Chapter 17: The Proposal(1)
Chapter 17: The Proposal(1)
If someone were to ask what has interested me most since I was reincarnated here, there would be many answers, but one I could certainly single out is 'history.'
Think about it. Instead of the history I took for granted all my life, this world is filled with an entirely new past.
World War I and World War II, which changed the fate of Earth, are gone. There is no Admiral Yi Sun-sin or King Sejong the Great, figures who reshaped the destiny of Korea.
Actually, rather than saying they don't exist, it's more accurate to say this is a different planet altogether, but it's fascinating nonetheless. Even in my past life, I was the type to dig through books and the internet to satisfy my historical curiosity.
So, when I was at home and couldn't stomach reading another novel, I would read history books over and over again. Unlike fiction, history has clear causes and effects, and despite being subjective, it contains enough diverse content to keep things interesting.
The library has a ton of books, too. I want to read them as soon as possible.
It was Tuesday—the day after Monday, in terms of my previous life.
I scribbled in my notebook while waiting for the history lecture to begin. Thanks to yesterday's blunder, I had made sure to bring my lecture notes today.
Inside those notes was my own analysis of this world's history. It wasn't just a simple record of a specific country.
If I were to compare it to my past life, it was an analytical piece on what incidents occurred, what battles broke out, and which figures distinguished themselves during the equivalent of 'World War II.'
In this world, much like Earth's World War II, there was a 'Race War' triggered by intensifying conflicts between different species. It was a massive event that took place exactly 300 years ago, involving Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Beastkin, and Demons alike.
It's a pain to analyze since it wasn't just humans fighting each other, but different races.
Despite having abilities superior to other races, the Elves often shot themselves in the foot due to their unique sense of being the 'chosen people,' their stubbornness, and their arrogance. The Dwarves participated directly in the war but were essentially on the side of the humans.
The reason the Dwarves sided with the humans was simple: humans were overwhelmingly superior in number, they were the biggest buyers of Dwarven weapons, and the Dwarves didn't get along with the Elves.
The Beastkin, who were treated as slaves by humans at the time, sided with the Elves. The Demons were split into two factions—'Wrath' and 'Restraint'—and spent their time firing magic at each other.
If there was a commonality, it was that both races had suffered greatly at the hands of humans. Since then, the relationship between humans and Beastkin has soured to the extreme, and even after the generational shift among the Elves, relations remain hostile.
However, the most complex of them all were, naturally, the humans. On the surface, they appeared to be in league with one another, but underneath, they were rife with political maneuvering and schemes, often cutting their own throats to get ahead.
Furthermore, 'Heroes'—who always appear in times of chaos—emerged to leave their mark on history.
Every race suffered heavy losses, but the ones who benefited the most were definitely the Dwarves. They made a lot of money and had the fewest casualties.
What would have happened if another race had provoked the Dwarves? The Race War likely wouldn't have ended in a scarred draw but would have tilted heavily in one direction.
But what on earth happened to the Elves that caused them to collapse on their own? Did they just underestimate everyone too much?
There were several large-scale battles in the Race War, and books exist detailing the processes leading up to those battles. As I read them, I couldn't help but harbor several questions.
Unfortunately, most of the history books I'd read were written from a human perspective, so they were full of speculation. I couldn't find the exact reason why the Elves had sabotaged themselves. However, seeing as a generational turnover occurred immediately after the war ended, it was clearly related to that.
The sudden arrest of Iker, who was the Elves' primary military power, must have been for that reason. Old farts are a problem no matter where you go.
After ten long years, the war finally came to an end. Having fought for a decade, every race except the Dwarves suffered astronomical damage. On the human side, several kingdoms went bankrupt due to financial ruin or were absorbed by the Minerva Empire.
The war between races had ended, but the war between humans had not.
Looking at it this way, places where humans live are all pretty much the same.
Just as the Cold War broke out between the US and the Soviet Union after World War II in my past life, this world followed a similar path. The only difference was that instead of science or engineering, magic had developed at a rapid pace.
The problem was that the 'developed' state was only at this current level. I could roughly gauge how high-level magic used to be in the past. Back then, it was likely something only the truly 'chosen' among humans could use.
"Hmm..."
"... ..."
"...Huh?"
While my concentration was slightly broken by my musings, I belatedly realized someone was staring intently at me from the front. I pulled my eyes away from my notebook and slowly lifted my head.
My gaze passed a slender waist and a prominent chest before finally reaching a face. I found myself locking eyes with a pair of curious green eyes behind round glasses. I blinked, recognizing the person standing before me.
"...Professor?"
It was the professor in charge of History, Professor Elena Heavensinger.
Professor Elena was a beauty who exuded an intellectual aura with her light-green hair tied back and her glasses, but her most striking feature was her long, pointed ears.
As you might have guessed, Professor Elena was an 'Elf'—a race known as the incarnation of beauty and said to be chosen by the gods among all species.
One might ask why an Elf was at Halo Academy, but it wasn't actually that strange. As I mentioned, a generational shift occurred among the Elves after the Race War, and that shift included active exchange with other races.
That was why she was able to hold a professorship at Halo Academy. Furthermore, there were Elf freshmen and professors in Martial Studies as well. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be any Elf freshmen in the Literature Department.
"Did you write all of this yourself?"
While I was blinking and trying to grasp the situation, Professor Elena pointed at my notebook and asked. I followed her finger with my eyes.
Perhaps because of my intense focus, I hadn't even noticed someone watching me right in front of my face. Still, it wasn't a problem since these weren't notes about the Xenon Biography.
I nodded in response to her question. Professor Elena rested her chin in her hand, looking back and forth between my notebook and me, before speaking quietly.
