Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Genius Professor - Chapter 76

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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 76
EP19 – Glass Butterfly (4)

Adel was a spy, or something close to one.
But what abilities did she possess? What was her true purpose? I still knew nothing.
I had only confirmed that she bore no assassination intent toward me.
Ezekiel had even woven a safety net with Curse magic.
So I’d decided to keep her close and observe for now.
This time, I chose to test her reaction using Time Fabrication.

To process conversation within ten seconds, I needed at least twenty frames. I drew together nearly all my remaining mana and ran through about thirty iterations.
What I’d conveyed was simple: I know you’re hiding something strange beneath the surface.
The answers that came back were as follows.

– What on earth…?
– Why would you say that…?
– A spy? I’m nothing like that….
– I don’t understand why you’d say such a thing…. We’re friends, aren’t we…?
– …Professor, I think there’s been some misunderstanding between us. Would you like to have a proper conversation as friends…? Over a beer…?

Yes.
No matter what I said, Adel dodged my questions.
But the moment I brought up the Underworld Register,

– …….

She fell silent for more than ten seconds.
And it happened several times over.

‘She’s not going to crack easily.’

But I did arrive at one more certainty.

‘Adel has never once grown angry.’

If an ordinary secret had been exposed—
And if I’d pressed aggressively, just as I had—
Anger would have been a natural response.

‘Just now, she seemed afraid.’

After spending enough time together, you develop a feel for these things.
Adel had consistently tried to speak calmly.
But I sensed beneath it an undercurrent of fear.

‘She’s terrified of our relationship falling apart.’

Yes, she was undoubtedly a tremendous threat.
But that threat did not extend to me personally.
Following the distance she’d granted me before, I confirmed this truth once more.

‘I’ll have to verify this again at some point.’

In any case.
My private lesson with Grey had ended here.
The time was already six in the morning.
I had spent the entire night learning Illusion Magic from Grey.

“That’s what Lucy told me.”

Before we parted ways. In front of Cain Hall.
Grey had said these things to me.

“Oh, Lucy is a maid at the academy….”
“Mm.”
“She said the Empire might open trade routes with us soon.”
…….
“And the day after tomorrow, when I finish shooting for the Assassin’s Daily monthly magazine cover, I could become the face of Hiaka’s assassins, apparently? She said it was incredibly daunting….”

I answered that I understood.
But I knew this was an enormously important situation for Grey.

‘Grey’s dream…….’

To understand this, I first need to speak of the Habanero Clan’s dream.

According to the records,

the Habanero Clan created the ancient Glass Butterfly technique two thousand years ago — remarkably, even before mages had invented Illusion Magic itself.

From that time forward, the Habanero Clan became a treasure of the continent and the greatest prize in existence, making them targets for countless plunderers.

Imagine it.
In that distant past, when there was precious little entertainment to be had.
The Glass Butterfly was an ability that made virtual reality gaming possible — something the twenty-first century would struggle to achieve.

Originally, the Habanero Clan came from the Empire of that era. But fleeing the threat, they drifted to the fringes of the continent, to Hiaka.

Yet as Grey’s own explanation made clear, the Glass Butterfly was not easy to learn unless one possessed a special talent — and more specifically, unless one carried Habanero blood.

Rulers of the past brought Habanero-blooded individuals to their courts, trying to teach the technique to their own children. Few ever succeeded. And those who were brought eventually grew old and died.

By my estimate, perhaps one in every hundred thousand humans could master the Glass Butterfly. But how does one find such a rarity?

In the past, humanity’s population was small and the means to spread knowledge were limited, so the Glass Butterfly’s lineage has clung to existence by the thinnest of threads right up to now.

Then the Habanero Incident erupted, and with it — aside from Grey — there remained no one who had mastered the Glass Butterfly.

In Grey’s blood ran an intense obligation and motivation: to resurrect the Glass Butterfly that had been carried forward for those two thousand years.

