The Genius Professor Wants An Easy Life - Chapter 90

The Demon King.

The ruler of the demon race and the only Level 10 entity, the supreme being of this world.

‘But calling me an Ascendant? What nonsense is that?’

I soon realized the reason.

‘The Demon King can’t see me clearly from there. That’s why there’s a misunderstanding.’

In ancient times, the Eight Heroes defeated the ranks of other realms and spread a protective barrier to safeguard this world.

Thanks to that, from the side of the other realm where the Demon King now resides, it’s impossible to peek into or interfere with our world.

It was like a pane of glass that is transparent from only one side.

‘But why is she in such a grave state? If it’s this point in time, it does match up with her fighting Great Ones from another realm and getting injured.’

The Demon King goes into seclusion due to her injuries, leading to future turmoil in the Demon Realm.

‘This is not just an injury.’

Her entire body was battered.

Not only physical injuries, but the Aura, a unique symbol of an Ascendant, was dissipating.

It meant her soul had suffered irreversible damage.

‘Was the situation always this severe?’

The Demon King no longer paid attention to me and turned her gaze away.

Something massive was approaching her.

‘It’s a Great One from another realm!’

It resembled the Lords of Fantasy that had descended during the entrance examination.

However, the difference was that it appeared far more formidable than the rather incomplete version from before.

And it wasn’t alone.

Swoosh.

Two more emerged.

Hahaha! How amusing. To be cornered to this extent. Delightful indeed.

The Demon King laughed maniacally as she exerted her power.

Kwaaaaaang!

A shockwave that seemed to shake the stars themselves reverberated through the space of the other realm.

A true battle among the stars.

The problem was, despite her hearty proclamation, the Demon King’s condition was far from good.

‘She can’t win.’

Perhaps sensing her own defeat, she exclaimed:

Kekeke, such an end is not too bad, is it? Come then. I shall kill more than half of you.

‘What do you mean? You can’t die here!’

Though one might assume otherwise, the Demon King was not a villain.

Not exactly an ally, but the Demon King acts as a ‘barrier’ buying time for the protagonists to grow.

‘I have to save the Demon King. But how? There seems to be no way.’

I could only peek through the rift; the Demon King was in another realm.

Crossing over was impossible, and even if I could, what help could someone as insignificant as me be?

Yet,

‘No, there is one method I could try.’

I swallowed hard.

There was a problem.

‘Using this method will definitely draw the Demon King’s aggro, won’t it?’

This was incomparable to drawing the aggro of the protagonists or Rudolph gramps.

In the worst-case scenario, I could get caught up in the turmoil of the Demonic Realm, the ‘Crown Prince’s Contest.’

‘And my current position as a professor complicates things. The Crown Prince’s Contest starts at the “Demon Academy.”‘

Prestigious academies weren’t exclusive to the Empire.

They also existed in other major powers across the continent, like the Demon Realm, the Ran Republic, and the Seven Kingdoms.

Coincidentally, the protagonists end up visiting the prestigious ‘Demon Academy’ in the Demonic Realm on a field trip, where the trouble starts.

Naturally, I had no intention of going anywhere near the Demon Realm, but I had to avoid anything that could possibly relate me to it.

‘…No, it’ll be fine. Earlier, it mistook me for an Ascendant. Since it can’t see me, it won’t know who I am.’

Trying to soothe my worries, I sent a message spell towards the Demon King.

   

‘I have to explain well enough to make it follow my advice.’

As I was about to carefully speak up, the Black Flame Dragon quickly interjected.

   

‘Hey, this cursed charisma!’

The Demon King looked incredulously.

The Demon King wasn’t a mage class.

If anything, she was a ‘Dual Knight’ class.

But who in this world could dare speak to the Demon King in such a manner?

Yet, the Black Flame Dragon did not stop its bold declarations there.

   

My heart nearly leaped out of my chest, but surprisingly, the Demon King’s response wasn’t negative.

   

She seemed to react more amicably, mistaking me for an Ascendant.

However, that moment was brief.

The Demon King’s black eyes darkened ominously.

   

I shuddered.

It was more frightening than any threat I’d ever heard, but I responded without showing fear.

   

The corners of the Demon King’s mouth twitched.

Whoosh!

The symbol of an Ascendant rose to the sky, its aura fluttering like wings around the Demon King, and a fierce energy swirled around her.

She was forcing her way into this world.

The twisting of time and space around the Demon King’s power materialized into a miraculous sight.

But the Great Ones from the other realm were not simply watching.

Ghhooooo

The energy emitted by the Great Ones suppressed the Demon King’s power.

The world-shaking force of the Demon King began to fade under the backlash.

That was the moment.

My eyes flashed.

The scene before me transformed.

The powers of the Great Ones from the other realm were being converted into spells.

‘After all, those forces are essentially, literally magic.’

The eyes of the I, the Master of Magic, seeing the essence or their magic, it couldn’t be avoided.

‘I need to find the most vulnerable point.’

I quickly found it.

I knew instinctively.

But I shook my head.

‘The Demon King must know this much. If she knows yet it’s still impossible to break through, it must be truly insurmountable.’

This time, I focused on the Demon King’s spell.

It was a spell involving time and space, composed of no less than nine stars.

It was more magnificent than any spell I had ever seen.

There was a sense of perfection and beauty to it, but…

‘Now is not the time to think about that.’

A ludicrous thought.

This was a magic cast by the Demon King herself.

