Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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"Fuck..."
In an office that looked about 15 pyeong in size, a man muttered a low curse.
Sitting at the desk by the window with his burly frame, his name was Hans Milberg.
He was the teaching assistant who had been in charge of Seong Suho's magic circle invocation class.
After causing a major incident in front of the dean last week, he had thought it had blown over more quietly than expected and spent the weekend relieved.
But come Monday, he was hit with a dismissal notice right as he arrived at work.
He was now in a position where he had to vacate his lab in a month.
The rumor had spread like wildfire among the school staff in just one day, leaving him too ashamed to show his face.
He was the first person to be fired from Schutra Magic School in 50 years, excluding the mad professor who had gone berserk claiming he would make the school his own—and that one had been killed by the dean's magic, technically counting as a dismissal.
Hans Milberg was set to go down in history as the first to be fired while still alive.
"Fuck, fuck! How hard did I work for this school!"
All he had done was sexually harass a student during class, but he even considered that diligent effort on his part.
"Damn it... If it weren't for the firing, I could manage somehow..."
With his track record as a teaching assistant at Schutra Magic School, he was confident any nation would take him in.
But dismissal changed everything.
No other country would risk taking in someone Schutra had kicked out, fearing what misfortune might follow—they probably wouldn't even allow entry.
His only thought was to latch onto the court mage of Levin Kingdom as a last resort.
"If I use that incident as leverage, she'll grovel for sure."
Hans Milberg was one of the professors with a bad reputation around the school.
The rumors were that he abused his position as teaching assistant to summon female students and sexually harass them routinely.
And that was...
"She's getting married soon, too. If I tell her about all the girls I fucked here at school, she'll sort everything out for me."
If anything, the rumors understated it.
Every year, whenever a decent-looking female student enrolled, he would secretly find some weakness and rape her—it was commonplace for him.
It only stayed quiet because it was just one or two per year.
All the victims were commoners who had no choice but to obey him if they wanted to graduate.
And one of those students had graduated, succeeded, and become a court mage.
Even after pulling that shit, rumors spread but he was never caught.
It was a textbook case proving Schutra Magic School's insides weren't all clean.
"Come to think of it, Luna Staatfeldt..."
A recently intriguing student came to mind.
Every year, a few standout beauties among the female students caught his eye.
But most were nobles' daughters, and even he knew better than to touch them, no matter his position.
All he could do was enjoy humiliating them during class.
But lately, he'd learned some info about Luna by chance.
Luna hailed from the Levin royal palace—the very place he planned to cling to.
And her past was...
"...Intriguing. Treason should mean clan extermination, yet she's the sole survivor living openly."
Her entire clan had been wiped out for treason, but she alone survived and thrived without shame.
Still, she was undeniably fallen nobility.
No title of her own, her lands confiscated, from what he'd heard.
She was just scraping by as a noble with support from sympathetic nobles—that was the full story.
A scheme popped into Hans Milberg's head.
In his view, Luna lacked the skill for top honors graduation.
Without top honors, there was no way she'd stay at the school.
He figured he'd end up in Levin Kingdom anyway, and in three years, so would she.
Not top honors, but she'd graduate with stellar grades and get treated like royalty, no doubt.
If he could assault her and secure leverage beforehand, he could own her for life, he thought.
"Might as well grab that bitch Luna Staatfeldt's weakness ahead of time... Huh?"
As he schemed his trash plan while gazing out the window, his eyes caught a lone woman sitting rigidly on a bench.
Luna Staatfeldt.
Luna bolted from the classroom the moment class ended.
She simply couldn't bear staying near that man any longer.
Wandering aimlessly around campus, she ended up alone in an empty clearing, plopped on a bench.
She hadn't even eaten breakfast, but the thought of putting anything in her mouth repulsed her.
After hearing Seong Suho's words yesterday, she'd come to on her bed, sobbing endlessly.
A sense of loss she'd never felt before enveloped her.
"...It was all just me liking him."
Luna reflected on their time together, thinking of Seong Suho.
He'd helped with her magic circle invocation, chased off the teaching assistant's shameless advances, and they shared a secret just between them.
In every moment, she'd felt his affection and assumed it was mutual.
But yesterday's words shattered it all.
From Luna's perspective, the idea of Seong Suho liking two women was inconceivable.
By his usual behavior, he didn't seem the type to chase skirts.
Thus, she'd concluded there was no reason for him to like her if he was into Professor Sonya.
She'd never imagined one guy could make her emotions swing so wildly.
Coming to this school... no, meeting Seong Suho had changed everything.
But then doubts crept in about him and Professor Sonya.
"...But Professor Sonya is married. Wait..."
Luna replayed yesterday.
Seong Suho gazing at the sunset with an expression full of lingering emotion. (From Luna's view)
The ornate box beside him, covered in flashy patterns.
She hadn't seen it clearly, but it was definitely a cosmetics box.
She recalled his words from yesterday.
(Professor Sonya!)
