Isn’t Being A Wicked Woman Much Better? - Chapter 36

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 36
‘Had this incident really garnered such attention?’
I’d deliberately stirred the pot to escalate the situation, but seeing it balloon so dramatically left me flustered.
Hmm. I’m actually a coward….
Suddenly, a wave of tension crashed over me, and my heart felt like it might leap up my throat.
In stark contrast to my rigid composure, William Lemong was practically vibrating with excitement. The ripples through High Society would be far greater once the Epsilon executives weighed in on this matter.
He already carried himself like a man who embodied all the world’s justice.
“Today, I shall expose the corruption of Simour and purge its evils!”
He muttered through clenched fists, his nostrils flaring as he snorted forcefully. Watching William Lemong’s ridiculous display actually helped me regain some composure.
‘If I lose to such a pathetic fool, I won’t sleep a wink. And my flawless complexion will suffer for it….’
When I thought about it, this situation was nothing compared to the tension of the college entrance exam. I bit my crimson lips firmly and steeled my resolve.
The test format was straightforward: William Lemong would personally select problems and write them on the blackboard. Then I would solve them under the watchful eyes of the Academy Dean and the professors.
It was a clear and foolproof method that left no room for cheating.
“Then, let us begin.”
Once the Vice Dean overseeing the proceedings gave his approval, William Lemong began writing the problems, and I immediately started solving them at his side.
‘These are favorable problems for me.’
Lemong had deliberately brought problems that would take considerable time to solve, but to my eyes, most of them could be answered directly using formulas developed by mathematicians in my previous life.
For instance, in this world, the sum of a geometric sequence is calculated through tedious manual addition. But I could derive the answer immediately using the ‘geometric series formula.’
Of course, beyond just the specific formula for calculating sequence sums, there were other reasons why I could solve equations far faster than Academy students.
“William. Write faster, would you? I think I’m solving problems quicker than you’re writing them.”
After scribbling down just a few numbers, I began rapidly filling the blackboard with answers, and William’s face drained of all color.
“Vice Dean. Are all of Deborah’s answers correct?”
The Vice Dean, reviewing the answer sheet, nodded with a rigid expression.
“…All of them are correct.”
“S-surely she didn’t guess all of them correctly?”
I laughed openly at him.
“If I had the ability to guess five consecutive problems correctly—and subjective ones at that, not multiple choice—I would’ve become filthy rich at the racetrack long ago. Wouldn’t I?”
“This can’t be right.”
As if reflecting his confusion, William’s handwriting on the blackboard grew increasingly erratic. Of course, all three remaining problems were also correct, and the Grand Hall fell deathly silent.
The silence was brief. The Dean, the professors, and all the observers began murmuring in bewilderment at the unexpected outcome.
I turned to William Lemong, whose spirit had completely deflated.
“My innocence has been proven. Now it’s time to hold you accountable for tarnishing my honor.”
I glared at him with murderous intensity.
“Eek!”
It wasn’t for nothing that I’d applied heavy eye makeup today.
William swallowed hard with a terrified expression before suddenly beginning to babble incoherently.
“Y-you must’ve used some strange trick! This speed is impossible! Looking at your witch-like appearance, you’ve clearly dabbled in dark magic.”
He descended into self-destruction, spouting nonsense that I’d even resorted to forbidden arts strictly prohibited in the Empire. Faced with his shameful outburst, the Vice Dean stepped forward with a stern expression.
“Sir William! Mind your tongue. If there had been any cheating, I would have noticed immediately. There was not the slightest trace of forbidden arts. Are you suggesting that myself and all the Academy professors gathered here are blind?”
As the atmosphere began shifting in my favor, Professor Kyle, who had been restless the entire time, suddenly shot to his feet.
“William, you slandered me as a corrupt professor bribed by Simour without a shred of evidence. From now on, I’m revoking your right to attend my classes.”
‘What’s gotten into this bastard all of a sudden?’
I regarded Professor Kyle with a clouded gaze.
“But… isn’t it strange, Professor? Such speed would be impossible even for an ancient Archmage. Surely you must have employed some underhanded trickery…”
“You selected the venue, and the problems came directly from the Lemong Family—how dare you say such a thing?”
