Chapter 91
They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Professor Kang Yul-je was extremely kind to me.
"You know, pizza really ought to be eaten with hot sauce. Here, let me put some on for you."
"No, you really don't have to go that far..."
"The most delicious thing at a pizza place is cheese balls, of course. Here, eat. Eat."
"Oh... They're really good. Why are the cheese balls so delicious at a pizza place?"
"Because cheese is good, of course. Here, have some of this too."
His eyes were those of a madman who looked as though he would do anything to find an excellent graduate student.
Of course, I wasn't going to be won over by his kindness.
"That's enough."
"Kang Noah! Kang Noah! If I can just make that Kang Noah my graduate student, I'll do anything!! Would you like me to lick your shoes?!"
People nearby began whispering.
I probably wouldn't be coming back, but I definitely couldn't come to this pizzeria again.
"But, I-I heard you can read people's pasts... Could you perhaps read an artifact's past and future too?"
"I can't do that."
"What a shame."
But that didn't make him give up on wanting to take me on as a graduate student.
"Are you really not interested in college at all??"
"Yes."
"Why? Isn't college life supposed to be romantic? Just walking around campus, freely choosing your classes, and with your good looks, you could even have a campus romance."
Well...
You didn't have to be a student to walk around campus.
Free choice of classes?
There had been more than a few people whining on the forums that they had messed up their course registration.
If it were really free, would anyone be complaining that they had messed up?
And as for a campus romance...
I'd talked more than a few people out of it. Why would I take on something so dangerous myself?
In other words, Professor Kang Yul-je's proposal couldn't interest me in the slightest.
"What a shame."
Only after seeing my impassive expression did he let out a sigh.
He had realized that it was impossible to evolve me into a college student, then hyper-evolve me into a graduate student.
"Still, I'm glad you understand the romance of treasure hunting."
"This looked like fun."
"All right, then eat up and let's head to my office."
So we polished off two pizzas and all the cheese balls, then headed straight to Professor Kang Yul-je's office at Korea University.
"It's always fun coming here."
Elder Jung Hee-tae smiled happily when he got out of the car.
He enjoyed feeling the youthful energy of the college students.
"Hey, hyung. Don't act so old. If we go over there..."
"Uh, uhhhhh?! It's Noah hyung!!"
"Gasp! Noah hyung!!"
"Hyung!!"
"I'm a fan!!"
A few students spotted me just then, and their eyes lit up.
They ran over excitedly and held out their notebooks.
"Hyung!! Could I get your autograph?!"
"Could you take a look and tell me what questions will be on this midterm?!"
"Hyung! There's a girl I like!"
"Hyung! Hyung!"
The two elders watched in amazement as the college students swarmed me like mad.
They hadn't realized I was this popular.
"Huh. Impressive."
"They said you were making a name for yourself these days, but I didn't expect it to be this much."
While they were admiring me, I lightly clapped my hands.
That alone was enough to quiet them down.
"Line up."
"Ooooooh!!"
The college students quickly formed a line.
Then they picked up the cards.
"Draw one."
"Oh... What's this? The Nine of Hearts?"
"Kim Ho-mun. You'll hit it off with the woman you meet on your blind date tomorrow."
"Ooooooh!!"
Next.
"Oh Hye-ryeon. You'll be able to receive a scholarship this time. But the future can change in countless ways, so don't slack off just because you heard my advice. Keep working hard."
"Hyung!! Thank you so much!"
Next.
"Kim Ina. Your Understanding of World Classics class has a group project. You'll end up paired with people who freeload, so don't take that class."
"Aagh!! A group project...!!"
And next.
"Lee Se-na. Hmm... What you're thinking is correct. Go to your boyfriend's studio apartment right now."
I broke the news carefully and indirectly to the female college student whose boyfriend was cheating on her with his friend.
That alone was enough for her to understand what I meant.
"That fucking bastard!!!"
Oh.
Now that was some wonderfully vivid swearing.
She looked like she was on the women's volleyball team...
I quickly dealt with the college students who had lined up.
Once they left, cheering and calling my name, Professor Kang Yul-je's eyes began to sparkle.
"To think you can control students this quickly. Perhaps you were destined to become an assistant in my office?"
"No."
What a terrifying thing to say.
.
.
...
There was a small table toward the back of the office.
Maps and various materials were piled on top of it.
They were materials for determining the location of the Baekje treasure ship.
"As you can see, when we consider the records from the past and the navigational technology available at the time, we can only assume it was somewhere around here."
Professor Kang Yul-je pointed to the map.
It was the sea near Yeoseodo in the South Sea.
"Let's consider the navigational technology of the time. Baekje would have established a base on Yeoseodo and used it as an intermediate port. According to the survivor's record, they docked at Yeoseodo, so we should use that as our reference point."
"But wasn't there a storm at the time? The ship sank because it couldn't withstand the storm..."
While the two of them argued for their respective opinions, Mr. Cheolhon and I looked around the office.
There were more interesting things than I'd expected.
