Chapter 74

Through Instructor Frederick, I managed to meet Professor Albert ‘the former’ again.

I already had the phone number that the instructor gave me, but I thought it would be more effective to ask through the instructor rather than directly saying I wanted to learn at once. And my choice turned out to be correct.

“He wants to see us in a few hours this evening. The address is…”

“Thank you!”

“Thank you? If you’re that grateful, why not pay for my tutoring then?”

“Here you go!”

“…Where the heck did you pull this stack of bills from? No, never mind. Just forget it…”

As the sun began to set, I rode in a truck driven by another Violet for quite a while.

We arrived at the location indicated by the address. Under a streetlamp in a quiet park with a small lake, a middle-aged man with a nervous expression was tapping his feet on the ground, waiting with a disgruntled face.

“It’s already our third meeting.”

“Professor! Are you really going to teach me? Thank you so much!”

“What’s with all the fuss over something that hasn’t even been decided yet?”

I handed him the well-packaged juice bottles as a form of politeness. Instructor Frederick had refused them saying he disliked sweets, so I was curious about the professor’s response.

“What’s this? Just put it over there. I’m busy.”

There was no culture of exchanging juice gift sets in the Rust Room.

“That bastard Vulture, acting so childish… Fine. Guess why you’re here.”

“Um, it doesn’t feel like it’s for a class… Is it a test?”

“Correct. You seem a bit slow, but you catch on quickly.”

The professor took out a short rod and swung it around. The folded rod transformed into a long magic staff. He then swung his staff and drew a hand sign in the air with his left hand.

“You don’t need to answer, just listen. I agreed to meet because of a classmate’s request, but I’ve already figured out your level. It’s pathetic.”

“Then why did Instructor Frederick ask you to teach me?”

“Shut up! I’m not someone who teaches anyone just like that. You wouldn’t expect me to work for free for someone who’s just a lifetime professor of an academy, would you?”

I became perplexed. Then why did he insist on this somewhat unreasonable request to the instructor? It was peculiar that the instructor complied. Was it out of whim?

Waves of magical power expanded and faded around Albert. He stepped into the lake and walked right over it toward the center.

“I used to conduct diagnostic evaluations near the lake in the academy to filter out idiots like you. It turns out this place is quite similar. It’s quiet, and there’s no one around at night. Just in case, I set up a few soundproof barriers nearby.”

Magic circles intersected in succession, gradually expanding until they surrounded the entire lake. A curtain with complex geometric patterns soon covered and enveloped the lake.

“The way the test works is simple. You must break through this barrier and cross the lake to reach me. You have one hour.”

I panicked and started pacing around in distress.

“Wait a minute! How am I supposed to break through that barrier?!”

A short, clear sound echoed, and a complex puzzle made of shimmering marbles appeared before me.

“The purpose of the test is to assess your judgment, application ability, and mathematical thinking skills. You can use methods other than magic. Don’t hesitate; break through the barrier by any means necessary.”

The moment I looked at the puzzle before me, I instinctively realized this was the magic formula.

“Magic is about utilizing ether to alter the physical laws of the world. It’s a whole different level from just simple body enhancement.”

Its form was complicated and flashy. It resembled a jumble of gemstone abacuses entangled together. The sparkling beads connected by intricate lines and circles looked like a mix of a rush-hour puzzle with the Königsberg Bridge thrown into a three-dimensional chessboard.

“If you fail, I won’t teach you. Now, let’s start-”

“Wait! I can’t use magic!”

A series of short chimes rang out. The words <1:00:00> appeared above the magic circle. The countdown had begun.

*

Professor Albert sat quietly on the lake, watching Violets’ movements.

“This is a problem that only upper-grade students could barely solve.”

The magic formula provided could not simply be solved with just handling magical power.

Magic is indeed mysterious, as it requires a background in mathematical thinking. Pure mathematical knowledge necessitated a deep understanding of geometry and topology.

What Albert didn’t know was that, unfortunately, Violet was a liberal arts graduate and a math failure.

Violet fiddled with the magic formula, moving the gemstone beads, and soon began to look distraught.

The professor watched the scene, chuckling. Though he pretended to threaten her that he wouldn’t teach, he had no intention of rejecting a request from an old colleague.

This test was merely to assess the girl’s level.

In fact, he also felt some suspense. He recalled the conversation he had with Frederick.

