Yujin looked at Ines who was holding out her hand and thought to himself.
Professor, huh…
It was a situation he honestly had not anticipated, yet it wasn’t exactly beyond his understanding.
Yujin had been the mage who established the foundations of space-time magic. Moreover, nobody else knew this knowledge. In the field of space-time magic, he was both a pioneer and the only expert in existence.
Of course, the origin of all magic, including space-time magic, was the dragons… But whether it was this way or that, Yujin was now a dragon himself, and it was Yujin who had structured it so that even mortals could use it properly. Therefore, it wasn’t entirely wrong to call him a pioneer.
Anyway, being a pioneer in a particular field meant that there was no one superior in that area. From the Academy’s point of view, there could be no more suitable candidate to take on the job of a professor than him.
However…
“I have no intention of releasing space-time magic to the public yet. I made that clear at the lecture hall, and I trust you, Headmistress, understand. Even so, are you saying you still want me to be a professor at your Academy?”
Yujin himself had no plans to make space-time magic widely known. In other words, he had no intention of teaching his specialized field.
He had already stated at the lecture that space-time magic was far too advanced for humanity at present and that he would only teach it to those who earnestly pursued knowledge and found the answers themselves.
Even so, Ines had offered him a professorship.
“Or are you treating what I said at the lecture lightly?”
His question implied whether she intended to force him to teach space-time magic at the Academy, ignoring his refusal.
The Headmistress shook her head.
“No, that’s not it. I apologize. I spoke too briefly about our purpose, so it seems I didn’t explain properly.”
With that, Ines added an explanation.
“Well… Yujin, just as you said, I fully understand what you declared at the lecture hall. And what I’m proposing isn’t for you to teach space-time magic directly at the Academy.”
“You mean not directly?”
“Yes, not directly.”
With those words, Ines opened a subspace and took something out from within. It was…
“That’s the thesis I published.”
“Yes. I too read the thesis you released to the Mages Association.”
Ines flipped through the pages of the thesis as she spoke.
“New theories that I’d never heard of before, mystical concepts that seemed almost otherworldly, magical formulas with entirely different structures from anything thus far… To be honest, even I couldn’t understand it.”
“……..”
“But as I read it, I had this thought. Perhaps it’s impossible to fully comprehend without the right background knowledge. Maybe there are hidden concepts that seem like common sense to the author, yet to us, they’re revolutionary.”
When Yujin heard that, he was quietly impressed. He hadn’t expected anyone to see through his intentions like that.
In fact, Yujin had made the thesis in such a way that one needed a basic understanding of space-time derived from modern scientific knowledge, other branches of physics, direct teachings from Tiamat regarding space-time magic, and the Dragon senses Yujin possessed for perceiving space-time. Without all that, the structure would be impossible to grasp in its entirety.
Originally, Yujin wrote the thesis not because he genuinely wished for humanity to understand and use space-time magic, but rather to deflate the Mages Association’s pride and free himself from their interference.
As mentioned before, while technology itself holds no morality, those who use it do.
He did not want the very space-time magic he had established to be misused. In that case, he thought it would be better not to reveal it at all.
But the Headmistress before him had managed to see right through his intentions, albeit slightly off the mark. There had been remarks in the game that she possessed exceptional insight; it appeared those remarks were indeed true.
“As a mage myself, I deeply sympathized with your statement that ‘mages must seek out value through their research’.”
“……”
“However, the knowledge you revealed seemed extremely alien, almost like it came from a different world. So I’d like to ask you. Even if it’s not space-time magic, could you at least help make sure that future generations can interpret it?”
Setting aside the fact that she was one of the strongest mortals and the Headmistress of the Academy, Ines was making her request in a very polite manner.
Seeing that, Yujin felt his heart waver a bit.
He had no intention of spreading space-time magic to the general public, but that did not mean what he had said at the lecture was empty rhetoric.
He believed that being a mage meant making a career out of digging into knowledge and truth, possessing genuine pride rather than vanity or a sense of privilege, and conducting one’s studies with proper ethics and morality.
That, in Yujin’s view, was the ideal image of a mage in this world.
Unlike the insignificant people who slaughtered monsters like him and rose through the ranks by chance, these were people with a truly noble profession that advanced the world.
If he could personally help nurture such individuals, perhaps he too might feel a bit of pride in that.
Above all, were people not beings who defined and proved their worth through work? Yujin had no intention of living a life of leisure, doing nothing but indulging in the wealth he had obtained from Tiamat’s tomb.
Since becoming a professor seemed like a sufficiently meaningful job, he thought it would not be a bad idea to give it a try.
However…
But my contract with Lady Tiamat comes first.
By the terms of his contract with Tiamat, Yujin was obligated to free the dragons of the Labyrinth and restore the dragons’ standing to what it had been before.
