LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 3
If you were to pick the strongest person in the special class, it’s obviously Ailey.
She’s so strong that she even earned the nickname “Sleeping Genius Mage,” which is kind of a big deal.
Everyone else in the class is well aware of her power, so all eyes were on Ailey.
With her face buried in her pillow, she more or less waved goodbye to the idea of being a representative.
Now it was time to determine who the next strongest student would be after Ailey.
“Well, it looks like I have no choice but to step up as the representative.”
“Who do you think you are, you worthless brat?! Obviously, I’m the one who should take charge!”
“Wow, your skill in talking back is really impressive. If there were a competition for that, you’d definitely be a contender!”
“I have all the confidence to win even a competition on who can choke the most! Want to see?”
What started as a lighthearted exchange gradually morphed into a fistfight.
In the blink of an eye, the special class turned into complete chaos.
I found myself telling them to calm down while secretly enjoying the spectacle of them tearing into each other.
It felt almost like watching a bunch of weird bugs gathered in one place, if you know what I mean? sfx: buzzing
“Is it about time?”
Just when it seemed like the ultimate bug had been decided…
I boldly chose the option to hurl a pot right into the fray.
“Hey, guys! I’m really sorry, but the briefing time is up! Let’s focus on class, alright?!”
After leaving a brief apology, I bolted out of the classroom.
Even after stepping outside, I could still hear the sounds of their fight echoing through the walls.
They were so engrossed in their brawl that my voice must not have reached them at all.
The professor responsible for the next class would sort them out, no doubt.
A new professor can’t teach core courses.
For at least two years, they have to handle the least popular elective classes.
Those classes are usually filled with students who need credits to graduate or just a select few who ended up there through some “creative scheduling.”
Because of this, new professors often have low salaries and poor treatment, but it’s not a big deal.
Treatment will improve as time passes, and I’ve already prepared an alternative for the financial side of things.
As luck would have it, today was harvest season, so I decided to step outside the academy grounds.
“My first lecture starts tomorrow, and I’d better skip today’s farewell… that’s for the best.”
Imagining the special class students waiting for the final roll call made me chuckle.
What kind of expressions would they have when they realized I wouldn’t be coming back, no matter how long they waited?
It’s a shame I won’t be able to see that moment unfold.
“On the bright side, there’s other entertainment waiting out there, so no worries…”
Kia del Academy, renowned as a leading institution, had grounds large enough to rival the capital.
Within its premises lay all sorts of restaurants, cafes, recreational facilities, and even a castle for banquets.
It had all the amenities to allow anyone to live there for a lifetime.
Yet, I stepped outside to meet my fiancé, who was merely a name in my world.
“She should be arriving soon.”
Hee-hee-haw!
The sound of horse hooves echoed as a carriage approached the fountain where I stood.
The wagon bore the image of a snake coiling around a sphere.
It symbolized the Ludvig family, where Daniel’s fiancée hailed from.
As the carriage halted in front of the fountain, the door swung open, and a woman clad in a red dress reached out toward me.
“Oh? Doesn’t anyone want to escort me like before?”
“There’s no need for that; we’re not going to a banquet or anything.”
“You’re particularly cold today, aren’t you?”
The coachman took her hand, assisting her down from the high steps.
And there she was, Isabel Ludvig, Daniel’s first fiancée, finally making her entrance.
Her thick makeup and excessively shiny jewelry made her brow furrow, and those extra pounds she tried to hide with decorations were more than a little overwhelming.
Just looking at her made me want to shut my eyes.
‘If only her personality was as nice as her looks…’
But Isabel was as much of a nightmare as any villainess could be.
She was an irredeemable brat.
The number of wrongs she’d committed so far was so extensive I’d need a megaphone just to shout them out.
“So what’s the reason you called me here?”
“I have something to tell you. But it’s pretty crowded here, let’s go somewhere quieter like a café.”
“Sounds good! I hope it’s a place I’d like, unlike that filthy joint suitable for riffraff we went to last time.”
