Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Floors of Power
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The floor number in the Magic Tower is power itself.
The Dean claims the entire 49th floor for himself.
Below that, professors' offices stretch down to the 40th floor. Naturally, they're ranked by power.
Further down, the schools' labs line the floors all the way to the 10th.
Again, naturally, in order of power.
Our school got assigned the 10th floor.
The schools located here are the desperate scrappers who barely escaped "annex duty."
I asked Giuseppe.
"Senior, didn't we pull off something pretty major ourselves?"
Just the [Wave Theory] we revealed in our school's name was a monumental discovery.
Wasn't the 10th floor a bit too low?
I, "Isaac Mk2," wasn't satisfied with the 10th floor.
Giuseppe brushed the dust off our new lab and smiled faintly.
"Right."
"But why the 10th floor?"
"Look around."
"Pardon?"
At his words, I surveyed the new lab.
The ceiling was twice as high as before. Now even if I jumped, I wouldn't touch it.
The wallpaper finish was peerless even by medieval standards. Probably only the Imperial Palace outdid the main Magic Tower building.
No more rat squeaks echoing from the floor or ceiling.
'But what does any of this have to do with the 10th floor?'
Giuseppe said,
"The lab's size dwarfs the number of people, doesn't it?"
"True enough."
Come to think of it, the floor space had expanded too.
The annex labs had been generous at two rooms. This one was bigger than a university lecture hall.
It could easily sleep twenty people with room to spare.
With just me and Giuseppe in such a vast space, it felt eerily empty instead.
Ah.
No way, was that it?
"Don't tell me it's because of the school's headcount?"
"Exactly. The schools in the main building operate on a whole different economic scale."
"I see."
Come to think, the only direct cash we'd made was from the "Bell Tower Incident."
The [Wave Theory] derived from it hadn't seen any theory usage fees deposited yet.
"What's your goal, junior?"
Gazing down at the capital's panoramic view outside the window, I replied,
"The higher you go, the more the scenery changes, right?"
"It does."
"Then I don't want to climb past the 40th floor."
Higher up, the people outside would look smaller than bugs.
I didn't like that one bit.
Giuseppe let out a hollow chuckle.
"The 39th floor... the highest for any school lab. You're saying you intend to make our school number one."
"Is that how it works?"
"It will be. Because you're here. So steel yourself now. The real fight starts from here."
I nodded at Giuseppe's words.
The 10th floor was swarming with minor schools—like a Maginot Line to avoid getting booted to the annex.
The faces of people hurrying through the halls were etched with steely resolve for survival.
Soon, the survival game would begin, with everyone scheming to shove the others into the annex.
I steeled my mind.
...Survival, huh?
No sooner had the lab door opened than the bribe offensive began.
The first salvo came from a researcher of the Northern Primitive Magic Exploration School.
"Hello, Senior Garneri! A housewarming gift for the 10th floor. Herbs I picked up on expedition—they'll help with all-night research sessions."
The second was from an Ancient Rune Script researcher. He arrived bearing a top-grade tea set.
"Respected Senior Garneri. If it's not too much trouble, might we discuss [Calculus] as well?"
They all fawned over Giuseppe without fail.
Giuseppe's expression grew stiffer by the minute.
He despised this kind of sycophancy.
"Uh... this sort of gift is really unnecessary."
"No, no. We're not expecting anything in return."
Lies.
Their eyes screamed shady intent.
In the end, they all cried, "No payment needed!" while making sure to leave their gifts behind.
Once the barrage passed, the lab held only me and Giuseppe again.
Giuseppe slumped at the desk, head planted on it, completely drained.
I said to him,
"Was 'steel yourself' code for this?"
"No chance. This was... way outside my expectations."
"Mine too."
Heh heh heh. Giuseppe cracked a wry smile as he spoke.
"Any guess why they're so desperate to bribe us?"
"Obviously [Calculus]."
The Magic Tower had ushered in the grand era of Calculus.
Just like my past life.
When big data trended, everyone jumped on big data. When AI did, everyone did AI.
Labs gonna lab.
The long-term, unprofitable ones end up shoved in the annex corners—no helping it.
"Then I'll go file the lab relocation completion report. Guard 'Excel'... er, the lab well."
"Sure thing. Take care."
Giuseppe sighed and departed.
The lab I was left alone in felt somehow chilling.
That's when.
Knock knock.
The knock I'd heard over a dozen times today rang out again.
Another bribe, no doubt?
I opened the door indifferently—and there stood Liam.
"Came to give a move-in gift to a 10th-floor comrade."
In Liam's hands: dried chilies and paprika powder.
My eyes lit up.
I asked him,
"How'd you score this?"
I'd searched too—no luck despite combing the markets.
Liam grinned.
"Military bases grow them, surprisingly. Got 'em cheap."
"Military bases?"
An unexpected supply route.
"Yeah. Apparently for non-lethal crowd control on northern barbarians. They were shocked when I said it was for eating."
"...Suppression chilies, huh. Anyway, thanks a ton, Liam."
"Don't mention it."
I expressed my genuine gratitude.
"But you're on this floor too?"
"Yep. Around the corner. Mana Catalyst Stabilization School."
"Got it."
I hadn't realized Liam worked in a 10th-floor lab.
'Knew it was a grind from all the homework he did...'
Turns out he was from one of those schools clawing to avoid the annex.
Having handed over the gift, Liam said,
"Well, I'll be off then."