"May I take a look for a moment?"
"Yes. Sure..."
As I handed her the notebook, I checked the time; there were about ten minutes left until class started. She had arrived about twenty minutes early last week as well, so it wasn't particularly strange. I was just a bit flustered that she was showing interest in my notes.
Even as I waited with a slightly nervous heart, Professor Elena scrutinized my notebook. Occasionally, her eyes would widen, or she would stroke her chin as if deep in thought.
After reading through to the last page, Professor Elena offered a brief critique.
"The analysis is quite well-done. You've explained the situation of each race within the grand framework of the Race War, and the causes and effects are clear. It's a bit a pity that it focuses mostly on human history, but that's something you can supplement over time. With a little polishing, this wouldn't be out of place if submitted as a thesis."
As she gave her critique, Professor Elena seemed to realize something and corrected herself with an "Ah."
"No, wait. This wasn't written in a thesis format to begin with, was it? Even so, this is impressive. You're a very good writer, aren't you?"
"Th-thank you for the compliment."
"You said your name was Isaac, right? Who taught you this? Your writing skills are far from ordinary."
Professor Elena pointed at the notebook in her hand as she asked. I debated how to answer before giving a bashful response.
"I... learned it on my own."
"Really?"
"Yes."
I couldn't say I'd learned it at a university in my past life even if my life depended on it. Elena nodded at my answer and spoke in a voice that sounded genuinely surprised.
"Between last week and today, seeing you sit in the very front row, you must be very interested in history."
"It's interesting, after all."
If nothing else, I was sincere about that. I liked history in my past life, too, but here, the more I dug, the more stories poured out, stimulating my imagination.
Professor Elena seemed to sense the sincerity in my answer, as she looked at me with a proud expression.
"Wait just a moment."
She handed the notebook back to me and left the classroom after leaving those words. My confusion was short-lived, as a voice from my left brought me back to reality.
"Seeing as you're being praised by the professor, you must be quite the writer, Isaac. That writer's callus isn't there for nothing."
It was Lina. She was resting her chin on her hand, looking at me with blue eyes full of interest and curiosity.
I flinched slightly at her question before awkwardly stroking the protruding callus on my middle finger and laughing. Lina gave me a bright smile despite my sheepish grin.
"By any chance, Isaac, do you know much about the history of us Demons?"
This time, it was from the right. Turning my gaze toward the voice, I met a pair of red eyes that were the perfect contrast to Lina's. Naturally, it was Cecile.
I thought about her question for a moment before shaking my head.
Unfortunately, the Demons had maintained a closed-off stance until the publication of the Xenon Biography, so information on them was remarkably scarce.
Even if there were history books about Demons, they were all from a human perspective and thus extremely subjective.
"No. Aside from the founding process and the indiscriminate massacre of Demons by the Holy Nation 'Savior,' I know almost nothing. As you know, the Demons had almost no exchange with the outside world until a few years ago."
"Hmm... I suppose that's true. Then, should I bring you a few volumes? I can just ask my dad later."
"Really?"
I looked at Cecile with wide eyes at her unexpected favor. Cecile chuckled at my reaction and spoke in a playful tone.
"Of course. But on one condition."
"What is it?"
"Try calling me 'Noona.'"
"Pardon?"
Just as I was dumbfounded by her random condition, Cecile leaned in toward me, maintaining her playful tone.
I couldn't help but flinch back momentarily as she pressed closer.
"I said, call me Noona. Why? Are you shy?"
"Cecile Noona."
"... ..."
"I did it. Now what?"
Now it was Cecile's turn to be flustered. I wasn't sure what kind of reaction she was trying to get out of me, but I was used to calling people older than me 'Hyung' or 'Noona.'
Since I already had an older brother and an older sister, it wasn't exactly difficult.
Cecile made a face that said this wasn't how it was supposed to go, and then she turned pouting. She whipped her head away, clicking her tongue and grumbling.
"Tch. No fun. Come to think of it, did you say you had an older sister?"
"Pfft."
Lina, who had been watching the situation, let out a small laugh while Cecile grumbled. Naturally, there was no way Cecile wouldn't hear it.
"Huh? Lina. Were you just laughing at me?"
"No? Maybe you just misheard, Cecile?"
"I don't think I did..."
I waited for Professor Elena to return while the two women bickered across me. For the record, the reason Mari wasn't in the classroom despite Lina and Cecile being there was that she hated history. I'd heard she absolutely loathed it.
Even that guy Jackson, who tried to prank me during the humanities class yesterday, wasn't here. It seemed that unless someone was interested, history was boring no matter where you went. Perhaps because of that, only about thirty people were seated in the lecture hall.
"Here. This book."
"...What is this?"
A moment later, Professor Elena returned to the classroom and handed me a thick book. It was an old book that smelled of musty paper, and it didn't even have a title on the cover.
When I asked about the book, Professor Elena answered.
"It's a translation of Elven history books into the Common Tongue. Elves have a strong tendency to write books in their own native language."
"What? Re-really? This is..."
"Yes. That's right. It's a history book seen through the eyes of Elves, not humans. I happened to find it in the library by chance."
"Wow..."
I looked down at the worn-out book with sparkling eyes. Though its exterior was old and shabby, to me, it was a treasure more valuable than any other item.
Through this history book, I could determine what kind of race the Elves of this world were and what settings to add to the Elves scheduled to appear in the Xenon Biography. I had been worried about how to portray the Elves, and Professor Elena had provided help at the perfect time.
"Thank you, Professor. How can I ever repay this grace..."
"I don't really need thanks, but do you have any other classes after this one?"
She continued with a kind smile.
"If not, I'd like to ask if you could come find me for a moment."