Academy’s Undercover Professor-Chapter 287: Assault on the Secret Branch (2)

“Don’t lie! You really think I’d fall for such a trick?!”

“If you don’t trust me, go ahead and send a signal.”

“...What?”

Karl looked at Ludger as if he’d gone insane.

But Ludger’s expression was steady, solemn.

‘No way...’

Without hesitation, Karl activated his signal device to contact Fyren.

Normally, whenever he sent a signal, he’d receive a periodic return ping confirming connection.

But this time, there was only silence.

Karl’s lips parted soundlessly.

Even if Fyren acted like a slacker, he’d never once failed to reply.

If he wasn’t responding now, there was only one possibility left.

Fyren had been taken down.

‘Fyren’s a bastard, but he’s competent. You’re telling me he got taken out? By what—an advanced knight?’

In reality, it wasn’t just an advanced knight. Ludger had sent a master-class knight—a unit commander level. But Karl couldn’t have known that.

What mattered now was that he had lost all means of leverage against the monster in front of him.

And for someone who relied not on negotiation but threats, the end was always ugly.

“Are you done talking?”

Ludger began walking toward Karl, slow and deliberate.

To Karl, it felt as though a mountain-like giant were approaching, each step a rumble of crushing pressure.

A being who could squash someone like him with a mere flick of the hand.

Gritting his teeth, Karl tried to steel his fraying resolve.

“N-No matter what you do... you’ll never get anything out of me.”

It was a brave declaration—but Ludger’s response was chilling.

“Most people say that. Because they don’t know what’s coming.”

“It’s not bravado! I’m not like your average Liberation Army peon! I’ve been through rigorous training. No matter how much you torture me, I will not talk!”

Karl’s voice rang with conviction, firm in his belief that he could endure any pain.

He even stared back at Ludger defiantly, as if to dare him to try.

“Ludger Cherish. I’ll admit your skill and poise are impressive. But you're just a teacher. What could you possibly know about making someone talk?”

“You don’t know until you try.”

With that, Ludger calmly placed his palm on Karl’s forehead.

Just as Karl was about to demand what the hell he was doing—

“Guh—!”

He suddenly vomited blood.

Not just from his mouth—his nose bled, and crimson tears streamed from his eyes. Blood even trickled from his ears.

His head spun violently. His insides felt like they were being shredded. Ringing exploded in his ears, and waves of nausea wracked his body.

Karl couldn’t comprehend what was happening—what kind of impossible sensation had just gripped him.

“What’s wrong? Weren’t you confident you could endure any pain?”

“Khak—! W-What did you do...?!”

“Shocking, isn’t it? Of course it is. No one’s ever experienced that kind of pain before.”

Karl glared at Ludger with bloodshot eyes.

But unlike earlier, his pupils were visibly trembling.

“Th-That... what the hell was that...?”

“Magic.”

“Magic?!”

“What else can a magic instructor do if not magic?”

The magic Ludger used was simple.

It was a sound-based spell derived from the wind element.

Sound, in the end, is just the vibration of air.

If pushed to extremes, those vibrations can cause immense pain—as they did when he once subdued a werewolf.

When internalized, those vibrations disrupt blood flow, rattle organs, and ultimately damage the brain and semicircular canals.

“No... no such magic exists...”

“Of course not. I created it myself.”

“...What?!”

“It was something I theorized a long time ago. I never meant to use it—it’s far too dangerous. I figured I’d never need it.”

And yet here he was, using it on Karl.

Karl was stunned.

What kind of academy teacher researches magic this terrifying?

“Of course, the magic isn’t perfect. The conditions are quite strict. You have to insert mana directly into the opponent’s body. If they have strong mana repulsion, it’s useless. And it requires physical contact—like this.”

Ludger placed his palm back on Karl’s forehead.

“In other words... now that all the required conditions are met, this magic is operating at peak efficiency.”

“GYAAAHHH!”

As Ludger’s mana surged through his palm and violently vibrated within Karl’s body, Karl shrieked uncontrollably.

He had believed he could withstand any pain—but this was on another level entirely.

He tried to thrash and escape, but Ludger activated another spell—shadows rose and bound his arms and legs.

