The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 96

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 96
When I arrived at the academy grounds, an astonishing sight greeted me.
Bone Golems lay scattered everywhere.
It was unbelievable.
What shocked me more was the condition of the corpses.
They’d been torn to shreds.
As if some beast had savaged them.
“What happened here?”
“Well, that is….”
Hans and Linden glanced around, then lowered their voices.
“It’s the work of Libel, that sinister fellow.”
“Spell it out for me.”
“Right, so….”
Hans and Linden had been watching over the students on my orders—especially the children in my class—in secret.
But after Phase 4 broke out, Libel apparently snuck away from his quarters.
“He was already a strange one, but he became even stranger. His eyes turned bloodshot and he was muttering incoherently—he seemed completely out of his mind.”
I swallowed hard.
Those were the warning signs that appeared when Libel began to Berserk.
“But who am I? This Hans stepped forward bravely to check on Libel’s condition!”
“Sir, you were hiding behind my back that whole time. And sir, even when you hide, everyone can see you because of your bald head, can’t they? Anyway, Libel tried to enter the Sealed Zone, so we tried to stop him—but then a Bone Golem from the Abyss appeared.”
Linden swallowed nervously.
“The Bone Golem seemed to take a liking to Libel and didn’t kill him right away—it wanted to torture him. But when the Bone Golem mocked him about something, Libel suddenly went berserk.”
Mad.
Looking at the Bone Golem’s corpse, that was the precise word.
“He suddenly unleashed some kind of unidentifiable power and brought down the Bone Golem, but even after it died, he kept attacking the corpse. Like he was venting his rage.”
It was Libel’s Berserk state as I’d often seen it play out in the Scenario.
‘Damn it, why now? What triggered it?’
Whatever the cause, this was serious.
‘If Libel Berserks, it’s Game Over.’
As I mentioned before, there are two kinds of Game Over.
When one of the Four Great Academies or the world itself suffers irreversible damage.
This is called a “Scenario Game Over.”
The other is a “Character Game Over.”
It happens when one of the essential protagonists falls out of play.
‘Libel drops out of the Scenario when he Berserks.’
The power Libel possessed was a kind that could never be tolerated by people.
Black Magic or demonic power would be better.
The moment it’s exposed, he can’t remain at the academy any longer.
“Did anyone witness Libel using that strange power?”
“There seem to be a few people who saw it from a distance, but given how far away they were, they probably couldn’t see it clearly.”
“Where is Libel now?”
“He went into the Sealed Zone.”
That was a small mercy, at least.
‘There’s still a chance. If I calm Libel’s Berserk state right now, we can manage this.’
But my chest tightened.
‘…Can I do it?’
It wouldn’t be easy.
Above all, it was dangerous.
‘Libel’s Berserk state only stops when blood is spilled.’
The reason Libel’s Berserk invariably leads to Game Over is that he commits unforgivable atrocities in the process.
He becomes like a beast maddened by blood.
And a beast so terrifyingly fierce that he could slaughter a Bone Golem.
Then the situation grew even more dire.
“Oh-ho-ho, what’s this now? I heard a Bone Golem appeared?”
Of all times, Karak, the Chancellor, had to return to protect the students!
Even in this urgent crisis, he still cut that ridiculous peacock figure, but his eyes gleamed with an undeniable intensity.
‘If Chancellor Karak sees Libel Berserk, he’ll try to kill him.’
Chancellor Karak cares nothing for the students—he merely seeks to seize the academy for his own purposes.
If necessary, he’d sacrifice the students without hesitation.
“Hmm. To think a Bone Golem would end up like this. How curious. And this aura? Revolting. Just who created such a power?”
Chancellor Karak was far from the pushover he appeared to be.
In a single glance, he had pierced through the very essence of Libel’s power.
“How curious. Now that I think of it, you mentioned the student being held by the Bone Fiend was Libel, yes? Libel, something felt off about you from the start. Could it be that you’re the one behind all this?”
“I, I saw it! I couldn’t see clearly from far away, but Libel used some strange energy on the Bone Fiend!”
It was an upperclassman whose name I didn’t know.
Students scattered throughout the area began gathering one by one.
“I, I think I saw it too.”
“What was it? It wasn’t Mana, was it?”
Chancellor Karak’s gaze turned toward the Sealed Zone where Libel had disappeared.
“We’ll know for certain once I go and see for myself. What sort of power Libel used.”
‘No. Not that.’
The image flashed through my mind: Chancellor Karak’s blade severing Libel’s neck.
It was one of the bad ending scenarios that actually existed.
I stepped forward with a hardened expression, blocking his path.
“Please wait. I will handle this matter myself.”
“Hmm? Professor Ban? Are you trying to shield your student? If you’re a professor, you should be able to discern what sort of energy this is, no? If Libel is indeed responsible, then Libel is a ‘monster.'”
“A monster? To call my student such a thing is most unpleasant. Do you have any proof that this energy belongs to Libel?”
“!!”
It was all or nothing.
Sometimes stubbornness trumps logic.
I pressed forward with conviction.
“My student’s affairs are mine to resolve. This is not a matter for the Chancellor to meddle in. I ask that you do not encroach upon my Academic Prerogative.”
Academic Prerogative.
The sacred and inviolable authority inherent to every professor of the Academy.
“Hoho? I’m only saying this out of concern for you, Professor Ban—but protecting a student too fiercely can sometimes end with both of you bearing the consequences.”
“I cannot stand idle out of fear of mere ‘misunderstanding.’ These are my students, after all.”
“!!”
Chancellor Karak’s face grew cold.
