Summer (2)
Summer (2)
――!!
The two watching from the side clicked their tongues, unable to hide their disappointment.
"Tsk, what a shame. We put a lot of work into that."
"Indeed. But we can't very well station personnel here."
"Aigoo......"
Yoon Do-sik and Jaden.
After working together on the rift design, the two had become thick as thieves.
I slipped the Crystal in my hand into a storage artifact and spoke.
"We'll be doing this for every Grade Evaluation, so start thinking now about the theme for the second semester."
"Second semester... It'd be fine to raise the difficulty even more, right?"
"Professor Baek. Would it be all right if I participated as well then?"
"Participation is limited to first-year faculty."
"Khh......!!"
Jaden lamented, fists trembling as if genuinely disappointed.
"You just manage your own master properly. If things go sideways, I'll deal with you too."
"...I'll do my best."
Despite his words, his eyes held the sentiment of someone who didn't understand why he had to suffer for his master's sake.
'Just as selfish as his master.'
That annoying bastard had tried every trick to stay here, dumping my orders onto the two who came with him. But the moment I told him how to commune with the Crystal, he flew off to the Clock Tower. He's probably holed up in some rift right now, pouring mana into the thing.
"Oh dear, the meeting starts soon. Let's go, Professor."
"The students handle all the prep work anyway. Is a full meeting really necessary?"
"Well, the Chairman called this one personally."
"...The Chairman?"
"Yes. So let's hurry."
Jaden led the way, opening the door, and we moved through it to the main building.
"Phew, it's starting to get hot."
"I don't really feel the heat, myself."
As soon as we entered, Yoon Do-sik wiped sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief, and Jaden laughed teasingly.
"Ah!! Hello... Profess...ors...?"
One of the assistants at the front spotted me and started a greeting, but when he noticed Yoon Do-sik and Jaden flanking me, his words stretched out into a bizarre drawl.
-...Didn't they say Professor Baek and Professor Jaden were on bad terms?
-I heard they've been hanging out a lot lately. Did they make up?
-It looks less like making up and more like Professor Jaden's been put under Professor Baek...?
"Ahem, ahem!!"
Jaden, whose Awakened hearing was sharp, cleared his throat loudly, and the murmuring assistants quickly averted their eyes and scattered. Yoon Do-sik pressed the elevator button and chuckled.
"You know, a person should know some humility. Who pulls a stunt like that on the day of their introduction? There's a limit to throwing your weight around. Tsk."
"...I'm reflecting on it, so would you please stop teasing me about it already?"
It was a well-worn joke, but each time, Jaden would glance at me and flush. Still, he had more shame than his master, which made him bearable enough to keep around.
-Ding.
The elevator doors opened, and we entered the room bearing the sign 'Meeting Room 1'.
"Looks like we're the last ones."
"I told you we were late."
Eyes from professors and staff—clustered by faction, acquaintance, or grade—turned toward us, and the two muttered to each other.
I walked over to sit beside Kim Seong-won, who was in the front row next to the Academic Affairs Department head.
"Ahh, you've arrived."
The man had been nodding off moments before, but the moment I sat down, his eyes snapped open and he greeted me. Then.
"It's a bit chilly up front."
"Isn't that because you're getting old?"
"...I'm barely a few years older than you, you brat."
Yoon Do-sik and Jaden, who I thought would go to their assigned seats, plopped down in the same row as me. Kim Seong-won's eyes flicked rapidly, and Choi Min-sik, sitting next to him, glanced at Jaden with some surprise.
'...They're like ducklings.'
They'd had a whole month to figure out that I'm not the type who appreciates a commotion, and yet they still pulled this.
Jaden's faction, the Magic Department professors, began whispering in flustered tones, and Lee Hyeok, head of the opposing Swordsmanship Department, watched Jaden exchanging banter with Yoon Do-sik with a curious expression.
"Jaden."
"Yes, Professor."
The kid had been chatting loudly enough to be heard from two seats away, but now he craned his neck and fixed his attention on me. I ignored the concentrated stares completely and warned him.
"Shut up."
