The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 17

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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 17
I delivered my closing remarks.
“There’s nothing surprising about it. Anyone capable of simple Reverse Calculation could do the same.”
The audience’s expressions darkened at once.
Well, even I had to admit—that came across as tactless.
Black Flame Dragon, well done indeed.
“So what happens now?”
“Shouldn’t we have given zero points for the lecture evaluation?”
“He solved a major problem in magical theory—how could we possibly give him zero?”
Bewildered murmurs rippled through the hall.
That was when it happened.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Slow, measured applause.
It was Professor Bernstein.
“I give your lecture one hundred points.”
“!!”
His expression remained characteristically stoic.
But what followed was entirely different in tone.
“I never imagined you were hiding such extraordinary talent. Brilliant. A perfect demonstration. What you showed today deserves a place in the Mage Tower’s Hall of Honored Records.”
I stared at him in surprise.
It was the highest praise imaginable.
“However, your method of countering the magic seems impractical for other mages to employ. Let’s research together later on how to make it more universally applicable.”
The hall erupted in agitation.
It sounded as though I’d already been hired as a professor.
“P-Professor Bernstein? That is… Ban hasn’t yet passed the employment examination.”
Bernstein turned sharply toward the stammering Balick.
“So you’re saying you’d fail him after what you just witnessed? Professor Balick, have you no eye for magic at all?”
“…….”
Balick’s complexion went white.
A chilling coldness flickered in his gaze.
Yet Balick did not yield.
“…The hiring decision for the young master Ban falls under my purview, delegated by the board. However much authority you hold as chief professor, to overrule this matter would exceed your authority.”
“!!”
Balick clenched his teeth and, ignoring Bernstein, turned his gaze to the audience.
“My evaluation score for the young master Ban’s lecture is zero points.”
An absurd score.
Though the audience wore expressions of bewilderment, Balick paid no mind.
“I ask the rest of you to provide your evaluations as well.”
The scores proved extreme.
Those professors unaffiliated with the Rafalte Duchy Faction, like Bernstein, all awarded one hundred points.
But such voices were a tiny minority.
Most of those gathered here were pawns of the Rafalte Duchy Faction.
They watched Balick’s lead before opening their mouths one by one.
“…I also give zero points.”
“I too must give zero….”
“I as well….”
A cascade of zeros poured forth.
Bernstein glared at the Rafalte Duchy Faction professors who’d sided with the zeros.
“Have you no shame whatsoever?”
All the professors who’d given zeros averted their eyes and offered no reply.
“This is… and you call yourselves educators deserving to teach students?!”
“That’s enough, Professor Bernstein.”
“Ban?”
“It’s all right.”
“All right? What do you mean all right? This injustice—! Balick, you bastard. Come out here now! We’ll settle this through combat!”
“…Please, come outside and calm down first.”
I grabbed Professor Bernstein and dragged him outside in a panic.
‘Why is the professor acting like this all of a sudden? Well, he has always had a quick temper.’
Outwardly, Professor Bernstein was acerbic and cold, but beneath the surface lay a surprisingly warm heart.
‘But if he keeps this up here, he could lose his position!’
Professor Bernstein is the department chair for the General Studies track and the Magic Theory specialization I’m entering.
In other words, he’s the one who needs to shield me from trouble. They couldn’t have me expelled from here.
“Damn fools.”
Even after stepping outside, Professor Bernstein couldn’t shake his anger.
“I’m fine, sir.”
“What do you mean you’re fine? Those rotten bastards will never pass you.”
“It’s still fine.”
Professor Bernstein’s expression hardened at my repeated assurance, as if he couldn’t comprehend it.
“Are you thinking of going to a different academy instead? Actually, with your talent, you’d be better off elsewhere. I know someone at Peridot Academy—I’ll write you a recommendation letter. No, I’ll contact them right now.”
He looked ready to pull out a Communication Magical Tool on the spot, so I shook my head urgently.
“No, sir. I will become a professor at Rubineth Academy.”
“What are you saying? As long as those corrupt dogs are there, you can’t possibly—”
“Didn’t I just tell you I’m fine?”
!!
Bernstein flinched.
That’s right.
I wasn’t speaking idly when I said I was fine.
I truly was.
No matter what schemes Balick and the other rotten elements at the academy concocted.
‘In fact, this works better.’
Truth be told,
no matter how impressive I’d shown myself to be, expecting immediate acceptance would have been naïve.
They were never going to pass me that easily.
‘What matters is that I demonstrated something undeniable in front of everyone.’
That is, Balick had overreached in rejecting me without justification.
And that meant,
‘The moral high ground has shifted to my side.’
Here’s the question.
Even if I do become a professor, can I actually enjoy the peaceful life I want?
Not as long as the Rafalte Duchy Faction holds sway.
They’ll find endless excuses to make my life difficult.
‘I need to use this as an opportunity to strike the Rafalte Duchy Faction hard. So they won’t dare touch me lightly again.’
I wasn’t just after a professorship.
I intended to become a professor and deal a severe blow to the Rafalte Duchy Faction.
‘Keep helping me to the very end, angel Balick!’
The final phase of the operation had begun.
* * *
“Sir, where are we going?”
