The Eye for Grasping Power
The next morning at six o'clock, Kael rose early, washed up, and changed his clothes. On the bed, the naked Ling and Ming sisters lay fast asleep, breathing softly, their bodies covered inside and out with his semen.
I'll let them sleep a little longer.
Kael left the two undisturbed and headed alone to Professor Lucia's office. It was still early, so the hallways were quiet. When he reached her door and knocked, a soft voice answered from inside.
"Come in."
He opened the door and stepped inside. Professor Lucia was seated at her desk, reading something. From the array of formulas, it looked like she was conducting magical research. Today, as always, she wore a mage's robe that hugged her curvaceous figure. She looked up at Kael and smiled.
"Kael, what brings you here so early in the morning?"
As she spoke, she rose from her seat. Instead of answering, Kael approached and lightly stroked her backside. The soft, elastic sensation traveled through his fingertips.
Hmm, it's bearable.
Yesterday, the built-up lust would have been quite bothersome. But now, though desire still simmered within him, it was manageable. The night spent thoroughly enjoying the Ling and Ming sisters had been worthwhile. Her alluring body and sweet scent were still stimulating, but not enough to make him lose composure.
"Oh my!"
Lucia accepted his touch without resistance, smiling gently. Her voice rang out sweetly.
"Kael, seeing your hands wander like this first thing in the morning… Would you like me to relieve you a little?"
At her blatant seduction, Kael chuckled and stroked her light blue hair.
"Let's save that for tonight, Professor."
Having said that, Kael gazed at her face. Her slightly parted lips stirred an impulse quite different from lust. He made no effort to suppress it. He simply lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers.
"Mmph!"
Lucia's lips were soft and warm. After a brief kiss, Kael slowly pulled away and said,
"Then, Professor, could you give me a fatigue recovery potion first?"
At Kael's request, Lucia pouted her lips in mild disappointment. But she soon nodded.
"Alright, Kael. We'll finish the rest tonight. Just wait a moment."
Lucia opened her subspace and retrieved a transparent glass bottle containing a green liquid.
"This is a fatigue recovery potion. Drink it."
Kael took the potion, uncorked it, and drank. As the second son of the Aberwin ducal family, he had consumed fatigue recovery potions many times before.
Tastes like plain water, as expected.
The flavor was indeed that of plain water. He downed it in one gulp, and the fatigue accumulated from ravishing Ling and Ming all night vanished in an instant. With his body feeling lighter, his mind grew clear as well.
"The effect is excellent."
Kael smiled with satisfaction.
"Professor, could you give me a generous extra supply so I can share some with Ling and Ming as well?"
Lucia tilted her head curiously.
"A generous amount? Ling and Ming… those commoner sisters. Now that I think about it, Kael, with the Astral Gear you have, you could wear it and cast 6th-circle recovery magic to restore fatigue quickly. Is a potion really necessary?"
Kael chuckled and replied,
"I plan to keep the Astral Gear as a hidden trump card from the students for the time being. Of course, there's no need to hide it from Ling and Ming, but I want to avoid relying on it."
As he spoke, Kael's hand moved up to rest on Lucia's breast.
"That's why I want to stock up on potions and other supplies in advance. Even if the subspace created by binding the Astral Gear gets revealed, releasing the armor too early would expose my combat strength and derail my plans."
A spark of curiosity flickered in Lucia's eyes.
"Plans? What kind of plans, Kael?"
Kael grinned slyly.
"You'll find out soon enough. It would've been convenient if no one discovered I possess this ability, but since the rumors have already spread, we'll have to go with the next best option."
Of course, his true thoughts were different.
I predicted from the start that one of the professors would leak the rumor and planned accordingly.
But there was no reason to reveal that to Professor Lucia.
"So, I'd like you and the other professors to prepare a large number of magical contract documents."
"Magical contract documents?"
"Yes. Magical contracts have an automatic renewal effect for periodic transactions, right? And they can't be forged. So my plan is to 'sell' dinner provision rights, then bill the families during vacation using these contracts."