(Haa... No wonder after going all night. I'm drained.)
(Sleeping together is its own hassle.)
Its own hassle... its own hassle...
Absurd scenarios unfolded in Luna's mind.
"No way... Professor Sonya..."
A bottom-ranked student and a professor.
A secret deal.
Seong Suho offering his body for a gift to her.
She began spinning wild delusions that Professor Sonya had used her authority to take Seong Suho.
"No!"
Luna shot up from the bench, shouting.
That was when it happened.
"Ah! Luna."
"Huh?"
A few female students happened to pass by.
Classmates from her lecture.
"What are you doing here?"
"Just... taking a moment alone to think things over."
"Perfect timing—we're heading to lunch. Want to join?"
"S-Sorry. My stomach's not feeling great today..."
"Ah... okay."
As the other girls moved to pass her by, Luna turned and called out.
"Tomorrow, definitely—let's eat together. Thanks for asking."
"Oh! Y-Yeah!"
As they headed to the cafeteria, they whispered among themselves.
(Surprising. I thought she hated hanging with us.)
(She's quiet, but seems nice enough.)
(I actually felt bad for her because of that teaching assistant.)
Luna had never cared about public opinion before, but lately, she didn't mind tuning in.
She'd always felt alone and ignored others' views.
But at some point, someone stood beside her, and she didn't want to drag that person down, so she started wondering about her own reputation.
Lest it harm the one beside her.
As Luna watched the girls' retreating backs, a man's voice came from behind.
"Well, well... if it isn't student Luna?"
"..."
Luna knew who it was without turning.
She bit her lip hard.
'Haa... Why now, of all times...'
Sure enough, when she turned, there he was.
The teaching assistant from her magic circle invocation class stood there.
Luna greeted him cautiously, gauging his mood.
"Hello."
"Hmm... What are you doing out here alone?"
"...Just resting. Not feeling well."
Luna prayed silently inside.
'I know you'll ignore me even if I beg you to leave, but please just go...'
Her usual stoic expression was gone—now she stared at him like a repulsive bug.
The teaching assistant's brow twitched as he spoke.
"Your face looks pretty sour. Must really be under the weather."
"Sorry. Right now..."
"Minus 10 points."
"Pardon?"
Luna gaped at him, dumbfounded by the sudden declaration.
It wasn't class time, and there was no way he could deduct points in a random spot like this.
"Student Luna, I heard you're nobility. No manners, I see?"
"...Sorry."
She clamped her mouth shut, grinding her molars.
'Are all professors really like this?'
Luna's admiration for Schutra had already plummeted through her bizarre misunderstanding about Sonya moments ago.
But the teaching assistant's words scraped at her nerves further.
"That guy next to you is trouble too. Big trouble."
"...Next to me?"
"The one with the weird name! Can't even remember it."
The only one beside her with a strange name was Seong Suho.
Even Luna had thought it unique at first, despite his origins from an obscure nation.
And that one remark jolted her mind awake.
"I'll deduct points on that guy until he's expelled, one way or another."
"......Pardon?"
Luna thought she'd misheard.
"300 points and you're out. 10 a day—that's a month. You don't want that, right?"
"W-Why... him..."
"Don't worry, Luna Staatfeldt. I'm not talking about you."
The teaching assistant had no idea of her ties to Seong Suho and spoke carelessly.
He meant to show off his power over Seong Suho to impress her.
But Luna no longer cared about her own deductions.
Just...
'He's not someone you can mess with...'
Anger toward the teaching assistant for targeting Seong Suho welled up.
But to him, Luna just looked intimidated, trembling under the threat.
Mistaking his plan as successful, the teaching assistant said,
"If you have complaints about the points, follow me!"
"...Yes."
Chewing on her rage, Luna trailed behind him.
I finished eating in the cafeteria, scratched the back of my neck, and headed out.
Students bustled around noisily.
'Haa... Am I off today? Food just didn't go down well.'
[For someone saying that, you ate more than usual.]
'It was meat... I mean, it still didn't go down as well as usual, even if I ate a lot.'
One thing I'd noticed since coming here: Monday meals were always top-notch.
Probably a measure against the Monday blues.
With my belly full, worries started bubbling up.
'Think Sonya can sort it out okay?'
[She's a woman of sharp discernment at baseline. I expect she'll handle it well.]
'...There's this super famous saying from my world.'
[What is it?]
'Reconciling two women is way harder than unifying Europe.'
[....]
'I'm saying it's fucking tough...'
And that guy couldn't even unify Europe after saying it.
Still, if Sonya backed down a step, it might work out.
As optimistic and pessimistic thoughts ping-ponged, I overheard some girls nearby.
"What do we do... Should we say something?"
"Haa... But if we speak up, we might get dragged in too..."
Armonia chimed in via comms.
[Classmates from your section.]
'Really? First time seeing them. Is everyone in the world just full of worries? Guess I'll head to the classroom early and nap.'
To squeeze in even a bit more sleep, I turned toward the lecture hall.