Chapter 70: Slaves (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 70: Slaves (1)
The curriculum at Joaquin Academy spans three years.
Three years. Some had raised doubts about that timeframe.
“You know there have always been voices questioning if ‘a mere’ three years would really be enough, right?”
“Yeah.”
But the world of heroes was perpetually plagued by manpower shortages. Heroes frequently died fighting demons, while many others, intoxicated by power, forgot their true duty.
That was the state of affairs.
Was there any clever alternative? Not particularly.
Thus, Joaquin had no choice but to send young heroes barely out of their teens into society.
Naturally, the side effects fell upon the academy, which bore the blame for turning half-baked amateurs loose on the world.
Though things had improved significantly, Joaquin graduates who caused trouble were still a dime a dozen.
“Even so...!”
Choi Seol-ah rose up in protest.
“...How could you come up with such a cruel idea?!”
Most unexpectedly, Choi Seol-ah possessed a master’s degree.
As it turned out, getting hired as an academy instructor required submitting a thesis in pedagogy.
Choi Seol-ah argued at the top of her lungs: that graduate school was a den of monsters far worse than the Demon Realm. As melodramatic as Choi Seol-ah usually was, those words were genuine.
“Graduate school is a modern-day slave factory!”
Episode: Slaves
Ryozo, who had put Choi Seol-ah in punishment stance, spoke up.
“Joaquin grades purely on practical skills. Maybe that’s why there seem to be so many airheads around.”
To clarify her potentially controversial remark: the "airheads" she so bluntly referred to were the students who still hadn't shed their aristocratic sense of superiority.
In practical performance, genetics exerted an overwhelming influence. As long as that dynamic remained unchanged, the elitism deeply rooted in this world would persist.
“So while you were away, Geomma, I discussed it with Vixbig and Abel.”
That damn AI.
The artificial intelligence poisoned the well.
“We thought it’d be good to have a higher education institution above the academy. Graduate school came to mind immediately. Since it’s graduate school, written academics will play a bigger role.”
At Joaquin Academy, the Principal holds immense power. Even more so now that the Council of Elders has lost its function.
Therefore, even if the current Principal's personal inclinations were fully reflected, there was no organization or body to check her power.
To add context, Ryozo was an Armageddon-level genius who had never once lost the top written exam rank during her three years as a cadet. I felt her personal tendencies strongly influenced this decision.
“Even after graduating, there’s a job shortage these days.”
Ryozo said, gazing out the double-paned window. She hooked her index finger between the stacked blinds and lifted them slightly. A precise slice of sunlight fell across her face.
“Joaquin needs to change now.”
She exuded a mastermind vibe...
“Instead of being a one-trick pony educational institution that only pumps out heroes, it should nurture true educators.”
A triumphant smile curled the corners of Ryozo’s lips. Choi Seol-ah barged back into the conversation, her arms still pinned straight up against her ears.
“There will be massive outcry from everyone inside!”
“I didn't see any.”
Click. Ryozo released the blinds.
“I asked the professors, and they welcomed it with open arms.”
“That’s because those people are the ones exploiting everyone else! You should have asked the ins—instructors! Your poll is completely biased!”
“The instructors all happened to be busy.”
“Wow... Principal, you’re unbelievable.”
“Anyway, internal discussions are pretty much wrapped up.”
“Not at all! They’re not wrapped up at all!”
Choi Seol-ah pleaded on behalf of a certain aggrieved group.
“Are you going to keep interrupting? Do you want to go back to graduate school?”
It didn't work on Ryozo at all, though.
“Cruel woman.”
Choi Seol-ah wiped away a tear while serving her punishment. Confirmed: graduate school is her weakness and her trigger button.
“Internally, the discussions are mostly finalized.”
Ryozo rested her chin on her hand at her desk, twirling a ballpoint pen between her fingers. Having quietly listened, I asked,
“So we can just proceed right away?”
“Establishing a new educational institution isn't that simple. Realistically, there are at least two urgent problems we need to solve. At a minimum.”
First was the opinion of the current students.
There was always the risk that no one would be interested after setting it up. Since graduate school is an extension of academy education, the cadets' public opinion mattered most. They were the target demographic, after all.
Second was the money problem.
As the top educational institution, Joaquin Academy utilized its vast grounds to the absolute limit. Thus, securing new land would incur astronomical costs, which tuition fees alone barely covered.
“Don’t misunderstand me, Geomma.”
Ryozo lowered her gaze.
“...Truth is, when it comes to the budget issue, the biggest factor is the Special Admission Students.”
“Ah.”
“After all, Special Admission Students pay less tuition compared to cadets from noble backgrounds. When I took office as Principal and went over the ledgers, I saw the budget had been tightly managed ever since the previous Principal.”
“And the number of Special Admission Students has been steadily increasing over the past ten years.”
“Yeah.”
Ryozo sighed as she spoke.
“And increasing the budget out of my own pocket violates regulations... Unless we get sponsorships from somewhere. But noble sentiment toward Joaquin has been negative lately, so there’s no suitable sponsor willing to readily invest such a large sum.”
“What about the G.M Foundation?”
“Can’t use that either. It was recently revealed to be your private foundation, Geomma. If my own money as Principal is off-limits, we certainly can’t pull funds from your foundation when you’re my spouse.”
I scratched the back of my head. Grown-up affairs are never easy, are they?
Ryozo gave a faint smile and approached me, leaning her head on my shoulder.
“Still, thanks for offering. I can rely on you.”
“Excuse me? There’s a person here, you know!”
Choi Seol-ah stuck out her tongue in disgust. Ryozo snapped at her with an icy glare.
