Even speaking about this was a betrayal of his friends. If it really was as serious as he feared, there would be no turning back.

And while telling a professor would have been the right move, doing so would have felt like throwing his own department under the bus.

Still, he couldn’t sit by and do nothing.

Fabian took a deep breath and forced the words out.

“They’re planning something big.”

“Oh, that’s news.”

The mocking response was exactly what Fabian had expected, but Han Siha’s expression quickly hardened.

Wait.

“Tell me more.”

“It’s not confirmed, but…”

Fabian hesitated, recounting what he’d seen and overheard. With each word, Han Siha’s face grew grimmer.

In the original storyline, Betty’s death hadn’t happened. If not for Natalie’s involvement with the Vanguard and the coincidental discovery of that necklace, Betty would never have been in danger.

But this incident—this one was part of the story.

The Necromancy Department’s Uprising.

A major episode in the latter half of Part 1.

The Necromancy students, who had been constantly overshadowed by the Magic Department, launched a near-rebellion and took control of Ardel Academy.

Though their occupation lasted only a week, and they were ultimately subdued by the imperial forces, the damage was immense.

Numerous casualties had occurred, and with the dark magicians backing the students, the faculty was left scrambling.

It wasn’t until a specialized unit from the imperial palace intervened that the academy was finally liberated.

If things continued as they were, the academy dormitory would be entirely overrun before the imperial magicians even arrived.

Han Siha finally grasped the severity of the situation and turned to Fabian.

“Where are they now?”

“Huh?”

Fabian hesitated, surprised and somewhat relieved that Han Siha was taking this seriously. He quickly answered.

“They’re all gathered in the second-floor conference room.”

“Great. It’s a mess.”

In the original story, the barricade during the Necromancy Uprising was set up in the exact same location—the second-floor conference room. They were already putting their plan into action.

Han Siha massaged his temples, thinking hard.

The ringleader was Berger, wasn’t it?

If his memory served correctly, Berger wasn’t beyond reasoning with. At least not before he fully descended into madness, becoming a host for dark magic.

The time to resolve things through dialogue was now, before it was too late. Han Siha nodded and turned to Won.

“Looks like I need to have a word with them.”

“Meet them… in person?”

It would be easier to sit back and let the authorities handle it. But given the events of the original storyline, nothing about this incident was going to be heartwarming.

Cutting it off before it spiraled out of control was the best option.

Won, who didn’t fully understand the gravity of the situation, simply tilted his head, while Fabian, who had almost been captured earlier, went pale once more.

“You’re… you’re going alone?”

“Are you volunteering to come with me?”

“N-no, but…”

Even if it was Han Siha, walking straight into a room filled with unhinged Necromancy students was reckless. Fabian was determined to dissuade him.

“Just let me stay here for a week. Don’t get involved; it’s too dangerous.”

“That’s my decision to make.”

Picking up the pieces after a disaster is far harder than stopping it from happening in the first place.

Han Siha stared down at Fabian with a cold smile.

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Still…”

Fabian tried to keep arguing, but he was cut off by a deafening explosion from the building across the way.

“What the hell?”

Boom!

Another explosion, followed by shrill, panicked screams. The sound of terror was so palpable that it sent shivers down their spines.

“Damn it, what’s happening?”

Han Siha sprinted to the window and threw it open.

With a bang, the chaotic scene outside came into full view.

The aftermath of what appeared to be a small-scale magical detonation.

The third-floor windows had shattered outward, and flames licked at the building, spreading fear and panic among the students in the adjacent dormitory.

Han Siha knew this scene well.

It was the first moment of the Necromancy Uprising.

His thoughts were confirmed when a familiar notification message appeared before his eyes for the first time in ages.

[Main Episode 8: Necromancy Uprising]

[??]

I thought I could stop it.

“Too late.”

Han Siha muttered under his breath, his face grim.