episode_0050

The Imperial Academy consisted of faculties divided into five major categories.

A military department where students learn various weapon techniques and strategies, including swordsmanship.

A department of magic that studies magic, elementalism, and alchemy.

The Department of Humanities specializes in general studies.

An engineering department that studies various technologies, especially magic engineering.

Lastly, there was an arts department that studied various arts such as literature, music, and art.

Of these five faculties, the most popular were by far the military and magic faculties.

In particular, if you graduated from those two departments at the Imperial Academy, your path to success was guaranteed.

Those with excellent academic records were appointed to public offices in the empire or were recruited to work in research labs at the Magic Tower, and many talented people applied, and competition was fierce even there.

For generations, among the corps commanders, the highest position among the soldiers of the empire, there was no one who was not a top graduate of the academy, and among the elders of the Magic Tower, one was even said to be a hard-working, but sincere person just because he graduated second in class, showing his fierceness.

However, this does not mean that other faculties are easy.

The Department of Humanities was one of the career courses for civil servants of the empire, and the Department of Engineering was one of the essential courses for businessmen who researched and developed various technologies and opened famous stores in the capital.

But the Faculty of Arts was a little different.

Those majoring in music were better off, but the rest of literature and art were not doing so well.

Music was popular because there was a large theater company in every province of the empire and it was an essential element of nobles’ banquets.

Without the support of nobles, literature and art had to endure by sucking their fingers.

In literature, the main source of income was interpreting ancient languages and writing heroic epics that were occasionally requested by the imperial family or the magic tower.

Art was the main source of income through portraits of nobles and occasional murals.

However, the demand was extremely limited and substitutes were too strong, so most people were left poor.

So, if wealthy nobles thought their children had no special talent, they would use the expedient method of having their children study literature or art and enroll them in the Imperial Academy.

It was easy to get into school because the competition was low, and the family had a lot of money, so I just wanted to go to the Imperial Academy to expand my network and earn a diploma to save face.

“It’s a big deal. The ‘Saint’ professor in charge of art suddenly resigned, so I don’t know where to fill the vacancy… .”

“I was suddenly told that I had to resign from my position as the exclusive painter of the imperial palace due to personal reasons, and there was no way to stop me.”

The arts department was in big trouble ahead of the academy’s opening.

It was due to the sudden retirement of Saint, who had been a professor in the Department of Fine Arts until now.

It was never easy to fill the void left by him, who left due to personal reasons.

Saint was the most famous painter in the empire, as he served as the exclusive painter of the imperial palace.

It was safe to say that there was no talent that could replace his vacancy.

To begin with, the number of people pursuing the path of becoming an artist was decreasing day by day.

With the invention and popularization of the magic camera, even commoners could easily take pictures, but there was no need to pay a high price to draw pictures.

This is because portraits were only drawn occasionally for aristocratic people who were overflowing with money.

“What about Sir Jerome? Still, he graduated at the top of his class in the art department of our department.”

“When he graduated, he was famous for creating a new lecture building within the Imperial Academy.”

In other popular departments, graduation grades were determined strictly based on grades, but in non-mainstream art departments, graduation grades were often determined based on donations.

Since this is a field where it is difficult to objectively judge skills, it was difficult to prevent tricks like this from happening.

Everyone knew, but turned a blind eye, because scholarships were being provided to students in need through donations from wealthy graduates.

However, although the position of head of school could be sold for money, the position of professor could not.

No matter how difficult it is, it is a position where the honor of the Imperial Academy is at stake.

We couldn’t bring in someone who didn’t have any skills.

“Then what about him?”

“He? Who are you talking about?”

“I heard that Rupert Somerset is the most famous painter in the Empire these days.”

“Ah! Now that I think about it, his drawing skills are by far outstanding.”

Claude, who served as dean of the Faculty of Arts, opened his eyes.

Since he majored in literature, he cannot be said to be an expert in art, but in his opinion, the illustrations in the children’s books and comic books that Rupert recently made and popularized were very outstanding.

To be honest, I was saying it all because it looked better than the painting drawn by Saint, my former professor.

With that level of skill, there would be no disagreement even if he were appointed as a professor at the Imperial Academy.

but

“But isn’t he entering our academy this time?”

In Claude’s memory, he remembered sending a letter of admission to Rupert’s family, the Earl of Somerset.

“I recently received a letter saying that I will not be admitted.”

It was unexpected.

