From Space Idiot to Professor

26 – Additional Interview

There are three processes in Stellarium.

Academia.

College.

Graduate.

Among these, the Academia course I applied for corresponds to high school.

Academia students study on an artificial planet that looks like the Death Star. Only the remaining college and graduate students continue their learning on the natural planet.

In other words, Stellarium is one huge foundation. Stellarium Academia and College courses are one huge facility and brand established by the same foundation.

Anyway, Academia is taught by teachers. It is subtly different from a college where a professor teaches. Of course, the educational structure of the two courses is also completely different.

And the person I am going to meet now is the professor. Not the teacher.

Professors at Stellarium usually live in apartments on the college planet. It was rare for a ship to be a home like the Rhineland family.

[This stop is ‘Planeta’, the 4th planet of the Stellarium planetary system. The door to get off is on the right. I repeat. This stop… ….]

After a long journey, Sonia and I set foot on the ground.

“Wow.”

“Be careful. “The steps are slippery.”

My whole body is shaking as I step on real ground for the first time in a long time.

“It hasn’t been long since the fever went down, but aren’t you overdoing it? “I, Sonia, am worried about your well-being.”

“It’s just because I’m dizzy, because I’m dizzy….”

It’s not like there is no warp technology in this era. However, the cost of use is very expensive. When traveling the distance between the moon and Earth, as it is now, it is cheaper to travel by shuttle.

In the meantime, I have visited other ships several times. A representative example is when I go to the academy that Seti attends to take a mock exam. But this time it was difficult to get used to it.

“The real planet feels different.”

Just enduring the landing was difficult. This also affects bone density. If your body doesn’t keep up, you won’t be able to travel to and from the planet.

And I am still weak.

“Evil.”

Every time I walk, I feel pain in my ankle.

“Are you okay?”

“It’s not okay.”

“You need to exercise a little harder.”

“I already promised to ask Rustilla for personal coaching when I return from today.”

“… “Do you mean the girl from the Kersil family?”

Uncharacteristically, Sonia frowned slightly.

Lou Stilla said her interview went well, and since then, the distance between her and me has decreased a lot. At least she ‘became friends’, she could say.

“It’s good that you made a friend who is knowledgeable about sports… Still, get your health care at a professional place. “Don’t you remember the last time you were beaten with a wooden sword?”

“You beat me up too.”

“Is that the same as this?”

“Are you jealous now? Evil-!!”

Sonia poked her side and lifted her chin.

“Let’s go. “The professor will be waiting.”

***

After taking the designated shuttle for about an hour, I was able to arrive at the location written on the letter.

Ding-dong.

While I was waiting for a while after ringing the call bell, someone opened the door.

“Thank you for your hard work in coming this far.”

A young, worn-out man.

The person I saw in the interview was right.

I was relieved and lowered my head. The deeper the respect, the sharper the angle of the waist.

“You are Professor Richard Feynman, right?”

“… “hehehe.”

Richard Feynman.

This is a name that anyone interested in physics has probably heard at least once.

Of course, Feynman was a genius who enjoyed the same era as Einstein.

Of course, the person in front of me was not the Richard Feynman I knew. Richard itself is a common name.

But the important thing is that this world is a world in a novel, and the author used many people as motifs of real people.

Professor Feynman was one of them. Although he has the same name, his way of thinking and acting are similar to the real Feynman.

If not someone like Feynman, who on earth would write a request in a handwritten letter that could have been sent by e-mail?

Anyway, it seems clear that he is a weirdo.

“Please come in first.”

“Excuse me? Rather… “It’s okay if you don’t treat me with respect.”

Feynman waved his hand as he let me into the entrance.

“In the beginning, everyone should be treated with respect.”

“This isn’t the first time we’ve met, right?”

“Is that so? “Is it the second time?”

“It’s the third time.”

Once at the interview, once in the bathroom, and once now.

Originally, I was going to say four times, including the profile picture I saw on the college physics department website. However, this guy put a cat on his profile picture, so this was our third meeting.

Feynman seemed to know that too, whining and holding out a chair for me.

“Let’s drink lightly.”

He brought two cups of green tea. It’s pretty cool since he’s been in the fridge.

Come to think of it, Feynman here liked to eat cold tea and hot ice cream. It’s like eating Einspänner without the cream.

“Do you know why I called you here?”

“Yes.”

Originally, the interviewer should not meet the student to maintain fairness.

However, Feynman was not the person to protect it.

He was a person who would try to meet someone in private if he was interested.

Because of this, even if you said something that could be problematic here, it never leaked out.

Feynman opened his mouth in earnest.

“I understand that the student’s family is quite prestigious. “Compared to that, it’s a shabby house, isn’t it?”

“No. Rather, I like this place.”

