Chapter 392: Assistant Professor’s Qualifications (3)

‘Does he not care about the assistant professor position?’

Bailla stared sharply at Lennok’s back, standing in front of the engine.

This Magical Fusion Engine, created in her laboratory, was developed during the commercialization phase of theories established in Aris Richellen’s lab.

As it’s a fusion engine augmented with magical engineering, its principles are exceedingly complex.

Unless one is directly involved in engine development like Bailla or Cassia, even properly operating the engine would be difficult.

‘I know he’s sharp, given Aris Richellen chose him. But practical application is an entirely different domain.’

The reason Bailla created this situation, despite clearly seeing his ploy to leverage her position for a ridiculous favor as a condition for a bet, was possible because Bailla knew exactly what kind of person Aris Richellen was.

An un-wizardly benevolence. Possessing a thoughtful nature, calm demeanor, and a character that doesn’t hesitate to consider others.

She is someone who, while leading those drawn to her brilliance and warmth, is also perfectly adept at drawing clear lines and maintaining distance.

For a wizard possessing such talent, character, and mature judgment to first begin associating closely with a fellow wizard, and an elementalist of unknown origin at that, was baffling.

She knew he had the discernment and insight to see through her chronic illness, but if that was all, it was clear that Evan Vylun couldn’t remain here.

Bailla did not shy away from an opportunity to satisfy her curiosity.

Lennok felt Bailla’s gaze fully upon him as he reached out his hand towards the engine.

‘It wasn’t an empty boast. The structure itself is astonishingly intricate.’

The Magical Fusion Engines Lennok knew were not originally objects that could be miniaturized to this extent for transport.

They were large-scale power reactors used to supply power to entire areas, or conversely, to accommodate it, for rockets or satellites.

The fact that such an object had been miniaturized to this degree meant that Lennok’s thesis on the conversion of electricity and magical power had served as a groundbreaking turning point in this industry.

‘What should I say…?’

It was an incredibly peculiar feeling to see the fruition of a thesis he had written purely for the purpose of creating an alibi, materialized to such an extent.

As Lennok extended his mana into the engine to inspect its internal structure, his expression alternated between surprise and admiration.

‘The overlapping fusion of mana created by the 88 pistons in the cylinder block. They’ve astonishingly reproduced the preservation and amplification of voltage generated during that process. How diligently did they read my thesis…?’

Fundamentally, the series of theories Lennok had written in his thesis were, of course, the principles and phenomena he had realized through the existence of the sentient spirit Davi, written down according to his own logic.

It wasn’t hard to imagine how much effort others, who lacked a sentient spirit, had put into inferring and reproducing the development process and specific principles of the thesis.

The Magical Fusion Engine before Lennok was a method that went beyond merely applying the thesis’s conclusions; it delved into the very roots of the proposed theory.

The other undergraduates, watching Lennok, began to murmur slightly.

“Why is the assistant professor doing that?”

“That researcher seems to have finished more than half already, is he okay?”

“The engine structure looks really complicated, but he’s still starting too slowly.”

WOOOOSH!!

Two projectors shone on the classroom wall.

Unlike Lennok’s screen, which showed no movement, Cassia’s screen constantly flickered and writhed, fully displaying the tumultuous interior of the engine.

In contrast to Lennok, who was merely marveling at the engine’s creation process, she had immediately focused intently and was putting all her effort into operating the engine.

Cassia’s silent figure, pouring mana into the engine with a face that seemed to have forgotten everything around her, possessed a charm that drew in others.

“She’s an excellent researcher.”

As Lennok turned his head to quietly watch her, Bailla, who was standing behind him, spoke.

“So much so that she alone can perform the startup process that takes three other researchers half a day.”

“Is that so?”

“So, discard any thoughts of trying to follow Cassia.”

“…Pardon?”

“Haven’t you already given up on solving it by yourself, and are now planning to just follow Cassia’s projector?”

Bailla shook her head, her expression slightly sunken.

“I was foolish. I shouldn’t have made this bet from the start… I suppose I unconsciously had expectations because I thought you had good insight.”

“…”

It seemed the previous experience, where Lennok spoke about her chronic illness, still remained deeply impressive to Bailla.

“You can go now. I won’t take away your assistant professor authority. Even without your authority, bringing in another assistant professor with my professorial authority is no trouble at all.”

A cold expression, as if she had completely lost interest in Lennok.

As Bailla, having cleanly finished her remarks, turned her back, Lennok opened his mouth.

“It seems you’re misunderstanding something.”

“Now?”

“If we end the demonstration this way, won’t we lose face with the students watching us?”

“So, you’re not saying you need some plausible handicap, are you?”

“No, what I mean is…”

Instead of answering further, Lennok extended his hand towards the engine.