Because he had no way of knowing how long that would take, it would be difficult to devote himself fully to professorship right away.
In the end, just as he was about to refuse…
[…Yujin, do you happen to want to try out this job called being a professor among humans?]
…Huh?
Tiamat, who had remained silent ever since they met Ines, suddenly spoke up.
[I merely caught a glimpse of your thoughts. You seemed interested in becoming a professor.]
…That’s…
Yujin was briefly at a loss for words, but he soon turned to Tiamat and spoke.
But my contract with you comes first, Lady Tiamat.
[Hmm? There’s no need to fulfill the contract right away, is there?]
What?
At Yujin’s question, Tiamat explained further.
[Of course, sooner would be better, but we never specified a deadline in our contract, did we?]
That is… true, but…
[More importantly, if we consider you a dragon, you’re still just a newly born hatchling. While your soul is quite advanced for a hatchling, I intended to wait until you grew further. Since the Labyrinth is a prison created by the combined power of the gods, an ordinary Transcendent can’t handle it so easily. You need time to prepare.]
Ah…
[Naturally, taking out a few of my children wouldn’t be too difficult for you even as you are now… But there’s no need to rush. Pursue what you want to do while preparing at your own pace. I’ll wait for you.]
Tiamat was smiling warmly as she said this. She really resembled a benevolent mother.
Yujin felt a surge of emotion, yet he still had some concern and asked,
But wouldn’t the other dragons trapped in the Labyrinth be waiting?
[They’re probably sleeping for a thousand years at a time, so it shouldn’t be a big problem, right?]
…I see.
He realized for a moment that he had underestimated a dragon’s sense of time. Tiamat who lacked a physical body, could not sleep, but it seemed dragons might sleep in spans of a thousand years.
…Still, I should at least check on them.
However, Yujin did not want to put off his contract with Tiamat for too long.
With that in mind, he asked Ines,
“I have a question, if I may.”
“Go ahead.”
Ines lifted her head, indicating she would gladly listen. Yujin asked,
“Will I have enough time to explore the Labyrinth while working as a professor?”
“Ah, that. So you too have a big interest in the Labyrinth.”
Upon hearing his question, Ines spoke.
“All a professor needs to do is give lectures. Beyond that, you’re free to do whatever you wish. Whether it’s research or exploring the Labyrinth. The Academy will offer its full support. We can even skip the normal formalities for Labyrinth exploration, and you can form a party with other faculty members to go down together. Besides, you won’t have to worry about lacking time for your lectures. Basically, the deeper you go in the Labyrinth, the slower time flows.”
“Is that so?”
This was something Yujin had just learned for the first time. Being a novice when it came to the game of “Labyrinth Academy”, there were often pieces of information he didn’t know.
…No, now that I think about it, I might have vaguely felt that the flow of time was different.
As Yujin mulled over this thought, Ines began to explain.
“A day on the 1st to the 10th floors of the Labyrinth equals 12 hours in the real world. A day from the 11th to the 20th floor equals 6 hours. From the 21st to the 30th floors, a day equals 3 hours. The time flow slows by half every 10 floors compared to the upper floors.”
“Hmm…”
“Moreover, the Labyrinth has a system that remembers the highest floor each challenger has reached. If a challenger has reached the 10th floor previously, they can instantly travel back to that floor.”
This was something Yujin already knew.
In any case, this meant there wasn’t much to worry about. Since time in the Labyrinth flowed more slowly, Yujin wouldn’t need to be concerned.
If I have a guide, I can instantly travel to the lower floors.
This also meant there wouldn’t be any major issue in proceeding with the contract with Tiamat now.
Still, one puzzling point remained. By Tiamat’s account, even in the Labyrinth, the Great War was said to have occurred thousands of years ago. Yet, on the surface, it was also considered an event from thousands of years ago…
[Ah, the slower flow of time applies to mortals, not Transcendents. Transcendents have their own absolute standard of time. You’ve adapted to the mortal sense of time, so it felt that way to you. The next time you fully awaken your Transcendent senses, you’ll understand.]
Ah, I see.
Tiamat answered his internal question and cleared up the mystery. In any case…
“And… as you likely know, there are plenty of places that would want you on their side. If you’re affiliated with the Academy, you won’t have to worry about being bothered by them.”
“That’s certainly true.”
More than anything, this statement resonated with him the most. If he already had an affiliation, those who might otherwise pester him would likely back off.
“Of course, I won’t trouble you about time-space magic, either. All I’d ask is for you to teach a few lectures while being part of the Academy. That would be enough.”
“…I see.”
“What do you think…?”
Yujin seemed to deliberate for a moment before smiling and clasping the hand Ines had extended.
“All right. In that case, I accept the offer for a professor position at the Academy.”
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