The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 118
“H-Ha? Company leader, have you gone mad?”
“You’re the mad one! Do you think the company is your playground?! Here’s a list of the illegal activities this man has orchestrated!”
Ultimately, unable to withstand my curse, the company head came to me waving the white flag.
It was agreed that those who suffered losses due to the manipulated outcomes in the casino would be compensated, and in return, I arranged a lifeline for him.
Since his dealings with the Rapalt Ducal Family would cease, I facilitated him a new job.
‘I assigned him the role of supplying raw materials needed for the mass production of automobiles for Count Armand.’
Count Armand was also looking for a company, so it was a mutually beneficial arrangement.
“Let go of me!! Do you know who I am?”
“Yes, yes, we know very well. A suspect in attempted murder and magical fraud. Don’t worry, we’ll put you in a special room with plenty of cuties, hehe.”
The Guards of the Free City’s guard had plenty of experience arresting high-status individuals, so they weren’t intimidated by anyone’s status.
Click!
The handcuffs were secured, and Senin then pointed angrily at me.
“You’ll regret this! You think I’ll be punished for this?! Do you know how many judges my father has bribed?”
“Don’t worry. You won’t be standing before the Empire’s judiciary bench.”
“What?”
“You’ll be standing before the Mage Tower’s tribunal.”
The Mage Tower had jurisdiction over the investigation and trial of magical crimes under international convention.
This was because most magical criminals were mages. Very rarely, as in Senin’s case, the criminal wasn’t a mage, but it was still a crime involving another mage.
Therefore, disputes often arose between the country where the crime occurred and the Mage Tower over who would punish the criminal, leading to this customary practice.
The party that made the most significant contribution to capturing the culprit gets the primary right to trial.
“I am a Magical Crime Advisory Consultant of the Mage Tower. Therefore, I have the right to bring you before the Mage Tower’s tribunal.”
“!!”
Senin’s complexion turned pale upon seeing the investigator’s badge that Siena had left with me.
Unlike the national judiciary system, where nobles often receive lenient punishments due to their wealth and influence, the Mage Tower’s trials were famously strict.
The wealth of the Rapalt Ducal Family held no sway over the Mage Tower.
“But, that…!! No, I’ll object! I have the right to be tried in the Empire’s courts!”
“Objections are for the second trial.”
It’s worth noting that, due to complaints from powerful individuals in various countries who received heavy sentences from the Mage Tower, there’s a loophole that allows for a second trial in one’s home country.
I had no intention of stopping that.
After all, it would be problematic if Senin, one of the protagonists, was locked up for too long.
Instead.
“Until the second trial, you’ll still have to pay a proper price. Don’t worry. Your sister Emily has asked me for a favor, so I’ll make sure you truly reflect on your actions.”
“!!”
“You’ll be placed in a special room with lots of ‘cuties’… no, chimera cuties from the Mage Tower. They tend to be larger than the standard size, so make sure to get along and reflect on your wrongdoings.”
I know.
What kind of person Senin is and what kind of intervention he needs to change.
Despite everything, I quite liked Senin among the 16 protagonists.
It’s hard to imagine now, given his current misbehavior, but the Senin who later becomes the ‘Merchant of Salvation’ was quite impressive in his own right.
‘What Senin needs now is tough love. Anyway, no preaching will work on him at the moment.’
The trials and tribulations faced by the sub-main characters are ultimately a process of tempering.
Breaking and crushing their insufficient selves to dust, and then finally being reborn anew.
Senin needs to be broken.
Thoroughly.
And not just once, but multiple times.
This incident is just the beginning.
‘I have a feeling I’ll end up being the villain every time.’
It’s not a misconception.
“This… this… Van Ecclesia. I will not leave you be.”
As Senin was being dragged away, he glared at me with murderous intent.
I had made an enemy.
Senin’s personality was the epitome of a villain who forgets favors but never forgets a grudge.
I had a feeling things were going to get tiresome, but unlike my usual self, I didn’t grimace. Instead, I nodded calmly.
“By all means.”
I looked Senin squarely in the eyes.
“One day, you’ll thank me. As the mentor who changed your life.”
It wasn’t just a boastful claim of the Black Flame Dragon.
This thought had suddenly occurred to me because of something Senin would say in the future:
Are you not regretful about losing your entire fortune? Not at all.
Years later, when Senin became the Merchant of Salvation, he would say:
Everyone in this world will owe me a debt.
I found myself wanting to see that good-for-nothing Senin turn into the Merchant of Salvation, bragging about his deeds.
* * *
It wasn’t over!
There was still some cleanup to be done.
Upon returning to my office at the academy, I found a letter waiting for me.
A symposium invitation.
Why now? It wasn’t just any conference invitation.
For those who indulge in the world’s darkness.
It was an invitation from the Dark Prestige Family!
‘I expected them to bother me, but this was unexpected.’
It wasn’t just any symposium.
It was a symposium for dark mages.
A gathering to discuss dark magic.
True to their nature as a family that purely indulges in the study of dark magic, the Dark Prestige Family held such events related to dark magic annually.
Notably, only those recognized by the Dark Prestige Family receive invitations to such events.
The problem was.
‘Why is it a special VIP invitation? They want me to be a speaker?’
I made a sour face.
The invitation was extremely polite, asking me to impart my knowledge at the gathering.
‘Are they insane? I’m definitely not going.’
I pulled out another letter.
It was an official document from the academy’s administrative office.
Another symposium invitation.
‘What’s this? The royal symposium? This is usually for famous professors. Why are they suddenly asking me to attend?’
I suddenly remembered something I had forgotten and went, “Ah.”