‘If this girl could make her face known successfully throughout the Empire…….’

Grey would gain countless opportunities.
Tremendous opportunities for her dream.

But there was danger too. According to the Hiaka Security Bureau’s investigative records, there was suspicion that the Habanero Incident was orchestrated by the Empire itself. That’s likely why Grey agreed with Rebecca’s proposal to kill the Emperor.
Well, leaving that aside…….

“That works out well.”
“…What?”
“If you become famous as a model in the Assassin’s Daily, isn’t that your chance to let more people know about the Glass Butterfly?”
“……??”

As I pretended to understand, Grey’s shoulders shrank.

“…You knew?”
“A little.”
“…That’s creepy.”

Grey lowered her gaze to the floor.

“So you must be nervous.”
“…Yes.”
“I would be too.”
“…Really?”

Worry threaded through her voice, tangled with anticipation.
For an assassin, this was unfamiliar ground—an opportunity unlike any other.

“You’ll do well. You’ve already spread your wings beautifully.”
“Ah, yes….”

She smiled at me, her lips twitching with amusement.
It was good that she’d grow accustomed to this through experience.
The Betting Table would demand it of her soon enough.

“Professor, do you know anything about Empire exchanges?”
“Hmm. Empire exchanges… I wish it would happen. For us.”
“Right. The academy’s falling apart anyway. It’d be nice to expand into the Empire… but I’m worried too. I heard Hiaka gets looked down on abroad….”

I nodded.
It was true.

“You’ll do well nonetheless.”
“…….”

Grey nodded in return.
That concluded our first lesson.

I had become a professor and done only the learning myself, but seen in broader terms, this could be called the first button in harmony between professor and student.
That wasn’t a bad thing.

“But when will you teach me next?”
“From this lesson alone, I’ve accumulated considerable understanding of your Illusion Magic. I’ll need time to analyze it separately, research it, and apply it.”
“So… two lessons from now?”
“That suits.”
“All right….”

Grey nodded.

“But you said you weren’t busy the day after tomorrow, right…?”
“I did. I’m planning to rest.”
“Mm…. Then would you come with me to the Assassination Daily cover shoot at their studio? I’m going to get completely done up. It’s a rare chance to see Grey looking absolutely beautiful….”

I paused to think.
What should I do?
The studio was located in Hatengrajeu in the Empire.
The Assassination Daily belonged to the Empire, after all.
Naturally, Grey wouldn’t be going alone—a senior professor would accompany her.
If I were to go along now without directive from the department, I risked making a poor impression on that senior professor.
There were hardly any professors left who disliked me now, but the higher you fly, the harder you fall.
It was better to exercise restraint.
And I had the desire to spend the weekend training World Fabrication, which had reached nearly ninety percent completion.

“Unfortunately, without notification from the department, it would be difficult for me to accompany you separately.”
“Oh….”

Grey’s gaze dimmed at my refusal.

“…Right. I understand.”
“Still, with a top-ranked student involved, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
“I’m not worried, exactly…. It’s just that she’s passing up a really good opportunity…. Grey’s going to be absolutely stunning, really….”
“You’ll see her on the cover.”
“Grey’s the real deal in person…. Ah, never mind. I’m not upset about it or anything. People’s lives are solitary anyway, aren’t they….”

Grey trudged out, muttering to herself.

“Let’s go to the Academy together.”
“…Why?”
“It’s gotten late, hasn’t it?”
“It’s fine. It’s right there….”

She waved her hand dismissively.

“…See you next time.”

Even so, she left with a smile.

I was about to turn back myself.
That’s when it happened.

‘The Butterfly?’

Flutter, flutter….

It was the Butterfly that had run away earlier.
I had no idea how it had returned.
It landed on my shoulder, fluttering softly.

Suddenly, my mana drained away.

