WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Professor

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 33: Professor Assassination: Illusion Arts (4)

As I ran from the gymnasium, something on the minimap caught my eye—shaped like a trap.

Halting my steps, I glanced around to find it.

A statue in the middle of the hallway suddenly moved, swinging its sword down at me.

I stepped back just in time to dodge the attack. Yet, there was no sound. No impact on the floor.

An illusion.

Just as I wondered if that was the trap in question, something tugged at my foot. 

Looking down, I saw a thin string caught on my shoe. It snapped from the pressure. 

Click—

A hidden mechanism in the ceiling fired an arrow at me. 

Tch!

I barely twisted my body and narrowly dodged it.

My daily training was paying off. My stats had improved, my coordination sharpened. But more than that, I’d been anticipating a trap. That saved me.

These cadets were combining traps and illusions, trying to throw me off in every possible way. They were crafty. Sly.

Coincidentally, the illusion and the trap overlapped on my minimap, unintentionally confusing me and almost landing a hit.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « He’s in the hallway! The hallway trap was triggered! » 】

The cadet must’ve been sensing mana through his 「Remote-Control Ring」.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Run! Go kill the professor! » 】

Sprinting down the hallway again, I checked the minimap, and two cadets rushed toward me from the far end. 

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Damn it! Why would he activate such a simple trap? He could’ve just walked around it… He's totally toying with us! » 】

That’s not true. I genuinely triggered it because I didn’t notice it…

My heart was still pounding like crazy.

"Over there!"

"Ambush him in stealth!"

Urgent voices echoed from around the bend in the hallway behind me.

『 World Forgery: Form Forgery [Dante] 』

I opened a window and jumped out, leaving behind an illusion of myself sprinting down the corridor.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « We got him for sure…! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Hwaru: « Ah! It’s a fake! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « What?! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Hwaru: « I stabbed him in the neck and he vanished! It’s an illusion! » 】

My god. They really stabbed me in the neck without hesitation?! These crazy kids.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « He’s outside! Professor Dante escaped through the window! » 】

How did they know this time?

I hadn’t triggered any traps this time.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « Which direction? » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « South! There are shoeprints in front of the window to the south! » 】

Oh crap. I didn’t think of that.

My shoes weren’t even dirty, so the prints should have been faint. And yet, they found them within 20 seconds.

I see now... The 「Remote-Control Ring」 must have a detection function too… 

It was probably even more expensive than I initially thought...

…It won’t be easy to shake them off.

The bigger problem? My Movement Techniques were inferior to theirs.

I was slower. They’d catch up to me eventually.

Still, I’d escaped for now, throwing them into disarray.

They continued their pursuit, launching Illusion Arts to distort my balance from a distance. I neutralized their illusions with my mana.

They hurled dozens of illusory projectiles, masking a single real throwing knife in the swarm, but I’d already replaced myself with a clone. The real knife struck the back of the illusion while I ran elsewhere.

They even sent illusory hounds to track my scent, so I ditched my outerwear and kept moving.

Geez, give it up already…

Sadly, this was my best effort.

I couldn’t predict what these young cadets would pull.

If it were someone like Hakon, I’d stand a better chance. His moves were more direct. But these kids? Totally unpredictable.

I might survive this pursuit if I burned through all the Star Shards I’d collected so far. But then I’d be ill-prepared for the Black Dragon cadets.

The growth speeds of those prodigies likely surpass mine.

Only by walking on this tightrope with perfect balance and calculations could I clear Hell Mode. Only then could I beat this game. 

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Damn it… Damn it…!! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « What's wrong? » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Look here! There's a footprint over here, too! » 】

Ah, crap.

I had left another obvious trace behind...

A drop of cold sweat slid down my temple as the telepathic dialogue grew more agitated.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « Calm down. » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Damn it…! How am I supposed to calm down?! Why would he be so sloppy and leave a footprint here?! It was on purpose! Professor Dante has been toying with us from the start…!! » 】

What on earth is he talking about?

It really was just sloppy work on my part…

But why does he sound like he’s about to cry?