Hans looked around, bewilderment written across his face.
“Isn’t this the Slums?”
“Is it a problem?”
“Of course it is! Don’t you know how dangerous the Slums of the Free City are?!”
The four great academies that serve as the backdrop for the Hero Academy all have perilous settings.
Demonic Realm, border conflicts, harsh terrain.
Only Rubineth Academy is situated near the glittering Free City, and there was a reason for that.
‘The Slums of the Free City are as dangerous as the Demonic Realm itself.’
The Free City is the most prosperous place on the continent.
Where there is light, darkness follows.
The scale of the Slums was proportional—unparalleled.
Criminals from across the continent gathered here, making it treacherously perilous.
‘The outer districts are manageable enough, but the deeper sections are like a massive dungeon unto themselves—where criminals replace monsters.’
It even had its own nickname.
Saryong Fortress.
‘…Of course, I have no intention of going that far.’
But I needed to venture near there for my business.
“We’re going too deep! Just a bit further and we’ll reach Saryong Fortress!”
“Why are you so frightened? Become a 5-Star Rank mage first.”
“…I specialize in non-combat applications, sir?”
“…Aren’t you an Elemental Manifestation Mage? The most suited for combat.”
“…My subspecialty within Elemental Manifestation is practical artifact development and research, so combat is frankly not my strength.”
“…….”
“…….”
‘…You should have told me about this beforehand!’
I’d only ventured into the Slums so fearlessly because I trusted Hans.
‘…But it should be fine, right? It’s not like I’m entering Saryong Fortress.’
But that was the moment.
A voice that made my heart drop.
“My, what business could a noble young master of the Blue Blood have in such a squalid place?”
“!!”
I turned to look, and saw a beautiful woman with a radiant smile regarding us with a smirk.
‘Oh no.’
I knew that face.
One of the most infamous villains in these Slums.
‘Damn it. What’s she doing here?’
Just then, Hans beside me, oblivious to the atmosphere, barked out with full confidence.
“You! How dare you speak so disrespectfully to the young master! Can’t you feel the tremendous dignity radiating from him? If you understand, show us inside at once!”
Hans had a temperament similar to mine—aggressive then timid, then aggressive again.
Since he sensed no aura from the woman, he took her lightly and blundered ahead.
My chest tightened. I knew what that woman really was.
“Be quiet, Hans.”
“Young master?”
“Don’t you feel what’s around us?”
“!!”
Only then did Hans’s face go rigid.
“Why can’t I hear any sound?”
The entire street was blanketed in a silence so complete it felt suffocating.
The air hung sharp and cold as a blade.
If I looked closely, I could make out hostile gazes peering at us from corners of alleys and windows of buildings.
They were waiting only for that woman’s command.
The moment she lifted her hand, no one in this alley would survive.
‘Damn it, I only came here to handle some business. Why did I have to run into one of these named villains?’
One small mercy: the woman didn’t seem interested in drawing blood just yet.
“A place like this is hardly fitting for someone as noble as a young master. Light and darkness cannot mix, so why not simply turn back?”
An order to leave.
But I felt troubled.
‘…To execute my plan, I absolutely must conduct my business here in the Slums.’
I couldn’t retreat.
‘If I speak well, it might work out. That villain probably doesn’t want to fight the Ecclsia Duchy either.’
That’s right.
My backing isn’t nothing either.
Let me try to speak with care.
‘First, I can’t afford to look easy prey.’
The first step in business is to read your opponent.
If I cowered, she wouldn’t even deign to listen to what I had to say.
The opposite, rather.
I had to come on strong.
“How presumptuous. What are you to command me? My feet take me where I will, not where you decree.”
“!!”
Thanks to the Black Flame Dragon within, words sharper than I’d anticipated came pouring out.
My chest was uneasy, but as expected, the woman didn’t grow angry.
“Aha! How entertaining! So the rumors of your change weren’t exaggerated after all.”
Her voice rang with interest.
But her goodwill ended there.
The smile vanished from the woman’s face.
“You’ve come to use our Slums as a pawn in your conflict with the Rafalte Duchy Faction, haven’t you?”
“!!”
Astonishingly, the woman had already guessed my purpose.
Her voice turned cold.
“I don’t see why we should become entangled in the petty squabbles of filthy nobles.”
I fell silent for a moment.
There was a way to persuade the woman.
The only reason I hesitated was one.
It was dangerous.
‘There’s no help for it. She won’t kill me, surely.’
I opened my mouth with the heart of a gambler.
“You’ll have to help me.”
“Hmm? And why is that?”
“Because I know who you are.”
The woman let out a quiet, dismissive laugh.
“Is that supposed to be remarkable? Does anyone not know I’m one of the four castellans of Saryong Fortress?”
That was true.
Remarkably, the woman was indeed one of the four castellans of Saryong Fortress.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
“The Watcher.”
The moment that single word left my lips.
In an instant, the hall fell into a silence as complete as death.
Clang!!
Countless blades were leveled at my throat.
It happened before I could react to anything.
It transpired so swiftly that I had no time to be surprised.
“How do you know that name?”
The woman, Lairain, fixed me with eyes altogether different from before—eyes that could kill.
Her gaze brimmed with genuine murderous intent.

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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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