A sudden curiosity gripped me, and I stopped him just before he left.
"Everyone else asks about [Calculus]. Why haven't you?"
"..."
"I could teach you, Liam."
[Calculus] was public knowledge now anyway.
No need to sneak around like during Gwendolyn's tutoring sessions.
But Liam waved it off.
"Nah. I'll study it solo."
"No need to hold back."
"Really. Grinding through the Principles of Calculus, the path starts revealing itself bit by bit. It's fun, that feeling of piecing it together one discovery at a time."
"Wow..."
An awed sigh escaped me.
Even in my past life, I'd occasionally met types like this.
The ones who dove into research purely for love of it. They were the ones who usually finished their degrees quickest.
Of course... about half burned out and vanished. Grad school was ultimately a prof-luck death game.
...Here's hoping Liam wasn't one of the burnout halves.
I clapped him on the shoulder.
"...What's that mean?"
"I'll be rooting for you. Let's both hang in there."
"Ah. Sure."
Liam scratched his head, abashed.
Moments after he left, I was alone once more.
The vast lab contained only me and a mountain of gifts.
The reason people showered our school with gifts was to extract "information."
Was there a way to leverage this goodwill long-term without overextending—and turn them into allies?
The next day.
I casually leaked a bit of info to the researcher who'd brought the tea Giuseppe fancied.
"...So. What happens if you do it this way?"
"The limit and function value could differ. Oh! I get it now. Thanks, Uphills junior."
The researcher departed in a daze of bliss.
Watching this, Giuseppe voiced his concern.
"Isaac, doling it out in teasing bits like that might just make enemies."
"Trust me once. I'll peel 'em clean without a hitch."
"Hmm..."
Giuseppe pondered, then accepted my proposal.
And a few days later, I proved it.
The quality and quantity of incoming gifts actually increased, and the researchers' reactions didn't sour—in fact, they improved.
-"Thanks a ton, Isaac junior!"
-"...So that's where I went wrong."
Giuseppe asked,
"How on earth did you pull that off?"
"Must be from tutoring Miss Gwendolyn. Got used to giving Calculus lectures."
"Even so... pinpointing the exact curiosities for so many people?"
Of course it was tough.
But having dealt with similar back in high school, it wasn't a huge issue.
'Hey, what's 16?'
'You solved 21, right? Help me out.'
If you botched your positioning when kids mobbed you with mock exam questions after class, relationships could sour.
Say the wrong thing, and it came off as "holier-than-thou."
The key was guiding them to realize it themselves.
Of course, to predict when they'd get it, the teacher had to be leagues ahead.
Luckily for me, that wasn't a problem.
What these folks were curious about was high-school-level Calculus.
No way they were asking about integrals of complex exponentials.
And so, over the past week, I'd stripped a massive haul of gifts from the 10th-floor researchers.
High-performance mana gauges.百年 snow ginseng from the northern peaks. Mana crystal gas burners, and more.
Too many to list at once.
Eventually they piled so high I sold some off.
"And that's it for today. Bring your assignments next week."
Ugh... Low groans and cries erupted around me.
Even as Calculus turned the Magic Tower upside down, the special lectures rolled on, and the students suffered.
Once Valerius's lecture wrapped, Gwendolyn approached me with a grave look.
"Isaac... don't take this the wrong way."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Have you ever studied imperial etiquette?"
"Nope. Orphan."
"..."
Sweat beaded on Gwendolyn's forehead.
"I'm not trying to knock your cultural knowledge or anything... I just thought it might be time to learn etiquette."
"Why etiquette?"
"..."
Gwendolyn gazed at me with eyes reserved for the truly pitiable.
After a beat, she spoke.
"Next week is the medal ceremony. What if you mess up in front of the Imperial Princess?"
"Ah. Drawing and quartering...?"
"Pardon? No, not even they would go that far. Maybe a light imprisonment?"
"I see..."
Not quartering, sure—but jail was still a major headache.
Gotta learn this...
'But where do you even learn etiquette?'
No clue whatsoever.
That's when Gwendolyn said,
"Come to our villa this weekend."
"Why there all of a sudden?"
"I'll have an etiquette tutor waiting. Learn up and head out."
"Hmm... Does it have to be there?"
"Anywhere works. The Magic Tower? Practicing your bows with everyone watching would be perfect."
"...Villa it is."
"Smart choice."
And so my second villa trip was set.
Hoping no weirdos like Ellara showed up this time.
At the same time, in the Everglow Count's mansion down south.
Gwendolyn's father and family head, Count Ludwig Everglow, was inspecting the wine cellar.
A white-haired elderly butler stood at his side like a shadow.
A faint crease formed between the Count's brows.
"Strange."
"What are you seeking, my lord?"
"One bottle of 'Empire's Tear' 12-year vintage is missing. I had exactly one glass at the last Emperor's birthday banquet and put it back."
The butler ventured cautiously,
"Er... the young miss took it to the capital villa."
"Gwendolyn?"
Count Ludwig snorted.
"No way. She's not the type to snatch my cherished wine without a word."
"..."
"Of course. I'm not saying you're lying."
He stroked his chin, lost in thought.
"Did I have anything scheduled this weekend?"
"Yes. A meeting with Viscount Chamus."
"Sorry, cancel it for me."
Ludwig grabbed a few bottles to gift his daughter and said,
"I need to drop by the capital villa."
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