Honestly, I couldn’t comprehend even a tenth of that spell.

It was a spell that far exceeded the scope of my knowledge.

But even if I couldn’t ‘intellectually’ understand it, ‘instinctively’ I knew.

There was another answer.

   

…Truthfully, I didn’t know.

However,

‘I can roughly guess what phenomenon will occur.’

   

The audacity of the Black Flame Dragon treating the Demon King as a student.

The Demon King followed my advice incredulously, and then, an anomaly occurred.

Crraackkk.

The Demon King’s stars began to collapse!

Following my advice had seemingly plunged her into a critical crisis.

However, the Demon King was not angry.

Instead, she looked astonished.

She had caught on to the ‘phenomenon’ I was aiming for.

Crackkkle.

The forces of the Great Ones began to show cracks.

As the Demon King’s stars collapsed, some of their energy went berserk, causing a momentary intensification of the space-time distortion.

Ironically, that distortion precisely disrupted the balance of the Great Ones’ powers that had been in a deadlock.

It seemed like a coincidence stacked upon another.

But it was a clearly intended miracle.

Thanks to that, a momentary opportunity arose.

‘Now’s the time!’

The Demon King didn’t miss that fleeting moment.

Whoosh!

A dark hole appeared in front of the Demon King.

She had successfully created a portal connected to this world!

   

‘…No, I’m neither an Ascendant nor a monster.’

Anyway, it was time to say goodbye.

‘Let’s never see each other again.’

But at the last moment, I was terrified.

   

‘!!’

The Demon King’s eyes were staring directly at where I was.

I hurriedly closed the rift.

‘She couldn’t have recognized me, right? It’ll be fine. How could the Demon King find me? I’m just a professor at an academy, after all.’

I sighed deeply.

That tumultuous special training had ended, and Catherine and I stepped onto the portal heading to the Free City.

‘Ugh, I’m exhausted! I need a break for a while!’

But it was after we passed through the portal.

I blinked.

Something about the cityscape was off.

Catherine seemed to sense something was amiss too, tilting her head in confusion.

“Why is it so quiet here? It’s still early evening.”

The Free City was usually bustling with people everywhere, lively and noisy.

Especially at night, unlike other cities where the streets emptied, it became even noisier, but now it was silent.

Shops that should be in the midst of business had closed, and windows were tightly shut.

Above all, the air was filled with an ominous feeling.

I swallowed hard.

‘Could it be already?’

It was something that occurred in the scenario.

The ‘Erased Night’ episode had begun.

 

*    *    *

 

Just then, a loud noise erupted.

“Van, where have you disappeared to all this time?! Were you so scared of ghosts that you ran away?”

“How disappointing. I was beginning to recognize your worth, but you failed to fulfill your duties as a professor at such a crucial time.”

It was the fellow temporary professors, Kansir and Balas.

Catherine tilted her head in confusion.

“Ghosts? What are you talking about?”

“It seems like a Phantom Break has occurred in the city. Are you familiar with Monster Breaks?”

“Of course. Isn’t it when monsters suddenly appear in large numbers?”

Monsters aren’t natural animal species.

They are born from distortions in the world’s energy.

Occasionally, these distortions intensify suddenly, leading to the mass emergence of monsters, which is referred to as a Break.

‘A Phantom Break involves a mass appearance of ghosts. It usually happens in cities.’

This is because the places where ghosts appear are densely populated urban areas.

Especially in the Free City, which is bustling but not particularly safe, there have been many unjust and violent deaths, making it a prime environment for a Phantom Break to occur.

However, neither of them seemed particularly tense.

“While you’ve been loafing around, do you have any idea how much I, Kansir, have been achieving?”

“The Break is about to enter Phase 2, Van, you won’t be much help anyway. Leave it to us.”

‘Given it’s the Free City, dealing with a Phantom Break shouldn’t be too difficult.’

Thanks to the Ruby Academy situated in the city.

‘The academy is a force as powerful as an army.’

Typically, junior faculty are at Lv. 5, and senior faculty often reach Lv. 6.

And it’s not just the Magic Department.

There’s also the Swordsmanship Department, Support Department, and the others.

Not only the professors but also the graduate students ranging from Lv. 3 to Lv. 4, combined, constituted a formidable force.

Therefore, everyone at the academy treated this Phantom Break as if it were merely a special ‘event.’

“Will it go up to Phase 2, I wonder? Which professor will exorcise the most ghosts?”

“So far, Professor Kansir is in the lead. Truly strong in practical situations.”

“Professor Balas isn’t to be underestimated either.”

“And who’s in the last place?”

“Tra-… No, Professor Van. He was said to be on a trip in the middle of it?”

“Well, trip or not, he wouldn’t have made much of a difference. Given his mana insensitivity, he’s strong in theory but weak in such large-scale practical situations.”

Everyone was keen to see which professor would make the most significant contribution.

This was especially true for the temporary professors, whose appointments hadn’t yet been finalized.

‘There are also points for social contributions in the professor evaluations. Making a significant contribution during this Phantom Break would earn a substantial bonus.’

Considering the points, I should have immediately set out to hunt ghosts, but,

‘This isn’t something to be taken lightly.’

I steeled my gaze.

‘While the professors are away from the academy due to the Phantom Break, a terrible incident will occur at the academy.’

That was the crux of the Erased Night episode.

Moreover, there was an even more pressing issue.

‘I need to consider the possibility that this episode could unfold even more horrifically than the original story.’

As it always does.