As Kyle and William raised their voices in argument, Bert Dean stepped in to mediate.
“Kyle, you’ve done nothing right, so stay silent. And William Lemong, your overstepping remarks will be dealt with through strict disciplinary action.”
Bert Dean, who had silenced both of them at once, called upon me.
“Lady Deborah Simour.”
“Yes, Dean.”
“Can you explain how such a thing is possible? It’s too swift and precise to simply marvel at your genius for equations and move on.”
“Hmm.”
I tilted my head to one side.
“Why should I explain so kindly?”
I gazed at the murmuring crowd with bewildered expressions and curled my lips into a thin smile.
“What?”
“William Lemong filed a petition against me without any physical evidence, solely because I solved equations quickly. Isn’t that right?”
The surroundings fell silent at my question.
“And throughout this process, no one pointed out William Lemong’s recklessness. Rather, it seems some people actively conspired with him…”
The students who had blindly followed William hurriedly averted their eyes from my gaze.
“Now, let’s hear what Professor Kyle said to me as well.”
I retrieved an artifact equipped with recording capabilities.
“I never imagined my brother Beleck’s gift would be used in such a manner… How lamentable.”
I even remembered to mutter softly while throwing Beleck under the bus.
“What… what are you doing?”
I received Professor Kyle’s bewildered stare as I tapped the artifact lightly three times.
-Anyway… women only care about appearance. Honestly, the lady isn’t even a child…
-Lady Deborah Simour. Why must you cling to the Magic Department like a leech?
Professor Kyle’s voice emanated from the three-million-won recording artifact equipped with devilish editing capabilities, reverberating through the Grand Hall.
‘I had already recorded everything when I was summoned to the Professor’s Office. Perfect.’
I gently rubbed the artifact while observing the pallid Professor Kyle.
“Professor Kyle! A leech?! Is that something you should say to a student?”
One of the professors rebuked Kyle.
“I’m truly disappointed. I respected you, yet you make such thoughtless remarks.”
Particularly regarding the comments about appearance, several young noblewomen from the Magic Department unleashed harsh criticism. As his rotten, twisted character was exposed to the world, Professor Kyle staggered with a hollow expression and collapsed into his seat.
“As you can see, I was being sharply attacked from both the professors and the student body, and I stood here alone to clarify the truth. I simply devoted myself earnestly to studying equations.”
I swept my gaze across the surroundings.
“In such circumstances, why should I disclose the groundbreaking equations I’ve refined through painstaking effort?”
“You refined the equations?”
“Good heavens!”
“This is absurd!”
This time, a wave of magical force incomparably more violent than before swept through the Grand Hall like a tsunami.
“How could anyone possibly improve upon the supreme principles of mana that the Archmage and the Dragon themselves discovered? Is it even conceivable to entertain such a notion?”
Bert Marquis’s voice trembled with shock as he muttered to himself. I merely shrugged.
“I saw a method to arrive at answers more swiftly and accurately than the existing approach, so I modified the equations. If there exists a faster path to the correct solution, what does it matter whether the Archmage used it or some ancestor before him? Everyone here is far too bound by convention.”
My arrogant declaration elicited reactions befitting the Empire’s most notorious villainess. I smiled wickedly, snapping my fan open with a flourish before closing it sharply.
‘Let them talk. Let the rumors spread far and wide.’
“Ancient formulas are perfect as they stand. Improvement? That’s nonsense!”
Someone vehemently denied it.
“Yet the lady did derive the answer faster than anyone else, did she not? If she truly succeeded in improving it, this would be a momentous event—one that could dramatically reduce the casting speed of magic.”
“I simply cannot believe it. The lady is deceiving us all.”
As the atmosphere shifted toward disbelief, I released a long sigh.
“I have proven my innocence, and yet some still harbor suspicion. Against me—a direct descendant of the Simour, the magic of the Simour itself.”
I feigned deep humiliation, lowering my head and trembling with apparent indignation, my voice wavering slightly.
“If you truly doubt me, I shall reveal the formula I developed through blood, sweat, and bone-grinding effort.”
“You would reveal it?”
“Truly? Lady Deborah Simour?”
“Yes.”
With an expression of anguish and suffering, I began writing the achievements of great mathematicians from my past life upon the blackboard.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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