Chapter 95
As with any other academy, Elterion Academy's course registration day is a war.
Professor Tarvin's class, which hands out credits generously,
Professor Raunel's class, which is often canceled whenever the professor is sick.
And the 'Proper Understanding of Sex' lecture, which has held the number-one spot among Elterion Academy's required liberal arts courses for ten straight years.
These popular classes fill up in less than a minute.
Waiting for the losers of the registration war are unpopular classes like Introduction to Economics, taught by Howard, the senior professor of the Economics Department and a credit killer.
With a semester's comfort on the line, there was no choice but to be as careful as possible.
However, for Elterion Academy's first-year freshmen, that burden is somewhat lighter.
That was because almost all of the classes first-years had to take were already decided for them.
It was such a systematic curriculum that it didn't just set the table for you, it practically put the fork and knife in your hands!
On Mondays, the theory and practical classes for the common foundational subjects are assigned.
On Wednesdays, the core courses for your major are assigned.
Thursday's schedule is somewhat unusual. At Elterion Academy, first-year freshmen are semi-forced into personalized classes.
For example, a Magic Department student with high affinity for fire-attribute mana would be assigned a class like 'Understanding the Fire Element.'
A student from the Economics Department who came from a port city would be assigned a class like 'Maritime Trade and Economics.'
That was why the entrance exam had been carefully divided into one written test and two interviews.
It was this kind of attentive care that made Elterion Academy the continent's premier educational institution.
Last semester, they even used the dean's prerogative to create a class called 'Special Archmage Course' for that ridiculous freshman.
The student was appointed Archmage in just one semester, leaving not a single actual student behind, but in any case, it had done its job well enough.
That didn't mean the students had no right to choose their classes at all.
Tuesdays and Fridays. On those days, liberal arts courses are assigned, and students can register for anywhere from a minimum of two to a maximum of six liberal arts classes according to their preferences.
If you managed your schedule well, taking three classes in a day was no problem.
Of course, most students stick to the minimum of two.
Even students whose academic zeal burns bright never take more than four.
After all, they have club activities to attend on Friday afternoons, and the fresh, bright-eyed freshmen who have just entered the academy usually want to enjoy their youth.
There isn't a single crazy freshman at this academy trying to attend lectures while hunting down a time-reversal artifact.
The problem was that there was one student who hadn't even taken the minimum two liberal arts courses last semester.
*
“Excuse me, is there a first-year Magic Engineering Department student admitted this year who only took one liberal arts course last semester?!”
The administration staff member's sharp voice echoed through the faculty office.
She stood before the partition where the Magic Engineering Department professors were gathered and shook a stack of documents.
“Hmm? There is?”
The old professor, who had been poring over a slave... no, a research assistant's paper, replied blandly through the magnifying glass.
At that dismissive attitude, a cross-shaped vein bulged on the administration staff member's temple.
“'There is?' What do you mean, 'there is'?! I know your personal schedules are busy, but you still need to manage the students in your department!”
From the administration office's point of view, the Magic Engineering Department professors were at the very top of the list of high-risk individuals.
They were always making a fuss, demanding more research funding.
And on top of that, they practically abandoned academic administration work, so the office staff had to come in person every time to badger them.
Still, she'd gotten used to things like budget requests and broken equipment.
But a student's required credits going missing without any sanctions being imposed was a whole different matter.
Setting aside the student's own graduation problems, it could even turn into an issue of fairness.
“What's more, this student was registered as a full scholarship student of Linea Hall?!”
Since credits were awarded on a relative basis, students at Elterion Academy were unusually sensitive about their grades.
Not only had a student who hadn't even completed the courses properly put their name on the transcript, but they were also sitting at the very top of the rankings?
How many students would just sit back and stay quiet after learning that?
The future looked like a mountain of formal complaint letters from noble houses, and before she knew it, the administration staff member was clutching her head.
