“New professors are coming?”
“Yes, Vice Chancellor. I hear His Majesty personally appointed them.”
“His Majesty himself?”
“Yes.”
Ronald, Grasco’s Vice Chancellor, felt a headache beginning to throb.
He pressed his temples and tried to ease it.
“Hmm…… What did the Chancellor say?”
“He has not said anything definite yet, but knowing his disposition…….”
“Ronald! Are you in there?!”
Just then, the door to Ronald’s office flew open, and an elderly scholar with an excited expression appeared.
“I hear new professors are coming! Does that mean I can finally retire?”
“……Probably something like that.”
Ronald’s headache grew worse.
“Get that out of my office. Now.”
“Ronald, my friend. At least let a man finish…….”
“Say something that makes sense! Do you seriously think some green young professor can replace you?! Enough talk about retiring!”
Ronald declared it firmly.
It was not that he could not understand Heinz’s feelings.
Despite how he behaved, Heinz was a once-in-a-century genius known as the greatest intellect on the continent. Had the previous Chancellor, who had been both Heinz and Ronald’s teacher, not forced the position on him, he was the sort of man who would have shut himself away in some mountain and spent his days doing nothing but research.
“It looks like the royal court intends to start interfering with Grasco in earnest. If you are gone, who is supposed to stop that offensive?”
“I do not really care.”
“……Get that out of here.”
“Yes, Vice Chancellor.”
“Wait! Fine. I will forget about retiring. But in exchange…….”
Ronald’s expression soured even further.
Retirement was bait and nothing more.
This bastard’s real intention was…….
“The research I just started looks like it will need quite a large budget…… You can take care of it, right?”
“Even if I wanted to eat it and die, I do not have that kind of money, you bastard!”
“Then perhaps I should retire and go to another academy…….”
“……Ugh, what a miserable lot in life. Get that out of here right now! Right now!”
“Chancellor, that will be enough for today.”
“Ronald, think it over carefully!”
Heinz’s fading voice grated on Ronald’s nerves, but in the end, Ronald would accept his request.
Grasco had practically survived on the results of his research.
Without even that, the talented students who still enrolled here would dry up entirely.
They needed talented students to come in before they could train them and produce results.
‘If the royal court begins interfering…… the students may be driven into the war as well. What am I supposed to do?’
The clouds of war hanging over the continent.
There were records of academy students being conscripted in the past when wars had intensified.
There was no guarantee it would not happen again.
Until now, Grasco had remained one step removed from the king’s influence, which had allowed them to prevent at least that. But the king personally choosing professors and sending them here meant there was a real possibility that Ronald’s fears would become reality to some extent.
“This is bad. Very bad…….”
BANG—!
“Ronald, if the full amount is impossible, even half would…….”
“……Get out.”
Ronald had a great many headaches to deal with.
***
{The Cradle of All Talent in the World}
‘That’s right, that’s right. This is Grasco.’
Grasco’s ideal.
To cultivate all the talent in the world without distinction of social status-.
How admirable was that?
Most academies only educated the children of wealthy merchants and nobles, but Grasco did nothing of the sort. It even provided scholarships while cultivating promising talent.
At first, the system had not shown much success, but once Heinz became Chancellor, the fruits of his research covered the costs to some extent.
But even that had its limits.
Grasco’s finances were not in good shape.
An academy in the richest kingdom being strapped for money was a contradiction if there ever was one, but it was something like the final bulwark set up to prevent the royal court from interfering in education.
This professor appointment was the same.
Since Grasco was, naturally, an academy of Aerok, the king also possessed the authority to appoint professors.
However, because of a tacit agreement between the royal court and Grasco, that authority had never been exercised until now.
But this time, that tacit agreement had been broken, and I had been appointed as a professor.
That was probably also why the professors were looking at me with such unfriendly eyes.
“It is an honor to meet the famed Count of another race. I am Harriet, Dean of the Faculty of Combat Studies.”
“I’m Lucas.”
The tense atmosphere made me freeze up, and only a short answer came out.
