episode_0182

‘When will I get used to this?’

Rupert thought to himself as the light streamed out of the transmission and he felt like he was riding a roller coaster.

While the ability to travel long distances in an instant was great, the strange rumbling feeling was something I had a hard time getting used to, no matter how often I used it.

“Arrived, Rupert.”

“Thank you. Have a nice day.”

Still, it was the only way to get to the academy in the capital in an instant, so some minor drawbacks had to be accepted.

As you leave the rooftop, a huge palace-like building appears before your eyes.

“Okay, I have to work today too!”

Rupert walked towards the main gate, looking at the now familiar Academy.

“Hello, Professor.”

“Good morning.”

“It’s a hassle, but… .”

Now even the guards guarding the main gate of the Academy know Rupert, but the verification process was still carried out.

It was because of an incident where one of the people who had illegally infiltrated the academy used a transformation potion to disguise himself as an employee.

From then on, even the headmaster, Yustav, had to go through a verification process before entering.

After showing his ID to the guard, Rupert entered the academy.

“Is Professor Rupert here?”

Just then, Eustace, who was standing in front of the main gate of the Academy, recognized Rupert and greeted him.

“Hello, Yustav.”

“So how have you been?”

“Yes, fortunately, nothing happened.”

Eustace’s expression became slightly subtle at Rupert’s answer.

“Tsk, it’s not something to brag about if you look fine and have the skills but nothing bad happens.”

“Yes?”

“Men have always needed a rough and wild side. I may look intelligent and gentle, but when I was young, I had a lot of women… .”

“Teacher! Should I prepare a greeting to welcome the new students?”

“Ugh!!!”

Eustace, who was trying to say something to Rupert, was dragged away and had his mouth covered by Xenia who appeared from somewhere.

“Hello, Jenny!”

“See you in the auditorium, Rupert!”

As Rupert greeted Xenia as she disappeared into the distance with Eustace, Xenia returned his greeting even as she quickly walked away.

“Is it an entrance ceremony?”

It was around this time last year that Rupert came to mind, having taken up a professorship in the Department of Fine Arts.

At first, I thought it was a burdensome job, but looking back, it turned out to be a professorship with many good things going for it.

‘The cartoon club is like that too.’

Through the cartoon club he created, I was able to meet and become friends with the main characters of the original work.

Not only that, he taught students in the Department of Fine Arts and was able to select promising talents in advance, which was a great help in his animation work.

“What kind of students will we have this year?”

Rupert walked into the auditorium for the matriculation ceremony, looking forward to seeing what kind of students there would be this year.

***

“Next, we will hear a greeting from Professor Rupert, who is in charge of the Department of Fine Arts.”

The academy’s professors come out one by one to greet the new students, introduce themselves, and tell them what they will learn in the future.

In fact, the Imperial Academy was the pride of the Empire that the Imperial Family also considered important, so the list of its professors was also splendid.

To begin with, since only the best talents from that vast empire entered the academy, it made no sense for the professors who were supposed to teach them to be poorly qualified.

For example, the professor of the Military Science Department was Zion, the former commander of the Knights, who was rumored to be the strongest after the disappearance of the Sword Master.

Although Headmaster Yustav had stepped down from his position, some of his former students were now professors at the Faculty of Magic.

The best faculty members in their respective fields are truly legendary.

So when the professors came out to introduce themselves, the freshmen’s reaction was bound to be enthusiastic.

but,

“Wow!!! It’s Professor Rupert!!”

“Finally, I get to meet him in person!”

“There is only one reason I came all the way here from Aramen to study. To learn from him!”

The moment that garnered the most enthusiastic response today was when Rupert came out to say hello.

“Hello. My name is Rupert Somerset and I am a professor in the Department of Fine Arts.”

Rupert’s greeting began, barely able to stop the enthusiastic cheers from both the freshmen and the current students, who were joining in.

“I’m still lacking, but I’m lucky enough to have been a professor at the academy for a year.”

The students felt more than anyone else that the skeptical gaze of just a year ago had turned into cheers.

At last year’s freshman orientation, when it was Rupert’s turn, the atmosphere turned cold.

This time, the situation was completely opposite, so all the students had no choice but to acknowledge Rupert.

“What a great person. Not only Sylvania, but also other countries are desperate to have the professor.”

“That’s it? He’s a hero who single-handedly raised a family that was on the verge of ruin.”

Now, no one could criticize Rupert for being younger or having less experience.

“Everyone, last year, I promised you all that I would show you a new era through my paintings.”

The students nodded at Rupert’s words.

Many students were curious about Rupert’s speech at the time, which was so groundbreaking that it seemed like it would change the times, and so they attended his class.

“I believe in the power of culture. So that the empire can become a country that others envy, not a country that they fear.”

– Furthermore, I would like to work with you to create a day when we can love each other through the power of culture, rather than through conflict and dispute.

The foreign students, including Sylvania and Aramen, who were sitting in their seats, felt their hearts pounding at Rupert’s words.

Even just a few years ago, no, even just a year ago, coming to study abroad at the Imperial Academy would have been unimaginable.

But, as Rupert said, the power of culture broke down those seemingly thick walls and allowed exchanges between the empire and other countries to begin again.

‘Our kingdom must also blossom with culture like the empire.’

While students at the Empire also revered Rupert, to international students he was almost a god.

‘Art? Why do you need something like that? Just draw a holy painting well enough!’

It wasn’t just the empire that looked down on painters.