No matter how unpopular the art department is, other people pay money to get into it, but they don’t come even after being accepted.

Anyway, I thought it was fortunate that the catastrophe of taking on a professorship as a student did not happen.

“But you’re too young.”

The age to enter the Imperial Academy was 15, but it was customary to enroll at 17, which was generally considered the age of majority.

I was concerned that Rupert, who was scheduled to enroll this year, was also 17 years old.

The youngest member of the faculty was in his late 20s, and because he was young, controversy arose when he was appointed professor.

17 years old? It was expected that there would be severe backlash.

‘But the interest rate is just right for both skill and cause.’

Dean Claude’s worries deepened.

***

“Now! Let’s remove these blackout curtains first.”

After Rupert collapsed and was forcibly confined in his room, the workshop became more lively than ever.

For the time being, instead of doing additional work, all we had to do was print copies of the 4th volume of , so there was plenty of room in the schedule.

“Keuheuk… It was daytime now.”

Sunlight shining brightly into the workshop.

The staff at the workshop shed tears as they faced the dazzling sunlight.

‘It’s still midday. everyone!’

It seemed like a long time had passed, but the image of Rupert insisting that it was still midday passed through my mind.

Craftsmen who were trapped in the workshop and had lost sense of time had doubts, but when they finished their work and came home from work, it was always dark outside.

But now, goodbye to those days.

Taking advantage of Rupert’s absence, the employees worked to normalize the workshop.

“This door needs to be remodeled too! Isn’t this a prison because it can only be locked and opened from the outside?”

After removing the blackout curtains, the craftsmen rushed to the door and disassembled the lock.

It will no longer be possible to lock the door from the outside to prevent the craftsmen from escaping.

I’m trapped, but I can’t believe I can no longer see that image that I’m afraid will appear in my dreams as I smile and draw.

“I don’t like this bathroom either!”

A toilet was installed in a corner of the workshop because it was said that going back and forth outside would reduce efficiency.

It was a vicious tactic to trap craftsmen who escaped by saying they were going to the bathroom.

“Why not tear down that street and make it a rest area?”

“Okay, I’ll get the hammer!”

The skills of the artisans raised by Rupert had improved beyond recognition.

Suddenly, the sight of the bathroom being demolished and cleaned up reminded me of modern-day skilled construction workers.

“And this damn potion!!! I have to hide all of this too.”

“Uh… That’s still pretty good, isn’t it?”

The newcomer’s remarks put a brake on the actions of the craftsmen who were trying to hide the vitality potion that Rupert had purchased in large quantities out of sight.

It was an employee named ‘Jensen’ whom Rupert had recently personally selected through an interview.

Others opposed him, saying he was clearly a scoundrel, but Rupert strongly recommended him, saying there was no one as talented as him, and he was chosen.

“What? Is this okay?”

“That… After drinking it, my body felt full of energy and I felt better.”

The artisans looked at Jensen like he was crazy.

I thought it was strange since he followed the master’s instructions without saying a word, but even the vitality potion followed the master’s tastes.

Is there something that recognizes a madman?

The artisans looked at Jensen and had the same thought.

As soon as we finished remodeling the workshop, the sun began to set.

As the sky turned red in the studio, the craftsmen stopped their work.

“Now! Let’s have dinner now. If you’re going to work at night, you need to have a full stomach.”

The artisans, who were discussing what would be on today’s menu as they headed to the restaurant as usual, suddenly felt strange.

Why are we trying to eat?

There was no Rupert watching right now, and the work had already been completed long ago.

“Is it really okay to leave work?”

“But you finished everything you had to do, right?”

“I think I need to do some research… .”

Before they knew it, the craftsmen had become accustomed to Rupert’s work patterns without even realizing it.

Even though it was clear that I was leaving work now, I didn’t stop walking.

Even though the door had now been remodeled and they could go out just by turning the handle, they hesitated.

“I… I’m going out. I’m going to get off work now.”

“What… What! The sun is still up outside?”

Despite the shocked reaction of his fellow craftsmen, he did not stop walking.

Although his expression was stiff, his movements were full of determination.

“It is a person’s daily routine to return home before the sun sets.”

-If the master is watching… Please take a look. Wouldn’t it be okay to enjoy the happiness of having dinner with your family?

Squeak.

Finally his hand turned the door handle.

It was the moment the door opened.

“I might not be able to see you tomorrow, so I’ll say hello in advance. Good breakfast, good lunch, good dinner!”

So he left work.