The Academy is Doomed

Chapter 37

The people of Vestric Academy were in an uproar.

“He, at such a young age, drew a difficult magic circle as Firestorm, and he did it on the fly, just like that……?”

“That’s ridiculous! It’s a magic circle that even mid-level mages in the Magic Tower can’t draw easily!”

“Didn’t he just memorize that magic circle?”

The overseer glared at them with a stern face.

“Does that mean you’re doubting my discernment?”

“That’s not what…….”

“If he had only memorized that magic circle in the first place, he wouldn’t have been able to see through Vestric’s magic circle so easily. Please don’t take the student’s hard work and achievements for granted, and refrain from making rash comments.”

“……Sorry, sir.”

Amon smirked as the supervisor scolded Vestric.

The Vestric Academy wasn’t entirely wrong.

‘He actually memorized it by cramming.’

But even if the proctor was right, it would be difficult to achieve the kind of results he did today even if he memorized everything.

Besides, there are shortcuts to everything.

‘……what is this?’

‘I noticed you’ve been feeling tired lately. Drink this.’

‘I mean, what is this?’

Boris looked at the bubbling liquid and instinctively recoiled.

Amon smiled in response to Boris’s question.

‘It’s made with the arcane techniques of Vice Principal Brestle’s tribe.’

‘……What are the effects?’

‘First, the name. Sleepless Medicine Bath.’

‘……?’

That’s the name. How intuitive is that?

‘Oh, I don’t want to take it.’

‘No, you have to eat it.’

Boris, who was expressing his reluctance with his whole body, ended up taking the special Brestle medicine bath thanks to Amon’s ‘sweet and gentle’ behavior.

‘It’s working.’

Eventually, Boris was able to devour magical texts and treatises without sleep, but there was a small, tiny problem.

Reading without sleep was one thing, but memorizing was another.

But after consulting with Anar’el, Amon came up with a solution.

“Boris, open this scroll,” he said.

‘What is this?’

‘It’s a magic scroll.’

‘I mean, what kind of magic?’

‘You’ll know when you hear the name. The magic of remembering bad things. How’s that for intuitive?’

‘…….’

Once again, Boris was vehement in his refusal.

But Amon’s “cajoling and pleading” forced him to tear up the scroll.

The result.

‘Sir, my dark circles are down to my chest.’

‘Um…….’

‘Can’t you get rid of these later?’

‘Mmm……By the way, how are you remembering the content?’

‘Most of it is still in my head, but can I get rid of these dark circles?’

Amon didn’t answer, and Boris’s face flushed with anger.

‘What the hell.’

My hard work is paying off!

‘Boris! I’m so proud of you!’

Amon, who had been gazing at Boris with affection, raised his hand.

“First match, Boris of Amonis Academy wins!”

A heavy silence fell on the Vestric Academy side at the shout.

They had traveled all the way here to simply step on Amonis Academy’s toes, but they had lost the first match in a crushing defeat.

The supervisor who had declared Amonis victorious tapped Boris on the shoulder.

“Boris, I remembered your name well. After you graduate from the academy, you will come to the imperial court.”

“……?”

Instead of answering, the overseer handed him a small marker and he returned to his seat.

As Boris returned to his seat, still clutching the marker, Anar’el spoke in a low voice.

“Good work, student Boris.”

“Ah, yes……thank you.”

Anar’el wore a serious face, befitting the dignity of a headmaster.

However, her ears flicked inexplicably, indicating that she was more than a little pleased to have won.

“That’s right. Congratulations.”

“What……?”

“That’s the mark of an imperial mage recruiter. I guess you’ve got a job lined up early after graduation, huh?”

“……!”

At Anar’el’s words, Boris absentmindedly glanced at the overseer.

And the supervisor whose eyes met, the imperial magician training instructor Brayling, nodded with a faint smile.

“Hua, imperial mage……I, I really…….”

Boris clutched the mark tightly in both hands and began to tremble at the shocking truth.

A commoner entering the imperial court? What an honor to even dream of.

Amon stroked Boris’ head as tears of emotion welled up in his eyes.

“What do you think, was I right?”

“……Yes, sir.”

It’s no exaggeration to say that Amon has set Boris on the path to wealth and fame.

And while Amon’s smile at Boris is friendly at first glance, a closer look reveals that it’s actually quite rotten.

‘This is ridiculous.’

Some people are rotting away in this dirty academy at a young age, while their young disciple is hired as an imperial wizard.

‘Boris, you rascal! You’re like a cow catching a rat while backing away!’

Jealousy for a student!

Amon, however, didn’t seem to mind at all and congratulated Boris, feigning sincerity.

“Congratulations! Boris!”

“Yes, thank you, sir!”

“Don’t forget this teacher if you succeed in the future!”

“Yes, Mr. Aaron!”

“Have you forgotten your teacher’s name already?”

Meanwhile, Benjamin, the principal of Vestric’s school, walked into a meeting with the other teachers with a serious face.

“Damn……what’s going on? I’ve never heard of Boris before, and I never thought he’d have such a good theory of magic…….”

