Chapter 51: The Price of Complacency
Although I had taken on the role of a professor thanks to the Second Prince, the truth was, I was far more interested in the food served at ancestral rites than the rites themselves. It was more about my excitement for playing TRPG with the students than actual teaching.
That’s why my first class was so crucial.
“Countermeasures to Illusion Magic” was a mandatory core course, so students had to enroll even if they disliked it. However, “Otherworld Exploration (Actually TRPG)” would be an elective and required registration. I needed to show off an impressive performance in the core subject to attract students to the elective.
Ideally, I wanted to give them a full tour of the otherworld experience, but…
That was simply unrealistic. I had my limitations.
I hadn’t yet reached Metamorphosis. Casting Illusion Magic on a group of students, all fiery with youth and ambition, was far too demanding on my mana reserves. I had heard that some students had already achieved Metamorphosis, and while I could delve into their psyche one-on-one, displaying nuances in a one-versus-many scenario was no walk in the park.
Unless all the students at the academy just laid down in the Simulation Magic Circle without a peep. Basically, that was an outright fantasy.
So if my abilities fell short, I had to rely on flair instead.
That was the very reason I was roaming around the academy, believing I might find something that would help make my first class a success without breaking the bank.
The academy had more to offer than I initially thought.
The lecture facility area was filled with various equipment designed for professors. There were tall towers that could strain your neck just to gaze up at and what appeared to be a gigantic King Dragon Golem. My Simulation Unit No. 2 was also scheduled to be installed in this section.
I turned to Pink-Haired Lesbian, who was linked to my arm and had her arms crossed.
“Isn’t there anything useful around here?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m wondering how to run my first class. Got any ideas?”
Pink-Haired Lesbian pumped her fist into the air, brimming with enthusiasm.
“How about you fight one-on-one with a student? Pick an arrogant one and challenge them by saying if they can even leave a scratch on your collar, you’ll give them the highest grade.”
“And what if I lose?”
“You just write your resignation.”
The risk of losing was undeniably high, but it was certainly a strategy worth considering. After all, if I hunted the boss of the students, wouldn’t the others naturally show me some respect?
I gave her a thumbs-up as a reward for her good idea, and Pink-Haired Lesbian leaned against me even more. Her watery squish against my forearm wasn’t exactly helping my focus. I cautiously spoke up.
“Don’t lean your weight on me. You’re touching me.”
“What do you mean?”
When she looked up at me, confused about what she might have done wrong, I quickly averted my gaze.
Lately, Pink-Haired Lesbian seemed slightly off her rocker. Ever since we entered the academy, she had been showing slightly different behavior. After all, when we were secretly burying a Demonic Sword, didn’t she appeal to a rather not-so-jokingly powerful degree?
While my usual morning greeting might include asking about the color of her panties, this felt like another ballgame altogether!
If I had, per se, saved Pink-Haired Lesbian’s life or bought her a necklace with research funds, I might have let my imagination consider that she had a crush on me. But none of that had happened.
I decided to be blunt.
“Aren’t you a bit too close lately?”
“I know I’m an attractive woman, but aren’t you being a bit too conscious about it?”
“I’m serious! We’re really close.”
“Yes, I see you’re the type to think about marriage after just holding hands. Would having two kids be okay for you?”
“Wouldn’t three be better? Two feels a little short for sessions.”
Things were getting weirder by the second.
Even as I dodged her amorous advances, my head was spinning. It felt more than mere delusion; the strength of her flirtations was undeniably increasing, and it was frightening.
There was also a clear indicator. I was starting to contemplate utilizing Double-Layered Sexual Desire Suppression Magic because the original was on the verge of collapse! I had been dodging her advances, but if this continued, our relationship was bound to get awkward.
Sure, the interaction was short, but no matter how I thought about it, it seemed groundless at best.
Seriously, there might be some magical influence affecting her.
Yet, that felt a little far-fetched. How could mental magic so subtly designed that I wouldn’t notice pierce through the paranoia-thick walls built by Pink-Haired Lesbian? It didn’t add up, especially if it was to increase her sexual desire.
Plus, Pink-Haired Lesbian is, well, a lesbian!
Did I have to lose a friend over such confusion? As I spiraled into a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts, Pink-Haired Lesbian poked my side and whispered softly.
“Mr. Crazy Wizard, lend me your ear for a second.”
“Don’t lick it.”
“Do you think I’m crazy?”
I bowed my head in anxiety. Thankfully, she was serious. In a hushed tone, mixed with nervous breathing, her words reached my ears.
“We’re being followed. By three people.”
“Why would three people be tailing a new professor at the academy?”
I chuckled in disbelief, but Pink-Haired Lesbian coolly stated the facts.
“Put your hand on your chest and think about it. Considering the shady things we’ve done at night, if even one was discovered, it makes sense that we’d be followed.”
“You mean to put my hand on my own chest, not yours, right?”
“Are you insane?”
“Ugh.”
I got poked in the side again. I felt a bit indignant. Who started this first?!
