Accepted (4): Papers, Professors, and Simmering Rivalries
After the acceptance party gave me a moment to breathe, I balanced rigorous training with academic work. Mornings were spent under Rustilla’s aerobic coaching, while evenings disappeared into research on the Graviton Bomb.
Humanity’s scientific prowess in this era was nothing short of astonishing. A world where warp drives were commonplace, swords could condense plasma along their edges, and planetary-scale mining had been commercialized for decades.
Naturally, it had produced countless geniuses and prodigies. The theoretical frameworks they left behind dwarfed everything I knew.
Professor Feynman had been right.
In that case, the only path was to begin again from the fundamentals, step by step.
Fortunately, I possessed the ability Cartesia had granted me, along with a healthy dose of self-confidence. I still kept my guard up since her true intentions remained unclear, but for now there was no reason to refuse her help.
With that mindset, I devoured every relevant paper I could find.
“What are you doing? Ugh, these are actual theses.”
Seti, who had stolen a glance at my tablet, wrinkled her nose and groaned.
“Why are you reading stuff you can’t even understand?”
“Good question.”
I offered a bitter smile.
“What’s the point? Is it actually fun for you?”
“It is.”
“I don’t get you at all.”
Seti shrugged and clicked her tongue. At least she stopped short of calling me an idiot, which was an improvement.
Right after I first possessed this body, things had been far worse. Back then, Seti’s opinion of me had been pure garbage—nothing more, nothing less.
That earlier perception had since shifted to seeing me as a study-obsessed lunatic. Honestly, I preferred it this way.
Seti skimmed a few of the papers in my hands—titles, abstracts, nothing more—then frowned again.
“You’re going into the physics department?”
“What makes you think that?”
“Stop dodging with elementary-school answers and speak clearly. Are you entering the physics track or not?”
“Of course.”
The God of Wisdom and Curiosity is greatly pleased by your unwavering conviction.
100 Fron sponsorship received.
“You’re asking the obvious.”
“It’s not obvious at all!”
“Then what about you?”
“Are you seriously asking? First I have to recover the two quadrillion you lost gambling.”
My chest tightened at Seti’s words. She was saying she would clean up the mess the original Idel had left behind.
Of course, it wasn’t pure charity.
“With an achievement like that, Father and Mother will finally acknowledge me.”
In the original story, Seti harbored a grand ambition.
“The position of next family head will be mine.”
Inheriting the family business and becoming its leader. In an era where gender held no legal weight in surnames and changing one’s family name was relatively simple, it wasn’t impossible.
But there was a problem.
“…The next head has already been decided as one of my older brothers, hasn’t it?”
Two brothers stood above Idel, both born to the first wife—the legitimate children of the main line.
For Seti, born from a contractual marriage, inheriting the family name would be extremely difficult given the household’s atmosphere.
Yet Seti showed not the slightest sign of discouragement.
“So what? I’ll just take it by force.”
She grinned and continued.
“Is there some law that says someone born from a contractual marriage can’t inherit the family name? If there is, show me.”
“There isn’t.”
“Then that’s enough.”
Stellarium’s acceptance had filled Seti with momentum. At the same time, I was carefully reading between the lines of why my little sister was saying all this to me.
“Still, I find you even stranger. Top scorer, yet you want to major in physics? There are plenty of better choices, aren’t there?”
She was testing me.
And staying on guard.
Worried that the top entrant to Stellarium might one day threaten not only her own position but even that of our eldest brother.
“It’s fine. I plan to become a professor.”
“…Suit yourself.”
Seti glanced at me sidelong. Arms folded, standing a little apart, she regarded me with haughty eyes.
“Weird. You weren’t like this before.”
Her mutter was perfectly audible.
After that I spent nearly two hours reading papers. Those I couldn’t understand went on the right, those I grasped somewhat on the left, and those that truly interested me on my lap.
Seti read a book beside me the whole time. Occasionally she tied her hair, visited the bathroom, or drank water—little distractions. I had no idea why she remained in my room long after her original business was finished.
“Hey.”
Seti eventually spoke up.
“Is reading papers really that enjoyable?”
It seemed she genuinely couldn’t comprehend why I hadn’t moved once while absorbed in them. I nodded.
“Learning is always thrilling.”
“Wow, fuck.”
Seti recoiled with an exaggerated gasp. Ignoring her, I organized the materials and stood.
“Where are you going?”
“I have somewhere to be. It’s about time.”
“Why are you heading out?”
She tilted her head.
When someone asks a question, common courtesy demands an answer, doesn’t it?
