The Genius Tamer of the Academy

Chapter 29

I felt like I’d just returned from a fasting retreat.

The cafeteria food I ate after three days of starving was unbelievably delicious. Even the experimental dishes from the nutritionist seemed praiseworthy today.

When I put down the last spoonful, I almost cried.

“This is happiness….”

Humans truly need food to live.

I had been missing out on this joy, this beauty of life.

I hugged Basilus tightly and murmured.

“Sorry, did I give you a hard time?”

“Eek!”

Thwack.

I shouldn’t have spoken. I got a smack for my trouble.

After three days of hysteria and pent-up anger, it seemed Basilus had a lot of frustrations to vent.

But, hey.

Aside from the whole dragon meat thing, I didn’t do much wrong.

Ah, maybe that was the start of my downfall.

“Eek!”

“Okay, okay, I admit it. That was wrong. I’m sorry.”

I pulled out some cheese I had stashed in my pocket and tossed it to Basilus. Instantly, his anger melted away as if it had never been there.

Maybe I should get a potion as a gift for Basilus next time.

I wasn’t sure if it would work on non-humans, but the diet potion seemed like it would definitely have an effect.

“You like getting stronger, don’t you?”

Basilus shot me a cold glare.

It was a look that said, “Shut up, human.”

“If you’re going to be like that, give me back the cheese, you brat.”

But as usual, he softened up immediately at my words.

Seeing those round eyes sparkle at me was almost too much, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

It seems I’m even laughing at the smallest things. It’s clear now—people need to eat properly.

Sartre said that life is C between B and D.

Between Birth and Death, there is Chicken.

“Hmmm, that’s a philosophy I can get behind.”

With a much calmer heart, I stretched contentedly.

Yes, tonight’s dinner is chicken.

—

The next day, I returned to the training ground where I had been with Adela, this time alone.

I wanted to see if the grueling effort I put in had paid off by testing it myself.

Holding a practice staff in hand, I aimed at the target.

The accuracy of an attack depends on my focus.

I was going to knock over the target in the center.

Gritting my teeth, I focused all my energy. Then, I slowly channeled magic into the tip of the staff.

The quality of my magic had undeniably improved. That meant I could produce cleaner and more powerful results with much less magic than before.

If my previous approach had been to recklessly dump raw magic power into my attacks, this time, I was doing the exact opposite.

The goal was to knock over the target with minimal magic. It was more challenging because I wasn’t used to this method.

A thread-like stream of magic pierced through the air.

I maintained my concentration until the very end.

And then—

Tap.

With a faint sound, the target five meters away fell.

“Wow… Not bad.”

I nodded, replaying the path of the blue light in my mind.

The potion had definitely worked.

In the past, my magic had been more about raw power than precision, a chaotic force that burst out unpredictably. But now, it is different.

My magic now followed the form of light.

Light travels in a straight line. Similarly, my magic now followed a different trajectory than before.

It wasn’t perfect, but the potion had elevated the quality of my magic to the next level.

Expecting more would be unreasonable. From here on, it was up to me.

I’ll gradually increase the intensity of the magic…

“Let’s practice increasing the maximum output.”

I mumbled to myself, tucking the staff into my belt.

There was still some time left before the key episode of the story—the Cube quest.

I had already anticipated the circumstances that would lead me into that situation, so I knew I had to keep getting stronger.

To be prepared for whatever comes, to be ready for anything.

As I was lost in concentration, training for some time—

“Han Siha!”

Suddenly, Won’s voice called out from outside the training ground. He appeared, panting heavily, looking like he’d been searching for me.

“A professor’s looking for you!”

But the professor seeking me out was someone unexpected.

“Professor Divert Grunui is asking for you!”

…Why would a professor whose class I’ve never attended want to see me?

—

Professor Divert Grunui gazed at me with a warm smile. I sat awkwardly across from him on the sofa, trying to return his smile.

Five minutes passed like that, in near silence.

“Why on earth did he call me here?” I wondered as I pieced together everything I knew about him.

Professor Divert Grunui’s name had appeared in the original “Smart Academy” series, but from what I remembered, he wasn’t particularly significant.

So, I didn’t really know much about him.

“Han Siha,” he finally said after a long pause.

“Yes, Professor?”

“I heard that you’re the student who solved question 27 in the hydraulics exam.”

*Ah, so that’s why he called me.* I realized.

Regardless of which professor I encountered at the Academy, it was always a good idea to leave a positive impression.

They all had loose lips, so by now, they’d probably all heard about my other exam scores.

“How did you manage to solve that question?”

Although phrased as a question, it wasn’t an accusatory interrogation. He seemed genuinely curious.

After a moment’s thought, I answered.

“It wasn’t too difficult.”

“Could you show me your solution?”

“Yes, of course.”