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « Hey, Derek! Get a grip, you moron. » 】

Finally, the red dots on my minimap stopped moving, giving me a chance to catch my breath.

But then, rather than more dialogue, the textbox displayed a narration line.

【 John slaps Derek on the cheek. 】

Huh?

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: "Why’d you hit me?!" 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: "Do you seriously not know why?" 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: "I don’t!" 】

What is up with these two?

Was I watching some kind of soap opera right now?

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « I'll say it over telepathy. Derek, did you seriously think we would successfully assassinate the professor today? » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « That’s…! I mean… It’ll be hard, but… » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « No, you moron! It’s not ‘hard,’ it’s impossible! How are we supposed to assassinate the professor who took down Professor Hakon like it was nothing?! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « ……! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « Now, why do you think Professor Dante has been playing along with our assassination attempt this whole time?! » 】

What was he going to say? Even I didn’t know why I was doing this. 

I mean, I wasn’t "playing along." I was fighting for my survival.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « He’s helping us review and practice! » 】

Wow. That’s a very convenient interpretation…

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Ah! I see… » 】

Don’t "I see" me! He’s totally wrong!

Still... if they were going to misinterpret my actions and still believe I was some untouchable and powerful professor, that worked in my favor.

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Hwaru: « Don’t get too discouraged, everyone. Let’s do our best! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, Derek: « Yeah. Let’s get pumped and kill the professor as best we can! » 】

【 Assassin Department, First-Year, John: « Fucking finally. Now you sound more like yourself. » 】

Please stop. It’s so cringe… I can’t bear to read the textbox anymore…

Anyway, while they were acting out a scene like a teenage drama or coming-of-age TV series, I changed my trajectory entirely and escaped the pursuit.

…Did I finally lose them?

But after all that running and chasing, I realized I’d wandered deep into the forest in Zone 0, an abandoned forest trail. 

It was going to be a long walk back to the lecture halls. 

* * *

"Ah, damn it… we completely lost him."

"What about White Fang?"

"The scent was cut off. It seems Professor Dante laid an illusion around here to cover up his smell."

John, who was deep in thought, let out a hollow laugh.

"Hah! Wow… Professor Dante is seriously amazing."

"Why?"

"Think about it. Did Professor Dante use anything besides Illusion Arts today?"

"Huh?"

Come to think of it, he was right.

According to the rumors, Professor Dante was supposedly skilled in both Magic and Combat-type abilities. Master or Grandmaster-rated assassins were formidable individuals who could utilize nearly all types of abilities to some extent, and this was likely true for Professor Dante as well.

That's insane. He didn't use any Movement Techniques, set any traps, or summon any familiars… He only used Illusion Arts.

Moreover, it was clear he had been giving them opportunities by not running away at full speed.

Once again, they could feel it in their hearts—he was helping them review and practice.

What kind of professor would ever go this far…?

When attempting an assassination, cadets inevitably felt fear in their hearts. There were countless instances where they had been injured by a professor’s retaliation.

Yet today, Professor Dante hadn’t even attempted a counterattack, nor had he strayed from the purpose of teaching them.

He was a genuine professor of assassination—a beacon of education who cared most about teaching his students.

“…We chose a great course,” someone murmured.

"Yeah. Seriously," another added.

The others nodded. They had never felt this way during the first semester. But in just the past few days, they could feel their significant growth, all thanks to Professor Dante’s classes.

"By the way… where the heck are we?"

"Huh. Now that you mention it… I’ve never been here before…"

As they finally checked their surroundings, they realized they were deep in the forest, with no signs of human presence nearby. 

The sun cast a burgundy veil across the sky, setting beyond the trees.

Light slowly vanished, and a strange sense of unease crept into the group.

"…Let’s go back already."

"Yeah… Let's go eat some pizza."

"I’m down for pizza. Should we drink some of that beer we stashed away earlier?"

They forced small talk in an effort to overcome the growing anxiety. But as they walked back, the forest quickly became swallowed by darkness.

"By the way, Hwaru… it would’ve been nice if Forte came to help too."

"Eh? No way. Forte’s terrified of Professor Dante…"

"Yeah, true."