“Ghhh—! S-Stop! STOOOOOP!”

As Karl screamed and coughed up blood, Ludger finally removed his hand.

Karl slumped forward, head drooping like a broken puppet.

Drool dripped from his mouth as he gasped from the pain.

“Ugh... A teacher from the Academy... How can you do something so monstrous...?”

Ludger scoffed.

“Funny you should say that. You Liberation Army scum said the same thing from the start.”

“Wh...at...?”

“That terrorist attack on the magitech train—the day I was appointed to Seorn. The mages who died back then said the same. Funny, isn’t it? How do you manage to pack an entire organization full of the same kind of hypocrite?”

With that, Ludger stomped hard on Karl’s thigh with his boot.

“GHHK!”

“The pain you inflicted on my student isn’t even a thousandth of this. And yet here you are, thinking only of what you suffered—never what you did.”

“......It was necessary. For our comrades.”

“Sacrificing them, you mean? For someone supposedly fighting for the people, your actions say the opposite.”

“It was a necessary sacrifice! To build a better world, sacrifices must be made! You can’t gain something without losing something!”

Karl’s voice rose hysterically, veins bulging in his neck.

It was nonsense—but he believed every word.

Twisted by endless hatred for the privileged, and years of self-indoctrination, he had become what he was.

Ludger growled lowly.

“So that’s why you used a child’s family as hostages? Forced him into the Liberation Army, threatened innocent lives who had nothing to do with any of this?”

“They were commoners, too! We have a duty to overthrow the damned nobles and bureaucrats! The people of all nations must unite and fight! It’s our duty!”

“......”

Ludger fell silent.

Not because he had no response—but because he saw no need for one.

Karl’s frenzied eyes made it clear he meant every word.

Suddenly, Ludger recalled how he’d gotten involved in this absurd situation to begin with.

The magitech train attack.

Even then, the Liberation Army soldiers had fallen to John Doe’s magic—and still resorted to suicide bombings.

Willing to die to achieve their goal.

Ludger had seen people like that long before the Liberation Army.

In the Theocracy of Bretus.

Blind worshipers proclaiming devotion to a god. They looked no different from the Liberation Army.

Maybe that’s why he’d never considered trying to persuade Karl.

Maybe he didn’t want to.

“...Right. Guess I rambled needlessly. Doesn’t change what I came here to do.”

“...!”

Only then did Karl remember what Ludger’s true purpose was.

That this torture wasn’t about revenge—it was about extracting information.

Now that his mind had cleared, Karl’s face turned ghostly pale.

Pale skin, blood leaking from every orifice—he looked like a living corpse.

“I’m looking forward to it. Let’s see if your ‘conviction’ can endure more.”

“Wa—!”

But Ludger didn’t let him finish.

He placed his palm on Karl’s forehead again.

And the spell activated.

* * *

Leo was a bundle of nerves, unable to sit still.

Watching from the side, Aidan couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

He knew just how anxious Leo was right now.

Leo had made the right choice—even knowing it would put him at risk.

But that didn’t mean he could bear the thought of losing his family.

The Leo Aidan knew was blunt on the outside but kind at heart. He acted tough, but inside, he was vulnerable.

“They’ll be fine. Professor Ludger’s on it.”

“......”

Even at Aidan’s attempt to reassure him, Leo didn’t say a word.

It was like he feared that opening his mouth would somehow trigger a disaster.

Suddenly, Leo stiffened and straightened up.

Aidan instantly realized why.

Ludger was approaching from afar.

Even from a distance, the man exuded such presence that you could tell immediately—it was Ludger Cherish.

At his side walked a handsome young blond man who had been working with him.

And behind them, two women followed, being escorted.

“Ah...”

Leo’s eyes widened.

He recognized who Ludger had brought.

Without a second thought, he shot to his feet and ran toward his family.

Stopping in front of his mother and sister, Leo checked with wide eyes to see that they were unharmed.

His lips moved slightly, but then he turned his head away sharply.

“Hey. Don’t you have something to say to your mother and me?”

His younger sister, clearly annoyed by his lack of concern, glared at him.

