Chapter 21 – What Kind of Bastard Is This? (3)
The Firefly.
There are countless names for him.
“Thief of the New Moon,” “Reaper of Death,” “Firefly of Ruin,” “Traitor of the Waning Moon,” “Backstabber Extraordinaire,” “The Fox with a Hundred Tails…”
Just the ones listed in the encyclopedia number over a hundred. It made sense—after all, he was a living legend the continent hadn’t been able to track down for seventy years.
And yet, even that legend had found himself at the greatest impasse of his life.
‘Damn it—my retirement fund!’
That’s right.
The one place he needed to access the vault—the faculty research office.
He’d finally secured one, after all…
‘But the location’s all wrong! The location!’
This was maddening.
Sure, the office he’d received was more like a luxurious penthouse. He had an entire three-story suite just for himself—clearly not a standard office.
The problem? His next-door neighbor was the Headmaster. And across the hall was the Chairman’s Office.
「Can’t you just ignore them?」
“Those two are beyond top-tier.”
If they put their minds to it, they could figure out when he came home, when he slept, even when he scratched his ass.
“If I tried tunneling to the vault, they’d show up with guillotines and cheerful smiles.”
Well… The Chairman, being the Hero, was rarely around due to missions, so whatever.
“The real issue is the Headmaster.”
Other professors looked at him with envy, being neighbors with Lady Charlotte. He couldn’t care less.
“Man, the Headmaster’s office and the Senior Professor’s suite are connected. Loads of couples got together like that. Professor Wayne, you should make a move too.”
…More like, before anything blossoms, blood’s going to splatter.
“Hah, what’s he gonna do with that mummy face?”
“Who knows, maybe the Headmaster’s into that kind of thing?”
“They say he covers his face ‘cause he’s so damn ugly. Must be really bad.”
Ruin rubbed his temples as the male professors glared at him with a mix of jealousy and resentment. He’d shown up to the faculty meeting because they were introducing the new professor—and it had turned into this mess.
“I thought the Headmaster had an unusual look…”
Turns out, she was the school’s idol.
He’d seen all kinds of women during missions, but her beauty really was otherworldly.
If he weren’t the Firefly, he might’ve been distracted himself. But she was the enemy, after all. Glaring at him wouldn’t change anything.
“Hmph. It won’t matter. He’ll get exposed soon enough and lose the spot.”
Yeah, I don’t even want the Senior Professor suite. Wanna trade?
Just then, a few professors from the Combat Division came over to console him.
“The Chairman will like you.”
“Yeah. He’s usually too busy to stop by Haven, but this time he might come just to see you.”
No thanks. I don’t need that Hero bastard’s attention.
More than that…
“Is that him? The one who passed the Main Gate?”
“Did he actually receive the toll?”
“How did he even convince the students?”
“Forget that—what’s with that potted plant…? That face and he’s a plant dad? Kinda cute.”
I don’t need your attention either.
That’s when a burly old man, probably an honorary professor, approached with a grin.
“So it’s you. Congratulations. I was surprised to hear someone passed the Main Gate, and now you’ve even taken the Demon Hunting post? Should I be calling you Senior Professor?”
“I’m not the Senior Professor.”
“Oh, then Department Head? So modest!”
It’s not modesty, old man.
“Lately, a lot of professors have died—probably because of that damn Firefly.”
Not me, by the way.
“I’ve got a grudge against that bastard too. So I’ve got high hopes for you, Professor Wayne.”
Come to think of it… this guy looked familiar.
「Oh, that’s the guy! Husband of the woman you seduced and ditched during a mission!」
…Right. My bad.
And at that moment, someone was gnashing his teeth in the corner.
‘Ruins, that bastard.’
It was Charlie Whiskey, the Self-Defense professor. He couldn’t hide his irritation after hearing about how his beloved Calon got publicly humiliated.
‘If you wanted to take him down, you should’ve hit him directly.’
They’d tried playing it nice, acting like they were helping with lectures. Big mistake. Instead, they just gave the students a juicy story to gossip about.
‘And now he’s got 90% attendance?’
Didn’t think that was even possible.