“Tch— what's the big deal? It isn't even a major course, just a liberal arts class... So what's the student's name?”
“How would we know? The administration office only gets the data as numbers. You'll have to ask the Magic Engineering Department.”
“Aigoo, what a nuisance. Let's see, credits not completed...”
The old professor from the Magic Engineering Department frowned, shoved aside the red-splashed papers (It's ink. Not the assistant's blood.), and flipped through the student registry.
The name was easy to find.
Right at the top of the list of students sorted by grades, that name was sitting there in plain sight.
“There it is. Evermoon... Lunaris.”
At the name that slipped from the old professor's mouth, the administration staff member's shoulders jolted.
The professors from other departments, who were drinking coffee as if it had nothing to do with them, also flinched.
Someone even choked and went into a coughing fit.
“...”
The heavy silence lasted only briefly.
Soon, murmuring could be heard here and there.
“That student again...?”
“I feel like it's a name I hear every single day lately.”
If the Magic Engineering Department was the administration office's headache, then Lunaris Evermoon was the administration office's—no, the academy's—disaster.
She had only enrolled half a year ago.
She was the worst troublemaker in history, having racked up in a short time four or five times the demerits that ordinary students receive over four years.
“Honestly, I'd love to convene a disciplinary committee right this instant and expel her, if it were up to me...”
“The chairman and the higher-ups would oppose it with all their might, though.”
Ironically, the honor Lunaris had brought to Elterion Academy far outweighed those demerits.
The title of the first student Archmage in history.
The hero who saved the academy from the ancient magic golem.
The pioneer who opened up a new frontier in magic: the use of natural mana.
And even the famously haughty mages of the Magic Tower, whom they'd wanted to recruit for years but never could, had volunteered to serve as temporary instructors, all thanks to Lunaris.
“Do you know that inquiries from next year's freshmen are already pouring in?”
“Well, it's not often you get the chance to see an Archmage that close.”
“Analyses suggest next year's admissions score will hit the highest point in history. Next year really does seem like it'll be a golden generation.”
So, both from the professors' perspective and the administration office's, they couldn't lay a hand on her carelessly.
There had even been talk of kicking her out as quickly as possible under the pretense of early graduation.
-Unless she herself is the one who quits, we ought to take care of her for as long as she's enrolled.
-It's absurd to give special treatment to one student, but when it comes to an Archmage, special treatment is exactly what she deserves.
-At the very least, we have to milk four years' worth of value out of that name! Do you people really not understand how valuable the title 'teacher of an Archmage' is?!
Since the hardline professors led by Dean Raymond were vehemently opposed, that idea went nowhere.
Besides, it seemed the Imperial Mage Corps had recently started applying subtle pressure as well.
They wanted Lunaris Evermoon to remain at the academy until the day Third Princess Celestina Belhart graduated.
With something as sensitive as a struggle over the imperial succession tangled into it, an assistant professor or ordinary administration staffer was in no position to do anything.
“Haaah...”
So, what could they do?
They'd just have to do a little more work on-site.
“Then does Student Lunaris at least know that she needs to take one more liberal arts course?”
“I'd wager she doesn't? More to the point, it's surprising she even took one liberal arts course last semester. I thought she'd skipped signing up altogether.”
“Ah, about that issue, I heard Dean Raymond took care of it somehow. Supposedly he even handled the course registration himself.”
So that's what it was. That explained why there had been so many incident reports and written apologies under the dean's name.
“And yet she still managed to find the lecture halls.”
“I heard the maids of Linea Hall had a hard time with it.”
They'd had a terrible time memorizing her schedule for her and escorting Lunaris to her classes.
Maid work is indeed a high-difficulty profession.
“Still, I don't understand why they only put in one liberal arts course. If they were going to register it for her anyway, they should have put in both. Tsk!”
“Just imagine that disaster sitting in one of your liberal arts classes.”
“...Good grief. I misspoke. Just imagining it is dreadful.”
