Take the Auction to the Auction House
Take the Auction to the Auction House
The relationship between Duke Kleis Haspelt and Second Prince Clion Philiut had unintentionally soured into a fated adversarial bond.
According to the contract, Kleis was supposed to receive 30,000 Gold Coins from Clion and sell Aether off. Up to that point, there hadn't been a problem.
The problem was Aether's admission to Tillet. Where she even heard about it, she didn't know, but her assistant, unwilling to be sold off to the prince, had smashed through the academy's main gate to enroll, and as a result, everything had gone down the drain.
It was an unprecedented situation. The prince believed Kleis had broken the contract to humiliate him. It was a clear misunderstanding, but there was no way the prince would listen to her.
In the end, Kleis had effectively lost both the slave and the gold. As things stood, there was only one course of action left for her.
To somehow get just Aether back under her control.
It was practically impossible to revert to the old master-slave relationship. With the skills that had placed second in the entrance exam, even a member of the Gold-Eye Tribe weak in practicals would have no trouble graduating. The prince didn't seem to realize that.
There was no need to poke a sleeping dragon. Kleis decided to treat Aether with a calm face, just as she did with other undergraduates. If she could resolve the ill feelings and seek cooperation, she figured she could use Aether as a graduate student again.
Kleis had exploited Aether for three years. Graduating from the academy took four years. She could certainly change Aether's perception during that time.
"Basic Fire Magic is a subject that combines theory and practice. Therefore, I need a teaching assistant to help me. Is there anyone willing to volunteer?"
She could fabricate any justification she wanted. Kleis looked down at Aether sitting right in front of her, applying silent pressure.
Actually, calling it pressure was a bit much, as Aether had once again taken the front-most seat today, just as she had yesterday. Contrary to what Kleis had thought, it seemed Aether didn't harbor any ill feelings toward her.
At least, that was how it felt to Kleis.
"Right. How about Miss Aether gives it a try?"
Until the girl opened her mouth.
"I refuse."
Hearing this, Kleis realized her calculations had gone awry.
It wasn't a roundabout refusal, but a direct one.
As expected, the resentment remained. To persuade her properly, Kleis would have to offer tighter conditions.
Kleis knew from a previous conversation that Clion intended to get Aether expelled from the academy. If Aether got swept up in Clion's intentions, his words would become reality.
'If I can't receive research funding, I have to at least finish Flare and end it.'
Thus, she had to stop Clion by any means necessary. Kleis felt she no longer needed to explain her innocence to the prince.
First, she decided to dangle the first bait.
"Unlike the temporary class representative, a teaching assistant is a semester-long position. Naturally, there is compensation."
At this, another student showed interest.
"How much is it?"
Let's start with a low figure.
"I'm thinking around five Donghwa per month. Since it's not a difficult job."
At this, most of the class clicked their tongues. It wasn't worth it.
Most of the academy's entrants were nobles. Five Donghwa was pocket change they could borrow from their parents.
It was time to raise the price.
"Alright. Then I'll adjust it to between one and three Silver Coins. You'll just need to help carry teaching materials or assist with practicals. If necessary, I can even contact the school to draw up a contract for you."
Writing a contract between a student and a teacher—how distrustful must a relationship be for such a suggestion to arise?
However, this remark wasn't aimed at the other students.
"Although you'll be learning about Fire Magic, the basics involve using scrolls to apply theory to practice. It doesn't matter which spirit's blessing you have. Rather, I'd prefer a student who excels in written exams over practicals to be the teaching assistant. Let me ask again. I'd like Miss Aether, who entered with a perfect score on the written exam, to do it. What do you think?"
It was the very beginning of the semester, when students didn't even know each other well yet. It was far too early for the class to concern themselves with such things.
From the other students' perspective, it didn't matter who it was. As long as they didn't have to take on the annoying task themselves, that was enough.
Therefore, there were no objections.
"Do you think that makes any sense right now?"
Except for exactly one person.
"Be that as it may, does it make any sense to entrust a teaching assistant position to a member of the Gold-Eye Tribe who can't cast a single simple spell without a Mana Cigarette?"
Second Prince Clion. He was the one trying to expel Aether from the academy by any means necessary.
His ulterior motives were obvious. This much had been expected.
It was then that Aether, who had been looking back and forth between Kleis and Clion, opened her mouth with a serene smile.
"If all my classmates don't agree, I think it'll be difficult for me to do the teaching assistant work. A class is, after all, something we take together. A class with complaints can't be called perfect, can it?"
At this, Clion's lips stretched from ear to ear.
"See? Even the Gold-Eye Tribe knows her place. It's unsightly for Professor Haspelt to unilaterally appoint a teaching assistant without considering the students' collective will, and to go so far as to try and buy a specific student with sums of Silver Coins."
This was bad. At this rate, things would proceed according to the prince's will. For the sake of Flare's development, she had to keep Aether under her heel by any means necessary.
While she was momentarily caught off guard, the prince added another stroke.