In response to his gesture, Davi, who had still been coiled on Priscilla’s head, leaped onto the engine.

[Is this a new home?]

As the little fox spirit’s body shimmered, the writhing engine suddenly began to move ferociously, as if by magic.

DUDUDUDUDUDU!!!

A destructive roar overflowed in the lecture hall, previously filled with people’s breathing.

More than a hundred cylinders pumped without any power, scattering their force in all directions, and mana and electricity, mixed together, poured out through the engine’s filters.

“!!!!”

The moment everyone’s mouths gaped open at the utterly ferocious culmination of power, as if a monstrous beast had been summoned right there,

Lennok said with a calm expression.

“I was thinking it might be difficult to have a proper demonstration with this engine, which discharges a mixture of mana and electricity.”

“W-wait a minute… What, in the world…”

Bailla whirled around to look at the engine, her expression dumbfounded.

“How, without even touching it, in such a short time…!!”

Lennok ignored her words and focused on manipulating the engine.

“It’s not so much a problem with the engine’s internal structure as it is impurities generated during the process of perfectly reproducing the theory. I thought there were too many oil filters, but this was why.”

“Wh-what?”

Even Cassia had by now stopped touching the engine and was looking over with a surprised expression.

In the rapidly changing atmosphere, the undergraduates quickly looked at Lennok’s engine interior screen, which had appeared on the projector.

PSHHHHHHH!!

This was because the screen vividly displayed the entire process of immense magical power, endlessly circulating and rotating like a river, exquisitely touching and operating the triggers and cylinders, and converting into propulsion.

There wasn’t a single error in the movement of mana stimulating the hundreds of cramped pipes, cylinders, and pistons.

PADADADADAK!!

The mana, extending through the sentient spirit’s body, wriggled vividly as if alive, even as it branched out in hundreds of different directions.

Lennok watched the engine, then carefully picked up Davi’s body and took a step back.

Even after the external mana providing its power disappeared, the engine continued to move ceaselessly, attempting to generate energy and operate on its own.

“It seems you wish to configure a self-circulating power source by simultaneously acquiring both mana and electricity, but that won’t be easy. The thesis merely presented a conversion method closest to equivalent exchange. It’s not something that negates fundamental energy laws.”

[Ew, ew, ew.]

Davi, nestled in Lennok’s arms, stuck out her tongue and shook her head.

[Something weird got mixed in, tastes bad…]

“What’s possible in the mixed phase of mana and electricity is not circulation.”

Holding the sulking sentient spirit, Lennok turned his head towards Cassia.

“Rather, if you consider it in the domain of resonance and synchronization, more interesting things become possible.”

“What do you mean by that…!!”

Even Bailla’s flustered voice couldn’t finish.

BOOM!!

The mana extending from the engine Lennok operated seeped into Cassia’s engine, which had been stopped right next to it.

As a flustered Cassia stepped back from her engine, nullifying all her efforts until now, both engines began to move and operate.

TUDUDUDUDU!!!

The man standing before the undergraduates, with both engines now operating as if alive, as if he were their master.

This utterly unrealistic and absurd phenomenon sharply awakened Bailla’s mind, which had been filled with astonishment.

Manipulating the theory of mana and electricity conversion so freely, to this extent, was impossible even for Aris Richellen, the head of the lab that produced the thesis.

So then, this wizard was none other than the very author of the thesis that overturned the pure spellcasting academic world.

Only then did Bailla, realizing all her unresolved questions were fitting together like a puzzle, murmur lowly.

“So that was it… Not the other master’s and doctoral students, but the youngest assistant professor who rarely showed up in the lab…!”

DUGUGUGUGUGU!!!

The two engine sounds resonated, amplifying each other. They filled the classroom and even burst out into the entire lecture building.

In the center of that noise, where even spoken words were barely audible, Lennok turned to Bailla and smiled.

“May I state my conditions now?”

The lingering evening twilight.

As winter ends, the days lengthen, but the sun doesn’t stay up forever.

Weian, sweating profusely as he looked up at the sunset that had risen a little later than his body remembered, murmured.

“This scenery… I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere before…”

[What nonsense are you spouting?]

THWACK!!

Mad Manson, the woman with a robot head, who had smacked Weian’s head with a thick iron pipe, spoke.

“Agh…!! Don’t hit my head!! If I turn into an idiot, will you compensate me?!”

[Compensate? What are you talking about?]

Manson tapped her robot head and burst out laughing.

[There’s a very good ready-made item prepared here. I’ll put something much nicer than what you currently have on your shoulders.]

“No, but still, aren’t I more handsome than that mechanical device…?”

Weian, mumbling with a disgruntled expression, let out a deep sigh.

[Well, if you’re suddenly feeling déjà vu, it’s probably because Van returned to the office after a long time.]