Still bitter about what happened earlier, huh?
That restaurant I’d footed the bill for, only for her to complain about its shabby condition.
So, I booked a tea house that cost as much as my weekly salary just to make a statement.
“Not bad at all. We should’ve done this kind of thing last time.”
A café to satisfy the whims of Lady Ludvig, daughter of a marquess.
Under usual circumstances, I would have avoided such places like they were the plague, but today, I had my reasons.
Sipping on a coffee that could make one feel full just from the aroma, I decided it was finally time to get to the main topic.
“Let’s break off the engagement.”
At my statement, Isabel’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.
Trying her best to suppress her anger, I could tell she was taken aback since I’d interrupted whatever grand speech she had prepared.
“Can I ask why?”
“Why bother? You probably know all too well.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m asking how it felt to munch on the money you swindled from me.”
With that direct hit, Isabel shot up from her seat.
She slammed her palm on the table, releasing the pent-up rage she had been keeping inside.
“Are you accusing me of stealing your money? Even if you had no grounds for a breakup, coming up with such absurd claims is ridiculous!”
“Absurd, you say?”
“And what’s your proof? Without that, you can’t just throw around such accusations! I’ll tell my father, and he’ll make you pay dearly for this!”
Looks like she’s completely lost her marbles.
I would like to tempt her a little more, but I had an important schedule coming up, so I pulled out a notebook from my pocket.
“What’s that filthy notebook?”
“It’s a detailed record of every penny you collected from my family.”
“There’s no way…!”
Even as she verbally denied it, her body betrayed her as she snatched the ledger and began to read.
Watching the meticulously detailed records cause her complexion to drain.
Did she honestly think she’d never be caught?
She was way too arrogant for her own good.
“So what? You still say it’s nonsense even with proof in your face?”
“Hah, haha! Proof? Where would you possibly have gotten something like that?”
“Where? Isn’t it obvious? —ah?”
Fwoosh!
Displaying her “nobility,” Isabel must have at least learned basic magic to burn the notebook in front of me.
It was bold of her to destroy evidence in front of the source itself; she really thought she could get away with it.
“Look! There’s no proof! Only the fact that you ridiculed me remains!”
“…That was just the copy.”
I pulled out another notebook from my pocket.
Isabel pointed at this new notebook with an arrogant look on her face.
A small flame sparked from her fingertip aimed at my notebook.
“Listen…”
However, the small flames bounced off the blue protective barrier surrounding my ledger and dispersed into the air.
“Do you honestly think an amateur magician could defeat a professor from Kia del?”
“Ugh!”
“And burning that notebook won’t change a thing. Besides that, I have footage of you embezzling that money, and witnesses to expose your deeds. No matter how much you struggle, your guilt will only grow heavier.”
Since I knew Isabel was a piece of trash, I’d been collecting evidence ever since I had possessed Daniel’s body.
All to ensure Isabel’s stain on Daniel’s life was completely wiped away.
“Are you still going to deny it?”
“So what are you going to do about it? Your fallen noble house means nothing to our Ludvig family! We’ll stomp you into the ground for this!”
Even without saying it, Isabel was already planning to demand a breakup from me.
In the original story, Daniel got dumped by her, completely oblivious to her embezzlement.
While he hadn’t had feelings for Isabel, he’d feel distraught over losing an engagement his parents had worked so hard to secure.
But the real twist came after the breakup when Isabel dropped an even bigger bomb.
Out of nowhere, Isabel came to Kia del Academy one day with a newborn baby in her arms.
Claiming it was Daniel’s child Fathered with a handsome slave she had been tangled with.
For Daniel, who had never been intimate with Isabel, it was all quite shocking.
Yet Isabel had prepared false evidence, and the academy started to believe her claims.
Daniel vehemently denied it, but all he received were jeers and laughter from his fellow professors and students.
Caught in a crisis, he found only Nina, the story’s true protagonist, willing to believe him.
Thus, the two set about proving that Isabel had perjured herself, allowing Daniel to shake off that stigma.
