Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Silver Rookie Theo #7
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━Kweeeng, kweeeng
A blue bird gripped my arm and perched there, flapping its wings.
Was it because it was big enough to carry off a child by clutching their shoulder?
That flapping was more than enough to make the onlookers around us shrink back in fear.
━That thing's terrifying. Is it okay to just let a bird like that loose? Shouldn't you at least put a leash on it?
━Can you even put a leash on a bird?
━I don't know! Anyway! More importantly, who's that guy?
Their frightened gazes now turned toward me. To avoid any unnecessary commotion or rumors spreading, I decided to leave quickly.
The place my footsteps led to was the research building housing the labs of this ark's professors and instructors.
The reason, of course, was to meet Stella Bellhawk and hand over her pet, this blue hawk.
It wasn't even 6 o'clock yet, so she probably hadn't returned to her dormitory. I hurried along, but since it was my first time to the research building, finding the way wasn't easy.
So, I spoke to the blue hawk Tweety perched on my shoulder.
"Guide me to Professor Stella's lab."
━Kweeeng-!
The blue bird immediately shot up into the sky and raced off somewhere. I chased after it diligently and spotted a building overgrown with vines.
It looked as rundown as the Truth Hall dormitory where I lived. Seeing the blue hawk circling above it, that must be the place.
So, the young lady of the Bellhawk family lived here as a professor.
I pondered what to talk about when meeting Professor Bellhawk.
Should I mention that she was an elf and I was a half-nymph to find some common ground as fellow fairies?
Or perhaps chat about keeping pet birds?
Of course, I didn't keep birds myself, but I'd recently learned a bit about handling them, so conversation shouldn't be a problem.
With those thoughts, I entered the dilapidated research building.
The corridor inside was filled with dust and cobwebs, broken furniture, moldy documents, and scrolls piled up everywhere—it felt like an abandoned building.
"Is this really the right place?"
Stella von Bellhawk was a young lady of a great house, just like Aira, Elga, and Mirna.
The Bellhawk family, in particular, came from a great chieftain who united the nomadic tribes and wandering merchant caravans of the southern plains.
Rumors even said that the Bellhawks, who ran multiple trading companies, surpassed the Lioness family in sheer wealth.
It was hard to believe such a noble lady had set up residence in this rundown research building.
"There's no sign of life at all in this building."
━Kweeeng.
But the blue hawk Tweety simply sat quietly on my shoulder.
This must be it.
With that, I made my way to Room 205 on the second floor, labeled as Bellhawk's lab, clambering over old furniture and dust-covered documents.
「Professor Stella von Bellhawk's Lab」
This is it.
I knocked on the door—knock knock.
There was a rustle from inside.
"Professor Stella? Are you in?"
━No one's here.
"Then who's answering from inside? I have something to discuss."
Creak.
It was as I turned the doorknob.
━Don't open the door! You can't open the door!
A frantic voice came from inside, followed by crashing sounds—thud, bang.
A cacophony of breaking noises continued for a while, and unable to contain my curiosity, I opened the door.
I found smoke rising from dust clouds, bookshelves irregularly scattered on the floor, ancient tomes, and all sorts of junk and trash strewn about.
In the center of it all was a purple-haired elf, covered head to toe in dust, rubbing a bump on her head.
"Ugh, that hurts. I told you not to open the door."
"Sorry. I had no idea it'd be like this. What on earth happened?"
"I don't know. More importantly, why are you here? Don't you know you can't just barge into a professor's lab?"
Only then did Stella take notice of me, the visitor.
Her amber eyes quickly scanned me from head to toe, her long elf ears twitching up and down.
"Theo Gospel. Not exactly a welcome guest."
"Hello, Lady Bellhawk. I found your pet bird outside."
The blue hawk that had been on my shoulder flapped—flap, flap—and settled quietly on a horizontal torch bracket hanging from the ceiling.
Stella Bellhawk stared at it, her mouth falling open in surprise.
"Oh. You brought Tweety back? He's got a prickly personality and doesn't take to just anyone. How'd you catch him?"
"Well—."
Saying I used Angmar's magic might complicate things, so I figured it was best to gloss over it.
"Well, I've got my tricks. Anyway, what a mess in here. Want me to help clean up?"
"You'd better. This is your fault for opening the door."
In the end, I ended up helping tidy this chaotic space.
Having served as Aira and Elga's servant and handled all the dirty work, cleaning was no big deal for me.
Plus, helping out like this should naturally boost the Bellhawk lady's favor toward me, right?
* * *
Time passed.
Before long, the dusty documents, scrolls, and broken furniture were roughly cleared away, revealing the lab's original clean state.
Professor Bellhawk wiped sweat from her forehead.
"It's been ages since I saw the lab this clean. I really went all out on cleaning today."
She hadn't lifted a finger during the cleanup—why was she taking credit?