"......Yes."
He swallowed hard and leaned back in his chair as silently as possible. Yoon Do-sik whispered a taunt, but I didn't bother warning him too.
-The Chairman has entered.
A voice came through the ceiling speaker, and soon the Chairman stood on the dais.
"Sorry for calling you in right as vacation starts. Still, I thought this would be better than disrupting your rest mid-break."
The Chairman, An Hyeon-do, continued, eyes on the paper he'd been holding since he came up.
"As most of you likely know, I'm not the sort to summon a meeting just to drop some massive proposal. I simply wanted to get a light overview of how the Academy has been running and see everyone's faces. With that in mind......"
An Hyeon-do lifted his gaze from the paper and looked in my direction.
"Professor Baek Woo-jin here has handled duties on my behalf quite admirably. Ordinarily I'd give a round of applause, but the man himself seems to dislike such things, so we'll skip that."
He went on to mention various events by grade and commended the professors and staff for their hard work.
"And the matter of observer selection. I'd been meaning to clean that up, but Professor Baek handled it neatly for me. The Academy's a bit cleaner for it. Hohoho!!"
An Hyeon-do laughed heartily, as if thoroughly satisfied. Lee Hyeok and Jaden, the ones concerned in that matter, lowered their heads.
"I'd also like to welcome our newly arrived professors. I should have called you in for proper greetings earlier, but the artifact I was after proved stubborn."
And then An Hyeon-do rambled on for quite some time on his own.
"......Therefore, while I'm away, I hope you will all follow Professor Baek Woo-jin's instructions well."
The long, long speech finally ended.
"So then, shall we begin the meeting on the summer festival?"
At last, we could get to the main point.
"Regarding the booths......"
"This year, opening to the outside......"
Unlike before when the Chairman was talking alone, now the staff who had been quietly listening began raising hands one after another, reporting on preparations and the current situation.
"Heh heh. First-year's easy since we just have to watch."
As the meeting neared its end, Yoon Do-sik chuckled softly and leaned back. As he'd just said, setting up booths and organizing events for the festival was the upperclassmen's job, while first-year newcomers just had to attend and enjoy themselves comfortably.
"Good. It's a relief to see everything is progressing smoothly this year as well. Then, shall we finalize the order of the last event?"
The last event.
"Is there a professor who'd like to volunteer this year?"
The Chairman looked around, giving them a moment, but no one raised a hand.
"Well, I suppose there's nothing more heartbreaking than confidently volunteering and then ending up with no bids."
No bids.
"Then, as always, we'll select ten through a student vote. Those chosen will be contacted separately, so please keep your schedule open for the fourth and final day of the festival. And......"
Chairman An Hyeon-do shifted his gaze toward me.
"Professor Baek. I'm afraid you'll have to go up for auction as a surprise gift."
The summer festival's final event.
The Fate Auction.
It was an auction open to all Academy affiliates—students and staff alike. And the items up for bid, as An Hyeon-do had just said, were the Academy's professors.
The rule was that a professor put up as an item would spend one hour with the winning bidder, and during that time, they could not refuse any simple request the person made.
Of course, the standard for "simple request" was the professor's own, so if they didn't like it, they could reject every request without any issue. For that reason, there was always the risk of making things awkward, so while all Academy affiliates were technically eligible, in practice the bidders were almost entirely students.
"I refuse."
Obviously.
I had no reason to devote time to such a nuisance.
"Hmm."
An Hyeon-do stroked his short beard with a troubled look.
"About that new event added to the first-year evaluation exam. The new professors who helped with it received quite a generous special allowance......"
He spoke cautiously, gauging my reaction.
"I mean, well... it came from the allocated budget, so it's not a problem. But it wasn't exactly a small amount, either, you know...?"
"Get to the point."
"Ahem, hem......"
An Hyeon-do's gaze slid subtly next to me.
"I've heard someone is willing to bid very high for you if you go up for auction......"
I followed An Hyeon-do's eyes and turned my head to the side.
"Hic!"
Perhaps it's time I considered replacing the Finance Department head.