It was finally time for the highly anticipated Deathcraft class. The students gathered in the lecture hall, buzzing with chatter as they let their imaginations run wild about who the new professor could be.
"If it’s a guest professor, it must be someone fresh from the field. Plus, if she’s a high-ranking female necromancer, couldn’t it be Sir Forella?"
"That makes sense! She’s a Kizen graduate, too."
"I think it might be Count Ludiha..."
Amid the rampant speculation, Simon arrived at the lecture hall, taking his seat and setting down his bag. Lorraine, who had arrived earlier, sat beside him.
"Lorraine, do you happen to know anything?"
Lorraine simply brushed her hair back. "Who knows."
’She knows. She absolutely knows.’ She looked as expressionless as usual, but Simon caught the faint smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
Following the students, teaching assistants entered the lecture hall one by one. Their faces looked somewhat familiar—they were Lin and Lune’s assistants. It seemed the new guest professor had arrived in such a hurry that she hadn’t been able to form her own team, opting instead to retain the existing Deathcraft assistants. The head teaching assistant leading them stepped up to the podium and took a disciplined parade-rest stance.
"The professor is entering. Everyone, please rise."
Chairs scraped across the floor as the students pushed them back and stood up. It was their first meeting with the new professor. Everyone stared tensely toward the entrance.
The sound of disciplined footsteps echoed through the hall. Simon listened closely. It sounded like the person was wearing heels, but the gait felt closer to the heavy stomp of a soldier’s combat boots. It radiated power and discipline.
In that tension-filled silence, the new guest professor finally revealed herself. Gasps echoed from all corners of the room. Her black hair, reminiscent of a pale waning moon, and her fierce, bird-of-prey eyes, paired with the beauty mark resting just below, created a mysterious and captivating aura. Unlike the other Kizen professors who preferred neat formal wear or suits, she wore a commander’s uniform draped over her shoulders.
The students couldn’t take their eyes off her as she stepped up to the podium. She came to a halt with a sharp, disciplined motion, sweeping her gaze over the students.
"Greetings," she said. "I am Jin Arscalt. I shall be your temporary professor for this semester."
The room erupted into cheers, forcing the teaching assistants to cover their ears with smiling faces.
"Whoa!"
"Arscalt? As in, the Grand Duke of the North? Right?"
"She’s an active-duty Legion Commander!"
"I knew Kizen’s recruitment power was insane, but this is just..."
"Wait, the Grand Duke of the North is a woman?"
The lecture hall overflowed with frenzy and excitement. They knew it was rude to gossip right in front of the person in question, but their emotions were running too high to care. Some rubbed their eyes in disbelief, while others already wore lovestruck expressions.
’I had my suspicions, but still.’ Simon crossed his arms with a wry smile. He knew that after the war with the God of the North ended, she had taken an interest in education. She had mentioned in a letter that she was preparing something for this vacation and told him to look forward to it, so he had guessed as much.
But he never expected to meet her again so soon, barely half a year later. She was scanning the room as if searching for someone. Then, the moment her eyes met Simon’s, an unconcealable smile bloomed on her lips. Feeling his heart swell, Simon gave her a subtle, inconspicuous nod in greeting.
’More than that, it’s fascinating.’ To reunite with her in Kizen, of all places. He felt like shouting out loud in sheer joy.
"I can’t believe the Grand Duke of the North is our professor!" Ash, who had been bouncing up and down in excitement next to him, took a breath and spoke. "Isn’t this absolutely incredible, Death Knight Boy?"
Eshe turned her head as she asked, but Toto, sitting next to him, seemed completely captivated by Jin and hadn’t heard a word.
"That’s enough. Settle down," the veteran head teaching assistant said, stepping forward to calm the students. Only then did they quiet down.
"Professor."
"Yes." Jin stepped forward. "From the sound of it, there is no need for me to introduce myself."
The students who had been excitedly spouting information about her blushed and scratched their heads.
"Just as you find me fascinating, I too find you fascinating. So, you are the famous students of Kizen." Her voice carried a strangely lingering resonance.
Scanning their faces once more, she quietly closed her eyes. "If you were thrown onto the battlefield right now, half of you would die instantly."
A heavy silence fell over the room.
"Having rolled around in the field since a young age, I tend to categorize people into those who will live and those who will soon die just by looking at them. It is a sort of occupational hazard, so I ask for your understanding."
She slammed a baton—which she had pulled out from who knows where—against the floor with a dull ’thud’. Leaning her weight onto it, she lowered her stance and scrutinized the students with eyes like a bird of prey.
"I do not know how your previous professor conducted her classes, but my lessons will be rather harsh. Training will be conducted as if it were actual combat, and laziness or negligence will come at a price. Your dazed expressions do not make for a particularly good first impression, but I expect you to be sharp and alert once the training begins."
As expected, she exuded the heavy aura of a soldier. It didn’t feel like a lecture hall anymore; it felt like the middle of a military training ground.
She frowned. "Your answer?"
"Yes, ma’am!" the students replied in a booming voice.
Their awe at seeing the Grand Duke of the North in person was fleeting, quickly replaced by expressions of grim realization. Some students had unconsciously snapped to attention. Having instantly dominated the atmosphere from their very first meeting, she turned her back.
"Teaching assistants, distribute the training uniforms. From now on, you are to wear these to my classes."
As if waiting for the command, the teaching assistants rushed forward and handed out the training uniforms to the students one by one.
’Wait, what is this?’ Simon smiled wryly. It was a featureless military-green outfit, but it had plenty of pockets and looked highly functional for movement. He had occasionally seen warriors wearing this in Northern Kahlus.