-I’m not just handing this off to you because you’re stubbornly insisting. Do I look like someone who would joke around like that? Albert, this kid, Violet, has more potential than you can imagine!

-Potential? Are you sure?

-She broke through the beginner stage just three days after starting body magical power enhancement training. She even used full-body enhancement, albeit clumsily.

-Isn’t that an illusion? No, you’ve always been precise about these things. Now you’ve piqued my curiosity.

He sensed that his friend was desperately trying to conceal his excitement.

Twenty minutes passed. An anxious Violet fiddled with the magic formula, squinting at it as if inspecting it through a magnifying glass.

‘Goodness, does she think this is a neighborhood lock?’

Albert clicked his tongue. If he were to take on such a foolish student, he would have a lot to teach. He wouldn’t be bored, that was for sure.

As the number on the barrier reached 30, Violet began to look around. Albert sensed magical movements from her. Dozens of girls who looked exactly like Violet immediately appeared one after another.

‘That’s not magic, is it? Is that the unique ability Frederick mentioned? Truly peculiar. That alone could provide material for excellent research.’

The Violets, armed with tools, began to dig into the ground beneath the barrier.

‘She said to use any means necessary, but they’re doing something so bizarre.’

What she had just said was merely a playful remark.

Moreover, the shape of this barrier was a concrete form. Even if they dug, the way to the lake was entirely blocked.

Twenty-five minutes were left until the test ended.

Realizing the structure of the barrier too late, the girls dropped their tools and pulled out weapons. Red sword energies began to rise one after another.

Before long, dozens of Violets were frantically attacking the barrier. I even saw a girl with a crossbow firing shots.

‘That’s meaningless. You foolish girl. No matter how much you hit with clumsy output, it won’t work. Instead, the barrier will absorb the magical power.’

With about 15 minutes remaining, the Violets, drained of magical power, collapsed, and the girl eliminated a few of her clones. The clones and the girl sat quietly, staring at the barrier.

‘They don’t seem to have given up, but are they waiting for something…?’

From afar, the sound of an engine began to be heard. With a strange feeling of foreboding, Albert surveyed the area.

Leading a truck and two other large and small vehicles, the lights flashed as they began to rush toward the barrier. Upon seeing who was in the vehicles, Albert finally realized what Violet was waiting for.

‘What kind of lunatic is this? Is she really trying to attack this physically? To destroy this barrier physically, they would need to bring heavy artillery from the Federal Army!’

Dumbfounded by Violet’s idea, Albert shook his head. This was the first time he had ever seen a student attempt such an approach in his teaching career.

-Bang! Bang!

The vehicles collided with the barrier and were immediately wrecked. The attempt to breach the barrier using the truck and passenger car like a siege weapon ended with just three ruined vehicles left.

Fuming, Violet started kicking the barrier while shouting loudly. She gritted her teeth and pulled back.

‘What’s this? Are you fleeing?’

Disappointment and disdain twisted Albert’s face.

When there were about five minutes left, Violet returned again.

This time, the same clone girls appeared, each carrying large and small black objects.

They groaned as they buried the things they had brought next to the spot where they had just dug around the barrier.

Suddenly, Albert’s long experience alerted him to the crisis.

As he focused and observed with magical power, he gasped.

Suspicious large and small metallic containers connected by wires of some kind, various shapes and forms, but those were undoubtedly…

‘Those… are makeshift explosives, aren’t they?’

Shocked, Albert shouted.

“W-Wait! What are you doing?! Stop!”

Violet looked at the barrier, stuck out her tongue playfully, and then laughed as she dashed back, hiding in a hole that had mysteriously been dug.

“You crazy girl! Stop right now!”

At the moment the time remaining for the test was about four minutes, a tremendous explosion rang out, and dust began to rise.

-KABOOM!

An amount of makeshift explosives far beyond what the heavy artillery could compare with turned the park into chaos. The barrier collapsed in an instant, unable to withstand the shock.

“Yay!”

Ecstatic, Violet dashed out through the dust and swam toward the lake.

“Four minutes left!”

“Ah…”

“I passed! I passed! You’re going to teach me magic now, right? Right?”

Albert held his head in his hands, cursing his long-time friend, Frederick.

‘Oh my god, Frederick. What’s with all this potential! This is just insanity!’

The former lifetime professor of Polaris hung his head in despair.

Only the girl swimming below tilted her head in confusion.