I Broke Off My Engagement and Got a Job at the Academy

36 – 36. Results of growth

I approached Professor Cordelia, and as I looked at her, I said, “No, why did you bother to come all the way here to greet me?”

Professor Cordelia pinched my cheek and replied, “Well, it’s not every day that your mentor comes to welcome you. You should be thankful.”

I barely pulled away from her grip and, rubbing my numb cheek, opened my mouth, saying, “No, it must have been a hassle to come all this way… Well, never mind. So, did you really come just to greet me?”

Upon hearing my words, Professor Cordelia chuckled and pinched my cheek again, saying, “No, there’s something I need to check. How much have my disciple grown?”

Well, that made sense. There’s no way she would come out for no reason.

I followed Professor Cordelia as she led me to the training ground. On the way, she asked, “By the way, what was that earlier?”

“What do you mean?”

“No, that guy in the robe who was staring at us so intensely. It looked like he wanted to pick a fight.”

I opened my mouth upon hearing that and replied, “Oh, that… that was Jezel Irkalli.”

Professor Cordelia’s face contorted in surprise. “…That guy has arrived already?”

There was still quite some time until the entrance exam. But coming to the academy so early… it must mean he’s quite picky.

“…The cost of living here is high.”

To be precise, the cost of private accommodations was expensive. Those who were officially admitted to the academy could use the provided dormitories, so it didn’t matter to them.

Jezel Irkalli hadn’t officially enrolled in the academy yet. That meant he was willing to bear the full cost of that expensive lodging.

“…But, well. It’s not like he cares about such things.”

“I’m a salaryman now, so I have to worry about these things.”

In the past, I didn’t bother about such things.

Anyway, the fact that I arrived at the academy early like that meant that my personality was quite troublesome.

Professor Cordelia frowned.

“Perhaps you were staring at Professor Cordelia because you’re interested in her. She said that herself. Maybe you would do that if you could become her disciple?”

Upon hearing my words, Professor Cordelia made a disgusted sound and said, “What? No.”

“Why not?”

I asked her while looking at her. In response, Professor Cordelia grimaced and said, “No, think about it. What would happen if I took him as my disciple?”

…Well, I don’t know. Could I gain a connection with the heir of the Ircalci family?

“People won’t say I only teach powerful guys from influential families! And besides, my reputation would go through the roof.”

“…Ah.”

Come to think of it, I, her first disciple, was also the heir of the Kaines Duchy, a huge family. However, taking Zech as my disciple after I failed…

“It’s like throwing away the first disciple because he failed.”

“How would people look at me? Especially since I didn’t take you as my disciple because of the family, it would be unfair and pitiful.”

I nodded. It certainly wasn’t an unreasonable story.

Professor Cordelia clenched her fist and continued, “And gaining attention by taking a member of a prestigious family as a disciple… once is enough. I thought I was going to throw up when everyone looked at me at the ball.”

During the academy events, there was a ball inviting external guests. To be more precise, it was a place to show off to those close to the students, demonstrating how well our academy taught its students.

And if there was a characteristic of that ball, it was that while regular academy professors weren’t forced to attend, those playing the role of a student’s direct mentor had to attend.

Perhaps recalling the experience of becoming a hedgehog in the eyes of others because of me, Professor Cordelia shivered.

“Ugh… just thinking about it is awful. No, I won’t do it. I won’t teach him. Besides, I don’t even know if he has enough talent to learn from me.”

“Well, maybe… he can understand your words?”

Honestly, although her magic was incredibly powerful, understanding her explanations was quite difficult.

“…What does that even mean?”

Professor Cordelia glared at me, her gaze sharp and piercing. Undeterred, I spoke.

“No, honestly, at my level, I understand. Most of the time, I can’t comprehend what you’re teaching. It’s not just because my course evaluations are lower than yours for no reason-“

Professor Cordelia swung her fist. I deftly avoided it and said, “Slow.”

