Chapter 69
Chapter 69
‘Just as I thought, things are unfolding much like the scenario.’
I clicked my tongue.
The problem was that the class for <Understanding the Basics of Magic> had been split in two.
It had spiraled into a contest of pride between the two factions, leading to all kinds of overheated competition.
‘The Raphalt Ducal faction putting Baron Aiden forward, and an inspection team coming from another academy—it’s all following a similar pattern.’
The one thing that was different was that I had become the representative of the faction supporting Director Karak.
‘…But this isn’t really going to follow the scenario to the letter, is it? If it does, then the Raphalt Ducal faction won’t be the problem, will it?’
As I recalled the “ending” of this factional-conflict episode, a cold sweat broke out across my skin.
In this episode, the Raphalt Ducal faction was only a fake boss.
There was a real boss lurking elsewhere.
‘It won’t come to that. The conditions aren’t right yet.’
At first glance, the situation seemed similar, but it was entirely different from the scenario.
The same incident couldn’t happen.
‘…Still, it’d be better to prepare, wouldn’t it? A demon won’t suddenly barge in like it did during that “Catastrophe,” but who knows what other unexpected disaster might happen. Damn it.’
After getting caught up in one bizarre incident after another, I could feel myself growing more and more pessimistic.
“Everything will be fine~”—yeah, right.
All that kept coming to mind were ominous thoughts.
‘For now, I’ll put that matter aside and prepare for my lecture. My opponent is Baron Aiden, after all.’
Baron Aiden.
He had the presence of an extra, but he wasn’t someone to take lightly.
He was an A-fessor, no less.
If you measured teaching ability in Levels, he had risen to the ranks of Superpowerhouses—almost on par with a Level Seven Master.
He was so good that his nickname at the Academy was the “Wizard of Lectures.”
No matter how difficult the material, if Aiden taught it, it sank right into your ears.
‘His teaching ability is far superior to mine. Of course, it’s not as if I’m bad at speaking, but teaching isn’t my specialty.’
In fact, even in the original scenario, the professor from Director Karak’s faction was thoroughly outclassed by Baron Aiden.
‘And that ends up being what sets off the Catastrophe.’
I needed a clever solution.
Just then, the door to the back room… no, the research room opened, and Hans and Linden came in.
Their hands were laden with boxes.
“This Hans has carried out the young master’s orders successfully, even at the risk of his life!”
“…Come on, mister. Don’t make such a big deal out of bringing Magical Supplies from the storeroom. Anyway, why did you ask us to bring all these materials? Are you planning to make an artifact or something?”
The two of them tilted their heads.
“I’m preparing for my lecture.”
“…With these? The class you’re teaching is <Understanding the Basics of Magic>, isn’t it? The required course for everyone? Do you really need to prepare this much?”
The required course was for all First-Year Students.
Everyone took it—not just the Magic Faculty, but the Knight Faculty, Humanities Faculty, and Support Faculty as well.
The class was meant to help them understand the basics of magic, so there wasn’t any need to prepare particularly advanced material, but—
“Do you know how difficult and profound the basics are?”
“…Pardon?”
Some might call the basics of magic simple material, but they couldn’t have been more wrong.
The basics were more profound and difficult to grasp than anything else.
“I read the textbook, and I was appalled.”
I tossed the existing textbook onto the desk with a smack.
“With a textbook this shoddy, it’s impossible to teach the basics of magic ‘properly.’ I intend to prepare the correct material myself and teach them the fundamentals the way they should be taught.”
“……”
The two of them were left speechless, and I let out a quiet sigh.
‘I didn’t realize I was this much of a perfectionist, either.’
The moment I opened the student textbook, this was the thought that came to me.
‘What is this trash?’
It was a famous textbook written by a distinguished scholar of magical studies from the Magic Tower.
It was even used by all Four Great Academies.
And in fact, the contents were substantial.
‘On the surface.’
‘How is this the basics of magic? It’d make more sense as an encyclopedia of miscellaneous magical knowledge.’
The Grandmaster’s instincts recoiled violently, and I made up my mind.
I would teach the fundamentals properly, in my own way, in keeping with the class’s objective.
‘There’s no way I can beat Baron Aiden with an ordinary lecture.’
Even if my lecture happened to be on par with Baron Aiden’s, could I win?
Absolutely not.
They’d pick it apart over every little thing, and I’d end up losing anyway.
There was only one way.
‘I have to overwhelm him in terms of content.’
There was, however, a problem with that approach.
“Um… Senior Ban. Are you sure this is all right? I hate to say it, but your teachings are too profound. They’re hard to understand. To be honest, even I, one of the top students among the graduates, often have trouble understanding you.”
“You insolent boy, Linden! Are you saying the young master’s teachings are flawed?! This is all because Lord Ban’s radiance is simply too dazzling. The First-Year Student youngsters might be blinded by it and turn into complete fools, so perhaps you could lower the brilliance just a little?”
They had a point.
“I understand what both of you are worried about.”
“…Then, will you just play it safe and use the existing textbook?”
“No. I can’t bring myself to teach such trash. It would weigh on the conscience of Ban Ecclesia.”
“I’m telling you, no one’s going to understand it!”
“Don’t worry. I have a plan.”
Hans and Linden looked at each other, and I lifted the corners of my mouth.
“I’m actually worried about the opposite. What if my lectures are so outstanding that I become an L-fessor, surpassing even S-fessors and Ex-fessors?”
