Just Some Nonsense
The thought process didn't take long at all.
I remembered that saying about how fame brings cheers when you poop, right? Well, right now I was quite famous, so even if I were to poop with my mouth, a few people would probably applaud.
In other words, I didn't know exactly what I was doing, so I might as well ramble on about anything.
I started to carefully review my knowledge hardened by web novels and anime.
Rifts are where monsters come out. In other words, isn't it similar to the 'gates' that often appear in hunter web novels?
Gates. Exactly, a door.
"Although I don't know the details..."
First, I set the foundation a bit.
"...I think they are doors connecting to another world."
I threw out a vaguely impressive-sounding line.
No matter how nonsense the words are, the influence differs depending on who says them.
From the students' amazed reactions, it seemed like Caron was indeed the madman they expected.
But...
Why were they so shocked?
My expression was close to blank, but now I could tell.
Professor Adrian was wavering.
Just as much as when I stopped the magic circle.
But soon he regained his usual coolness.
"...You have the nerve to speak such nonsense so boldly."
...Were you surprised by how shamelessly I said it?
I shrugged my shoulders a bit and waited for him to explain.
Several students around us seemed to be holding back laughter, but it didn't bother me much.
Except for Lirith, who was pinching her thighs while trying to suppress a laugh.
The professor looked around the classroom for a moment and continued.
"In fact, even among scholars, this remains an unresolved problem."
I shot him a glare that said 'why are you asking this?' but he cleanly ignored it.
"But the important thing isn't why, but how to solve it."
To summarize his following explanation, it was like this.
1. No one knows when or under what conditions the Rifts form. 2. But it is clear that monsters emerge only a few hours after they appear. 3. Therefore, guardians are evenly placed in every region of the empire to minimize damage.
"Any additional questions?"
Seeing my hot expression, I wondered if anyone would dare to ask, but... there was one.
Someone who didn't care about my hot expression, a cheerful rural youth. No, the crown prince.
"May I ask how the guardians' placement is carried out?"
The professor smiled with interest and said, "Good question, Sir."
The first praise sent a ripple through the crowd; they held their breath.
"Guardians are, after all, humans. They exploit their desires."
"Desires... you say?"
"Yes. Money, fame, and..."
The professor's gaze briefly shifted to the female students in the back of the classroom.
"...and other things."
"..."
"Sir, you would know best—how desires hold power."
The crown prince nodded with a slightly stiffened expression.
"That is all for today's morning lecture."
The professor ended his words and left the bewildered classroom.
Several male students gathered around the crown prince, but none dared to speak up.
***
Adrian skipped breakfast and pulled out a cigarette.
He flicked his fingers to light it, and the dark room began to fill with white smoke.
His hand holding the cigarette trembled slightly.
"Lightning."
I began to recall Caron's words again.
"Hilarious."
The world operates on the law of equivalent exchange.
Money for goods. Mana for magic. Effort for strength.
Everyone has their own standard, but each person applies the law of equivalent exchange that matches their innate scale.
By the price of losing part of their memory after being struck by lightning, they gain superhuman mana control.
That level was sufficient to explain.
Of course, that person's scale would have to be unreasonably unreasonable...
In the world, such genius-like beings occasionally appear.
Caron could be considered one of the most outstanding among them.
But today?
The information that Rifts are doors connecting to another world.
Only guardians with 'color' knew that truth.
The truth unknown even to the Duke Ludaipe was known to his son.
It was a story that could not be explained away with lightning.
Adrian pulled out a new cigarette.
His head began to throb.
He considered a new hypothesis.
What if Caron could bypass interrogation magic?
Magic is not omnipotent, so it was plausible.
If that were true, he would be someone entering the academy with a purpose.
But then, why mention the truth about Rifts in class?
Was the goal to unsettle himself?
"...Witch."
The face of the woman who had been unsettling him flashed through his mind.
Could she be a spy she sent?
But he soon shook his head, dismissing it.
He thought it was an uncharacteristic emotional judgment.
With only the information he had, no conclusion could be drawn.