At the mention of selling dinner provision rights, Lucia's interest was piqued.
"I see. Since everyone except Ling and Ming comes from noble families, we can sell them here for money, then show the contracts to their families later to collect payment. What price did you have in mind?"
"I'm thinking one gold coin per serving."
Lucia's eyes widened.
"One gold coin? Isn't that too expensive?"
Kael nodded.
"Yes, it is expensive."
One gold coin held value equivalent to over a million won in his previous world's currency. For reference, in this world, ten silver coins equaled one gold coin. This was because silver's magical properties synergized well with holy magic, giving it high magical value. If one hundred silver coins were set equal to one gold coin, people would melt down silver coins to extract the metal instead of using them as currency. Fortunately, since holy magic users were rare, silver's value didn't surpass gold.
"There are two hundred first-year students. Excluding myself, Ling, and Ming, that's one hundred and ninety-seven people. So one hundred and ninety-seven gold coins."
"There are still about thirty months until winter break, right? That would be enormous."
"Yes. If we consider roughly one hundred days in outside time, that's one thousand days here. So we could bill the one hundred and ninety-seven families for a total of one hundred and ninety-seven thousand gold coins."
And it wouldn't stop with the first-years. Once the rumors spread further, the second-, third-, and fourth-year students would all be desperate to secure dinner provision rights as well.
Lucia asked,
"That would come to one thousand gold coins per person. Do you think the families will pay? Not just once, but three thousand gold coins per year going forward."
Kael smiled at her words.
"They will. Most students won't have brought much cash anyway. That's why we're using magical contracts to bill their families. Noble houses must pay unless they disown their child. Magical contracts are recognized as legal evidence even by the empire."
Moreover, the terror of a magical contract lay in the catastrophic consequences of breaking it. While not as severe as rejection from the academy, it could still bring great disaster.
"If they won't abandon their child, the parents will pay even if it means taking on debt. Since they're all noble families, even a baron's house should have the means, right? If they choose to disown them, that's their decision and nothing we can do about it."
Kael continued,
"But honestly, the money is secondary. There's something else I truly want."
Lucia looked at his face and asked,
"What exactly is that, Kael?"
Instead of answering, Kael grinned mischievously.
"You'll find out later. It wouldn't be fun if I told you in advance, would it? For now, have the professors prepare the contracts, and when I announce the dinner provision to the students, please help maintain order. It's best to start without any chaos in the beginning."
Of course, this was all preliminary work to create an even greater upheaval later.
Lucia didn't press for details on his plan and simply nodded.
"Understood, Kael. I'll trust you and leave it in your hands. After all classes end today, I'll stand by you like a guard when you announce the meal provision to the students this evening."
At Lucia's words, Kael gave her backside a firm smack.
"Kyaa!"
"Thank you, Professor. Once the work is done, I'll gladly give you the opportunity to serve me on my bed in my room."
Kael spoke as if granting her an incredible honor by allowing her to serve him with her body. Lucia's eyes sparkled at his words.
"Yes, thank you."
She had already figured it out. The sooner and more eagerly she clung to Kael, the greater her chances of receiving the divine favor of his food in the future. Perhaps an entirely new social hierarchy would be established within Tartaros Academy. And if she clung to him from the very beginning and cooperated actively, she might secure a high position in that new order.
"Thank you so much for letting me offer my body to Kael! Or should I call you Master?"
Lucia's perceptiveness was truly remarkable.
Why is she so quick on the uptake? She seems like she'd excel at social maneuvering.
Her sharpness actually left Kael slightly flustered. She had supposedly been locked away in a magic academy with little social interaction, yet this professor possessed an astonishingly keen judgment of the shifting situation.
"Alright, Lucia. Then I'll call you comfortably as well."
"Yes, Master."
"Just call me Kael-nim. Ah, and in front of others for now, address me as before."
"Understood, Kael-nim."
Lucia Tinel, professor of the Magic Department, bowed her head respectfully before Kael. Perhaps she possessed even greater talent for reading power and attaching herself to it than she did for magic itself.