’Grand Duke, this is a Deathcraft class, not military training!’ Simon anxiously checked his classmates’ reactions, but they were pulling out and examining the training uniforms with the utmost seriousness.
"Do you think there’s some hidden meaning behind these clothes?"
"They might be enchanted with dark magic."
It was just a normal training uniform.
However, the students were talking as if they had received something incredible. The halo effect of the Hero of Humanity, the Grand Duke of the North, was just that immense. Still, Simon, who knew her true nature, thought he needed to speak with Jin as soon as possible.
Just then, a male student shot his hand into the air.
"Professor! I’m Matt Comer! May I ask a question?"
"Permission granted."
Matt Comer’s face flushed with joy, while the other students who had been looking for a chance to ask a question closed their mouths in disappointment.
"I’m a huge fan of yours, Professor! Since I’m from Kahlus, I grew up listening to stories about the Grand Duke of the North! My absolute favorite is the Battle of the Plains, where your ancient undead, Hete, was in danger! I’m curious how you came up with the idea to escape by hiding in the frozen river when you were trapped in the enemy’s encirclement!"
Jin narrowed her eyes. "State how that question is relevant to my class."
"E-Excuse me?"
"I came here to teach you, not to engage in idle chatter. I will not accept any personal questions unrelated to the class."
"I apologize!"
Simon facepalmed. ’Still, answering a student’s question is the bare minimum for a Kizen professor.’ He subtly glanced around, wondering if anyone would take issue with this, but the students were nodding with solemn faces.
"She’s insanely charismatic."
"She’s the Hero of Humanity for a reason."
Everyone was already completely infatuated with the Grand Duke of the North. It felt like no matter what she said, they would just accept it as the Grand Duke’s profound wisdom. After Matt Comer was harshly shut down, no one else dared to ask a question. After sharing a few more words about the class, Jin spoke up.
"Before teaching you Deathcraft, I would like to fix your rotten mental states, but Professor Aaron told me to take it easy on the first day, so I shall hold back."
As she turned her back, her Grand Duke coat fluttered.
"That is all for today’s class. Come prepared with firm resolve for the next one. Dismissed."
The head teaching assistant announced the end of the class, and Jin left the lecture hall. The students began to pack their bags, excitedly pouring out their thoughts.
"I thought my heart was going to beat out of my chest!"
"I can’t wait to go brag to the kids in the other departments!"
Simon was walking alongside his classmates when a voice called out to him.
"Simon! Simon!"
"Yes?"
One of the teaching assistants quickly caught up to him, whispering so that only Simon could hear.
"The professor is looking for you."
Simon nodded to signal that he understood.
He told his group members, who were leaving the building with him, that he had to go ahead due to club-related matters. He then slipped down a side path and walked back toward the lecture halls. The head teaching assistant happened to be waiting in the hallway.
"Right this way."
Simon followed the assistant down the corridor and stopped in front of a door. A nameplate with the ink barely dry was attached to it.
[Professor Jin Arscalt’s Office]
Seeing it, the reality that she had actually become a professor finally hit him. The head teaching assistant knocked politely.
"Professor, Simon is here."
"Send him in."
The door clicked open, and Simon stepped inside. The Grand Duke of the North, Jin, was sitting on the sofa, drinking tea with a solemn expression. Simon bowed politely, and Jin acknowledged his greeting with a nod before looking at the head teaching assistant.
"You may leave."
"Yes, ma’am."
The head teaching assistant closed the door with a ’creak’ and walked away. Once the footsteps faded and the room fell completely silent, leaving only the two of them...
"You haven’t changed a bit, you cheeky brat."
An irrepressible, beaming smile broke through her stern facade.
"Grand Duke!" Simon smiled brightly, overjoyed to see her.
The two stood up and shared a light hug. It was the moment the 7th Legion Commander and the 2nd Legion Commander reunited within Kizen.
"Have you been well?" she asked.
"Thanks to you! But why didn’t you tell me you were coming in as a professor? You startled me!"
"Isn’t it more fun to meet dramatically? I had a hard time holding back because I wanted to tell you so badly."
She laughed affably. It was a complete contrast to the charismatic figure who had been enforcing military discipline in the lecture hall earlier. This was a side of her that only Simon knew. The two sat down and chatted.
Fighting together in Northern Kahlus felt like it had happened just yesterday. ’It’s been a while since I’ve had this, too.’ Simon savored the bitter tea unique to Northern Kahlus before speaking up.
"Then, the fact that Professor Lin and Professor Lune went to the battlefield... was that actually because you requested it?"
"No, that is a real situation," Jin said, setting down her teacup. "Originally, I planned to finish my tour of Kizen, start as a preliminary professor, and learn the ropes before being officially appointed. But Lady Nephthys suggested it first. She asked if I wanted to take on the Deathcraft class since there was a vacancy."
Simon looked at her with worried eyes. "Are you confident about teaching the class?"
"Of course." She picked up the Deathcraft textbook on the table and waved it lightly. "If teaching the kids the techniques in here is the basic requirement, I already tried them all before coming here. It was easy."
Simon clicked his tongue in awe. A Legion Commander was a Legion Commander, after all. Student-level Deathcraft techniques were apparently child’s play for her.
"I always had to use the Northern Army’s limited undead as efficiently as possible, so I already possessed a certain knack for this field."
"That’s a relief."
"Indeed. Of course, apart from Lady Nephthys’s proposal, there is another reason I came here."
"What is it?"
She cleared her throat and turned her head away, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Because of you, obviously. You cheeky brat."

Comments

Loading...