But that seemed to have caused yet another strange misunderstanding.
“As expected of a powerful man who caught His Majesty’s eye. You mean to prove yourself through actions rather than words?”
The atmosphere grew even colder.
“Try to understand. His Majesty may have ‘recommended’ you as a professor of Grasco after recognizing your ability, but from our perspective, it can only look as though the royal court has planted someone inside Grasco.”
Vice Chancellor Ronald, in particular, was showing the strongest hostility.
On the surface, he treated me with manners and kindness, but I could ‘see’ that this man disliked me.
In such an uncomfortable situation, all I could do was sip my tea.
“Hmm…….”
Meanwhile, Heinz, the Chancellor of Grasco, kept sweeping his burdensome gaze over me.
I felt like another panic attack was coming.
I wanted to get out of this situation as quickly as possible.
“Enough- Why don’t we leave it at that?”
-Yes, understood.
Oh, fuck, that scared me.
A man in a black mask suddenly appeared right in front of me.
A chill ran down my spine.
How long had he been there?
“As expected, I could not deceive your eyes this time either, Lord Kraus.”
‘This time either?’
I’m sorry, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen you.
“The hidden guard!”
“Is that not His Majesty’s secret guard detail I have only heard rumors about?!”
“Did he really know the hidden guard was there beforehand?”
No, I did not.
“Of course. Not once have I ever managed to deceive Lord Kraus’s eyes.”
The masked man answered in my place while I remained speechless.
“If he can see through the hidden guard, whose concealment is said to be second to none, not just once but every single time, then he certainly does have ability.”
“That cannot be denied.”
I had not intended any of this, but things seemed to be moving in a favorable direction anyway, so I kept my mouth firmly shut.
“Still, it is not enough for His Majesty to exercise his appointment authority? He even sends a hidden guard. Does His Majesty intend to place Grasco beneath his heel?”
Ronald spoke with obvious displeasure.
The masked man shook his head and took a small box from inside his clothes.
“This is a token of His Majesty’s sincerity. He asked me to say that he is sorry for suddenly interfering with the appointment of professors. He also said that Lord Kraus here is a man whose ability His Majesty personally guarantees, so he will undoubtedly be of help to Grasco.”
He opened the box he had brought.
Even at a glance, it was filled with expensive jewels.
I was entertaining a useless thought like, ‘How much would all of that fetch if I sold it……?’ when an angry voice thundered from in front of me.
“Is His Majesty attempting to buy sacred education with money?!”
“Chancellor, that is a misunder-”
“What misunderstanding?! We cannot accept these jewels…… Urgh!”
“Please tell His Majesty that we are grateful for his consideration.”
“Ronald!”
Kicked by Ronald, Heinz flew far away, rolled across the floor, and finally came to a stop.
He stared at Ronald with an expression of utter incomprehension and shouted.
“As an educator, you cannot do this!”
“Styy stll (Stay still)…….”
Cowed by Ronald’s razor-sharp pressure, Heinz quieted down, let go of his anger, and sank into the sofa with a sulky expression.
“Professor Lucas! Welcome to Grasco!”
Uh…… that’s one problem solved!
***
[A new notification has arrived.]
[jsjang0626 donated 1,000 Gold.]
‘What? Is this a bug?’
I rubbed my eyes once in disbelief.
There were three zeroes, not two.
It was definitely 1,000 Gold.
The items I had skimmed through in the Gold Shop immediately came to mind.
Most of the prices had been outrageous, but there had also been some reasonably priced items.
‘There were items I could buy with 1,000 Gold.’
If I planned carefully, I might even be able to buy several useful items.
But to do that, I would have to look through the Gold Shop, and that was not exactly easy right now.
“This is the Grand Auditorium. Banquets and other events are usually held here.”
The reason was Vice Chancellor Ronald, who had volunteered to act as my guide right beside me.
I was currently following him around.
After acting so hostile earlier, he was now going out of his way to do something I had never asked for.
Tch.
“From here on is Aden Hall, where you will spend most of your time.”
What in the world was this old man really thinking?