The two of them looked taken aback.
It was because of the word “L-fessor” I had just brought up.
The Ministry of Education evaluates professors’ teaching ability on a scale from F to A.
Professors who repeatedly receive an F are dismissed, whatever the reason, while professors with an A are called A-fessors and treated with respect.
Among them, an S-fessor is a special honorary rank awarded when a professor receives perfect marks in every category of the Ministry of Education’s teaching evaluations.
Even at the Four Great Academies, they are extremely rare, and Rubines has not a single S-fessor.
But there are people who surpass even S-fessors. They are Ex-fessors.
An awe-inspiring rank given only to monstrous professors who go beyond perfect scores and cannot be evaluated by the existing standards.
They are great, renowned professors, of whom only a few appear in an entire generation across all the academies.
Then what is an L-fessor?
Literally, a legend.
It is short for Legend-fessor.
The term refers to a peerless professor who will remain a legend in the academic world, evaluation standards or anything else be damned.
If my lectures are recognized for their true worth, I really might become a Legend-fessor. Ah, but becoming that famous would be a problem.
Linden and Hans looked at me as if to say, Even if it is you, young master, that’s a bit of a delusion…. But the two of them would soon find out.
That I was genuinely worried.
Some time had passed since the new academic year began, and spring had brought a languid air to the Academy grounds.
The First-Year Students were gradually getting used to the Academy. That was when the Academy suddenly began to grow noisy.
“Is today finally Professor Ban the Trash’s first lecture?”
“Shh, isn’t it a bit much to call him Ban the Trash now? He even defeated Puppet. And he used a Self-Sacrifice Spell for the students, too.”
“Ah, right. I’ve gotten so used to it that I misspoke. He’s not Ban the Trash anymore.”
The student awkwardly admitted to his slip of the tongue.
It was a scene that showed just how much Ban’s reputation had improved.
That did not mean, however, that the students had come to accept Ban completely.
For the most part, their opinion of him went something like this:
“He may not be Ban the Trash anymore, but I wonder if he really has what it takes to be a professor.”
“Exactly. He’s still only a Temporary Professor, yet he’s been put in charge of a class all by himself. Isn’t that too much special treatment?”
“We’ll find out when we hear him today. It’s finally his first lecture.”
They no longer thought he was trash, but they were still full of distrust.
“I wish I’d been assigned to Class One, too. I heard Baron Aiden’s lectures are so popular you can’t get into them even if you want to.”
“You might not be able to take Professor Ban’s lectures for much longer, either. This could be his last one.”
“Maybe he’ll get kicked out partway through and they’ll merge his class with Baron Aiden’s?”
“Ah, I hope so. I’ll go straight to the Mirror Board after class and leave a scathing review.”
“We’re late. Hurry up and get inside.”
The students streamed into the lecture hall. The grounds grew quiet again.
“Hey, what are you doing? Why aren’t you going?”
“…I’m wondering how to get rid of those guys who were just talking. No—how to teach them a lesson. I’ll make sure they pay for it. If I kill them or cripple them, Professor Ban won’t like it, so…”
“You know, skulking around and saying stuff like that behind their backs makes you look really pathetic, right? What are you, a second-year middle-schooler with his angst turned up to eleven? You don’t happen to have a Black Flame Dragon living in your wrist, do you?”
Katrinne casually brushed off Libel’s chilling threat.
“I-I’m in Class One. I… envy you. I really wanted to hear… Professor Ban’s… lecture.”
“Envy my ass.”
“Then switch with me…!”
“Why would I? No.”
“…I hate you.”
“Same here.”
They were both friendless loners.
With no one else to spend time with, they stuck together out of necessity, but they disliked each other and snarled at one another whenever they got the chance.
“…I-I’m entrusting Professor Ban’s lecture to you.”
“Entrusting it to me? What are you talking about? Work is work, and personal matters are personal. If the lecture’s no good, I’ll give it an honest F in the evaluation.”
“If anyone shows disrespect during Professor Ban’s lecture, I’ll make them pay—”
“Ah, put the Black Flame Dragon away already, and get your ass over to Class One!”
Katrinne, left alone, let out a heavy sigh.
She pretended otherwise, but truthfully, she was concerned about Ban’s lecture, too.
…Something feels wrong.
It wasn’t because she distrusted Ban like the other students did.
Quite the opposite.
…I feel like it’ll be so advanced I won’t understand a thing.
It was a concern much like the one Linden and Hans had voiced.
If it really is that bad, I’ll have to point it out to him afterward. Not that I’m worried about Professor Ban or anything. If the lecture is too awful, it’ll be a loss for me, as one of the students taking it.
When she entered the lecture hall, it was in a state of commotion.
There were four hundred First-Year Students in total.
Half of them—two hundred students—were seated in the lecture hall.
They all had faces full of anticipation and curiosity about just how terrible Ban’s lecture would be, and Katrinne found herself frowning without even realizing it.
Professor Ban can be annoying, but that doesn’t mean you lot get to look down on him. If anything, his being excessively brilliant is the problem.
It wasn’t that she was taking Ban’s side or anything.
But she didn’t like the atmosphere in the lecture hall, and the thought came to her anyway.
I hoped Ban would give a spectacular lecture and knock the pride out of the students here.
…Of course, that would be asking too much this time.
And then.
“Good to see you all. I’m Ban Ecclesia.”