Despite having the same hair color as Leo, she was tall—tall enough that you might mistake her for his older sister instead.

Even Ludger had thought as much when he first saw her.

“Lenaer, enough now.”

It was their mother, Helena, who stepped in to stop her daughter.

And this woman surprised Ludger even more.

She looked so young—far too young to be the mother of two children this age.

He’d already guessed from Leo and Lenaer’s appearance that their mother must be striking, but her petite figure made her look almost like a teenager.

She was, quite frankly, the Caroline Monarch type.

Ludger could see now that Leo's shorter stature came from his mother.

“Leo must have been suffering in his own way. So let him be.”

“But Mom—!”

“And now’s not the time for this talk, is it? Gratitude comes first.”

Helena gently chided her daughter, then turned and bowed her head to Ludger.

“Thank you for your help. I’m Helena, Leo’s mother.”

“I’m Ludger Cherish.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. And truly, I want to thank you again. Thanks to you, our family is safe.”

“I was only doing what I must as a teacher.”

At that, Lenaer and Leo finally realized the situation and gave Ludger a respectful bow.

“Thank you for your help.”

“Really... thank you.”

Leo meant it more than anyone.

He was still biting down on his emotions, trying not to let them erupt.

Watching him, Ludger spoke with a calm tone.

“Looks like our field trip ended up in chaos.”

“...Sir?”

“Still, since your family came all this way, we can’t exactly send them away. Leo, take your mother and sister to a safe place.”

Leo’s eyes widened again in surprise.

Even though things had worked out in the end, the fact remained that he had been associated with the Liberation Army.

But Ludger didn’t bring that up at all.

He didn’t accuse or reprimand Leo in the slightest.

Instead, he gave him the chance to be with his family.

It should’ve brought nothing but relief and gratitude—

But Leo just couldn’t keep the question inside anymore.

“Why...? Why are you going this far...?”

“Do you not want to be with your family?”

“...It’s not that.”

“Then take this opportunity to say everything you haven’t been able to.”

“But why would you—?”

“Leo. That’s what family is.”

“...!”

Leo’s eyes widened—then tears began to pour down his cheeks, fat and sudden like summer rain.

He quickly wiped them with his sleeve and bowed deeply to Ludger once more.

“Thank you. Really, thank you.”

“That’s enough. Now go.”

As Leo rejoined his family and began walking away with them, Aidan moved to meet him.

Only then did Passius, who had been standing at a slight distance, approach Ludger and ask,

“That boy is still connected to the Liberation Army. Are you really going to let him go?”

“Do ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) you think that student looks like someone preparing to commit terrorism?”

Passius, glancing at Leo’s joyful expression as he reunited with his family, shook his head.

“No... I suppose not.”

“That’s why.”

Passius frowned, displeased.

Between being ordered around by this man—even as a master-class knight—and now seeing him so soft on a student, it all rubbed him the wrong way.

“I didn’t take you for someone who puts so much faith in students.”

“I don’t.”

“Then what is it?”

“I put faith in someone who has people they cherish.”

“Ah... Judging by how you said that, it sounds like you’ve experienced something similar.”

“......”

Ludger said nothing.

And Passius hadn’t expected an answer anyway.

“So? Did you get the intel you needed?”

“There’s going to be a major terror attack. I took out this branch, but there are at least three more like it. And each hideout has underground tunnels—they’re already dispersed.”

“Do you know the main targets?”

“Anywhere crowded. The Crystal Palace and the Grand Plaza are the primary ones. Lots of wealthy people gather there.”

“Then this needs to be reported at once.”

Ludger nodded.

“I’ll contact the Knights.”

“I’ll warn the mentors.”

Without another word, the two men split to act.

Passius, true to his knightly bearing, disappeared with long, urgent strides. Ludger was about to leave as well, but paused—and glanced back in Leo’s direction.

Leo was grumbling and bickering with his sister, Lenaer, who was giving him a hard time. Their mother, Helena, looked on fondly, smiling.

Aidan stood nearby, chatting casually with them.

Ludger gave a faint chuckle at the sight—

Then turned, and walked away.

His work in the capital wasn’t finished yet.