Ch.334I’ll Become a Professor (12)

“No.”

“I don’t want to repeat this anymore! I hate being used as a research subject and then discarded!”

“I’m telling you for the third time, this isn’t research! We don’t have time, we need to turn it back quickly!”

“Hic, j-just a moment…”

Julia obeyed obediently despite her sobbing. She recited a prayer and then blinked in confusion as if something had gone wrong.

“Huh? Oh no.”

“What is it?”

“Time isn’t going backward!”

“Don’t lie.”

“It’s true! It says the causality has been fixed…?”

I took out my calipers and gently placed them on her shoulder. Julia flinched.

“Turn it back.”

“Fine, just kill me instead!”

Julia shook her head firmly until the end. Seeing that she still insisted it wasn’t possible after all this, the likelihood of her lying was very low. That left only one possibility.

“Damn it.”

This was Laplace’s doing.

Billord was dead. Without turning back time, I couldn’t save him either. It was too late. I bit my lip and stood up.

“…Fine, I understand.”

“You believe me?”

“If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. What’s the point in getting angry about it?”

“By the way, is there any chance of parole? I think I’ve been well-behaved enough…”

“I’m leaving.”

“Wait a moment!”

“Take care.”

“The food here tastes terrible!”

I sighed as I closed the chapel door behind me. A shrill scream came from beyond the door.

“Phew.”

I wasn’t feeling good.

Billord. He wasn’t someone I was particularly fond of, but he was still a colleague in academia. I had secretly hoped that if I fixed him up properly, he might help with the gravitational bomb research.

No, this isn’t the time for such thoughts.

The milk is already spilled. The most important thing now is to prevent any more casualties.

I quickly returned to where the incident was taking place.

“Push forward! Don’t show any openings!”

Billord, who had turned into a monster, was surrounded and attacked by dozens of swordsmen. It was almost one-sided.

Shhh.

Blades and crystals whirled like embers. The swordsmen charged their swords with Aether and put strength into their joints.

“Just a little more effort! The end is in sight!”

No matter how monstrous, it was just one beast. It couldn’t overcome the Southern Federal Army, which had built up years of expertise through the Great War.

Boom!

Finally, Billord collapsed, engulfed in a cluster of stars.

Fssss.

Billord returned to his original form. The moss-like substances covering his face all scattered into the air.

But that didn’t mean it was over.

Slither.

The scattered powder attached itself to the swordsmen’s suits. The frontline swordsmen shook their bodies in confusion.

“W-what is this?”

“Everyone, get away!”

I turned on my divine eye and assessed the situation. The worms I had seen at lunch were spreading widely through the air like dandelion seeds.

I had momentarily forgotten what characterized the Darwin system. They multiply endlessly. Billord was merely the first host.

“What are you doing? Attack quickly!”

The swordsmen swiftly wielded their Aether, but it was too late for some. Two or three swordsmen who were right in front of Billord became infected by the worms, their heads turning purple.

The infected soldiers’ eyes turned blue, and they transformed into monsters. Blades made of bone and muscle sprouted from their backs.

“Brother, stay behind me!”

Ireh pushed me back and stepped forward.

[— ‘Ireh Hazlen’ prepares <Flame Bullet>.]

“You’re going to set a fire here?”

“There’s no other way!”

Ireh lit the holy bullet. Her eyes flickered like flames.

Bang!

The bullet cut through the air and hit Billord’s corpse. Immediately, flames rose like a whirlwind. The purple mist floating in the air quickly dissipated.

“Kenny! Damn it!”

“You’re wrong, once they become monsters, they can’t return to normal! Send them off without pain!”

“Ugh!”

The swordsmen cut down those who had been their comrades just moments ago. With a slicing sound, their hearts were cut as well.

Crackle, crackle.

Eventually, nothing remained except small flames.

Through Cartesia’s eyes, the holy fire was all white light. White represents Aether.

“…It’s over.”

“We were fortunate to act quickly… It could have been a disaster.”

The swordsmen sat down, each letting out a sigh. The person who appeared to be the captain approached Ireh and me.

“Lord Rheinland, are you alright?”

“I’m fine. But…”

I turned my gaze to the charred monster and the bodies of three swordsmen. In that brief moment, disaster had struck, and three veteran swordsmen had died.

“It’s not your fault, Lord. Nor is it this young lady’s fault. Rather, thanks to the black-haired lady’s correct judgment, we were able to contain it to this extent.”

Ireh closed her eyes. Her expression appeared impassive, but I could guess what she was thinking without having to look into her mind.

It was devastating.

This was the original state of this world. The swordsmen were resigned to it as if it were natural.

After that, the situation was somehow resolved. There was another incident where the head of the LeBlenn family fainted again, but time moved on nonetheless.

Billord’s body was transferred to the Divine Entity Management Bureau before it could be laid to rest. In cases of death by divine entities, government autopsy takes precedence over the wishes of the bereaved family according to the Divine Entity Response Law.

The autopsy results were simple.

Pron poisoning and monsterization.

The LeBlenn family did not wish to conceal this, and eventually, the incident became known to the public.

***

A week later, after completing a prosecutor’s investigation as a witness, I had drinks with Professor Feynman. The professor downed half a bottle of whiskey in one go and lamented with a mix of drunken complaints.

“He was perfectly fine until the end of the interview that day. Why he became like that in the evening… human affairs are truly unpredictable.”

“Professor, I…”

“But there’s no need to get too upset. Just accept it. Accept it, and endure… that’s all.”