“Just one mention of 'Lunaris is your responsibility' was enough to straighten them up immediately.”
“By the way, who was it that took on that natural disaster last semester? It couldn't have been easy.”
The Magic Engineering Department's old professor asked with genuine curiosity.
Then, from a corner seat, a female professor from the Department of Political Science who was sorting documents raised her hand.
“I was the one in charge.”
“Oh? You, Professor Darnier?”
“Yes. She came to my class, 'Imperial Court Etiquette and Social Graces.'”
The professors' eyes widened in unison.
The free-spirited, unruly Lunaris and the word etiquette simply didn't connect at all.
“S-so... there weren't any problems during class?”
“The lecture hall didn't get destroyed, was it?”
“No? Not at all.”
Professor Darnier replied with a shrug.
“That's because she slept through the entire lecture.”
Well, that figures. The professors let out dry laughs.
“It was actually easier. She didn't talk, and she just stayed in her seat in the corner, so there was nothing to worry about. And she got a perfect score on the exam, too.”
“A perfect score...?”
“She had memorized the entire textbook.”
Come to think of it, Lunaris Evermoon is the only freshman in history to come within one point of a perfect score on the notorious Elterion Academy entrance exam.
Her image as someone who spends most of the day sprawled out and, when awake, causes trouble with frightening frequency makes it easy to overlook, but her talent isn't limited to magic alone.
“Ahem! Then there should be no problem having her take two liberal arts courses this semester!”
The administration staff member, who had been quietly listening to the professors' conversation, suddenly raised her voice.
“Even if Dean Raymond is backing her, it won't do to keep going on like this.”
You couldn't last long as an academy administrator without this kind of guts.
“What are you going to do if the students raise a fairness issue? Something like, 'Why is a student who hasn't even met the minimum credit requirement the top student in the whole grade?'”
“I doubt any such complaint will actually come in, though.”
At the administration staff member's words, one Magic Department professor snorted dismissively.
“Among the students and faculty at this academy, who would even argue that Lunaris Evermoon is the top student in the entire grade?”
At that, the other professors nodded.
“Honestly, even trying to evaluate an Archmage is just...”
“Ahaha—yeah, it really is ridiculous.”
As if wondering why anyone was worrying about something so obvious, the professors all burst out laughing.
“Still, rules are rules! It's best not to create any needless sparks of controversy.”
Even so, the by-the-book administration staffer was firm.
“This semester, please make sure Student Lunaris signs up for at least two liberal arts courses, okay, professors of the Magic Engineering Department?”
“...”
The Magic Engineering Department professors began glancing uneasily at one another.
“So, about that Lunaris...”
“...you mean we're the ones who have to tell her she needs to take classes...?”
Was this what it felt like to be a mouse tasked with hanging a bell on a cat's neck?
As everyone averted their eyes and pretended it wasn't their problem.
“Oh? Hold on.”
A young professor searched something on the wizboard, then her eyes went wide.
“Student Lunaris actually signed up for two liberal arts courses properly this semester?”
At that, the faculty office began to buzz.
Some professors breathed a sigh of relief, while others desperately prayed the course she picked wouldn't be theirs.
“Let's see, one is 'Ancient Language Decipherment'... and the other is 'Magic Ecology'?”
At that, the face of one professor who'd been enjoying tea went pale.
“M-Magic Ecology?”
She was, in fact, the professor in charge of the liberal arts course 'Magic Ecology.'
“W-why in the world...?”
You've drawn this semester's disaster-response duty.
“S-so, is she planning to make a chimera or something?”
“H-hiiik—!”
The professor even knocked over her teacup.
“Th-th-that's a terrifying thing to say!”
“But if it's Student Lunaris, it really feels like she might actually be able to do anything...”
The professors were already picturing the lecture hall turned to ruins by Lunaris's pet(?).
...For them, not yet knowing that she had a magic beast egg in her possession was probably, if anything, a blessing.