Painters lost their positions and were in decline thanks to the magic camera, so it was not easy for people who were talented and loved painting to make a living from it.

In such a situation, the comic books and fairy tales that Rupert created were nothing short of a revolution for them.

‘You’re good at drawing? Then, why don’t you come work for us?!’

‘You’re going to study abroad in the Empire this time, right? I hope that someone like writer Rupert will appear in our kingdom later!’

‘I heard that these days in the empire, people who are good at drawing are treated better than people who are good at swordsmanship.’

As if the talent for drawing had never been looked down upon, its stock price was now skyrocketing and, of course, painters were also beginning to receive fair treatment.

And now, those who came to the empire to study were recognized as being among the most talented in their own countries, so they enjoyed the luxury of receiving support for tuition and even spending money.

So, to those who dreamed of painting, Rupert was like a god, and more than anyone else, they believed in his words that they should create a better future through culture.

***

“It looks like the entrance ceremony ended early today.”

“Actually, there was more to the schedule, but I just hurried out.”

Rupert now flopped down on the sofa in Esteban’s office, which was as comfortable as his own home, and looked as if he was finally ready to live.

“Why are you so tired?”

“Well, it’s hard to eat one meal.”

Esteban began to ponder the meaning of Rupert’s answer.

‘I don’t think you’re saying it’s hard to eat because you don’t have money.’

Rupert, who may not be the richest man in the empire right now, but is certainly the one growing richer the fastest, could not possibly be short of money.

Of course, I spend as much as I earn, but even so, the accumulation rate is still faster.

“It must be because of Xenia and Amelia.”

“That’s right.”

The two women who stopped Rupert as he was about to eat after the entrance ceremony were none other than Xenia and Amelia.

‘Would you like to have dinner with me today, Professor?’

‘Come eat with me. I found a great new restaurant.’

Rupert, unable to stop or choose between them as they engaged in a heated competition, seemingly unable to yield to each other even for the short lunch hour, simply had a meal with the three of them at the Academy’s cafeteria.

Even during the meal, they fought among themselves over who would feed Rupert, so Rupert, who was so exhausted that he couldn’t even eat properly, had no choice but to postpone the faculty meeting scheduled for that afternoon and run away.

“There aren’t many days left to be here.”

“That’s right. It’s all thanks to you, Master.”

When Rupert, who was resting on the sofa for a while, spoke with a look of regret, Esteban immediately replied with gratitude.

“Here it is again. It’s all thanks to the efforts of the top shareholders.”

“Didn’t I tell you last time? Making a contract with you back then was the best decision of my life.”

Esteban’s words reminded Rupert of when he had just created the Cinderella storybook.

There was a time when the news of the books I made for Ada spread like wildfire and I had no choice but to work through the night with the artisans of the land to make 100 copies to cover the aftermath.

It seems like a funny amount now, but at the time, it was really difficult to even produce 100 volumes.

And among the numerous merchants who gathered to sell the fairy tale books made in this way, the one who succeeded in signing the contract was the Yuren merchant group led by Esteban.

In some ways, it was a miracle that the relationship between the two, which started that way, continued until now.

If either of them had been even a little greedy, the relationship would have broken up long ago.

“This time, I am determined to move the head office to Somerset and make this place a branch office.”

“Are you ready?”

“Yes, I am now a vassal of Summerset. So I would like to devote the rest of my life to making Summerset Manor as prosperous as the capital of the Empire.”

“Haha, really, that’s a bigger dream than mine.”

Rupert thought that today, for some reason, he was having dreams that made his own dreams seem ridiculous.

However, since Esteban’s ability was real, it was certain that the Summerset Estate, which was already developing beyond recognition, would develop even further in the future.

Even Esteban, who had now left this familiar place and was building a new headquarters in Somerset Estate, clearly made this plan because he felt a new potential for development, rather than moving there out of loyalty.

“In the past, having a headquarters in the capital was necessary even for the status of the top of Yuren, but that is no longer the case.”

Esteban’s confident voice.

It was a conviction, not an unfounded confidence.

Now, the Yuren Merchant Company, which sits at the top of the empire, has experienced explosive growth over the past two years and has gained an overwhelming position in all areas except for the publishing business.

Even those who used to look down on the Yuren top for being obsessed with trivial things were now busy following what the Yuren top was doing.

Even when it was revealed that the Summerset and Yuren Merchant had supported the voyage to find the Western Continent last time.

There was also a ridiculous incident where people were recruited from other places to set sail in a hurry to find the Western Continent.

“But I don’t know if Captain Lambus is doing well.”

“Going to the Eastern Continent is a round trip that takes at least a year. Still, since you brought plenty of food, as long as there are no accidents, there will be no problem returning.”

Lambus’ voyage to the Western Continent began with two years’ worth of food in his precious subspace pouch, as he did not know how long it would take.

It had been quite some time since we had already set sail and I had forgotten about it, but when I saw Ishmael, which was setting sail for the first time today, Rupert suddenly thought of Lambus.

“Honestly, I don’t care if there are no special results, but I just hope you return safely.”

“Goddess will protect you.”

That gentleman?

Rupert shook his head inwardly at Esteban’s words.

A little later, Rupert is having tea and snacks brought out by his staff, and talking with Esteban about the ongoing business and Somerset Land, which is in the planning stages.

After finishing the story and returning to the mansion, the sun was already setting.

“Is Ada back?”

Rupert, who had not been able to play with Ada much recently due to traveling abroad, opened the door to the mansion and went in, thinking that he should spend some time with her today.