Necromancer Academy’s Genius Summoner - Chapter 458
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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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The Summoning Genius of the Necromancer School Episode 458
“What are you doing here?”
Jane set Neftis down on the ground and flicked her on the crown of her head.
Neftis cried out with a yelp, cradling the spot where she’d been hit as tears welled up.
“That hurts!”
Jane’s expression didn’t change as she spoke.
“How did you get in here?”
“I was clinging to the tea service cart over there!”
Jane rose from her seat and exchanged a knowing glance with Merin, who quickly shifted aside. Jane then settled back into her chair, lifted Neftis onto her lap, and set her on the seat of honor.
“We’re in the middle of teaching the students. Do you have something to say?”
“Nope!”
Neftis laughed boldly.
“I’m just here to eat!”
“If you’re going to be a distraction, I suggest you leave.”
“I won’t!”
Neftis raised her hand toward a servant.
“Snacks! Bring me more snacks!”
“Yes, right away!”
This was the real Neftis.
The servant, alarmed by the command, rushed off. Jane, who had been glowering at Neftis, resumed teaching the students.
“Since Neftis is here, let me explain: the Student Council is directly under the Principal.”
Simon and the members nodded in acknowledgment.
“And among all students at Kizen, only the Student Council President can request an audience with the Principal and propose student matters.”
Neftis straightened up with an “Ahem!” and crossed her arms, though her lack of dignity was somewhat undermined by the cookie crumbs scattered across her mouth.
“Goodness.”
Jane pulled out a handkerchief and, without hesitation, scrubbed her superior’s mouth thoroughly. Neftis protested with indignant squeaks—”Mmph! Bleh!”—and watching this scene unfold, Simon allowed himself a faint smile.
Meanwhile, Dick, Merin, and Kamibarez beside him sat rigidly at attention, staring straight ahead.
Jane folded the now-ruined handkerchief carefully away and resumed her stern expression.
“You understand?”
“Yes, Professor!”
“Then, as Vice-Chancellor of Kizen, I am now issuing your Student Council its first assignment.”
The first assignment.
This was the moment the four young people’s focus reached its peak.
“The entrance ceremony for new students, to be held the day after tomorrow.”
Jane smiled.
“Your Student Council will be in charge. You will personally manage this event and ensure it concludes successfully. That is all.”
The entrance ceremony for new students was one of Kizen’s grandest events. For a first mission, it was a considerable responsibility.
“All the necessary documents are here.”
Jane withdrew a thick stack of papers from her bag and placed them on the table with a solid thunk.
“The schedule is already set, and the basic framework is fully in place. You may add what you see fit to add, and change what you think needs changing. You may even attempt something new if you supplement it with the discretionary budget.”
Neftis began saying something along the lines of “Oh, so we can just spend money freely!”—until Jane flicked her on the head again.
“This crown-tapping menace!”
Dismissing Neftis’s protest lightly, Jane continued.
“Normally, the Student Council President’s appointment ceremony would be the day after tomorrow, but to carry out this assignment properly, you’ll need something befitting the occasion.”
With that, she pulled something from her bag.
“My goodness!”
Merin gasped in wonder, covering her mouth. Dick clenched his fist, unable to hide his excitement, while Simon and Kamibarez exchanged pleased smiles.
This was the very symbol of authority—an object that inspired confidence merely by wearing it on one’s arm.
It was the Student Council Armband, worn only by Student Council officers.
“Come forward, one by one.”
Jane personally fastened the armband onto each student’s right arm. Neftis grinned widely.
“They look wonderful on you!”
All four of them glowed with excitement, fingering the Student Council Armbands now wrapped around their arms.
“Then I entrust this to you. The 330th Class Student Council.”
“Do your best!”
Encouraged by the adults, the four students responded with vigor.
“Yes!”
* * *
At the same time.
The Forbidden Forest.
“Phew!”
A third-year male student holding a shovel wiped sweat from his forehead as he spoke.
“This should be deep enough, right?”
“Good.”
Before them, a large pit had been dug. A pipe descended into it with a loud Bang!, settling at the bottom.
Glug, glug, glug.
An unidentifiable liquid reeking of stench flowed down the pipe and began filling the pit. Students nearby clamped their noses shut or gagged.
Uuuaaaaaah!
Aaaaaaah!
The water in the pit sloshed, and then zombies writhed within it, flailing their arms desperately.
“Setup complete.”
Will, ranked twelfth overall, watched the scene with a smirk playing at his lips.
“Got the alcohol for the kids?”
“All set.”
“The main game?”
“Looks like it just started over there.”
He pointed to one side of the forest. Cheerful laughter and chatter could be heard erupting from various spots.