I chuckled.
“Networking.”
I set foot on Planet Planeta. The second visit made the environment feel somewhat familiar.
I headed straight for Professor Feynman.
I had already emailed ahead about wanting a home visit, yet the professor still looked visibly surprised when I arrived.
“As expected. I knew you would pass, student.”
Professor Feynman continued to treat me with polite respect. The rumor that he valued his students was no exaggeration.
“Did you pull some strings for me, Professor?”
“Haha, I did nothing at all.”
The moment I stepped inside, he handed me a tablet.
“What’s this?”
“Portions of your written examination answers. I had to beg quite persistently to obtain them.”
“Is it even allowed to take these out?”
“Now that the acceptance list has been announced, there’s no issue.”
Professor Feynman lowered his voice.
“The techniques you displayed on several physics problems were extraordinary. On essay question three alone, you solved it using twelve distinct methods…”
Correct. I had attacked a single problem from multiple angles. That was why I had run out of time.
“One of the core evaluation criteria for essays is problem-solving ability. Demonstrating multiple solutions to a single question may not grant extra points, but it leaves a very favorable impression on the examiners.”
“Did you employ the same strategy during your own entrance exam, Professor?”
“Hahaha.”
As I thought.
“Originally another interviewer was scheduled to conduct your interview… but anyway.”
His tone grew serious.
“Do you wish to attend graduate school?”
“Absolutely.”
“Physics department?”
“Of course.”
“Well, then.”
Feynman nodded.
“I, too, considered graduate school from my academy days. Learning something in depth is a thrilling prospect. Since your resolve is firm, I won’t suggest any other paths.”
“Then, will you take me as your disciple in the future?”
“Haha! Your flirting technique is first-rate.”
Feynman chuckled, then added one more remark.
“With talent like yours, you could seduce far more than an old professor like me. You’d have women lining up.”
“Professor?”
I had no such intentions. Feynman laughed heartily and patted my shoulder.
“It was merely advice from an old man—since you’re young, you should enjoy romance as well. From what I see, you’re quite handsome. Almost as good-looking as I was in my prime.”
“…Yes.”
I let the comment pass through one ear and out the other.
In truth, today’s visit to Professor Feynman had another purpose besides networking.
This time I offered him my own tablet.
“Speaking of which, I read the article you recently published on preons, and this particular section…”
With Stellarium’s opening ceremony only days away, the sound of frantic nail-biting echoed inside a luxurious suite lined with white-gold wallpaper.
Crunch.
Zernya gnawed on her thumbnail, eyes darting restlessly.
Just who?
Who in the world had beaten her and taken first place?
Why hadn’t she been the top scorer?
Countless questions swirled through her mind, yet no one could answer them.
This was the finest hotel, a place where lesser people couldn’t afford even a single night’s stay. Even so, her heart refused to settle.
“Hey…”
“Yes, miss.”
“Still no information?”
“My apologies. The incident during the practical examination caused campus security to tighten dramatically…”
“Useless.”
She still had no idea who had stolen her rightful first-place spot.
No, it simply made no sense. There was no one capable of taking first from her. That should have been obvious. She was an Adelbein—and the legitimate daughter, no less!
“Kristin Herset, Welton Yusford, that Matus boy… who else was even in the top-contender pool?”
“Mezlen Whiritia, Seti von Rheinland, and James Hendleton also remain possibilities.”
“Nothing but scraps. Although Rheinland… Rheinland?”
Zernya clapped her hands together.
“Idel von Rheinland.”
The boy who had performed every kind of eccentricity during the written test.
The dark horse who had tied with her for first in Ergos Academy’s private mock examination.
That boy had possessed considerable potential.
After the interview his expression and evasive answers afterward had led her to assume he had failed.
‘If that Idel—or whatever his name is—really took first place…’
It would mean she had lost not to any of the established geniuses, but to a cosmic rascal who had appeared like a comet.
That would be more than humiliation. It would be a shame worth dying over.
Zernya rubbed her broad forehead and exhaled slowly.
In the end, the top passer’s identity could only be confirmed on the entrance ceremony stage. After all, the top student would deliver the freshman oath as representative.
‘I’ll at least get a good look at that face.’
At this point Zernya abandoned the search and dismissed her informants. She lay down herself, hugging a large white teddy bear.
‘Whoever you are, I will crush you. I will crush you and reclaim first place.’
Only then could the authority of House Adelbein be restored.
With that thought, Zernya drifted into an uneasy sleep.
And so the day of the entrance ceremony drew near.