episode_0015

A heavy air hung in the conference room.

It was a result of the chairman scattering his energy, but at the same time, it reflected the actual atmosphere inside the conference room.

Especially to Professor Alon.

“Hey, Chairman? 40% of the investment… … ?”

“Of course, the request made by the Minister of Finance is the same. The term is 30 years from now, there is no need to increase the ratio, but the donation will be in the name of Professor Alon himself. ”

“That’s not the problem! 40% of all investment capital? That’s too much… … !!”

Isn’t that too much of a stretch?

Professor Alon, who barely managed to swallow his words, looked at the chairman with earnest eyes. It was as if he wanted him to tell him right now that it was all a joke and that he had no intention of doing it at 40%.

But that didn’t happen. The chairman was still making a V sign to me from under the desk.

The chairman had done his job. Now it was my turn.

“Professor Alon, is there something wrong?”

“Hey, Minister of Finance! Say something──”

“40% is cheap, Professor Alon.”

“Minister of Finance!”

“The chairman’s time is obviously expensive. Especially when the chairman wants to come out during the entrance ceremony and the fantasy monster attack, it means giving up other things he could do in the meantime.”

“That, that thing.”

“Professor Alon will know very well who will come to the Grandis Academy entrance ceremony. The royal education minister, the heads of other public academies, the heads of large merchant houses, high-ranking nobles, and even many guests from the empire and neighboring kingdoms. The chairman will give up his time to help the professor.”

“… … … … .”

“You knew that from the beginning, so you made that suggestion, didn’t you? You wanted to show off your fantasy magic in front of so many distinguished guests.”

A 40% ratio might seem outrageous. Why would the chairman of an academy take so much of the academy’s undergraduate investment?

In fact, I had tried to dissuade the chairman from taking the lead in Professor Circe’s hair loss research. It was to protect the chairman’s authority, and the current situation is not much different from that time, so why did they put the chairman forward this time?

It’s simple. The justification was on this side.

“There is only one week left until the entrance ceremony. All events are already in rehearsal, all supplies have been purchased and prepared, and we are focusing on the payment. In this situation, Professor Alon asked us to hold an event for his department. And it was the last event of the entrance ceremony, and it was a much-talked-about event called the Fantasy Monster Attack.”

“That, that’s why I put up 20% of the investment! I talked to the Academic Affairs Department and the Planning Department first… … !!”

“You came to me right after being rejected there. You didn’t even discuss the safety of the incoming students, which is the most important issue if such an event is held, with the 1st Guard in advance.”

“I thought it would be okay even after it passed… … … .”

“What? Hey, if you have the title of professor, you should be thinking hard! I’m already so busy, what are you talking about!!”

“Captain of the 1st Guard, please calm down.”

“… … Tsk.”

The captain of the guard is understandably angry. With high-ranking nobles and guests coming from all over the kingdom and even from other countries, he already has to put a lot of effort into security, so it’s only natural that he’d be angry if a large-scale event was suddenly added.

We need to deploy more personnel to prevent confusion among the new students, there is a high possibility of accidents, and there is not enough time to practice properly. From the captain’s perspective, Professor Alon must look really stupid.

But it couldn’t be helped.

‘Even if they are professors, they are ultimately just experts in their field of expertise.’

Studying magic and planning events are two completely different fields. We know the reality because we do this every year, but professors are a different story. How many professors would be interested in preparing for the entrance ceremony in the first place?

Just as I was ignorant of Professor Circe’s research process and achievements, the professors also do not know much about our work. This is natural since they are in different fields.

So, the staff of the Academic Affairs and Planning Departments tried to turn down Professor Alon’s proposal by telling him to go to the Finance Director, but Professor Alon insisted on coming to me in person and making a big deal out of it.

Is this because Professor Alon has lost his sense of humor?

‘no way.’

After all, a professor is a professor. Even if you were appointed as a professor at the highest academy in the kingdom, you are definitely not stupid.

It is true that I did not know much about the process of planning and executing an event, but seeing the attitudes of the Dean of Academic Affairs and the Planning Department Director, I would have realized a long time ago that this event had serious, realistic problems.

Still, Professor Alon kept pushing. The reason was obvious.

‘I don’t have money.’

As Professor Alon had appealed, it is true that illusionary magic is expected to become more useful in the future. However, that is only a matter of the future, and moreover, it is a matter of the Empire, a powerhouse of magic.

The current fantasy magic originated from the sorcery of barbarians, and is still looked down upon by many. It goes without saying that among the academies in the kingdom, only one has a fantasy magic department, Grandis Academy.

Moreover, there were no visible achievements in the Department of Fantasy Magic. It only had three professors, the smallest number, and the papers were just average, so it was quicker to count the achievements later.

Before the meeting, I read the detailed budget allocation report for the magic department, and of course, the budget allocated to the School of Illusion Magic was miserable. To be frank, it would not be strange if it were to be closed down right now, let alone in the future.