Manson looked at Weian, then subtly turned and murmured.

[Van usually doesn’t stay at the office.]

“They say he’s intervening in Cartel’s affairs this time. Is he alright?”

Weian asked, gripping the two daggers he was holding in a reverse grip and taking a stance.

Contrary to the rumors about Madrich Onnion being kept strictly secret, the rumor that the internal power struggle within the Cartel had reached its peak in the current climate was widely spread.

Even Weian, who was obsessively dedicated to training unless he was on external assignments from the company, was aware of the rumors.

If it was serious enough for Lennok, who usually showed no interest in outside affairs, to step in, wasn’t that proof of how chaotic the city was?

Manson also replied, sliding the pipe between her daggers.

[I don’t know. The guy who recently became the third director, Ayoon, is completely obsessed with entertainment, but I hear the power he wields is extremely unique and potent.]

“That’s…”

[Still, this time they’re not fighting for the organization’s fate, so it won’t be that dangerous. More importantly…]

Manson, glancing towards the top of the company building, shrugged.

[Can you imagine that monster losing to someone?]

“…”

An utterly absurd assertion coming from a freelancer who had been rolling around in this business for over a decade.

But it was a statement that even Weian couldn’t help but agree with.

The office recently set up above Jenny’s newly constructed bar.

Because a vast power, swelled precariously as if it might burst at any moment, was filling the interior space of the company.

Jenny or Jordan, who weren’t deeply knowledgeable about mana, didn’t seem to perceive it, but superhumans like Weian or Manson, who had reached a certain level, could tell.

That the wizard Van’s power was not only expanding without end, but was now on the verge of transforming into something entirely different.

If that being, possessing potential that couldn’t be defined merely as “talent,” reached the place it desired, would Weian then be able to view Van as an equal individual?

A preposterous delusion, even to Weian himself.

But even at this moment, staring blankly at Lennok’s mana echoing from above, he couldn’t help but let all those thoughts wander into strange places.

It felt like looking into a bottomless abyss; merely sensing Lennok’s mana swirling with his own senses made him feel as if he understood something.

As Weian, with a dreamy expression, lifted his head, Manson forcefully struck his head again with the pipe.

CLANG!!

“!!!!”

Manson looked down at Weian, who was rolling on the ground unable even to scream, with a look of exasperation.

[This is what happens if you look away for even a second.]

“Ughhh…! No, but what am I supposed to do when I see strange things…”

[Your mana sensitivity is on a completely different level from others, so you need to be more careful, you idiot. Do you think I’m grilling you like this because I don’t know that?]

Manson, who had fallen while clutching his head, lowered his head towards Weian and spoke.

[There’s a reason we’re not meeting Van directly. He’s in an incredibly precarious state right now.]

“…”

[Especially considering your sensitivity. If you’re lucky, you might gain unique insights by observing Van, but if you’re unlucky, you could lose your sense of self in the process.]

“No, that’s…”

[That man is qualitatively different from other living beings. Do you still not understand that? At this point, I’m even starting to suspect Van is just pretending to be human like us.]

Weian tried to retort but closed his mouth.

Because even Weian, whose experience could truly be called shallow compared to Manson’s, couldn’t understand the strangely rapid growth and power Lennok was currently displaying.

He could only feel relieved that such a monster, possessing both immense talent and temperament, was on their side.

From behind Weian, who was staggering to his feet, a faint, amused voice rang out.

“I understand what you mean, but there’s no need to be that scared.”

“!!”

[Van…?]

Lennok, clad only in a light shirt, was leaning against a nearby tree, laughing with an incredulous expression.

“Your imaginations have both grown quite a bit since I last saw you. You’re not thinking of me as some strange monster, are you?”

“…”

[—.]

There was no answer. Manson and Weian merely exchanged quick glances.

In the awkward silence, Lennok, frowning, raised his hand.

“Come closer.”

WOOOOSH!!

The faint concentric circles appearing in his hand.

Weian, instinctively realizing Lennok was about to use magic, prostrated himself on the floor.

“No, no!! I misspoke! Of course, I didn’t think that…!!”

“Or did no words come out?”

Lennok flicked his finger, replying indifferently.

“Don’t be scared; I’m not going to beat you up. I just thought of a way to resolve your mana sensitivity issues and elevate your level.”

“R-really…?”

Weian, cautiously gauging Lennok’s mood, slowly raised himself.

Partial deployment of his Domain. To handle barrier magic more profoundly in that process, consistent practice was required.

Lennok intended to resolve Weian’s issues and enhance his skills while practicing barrier magic.

“Of course.”

Lennok smiled faintly, watching Weian walk hesitantly towards him.

“I’m starting to get a rough idea of how far the concept of ‘talent’ can be bent.”