Chapter 111: The End of the Battle

That day, footage of the giant monster being destroyed streamed across the globe, and countless people erupted in cheers.

【Inside the rescue ship, Riglia Sea】

"Yessss!! Teacher took it down!!"

Arthur and Victor were screaming. I’d never felt this happy before. I turned around—Emily was bawling her eyes out.

The tension snapped… I comforted Emily, then looked back at the live broadcast on the TV.

"It’s over… Teacher…"

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

【United Nations Office in Geneva】

A lawmaker who’d been standing up slumped weakly into their chair.

"Thank goodness… We made it. Humanity was saved."

"But from here on, there’ll be no shortage of voices demanding accountability from us… from the UN."

"Where’s Chairman Hans hiding at a time like this? Can’t even tell where he is…"

"He was always rumored to be shady. Now that this has happened, investigations are bound to come."

Soon after, it came to light that Hans’s affiliated research facilities had been imprisoning sorcerers, using them to develop Prometheus’s weapons. It was a massive scandal.

Prometheus—created to deny sorcerers—was now undermined at its very core, forced to shut down operations.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

【Swiss Bern, Sanctuary Knights (Sanctuary Knights) Headquarters】

"Guess we finally took it down."

I’d thought we were done for a second there. But Gojo pulled through, just like always. Glancing around, I saw relief spreading across the faces of the Sanctuary Knights.

"Leo… it’s gonna get tough from here, right?"

"Yeah. We’ve gotta explain things to the UN. Media will swarm us, no doubt. But that’s nothing we can’t handle."

Gotta go say thanks to Gojo too, huh?

"The way those monsters appeared this time... feels like they're seriously trying to wipe out humanity... almost like there's some kind of will behind it all."

Alexander's words echoed what I was thinking. We're not out of the woods yet. If anything, this is just the beginning.

"Either way, we're boosting the Sanctum Knights' capabilities. We'll be coordinating with Gojo too—no small change slipping past us."

The group here solidified their new resolve.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

We headed to the site where Vishnu had fallen. In the center, there it was—the "Jewel" again. As if demanding to be taken. Picked it up and checked its stats.

＜Cradle of Life＞ SSR

Greatly increases vitality.

"Cradle of Life...?"

No idea what that means, but it's probably going to be important in the battles ahead... I ended up using Dragon Blast after all, didn't I?

I wasn't thrilled about it, but I ate it anyway. Checked my status—

HP 5,397/5,397 → 49,876/49,876

Seriously? My HP shot up. Nearly ten times higher... But what's the point of this? Just as I was thinking that, I noticed changes elsewhere.

Was it the effect of "Cradle of Life"? The description for my unique skill "Super Regeneration" had changed.

＜Super Regeneration (Ultimate)＞

Super Regeneration... ultimate? Peak? What the hell is this!? I decided to check the skill's details. It said I could regenerate even if 99% of my body was destroyed.

"Super Regeneration" was already insanely powerful—but now it's even more monstrous. There's no way I'm dying now.

And then—

I used one职业 board before the tower battle. The one I picked was "Alchemist." It wasn’t directly useful in combat, but I figured it’d help the students craft magic items. My职业 rank was...

Alchemist Lv99

[职业 Skills]

Alchemy Rank D → B

Acquired "Skill" Blessing (I) ×2, Magic Power Enhancement (I) ×3

Already up to "B." I double-checked everything again.

Alchemist Lv99

HP 49,876/49,876

MP ∞/∞

Strength 106,860

Defense 53,380

Magic Defense 23,300

Agility 56,370

Dexterity 5,771

Intelligence 56,280

Luck 460,000

[职业 Skills]

Magic Rank SSS Title: "King of Magic"

Healing Arts Rank SS

Compound Magic Rank A

Mapping Rank SSS Title: "King of Caves"

Arcane Library Rank D

Swordsmanship Rank SS

Martial Arts Rank SSS Title: "King of Fists"

Creation Arts Rank C

Dissection Rank C

Seizure Rank D

Archery Rank B

Taming Rank SSS Title: "Ruler of Demons"

Alchemy Rank B

Archive Rank D

Qigong Martial Arts Rank A

Magic Sword Rank A

Barrier Art Rank B

Light Blessing Rank C

[Unique Skills]

Spatial-Temporal Manipulation Barrier Defense Demon Armor

Infinite Magic Power Ultra Recovery (Extreme) Divine Speed

Gravity Manipulation Supreme Unrivaled Dragon King's Coffin

All Status Effect Resistance Divine Sight Dragon Blast

Goddess's Blessing Immortality Cradle of Life

[Skills] [Magic]

Identification (XVII) Wind Magic (XIX)

Spatial Perception (XXII) Earth Magic (XVIII)

Strength Enhancement (XXX) Fire Magic (XVIII)

Thousand-Mile Eye (XI) Light Magic (XVI)

Magic Power Enhancement (XI) Summoning Magic (XXX)

Heat-Cold Resistance (XVI) Thunder Magic (XXII)

Physical Resistance (X) Water Magic (XVIII)