"Anyone will do! If there is a student who will take Professor Haspelt's teaching assistant position instead of that member of the Gold-Eye Tribe, I will personally pay a monthly salary of five Gold Coins!"
It was an unprecedented offer. Forget Donghwa or Silver Coins; five Gold Coins was a sum that even a noble couldn't help but be tempted by.
"If His Highness the Prince says so...."
"Seems alright?"
Here and there, the number of volunteers increased.
She couldn't let herself be pushed around at the prince's pace like this.
"Miss Aether, how about eight Gold Coins? If you accept, I'll appoint you right away."
Kleis also raised the amount she was offering Aether. Research funds were always scarce, but she was a duke in name—surely she had that much money.
Flare. If she could just complete Flare, the state would support her again. She just had to endure and wait until then.
"Ten Coins! If you take the teaching assistant position instead of that member of the Gold-Eye Tribe, I will bestow ten Gold Coins!"
"Miss Aether, I'll raise it a bit more. How about twelve Gold Coins?"
"Ha, this is sickening. Fine. Fifteen!"
It was clear they'd remain at a standstill if this continued. Eventually, Clion went so far as to make a direct deal to Kleis.
"Very well, Professor Haspelt. I am well aware of your financial situation. I will put a hundred Gold Coins in your pocket each month, so how about you pick another student?"
A hundred? Kleis scoffed at the words.
It wasn't 30,000, it was a mere hundred. Unlike commoners, nobles played with money differently.
Unlike the first time a price had been called for Aether, Aether Co.'s market value had already dropped to one percent of its former level. Unless they were offering Gold Coins in units of ten thousands like before, she would be hard to satisfy.
'The water's already been spilled, anyway.'
Aether's enrollment was reality. She hadn't wanted to admit it at first, but Kleis had reached a state of mental victory, convincing herself that her assistant attending school as a student was also a decent outcome in its own way.
─ Think about it, Kleis. If Aether gets a proper education and becomes a Combat Mage, she could not only do research with you but also become a soldier who fends off magic beasts directly. It's twice as good, so why are you so fixated on keeping her as a slave?
To be exact, it was because she had been incessantly subjected to a month's worth of persuasion—bordering on brainwashing—by a fellow professor.
They say a misfortune turns into a blessing, was it?
If last time was a good high point to sell....
'This is the low point.'
And so, she deliberately undertook an aggressive investment.
"Twenty Gold Coins."
Kleis's gaze as she looked at Aether was more earnest than ever. It was like the expression of someone trying to buy a stock expecting a sharp rise.
**
What a goddamn mess.
I'd planned to use their adversarial relationship to pit Professor Haspelt and the Second Prince against each other somehow... but things had gone off in a moronic direction.
"I'll give ten Gold Coins!"
"I'll raise it a bit more. How about twelve?"
"This is sickening. Fine. Fifteen!"
[Please, take your bidding to the auction house.]
Thanks to this, only the expressions of the students—including mine—became dumbfounded. Even Rote sitting right next to me had a face that completely failed to understand what was going on.
Of course. This was a situation that could only be understood if one fully knew the relationship between me, Haspelt, and the Philiut prince.
[This doesn't seem like it's going to end. Class time's going to run out at this rate.]
My thoughts exactly.
Time, as they say, is gold. This farce didn't seem likely to end unless I completely sided with one of them.
The prince, or Professor Haspelt.
I hated both.
Now, I had to think. Why was Professor Haspelt, who had tried to sell me off to the prince not long ago, suddenly reacting like this?
The professor and the prince had made a deal, and it had all fallen through because of my actions. I had enrolled in the academy, but knowing the prince's personality, he would have held Professor Haspelt responsible.
Anyway, from the professor's perspective, it was as good as having lost both me and the money.
[So that's it. Since she can't get the money, she's clearly scheming to keep you tied down under her somehow.]
It's universally common for professors to be nice to undergrads and then flip once they reach grad school.
Simply put, it was an appeasement strategy. Since the stick didn't work, she was offering a carrot. I had understood what she wanted from the start.
"Very well, Professor Haspelt. I'll give you a hundred Gold Coins each month, so how about you pick another child instead?"
The prince's offer wasn't attractive. At least, not compared to 30,000 Gold Coins. A mere hundred Gold Coins a month? That was the kind of money nobles casually threw around when bored.
The way the prince was naming a salary for Haspelt like that also had another intention behind it. It showed just how little he thought of her worth.
On the other hand, from Haspelt's perspective, she could afford to be relaxed since she'd be at the same academy as me for at least another four years. She was probably planning to put on a mask and be nice to me during that time.
She'd probably sweet-talk me and then trap me into a third graduate school run. Obviously, I'd have to notice and bolt when the time came.
"We need to proceed with the lesson, so I can't drag this out any longer. Student Aether, I will leave the choice to you. I will give you 25 Gold Coins."
Well, of course. It was about time I gave an answer. I knew the professor's short temper better than anyone.
Just then, a nice plan crossed my mind. It was a groundbreaking way to screw over both of them.
At Professor Haspelt's urging, I opened my mouth.