‘I had bet on the participation rights for a fancy seminar or symposium before.’
When I first took a lecture, I had a teaching duel with Baron Aiden, an associate professor.
At that time, at Baron Aiden’s request, it was agreed that the winner would attend the royal symposium.
‘…Why did he propose such a condition?’
I was resentful, but by now, he had already vanished, his soul consumed by a demon.
‘It’s bothersome, but unavoidable. I’ll just go, quietly fill a seat, and return.’
The date was approaching.
Not immediately, but less than a month away.
‘Soon, the new department head will be arriving. Should I deal with him before I go?’
I thought about the new department head.
Stefan Grossman.
In reality, a con artist.
A top-named villain.
His arrival would undoubtedly cause another uproar.
‘Maybe I should enjoy myself a bit before that? I did make some money.’
Unexpected fortune.
‘Heh, I made a good amount at the end.’
Clink!
I spread the coins out on the desk.
…Of course, they were copper, not gold coins, but together, they amounted to quite a bit.
‘Now that I think about it, I’ve always been struggling, never really spending anything on myself, whether as Van or back on Earth. Since this money came for free, I’ll spend it all on entertainment!’
But then, I was faced with a dilemma.
‘How should I spend this money?’
Having no experience in extravagantly spending money, I was at a loss on how to do so when the time came.
“Mari, do you have any good ideas?”
Meat! Meat!
“Right, that’s a good idea. Let’s eat meat, something expensive that suits my dignity. After the meat, we’ll have dessert, the most expensive ones in the Free City.”
Wah! Meat…! The best…!
“It would be nice to also treat Catherine and Libel. Not because I pity those poor kids and want to buy them something delicious, but because the goal is to wastefully splurge. It would be good to include Yulia and Wilhelm too. Again, not because I want to take care of my students, but because extravagant waste is the objective.”
Just when I was indulging in the fun dilemma, a sound that could ruin my good mood rang out.
It was the sound of a communicator.
‘Ron the big brother?’
It was a call from Ron, the eldest.
‘Why?’
A foreboding feeling crept up on me.
I had this feeling that I shouldn’t answer it.
As if the moment I did, I’d get entangled in something bothersome.
I ignored it, pretending not to notice, but the communicator kept ringing persistently, and eventually, I had no choice but to answer.
Haha, Van, how have you been?
“…Yes, brother. What’s the matter?”
I just wanted to hear your voice after such a long time.
After a long exchange of pleasantries.
Van, have you been busy lately?
“…I’ve been somewhat busy.”
Here it comes!
I braced myself for tension.
Haha, that’s my brother. Seems like you’re doing well. I have a gift for you, would you like to hear about it?
“…What kind of gift?”
Swallowing, my sense of foreboding intensified.
The gift didn’t feel like it would actually be a gift.
But then.
Would you like to come and give a special lecture at the Amethyst Academy, where I teach?
Unexpectedly, it was an offer for a guest lecture at another academy.
* * *
“…I’ll think about it.”
Right, it’s a good opportunity for you. You’ll need outside lecture experience when you’re formally appointed as a professor, won’t you?
The call ended, and I frowned.
‘Good opportunity, my foot.’
It wasn’t a bad offer, though.
Unlike Ruby, which was treated as a has-been, Amethyst was recognized by everyone as a ‘proper’ one of the four prestigious academies.
To put the image of the four prestigious academies into words:
Ruby is the rascal.
Sapphire is the fighter.
Peridot is the honor.
Amethyst is the elite.
The gap between Ruby and the other academies was significant enough to be described in such terms.
‘Especially, the level of lectures at Amethyst is known to be the highest. Many excellent students go there, too.’
Ron seemed to be giving me a favor as a brother, considering that an opportunity for such a guest lecture would normally not come my way.
But,
‘Why should I bother going? I plan to rest.’
Above all, I didn’t want to get entangled in the affairs of another academy for no reason.
I was already tired enough with everything happening at Ruby.
‘Especially since Joanna and Johan are at Amethyst.’
Both were attracting trouble in their own ways, and I didn’t want to run into them unnecessarily.
‘Not to mention, a “branch episode” is supposed to happen at Amethyst soon. If I go, I’ll definitely get dragged into it.’
Just like various episodes were happening at Ruby, the other four prestigious academies were experiencing their own events.
It was up to the four protagonists placed in each academy to resolve these issues.
‘The protagonists at Amethyst Academy will have to handle it on their own.’
But then.
‘…Can they handle it?’
I fell silent for a moment.
‘If it’s a branch episode, like the erased night episode that recently happened at Ruby, it’s a critical episode that requires the four protagonists, but I’ve sent Senin to jail.’
Senin was also associated with Amethyst Academy.
He was out of commission for the time being.
‘And that’s not all. Amethyst Academy is missing its swordsmanship department protagonist.’
Catherine followed me, leaving Ruby with two protagonists in the swordsmanship department.
This meant one other academy was missing a knight protagonist.
After checking, it turned out Amethyst Academy did not have its knight protagonist.
‘So, does that mean only Joanna and Johan are left at Amethyst?’
A bead of cold sweat trickled down.
‘…They can handle it, right? They must be able to. Yeah.’
I forced myself to feel reassured and opened the Gossip Daily newspaper.
I don’t usually read it, but a helpful, nameless journalist who keeps giving me useful tidbits had left it for me.
But I paused at the magic world gossip section.
This was written:
Lady Joanna of the Magic Prestige Family! Suspended for exam cheating!
“……”
I wanted to cry.
t/n – ‘cuties’ means cockroaches or other bugs…