“Even though it involves Nina, it was still a horrible episode!”
This incident severely battered Daniel’s self-esteem and became a major reason for his rejection of Nina’s confession.
A story that needed to be erased; thus, I continued to gather the evidence of Isabel’s crimes.
With sufficient proof now in hand, I could easily dismantle a trashy character like her, who continued to deny her wrongdoing.
“You know that our Crawford family suffered a painful setback in the last human war, right?”
“Hah! Are you suddenly proud of your fallen family?”
“No, I wanted to know if you realized that His Majesty has been sending us monthly support.”
“Monthly support from the Emperor?”
“Didn’t realize that? You’ve hidden the main source of our family funds? Striking out on a heist in an Empire where embezzling is punished severely takes a lot of guts.”
“That can’t be true…?”
“If you don’t want to believe it, that’s entirely up to you. Just know that the events to come are all a consequence of your own making. First off, the Ludvig family will fall, your entire family will be dragged to the gallows, and your corpse will be left to the wild dogs to devour.”
“W-What, are you threatening me?”
“Threatening? That’s quite the misunderstanding. I’m merely informing you of your future.”
It was then that Isabel realized just how dire her situation was, and she began trembling.
As the sweat trickled down her face, the makeup she had plastered on began to crumble.
She seemed to regain her senses, realizing that this wasn’t the time to focus on her looks, and fell to her knees before me.
“P-Please, spare my life!”
“Just a moment ago, you denied everything, and now you admit your guilt?”
“Y-Yes, it’s true! I took money from your family! I’m sorry for lying all this time! I truly regret it, so please, just once…”
“It’s no shock that you’d want to live; but what possible reason do I have to spare you?”
“I’ll return every single penny I took!”
“Which you should’ve done in the first place.”
“I’ll comply with any command you give! So please, just spare my life…!”
“Willing to do anything, are we…?”
Initially, I had considered exposing everything and just killing her off.
But the reason I had drawn Isabel out to threaten her was due to her practical value.
More accurately, it was about the inherent value of the Ludvig family.
What if I could keep Isabel alive and manipulate her family’s influence to my advantage?
Not only would it solve multiple problems with relatively less effort but it would also enable me to torment Isabel even further.
In short, I’d be able to secure both revenge and gain.
“Alright, I’ll show you mercy this one time. But you must obey every command I issue, and if anything happens to me, you’ll perish along with it.”
“Y-Yes…!”
“Then sign this contract. And you’ll be paying for the coffee!”
With tears streaming down her face, Isabel bit her lip hard.
With those watery eyes, she scrawled her name on the contract I’d prepared.
The terms assured she’d be able to breathe as long as she pledges complete loyalty to me, created with magic to prevent any chance of being tampered with.
After confirming the seal of the contract had been imprinted on her palm, I exited the café.
The financial troubles resolved, and I had gained a valuable lifelong subordinate.
Feeling optimistic that I could finally enjoy an improved academic life, I developed a sense of satisfaction.
‘But I can’t settle for just that.’
The highlight of today’s events was still to come.
I couldn’t afford to miss it, so I ran back toward the academy without pausing.
‘There’s a bench just a little away from the main gate; that’s where it’s going to happen!’
Having just broken off the engagement, Daniel returned to the academy, sitting dejectedly on a bench with his face buried in his hands.
As he let out a deep sigh, a light step approached him.
When he raised his head, a small, beautiful girl greeted him with a bright smile.
The scene for the first meeting between Nina, the star of the story, and Daniel was about to unfold.
In other words, I was about to witness the fateful moment myself.
“Professor?”
“Uh…?”
Hearing someone call out to me, I quickly lifted my head.
But the girl I had been waiting for wasn’t there.
‘Wow…’
The slender figure was a far cry from the typical adorable cutie.
The lovely, white hair that should have been fluttering in the breeze was instead dyed black.
The girl now approaching me wasn’t Nina but the villainous noblewoman, Rynelle.
“What are you doing here, Professor Daniel?”
Why are you even here?