Academy’s Undercover Professor-Novel - Chapter 142

ACADEMY’S UNDERCOVER PROFESSOR

[Translator – Alice]

[Proofreader – ilafy]

 

Chapter 142 – Festival Preparation (1)

 

Mana could contain memories…

Because it was a recently rising topic of discussion, it was enough to once more trigger the wizards’ and scholars’ attention regarding the mysterious power of mana.

The phenomenon of a dreamy feeling as they experienced the past of other people as if they themselves had experienced it…

It was called Memory Storming.

The wizards researched that Memory Storming phenomenon and were concerned about how to utilize it.

In the end, they were able to come up with the talisman that Mary Ross was showing.

“Professor Mary. Isn’t it maybe dangerous or something?”

The saying that they could read memories seemed interesting at a glance, but it seemed that the side effect inherent behind it was no joke.

“In fact, the Memory Storming phenomenon can be a poison in severe cases. The memories can excessively get mixed up and a fissure may happen to your ego.”

It wasn’t like there weren’t any victims.

It was an extreme minority, but there were also cases when the subject mistook themselves as the wizard doing the mana transmission due to Memory Storming and confusion happened.

That kind of psychological side effect was a chronic problem that even Sacred Magic had difficulty treating.

“However, it’s an incident that happens after transmitting the mana in a hurry in a situation where they didn’t follow the safety regulations. Also, such a case is an extremely rare 1 out of 100 case.

“However, the danger is still there, right?”

“Of course. However, this talisman that was created as a prototype can allow you to be at ease. Since it’s a consumable artifact, its power is weak, but that’s because it has very high stability.”

The students showed their curiosity at the words “high stability” after having been skeptical not even a moment before.

If Professor Mary said that directly, it was safe to say that perhaps it possessed no danger.

All the students raised their hands, saying they wanted to try using the talisman.

It was such a lively reaction that even Professor Mary was puzzled.

“Oh my. There are really a lot of students who want to give it a try. I brought enough talismans for everyone in the class to get a try.

The number of students who attended Mary Ross’s class was also so high that they reached 80 people.

It was a joint class for the first and second-years, so it also played a part in why it was difficult for a single empty seat to be spared.

Mary Ross was also aware of how popular her class was, so she had brought 40 talismans.

“However, there’s something I have to warn you about. You should use this in pairs. The Memory Storming phenomenon won’t happen simply because you instill your mana. There should be another person. What you should be cautious of most of all is that you don’t have complete control over what the other will see, it could be something you want to keep hidden.”

The students looked at each other because of that caution.

Their desire to do it was strong, but the fact that it was used in pairs bothered them.

To think that other people might see their secrets…

The probability of the secret being disclosed was small among their myriad of memories, but it didn’t mean it wouldn’t happen.

“Hey. What do you think?”

“Should we do it? I’m curious.”

“Uurgh. To think that someone else is going to see my memories. It’s a bit like that.”

“So what? It’s nothing much.”

The people who highly valued their privacy were very reluctant to use the talisman.

Even if they used it with their close friends, there were bound to be secrets they didn’t want to disclose.

Even more so if the other person was the opposite sex.

“That being said, who would like to still give it a try?”

When Professor Mary Ross asked to make sure, the number of students raising their hands decreased by a lot.

Still, more than half of the students in the room still expressed their desire to use the talisman.

“Lynne. Let’s do it too.”

“Pardon? Is that okay?” Lynne asked in confusion at Elendil’s offer.

She didn’t think that the princess would be the one to make the proposition to her.

“To be honest, don’t you want to try it?” Elendil spoke as she coaxed Lynne.

To be frank, Elendil wanted to do it.

The part about sharing with friends stimulated Elendil’s romanticism.

‘To think that I can share memories with my friend!’

Elendil was obsessed with that part, as she had never had a friend before.

Something like cool memories or unforgettable ones with a friend…

In fact, those were sentences that often come out in novels.

Of course, the difference between sharing memories through Memory Storming and the actual sharing of memories was severe, but Elendil thought both were the same, as she had no friends before.

“There won’t be that much you can find in my memories. Instead, are you going to be okay?”

Lynne was worried about Elendil.

She was a random commoner, but Elendil was an Imperial Princess.

The gap in their status wouldn’t permit her to sit side by side and share a conversation like that if the place wasn’t Sören.

She didn’t have much resistance in showing her past, but wasn’t it a huge penalty for a commoner like her to peep into a princess’s memories?

Lynne didn’t believe that she had a good grasp on how the world worked, but she could be sure that it wasn’t a good thing to do.

“So what? I don’t really mind either. I also don’t really have much to show.”

Elendil thought that it was trivial.

She would’ve hesitated on whether her relationship with her older sister would be revealed, but since that the nasty guy named Freuden exposed everything, there was nothing more to hide.

She was, in fact, the third princess who’d been pushed away from the throne fight, so, unliked what others thought, she wasn’t really privy to critical information.

“Oh, hm.”

