The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 61

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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 61
The Imperial Palace in the Imperial Capital.
The residence of the Second Prince.
Tension hung thick in the air.
It was because the Second Prince, master of the palace, was in a foul mood.
“This is troublesome. You say Mikhail has entered the same class as Puppet?”
“…Yes, Your Highness.”
The atmosphere grew heavier still.
The Third Prince, Mikhail.
Though called by the alias Yodo and treated as a calamity, the Second Prince Renius saw it differently.
‘In the end, everyone believes Mikhail will become emperor.’
The First Prince was dead; as the Second Prince, he held the primary claim to the Succession Rights to the Throne.
Yet he had never received the title of Crown Prince—all because of his younger brother Mikhail.
According to Prophecy, it would be Mikhail who ultimately became emperor.
‘If only Mikhail didn’t exist, I would never have had to become an apostle of Ouroboros.’
The Second Prince Renius’s gaze turned cold.
It didn’t matter.
He would be the master of the Empire in the new world that Ouroboros opened.
“…Surely, it won’t be difficult for Your Highness’s schemes to overcome Puppet’s class? With merely six students, there’s no way they can rank first in the Class Evaluation, so they’ll be expelled before long.”
The Second Prince agreed with this assessment.
After all, he had deliberately rigged the Class Evaluation criteria against Puppet’s class, requiring them to earn a score five times higher than any other class.
It would only be possible if all six students achieved overwhelming grades and scraped together every possible bonus point available.
And yet.
“I keep having an ominous feeling. It’s absurd, but what if Puppet’s class ranks first in the Class Evaluation anyway? Imagine what would happen then.”
“…Then Puppet would become an overnight celebrity instructor.”
“Yes, my own scheme would hand him wings instead. The same would go for Yodo.”
He knew.
That it was excessive worry.
But he couldn’t let it pass.
“I cannot stand by any longer. I will take action.”
“But if you lay hands on Puppet directly, the Duke of Ecclesia will certainly not remain silent. It could jeopardize the great work.”
“There’s no need to touch Puppet directly. As the saying goes, to strike down a strong knight, aim for the horse, not the rider.”
It was something Conrad, the brother of Duchess Bess, had said not long ago when he was targeting Libel.
But what the Second Prince planned was far more terrible.
Incomparably so.
“I will slaughter every student in that class except Puppet and Mikhail. If only Puppet and Mikhail survive so cowardly, both their reputations will crumble. Neither will remain at the Academy.”
“…If Your Highness acts directly, you risk exposure.”
“Do not worry. I happen to have the perfect actor for this role. Bring him forth.”
His subordinate looked puzzled.
There was no one nearby—or so he thought.
But then it happened.
-Kekeke, I greet the most exalted one of the Empire.
A chilling voice emanated from the wooden doll placed against the wall.
-My name is Puppet.
The Puppet who had once faced Puppet’s wrath.
A terrible fiend from the Abyss.
A Master-class Black Mage at Level 7.
“Can you do it?”
-Can I do it?
A sinister aura poured from the wooden doll.
Even the Second Prince flinched.
-Kekeke, Your Highness cannot even imagine how desperately I have longed for his destruction.
“You are not to kill Puppet.”
-Of course not.
The wooden doll’s mouth split grotesquely from side to side.
-Death is mercy. Naturally, I cannot kill him easily. I will cast him into endless torment and relish the sight of him writhing in agony.
……
-First, I will slowly torture and dismember his beloved disciples before his very eyes. Ah, imagining his arrogant face stained with despair—it excites me so.
And so.
An unforeseen and terrible crisis began to descend upon Puppet’s class.
* * *
The crisis that descended upon Puppet’s class was not his alone to bear.
“Julia? Why me?”
“There’s something I need to ask of you regarding preparations for the Class Outing.”
“…Me?”
Wilhelm turned to face Julia, his voice small and uncertain.
He was known as Puppet 2.0—a disappointment through and through. Julia, by contrast, was among the year’s most celebrated prospects, drawing attention wherever she went.
“We’re in the same class, aren’t we? You know we’re taking the Class Outing to the Underground Sewer.”
“…Of course I know.”
Julia’s expression darkened instantly.
The choice of destination for the Class Outing rested with each class.
But no other class in the entire Academy would dream of choosing somewhere like the Underground Sewer.
‘Most classes use Portals to visit renowned landmarks across the continent. How utterly degrading.’
Julia’s face twisted as she pictured Puppet, and she ground her teeth.
It infuriated her.
“Will you truly go to the Underground Sewer without protest?”
“…It’s the professor’s order. I have no choice. I can’t defy what he says.”
“Tsk! How can you claim to carry the blood of the valiant Northern Margrave when you lack even the backbone to stand firm?”
“…My father isn’t exactly valiant either, come to think of it. Sigh. No, wait—I’m sorry. That was wrong of me.”
The moment Julia’s eyes flashed with anger, Wilhelm scrambled to appease her.
She regarded him with contempt for a moment, then her voice softened.
“Of course, I understand your position. The professor has you under his thumb, doesn’t he? I know all about it. Professor Puppet is cunning beyond measure.”
“…….”
“Don’t you want to see him expelled from the Academy?”
“…E-expelled?”
“Yes. Remove the professor, and you’ll be free again.”
Wilhelm swallowed hard.
His vow to become a new man had lasted less than half a day outside the prison.
All he could think about was how to escape from Puppet’s grasp.
“I have a way.”
“H-how?”
“We can use this Class Outing.”
