Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Can You Solve It? (3)
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In the now-empty professor's office, I stared at the papers laid out on the table. They were the exam sheets I had created.
"Hmm..."
As I stared blankly at the exam paper, all sorts of thoughts came to mind. Doubts were mixed in among them.
'When was the first time I ever made a problem like this?'
Such a thought suddenly occurred to me.
One thing was certain: this wasn't the first time.
'About seven years ago, when those Mage Society bastards were throwing a fit, I think I submitted one.'
It must have been back during my time as the Next Mage Tower Lord.
There were guys from the Mage Society who nitpicked every single paper I submitted. Quite a few of them.
'This is a fake paper, papers with omitted processes have no value...'
Something along those lines.
I remembered making a problem packed full of malice just to shut their mouths.
'Dozens of circuits all jumbled together, if I recall?'
It was a problem deliberately designed not to be solved.
Solvable, sure, but the kind that would eat up an insane amount of time.
And its effect had been quite reliable.
'They called it some great conundrum or whatever, and things stayed quiet for about half a year.'
That was the first problem I had ever made.
A problem recorded in the Mage Society as a conundrum.
As old memories resurfaced, I slowly opened my eyes.
"..."
Then, without a word, I picked up the exam paper.
As I lifted the paper, the words left by the Black Mage Tower Lord echoed in my ears.
-Wouldn't it be better to lower the difficulty a bit?
-To be honest, this is on the level of a Mage Society conundrum. It might be too tough for the students' level, no?
I made a sour face.
"This is the same level as that problem?"
No matter how I looked at it, that didn't seem right.
Honestly, it felt like an unfair assessment.
'I didn't pack it with as much malice as back then, and I even provided the solution method starting from problem 1 to make it solvable...'
A conundrum, really?
'Can't they solve it if they try?'
It was incomprehensible to me.
On top of that, hadn't I based the problems on the ones the professors had circled as references?
'Their level is supposed to be around this, right?'
Maintaining this level while lowering the difficulty.
I just couldn't get a feel for how to do it.
"Hmm."
No matter how long I pondered, no answer came.
I had no idea where or how to tweak it. All I ended up doing was crumpling innocent sheets of paper.
"Hm."
There was a way to handle times like this.
I gathered up a stack of exam papers in my arms and stood from my seat.
'Time to go see Master.'
If I didn't know, I could just ask.
A simple and effective method.
2.
The professor in charge of Mana Trading Studies.
Rosel van Trias.
He stared at the paper in his hand.
Eight circuits were drawn on the paper. Below them were the requirements the problem demanded.
Rosel was a mage scholar, a professor, and an elder of the Mage Tower.
Having taught and evaluated others for so long, assessing the quality of a problem was familiar work to him.
"..."
Rosel narrowed his eyes.
What caught his eye first were the circuits engraved in each problem. If there were errors in the circuits, that was a problem before even discussing quality.
Rosel's eyes quickly scanned the circuits.
'The circuits themselves are perfect.'
He reached that conclusion immediately.
There was nothing more to see in the circuits themselves. Their precision was impeccable. A perfect example.
'Next up are the problem requirements.'
The demands of the problem were straightforward as well.
It wasn't the type to twist the wording. It relied purely on the content.
That straightforwardness was indeed praiseworthy.
"Hm."
After checking various other elements, Rosel gave a slight nod.
'Not bad.'
Overall, it was a pretty good problem.
The requirements were clear. The examples were perfect, and the content wasn't overly difficult.
The problem discussed fundamentals from start to finish.
Considering that Mana Trading Studies was the foundation of all disciplines, the basic subject laid down first, this was commendable.
Rosel set down the exam paper and spoke.
"It's a good problem."
As he said that, he looked up.
His disciple, sitting across from him, beamed with a bright smile.
"Right? It's okay, isn't it?"
Raniel shrugged her shoulders. As if confirmed she hadn't been wrong, she nodded with a look of conviction, then abruptly stood from her seat.
"Then I'll submit it like this..."
"Don't talk nonsense and sit back down."
"Pardon?"
To his disciple tilting her head, Rosel stated flatly.
"I said it's a good problem, but when did I say you could submit it as is?"
"Uh..."
"Lania, have you ever seen Dean Aron truly angry?"
"No, I haven't..."
"If you submit this as is, you'll get to see it. The kind that makes anyone watching feel pity for him."
Aron tore at his hair when he got angry.
Watching what little hair he had left fly through the air made you feel guilty even if you hadn't done anything wrong.
'...If we release this problem as is.'
He would probably get to witness that sight.
The image of his friend screaming was vividly drawn in Rosel's mind.
"Hoo..."
Rosel let out a deep sigh.
Naturally, his palm smacked against his forehead with a thwack. Lately, it felt like he was doing this more often.
"Lania, what subject are you in charge of?"
"Uh... Mana Trading Studies?"
"Basics. Mana Trading Studies basics. Basics."
Rosel emphasized.
"Basics! You foolish disciple. What do you expect to happen if you put problems worthy of the Mage Society on a basic exam...?"
To Rosel's sigh-mingled voice, Raniel tilted her head.
"Uh... Isn't it solvable?"
"...What did you say?"
As Rosel widened his eyes, Raniel flinched and shrank back. Then she rummaged in her bosom and pulled out a few sheets of paper.
"No, I mean..."
She answered in a crawling voice.
"The other professors submitted at this level too. So I thought this much would be solvable."
"...Let me see."
Rosel looked at the exam paper he received.
As he viewed the starred exam paper, he felt his blood pressure rising.
'This is insane, really.'