Magic Resistance (X) Darkness Magic (XIV)

Magic Affinity (XIII) Enhancement Magic (XVI)

Growth Acceleration (XII) Healing Magic (XIX)

Stealth (XII)

Agility (XXX)

Precision Correction (XI)

Intimidation (VII)

Calculation Acceleration (X)

Telepathy (VIII)

Enemy Perception (XIII)

Imitation (VIII)

Mental Defense (VI)

Blessing (XIII)

[TEAM]

Divine Species Vishnu SSS

Divine Dragon Hydra SSS

Stone Giant Titan SSS

Flame Dragon King Shiva SS

Fairy Species Spriggan AAA

Demon Beast Chimera AAA

Spirit Species Phoenix AA

Metal Giant Gigas A

Dragon Species Wyvern B

Medium Metal Giant B

Medium Stone Giant B

Medium Humanoid Giant B

I tamed Vishnu, but will I ever actually get to summon him? Feels like it’ll never happen…...

Anyway, I decided to teleport back to the convent for now.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

[Japan, Tokyo Keichou Newspaper]

"Absolutely! This is it!"

"Where’d you get this info?"

"A friend in the Self-Defense Force. He was right—there *is* one here. In our country! When the national Leader fell, a psychic appeared—called the 'Burning Mage'."

Sato had been digging through contacts in the Self-Defense Force and government circles, gathering intel. With multiple sources confirming, he was certain he had a solid lead—and had already cleared it with his editor.

"Are we running this in tomorrow’s paper?"

"Yeah. We’re making it happen! Tomorrow’s headline will scream this one. This psychic—"

"Gojo Shoumen’s name will be front and center!"

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

The next day, the evacuation order was lifted, so we returned to Saint Viktar Abbey. Coming back to a place we knew well, I felt relieved—but something was still nagging at me.

Since this morning, Gojo Teacher’s name had been all over the news.

Everyone was worried about it. Amid all that—

“Ah, you’re back.”

“Teacher!?!”

There he was, sitting in the abbey’s lounge chair like nothing had happened. When we rushed over, he stood up with his usual smile.

“Teacher, are you okay? No injuries or anything?”

Sara asked, worried. But Teacher said he had no scratches at all. I could tell he was just trying not to worry the kids.

“Was back yesterday. I’d evacuated, so I was a little anxious when no one was around. But I figured you’d come back eventually, so I waited.”

“Are you okay with the news reporting about you?”

“Yeah, I know. There’ll probably be a bit of a fuss for a while.”

“Teacher Gojo, what are you going to do next?”

Sister asked him. That was exactly what we all wanted to know. I’d have loved for Teacher to keep teaching right here… but…

“Let me finish my job as a Teacher… today.”

“………I see. Understood.”

A wave of emptiness washed over me. I’m sure everyone felt the same. Especially Emily…

“Teacher……”

“What? Why’re you crying? We’re not never seeing each other again.”

“…But…”

“Once you calm down, I’ll come back. Remember? I promised I’d take you to America, to England. I’m a man who keeps his promises.”

“…Yeah.”

Gojo Teacher gently patted Emily’s head and smiled.

“So what now, Teacher? Are you going back to Japan?”

"Yeah, if things stay peaceful, I could just retire to some remote mountain in Japan. But if trouble shows up? I’ll be there in a flash—won’t let anything get past me. So go ahead, live easy."

Teacher said that, then reached behind the table and pulled out something metallic—like a flat plate. There were several, but he held up one and showed it to me.

"Noah, this is a gift from me."

"From you? What is this?"

"High-purity mithril. Something I couldn’t make before, but I think it’ll come in handy for crafting magic tools. Use it well."

It glowed differently from the low-grade mithril I’d used before—sharper, brighter. The *Arcane Compendium* listed dozens of tools that used this kind, so I was thrilled.

"Thank you, Teacher. Actually... we’ve got something for you too."

"Wait—me?!"

From the long bag Arthur had been carrying, he pulled out a single sword and held it before the Teacher. Made with the twin blacksmiths during our evacuation, aboard the rescue vessel.

"Can’t say if it’ll help... but take it with you."

Teacher drew the blade from its sheath. It was a single-edged sword—forged from dragon bone and scale, mixed with rare metals he’d collected.

"Ryujintou... that’s what the *Arcane Compendium* calls it."

"Nice sword. Thanks."

I was happy he liked it. Just thinking that—

"Emergency! Everyone!"

Philip Teacher rushed over, flustered.

"Mass media people are swarming in front of the convent! Phones are ringing nonstop..."

No idea how they found out he worked here, but there were *so many* reporters.

"Staying here longer’s gonna cause trouble. Time to go. You kids—study hard!"

"Teacher, but—"

"See you again. Stay safe."

The next instant, the Teacher was gone. The Teacher who’d taught us so much in just a few short months. The relationship between Teacher and student… the one I’d felt I could trust more than anyone else…

It just ended... now.

That’s the end of Chapter Seven. Thank you for reading. Starting from Chapter Eight, things will take a slight turn.