The Graduate Student Wants to Assassinate the Professor - Chapter 32
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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 32
Boom!
The ball exploded and scattered, leaving the ground cleanly compacted and level. This magic was primarily used on construction sites, typically employed when demolishing buildings.
“Why didn’t we think of that magic?”
Someone from the Architecture Department exclaimed in admiration.
‘Because in a typical obstacle course, no one thinks to simply eliminate the obstacles entirely….’
Shebril shook her head slowly, her eyes clouded, hoping there would be no more people viewing the world through Leoryna’s standards.
Having shattered the obstacle with Bitter Fit magic, Leoryna accelerated her pace. Yet the speed she achieved was beyond what an ordinary person could muster. She was running at a record that only top-tier track athletes could produce.
Shebril’s eyes narrowed.
‘That….’
Only then did she notice the shoes Leoryna was wearing.
‘Those are the flight shoes Professor Zigzagel gave her, aren’t they?’
Leoryna was not running ordinarily. She was using the propulsion device attached to the flight shoes to boost her speed dramatically.
‘So you can use them that way too, not just for flying.’
Though that probably wasn’t what they were intended for.
Shebril could only pay her respects to Leoryna’s body, spirit, and mind.
Leoryna eventually caught up to the leader and managed to surge ahead and cross the finish line just before he did.
“Waaaah!”
The Department of Magic Theory students rushed onto the arena all at once. In their excitement, they surrounded Leoryna and chattered incomprehensibly before hoisting her onto their shoulders in celebration. Leoryna laughed heartily with the students, savoring the joy of victory.
Thus, the Department of Magic Theory claimed the championship of this year’s Athletic Competition with a significantly higher overall score than the other departments.
“Kyahahaha! I told you I could do it, didn’t I?”
“Ooh! Instructor Leoryna! Instructor Leoryna!”
The Department of Magic Theory students, having received the golden trophy, rushed to the tavern they had reserved for the after-party. The department representative at the front was carrying Leoryna on his back.
The remaining students left at the arena watched the scene with tired expressions.
* * *
Until now, Leoryna had been a familiar teaching assistant to the Department of Magic Theory students, helping them shed one layer of fear toward Khalid. But now she was simply the goddess of victory, the indomitable warrior, the light and….
“And salt!”
Someone raised their glass high and rattled off Leoryna’s newly minted epithet. Leoryna spat out the drink she’d been swallowing.
‘Oh, I forgot…! Salt! I wonder if Khalid has finished handling things by now? He wasn’t caught, was he?’
Sudden worry crashed over Leoryna, and the taste of the drink turned bitter on her tongue.
Leoryna hoped that Khalid had cleaned up whatever mess he’d made while she was away. But the anxiety was unavoidable.
In the end, she rose from her seat.
“I’m sorry, but I should get going.”
“Huh? Teaching Assistant, why don’t you stay longer….”
“Ah, well… I need to finish up the professor’s experiment.”
The students grumbled that Khalid was overworking his teaching assistant despite it being the day of the Athletic Competition, but Leoryna barely heard them. She was too eager to check on Khalid’s condition and hurried toward the Research Laboratory.
* * *
Upon arriving at the Research Building, Leoryna habitually checked the exterior of the structure. But for some reason, the lights in Khalid’s Research Office were off.
Something felt wrong. Khalid’s Research Office, where he was obsessed with his work, usually had its lights on until nearly dawn, and it was still early evening. There was no way Khalid had already left for the day.
Leoryna decided to go up to the Research Laboratory just in case. But the office door was locked. She opened it with the key she normally carried and stepped inside, but there was no sign of anyone.
“It seems like no one’s here.”
Pongko, who had looked around the Research Laboratory in Leoryna’s stead, sniffed the air.
“Really? That’s strange….”
Just as Leoryna tilted her head and was about to head toward the Professor’s Office, she heard footsteps approaching. She turned around to see a sturdily built man notice her and raise his hand.
“Miss Leoryna.”
“Ah, Dean. Hello?”
It was Professor Somjeo, who held the position of dean for the Department of Magic Theory—that is, the Department of Magical Formula Design.
He nodded at her greeting and spoke.
“I heard the news.”
“Yes?”
‘Surely it’s not news that Khalid caused an accident?’
Whether or not Somjeo knew that Leoryna was breaking into a cold sweat internally, he smiled broadly and said:
“Your students from our department won the Athletic Competition today, didn’t they? And it was thanks to you? Ha ha, congratulations!”
As he spoke, he patted Leoryna’s back firmly.
“Cough, thank you.”
“By the way… do you happen to know where Professor Huaderica is? I’ve been looking for him since earlier, but I can’t find him.”
At Somjeo’s words, Leoryna averted her gaze and spoke.
“Ah, I’m actually looking for him too. I wonder if there’s something you need him for….”
“I’m not sure if you know, but something serious happened at the Research Building today.”
“Ah… what… could it be…?”
“You must have been too focused on the Athletic Competition to notice. Well, all the salt in the Research Building has disappeared!”
“My goodness!”
Leoryna’s eyes widened and she brought her hand to her mouth.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Exactly what I said. We have no salt! The container where we stored salt for making magical reagents is completely empty, and the salt in the reagents we made with it has disappeared, rendering those reagents unusable. On top of that, the salt in the magical circles we created with salt has also vanished, causing several spells to malfunction severely!”
Leoryna had no desire to know what those serious malfunctions entailed specifically.
“Oh my, that’s quite a serious matter. No salt in the Magic Research Institute—that’s no trivial problem! How on earth did this happen?”
“I haven’t the faintest idea. That’s why I’ve assembled the faculty and researchers to investigate the cause and devise countermeasures… but Professor Huaderica has been nowhere to be found since earlier. He won’t even answer his calls.”
“Ah, I see. But what can I do? I’m in the same situation—I’m looking for the professor myself. As you said, I’ve been so preoccupied with the Athletic Competition that I have no idea where the professor is or what he’s doing.”
“Hmm, I see. Well, there’s nothing for it. If you happen to meet the professor, tell him to come to the Conference Room, will you?”
“Yes, understood.”
“You must have it rough working under Professor Huaderica.”
“Aha ha.”
Somjeo, who had patted Leoryna’s shoulder a couple of times in encouragement, passed by her and headed downstairs. Once Somjeo the Dean disappeared from view, Leoryna felt her legs weaken and nearly collapsed where she stood.
“Th-thank goodness they don’t seem to know it’s all because of Khalid. Phew… but where is that bastard and what is he doing?”
Leoryna made her way to Khalid’s Professor’s Office just in case, but he wasn’t there either. So she sat on a bench set up in front of the Research Building, scratching her head in frustration, when she heard someone calling her name near her ear.
“Leoryna, Leoryna.”
“Kyaaaah!”
Startled by the hot breath and voice touching her ear, Leoryna let out an involuntary scream. Her assailant quickly clamped both hands over her mouth.
“Be quiet!”
It was Zigzagel. Leoryna spoke to the empty air where nothing was visible.
“Professor Zigzagel, why are you using a concealment spell?”
“I don’t want to be spotted. It’d look suspicious if an Engineering Department professor were lurking around the Department of Magic Theory Research Building.”
Zigzagel remained hidden under his concealment spell, speaking only with his voice.
“Usually you come and go so frequently that I don’t think anyone would find it odd.”
“That may be true, but it would look even more suspicious if I were coming and going while Khalid is absent.”
“Speaking of which, where is Professor Khalid?”
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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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