The difficulty was jaw-droppingly high.
The passion poured into the exam problems felt like reading a research report.
He wanted to say something, but...
With the main culprit who drove them into overdrive sitting right in front of him, he couldn't blame the professors.
"Hoo..."
The sighs kept coming.
Feeling his vision darken, Rosel pulled out a pen. Then he underlined the annotations attached to the exam paper.
Even if they had gone overboard, Aphria's professors were excellent educators. They hadn't created unsolvable problems to begin with.
And this was the proof.
"Here, look."
Rosel thrust the exam paper in front of his disciple's eyes.
"See the underlined parts? Even with difficult problems, these professors at least provide a minimal direction. Like this."
The annotations at the bottom of the exam paper showed a rough solution method. Not the whole thing, but enough to grasp the direction.
"Meaning there's at least a minimal hint like this."
"A hint?"
"Yes, a hint. If your problem is like throwing students into the middle of the ocean with a few scraps of wood and saying 'build a boat and survive on your own'..."
Tap tap, Rosel pointed at the exam paper.
"These professors' problems at least provide a model boat nearby. So they can at least look and imitate."
"Oh..."
Raniel wore a subtle expression.
She still didn't quite get it.
"Anyway."
Rosel leaned back in his chair and said.
"What I'm saying is, you need to make it solvable. Problems where they can't even guess the method kill the students' motivation instead."
Then he put the conclusion into words.
"In short, you need to adjust the difficulty."
"How do you adjust the difficulty?"
"Simplify the problem itself, or include hints on the solution method in the problem... something like that."
Raniel touched her lips.
"Hints, solution method..."
Watching his disciple mutter that, Rosel shook his head. He'd thought she was starting to get a feel for being an educator after the last class...
'Solve one thing, and another pops up.'
It felt like problems kept springing up endlessly.
"Ah."
Suddenly, Raniel let out an exclamation.
A look like she'd realized something.
"If you give hints, it's okay if the problem is a bit harder?"
What kind of nonsense was that?
Rosel momentarily doubted his own ears.
Of course, it wasn't wrong. Not wrong, but...
'Why does she arrive at that conclusion?'
Rosel gave a highly dubious nod for the time being. Since it wasn't wrong.
"...For now, it's not wrong."
"And Master said the problem itself is fine, right? No errors, good intent."
"I did say that."
"Then keep the problem as is, and just add restrictions like a restriction circuit to lower the problem's cost..."
Rosel fell silent.
Raniel continued.
"It's high-level anyway, right? Just lower the problem's level to match the students'..."
Watching his disciple mutter that, Rosel felt a headache coming on.
'Different way of thinking.'
Her thought process was fundamentally different from a normal person's.
When you see someone think differently from you, even if they're brilliant, you momentarily lose your words.
Rosel was at a loss for words.
"If you see the problem itself as a spell... then restriction circuits become hints here."
"...Probably."
"Then I'll give it a try."
Try what?
Before he could even ask, Raniel stood from her seat. Then she nodded.
"I think it'll work out somehow."
So what exactly?
"...Where are you going?"
"To outline the next class."
"Didn't you already outline it?"
"To explain the problems. If I explain the solutions outright, I won't need to lower the difficulty, right?"
She answered with a pretty smile.
"Sounds good, doesn't it?"
Seeing that innocent smile, Rosel closed his eyes.
"...Yeah, do whatever you want."
3.
Midterms were right around the corner.
This week was the last class before the exams.
Most professors reviewed and summarized the content from previous classes.
The students knew how important those classes were.
But the students, tormented by assignments, attended in a half-dazed state.
💬 Student Whispers — Student A Assignments aren't done yet. — Student B Exam prep? What's that? — Student C Assignments aren't done... — Student D I hate the professor. Hate the professor... They resembled the undead.
If you gathered their mutterings, it could serve as a fine medium for dark magic. Their voices lacked any vitality.
All that filled those voices was despair. Groaning with despair, the students walked the hallways.
— Student E Something's up on the academic bulletin. — Student F New notice posted. Someone muttered that.
At the murmur, students gathered in front of the bulletin board with the notice.
— Class Guidance Notice Class Guidance Notice A new notice they hadn't seen before was posted there.
Class guidance notice? Was class canceled? Holding a sliver of hope, the students checked the notice.
And then.
The moment they saw the name written there, the students' faces darkened even more than before.
📋 Class Notice Mana Trading Studies (Basics) Instructor: Lania van Trias Lania van Trias.
Aphria's new nightmare.
No student didn't know her name.
There were still many suffering from her brutal assignments.
'Lania van Trias.'
Her reputation for assigning homework in a calm voice was widespread. Assignments that handled both quantity and quality surpassed even her master, Professor Rosel, in some ways.
Aphria's despair.
Seeing a notice with her name never brought good thoughts.
'What is she planning now?'
Such worries came first.
Thus, they slowly read the notice.
"Huh?"
Soon, the students' eyes widened.
"What's this?"
Someone muttered.
"This."
Someone pointed at the bulletin board.
"Isn't that the exam paper?"
Papers were posted on the bulletin board.
As many as there were students, with labels on top. The students recognized them at a glance.
"This is the midterm exam paper."
Midterm exam papers were posted on the bulletin board.
As many as there were students.
Security spells were even cast on the exam papers.
One per student, with a gag spell preventing them from divulging exam contents.
So.
These were really the midterm exam papers.
"...What the hell is this?"
Someone muttered that.
A single phrase representing all the students' minds.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Author's Note
You say there's no such professor in the world?
There is.
I wish there wasn't. :(