The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 28
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 28
Cold sweat beaded on my forehead.
‘What’s gotten into him? Please don’t tell me he’s become obsessed.’
Rebel was a quintessential eccentric genius.
Like all such characters, he drifted through life indifferent to everything—until something captured his interest, and then he pursued it with infinite obsession.
But that wasn’t all.
A chill ran down my spine again.
“I feel the same way,” Katrine said.
She fixed me with an intense stare, her eyes sharp as a blade.
“I will pass the entrance exam to Rubines Academy. Don’t misunderstand me. It’s not because of you, Professor. I want to pass because I want to.”
I saw the will burning in her eyes and felt my stomach drop.
It was her trait—Unbreakable Will.
‘She says she just wants to pass, but would it kill her to not manifest a hero’s trait right now?’
I felt my composure slipping.
If Rebel was a genius, Katrine was a hero.
The kind who overcomes any calamity.
I knew exactly how powerful they became when they ignited that will.
After all, they were the True Protagonists.
I had no idea what miracles they might accomplish.
‘At this rate, my plan might fail.’
I’d been thinking about it rather comfortably, if I’m honest.
True Protagonists or not, they were still green. I thought I could keep them from passing without much difficulty.
But now I was uneasy.
‘I need to prepare something. Something airtight.’
Fortunately, an opportunity had presented itself.
I left those two behind and made my way forward.
When I arrived at my destination, a nameplate hung on the door.
—Magic Department Entrance Examination Strategy Meeting.
In this meeting,
I had to be perfectly prepared.
* * *
At that very moment, somewhere far from Rubines Academy,
in the Splendid Garden,
a man of breathtaking beauty gazed upon the flowers.
“Maestro.”
The man turned his gaze.
“It’s been a while. What brings you here?”
“We’ve found traces of the Moon.”
“Excellent news.”
The man’s eyes grew cold.
“Where has the Moon appeared?”
“At Rubines Academy. But that’s not all. The Sun, as foretold in the prophecy, has also headed for Rubines Academy.”
“Both Sun and Moon at Rubines Academy? How unexpected.”
The man spoke words of astonishment.
“The Sun’s name is Katrine, is it not?”
“According to what Our Order has determined, yes. The Sun is Katrine; the Moon is Rebel.”
The Sun and Moon referred to two of the True Protagonists!
“How curious. Of all places, Rubines Academy—the very location where an unidentified star appeared in the Heavenly Orbit of prophecy?”
“The Almighty One, who interpreted the Heavenly Orbit, said we need not concern ourselves with that star.”
“Yet something troubles me still.”
The man furrowed his brow, arms crossed.
“Perhaps we should use this opportunity to eliminate the Sun and Moon.”
“Maestro?”
His subordinate’s face showed alarm.
“Surely that’s dangerous? Our Order is not yet sufficiently prepared.”
“I don’t mean to act directly. But there’s that presence at Rubines Academy, isn’t there? If we exploit the gaps in the entrance examination, we can accomplish our aims without Our Order lifting a finger.”
The man’s lips curved upward.
“And while we’re at it, let’s give the world a simple greeting. A prelude announcing the future that awaits.”
His subordinate swallowed hard.
The man wasn’t simply talking about eliminating the Sun and Moon anymore—he meant to orchestrate a catastrophe at the entrance ceremony.
“That is….”
“Don’t worry. These are peaceful times. Rubines Academy, with no vigilance whatsoever, will be completely defenseless. Unless they’ve prepared thoroughly in advance, there’s no way they can stop us.”
It was true.
The most pathetic of the Four Great Academies.
Even during the entrance examination, the other academies had security so airtight there was no gap to exploit.
Only Rubines Academy was drowning in negligence, riddled with openings.
“Understood. The practical examination will be the best time to move forward with the plan, so I will complete the mission in time with the Magic Department’s practical examination. For the glory of Our Order!”
After the subordinate vanished, the man murmured to himself.
“The Sun and the Moon.”
The man’s gaze—Maestro, an Apostle of Ouroboros—sank low.
“I don’t know why this mysterious star keeps bothering me.”
And so, an eerie spark that no one knew about began to kindle at Rubines Academy.
* * *
Meanwhile, in the conference room of Rubines Academy’s Magic Department entrance examination.
An unexpected scene was unfolding.
Crash!!
“…What did you just say, Ban?”
“The remark you made just now. Do you mean it sincerely?”
“What kind of nonsense is that?!”
I swallowed hard.
The professors were sending me looks so hostile it seemed they might draw weapons at any moment.
‘Yeah. This reaction is natural enough.’
The professors were angry because of what I had just said.
“Perhaps you didn’t hear me properly. I said that the level of Rubines Academy’s entrance examination is pathetically inadequate.”
“!!”
That was right.
I had just thrown a bomb at them.
That Rubines Academy’s entrance examination needed improvement.
‘I have no choice. With an exam this sloppy, we won’t be able to match Katrine and Rebel.’
The difficulty of the test had to be raised significantly.
The problem was that the professors would never comply willingly.
Instead, they only grew angry.
“How dare you! What do you know?!”
“You haven’t learned your place. Just like your school days.”
“Ha. To think the Chancellor assigned an idiot like you as an examiner. What on earth is he thinking?”
Most of the professors in this room had witnessed Ban’s mediocre school years.