“Very good.”
Will’s mouth curved upward in a satisfied grin.
“Bring the kids over. Let’s get started before the Student Council interferes.”
* * *
Simon’s 330th Class Student Council immediately dove into their first meeting.
Four people sat arranged around a central sofa. Though their shoulders bore the weight of such responsibility from their first task, their enthusiasm was boundless.
The crux of the discussion was an “Entrance Ceremony that could truly benefit the new students.”
“What about this? We create a segment where upperclassmen directly introduce their departments in front of the new students!”
Merin announced the proposal loudly.
When the other three offered somewhat lukewarm responses, she quickly added to her pitch.
“Remember freshman year? On the first day of class with your assigned professor, they form groups for the group assignment, right?”
“That’s how we all met.”
Dick said.
“It was so cool when Simon brought Merin into Team 7!”
Kamibarez laughed with delight. Merin’s face flushed crimson.
“Ugh, no! Don’t let this turn into reminiscing about the past! Focus, focus!”
She drummed the table to recapture the attention of the other three.
“The thing is, students have to choose their major within two or four days of enrollment, but at that point no one really knows what they’re good at yet, or what they’ll even learn in class.”
Simon immediately grasped what Merin was driving at.
For the first-year group assignments, it’s advantageous to form groups composed of students from different majors with no overlap.
But getting four people from entirely different majors to meet up is surprisingly difficult. In the worst cases, you’d end up with extreme combinations like “three Combat Magic students and one Poison Magic student.”
Students whose major wasn’t yet firmly decided would choose rather random fields just for the sake of group composition, and those students suffered, forced to focus on subjects that didn’t suit their aptitudes throughout their first year.
‘Hmm.’
Simon, lost in thought, opened his mouth.
“So the idea is to have upperclassmen offer guidance so freshmen can make the right choice when forming their groups, yes? That’s not a bad idea.”
“Exactly! That’s it, Simon!”
Merin clapped her hands together in delight.
“Well, personally I don’t think there’s a major problem even now.”
Dick voiced his opposition.
“I chose Dark Reversal Magic, and Merin, you went with Curse Magic. Still, by second year everyone found their place fine enough, didn’t they?”
“You’re an idiot! That was only possible because I was already an elite in all subjects back then! Not every student has such a wide range of options!”
“Suddenly touting your own abilities, I see.”
“W-well, but when I asked some of the younger students about it…”
Kamibarez opened her mouth. All three turned their full attention toward her, ears perked.
“They said because of group positions, they had no choice but to focus intensively on the subject their group was assigned to. Even if they later became interested in, say, Curse Magic and found it fascinating, they felt awkward because the Curse Magic specialist in their group was watching.”
…….
Simon closed his eyes as he listened to that.
Words Aaron had spoken during the first Summoning Studies class came back to him.
-In the classes you’ve already attended, I’m sure they’ve been talking about how excellent our field is, why you simply must pursue it. Something along those lines.
-Personally, I disagree. Students ought to be given a clear picture of both the strengths and weaknesses so they can make proper informed choices.
Those words had remained vivid in Simon’s memory ever since.
“Merin and Kamibarez are right.”
Simon opened his eyes and laid out his thoughts.
“There’s almost no explanation of each subject beyond what the professors tell us in our first class. So wouldn’t it help the new students if we seniors shared the strengths and weaknesses of each subject from a student’s perspective?”
“Yes! I support it!”
“Me too!”
“Now that I hear it put that way, it does seem necessary.”
In the end, even Dick approved, and the proposal was accepted.
The four of them then worked out the specific details.
“If we’re going to do this, we need to ensure objectivity. It’d be best if specialists in each subject came out and spoke directly about it.”
At Dick’s words, Merin rested her chin in her hand.
“Should we ask the second-year department representatives?”
“Will they do it?”
Dick shook his head firmly.
“And regardless of whether they agree, we shouldn’t incur a debt by asking a favor from people we’ll be clashing with for years to come.”
Kamibarez nodded as well.
“The department representatives are directly tied to their departments’ interests, so it would be difficult for them to speak honestly about the downsides from a student’s perspective!”
Merin nodded immediately.
“Right, so we just pick specialists who aren’t department representatives, regardless of grades? There’s no need to overthink it. I’ll handle Dark Reversal Magic myself.”
There was no reason to take the long way around. Merin looked at the other two.
“Simon will obviously do Summoning Magic, and Kamibarez will do Blood Magic!”
“M-me? Are you sure that’s all right? My grades aren’t that high…….”
“Grades don’t matter! You’re speaking from experience as a senior who studied a year ahead, so share it honestly! And for Poison Magic…….”
When Merin turned her head, Dick was pointing at himself with an eager expression.