Yeah, Professor Alon isn’t clueless or downright stupid.

I was just desperate. To somehow impress the magic of fantasy on the guests and the new students.

‘You must be more desperate than me?’

There were still three years left until the Academy went bankrupt, but the Department of Illusionary Magic might close as soon as next year.

In the end, Professor Alon took a risk and risked the future of the department.

Instead of accepting that impossible task, the chairman and I simply demanded a corresponding price.

“Professor Alon.”

“… … Chairman.”

“If you really want, you can withdraw your offer right now.”

“… … … … .”

“But it seems like you don’t intend to do that.”

The chairman clearly cares about students and education and treats faculty and professors well, but that does not mean he is unconditionally considerate.

Rather, the chairman has mercilessly cut off professors or departments that have not been able to produce proper results or have had low course evaluations for several consecutive years. It was thanks to such strong measures that the chairman was able to reign supreme.

It’s okay if students are incompetent. They can learn from now on.

But educators should never be incompetent. That was the chairman’s motto.

“I decided to use my time to accept Professor Alon’s unreasonable proposal, called a meeting of department heads, and agreed to accept it despite the opposition of other department heads as long as the conditions were met.”

“… … … … .”

“That’s exactly 40%. Professor Alon, do you still think that’s an unreasonable ratio?”

That was the ultimatum.

The Dean of Academic Affairs, the Director of Planning, and the First Guard Captain still look at Professor Alon with dissatisfied eyes. They are the ones who will be adding new things if his proposal is passed.

I was neutral for now. Putting everything else aside, I thought the financial benefits outweighed the losses. As soon as the proposal was approved, I was going to go meet with Lisha and the other bribers.

And the chairman… … just had cold eyes as always.

Professor Alon was thinking with his head down.

“… … 40%, 30 years term, name of donation.”

“… … … … .”

“All… …I will accept it.”

In the end, he raised the white flag. No, since his proposal was passed, shouldn’t he have raised both hands instead of the white flag?

40% is certainly a painful percentage, but in return, the Faculty of Illusion Magic has gained an opportunity that no other faculty has. If things go well, it could lead to a huge investment.

If he were a merchant, he would have been overjoyed, but he was a scholar. Perhaps because of that, he was gloomy at the 40% rate that was shown in the contract.

If it were me, I would say thank you and then immediately spend all the money I have to prepare to create the greatest fantasy.

Is this too much of a Finance Minister-like idea?

“Thank you for your hard work, Minister of Finance!”

“Ah, Planning Manager.”

“I never thought that the rejection I had given would actually reach the Minister of Finance… … I’m so sorry.”

Anyway, when the meeting was over and everyone started to stand up, the squinty-eyed planning manager came up to me first and spoke to me.

He’s the planning manager.

“This is an apology, so I’ll have dinner with you sometime soon───”

“Still, this year’s department budget is the same.”

“… … Tsk.”

“Planning Department Manager?”

“Haha, it’s nothing! As expected, you’re like a knife in the work field!”

I guess that’s what this guy is like.

In the end, I don’t feel that bad about this because it’s for the good of my department.

“Aren’t the Planning Director and Finance Director in trouble?”

“Dean of Academic Affairs… … Sir. That’s it.”

“And even though they are the same department heads, the finance department is directly under the chairman, so they should be called by their proper title.”

“… … Okay. I’m sorry, Mr. Finance Minister. ”

“I don’t care. You go back first.”

“Yes.”

While the planning manager, who was grumbling slightly, was leaving first.

This time, I came face to face with the Dean of Academic Affairs with a stern expression.

“Chief Financial Officer, please be careful in the future. The Chairman’s honor depends on your actions.”

“I will keep that in mind. Dean of Academic Affairs.”

“As a close associate, shouldn’t I work hard? Compared to him, those young people… … … Tsk tsk.”

“I’m the youngest.”

“You are a talent chosen by the chairman himself, so of course you are different from the young people these days. In fact, you have proven it with your achievements.”

“Thank you.”

“Anyway, the chairman must have had foresight in this matter as well. Just keep going.”

“Okay.”

The nickname that goes around among the Dean of Academic Affairs and faculty is ‘Chairman Fanatic.’

Aside from the chairman, he is the longest-serving member and has the highest authority, but he is also a portrayed old fart.

When I first became the Minister of Finance, 40% of my stress came from this guy. It’s still a very impressive memory.

Let’s wait and see at the department budget planning meeting.

After the Dean of Academic Affairs left, I made eye contact with the Captain of the First Guard.

“Huh.”

He turned his head sharply and went out roughly. I really want to take that helmet off.

Does it make sense to be so harsh to someone just because you saw their face inside the helmet when you were a student?

