Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Magic Tower Genius Hides Physics
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The next day after the general assembly.
I muttered the moment I opened my eyes.
"I'm screwed."
My plan had gone completely, utterly off the rails.
Until now, I'd thought I could keep hiding in plain sight somehow.
The goal was to tone down my presence, solve the occasional minor issue, and just live quietly...
Yesterday's wave experiment had been a massive mistake.
The elf dean's words echoed in my ears.
-'Looks like we'll have to rewrite all the university textbooks. I've got my work cut out for me.'
Now, in this world, I, Isaac Uphills, was the discoverer of the 'wave interference' phenomenon.
This is bad, really bad...
I'd always known something like this might happen someday, but I never imagined it would be less than a month after enrollment.
What happens now?
'If they ever find out I'm not from this world...'
A chilling thought flashed through my mind.
The empire, being a wartime nation, wouldn't just let a freak case like me slide.
They might dissect me, analyze me, leave just my brain, and turn me into an eternal magic-research machine.
No way in hell am I becoming a brain-in-a-jar guinea pig.
I called out to my roommate.
"Liam."
"Yeah? What's up?"
I swallowed hard and asked.
"Any ghost stories about the Magic Tower? Like, say, sealing away great mages from the past alive and trotting them out whenever the empire's in a bind?"
"Oh, that one?"
"..."
For a moment, words failed me.
Oh, that one?
'Like it's no big deal...'
"They say when the northern front's pushed to the brink, they briefly wake the sealed tower deans."
"...You're saying that's actually real?"
Liam chuckled.
"Real? Sealing magic went out of style in ancient times."
"..."
You were messing with me, Liam.
"Don't buy into dumb rumors. We just do our jobs."
"...Hold on. What'd you say?"
"We just do our jobs..."
"No, before that."
"Don't buy into dumb rumors."
"...So there are rumors going around?"
"Ignore them. If every legend were true, the tooth fairy'd be real too."
"..."
It could be true.
The empire's a wartime state.
Rumors in a wartime state aren't easy to dismiss as ghost stories.
Is there really a brain-in-a-jar...?
"...Better safe than sorry."
Liam tilted his head at my words.
"You heard me, right, Isaac?"
Liam's words didn't register.
'Time to change strategies.'
I need to actively secure my safety.
Of course, I'm relatively safe now.
Mages are quasi-nobles, after all.
But that's not enough.
What if I became a lord?
If I became a real noble with a territory and my own standing army to protect me, that'd help a lot.
But how?
'To get a territory, I need achievements...'
Chasing that kind of fame could put my safety at risk.
But without achievements, I can't become a lord.
'This is totally... like trying to marry into Bill Gates' family...'
All the complicated thinking made me hungry.
Food first.
I asked Liam.
"Liam, you eating breakfast today?"
"Nah, I've got assignments due by noon..."
"Ah."
Poor grad student...
Skipping meals and all.
Magic Tower first-floor cafeteria.
The grad student who'd pulled an all-nighter on assignments wouldn't know, but yesterday's assembly had shaken the tower.
Anna, set to graduate with her master's next year, was hugely interested in the rumors.
She asked her friend.
"Heard about yesterday's assembly? Some freshman did something big."
"What'd he do?"
"Not sure on details. Just that it was amazing. I only heard through a friend."
"...What the hell is that?"
Regular grad students didn't know the full truth of yesterday's events.
The 'wave experiment' results had been kept secret among the professors.
"Another gag order, huh."
"Tower's always like that."
Anna's friend asked her.
"What's the freshman's name?"
"Isaac Uphills."
"...Sounds familiar."
"The newbie from the school that solved the bell tower commission."
"Oh, that guy."
The rumors had circulated a few times already.
Assigned to the third floor right after enrollment...
Helped a senior solve the infamous 'bell tower issue'...
Anna muttered.
"Wish I had a junior like that. Could squeeze in some assignment help..."
"...Do it yourself."
"What's he look like?"
"No turtle neck, no rounded shoulders. Black hair."
"A grad student without a turtle neck? Bull."
"...Not bull. Check behind you."
"Behind?"
She turned, and there it was—'that thing.' A grad student without a turtle neck or rounded shoulders.
Isaac Uphills.
"That's him."
"Yeah."
"Doesn't look the studious type."
"...Kinda, yeah."
"No glasses either."
"Right."
Starting with the two, the cafeteria's eyes gradually turned to Isaac.
Other students began whispering among themselves.
"That's him, right? Isaac."
"The third-floor guy?"
"Who's Isaac?"
"You know... the rumor guy..."
The whispers were loud enough.
By now, Isaac should've heard, but...
He started eating alone at an isolated table without a word.
Watching, Anna asked her friend.
"Which school is that kid from?"