“Instructor Kim, get out.”
“...I didn't really do anything wrong—”
I chimed in.
“Graduate school?”
“S-Spare me!”
“Works like a charm.”
Right before Choi Seol-ah crawled out of the Principal's office:
“You two!”
Refusing to leave empty-handed, she pointed an accusing finger at us.
“Don’t do anything weird in the Principal's office!”
“...”
“...”
It was Ryozo who broke the silence.
“A secretary salary of 5 million is a bit much, isn't it?”
“Definitely.”
“2 million sounds better.”
“Yeah.”
A cozy atmosphere bloomed between us.
While a rare warmth bloomed,
Now I'm actually a bit curious.
What on earth is graduate school that someone as brazen as Choi Seol-ah recoils in utter horror?
I should ask Yoo Se-in.
The status of graduate school in this world is probably different from Earth's. Therefore, Yoo Se-in, who knows the point of comparison, is the right person to ask.
Okay. Afternoon plans set.
Now, it was time to ease Ryozo's worries a little. Since I was a lousy husband who was away so often, I needed to score points whenever I could.
“You know how I went on that business trip recently?”
I brought out my trump card.
“I think I can solve the money problem with that.”
Time to rob the Emperor's wallet. The East India Company's market capitalization alone was in the quadrillions, so leeching a few hundred billion wouldn't even register.
...Would it register? Whatever.
If you cross me, you pay the price.
* * *
As soon as my date with Ryozo ended, I paid Yoo Se-in a visit.
At a luxurious apartment building near the academy, I passed Priest Welter (who had been reduced to Yoo Se-in's slave...), who was busy sorting recyclables in a corner.
How can a person's eyes look so sorrowful?
A sense of déjà vu washed over me. A similar emotion had occasionally flickered in Choi Seol-ah's eyes whenever she freaked out at the word "graduate school."
Yoo Se-in's home had an unexpected visitor—a sleek PlXyStXtion 5 Pro flexing its smooth silhouette beneath a massive TV. It was a luxury item priced at a crazy ten million won because the manufacturer had lost their mind.
Yoo Se-in was sitting on the sofa, completely absorbed in playing a game.
Normally she would pretend not to see me when I dropped by, but today was extreme. At this rate, she was going to get sucked into the screen. Being a possessor myself, I knew the feeling all too well.
Unplug.
So I yanked out the power cord.
“Ahhh—!”
Yoo Se-in bit back immediately.
“Excuse me, Heavenly Sword-nim. May I hurl severe profanities at you?”
“Be my guest. But in return, that console and my Sashimi will be going on a blind date.”
“Did you lose your mind after visiting the Emperor?”
“I was always like this. Besides, Abel and Ryozo bought that for you anyway. Meanwhile, the academy is struggling with budget issues.”
Tsk.
Yoo Se-in clicked her tongue, but adjusted her posture to face me.
Everyone has a clear weakness.
Choi Seol-ah’s was graduate school; Yoo Se-in’s was video games.
Ten million won was too large a sum to just brush off. Any human being would feel a pang of conscience.
Furthermore, despite terrible reviews, that console was selling like hotcakes. It was a rare commodity that sold out in the blink of an eye, so if I sliced it in half, she wouldn't be able to replace it for months.
“I’m ready.”
Only after Yoo Se-in set down her controller like a precious relic did I explain the situation step by step.
Yoo Se-in listened silently. Her unusually serious demeanor made me, the speaker, feel nervous.
A moment later, Yoo Se-in voiced her opinion.
“Are you insane?”
Strongly.
“Establishing a graduate school?”
“Yeah.”
“You really are insane.”
Was this really something to react so intensely to?
“What is graduate school that everyone’s acting like this?”
“I mean, how can you not know what kind of place graduate school is?”
“I only finished elementary school in my past life.”
I had academic issues. I dropped out of middle school.
“...Ah. Right.”
“Don’t pity me. What about you, Yoo Se-in? Did you ever step foot inside a graduate school?”
“What are you talking about? I finished a doctoral program.”
I blinked.
What is this feeling of betrayal?
“You’re not lying just because it was your past life, right?”
“If you want, I can reprint my dissertation right here. It’s all in my head.”
“Your major?”
“Mechanical Engineering. I was an engineering goddess.”
I wanted to retort that I was an actual god, but...
Even I thought that sounded too pathetic, so I held back.
“...”
“Anyway, I get the intent behind it. It doesn’t seem like a bad idea. Besides, Ryozo’s the one doing it. She must have her reasons.”
Aside from her positive stance, Yoo Se-in emphasized once more:
“Still, that doesn't change the fact that graduate school is a den of evil.”
“Got it. Stop talking about it.”
“By the way, if you want to establish a graduate school, there’s something more important than money.”
“Knowledge.”
Yoo Se-in poked my forehead.
“Even if you have enough faculty, the level of a graduate curriculum has to be completely different. You need that level of knowledge. That’s an asset money can’t buy, nor can it be easily acquired. If the quality, quantity, or standard falls short, you’ll get stuck at the very first hurdle: convincing the cadets.”
“Knowledge...”
Feeling the weight of the word.
I raised my eyes, meeting Yoo Se-in’s half-lidded, skeptical gaze.
“I think it’s possible.”
When I spoke with certainty, Yoo Se-in looked at me as if I were insane.
I was used to being treated like this. Tragic.
Ignoring her, I fumbled for my phone and placed a call.
—This is the Imperial Household Agency.
“Tell the Emperor.”
To think I'd be contacting this guy after just three days.
“I’m collecting on our deal. Right now.”
—...Pardon?
I could feel Garyeon’s dubiousness through the receiver.