Chapter 47

“Anyway, Jacqueline, to answer your first question. Being able to use magic without chanting a spell depends on your own skill. Once you reach a level where you can recreate the same magic without relying on someone else’s knowledge, there’s no need to recite incantations anymore.”

“Then that means I might be able to do it someday too?”

“If you keep working at it.”

“But you know, I’ve never seen Professor Winslet chant a spell while using magic. He doesn’t seem to use hand signs or magic circles either. So just how amazing is that guy?”

“Who knows?”

At Jacqueline’s question, Shannon considered Professor Winslet’s magical ability.

Winter Winslet had officially been recognized as a 7th-class mage in Karaf five years ago.

However, having faced him directly, Shannon judged that his true capabilities likely exceeded that.

The head of the Venizelos school and master of the southernmost of Karaf’s sixteen magic towers, Shannon’s great-grandfather Venizelos himself, was an 8th-class mage. And Winter Winslet didn’t seem to fall short of that level.

Shannon let out a sigh.

“I’m really going to have to work hard to catch up.”

“Ugh, are you seriously saying that? Still, it’s fine. They say a gentleman’s revenge isn’t too late after ten years.”

“Revenge?”

Shannon tilted her head in confusion.

Ding, ding, ding.

The bell signaling the end of class rang out.

“Oh, it’s already lunchtime. Shannon, you’re going to Professor Winslet’s lecture this afternoon too, right?”

“Mhmm.”

“Then let’s go eat lunch together. Think of it as my thanks for everything you taught me. I found a good restaurant yesterday. It’s a bit of a walk, though.”

“Where is it?”

Shannon asked, sounding a bit hesitant.

Jacqueline answered confidently.

“The Knight Cafeteria.”

***

Overflowing with enthusiasm, Jacqueline had succeeded in dragging Shannon all the way to the Knight Cafeteria and now proudly explained,

“It’s the student cafeteria for the Knight Department, so they call it the Knight Cafeteria. Doesn’t it have a nice ring to it?”

“Not sure about that…”

Shannon trailed off at the end of her sentence as she stood at the entrance and looked into the cafeteria.

The Knight Cafeteria was impressively spacious and crowded. The air carried a faint mix of sweat and spices, creating an atmosphere that was hard to define.

With lunch hour in full swing, over a hundred people were lined up in front of the meal ticket counter, and inside, rows of long twenty-person tables were arranged like those in a military mess hall.

Since there were no partitions, people naturally shared tables with strangers.

Conversations were brief, if they happened at all, and most finished their meals quickly and left.

There was order, efficiency, and even a certain functional beauty to it, Shannon thought.

But it was a kind of scene she had never encountered before, and for a moment, she was overwhelmed.

“We have to sit over there too, right? With people we don’t know.”

“Yeah, but everyone’s too busy eating to care who’s next to them. Are you scared of this kind of thing?”

“…No.”

Shannon’s prideful reply made Jacqueline smile gently.

“Come on! Let’s go line up for meal tickets.”

In the Knight cafeteria where the overwhelming majority of students were male, Shannon and Jacqueline stood out.

A few people glanced their way.

But Jacqueline acted as if nothing were out of the ordinary, so Shannon decided to follow her lead.

As the line moved forward and they approached the ticket counter, Shannon glanced at it and asked,

“We can’t choose what to eat?”

“Nope. Just one option. But the menu changes depending on the day.”

“What’s today’s menu?”

“Spicy stir-fried pork! It’s supposed to be the most popular dish here. I tried it once last week, and trust me, it’s worth the hype.”

The line at the meal ticket counter continued straight into the food line.

Each person picked up a tray and moved past the counter, receiving their meal, drink, and sides along the way.

Feeling like a lump of candy dough being pulled into a candy roller, Shannon received her portion of food and made her way to the table.

After finding an empty seat and sitting down, she looked across and saw Jacqueline setting down two trays.

She asked,

“Must’ve been really hungry, huh?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You brought two trays. Want some of mine too if that’s not enough?”

Jacqueline looked down at herself, and her face quickly turned beet red.

“No, no, it’s not like that! Do I really look like someone who eats that much? Well… I mean, that’s not entirely wrong! But anyway, not this time. One of them is for Rita.”

“Rita? The girl with the glasses?”

Just as Shannon tilted her head and asked, someone appeared next to Jacqueline and casually pulled out a chair to sit.

“Hi, Jacqueline. Oh, and Shannon, you’re here too?”

It was Rita, the girl with neatly braided hair and the model-student vibe.

Jacqueline greeted her warmly.

“Welcome! I invited Shannon. She helped me a lot in class today.”

“Is that so? Hi.”

Rita smiled gently and waved, and Shannon gave a small nod in return.

Rita spoke again.

“This is the first time I’ve seen you since then. Are you feeling better?”

“So-so.”

“I watched the duel. You were amazing. Do all Karaf mages fight like that?”

“Not all of them.”

“I see… hmm, well, I guess I’d be shocked if they did. My older brother graduated from the Mage Department too, but I don’t think he’s as skilled as you. Of course, Professor Winslet must be even more incredible to have taken you down without a scratch.”

At that, Jacqueline flared up in protest.

“Incredible? Seriously? I mean, come on—he’s a grown man throwing a girl to the ground and beating her up like that. That’s just awful. No wonder people call him the royal pain.”

“That’s not true.”

“Huh?”

“It was a fair duel. It only turned out that way because I was inexperienced.”

Since the one who actually got beaten was saying this so calmly, Jacqueline who had tried to take Shannon’s side found herself at a loss for words.