It was fortunate that I was a broad-minded person. I drew another line to the captain of the first guard in my heart, so if I do it one more time, it will be a budget cut.

In the conference room where everyone had left, I deliberately stayed and waited.

“Minister of Finance! Have you been waiting?”

“I talked to other managers, so it’s okay.”

Because I had made plans to meet again with the chairman who had left first.

Since the directors couldn’t leave without the chairman, the director left first without saying anything. Well, he probably just took his time and returned to the conference room.

Unlike the cold-hearted meeting, the current chairman was smiling brightly.

“This will help your finances a lot, right?”

“This is a story about when the College of Illusion Magic receives proper investment… … Even in the worst case scenario, it would be a considerable amount of money. By the way, Chairman, are you okay? I have time to talk to the distinguished guests. ”

“Oh, those kids? It’s okay. They’re all going to be quiet in front of me anyway.”

That’s right. The chairman is the oldest among the board members, right?

When you reach level 8, aging disappears, so Chairman Beggar’s age is in the three digits. Can we consider him the same human being?

Last year, I was surprised because I was so naive, but even the VIPs seemed like nothing in front of the chairman.

“I’m more worried about the students’ safety.”

“Yes? Didn’t the Chairman decide to step forward?”

“Of course, physical safety can be guaranteed, but even if it’s an illusion, seeing a manticore can cause mental shock, right? Should I tell the church about this… … … .”

Of course, some students would be shocked if a group of monsters suddenly attacked.

But that part… … can’t be helped… … … … … .

no.

wait for a sec.

“Chairman.”

“Huh? Finance Minister! That’s the exact expression!”

“Huh?”

“Whenever the Finance Minister comes up with a good plan, he always has that evil look on his face! As expected of the Finance Minister, the Finance Minister has a plan for everything?”

“… … … … .”

It’s a little annoying, but whatever.

“There is a good way.”

If psychological trauma is the problem.

You just have to ‘not be surprised’ by a manticore attack, right?

*

“──So, as proud students of Grandis Academy, you should be proud… … .”

Grandis Academy entrance ceremony.

A female student who had entered the martial arts department was taking a deep breath with a nervous look in the middle of the entrance ceremony.

‘Oh my god, I’m really getting into Grandis Academy!’

Although I heard people call me a genius in my hometown, I didn’t know if I would actually pass.

Grandis Academy is the most prestigious school in the kingdom and is comparable to the Imperial Academy of the Empire.

Although it was a close call, the female student who somehow passed couldn’t hold back a smile as her face was filled with pride.

‘Yeah, in times like this… … !!’

“Oh, over there. It’s a coincidence that we’re sitting right next to each other. Should I introduce myself? I’m Mina!”

“… …Ruth Spero.”

“Ruth! Judging from the way you’re sitting here, you’re also a freshman in the same martial arts department, right!?”

“Yeah.”

“Then we are in the same class, please take care of us! I hope we can attend the lecture together!”

“… … … It will be like that.”

“Huh? Ruth?”

“It’s nothing.”

A male student who is somewhat blunt, but still has a gentle side.

Mina, who had an intuition that she had made a good friend from the first day, looked around and whispered quietly to Ruth.

“By the way, did you get that information?”

“… … information?”

“Don’t you know? This is really special information! I’ll tell you this specially to celebrate our first friend!”

Top secret information that was found out by spending a whopping half of the allowance sent by my parents back home.

Mina looked at Ruth with a sense of mission.

“At the end of this entrance ceremony, something huge is going to happen! He said that responding to it is also an evaluation, so don’t be surprised!”

“… … … … .”

“I’m telling you specifically… … … Huh?”

Gggg.

Mina, who was giving Ruth special information with an excited look, suddenly raised her head at the vibration she felt.

The vibration grew louder and louder until it shook the entire auditorium.

As if to foreshadow something.

“Ruth, this is not───”

Kwaaang!!!

Immediately afterwards, one wall of the auditorium burst open and something huge emerged from the smoke.

With the head of a lion, the wings of a bat, and the tail of a scorpion.

A giant monster that could fill an auditorium by itself, the Manticore.

But Mina wasn’t surprised or flustered at all, because she had heard the special information in advance.

‘This is something big!’

Of course, it can’t be real, and there must have been some kind of manipulation. And if you can fight without panicking when suddenly attacked by a manticore, you will definitely be highly regarded.

Mina, who had made up her mind, stood up confidently.

“You’re finally here!”

“It’s exactly as the information says!”

“That’s expensive!… … … Huh?”

“What, what? Why is everyone up… … ?”

For some reason.

Except for a very small number of people, all the students at the entrance ceremony stood up and faced the manticore without any embarrassment.

“Huh?”

Mina couldn’t understand what was happening right now.

The other students who got up from their seats also looked at each other questioningly.

“… … … Adam.”

Ruth Speroman.

He just quietly whispered someone’s name.