『 World Fabrication : Time Fabrication [150,000 seconds / 1 frame] 』

What?
What? Why did Time Fabrication activate on its own…?
And 150,000 seconds? That’s nearly four days.
At the same time, something else peered out from beside my status window.

…00 seconds / 1 frame] 』)
…00 seconds / 1 frame] 』ㅇ)
…00 seconds / 1 frame] 』ㅅㅇ)

This bastard…. That’s when Grey turned back and glanced at me, then raised her middle finger and shouted.
“Moron! Dumbass! Hope you catch a cold while you rest…!”
Then she ran off.
Moron, dumbass….
I laughed quietly, then went back to the mansion, washed up, and fell asleep thinking about the formulas I’d recently learned.
The next day I spent resting at the mansion.
Then on the day after that, when Sunday night came around, an urgent phone call came through.
– Professor! …It’s urgent…!
“What’s wrong?”
– Late at night, sorry… …Is it possible that cadet Grey… the last time…
“What? Spit it out clearly.”
– …In the Empire… assassination… severely wounded…
The next moment, I was already dressed and rushing out. I arrived at the Hiaka Warp Station and spoke with the Discipline Office members. Despite the external location, twenty of them had gathered. The atmosphere was tense.
“Professor… The perpetrator is….”
“Who!”
“…I’m sorry… It remains unidentified….”
With that, she produced a few photographs and an investigation report, claiming they’d come from the Empire Security Bureau.
“…A bombing attack….”
My next stop was the Hospital. Wilhelm, the senior professor who’d accompanied me, lay in critical condition. In the room beside his, Grey looked up at me from her bed, having just come out of emergency surgery.
“Professor… I….”
I said something—I’m not sure what—and Grey answered calmly, explaining how she’d been caught in a massive explosion just before filming. Then she added this:
“Professor, we can… we can still do the shoot… can’t we…?”
“What?”
“I mean… only my leg was hurt… right…?”
I opened my mouth to respond, then closed it again—because it wasn’t just her leg. When I raised my eyes to hers, half of Grey’s face was burned and wrapped in bandages. In that state, the notion of her serving as a cover model for the Assassination Daily News was absurd; worse, she’d just survived an assassination attempt. What was I supposed to say to that? I stood there, stupefied, and my silence stretched on longer than I realized.
“…Why? Why?”
Her eyes began to crumple slowly.
Her lips trembled.
And down her cheek—
“……Can’t I…? Not anymore…?”
Several weeks passed after that. Again and again, I found myself in the hospital room, watching Grey. I overheard conversations about how that issue of the Assassination Daily had been a massive success. But Grey wasn’t in the monthly edition. Someone else had taken her place.
“…….”
By the time I reached the final frame, my eyes had fixed on her hunched back, on that frail, bent spine bowed before me.
Immediately after that, the entire world—myself, Grey, and the hospital room itself—shattered to pieces.

“…….”

I stood in the street.

In front of Cain Hall.

Still, in the distance, I could see the grey-haired girl walking away with a sway in her step.

The next moment, she turned her head toward me and raised her middle finger.

“Idiot! Jerk! Go rest and catch a cold…!”

It felt like I’d been struck on the back of the head with a hammer. As if someone had pulled the trigger toward Grey.
What I’d just witnessed was not Time Fabrication. It was the Saint Trace Formula that the Scrying Technique had shown me.
The Scrying Technique—that being had shown me how it all ended, leading me to the Fabricated Timeline in which it unfolded.
Then she turns her body. She’s trying to run, just as she did in that Fabricated Timeline.

“Grey Habanero!”

I called out urgently, raising my voice.

“Why…! I hate you…! Don’t talk to me…!”
“I’m coming with you!”
“Wha…!?”
“Let’s meet in two days! I’ll go with you!”

Grey stopped abruptly.
Then, slowly, she turned back to look at me.

“…….”

She crept closer.
And asked, very softly:

“…Really?”

EP19

Glass Butterfly

END

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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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