Anyway, stalking, huh?
I had no clue what might have been noticed. Was it burying the Demonic Sword? Hiding the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon in a coastal cave? Or was it the secret creation of a simple dungeon? Which act was the culprit? Did anyone witness it?
Subjectively and objectively, my actions were suspicious enough to warrant concern. I didn’t have a mental block against that. My bewilderment arose from getting caught far too quickly.
I thought I was being sneaky!
“What should we do?”
“What to do? If I thought about it more, I was technically in the clear. The Demonic Sword was fake, the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon was indeed created by an AI and not dangerous, and the dungeon posed no lethal traps.”
If anything was worrisome, it might be the Demonic Sword. The Church of the Goddess was notably sensitive about that specific item due to it being created by capturing and imprisoning human souls.
Although the Demonic Sword is a fake, convincing the Church of the Goddess that it was made by AI or some fancy Illusion Magic would take some time. That’s why I’d asked Yuna to draft a thesis on the subject.
“Why don’t I just write a thesis myself and ask the Tower Master to sign off? Because of the name value! It’s all about reputation! A nobody wizard’s proof versus that of a prestigious Archwizard? Totally different power dynamics.”
In a few days, a “Made in the Magic Tower” dissertation would be delivered hot off the press to the academy.
On the other hand, I had also secured permission from the Second Prince. I had delivered a strategic plan to lure in Black Wizards with the Demonic Sword to him via Pink-Haired Lesbian. The OK signal had already been given through the communication orb, and the official directive would arrive at approximately the same time as the thesis.
Once both the thesis and the directive arrived, I planned to distribute a treasure map indicating where I had buried the Demonic Sword at the academy.
At that point, even if the Saintess of the academy came knocking with the Demonic Sword in hand, I could defend myself! I would have no unnecessary misunderstandings to deal with.
So, let’s just face these stalkers with a light-hearted attitude. Regardless of the accusation, I could just play dumb about whether I was hiding something or not. If I stretched things out a bit for a few days, there should be no problems. As an ordinary student, I could use my authority as a professor to hold my ground.
But among the stalkers, one individual really stood out.
“Hey, Pink-Haired Lesbian, check that out!”
“Ooh!”
We both gasped in unison at what we were witnessing. It was an outfit that practically radiated faith.
It exposed cleavage freely, and when worn, it seemed to cling so tightly to the skin one couldn’t help but wonder how it was even designed. Additionally, there was a side slit that practically ran up to the bellybutton, giving it the appearance of a Priest’s robe!
Once I caught sight of those black lace panties, I couldn’t help but applaud inwardly! But it seemed Pink-Haired Lesbian’s admiration held a slightly different context.
“It’s the Saintess!”
“What?”
“Yes, surprisingly, it is the Saintess. She’s well-known for her liberal styles, and truly, she lives up to her reputation…”
“Is the ‘Saint’ prefix in her title referring to something else, perhaps?”
Was it a universal order in this otherworld for Saintesses to don such dangerous outfits? While I was still distracted, both Pink-Haired Lesbian and I simultaneously noticed the Demonic Sword hanging from the Saintess’s waist, and we fell into stunned silence.
It was, indeed, the very Demonic Sword we had carefully buried under the cover of night.
“…”
“…”
Now we had neither the thesis nor the directive!
Unable to hold back, Pink-Haired Lesbian jabbed me in the ribs.
“Then why not just wait until the directive came in before we buried it?”
“If we waited until the directive arrived, the academy would have already opened! How many students do you honestly think would be wandering around at night?! It was wiser to hide it when the coast was clear!”
“But we got caught!”
“No, are you serious? Who doesn’t know that the academy’s Saintess is notorious for being lazy?! She can’t even be bothered to step outside the building! Who would just happen to dig up a buried Demonic Sword and present it to the Saintess?!”
Well, there’s always a chance, isn’t there? Maybe the Saintess’s path simply crossed with ours by chance, and she had some other business to tend to. As we attempted to slyly round a corner, the Saintess headed straight toward us, confirming she indeed had some business with us.
“Let’s get out of here!”
“Let’s do it!”
We needed to vanish. We could not afford to be dragged down to the Church of the Goddess’s basement. There were no traces left of us manufacturing and concealing the Demonic Sword. It wasn’t like there were any security cameras in medieval times!
Even if there were, as long as our thesis and directive arrived, we could defend ourselves. We just had to hold out for a few days. It was all about buying time.
I immediately hopped onto Pink-Haired Lesbian’s back piggyback style. This was my way of compensating for my lack of mobility, my own Voltron mode! As soon as I made the unusual move, the three stalkers seemed to notice the shift in atmosphere and reacted swiftly.
Pink-Haired Lesbian bolted into a sprint. The three stalkers were also running. What had initially felt like independent actions now seemed to be a coordinated effort to close in on us. Were they in cahoots with the Saintess?!
I had to escape! I cast Illusion Magic.
“Illusion Swamp!” swoosh
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