A stark contrast to the composed smile he’d never let slip before.
In that moment, I found myself swallowing reflexively,
“Is this the true strength of Professor Ban?”
“??”
I tilted my head in confusion before understanding dawned.
-Chancellor, it’s precisely because you always take such an approach that you keep losing ground to Duke Rafalte’s Faction.
He seemed to have taken to heart the barb I’d thrown at him during the joint tournament before.
The atmosphere shifted slightly, and I drew upon the acumen I’d honed through my years in sales to seize upon precisely what the moment demanded.
“You are too kind. That I can do such things is only possible because you trust in me, Chancellor.”
“Haha! Well now. You’ve bested me. Very well.”
Chancellor Karak looked directly at me.
His eyes bore that practiced, practiced smile—yet beneath it lay an unsettling intensity.
“I give you thirty minutes. If you cannot resolve this within that time, I will step in myself.”
* * *
I’d made a bold move, but truthfully, I was at a loss.
Calming Libel’s Berserk state was proving that difficult.
‘Still, I have to see this through.’
I clenched my fists and walked deeper into the Sealed Zone, only to meet immediate difficulty.
-Grrrrr.
It was a wolf-form magical beast.
‘The Sealed Zone is naturally a territory where monsters roam, after all.’
The Rubinesse Academy grounds rivaled any mid-sized city in extent.
Larger than Yeouido.
Like Central Park in Manhattan—an enormous expanse of land set down in the very heart of the city.
But most of it was restricted entry, sealed territory.
The reason was simple.
Danger.
‘They’re not high-level, but there are many of them. Should I have brought Hans and Linden? I came alone because I was worried Libel’s Berserk state might worsen.’
As I’ve mentioned time and again, my abilities struggle against large numbers of weak opponents.
I’d managed to reach 2-Star Rank, but it still wasn’t comfortable.
-Flap flap!! Screee… Kaw!!!!
Mari emerged from the Magic Pouch and fluttered about as if determined to protect me, though of course it was useless.
—Crack!
A wolf-shaped magical beast leaped into the air.
I was about to spend my precious, scarce mana in desperation.
“Not so fast!”
Slash!
It was Katrine.
Her stance was still awkward, but her powerful blade cut through the wolf cleanly.
“Don’t just stand there gawking! If you don’t want to get sliced, get out of here!”
—Whimper.
The wolf-shaped beasts lost their nerve and retreated.
‘…They came at me so easily, but to them, Katrine looks far stronger than I do.’
Well, it hardly mattered.
So what if I looked weaker than a student? My pride could take it.
Really. Truly.
“Why did you follow me?”
“Why? It’s Libel’s problem—of course I had to come.”
Now that I thought about it, the two of them were always together.
I’d assumed they stuck together because neither had anyone else, but maybe they actually got along.
“No, wait! Libel and I aren’t even friends! I can’t stand how gloomy he is.”
“Then why?”
“Because he needs to snap out of it. Always moping around like some second-year middle schooler with a chip on his shoulder—I figured something like this would happen eventually. The idiot actually thinks he’s the Black Flame Dragon!”
“…Yeah.”
Katrine, who’d been criticizing Libel relentlessly, suddenly glanced at me with nervous eyes.
“And, well… I think I might be a little responsible for this whole thing.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know how the professor gave me a Spirit Elixir as a gift? I may have teased him about it. Saying things like, ‘You never got anything like this, did you?'”
…….
“Oh, no! But he was relentless about it! Going on and on about how jealous he was, asking me to share—whining like some spoiled kid who never got a present. I couldn’t help but tease him. So it’s not entirely my fault… I mean, I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
I let out a low sigh.
‘So that’s why he suddenly went berserk.’
There were many triggers for Libel’s rampage.
This time, it seemed to be the ‘inferiority complex’ type.
An idea suddenly struck me.
“Katrine, there’s something you need to do.”
“What is it?”
“It’s not difficult. Listen.”
After hearing my plan, Katrine’s face went pale.
“How could I do something like that! I can’t!!”
“Your friend is in this state because of you. You’ll take responsibility.”
“Ugh.”
Katrine nodded reluctantly, then bristled again.
“But, we’re not even friends! I just go along with him out of pity!”
As we ventured deeper, I felt a turbid energy emanating from within.
It was the aura of the ‘monster’ that Libel harbored!
“Libel,”
“Grraahhh… P-Professor? Pl-please… leave.”
“Come to your senses.”
“Go away!!!”
An intense force erupted from Libel’s body.
Crash-boom-boom!
I swallowed hard.
In an instant, the surroundings were laid waste.
‘I can’t stop that.’
It was no coincidence that Ingol had suffered this.
‘He still has some reason left, but it’s hanging by a thread. He’ll try to kill me any second now. Should I run while I can?’
But I shook my head.
If I ran, Libel would die at the hands of Karak.
It wasn’t just a matter of game over or the world’s collapse.
Beyond all that, I couldn’t let Libel die.
Why?
‘Because you’re my student.’
I gave Katrine a signal to begin.
Katrine opened her mouth with an expression of clear distaste.
“Oh, ah. I envy Libel so much. Professor Ban is planning to give him the Staff she used to carry as a gift. I’ve heard that’s incredibly rare. Really, I’m so jealous.”
Her performance was as wooden as reading from a textbook.
That’s right.
My strategy was bait-and-switch with a gift.
It was as childish as strategies come,
“…That’s… that’s a lie.”
Still.
Libel’s presence froze.
“…There’s… there’s no way Professor Ban would give such a gift to a monster like me.”
He’d taken the bait.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————