A variable neither controlled nor explained.
"In that case... the only option is to remove her."
He ground out the cigarette and began drawing a teleportation magic circle.
With a flash of light, Adrian disappeared.
Only traces of his thoughts remained, clouding the room.
***
The academy's education was quite excellent.
Even eating with a fidgety maid and an oblivious crown prince had tasted delicious.
"More than that, Sir Caron seems quite different from the rumors?"
Leon, who had casually labeled me his friend and was now using familiar speech, spoke up.
"What rumors of mine?"
Since it was exactly what I wanted to know, I asked bluntly.
Since he wasn't the type to mind others' eyes and was someone who didn't need to, he could give a straightforward answer.
"Umm... I heard you published various books."
"Books?"
A guy with the setting of being smart, so that could be—
"The 223 Ways to Harass Women," he said.
Oh, please.
...It would be a book with heavy title trolling.
That had to be the case.
I desperately tried to find a hope line and asked further.
"Have you read the content?"
"Of course. The detailed torture methods that are hard to say out loud were written there."
"..."
"If you'd like, I can tell you the content. The first method is nose—"
"That's fine."
The flavor of my food dropped away.
I couldn't muster the courage to look toward Lirith.
"Well, it seems it was just a baseless rumor."
"..."
"Seeing Sir Caron in person, he doesn't look like such a cruel person."
After all, that was someone else.
"And I don't trust rumors well. As you know, when dealing with politics..."
While tuning out Leon's rambling, a scene flashed in my mind.
A group of male students approaching to eat with me, awkwardly avoiding Lirith's gaze.
In contrast, the man sitting before me seemed not to care at all.
Was he a normal person rare in this world?
"More than that, you don't have a hatred for women?"
I cut in and asked.
His eyes widened for a moment, then answered with a good-natured smile.
"I don't think the fact that women are inferior is a reason they can be ignored or persecuted."
He said it as if declaring after setting down his fork.
"Women have their own roles, so it is also the monarch's virtue to embrace them?"
I clicked my tongue inwardly in exasperation, but a reaction came from an unexpected place.
"I-I'm grateful...!"
Tsk, they were really chatting.
I signaled with my finger for Lirith to eat her rice, then rinsed her mouth with water.
Thinking the distance was long, a bitter sensation lingered in my mouth.
Despite that, a smile formed because there were still many points to gain.
***
The afternoon class flowed normally.
At least unlike the morning, when the professor shot me down.
While propping my chin and listening to the lecture, a shocking sound like a bomb declaration hit my ear.
"Magic is the process of communicating with mana. It is issuing commands to them using the language called magic circles."
The surrounding students were just nodding or sighing in amazement.
But for me, who had never even considered drawing magic circles before, it was different.
I didn't know the structure of magic circles, and after getting too excited upon sensing mana for the first time, I had forgotten the obvious.
Damn... So that's why magic hadn't come out?
"However, a very skilled magician can convey the intent without the language of magic circles."
He explained by snapping his fingers to create a fireball.
Just as old friends understand each other without words, mana was the same.
While nodding at his explanation and waiting for him to draw a magic circle that I could follow...
The magic circles drawn on the board were not something an elementary student could copy, even at first glance.
Complex geometric patterns intertwined with multiple characters and shapes.
Even tracing with paper over it would be difficult... to draw it with mana?
I hid my panic and looked around; the female students were also visibly bewildered.
In contrast, the male students were roughly following along.
Leon had perfectly completed the magic circle as if it were natural.
The students who finished drawing the magic circles started looking at me with curiosity since I wasn't doing anything.
Following their gazes, my reflection appeared in Professor Adrian's eyes as well.
With a cold smile, a rebuke flew over.
"Are you rebelling now?"
I swallowed a sigh and answered honestly.
I was not a troublemaker, and the curriculum was moving too fast right now.
Perhaps it was the first time I had spoken sincerely since being reincarnated into this world.
"I'm just too difficult to copy one by one, though?"
Of course, a bit of Caron's tone leaked through.