‘All he’s doing is drawing the Chairman’s attention.’
Frankly, even he would’ve attended class if it meant hearing embarrassing gossip about the school’s most feared professor. Seemed like that guy had plenty of tea to spill.
Still, gossip was gossip.
He’s just an artifact scammer. That kind of syllabus might sound impressive now, but…
Haven’s students were handpicked by the Hero himself. Their skills were no joke.
‘These kids have high standards.’
If a Demon Hunting professor—who’s supposed to excel in battle—ever got caught off guard in class, that attendance rate would crash. Because for a Hero, skills matter more than anything else.
‘I’ll make sure he embarrasses himself in front of everyone.’
And with that thought, Charlie made his way to the Demon Hunting lecture hall.
- - -
At the same time, a crowd of students gathered in front of the Demon Hunting classroom.
“Hey, did you get one of those bills? The 100x clothing charge?”
“You got one too?”
“You as well?”
“That was real?!”
The 3rd-year Goldmoon students were stunned into silence.
There had been 50 students in the infamous rooftop class. Every single 3rd-year from the Goldmoon dorm had received a bill—from none other than Professor Ruins Wayne.
For the suit they’d shredded when they picked a fight with him.
“This is a joke, right? I’d have to drain my entire savings!”
“My dad’s gonna explode when he sees this!”
“What kind of suit costs this much?!”
“…Well… he is from House Wayne.”
Even these Goldmoon kids—top-tier nobles—were coughing up blood at the price.
But it’s not like they could avoid paying.
Why?
–Until you pay for the suit, do not attend my class.
The note from Ruin, handed out by the TAs, left them dumbfounded.
“He told us to come to class before!”
“And now he’s saying don’t come?!”
“Gasky got charged 1.5x more…”
“What?! So Gasky has to pay 150x?! Insane!”
At this point, everyone just casually called him “Gasky,” and nobody even blinked.
All that mattered now… was Ruin.
“It pisses me off.”
Yeah, it was infuriating that he shattered their barrier—but then he went and analyzed it instantly, copied it, and even used an advanced flame spell without chanting.
Any student would be lying if they said they weren’t dying to learn from him…
“But still! These charges!”
“Can’t we just take the class already?!”
The Goldmoon students were at their wits’ end.
Meanwhile, a group of male students nearby were whispering with sour expressions—Calon’s proteges.
“What did the Princess say about all this?”
“She said to leave it alone.”
“So we just watch? This is so unfair.”
Sure, Calon had grilled them with questions about Ruin. But the reason they hadn’t said a word… was Ruin himself.
“He picked Gasky, of all people, and nearly threw him off a rooftop.”
“What if he did it on purpose because Calon had his eye on him?”
They’d watched Calon’s pride get torn to shreds, and Ruin’s intensity had scared them into silence…
“But we’re just supposed to do nothing?”
“You got a plan to take that psycho down?”
One of them pointed to his face.
“His face, man. He’s wrapped in bandages ‘cause he’s so ugly.”
“!”
Ruin’s face was infamous in social circles. No one had actually seen it, but the rumors said it was less than human.
“Dude’s so ugly he had to bandage up.”
And for a professor, appearance mattered. Angry parents could get him kicked out in a heartbeat. Some elites cared a lot about looks.
“Don’t you wanna know how ugly he really is?”
The students grinned darkly.
“Ten grand says girls run screaming when they see it.”
“Twenty grand says the parents demand he gets fired.”
“Alright. Let’s unwrap that face.”
And just like that, they were reaching for Pandora’s box.
- - -
‘A real pain in the ass.’
Ruin rubbed his temples.
‘Of all places… next to the Headmaster’s office?’
Sure, the office itself was elegant, the furniture top-grade, nothing to complain about there. But—
‘My retirement fund!’
He needed a research office that gave him access to the vault. That left him with only one option:
‘Gotta go with the ‘buddy-buddy’ strategy.’
You know, the old “visit a colleague’s office and hang out” routine…
「Buddy? Did you forget every professor here wants to kill the Firefly?」
Ruin raised an eyebrow.