Their disdain and contempt for me ran deep.
‘I’ve accomplished several things recently, but their prejudice is too ingrained for that to matter.’
In this conference room, I couldn’t find a single person favorably disposed toward me.
But.
‘It’s fine. This isn’t my first time in a situation like this.’
I was a former sales champion.
I had plenty of enemies. Especially among colleagues.
Rival colleagues who felt threatened by my achievements would openly obstruct me.
In meetings, they would automatically oppose any opinion I voiced.
‘The situation is very different now, but the solution is ultimately the same.’
Frontal assault.
I had to strike them with facts that no one could deny.
Since these people were full of hatred for me anyway, trying to win them over would be a waste of effort.
It was better to come at them with strength.
The Black Flame Dragon painted an arrogant expression across my face.
“Am I wrong? Isn’t it a fact that Rubines has the lowest entrance examination standard among the Four Great Academies?”
“!!”
“The difficulty of the test, the quality of the practical examination, the security measures prepared for similar scenarios—all of them are incomparable to the other four great institutions.”
The room fell silent.
Because it was the truth.
Of course, that didn’t mean they actually accepted what I was saying.
They all ground their teeth and glared at me.
A shout was on the verge of erupting at any moment.
Then a sharp voice cut through.
“Then what improvements do you propose, Rebel?”
‘Professor Alif!’
The Four Great Academies boasted faculties as extensive as a university campus on Earth, with no shortage of professors.
Among them were those who served as the academy’s backbone—the Departmental Professors.
Alif was one of them: the Dean of Student Affairs.
He oversaw student life and bore responsibility for this year’s entrance examination.
“Speak. And if I hear nothing but drivel, I’ll strip you of your examiner credentials and ensure you fail the professorial appointment exam as well.”
His voice cut like a blade.
He was not making idle threats.
‘Alif’s in the Chancellor’s camp. He’s been looking for any excuse to sabotage my appointment anyway.’
Normally, I’d have given him no opening whatsoever.
‘But now I need to turn his hostility against him.’
I had to provoke him further.
Only then could I achieve my objective in this meeting.
The Black Flame Dragon aided me.
Even repeating the same words, my voice emerged with that grating, irritating quality that wore on listeners’ nerves.
“First, may I ask what shortcomings you professors perceive in Rubines Academy’s entrance examination?”
“Well, that is….”
“Allow me to answer. Rubines Academy’s entrance exam suffers from one critical flaw: the practical examination is woefully inadequate. To be frank, it’s shameful even to compare it with the other three Great Academies.”
The entrance exam is divided into three stages.
Written, practical, and real-world combat.
The first two held no real distinction—the Four Great Academies set largely identical questions.
The problem lay in the crown jewel of the examination: the real-world combat test.
Unlike other prestigious academies, which each conducted specialized practical exams, Rubines’s test was disappointingly bland.
“You speak nonsense. How would you improve the practical exam? We can hardly unleash candidates into slum districts rife with crime.”
He had a point.
Rubines’s inadequate practical examination was a matter of circumstance.
Unlike other academies situated near magical zones, conflict regions, and warped mana rifts, Rubines was nestled within a prosperous city.
Though the grounds sprawled as wide as a small to mid-sized city, most of it lay sealed and inaccessible.
The best they managed was to have students fight a handful of low-grade magical beasts conjured by Illusion Magic in the Artificial Dungeon.
“Professors need only step forward.”
“…What?”
“Rather than merely illusory beasts. The professors themselves would enter the Artificial Dungeon and face the students directly. This would allow for far more genuine evaluation—and it addresses safety concerns as well.”
The conference room fell silent.
The proposal had merit.
It was simple, yet addressed difficulty level, exam quality, assessment accuracy, and student safety all at once.
Yet none of them nodded readily.
“Mm, well, you’re not wrong, but… my schedule is rather tight at the moment.”
“I too have an urgent conference presentation coming up….”
They all averted their eyes evasively.
Predictable enough.
For one, these dignified professors had no desire to exert themselves.
‘And if they fail a high-ranking noble’s child, they’ll face the consequences.’
There was a reason such tests hadn’t been conducted until now.
Nobody wanted the headache of potentially failing a high-born youth and facing their resentment.
Even Alif let out a small cough.
“Your suggestion isn’t poor, Rebel, but all the professors are busy with other commitments—we’re short-handed. Perhaps another approach….”
“I fail to see what could be more important than an entrance exam that will shape the academy’s future generation.”
“…….”
“You’re simply making excuses to avoid it, aren’t you?”
The professors bit their lips, stung by the truth.
I shook my head slowly, as if disappointed.
“I see. My proposal was perhaps too radical. What if we try this instead?”
“……??”
“I, as the temporary examiner, will take on the experimental role of facing the students directly. Should any complications arise, I will bear full responsibility.”
All the professors exchanged glances, shifting in their seats.
It was not an unattractive proposal.
They would avoid the burden themselves, while I shouldered all the risk.
For Alif especially—a man bent on my removal—it was a tempting offer.
Yet.
“However, there is a condition.”
I lifted the corners of my mouth into a smile and laid bare what I had truly sought from this meeting.
“Grant me the authority to intervene in the conduct of the practical examination.”
!!
That was it.
This was my objective all along.
I would mold the examination to my will and birth the outcome I desired.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————