“Well, you’re right. We’ve never heard of him either…….”

Benjamin said through gritted teeth.

“An unexpected double agent……So what about the other students, should we be careful in other competitions?”

At that question, one of the teachers glanced in Amonis’ direction.

“Besides this Boris guy, there’s another boy……I remember seeing him.”

“Really, where?”

The teacher swallowed hard and said.

“Raymond, the winner of the swordsmanship division of His Majesty’s contest not long ago.”

Raymond yawned and scratched his chin at being named, and Vestric, who had been glaring at him, entered the road conference.

“What about the …… level?”

“The runner-up is from House Rada, a family with a reputation for rising to the level of Sword Expert at a young age. But a victory over such a Sword Expert must mean that Raymond is at least a Sword Expert.”

“……I don’t think he’s a Sword Master.”

“Considering his age, it’s likely he hasn’t reached the level of Sword Master.”

Regardless, he was a formidable opponent, that much was certain.

“…… Which of our students can compete in the sword fight?”

“The one with the best swordsmanship is the one who has reached the rank of Sword Master.”

“Ah, so you mean the one with a promising future.”

Benjamin nodded.

“Then that student shall be in charge of Raymond.”

“I see.”

Benjamin patted his chest in relief, as if glad to have Raymond’s presence known in advance, and turned to Anar’el.

“So, what would you like for our next match?”

Benjamin assumed it would be a swordsmanship contest.

After winning the first match, it was only natural to want to keep the momentum going and win the next.

But Anar’el seemed unconcerned.

“Let’s go with history.”

“……huh? Not swordsmanship?”

“Yes, history.”

Benjamin frowned at that, then clicked his tongue.

‘I would have thought she would have played a card with a higher chance of winning to win the second match, but……she’s a clueless elf.’

Vestric was actually hoping for a History match.

‘Hoo hoo hoo……the student who will be competing in the history tournament is a very accomplished student.’

Winner of many official debate tournaments!

He had won several times and performed well in oratorical competitions, so after graduation, he was offered appointments as a politician and diplomat in many kingdoms.

‘He’s very familiar with history.’

In the end, the match was a must-win for Vestric.

When the match was finally set, one of the overseers stepped forward.

“I am Kaloris, imperial scholar, and this contest will be a debate on a topic related to history, and the winner will be the one who makes the most reasoned argument, and the judgment of victory or defeat will be made by me, the Overseer.”

As the words fell, a student from Vestric’s side stepped forward confidently.

A winner of many debate tournaments, and a student who was more confident than anyone else when it came to speaking!

‘Fufufufu, didn’t they say that the headmaster would write a letter of recommendation to the imperial court if I win this exchange? What an opportunity…….’

Winning a debate against a student from a failing academy?

It’s so simple that it makes me wonder if the headmaster was trying to find an excuse to write a letter of recommendation!

So Vestric’s student, John of Marnie’s House, has to think about what to say.

‘Wouldn’t it be good to have a topic that would definitely bring down the opponent and also catch the eye of the imperial overseer? Then, I would choose the political conflict between the Principality of Vladimir and the Duke of Everglow as a topic……’

John, who had been lost in thought, suddenly looked up.

A student from Amonis had stepped forward.

‘I assume this is the girl from earlier?’

Since Raymond will be participating in the sword fight, there is only one girl left.

That’s why John looked up and saw the figure in front of him!

It was Raymond.

“Kuluk!?”

John coughed hard.

“What!?”

The teachers on Vestric’s side were in a panic.

“Uh, why Raymond?”

“Weren’t you supposed to be participating in the swordfight?”

John coughed and said in disbelief, echoing the questions of the faculty.

“Uh, uh, why, why would you…….”

Raymond tilted his head at the question and opened his mouth.

“What, you?”

John’s body stiffened at the icy words.

John is a typical academic.

He’s a desk-bound student who’s lived his life walled off from athletics!

But the moment the ‘Sword Master’ spoke those words with irritation and hostility!

-Eek!

A sharp sense of intimidation, as if a ferocious beast was roaring in front of him!

John quietly lowered his eyes and muttered.

“Oh, no. Sorry.”

Raymond, seeing him stammering, smirked and whispered back.

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s be good.”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

The two students shook hands in a “friendly manner,” and the proctor smiled.

“Heh, heh, heh, good, then we’ll start the second round. Which student will present their thesis first?”

But there was silence.

The proctor looked back and forth between the two students.

“Hmm? Which student would like to present their thesis first?”

“…….”

He asked again, but no answer!

Of the two students, John was the one who couldn’t open his mouth.

Raymond was glaring coldly in front of him!

-Rattle, rattle, rattle!

The gaze of a Sword Master who wasn’t even a scholar, and was at best a ‘wannabe scholar’, was far too fierce and fierce for him to handle!

That’s why John didn’t dare to meet that gaze, only dropping his gaze, and the silence that followed made the overseer frown.

Raymond held up his hand.

“I’ll go first.”

He did as Amon told him, and after days of skimming through history books, he had finally come up with a thesis that he could talk about.