The subject was omitted, but what the professor meant was clear.

“Eidel.”

“Yes, Professor.”

“Even before I met you, I had a dream. Could we not drive all divine entities out of this world? Could we not create such a theory, such a weapon?”

He emptied his glass and continued.

“I thought it might be possible someday, but not in my generation. There was even a time when I thought the Federation might perish before that. That was until I met Professor Rheinland.”

“Professor? What did you just say…?”

Professor Feynman took out a memo pad and wrote down some numbers.

It was eight digits, with no apparent pattern. He handed me the memo.

“Room 361.”

“…Professor?”

“How about going to the school now?”

I took the memo and headed to Stellarium.

Physics Department Building, 3rd floor.

It was my first time coming to Room 361. I entered the numbers written on the memo into the door lock. The lock opened, revealing the interior space.

The office was simple. Just one L-shaped desk and two bookshelves.

Next, my gaze turned to the wall. The logo of Stellarium Academy, and…

A mark with a snake and staff crossed.

It was the emblem of the Rheinland family. The same pattern that was on my ceremonial robe from the Council of Elders. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it.

Professor Feynman looked at the date and said:

“Tomorrow is the announcement day. No, it’s today now. Since it’s past midnight.”

“You said it would take at least two weeks…”

“Iryuel and Callisto are about to make announcements soon too. We couldn’t delay any longer.”

I couldn’t continue speaking. Feynman filled the silent void.

“You said it in the interview. That capable people should quickly rise to their positions. Well said. That’s precisely why our Stellarium could surpass Callisto and Iryuel to become the Federation’s premier academy.”

“This is… quite moving.”

Professor Feynman gestured with a smile. I pulled up a chair and sat down.

“How is it?”

“The chair is comfortable… and there’s plenty of space under the desk. It’s comfortable for my legs.”

“Everything here was paid for out of the Chancellor’s personal funds, I’m told.”

“…That sounds like you’re telling me not to run away.”

“Correct.”

I thought carefully.

Even if Iryuel or Callisto offered a better salary, it would be meaningless. Salary negotiations would at most result in a 10% increase.

What was important to me was a position and time to develop the gravitational bomb quickly. This was a national project, and to ‘actively’ participate in a national project, one needed status.

Whether as a lab director. Or a center director. Or a professor.

I stroked the smooth desk and replied:

“With my advisor here, why would I run away?”

“Haha.”

Feynman laughed. I laughed too. We embraced each other and spent a cozy time until dawn.

As soon as day broke, I registered at Stellarium. Almost immediately, contacts came in from Iryuel and Callisto.

They were acceptance notices.

Compared to Stellarium, they offered to add more money, sent pictures showing the view from their research labs… honestly, I was tempted.

But I declined.

Then professors from each school came to my research lab. Of course, Professor Stranov was among them.

“Ah, what a shame.”

“I heard the Chancellor of Iryuel sighing at least a dozen times this morning. Said they lost a valuable talent.”

I hadn’t even moved all my belongings yet, but the office was packed with professors from the three schools.

Every professor who came asked about my well-being. It was because of the Billord incident a week ago.

Each time, I had to answer that my body was fine. Yes, just my body.

“Honestly, I’m not at ease. No one knows how many more scholars will die like this.”

I sighed. Professor Feynman continued:

“They say Dr. LeBlenn repeatedly said he needed to kill Professor Rheinland before he died. It seems there was intent from the divine entities.”

“To prevent the creation of this gravitational cannon or whatever?”

“It could actually be an opportunity. It suggests that it could drive out the divine entities.”

“That’s right. It’s certainly worth researching.”

It was a cold analysis, typical of scientists. On the other hand, some were concerned.

“What if we try to build it and face retaliation ourselves?”

“I’m worried that Professor Rheinland and those around him might be harmed.”

They weren’t wrong. If the world had always been like this, one could live out their life without incident by just doing moderate research quietly.

But I answered like this:

“It’s not them who will retaliate, but us.”

Humans have been the victims first.

This time is no different.

It’s not that I attracted the attention of divine entities because I wanted to create a gravitational bomb; it’s that they first made life miserable for people in this world, so I’m sharpening my knife to finish them in this generation.

Billord’s death was more serious than it appeared. Because this incident would be nothing compared to the massive war that was about to unfold.

“The closer we get to victory, the stronger the resistance from divine entities will be.”

Scientists not positioned within the Great Triangle will go mad or die periodically.

Even those within the Great Triangle will constantly face assassination threats through indirect methods.

Even if we try to build the gravitational bomb, we’ll frequently face terrorism from the Magnus Order, and there will be casualties right up until the moment we charge the shell.

“We all must endure. If parts don’t sacrifice, the whole will be annihilated. The gravitational bomb is a device that must be created.”

At any cost.

“Let’s leave a better future for our descendants.”

The moment I said that:

“Excuse me, please make way!”

There was a commotion at the back. The professors parted like the Red Sea. A woman peeked her head through the cramped office doorway.

She had beautiful black hair like ebony. Her dark eyes revealed both anxiety and intelligence.

“Um… Is this Professor Eidel von Rheinland’s office?”

“Yes, it is. You can come in.”

The woman hesitated before entering the office.

“Student Ireh Hazlen?”

“Yes.”

“Nice to meet you. You said you wanted to join our research lab?”

Ireh nodded vigorously. At the same time, Professor Feynman’s mouth fell open.