“We’ll have to ask Claudia.”
“Why not me!!”
Dick stood up and struck the desk.
“You just said grades don’t matter!”
“Even so, ranking four-hundredth is too much, you blockhead. At minimum, it should be a student who’s actually studied, don’t you think?”
“Ugh!”
Dick sat back down, grumbling, with nothing left to say.
“……I’ll raise my grades even if it kills me.”
Kamibarez let out an embarrassed laugh and looked back at the group.
“Then what about asking the class president for Curse Magic?”
Simon nodded.
“Good idea. I’ll ask Sindy to handle Necromancy.”
Jamie Victoria, Claudia, Sindy Vivache.
All three were capable top-tier practitioners with solid recognition in their fields. Since they were acquainted, they’d likely agree to the request willingly.
“Let’s see what’s left.”
Dick counted on his fingers.
“Dark Magic, Curse Magic, Summoning Magic, Necromancy, Blood Magic, Poison Magic…… oh, Combat Magic! Does anyone here know someone in Combat Magic?”
Merin and Kamibarez shook their heads, and after a moment of thought, Simon raised his hand.
“If no one else does, I’ll take it.”
“Perfect! Then we’re all set!”
* * *
And so a new segment was created for the Entrance Ceremony.
The four of them discussed staging and special effects, and decided to create guidelines.
“There is a ban on using Dark Magic indoors, but we can get permission for this, right?”
“I’ll bring it up with Professor Jane.”
Simon said this while jotting notes, but the budget was looking tight.
“Hey! Hey! I found a way to save on the budget!”
Merin cried out while scanning through the paperwork.
She circled the name of the Entrance Ceremony’s “master of ceremonies” with her quill pen.
“The master of ceremonies is this man Jason, but no matter how famous he is, isn’t his fee a bit steep for just one day of an Entrance Ceremony?”
Simon lowered his head.
Jason Biker. Fifty gold per day.
It was expensive.
“Are you thinking of replacing him?”
“Yes. For just ten gold, I can bring someone far more famous.”
“For a mere ten gold? Who?”
Merin drew a meaningful smile and wrote a new name on the list.
“Seiweir Griesman.”
“This con artist with illusion abilities worked the theater with me during the break. He’s incredibly famous in Langoustin.”
“That sounds wonderful!”
Kamibarez clapped her hands together eagerly, though Dick’s expression betrayed some uncertainty.
“But can we really bring him in for just ten gold when he’s at the height of his popularity right now?”
“Of course! He’ll come running at my say-so. Besides, I think he feels indebted to us. And if we bring him in, we can use his illusion abilities to replace all kinds of stage props. Cost savings on top of everything else!”
Simon couldn’t help but admire the idea.
“That’s genuinely clever.”
“Heh! This is what a vice president can do!”
Dick immediately began calculating on a blank page.
“Then let’s use the remaining budget to prepare wine for the VIPs.”
Merin narrowed her eyes.
“Wine for those old fogeys? Why?”
“Well, it makes all the difference,” Dick said thoughtfully.
He continued with genuine conviction.
“These VIPs—they’re retired from the field, aged folk who love being treated with respect. They come in with no particular expectations, and then—bam—servants appear and pour wine while saying, ‘The students prepared this.’ Think they won’t be moved by that?”
…
Merin rested her chin in her hand while Dick pressed on.
“In Dresden noble etiquette, there’s something called the Old Chair tradition, and that’s exactly what we’re recreating here! With just one glass of wine, people will say this Student Council has real class. Almost no student council would even think to prepare something like this.”
Simon nodded in agreement.
“Might as well try—worst case, we break even.”
Since Dick had actually run a business before, they decided to trust his judgment on matters of adult sensibilities.
* * *
The four of them talked late into the night.
Perhaps it was the weight of responsibility for overseeing the Entrance Ceremony, but their energy never flagged.
Ideas kept flowing, and they felt as though they could easily push through an all-nighter.
“But Merin—you can actually bring Seiweir, right?”
“One hundred percent! The season’s over anyway, so he’ll have nothing to do. He’ll come right away!”
“Simon, Simon! Look at last year’s ceremony complaints—there were tons of broken chairs!”
“Right. Let’s go check the Grand Hall tomorrow.”
“Ugh, and look at this—the elder speakers have far too many addresses. It’s suffocating. Can’t we trim them down?”
“I’ll bring it up with Professor Jane.”
And so the meeting drew to a close.
Just as Simon stood up to brew more coffee—
“Hm?”
A white slip of paper was poking out from his trouser pocket.
<Let’s meet tomorrow evening! – Neftis>
Now that he thought about it, a gift from Neftis was waiting for him.
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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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