Chapter 60 : The Nightmare of Academy VI
Van, with his shield in his left hand and spear in his right, charged toward the big muscular figure.
The big muscular figure clenched his fist, ready to strike Van as he approached.
As the distance closed, Van saw the big muscular figure swing his fist. Without hesitation, Van released his grip on the shield and dodged to the right.
The massive fist slammed into the shield, creating a supersonic blast. The shield was blown away at an incredible speed, vanishing from sight in an instant.
Van, having successfully evaded, quickly grabbed the spear strapped to his back, then slashed forward with both his sword and spear in a crossing motion—creating a deep X-shaped wound on the figure's chest.
'Thanks to the [Super Human] boost, I was able to land a hit like that. Without it, that would've been nothing more than a scratch,' Van thought as he observed the wound.
But his momentary satisfaction was cut short when he realized he couldn't pull his sword and spear out.
'What the hell?! They're stuck in his muscles?!' Van panicked, exerting all his strength to retrieve his weapons.
Even with [Super Human] enhancing his power, he couldn't pull them free.
"Freaking monster," Van muttered.
Suddenly, a chilling sense of danger washed over him. He looked up—only to see the figure's fist right in front of his face.
*BOOM
The punch landed on Van's helmet, smashing his head into the ground. The earth beneath him cracked and crumbled, webbing out in all directions.
'Sh*t!' Van cursed inwardly, overwhelmed by pain.
Even with the legendary helmet from the [Ares Set], the impact was still tremendous—his head spun, his vision blurred, and a high-pitched ringing echoed in his ears. For a moment, he nearly blacked out.
"You're a hundred years too early to defeat me, heir of the Black Family," the big muscular figure said coldly.
He then yanked Van's sword and spear from his chest and tossed them aside.
Van slowly regained his senses. He glared at the figure standing before him, then activated [101 Shadows].
From his shadow, a new figure emerged—
[Medusa]!'
The muscular figure noticed the disturbance in Van's shadow and quickly leapt back—just in time to see a beautiful, towering woman with green scales, a snake-like lower body, and a head full of writhing serpents.
[Medusa] opened her eyes and locked gaze with the big muscular figure. For a moment, he froze.
'Just as I expected. His strength is too great—[Medusa]'s [Petrification] has no effect on a bastard like him,' Van thought.
In mythology, one gaze from [Medusa] would turn any creature to stone—but in this world, that concept didn't always apply.
In battles between the strong, even one second could shift the outcome completely.
And in that brief second of hesitation, Van's eyes gleamed coldly—with killing intent.
*SLASH
A blade tore across the back of the big muscular figure, carving a deep wound from his right shoulder to his left hip.
He snapped out of his daze from the searing pain, attempting to react—but the force of the slash sent him crashing to the ground, embedding him several meters deep.
Moments later, a thick arm emerged from the hole, reaching for the edge to pull himself out.
Grimacing at the burning pain in his back, the big muscular figure still rose to his feet.
His eyes scanned the area until he locked onto Van—standing silently and staring at him.
But the Van he saw now was different. Gone was the armored Greek warrior with a dented helmet. Now, Van looked like a normal Academy student—no armor, no helmet—just a sword in hand.
"…What did you just do? How was I even wounded?" the big muscular figure muttered.
"Weren't you ever taught not to reveal your secrets to the enemy?" Van replied flatly.
- - - - -
Earlier in the battle, while Nana summoned hundreds of clones to attack the big muscular figure, Van secretly aided her by summoning hundreds of [Doppelgangers].
But he created one special [Doppelganger]—a perfect copy of himself—and equipped it with the full [Ares Set] from [World Treasure], while Van himself donned the [Hades Helmet] and wielded the [Heimdall Hofund].
[Hades Helmet]: A helmet that erases the wearer's presence entirely.
[Heimdall Hofund]: A sword that dramatically amplifies the user's mana and opens dimensional portals.
After equipping his [Doppelganger] with the [Ares Set], Van let it join Nana's clones in attacking the enemy.
Meanwhile, the real Van, hidden by the [Hades Helmet], vanished completely from perception—as if erased from the world itself, possibly even from the eyes of the gods.
He quietly watched from afar while controlling the [Doppelganger] to fight in his stead.
Then, when the enemy was stunned mid-air after meeting [Medusa]'s gaze, Van seized the chance.
He poured [Mana] into the [Heimdall Hofund], creating a portal that opened behind the enemy.
Without hesitation, Van emerged from the portal and slashed across the figure's back—sending him crashing into the earth.
Afterward, Van immediately dispelled the [Doppelganger], returning the [Ares Set] and [Hades Helmet] to the [World Treasure]—as they consumed enormous amounts of [Mana].
Even though [Heimdall Hofund] boosted his mana significantly, it was like a steroid: powerful now, but leaving him drained later.
- - - - -
"You damn brat… I'll show you how big the world really is," the big muscular figure growled.
Van's body tensed. He gripped the handle of [Heimdall Hofund] tightly.
*WHOOSH
In a blink, the big muscular figure appeared in front of Van—his fist already flying toward Van's face.
'He's fast!'
*BOOM
The big muscular figure's fist slammed into Van's face. He was sent flying through the air, and it felt like his skull was about to explode.
"Crazy monster," Van thought.
He quickly stabilized himself midair, even though his vision was spinning. But before he could fully regain his balance, the big muscular figure had already appeared above him.
"Sh*t!"
Van immediately channeled his \[Mana] into \[Heimdall Hofund], and just as the enemy prepared to launch a second strike, a portal opened beneath him and swallowed Van whole, narrowly escaping the blow.