‘There’s one exception—one guy who doesn’t care about the Firefly.’
「Who?」
“Charlie Whiskey.”
He was even an old classmate of Ruins Wayne. The only existing connection.
「Still… He hates the real Ruins Wayne. Not sure how you’re gonna buddy up with that.」
Whatever. Anyway—
Right now, there was a student standing in front of him, holding out an envelope, and Ruin had no idea what the hell was going on.
“…You really brought the money for the suit?”
“Yes, sir! Exactly 150 times the original price!”
“…”
Ruin blinked. He was standing guard outside the Demon Hunting lecture hall during the morning class session.
–Until you pay for the suit, do not attend my class.
He’d made that crystal clear.
Because he needed to reduce the number of students. His ultimate goal was the retirement fund, and he wasn’t going to get anywhere if he had to spend all day babysitting kids.
So he’d slapped the snotty Goldmoon brats with an outrageous bill to keep them out.
Which meant more free time when they didn’t show up.
That was the plan.
‘So why the hell is this kid trying to come in?’
He just couldn’t understand.
A Goldmoon, no less.
Among the five dorms, Goldmoon was…
‘The bloodline dorm.’
Goldmoon was founded as a power alliance of royal and noble families. Naturally, their culture revolved around speeches, deals, and political games.
Their nickname? ‘The Alliance of Thrones’.
‘Which is bull—it's just a backstabbing club where everyone wants to be king.’
Anyway, they were the kind of students who treated professors like their lackeys.
And to make it even more bizarre:
The kid in front of him was the very same Gasky he’d grabbed by the head and nearly tossed off a rooftop. The one who got hit with a 150x fine.
That’s what made this so baffling.
‘Most people would curse the professor and never show up again.’
Sure, Ruin had charged him 150 times the rate because Gasky had muttered “fucking hell” right after the rooftop lesson.
‘As a responsible educator, I had to set an example…’
「Yeah, right. It was ‘cause he was the richest kid in the dorm.」
Not true.
「Still, you get bonus pay per student. If you plan it right, your bonus could exceed your salary.」
“…”
Ruin’s eyes did flicker at that, weak to the word bonus, but he managed to hold firm.
‘My goal is the retirement fund. I won’t be seduced by immediate gains.’
And so, Ruin stared coldly at Gasky.
“Did Calon send you?”
Gasky looked flustered.
“No, sir! I don’t follow any particular professor!”
Strange. According to his research, Gasky consistently scored high in Calon’s notoriously strict classes.
‘Probably just professors trying to curry favor.’
In Haven, students’ parents and sponsors were the real VIPs, after all.
Anyway, if Gasky wasn’t aligned with Calon, there was only one explanation left.
“Do you have a fetish for being bullied?”
“…Excuse me?”
Gasky made a face like what the hell are you talking about—then suddenly perked up.
“No, it’s not that! I just wanted to know how you have such incredible grip strength! I’m honestly impressed!”
…He’s a freak. Just say you like torture, why don’t you?
“My dream is to become a top-tier demon tracker! Just like you, Professor—I want to catch the Firefly, humanity’s greatest enemy!”
Why are you all so obsessed with catching me?
“Two years ago, my family suffered greatly because of the Firefly.”
Damn it. Gotta find that impersonator and beat the hell out of him…
“My grandfather had his blueprint designs stolen. The whole business collapsed.”
…Ah. That one was me.
At that, the Goldmoon students lining up behind Gasky gasped.
“Huh? You too, Gasky? My grandmother had her heirloom taken by the Firefly.”
“Aha! That’s why your parents hit it off during that last parent meeting! Swore vengeance together!”
‘…Am I really allowed to be at this school?’
Then, Gasky leaned in close and whispered seriously, after glancing around.
“I said all that, but actually… I know the truth.”
…What?
“I know who you really are.”
…Huh? My identity?
Ruin stared at him, puzzled, as Insam burst into laughter.
「Pfft—he figured out you’re the Firefly!」
What nonsense. If even the Hero hadn’t figured it out, there’s no way some snot-nosed brat did.
…So what the hell is he talking about? What does he think he knows?