It was a problem typically found on entrance exams back in my world, dealing with geometry and vectors. I quickly jotted down the solution using the formula I knew.

As I wrote, Professor Divert’s eyes widened.

“Where did you learn this method?”

“Pardon?”

“I’ve never seen this formula before. The beautiful harmony of numbers… How did you come up with this?”

Well… in my world, we were just taught to memorize it.

As if he had just witnessed a groundbreaking discovery, Professor Divert looked utterly astonished.

After scrutinizing my work for a while, he blurted out something I didn’t want to hear.

“How would you like to delve into hydraulics?”

Just when I was still considering Professor Ernst’s proposal, here came another graduate school offer.

“You’d do well in the Magic Department, but you seem more suited to Natural Sciences. There’s a certain… vibe about you.”

I didn’t know what vibe he was talking about, but I definitely wanted to decline.

I awkwardly smiled and waved my hand.

“I’d like to stay in the Magic Department for now.”

Professor Divert’s expression momentarily hardened, but since it was my choice, he didn’t push the matter further. Instead, his gaze shifted to Basilus, who was quietly sitting beside me.

“Is your dragon… fire-attributed?”

“What?”

“Where did you find him?”

The question came out of nowhere, completely unrelated to our previous conversation.

Professor Divert Grunui examined Basilus with an unreadable expression, his eyes slowly scanning up and down.

Just as I was trying to figure out how to respond, the office door suddenly burst open.

“Huh?”

Professor Ernst stood frozen at the entrance, looking surprised to see me there.

*Why now of all times?*

“Han Siha!”

He sounded almost delighted to see me, despite my efforts to avoid him after saying I’d think about his proposal.

Professor Ernst, with a pleased expression, strolled over, his hands clasped behind his back.

“Have you given my offer some thought?”

“Ernest, I was speaking with him.”

“I made my offer first. He’s a student in my department.”

“Our lab receives more funding.”

“We have a better atmosphere.”

Graduate school vs. graduate school.

My head was spinning.

They were practically bargaining over me, each trying to convince me their lab was the better choice. I didn’t know what to say.

Either way, aligning with either of them wouldn’t be a bad thing.

If I had to choose, though, Professor Ernst seemed like the more beneficial option for me.

“Ah, I’ll think about it until next week.”

But honestly, just the fact that I’m having to consider this is…

It’s driving me crazy.

—

The schedule was already exhausting enough, and now I had these shocking graduate school proposals from both Professor Ernst and Professor Divert Grunui to think about.

There’s so much to consider, it’s overwhelming. I threw myself onto my bed as soon as I arrived back at the dorm, my mind in turmoil.

Oblivious to my predicament, Won chartered excitedly.

“Why did Professor Divert call you? He’s not even in the Magic Department; he’s a Hydraulics professor.”

“I have no idea.”

“You met with Professor Ernst too, right? Did you have a good talk?”

Yeah, it went well.

Too well, in fact.

I hadn’t outright rejected their offers, just said I’d think about it. But the decision was already pretty much made.

Professor Ernst might come across as easygoing, but he’s not the type to let go of a student he’s set his sights on.

I was only looking to earn some extra credit. I didn’t expect him to take me so seriously, as if he wanted to nurture me as a protégé.

“Was I really that impressive…?”

I guess I couldn’t hide my skills after all.

Hearing me mumbling to myself, Won looked up at me with a confused expression.

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m just saying you should mourn for me because I’m about to get really busy.”

Since the dormitory kidnapping incident, Ardel Academy had returned to a relatively peaceful state.

But that didn’t mean I had nothing to do. With the academic term in full swing, the workload of classes, assignments, and lab practices was going to be relentless.

Wow, I really won’t have any time for myself.

I just wanted to graduate quietly, without the world ending—just that one simple wish. But I’m starting to realize something.

Even if you try to graduate quietly, being a student is exhausting enough on its own.

Now that I think about it, what was the next main episode?

“Hmm…”

There’s still some time before the Black Magician Club starts causing a stir at the school.

Oh… wasn’t there a lab explosion or something?

Well, minor explosions are par for the course in “Smart Academy,” so nothing too crazy, right?

“Nothing major will happen, I’m sure.”

Ah….

Stretching, I was just about to drift off to sleep, my head resting against the pillow.

Lab… lab…

Wait a minute.

“Whoa!”

I shot up in bed as a chilling memory hit me.

“Ah! You scared me! What’s wrong with you?”

Won looked at me with a startled expression, clearly having no idea what was going on.

I didn’t have the luxury of explaining.

Oh, right. There was a lab explosion.

In that subplot, Lee Han skillfully managed the situation, so it passed without much incident.

All that’s fine.

But why—

Why is the lab that explodes…

“Ernest’s lab.”

I’m doomed.

—

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