Chapter 257: Breakthrough

Chapter 257: Breakthrough

At the same time.

Kwak Seung-jae was walking through the forest in the dead of night, pushing through the underbrush.

The faint almost inaudible sound of footsteps on either side told him he wasn’t alone.

I knew something was off.

The first time he sensed this unease was at the Black Market.

The thieves club’s behavior this year was drastically different from the previous one.

Normally, they wouldn’t even be noticeable, and on the rare occasions they were discovered, they slipped away like eels and vanished without a trace.

It felt as if they were watching his every move and acting accordingly.

If that were true, what could they possibly be using to observe him...?

...Crystal balls.

Could they be using surveillance crystal balls?

When he reconsidered this hypothesis, so many things began to align perfectly.

This year, Dang Gyu-young had been heavily relying on Chae Da-bin, and with her genius-level magical engineering skills, such a feat was entirely possible.

From the perspective of the disciplinary committee, this posed a very serious problem.

If we don’t solve this, we’ll be constantly outmaneuvered.

Whether or not they had clear surveillance was a monumental difference in information.

The thieves club would always stay one step ahead, and even the disciplinary committee’s delayed responses would likely be anticipated.

Neutralizing Chae Da-bin had thus become one of the disciplinary committee’s key objectives for this operation.

In some respects, it was as high a priority as guarding the temporary storage.

The disciplinary committee also had several members skilled in intelligence work.

By deploying all of them to track her down, they managed to pinpoint Chae Da-bin’s approximate location, which was why they were now advancing through the dense foliage.

There it is.

Eventually, a dilapidated three-story building came into Kwak Seung-jae’s view.

The glass windows were all shattered, and ivy covered its walls, so it was clearly an abandoned building.

But Kwak Seung-jae and the other disciplinary committee members were certain they had found the right place.

Members of the thieves’ club stood guard around the building and on the roof.

Some were concealed, but they couldn’t escape Kwak Seung-jae’s notice.

At that moment, one of the thieves spotted the disciplinary committee members and widened his eyes in alarm.

Just as he opened his mouth to shout,

“Se—!”

A member of the disciplinary committee dashed forward like lightning and subdued him.

Another member fired a crossbow bolt toward the rooftop,

Crackle!

The thief on the roof, who had been scanning the area, collapsed as if hit by a jolt of electricity and his body stiffened.

Following Kwak Seung-jae’s signal, the rest of the disciplinary committee members began silently taking down the remaining thieves.

“Guhk.”

“Ugh.”

The student disciplinary committee was a group composed of the most skilled students in the Dragon Slayer Academy.

Even among them, those participating in this operation were an elite selection of the best.

As a result, the thieves were taken down in quick succession. They couldn’t even scream before falling.

Soon, one of the disciplinary committee members approached Kwak Seung-jae and reported.

“All clear. Shall we proceed?”

Kwak Seung-jae gave a slight nod to signal his approval, then stared at the abandoned building as he spoke.

“Using surveillance crystal balls for personal gain is a serious violation of school rules and a criminal act. Everyone involved should be punished. Apprehend them without exception.”

The members of the disciplinary committee leaped effortlessly to the second and third floors. They shattered the partially broken windows as they entered the building.

Crash—!

***

– We’ve been exposed.

“What? Who’s here?”

– .......

Dang Gyu-young asked in shock, but there was no reply from Chae Da-bin.

It was likely that they could no longer maintain communication.

Dang Gyu-young’s expression turned bitter.

“Damn it... We got hit hard.”

As expected, they weren’t an easy opponent.

The disciplinary committee was composed of carefully selected elites. Someone must have suspected the crystal balls, and from there, they had tracked them step by step until they finally caught a lead.

Judging by the fact that Kwak Seung-jae had yet to appear, it seemed like he was the one behind the plan.

They struck us precisely where it hurts.

The most crucial area, the temporary storage room, was located on the top floor which was the fourth floor.

Since we had entered from the second floor of the adjacent building, it was only natural that we’d need to use the stairs to go up.

As we moved quickly, Dang Gyu-young who was leading the group suddenly came to a halt and called out to me.

“Kim Ho.”

“Yes?”

“We’ve hit a formation.”

Sure enough, I felt an unsettling sensation emanating from up ahead.

If we had pressed forward blindly, we would have wasted time wandering aimlessly.

As planned, this was my task to handle.

I stepped forward and spoke.

“Tie us all together.”

“Mhmm.”

Dang Gyu-young’s shadow stretched into the form of a rope and connected the group in a single file, like a train.

She then gave instructions.

“Ignore everything else; just follow the direction the rope pulls.”

“Understood.”

“Yes, noonim.”

Choi Han-gil and Shin Byeong-cheol replied.

When I took a few steps forward, the corridor shimmered and split into two.

Of course, using my stagnant water senses, I knew both paths were wrong. The correct choice was to go straight.

I ignored the split and kept walking, and just as I was about to hit the wall, the two paths merged again of their own accord.

After taking a few more steps, the corridor stretched out and abruptly twisted to the left.

However, I stopped in place and refused to move. After a few seconds, the corridor seemed to realize it wasn’t working and returned to its original state.

Just observe carefully and move through.

After that, I continued to rely on my stagnant water senses and quickly advanced, and in no time, I had broken through the formation.

Shin Byeong-cheol exaggerated his amazement as he mimicked Go Hyun-woo’s voice.

“Hoho, Kim-hyung’s sharp eye is truly remarkable. To break through such a tricky formation so effortlessly!”

“Hey, Shin Byeong-cheol. Is now the time to be joking around?”

Dang Gyu-young scolded, but I simply chuckled.

“What’s wrong? It lightens the mood. I think it’s nice.”

“Take my side.”

“Byeong-cheol, are you here for a picnic?”

“Pfft, haha!”

However, we all quickly stopped chatting when we spotted a staircase not far ahead.

We approached little by little with our guard up, but we noticed there was still no sign of the disciplinary committee.

Dang Gyu-young seemed slightly deflated.

“Seriously, how have we come this far without seeing a single one of them?”

Through Jeong Chong-myeong’s scan, we confirmed that there were very few people inside. Even those few must have been affected by the large-scale magic cast by the White Magic Club.

Still, having made it this far, we should have encountered at least one of them by now.

This isn’t good news.

If they weren’t here, it most likely meant they were near the temporary storage.

Perhaps others had reached the same conclusion, as the atmosphere grew even heavier.

In contrast, Choi Han-gil placed his foot on the staircase without much concern.

“What’s the point of worrying? It’s not like we’re turning back now.”

“That’s true.”

Dang Gyu-young nodded her head in agreement and began climbing the stairs with the rest of the group.

But just as we passed the third floor and stepped onto the stairs leading to the fourth, we froze in place as soon as we looked upward.

A female student was standing there while calmly gazing down at us.

On her arm was the disciplinary committee armband, and her gold tie pin gleamed in the light.

She was a third-year member of the disciplinary committee.

So, there was one here after all.

Since reaching the top floor required using the stairs, it made sense for them to station at least one person there.

“......”

Without a word, the girl drew a slender rapier from her waist.

She held it upright in front of her chest. She put her other hand behind her back and assumed the graceful posture of a swan.

Then, in an instant, she rushed down the stairs toward us with terrifying speed.

Swishhh!