She blinked awkwardly, not knowing what to say until Rita came to the rescue.

“Come to think of it, all three of us have Professor Winslet’s class this afternoon, right?”

“Y-Yeah! Shannon, you’re able to attend again now, right?”

“That’s right.”

“That’s great. From now on, the three of us can have lunch together on Tuesdays and go to class together. How does that sound?”

“Hmm…”

“Oh, come on. You know I have a knack for finding the best places to eat. I’ll keep introducing you to amazing spots. Okay?”

Rita cut in playfully.

“Are you planning to drag us to places like this again?”

“Huh? What’s wrong with the knights’ cafeteria?”

“Well, how should I put it… it’s kind of intense. Felt like I was in a military barracks or something.”

“She’s right.”

When even Shannon agreed with Rita, Jacqueline stuck out her lower lip in a pout.

“Still, I guarantee the taste! Come on, try it already. Hurry up.”

Pressed by Jacqueline, Shannon lowered her gaze.

Her tray was piled high with what was apparently the cafeteria’s signature dish. The spicy stir-fried pork.

Thinly sliced pork marinated in red pepper powder and various spices, grilled to perfection.

Its fiery red colour and generous portion size certainly caught the eye, but there was something about the presentation that made it difficult to dig in.

However, Jacqueline who was sitting across from her was silently pressuring her with sparkling eyes, so Shannon reluctantly picked up her fork.

She carefully speared a piece of meat and took a bite.

Chew, chew.

Her brows furrowed.

The flavor was overwhelmingly spicy, salty, and sweet.

It was nothing like what she was used to. It was far too different.

But then, a subtle sweetness and rich umami flavor started to rise through, blending smoothly with the savory oil, creating a surprisingly harmonious taste in her mouth.

This is… delicious.

One more bite, and then another.

As Shannon quietly began to pick up speed with her eating, Jacqueline burst into loud laughter.

“Haha! I knew you’d like it!”

Jacqueline looked even more excited than the person actually eating the food.

After finishing their meal, the three of them walked back to the Magic Department accompanied by the springtime breeze of the campus and Jacqueline’s bright humming that matched it.

Room 121 of the First Magic Department where Professor Winslet’s lecture was held was a small classroom.

He probably didn’t need a large space.

Most students would’ve dropped out after the initial skill assessment on the first day.

Even with Shannon returning, the class only had five students.

Sitting next to Shannon, Jacqueline turned around and spotted two seniors.

As she looked more closely at their faces, she suddenly let out a strained groan and made a sour expression.

“Ugh, it’s that obnoxious senior.”

“What’s wrong? Do you know them?”

“It’s nothing. Just someone a bit… difficult.”

Following Jacqueline’s gaze, Rita turned around and saw two upperclassmen. One was a girl dressed like a noble; the other was a guy with deep dark circles under his eyes.

But she didn’t get to stare for long.

The bell signaling the start of class rang, and Professor Winter Winslet entered the room.

With long strides, he reached the podium in moments and set down a thin booklet he was carrying.

“I’ll take attendance.”

***

As Professor Winter Winslet, this was technically my third time entering the classroom—

But it was the first time I would truly face the students.

The first class had been a so-called “ability test”, where I eliminated all but five out of a thousand students.

In the second class, under the pretense of a duel observation, I beat Shannon to a pulp.

I even just created the attendance sheet today, so this really was the first proper lecture.

I had five students to teach.

Though it was late, I decided it was time to memorize their faces and get a feel for what kind of people they were.

I started the roll call with a name I already knew.

“Shannon Quinlivan.”

“Yes.”

Shannon who was seated in the dead center of the front row responded.

She’d sat in that same seat during the first class—

Back then, she’d glared at me with a face full of poison, practically waving a death flag over her head.

Now, the atmosphere was completely different.

Sitting upright and focused intently on me, she looked ready to learn.

It seemed the hierarchy-setting had worked well.

I shifted my gaze back to the attendance sheet.

Next were the two freshmen sitting beside Shannon like sparrows huddled together.

“Rita Ridge.”

“Yes.”

She looked like a quiet, model student.

And next to her, the redhead…

“Jacqueline Dogwood.”

“Yup!”

That was Jacqueline Dogwood. The one who’d passed the ability test thanks to the fluke of fainting while standing.

Still, it wasn’t a bad thing that she answered so energetically.

That made three first-years in total.

Considering the difficulty of the ability test, five survivors was actually a decent number—

Even more so when you realize that only two upperclassmen made it through.

I continued reading the upperclassmen’s names listed toward the bottom of the attendance sheet.

“Stephanie Wells.”

“Yes, Professor.”

A blonde girl, resting her chin on her hand, flashed a smile that tried a bit too hard to be charming. And then…

“Luke Rousseau.”

“Yes.”

If fatigue could take physical form, it would be dripping off this guy’s head like sweat.

Stephanie Wells was a third-year, and Luke Rousseau was a senior.

At the academy, students who had been enrolled for more than four years were referred to as “seniors”.

They were usually either idiots who couldn’t graduate or students working toward an advanced degree.

Luke Rousseau was the latter.

He didn’t exactly radiate charisma, but as the oldest student in the classroom, I figured he might serve as a stabilizing presence for the others.

[Warning]

[A death flag has been raised by this character.]

Of course.

I almost forgot that Winter Winslet was second to none when it came to being a villain in this academy.

A senior with a death flag, huh?

What kind of danger awaits me this time?

And so began my exciting, heart-pounding life as a professor.