This was sincere. It’s not that I’m frugal. I feel relieved to be in a reasonably comfortable place like this rather than an unnecessarily spacious spaceship.

“Indeed.”

Feynman nodded his head.

“I’ll brag about myself for a moment. I also make a lot of money because I play around with pens. But I used all that money to buy things for my lab colleagues.”

“Can I get one later too?”

“Hmm? Ha ha ha!”

Feynman burst into laughter and muttered.

“Of course. Maybe the student will also be in a position to sprinkle snacks later. Then you will have no choice but to live in an apartment like this for the rest of your life.”

He said it jokingly, but I realized that every word he said was a metaphor.

If you want to come to our department, that is, the Department of Physics, give up your greed for money. If you want to be obsessed with material success, look into other career paths. Feynman was saying that now.

The interview started from the moment I met this person, or in some ways, from the moment I received that handwritten letter.

What if I had received that letter and not gone through the difficult path to come to Professor Lee’s house?

Feynman probably just saw me as a smart middle school student.

Up to this point, it is only a preliminary battle. We confirmed each other’s intentions. Feynman is a person who doesn’t like to spin things around more than necessary, so obviously….

“Student.”

“Yes.”

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

From now on, I will use a straightforward speaking style.

Of course, I also really like direct speech.

“Professor.”

So I answered without hesitation.

It was from this time. The air in the room changed 180 degrees.

[— I look forward to the answer from ‘The God of Wisdom and Curiosity’.]

I said.

“I want to become a professor who studies black holes like you.”

I want to follow in your footsteps.

“What kind of universe do we live in? Even though we live in a world where technology has advanced so much, why is it difficult to develop a theory that unifies gravity and the rest of the forces? If it is developed, what form will it take? If it is impossible, why is it impossible? Is it… “I want to understand it all.”

I want to see the end of this novel.

“Heh heh.”

“For the past three days, I have been suffering from a high fever and have not been able to come. So, I came to see the professor now that my cold was over.”

If I fail the Academia course, I will reapply to college.

If you pass there, please make me an undergraduate intern.

Furthermore, if you pass the graduate course, please use me as a graduate student.

I used this opportunity to convey those many words.

What if I leave Academia right away and give birth to a foreigner’s child?

I didn’t even think about it. At this point, it is not even a subject of consideration. f*ck, whether I give birth or not. No matter what the foreign media says.

[— The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ is amazed at your spirit.]

[— 100 Pron sponsorship received!]

“Hmm.”

Professor Feynman closed his eyes for a moment after hearing my answer.

It seemed like he was thinking about something. Maybe he’s judging my skills.

I swallowed my saliva. In front of a genius, I am nothing more than a tiny speck of dust. I clearly know that this conversation will not have much of an impact on my acceptance to Stellarium. Still, I couldn’t help but feel nervous.

“… Clearly, the student’s intellectual capacity is outstanding.”

Feynman opened with those words.

“But just because you have such outstanding capabilities does not mean you will immediately become a good scientist. We have scientific knowledge that humanity has accumulated over the past thousands of years. “It is absurd to learn that much in two years at Academia or three years at college.”

I nodded.

“So, students will definitely have to go to graduate school, and they may lose interest before then and become discouraged.”

Feynman asked.

“Do you still want to share snacks with me?”

He grins.

“For your information, you should not be picky about the type of snack.”

The message was not to be picky about the research topic.

At the same time, even if you don’t get results, you should study step by step, calmly, and find joy in understanding the world.

I could understand with just a simple analogy.

This person is a genius.

He is also a great educator.

– Do you want to go to graduate school in physics? I’m a middle school student, but didn’t I decide on my career path too early? Why not think about it some more?

Give that warning….

– If you still want to come, come. Because I will support you to my heart’s content. Instead, promise me one thing.

– Work hard, be patient, take one step at a time.

As expected, he is the same as the Feynman I know.

There was no reason to refuse.

“I eat everything they give me.”

Because I was already a person who could stand as an independent researcher.

Don’t you have a doctorate? So what. My research capabilities remain the same.

Idel is dead. Jinsu Lee is alive. That’s it. So I can move forward as myself.

I don’t know why it happened like this. I can’t know, and there’s no reason to know.

Everyone lives as they were born. I too was born and lived on Earth. It’s still the same now. I live in a state of possession.

As I live, I will fulfill my duty on the path I walk.

Understanding nature.

For me, it means understanding foreign media.

In other words, laughing and trying to understand something you don’t understand.

That is my duty.

[— The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ feels a slight fondness for you.]

[— The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ wants to test how far your resolve can go.]

I looked at Feynman intently.

Feynman also stared into my eyes for a while.

“… Great.”

Soon, he opened his mouth.

“Let’s meet on campus.”