But as they continued chatting to keep their fears at bay, the conversation gradually fizzled out.

Across the forest, a stranger stood quietly among the trees.

The cadets immediately fell silent. Their steps came to a halt without a word.

The stranger, too, remained still. An awkward silence settled between them.

Eventually, one cadet spoke up.

"…Uh, excuse me, who are you?"

The figure cloaked by darkness was not wearing a cadet uniform.

At the question, the corner of the stranger’s mouth lifted into a smile.

"What are you kids doing out here?" he asked.

It was a surprisingly gentle male voice, likely someone from the academy’s faculty. Derek felt a bit relieved.

"Ah, we were doing a professor assa—uh, training! We were training but took a wrong turn and ended up here."

"I see. You really shouldn’t come to such a secluded place this late at night."

"Ah, yes… We apologize. We’ll head back right away."

Thankfully, he seemed like a decent person.

But then, the man continued speaking.

"It’s dangerous, you know. It’s dark out here. No roads. No people."

"Ah, yes. We were just—"

"You could die here, you know? And if you die, no one would even find you."

"Pardon?"

"If you kids died and got chopped up into pieces, who would ever figure out the culprit? How would they even find the corpses?"

"…Huh?"

Derek wasn’t the only one to feel unsettled. Chills crept up the spines of every cadet. 

A few seconds of heavy silence followed.

The man in the darkness was now expressionless. His earlier smile had long vanished.

Unable to bear the silence, John tried to defuse the tension. 

"…We’re really sorry. We’ll head back immediately."

"Good. Let’s go together. Come on over."

"Uh, we’ll just go by ourselves—"

"No, no. Don’t worry about it. Let’s go together. You kids need an adult with you."

"It’s okay. We can manage…"

"Come on, let’s go together, hm? What if someone ties you to a tree and hacks off your limbs one at a time? What if they bury your head deep in the woods and your feet under this tree?"

The man’s eyes twitched erratically, his speech accelerating. 

"If all five of you got chopped up and scattered across Zone 0, they wouldn’t even be able to find all your pieces. And since we’re in the Assassin Department, the enforcers would be sloppy with their investigation too. Am I supposed to let that happen? No, right? So why are you refusing? Why the fuck are you refusing? Did I say I would tie you up? Or did I say I would chop you apart? I’m just offering to accompany you to the lecture hall, you little fuckers. So why are you making this awkward for me, hm?"

Goosebumps rose on the cadets’ arms. Their hearts raced, but their faces had gone pale. The blood drained from them...

"Kids these days need a good beating… No, that’s not enough. They must be killed. Kids who ignore and disrespect an adult should have all their limbs hacked off and die."

Their instincts screamed—this was no human. 

But under the overwhelming pressure, none of them could move.

They were frozen.

Scared out of his mind, Derek glanced toward John. But he clearly had no idea what to do either.

"…But you lot are good kids who listen to adults, right? So come on over. Or should I come get you?"

The voice turned sickeningly kind again, and the stranger began walking toward them.

Derek’s fingertips trembled uncontrollably.

"When an adult is talking, you obey. Got it?"

They all shared the same gut instinct: if they made a wrong move, something terrible would happen. That fear had them pinned in place.

The stranger drew closer. And closer.

"Let’s go together."

But then...

A slow voice rang out from behind the kids, from deep within the shadows.

"This is why I should have killed you earlier."

Derek’s head snapped back instinctively, every hair on his body standing on end.

Further down the dark mountain path, another man approached.

"Still, wouldn’t you say that this is a suitable place to dig a grave, Professor Toxin?"

The usual blank, emotionless pink eyes were gone. 

Now they shimmered with murderous intent. 

"No one would notice even if you chopped someone up, just like you said."

His calm, subdued tone was unmistakable—this was the demeanor of an experienced killer. 

And yet, Derek felt nothing but relief. 

"This is… a surprise," the stranger muttered. "What brings you here? Oh, I suppose it’s our first time meeting properly..."

The strange man’s sour expression twisted slightly as he spoke the name.

"…Professor Dante Hiakapo."

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