"Sir, what's this?"
"I have no idea."
"Why is there a whip in a history professor's office?"
"I have no idea."
"Perhaps he prepared it for his graduate students?"
"...This whip?"
What historian wouldn't idolize Indiana Jones?
"Mr. Cheolhon, have you seen Indiana Jones?"
"Yes. It's a classic. Raiders is my favorite."
"Ah, Raiders. That was a fun one."
While we looked around the office, the two men, who had been engaged in a lengthy debate, seemed to have reached some degree of agreement and were sipping coffee.
"Professor Kang. Do you know how to use a whip?"
When Mr. Cheolhon finally couldn't hold back his question, Professor Kang Yul-je gave him a sly grin.
"That is a basic skill that any scholar specializing in history and artifact studies must learn."
"......"
I set Mr. Cheolhon's bewilderment aside for the moment.
I looked at them.
Having finished their discussion, they were moving on to their next task.
They had to select the area to explore.
"All right. Let's examine the records from that time and pinpoint the exact location where it sank. According to the survivor's record, the wind at the time was so strong that..."
"Ah."
"What's the matter?"
"It's nothing."
"He said the sails moved like a massive cloud, which means the ship would have been pushed all the way here..."
"Uh..."
"...Why? What's wrong?"
"It's nothing."
"...In other words, about seven kilometers from Yeoseodo..."
"Uhhhh...!"
"If you have something to say, just say it."
I looked into their future.
If they continued like this, they wouldn't find anything.
I could have told them the answer, but they didn't seem to want that, so I merely pretended to offer some vague advice.
"Would you like me to reveal the answer?"
"...No. We place more value on the process than the result."
"Hmm, even so, turn this over for now."
"I told you I'm not interested in the result."
"Still, you never know."
Professor Kang Yul-je refused.
But after thinking for a moment, he turned over the card only after warning me not to say a word.
"Then may I tell you my simple opinion?"
"That would be fine."
"I think it's here. Based on what you said, you used this place and this place as your reference points, right? And according to the survivor's record..."
Based on what they had been discussing earlier, I picked a spot.
Their futures changed.
Hmm...
This wasn't it.
"Hmm. Or perhaps here."
Their futures changed again, but they still failed to find it.
"Considering the wind and currents at the time, we can't rule out the possibility that it was pushed this far."
We continued studying the map based on the evidence we had.
Then we picked one particular location.
The future changed.
To one in which they succeeded in finding the treasure ship.
That was it.
"I think Professor Kang is right too."
"Hmm. What do you think, Elder Jung?"
In response to Professor Kang Yul-je's question, Elder Jung Hee-tae was looking somewhere else.
But he couldn't simply disregard the opinions of the two of us.
"I think it's here... Well, if it's two to one, then I suppose that's right."
"Good. Let's start preparing for the exploration."
"Wh-what? You're deciding this so easily?"
Mr. Cheolhon, who had been watching from the side, asked in surprise.
He meant to ask whether they were really making such an easy decision when an exploration operation would cost a considerable amount of money.
But neither Elder Jung Hee-tae nor Professor Kang Yul-je cared much about money.
Elder Jung Hee-tae was a major player in private lending, and although Professor Kang Yul-je came from a collateral branch, he was also part of a chaebol family, so he had no need to worry about money.
Would money really matter to people like them?
"Besides, it won't cost as much as you think."
"Really?"
"Well. Of course, a professional exploration requires money, time, manpower, and equipment, but once we get to that point, we'll be working with the government."
The first step was to find a lead that would allow them to cooperate with the government.
Elder Jung Hee-tae confidently said that they would use that approach to find the artifact and donate it to the National Central Museum.
"So you two just get ready to go have fun."
"If we're going all the way to Yeoseodo, I don't know whether this counts as going on a trip or going to suffer."
"Then you can stay here."
"I don't think so."
How could I sit out something that looked this fun?
I laughed, and so did the two elders.
That was when it happened.
"Professor, I'm back..."
The door opened with a weak voice.
A young man entered.
He had a tired-looking face.
He was Professor Kang Yul-je's assistant.
"Ho-min, good timing. Say hello. This is Yoo Ho-min, my assistant."
"Uh... Mr. Kang Noah?!"
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kang Noah."
"I-I can't believe I'm meeting someone so famous!!"
He froze for a moment when he saw me, then approached in admiration and held out his hand.
After shaking my hand, he handed the documents he had brought to Professor Kang Yul-je.
"Professor, here are the grading results for the students in the seasonal semester."
"Hmm... Good. You worked hard. And we're going to Yeoseodo next week, so get ready."
"Oh. Then..."
"Yes. We're planning to begin the exploration."
"Understood."
He bowed politely and left.
Professor Kang Yul-je gave me a sly grin.
"That young man is going to write a paper through this exploration too."
"Hmm. I see."
A paper.
Well.
I wonder if he'll actually be able to write a proper paper at all? He was a spy for a Japanese far-right organization that coveted the artifact in the first place.