Perhaps a lifetime devoted to studying magic had left her physically unaccustomed to labor. In contrast, I, a “sturdy young man of 21,” was far from being a match in sheer physical ability. Smirking disdainfully at Professor Cordelia, I noticed her smiling in response.

“Hahaha!”

There was something strange about this laughter.

To be precise, a sudden sense of impending doom gripped me.

I broke into a cold sweat. Professor Cordelia looked at me and remarked, “I just wanted to see how much you’ve grown, but it seems that won’t be enough.”

“Wait a moment.”

“What do you mean, wait a moment? Follow me to the training room. If you can’t satisfy me there… it won’t end well for you.”

I was screwed. Covered in cold sweat, I stared at Professor Cordelia.

Her red eyes were brimming with anger.

…This was bad. Really bad.

In the training room, Professor Cordelia, with a smile that seemed about to tear, drew her wand.

The problem was not the joy behind that smile.

Gazing at me, she spoke in a soft, eerie voice, “Does our disciple have what it takes to become a true professor?”

Damn. It was terrifying when someone who would never say such things uttered them. Even if Ceris were to curse, it wouldn’t be as chilling as this.

…Or would it? If Ceris were to make a harsh comment, it might still be shocking in its own way.

I drew my wand, attempting to clear my mind of distractions. Observing me, Professor Cordelia said, “Shall we see if you qualify, my apprentice?”

“Huh? Did you change your wand? Hasn’t it been a long time?”

…Well, I have used it for a long time. It’s the wand I used throughout my school days.

I said with a bitter smile.

“…I just changed it. Now, let’s begin.”

Professor Cordelia listened to my words and raised her magic.

This is crazy. The frustration is directly reflected in the magic, and the aura emanating from it is truly intimidating.

I raised the wand and took a deep breath.

“Twilight Eyes.”

It’s easy to reverse magic that affects the external, but magic that only affects oneself is not easy to reverse.

In response to that, Professor Cordelia also activated her magic.

“Sky Eyes.”

A determination to reverse whatever magic I use with Twilight Eyes. I chuckled.

“All right. Show me the research results once.”

Professor Cordelia said with a smile.

I decided to meet that expectation.

“Well then, here we go.”

I raise the magic. Build up the incantation. Professor Cordelia looks at my incantation with eyes full of anticipation.

“…Huh?”

Professor Cordelia stumbled for a moment. Well, that’s natural. It’s the first time she’s seen this incantation.

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She soon realized what my research result was and smiled slyly.

“Carnivorous Sphere.”

A black sphere appeared. Seeing it, Professor Cordelia, with a smile, said,

“Oh, is that… the result to obtain your Advanced Professor qualification?”

I shrugged with a smile. Anyway, words were unnecessary. What mattered was showing the result directly.

As if Professor Cordelia understood that too, she casually cast a spell.

The fireball soared through the air. As it entered the domain of the Devourer, it instantly disintegrated and disappeared without a trace.

The Devourer devoured the fireball, growing even larger.

Professor Cordelia let out a gasp and spoke.

“…Is that the kind of magic this is?”

This time, an icy spear came flying, but the Devourer consumed it just as quickly.

Professor Cordelia opened her mouth in amazement as she watched the spectacle. Seeing the empty space where the icy spear had disappeared, she asked,

“How many circles is this?”

“Five circles.”

In response, Professor Cordelia made a puzzled sound.

“…What have you created?”

She forced a laugh and conjured a spear formed by the merging of fire and ice.

Professor Cordelia turned to me.

…A five-circle spell.

“Where… how strong is it, I wonder.”

She aimed the spear at the Devourer.

Swish! The spear, too fast to follow with the naked eye, charged toward the Devourer.

And… the spear struck the Devourer, causing a tremendous explosion.

“…Wow.”

Professor Cordelia sighed in awe as she gazed at the spectacle.