I could still see hostile feelings toward me, so why was he going to all this trouble?
“No one is watching us now. Say what you want to say.”
The Ronald I had written definitely had some other intention.
That was the conclusion I reached.
If he had something he was hiding, I wished he would hurry up and say it.
I was getting dizzy from wanting to check the Gold Shop.
“Ahem.”
Sure enough, as if I had been right, Ronald dropped his pleasant expression and spoke.
“Since you put it that way, I will get straight to the point. We have accepted you as a professor, but in my judgment, we cannot entrust you with any important responsibilities.”
“That’s fine.”
What I wanted was the title of professor at Grasco, not some important position.
Putting myself on the front lines for no reason would not help me at all.
If necessary, I would be perfectly happy teaching after-school classes.
That would even let me pick out only the students I wanted.
“Hah. I truly cannot tell what you are scheming.”
……I’m not scheming anything, though?
“You will organize your own lectures separately from the core of Grasco. I will leave the selection of the students in those classes entirely to you.”
“You mean…… I only have to take responsibility for the students I choose?”
“That is correct. I have not abandoned my suspicion that you may have come to Grasco under His Majesty’s orders. That is what the faculty and I fear most. However, His Majesty has shown his s- ahem. His sincerity, so we must entrust you with something. That is why I am making this proposal. If you cannot accept it, I will recommend that your appointment as professor be rescinded.”
That sounds great?
Those are exactly the conditions I wanted.
“Ah, and your selection will be limited to new students. I will allow you to interview them.”
“Very well.”
That answer came without hesitation as well.
The new students who would enroll next year.
They’re the real deal.
***
After parting ways with Ronald, I headed straight to the faculty residence assigned to me.
My luggage had already arrived and was neatly arranged.
The residence might have been smaller than the mansion, but it was excessively spacious for one person.
I was satisfied.
Now, at last, it was time to browse the Gold Shop I had been waiting so desperately to see.
‘Gold Shop.’
When I called up the Gold Shop, the familiar translucent window appeared.
I set the search filter to 1,000 Gold or less, and five items appeared.
-Basic Swordsmanship 900G
-Show-off Muscles (Balloon Muscles) 800G
-Full-Body Hair Removal (Non-Permanent) 500G
-Vision Enhancement (Stage 1) 300G
-Bad-Breath Removal (One-Time Use) 200G
Maybe I had gotten my hopes up too much.
Disappointment came first.
But I quickly changed my mind.
‘Not long ago, I was practically dying because I was so desperate for donations, and now I’m getting spoiled. This is a precious asset given to me by a reader. I have to make sure I use it well.’
There were two choices here.
Buy something, or save it.
The answer was already decided.
‘Purchase Basic Swordsmanship.’
[1,200G->300G]
I was technically a professor in Grasco’s Combat Studies Department now. I could not very well swing a sword like some clumsy amateur.
The basics were important in everything.
So I purchased Basic Swordsmanship.
If I combined Basic Swordsmanship with this body’s monstrous strength, I thought I could put on a fairly convincing show.
‘That leaves 300 Gold…….’
Would it be better to save it?
Everything else looked useless anyway.
I decided to leave it for an emergency and was about to close the Gold Shop when one item kept catching my eye.
-Vision Enhancement (Stage 1) 300G
The words ‘Stage 1,’ which oddly suggested there might be more afterward, bothered me.
And the fact that my eyesight had been the most useful thing since I woke up in this body kept drawing my attention back to it.
On top of that, almost as if it had been deliberately arranged, the price matched my remaining balance exactly.
‘Ngh…….’
After a brief hesitation, I made my decision.
‘Purchase Vision Enhancement.’
[300G->0G]
My Gold, precious as blood, drained away-
THUNK!
“Urgh, ngh!”
My eyes began to hurt as if they were on fire.
I could not open them, and the intense pain took over my brain.
Just as I was repeatedly thinking ‘I’m fucked’ and regretting the purchase.
FSSSHHH-
As if it had all been a lie, the pain subsided, and my vision gradually began to return.
And a new world unfolded before me.