Of course, grumbling like that was for amateurs who hadn't done much servant work for ladies.
As a seasoned servant, I asked,
"Lady Bellhawk. Is there anything else I can assist with?"
"Nope. By the way, could you stop calling me Lady Bellhawk? Here, I'm just Professor Stella."
"Then I'll call you Professor Stella."
I washed a teapot at the nearby sink, boiled some tea over a small tripod and lamp, and handed it to Professor Stella.
Bubble bubble bubble.
"It's hot."
"Mmm—. Smells good."
The professor took it, nodded, and sank into her plush-looking chair.
"You brew tea well too. Ever thought about being a teaching assistant? I have a new one, but he's utterly useless."
She must mean Marmar.
"That imp?"
"Yeah. I'm writing a paper on the symbiotic relationship between imps and nymphs, so I hired him. But he's kinda off—different from your average imp, you know."
I could vaguely picture how Marmar ended up as her TA.
It hit me that she lectured on fairy studies and was an elf herself, one of the fairies.
"Professor Stella, do you happen to know anything about half-nymphs?"
"Half-nymph?"
"Yeah. Like racial traits or weaknesses unique to the species. Strengths, characteristics, that sort of thing."
"Half-nymph, huh. I think I read about them in some old paper once. But why do you ask?"
As Professor Stella questioned me, options seemed to float before my eyes.
Reveal that I was a half-nymph.
Or give a vague answer.
"Because I'm a half-nymph."
"Pffft!"
At that moment, Professor Stella spat out the tea she'd been sipping upward. Her pet blue hawk, perched above, flapped off through the open window in a panic.
But Stella didn't even care if her pet fled; she wiped her lips carelessly with a nearby scroll and asked,
"You're a half-nymph? Is that for real?"
Quite the intense reaction. Was it that shocking?
I flinched back a step, and Professor Stella shoved her chair aside, grabbed my shoulders firmly.
She was a head taller than me to begin with, so her presence was intimidating.
"Tell me the truth, quick! Is it true?!"
"Y-Yes. It is. For real."
"Oh my god, the mythical being walks right to me! The world hasn't abandoned Stella yet! No time to waste. I need samples! Sit here!"
She plopped me on an old sofa and rummaged through drawers, pulling out scissors, a syringe, a saw, and the like.
The sight was so menacing I got scared. Regretting blurting out I was a half-nymph was inevitable.
I asked,
"What is this? Is there a problem?"
"You're a half-nymph! If I can study you, figuring out how to increase nymph populations is just a matter of time! This year's paper award is mine! With the award, I'll... ."
Professor Stella trailed off, breathing heavily.
That's when I recalled: Bellhawk was the mid-boss between Act 1's Aira execution and Act 2.
Head Hunter Bellhawk. That was her nickname.
Suddenly, the stuffed specimens and samples scattered around looked downright sinister.
Rustle.
"No."
Professor Stella, gathering her tools, put them back in the drawer and shook her head.
"Laying hands on a student would make me unfit as a professor. If I get kicked out from here too, I'd really be nothing."
She let out a small sigh—haah.
I said to her,
"You really were exiled from Bellhawk Trading Company, huh?"
"Where'd you hear that?"
"I'm Angmar's scribe, remember? Lots of ears around."
Actually, from the novel.
"I heard you lost a power struggle over shares with the executives and had your qualifications stripped."
"Yeah. True. Can't go back to the family until I prove myself."
Ah, so that's why she was after the paper award or whatever.
I didn't know exactly what it was, but "this year's paper award" sounded prestigious and important.
"So you want to write a paper on half-nymphs?"
"Yeah. But using a student as a research subject without academy approval is taboo—could go to the ethics committee. I'm on my second yellow card. One more warning, and I'm out of here too."
"What if the student consents?"
"Consents? You're saying you'll do it?"
Professor Stella's eyes lit up.
Beyond lit—glinting menacingly, sending chills down my spine—but I pushed through the fear.
"On one condition. Promise me an A in the class you're teaching. And we meet here in the lab once a week."
"Thanks!"
Professor Stella pulled me into a tight hug.
Being a head taller, my face ended up buried in the chest trapped within her tank top.
Squish, squish.
So soft and plush, with a tangy wine scent. Had she already started some half-fairy response experiment on women's breasts?
Someone knocked on the professor's door then—knock knock.
━Professor Stella. It's time for your promised meeting. You need to head to the conference room.
"Look at me, spacing out. I'm swamped today. We'll continue next time. I'll contact you first via Tweety. Got it? And take this as a gift! Blue hawk feather! High-grade material!"
Stella grabbed her things and dashed out the door.
What just happened.
A bit disorienting, but making a connection with the Bellhawk family was a good thing.
Things went better than expected—almost felt like falling into a trap?
Pondering how to subjugate this free-spirited lady and use her for family revival, I felt my Angmar generator swelling grandly.