Ch.54Chapter 54
by fnovelpia
The Professor called me after checking on all the academy students’ research progress.
“Ourr, let’s go back now.”
“Yes. I’ll be going, take care, Lenya.”
As I got up from my chair and said goodbye, Lenya waved back.
“Yeah, see you. I’ll contact you later.”
“Okay.”
Since we’d exchanged contact information, we could now talk even without meeting in person.
After saying goodbye to Lenya, I followed the Professor back. When we returned to the Research Lab, as expected, the others who had received advance notice were already gathered around the desk.
Sera, Aria, and Karen.
“You’re already here. Did you wait long?”
The Professor greeted the students who were already seated.
“Not at all. I was helping Karen with her studies.”
Sera pointed to Karen, who was studying with an open book. Judging by the pile of books borrowed from the library and textbooks, she seemed to be working hard.
“Hello.”
“Ah, hello!”
Aria greeted us next, followed by Karen, who looked up startled from her concentration to greet the Professor.
“Hi.”
I waved my hand in greeting.
Their reaction to my greeting was somewhat lukewarm. Especially Aria’s.
Her gaze remained fixed on me without wavering. Even as she turned her head and tilted it curiously, her eyes stayed locked on me, creating an awkward atmosphere that made me hesitate.
“…What’s going on?”
I glanced at the Professor wondering if she knew, but she just looked puzzled.
“We thought Ourr would come dressed as a cat.”
“T-there’s no way that would happen.”
I responded in horror, and behind me, Karen, reacting to the keyword “cat,” slammed her hand on the desk.
“Ah, right! Ourr in cat pajamas…!”
“Didn’t everyone get pajamas from Sera…?”
As I turned away with sweat dripping down my face, protests came that those were different things.
“Seeing Ourr wearing it is different from me wearing it.”
“Senior is right. It’s weird with just a mouse. There needs to be a cat too!”
That was an unfair statement if any mouse were to hear it.
Saying a mouse should be with its natural predator—that would be a horrific scene in its own way.
I glanced at Sera, who was sitting quietly, and she just shrugged as if she’d already enjoyed the situation enough.
“Only someone brave enough to overcome embarrassment in front of the Professor can claim Ourr the kitty like this.”
My shoulders slumped at her peculiar way of speaking, as if she was imitating something she’d seen somewhere. Sera concentrated better than anyone when studying, but in situations like this, it was hard to tell whether she was just playful or truly eccentric.
In the chaotic atmosphere, fearing they might suggest a pajama party for our study group, I struggled to open my mouth.
“If we came to study, we should study! I’m here to study writing!”
The Research Lab fell silent instantly after my outburst.
Not being used to shouting, I found myself panting afterward. I felt short of breath.
To calm my racing heart, I took several deep breaths while my chest heaved. The Professor, standing beside me, seemed startled too but soon patted my back as if telling me to calm down.
I felt a bit better than before.
“Sorry…”
“I’m sorry! I’ll buy you cute underwear too.”
“…Huh?”
Just as I was starting to regret shouting because Karen looked genuinely sorry, Sera spoke up with her hands clasped together.
Then I remembered that Sera was the one who had seen my underwear here. I felt dazed wondering how she could so confidently offer to buy me cute underwear.
I had hoped for an atmosphere of “Sorry for the commotion, let’s study,” but there was something twisted in Sera’s demeanor.
“W-wait a minute… Sera?”
“What color was it? White?”
I grabbed the hem of my skirt and pulled it down in embarrassment. Meanwhile, Aria was asking about my underwear color.
This was truly outrageous.
Not knowing what to do, I looked up at the Professor, who had a slightly dejected expression.
“It’s just that when I went shopping, that was the only size available for Ourr… Maybe light blue would have been better.”
“J-j-just a moment, Professor! Let’s study, study…”
I thought it might have been better to keep talking about pajamas.
Once the conversation shifted to underwear, the Professor became dejected. The noisy atmosphere had disappeared, but it felt like a serious discussion forum had opened, which was incredibly uncomfortable.
I clutched the Professor’s sleeve tightly while sweating.
With my other hand, I held onto my skirt hem, determined not to let go.
“Ourr wants to study, so let’s focus on studying first.”