Julia smiled faintly and whispered low.
Wilhelm’s eyes widened.
* * *
The Class Outing.
An important event held early in the new term.
Over two nights and three days, each class ventured out for external activities to deepen their bonds.
‘Since the Academy itself serves as a social hub of the Empire, these tedious affairs happen without end.’
The problem was that these Class Outings had become excessively competitive.
The Free City sat at the heart of the continent’s commerce, connected by Portal to countless destinations.
Nearly every major landmark could be reached by Portal.
As a result, classes began visiting ever more prestigious sites for their outings.
“Haha! Puppet, where is your class taking its outing? My class has arranged to go to the Warrior’s Holy Ground—quite special indeed.”
“My class will be visiting the Ancient Grand Library. I secured special permission from the Magic Tower personally. Ah, Puppet—your class must be in a tight spot financially. Long-distance travel through Portals will be difficult for you, won’t it?”
The Academy provided funding for the Class Outing, incidentally.
The amount was proportional to class size, so my class received barely a pittance.
“The Underground Sewer? Catching a few low-rank monsters won’t earn good marks for your Class Evaluation. You’d need to capture something truly remarkable—powerful high-rank monsters, or perhaps criminals hiding in the depths—for that to count. My class will certainly receive top marks in this year’s evaluation.”
The Class Outing scores factored into the overall Class Evaluation.
Marks were assigned based on the meaningfulness of activities undertaken, making those with smaller budgets at a severe disadvantage.
“Haha, we’ll do our best! Go catch some rats in the sewers! I feel sorry for your classmates.”
“Still, it will benefit the city’s cleanliness. Do your best with the cleanup work, won’t you? Hehe.”
Whoosh.
Kansir’s and Balas’s classes strode boldly toward the Portals.
It was not only the two of them.
Every other class had chosen prestigious destinations; every student’s face gleamed with anticipation and excitement.
They cast pitying, mocking glances back at our class as they departed.
After they all left, only our class remained at the assembly point.
“…….”
“…….”
Whissh.
Was it an illusion? Here they stood on the eve of the Academy’s grand Class Outing, that cherished tradition—yet the wind that swept through felt desolate, almost mocking.
“Underground sewers? Really, whose idea was this? How utterly graceless,” Julia said, her irritation cutting through the damp air.
Her voice dripped with exasperation.
“If we’re hunting monsters, there are perfectly good training grounds nearby—Blade Rock, the Bearwolf Hunting Ground. Why drag ourselves through filth?”
“If training were the only goal, those places would serve us well. But I’m not descending into these sewers to hunt ordinary monsters.”
“Then why?”
“Survival.”
The word hung in the air.
I turned to face the class members—more precisely, Wilhelm, Julia, and the Third Prince, all wearing expressions of barely concealed resentment.
“Let me ask you this: what is the true purpose of a Class Outing?”
“To build camaraderie among classmates…”
“You think genuine friendship blooms from idle chatter at some fashionable locale? Real bonds are forged when people overcome adversity together. When they face true peril side by side.”
“That’s absurd—”
Katrine’s sharp voice cut through Julia’s protest.
“Enough whining. If you’re scared, go home. I’m going.”
“I… I will go as well. A survival game with our lives on the line… I find it appealing. And you should show proper respect to your instructor. I will… reprimand you?”
The Third Prince shrugged, as if resigned to the inevitable.
Julia’s jaw tightened.
“If even Your Highness insists, then fine. But I have a condition. Once we enter the sewers, I’m going my own way.”
“That won’t do.”
“You expect me to follow orders from someone I can’t trust in a place as dangerous as an underground sewer? I propose an alternative—I won’t wander alone. I’ll move with Wilhelm instead. You agree, don’t you, Wilhelm?”
“Eh? Y-yes! I will accompany Miss Julia!”
Wilhelm’s eyes darted about frantically before he nodded his assent with jerky enthusiasm.
A response so unconvincing it screamed suspicion.
‘So she initiated this conflict with ulterior motives from the start. She means to separate herself and orchestrate something to undermine me.’
But I simply nodded, offering no objection.
“Very well. Julia, it will do you good to experience the terror a dungeon can inspire. In exchange, I’m giving you a Summoning Magic Tool. If any crisis emerges, contact me at once without hesitation.”
Clang!
I lifted the grate and descended into the sewers.
Beyond the outer passages, as we plunged into the forbidden depths, the air itself transformed.
Whisper-whisper.
Distant phantom wails echoed through the darkness.
No hallucination.
Spectral monsters drifted through the passages on all sides.
Invisible lurking creatures surely hid in countless unseen corners.
“Sh-shouldn’t I stay with you, Professor?”
“What are you doing, Wilhelm? Don’t you trust me? Let’s go!”
Julia dragged the ashen-faced Wilhelm into the darkness and vanished.
“Should we really leave her alone like that?”
“Are you concerned for Julia?”
“Not at all. Whatever happens to her is no concern of mine. She’s far too cunning to put herself in genuine danger anyway. But she’s clearly harboring some sinister intention toward you—I just wanted to know if that’s acceptable.”
“It is. I already know.”
“You… already know?”
I nodded without hesitation.
“Yes. It is precisely as I anticipated.”
No—I should be more precise.
I hadn’t merely anticipated Julia’s response. I had orchestrated it.
‘I chose the underground sewers as the outing destination specifically to make her act this way.’
Julia had been my target from the beginning. Wilhelm was merely an added bonus.
In essence, both of them had walked directly into the trap I had laid.

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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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