"Magic Survey School."
"...Dolloren's place?"
"Yeah."
"His advising prof's gone AWOL indefinitely..."
The Magic Survey School had only one professor-level: Dolloren.
Without her, who did her grad students take classes from...?
Anna's friend answered.
"Usually, they take other profs' classes to fill credits."
"...Ah."
So the freshman in question would be taking classes from other schools too.
She said.
"Should we invite him over?"
"...Do your own assignments, please."
"What's wrong with getting some help this time..."
Then.
Clack, clack.
A student with a tray walked up to Isaac.
"...Not just me thinking that."
"Who's she?"
"Gwendolyn Everglow."
The freshman who'd drawn the most attention before Isaac rumors.
Gwendolyn Everglow.
Sole heir of a prestigious family, never lost top spot in undergrad.
The polar opposite of Isaac, the genius dropped from the sky.
Isaac and Gwendolyn's eyes met.
Gwendolyn said to Isaac.
"Mind if I sit?"
"Seat's empty."
"Then, excuse me."
Gwendolyn took the seat across from him.
"You're Isaac Uphills, right?"
"Yes. What do you want?"
"I heard through professors. Your experiment at yesterday's assembly was impressive."
The table around them went quiet.
Probably to confirm the assembly truth.
"...Let's not talk about that."
Everyone, including Gwendolyn, looked puzzled at his response.
Moments later, Gwendolyn spoke.
"By the way, your advisor's on indefinite assignment, right?"
"Yes."
"Perfect timing. There's one spot left in this year's 'Advanced Magic Structure' special lecture. Interested?"
Quiet gasps rose around them.
Special lectures at the tower weren't ordinary classes.
The lecturer was always a 'great mage who shunned worldly affairs.'
Those who shone there invariably rose to high positions.
And they didn't accept just anyone.
Gwendolyn continued.
"You could definitely handle it."
"..."
"What do you say?"
All eyes turned to Isaac's mouth.
Moments later, he said.
"Thanks for the offer."
"Then...!"
"I'll shop around... No, I'll think it over and decide."
A polite refusal.
With that, Isaac stood and left.
The cafeteria fell silent after he vanished.
Gwendolyn heard whispers.
"...What? She got shot down?"
"Yo, she'll hear you."
Gwendolyn stared blankly at the empty seat.
I bolted out of the Magic Tower.
What was that cafeteria girl trying to pull?
"Peddling lectures like some MLM scheme..."
Come one, come all...
What is this, a game lobby?
"Desperate to fill seats before it gets canceled?"
Even so, it felt off.
Not undergrad—grad classes usually run fine.
Anyway, that's not important now.
I need to become a territory noble, method TBD.
So, off to the library.
Don't know? Go to the library.
Old habit from my past life, unchanged.
As always, the grad student librarian was there.
'...Does she just work here?'
She said to me.
"The man of the hour."
"...Haha."
"What bizarre material today?"
"Records from the last 30 years of commoner mages receiving territories for achievements."
Her eyes widened.
"...Junior, you're more ambitious than you look. Was that assembly stunt on purpose?"
"Absolutely not."
"Hmm... We'll see."
I denied it strongly, but it was pointless.
She'd pegged me as an ambitious type.
Moments later, I got the materials from her.
She said.
"Quite a stack. Checking out?"
"No, I can finish here."
"...Hm. Alright then."
After she left, just me and the materials in the reading room corner.
30 years' worth—massive pile.
"Gotta use magic."
Something like the 'Excel' I made for Giuseppe.
I closed my eyes quietly.
My mind extended mana tendrils like fine tentacles through the mana field.
The mana tendrils scanned pages, converting images to text data.
Tagged keywords like 'territory,' 'grant,' 'commoner' with tiny mana markers for sorting.
Created a virtual data table in my head.
Set variables: name, status, year, ennoblement method, etc., filling scanned data in real-time.
Hundreds of mages' info reborn as a sorted database in seconds.
Up to here, 'Excel' magic. Now, statistics time.
Bayes' theorem. You're my only hope.
Faint mana glows only I could see rose in the air.
Dozens of data points danced on a virtual graph.
Most scattered randomly, but two clusters glowed red with strong correlation.
Those two clusters were my path to territory nobility.
One: Major feats on the northern front.
"Pass."
Becoming noble for safety, but front lines are danger incarnate.
The other...
"Special lecture...?"
Cases where they attended a 'special lecture' at the tower.
Any kind—as long as there was a record of attending one, high chance of territory nobility.
Don't know why. Pure statistics.
But numbers don't lie.
"That MLM in the cafeteria was pushing a special lecture too..."
Might as well try. If it's sketchy, bail.
Decision was quick.
I applied, got accepted.
Instant acceptance—must be on the cancellation brink.