The Professor nodded in the now quieter atmosphere.
I went to sit down. Even with four of us, there were still two chairs left. The Professor grabbed one and pulled it to the head position before plopping down.
“First, I’ll review the graduation papers for the third-years. For the first-years, the third-years will provide old exam papers or recommend books. If you’re still unsure about anything, ask me.”
“Yes!”
Karen nodded.
The brief chaotic atmosphere seemed to have been completely erased by the Professor’s words.
“Ah, then could you please take a look at this magic formula I created?”
“What is this?”
Sera pulled out a thick document from her bag.
The Professor received it and scanned the title with her eyes.
“It’s the magic that made Ourr bigger before, but since it turned off after just a few seconds, I’m not sure if there’s a problem somewhere or if it’s just not supposed to work and was forced to run temporarily.”
“Ah, that’s the one you mentioned when Ourr grew bigger.”
After Sera’s explanation, the Professor nodded as if remembering.
She seemed interested and turned the pages. With each flip of a page, Sera’s back straightened more rigidly.
It was impressive how she kept glancing at the Professor, trying to gauge her reaction.
“…Hmm, I think it’s better to avoid magic that affects the body in some way.”
“Is that so…”
“It’s legally problematic, and we don’t know how magic that arbitrarily changes a person’s physical age might affect the body. Plus, the human body is constantly changing.”
Having finished reading, the Professor returned the document to Sera.
“Cells keep changing, and temporarily inflating them with magic and then reverting them seems related to time, but it’s more like an illusion that can’t be maintained for more than a few seconds.”
“I see.”
After receiving the Professor’s feedback, Sera made a sound like sucking in air and reviewed her small thesis again.
As she looked it over again, the Professor’s words seemed to linger in her mind, and her worried expression showed no signs of clearing. Furrowing her brow, Sera closed the document and set it aside.
“Ah, I guess I need to choose a different topic. Maybe I should write a thesis about Demon Gods with Ourr…”
“Weren’t you in the Magic Composition department, Sera?”
I asked Sera while holding a pen and scribbling.
I wondered if it was appropriate for someone from the Magic Composition department to submit a graduation thesis related to Demon Gods. I was asking partly because I genuinely didn’t know if it was allowed.
Sera took out a new notebook and stared at me.
“Well, something like ‘Methods of Engraving Demon God Magic into Magic Circles.’ Wouldn’t that be good?”
“That sounds like something the Academy would handle.”
The Professor tapped her pen.
It seemed like a good attempt, but the Professor cautioned that it might be too profound a topic for a third-year graduation thesis.
“Then I’ll save that for later…”
Sera backed down and began exploring other topics.
By third year, students know it’s best to retreat when a professor says something seems too difficult or unlikely to work.
After Sera’s feedback session ended, she fell into deep thought. Aria, sitting next to her, glanced at Sera before addressing the Professor.
“Then how about a thesis on the intersection between special elven magic and Demon Gods?”
“Special magic? …It depends on the confidentiality level, but I think documenting that itself might be somewhat disadvantageous.”
“I was thinking of writing within the permissible scope.”
Seeing Aria asking for advice, the Professor closed her eyes and seemed to be contemplating something deeply.
“Well, if it’s within an acceptable range, it should be fine. After all, it’s a graduation thesis, not a submission to an academic conference. Aria, you can proceed with that.”
“Professor, Professor.”
After the Professor finished giving advice, I reached out my arm to call her.
“What is it, Ourr?”
“Is a graduation thesis different from other papers?”
“Well, yes. Papers registered with academic societies have your name published and such, but graduation theses focus more on creativity, so you don’t have to deal with topics in great depth, which is an advantage.”
The Professor gently stroked my head.
“Even if there’s some overlap, they might turn a blind eye and let you graduate as long as it’s not plagiarism.”
“…Oh.”
“Why? Are you interested too, Ourr?”
“I want to see the growth magic.”
As I nodded in response, the Professor smiled bitterly.
“…As I said before, I don’t think such magic exists.”
“Hieek…”
The Professor shattered my hopes.
When would I ever be able to grow? Would I have to wait years to finally grow bigger?
My face turned pale at the thought of how many years I might have to live before returning to my original form.
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