Since Elendil herself said that, Lynne didn’t try to wear her down any longer. In fact, she was also curious about Memory Storming.

“Okay. Then let’s do it.”

“Good!”

Elendil soon went to the podium and received one talisman from Professor Mary.

Mary Ross showed a very shocked face, as she didn’t know that Third Princess Elendil would step forward, but she soon formed a soft smile and nodded.

“Let’s do it now.”

A couple of students were already using the talisman.

Elendil grabbed one side of the talisman with her hand while suppressing her thumping heart as she stretched the talisman out toward Lynne.

Lynne grabbed the other side of the talisman.

The method of using the talisman was simple.

Both just needed to grab either side of the talisman while instilling their mana.

Sssssss.

Both sides of the white talisman received the mana effect and were slowly dyed another color.

—It was dark gray on Lynne’s side and glittering gold on Elendil’s side.

The slowly spreading colors met in the middle of the talisman and formed a shape before starting to mix.

As they closed their eyes, Lynne and Elendil trembled at the same time.

A huge stream hit their consciousness.

Like a flooding river after heavy rain, the stream was very big and strong.

‘Th-this is…’

Lynne silently watched the scene within the massive torrent that made it hard for her to distinguish even an inch in front of her.

It was an overwhelming landscape that she was experiencing for the first time, but she instinctively realized what it was.

—That huge torrent was the flow of time and a person’s memories.

‘This is the Memory Storming phenomenon?’

Various spectacles passed by quickly in a huge, swirling stream like a panorama.

The scene of when they entered the classroom together not long before flickered as if someone had turned the light on and off.

‘If I go up the stream, will I be able to see a more distant past?’

Lynne walked toward the huge stream. She felt a huge pressure, but it was still bearable.

How long had it been since she’d started going up the stream?

‘It seems to be getting somewhat heavier.’

The more she went up the stream, the stronger the pressure on her body got.

Even after she surrounded herself with mana and protected herself, it was that much.

In the end, she gave up on moving farther and, when she lifted her mana, a spectacle was spread in front of Lynne.

‘Senior?’

It was Elendil when she was still a freshman and had just entered Sören.

Her outer appearance wasn’t much different, but her atmosphere looked way fresher—unlike when Lynne had first seen her at the start of the semester.

The spectacle was conveyed vividly to her as if she was experiencing it directly.

‘So this is Senior’s memory.’

While being surprised by the mysterious phenomenon called Memory Storming, she suddenly became curious about how Elendil spent her daily life as a freshman.

As Lynne watched the spectacle with a bit of a throbbing heart…

Soon, she unknowingly put on a sour face.

* *

Flora looked at the talisman in her hand while thinking deeply.

She could read memories if her and the other person shared mana through the piece of paper?

It was a pretty interesting story.

‘However, it’s a bit of a shame to use it now.’

Glance.

Flora looked at Cheryl, who was sitting beside her, with a heartless gaze.

When she saw her stare, Cheryl’s body trembled like a frightened rabbit.

“Uh, Flora… You won’t use that right?”

“Why? You don’t wanna?”

“Oh? N-no. Rather than not wanting to do it, it’s just… my heart is not ready yet.”

Cheryl’s reaction was unexpected. She would have usually rushed in, saying she would love to try it.

She tried hard not to seem like it, but Cheryl was extremely reluctant to do Memory Storming.

Was there a past that she wanted to hide from Flora?

‘No way. I have known Cheryl for a very long time.’

Flora scanned through the classroom.

Some students were doing Memory Storming, but there were also those who weren’t.

“Well, if you don’t want to use it, then don’t.”

Flora stealthily put the the talisman that she held in her hand into her pocket.

No one was aware of her behavior because the Memory Storming sessions ended right then.

The students who’d peeked at each others’ memories laughed at the interesting things they had seen or showed apathetic reactions as if they seemed to think it was nothing much.

“Youuu! Cheater! You said that you only loved me! Now I know why you didn’t wanna use this!”

“C-calm down! Urgh!”

Some of the students even had a rare, more interesting reaction.

Professor Mary Ross awkwardly smiled while looking at a woman who was grabbing a man’s throat and shaking it. They seemed to be a couple.

It was the moment when one couple disappeared from Sören Academy.

Lynne and Elendil also finished their Memory Storming and opened their eyes.

“It’s amazing. To think that we can see the memories stored in mana with this. So this is Memory Storming. It seemed like I was watching for a really long time, but in fact, time hasn’t passed much. How about you, Lynne? There was nothing much, right?”

“Oh, me?”

Lynne didn’t know how to answer Elendil’s question and was embarrassed.

Elendil seemed to think that she didn’t have anything embarrassing that could be shown anymore, but she wasn’t sure.

Lynne was worried about whether to say it or not before carefully opening her mouth.

“That… Senior. You know…”

“Huh? Why?”

“Even if it’s your birthday, I don’t think it’s right to share birthday invitations with students you aren’t close with.”

“Oh…”

Elendil recalled her past dark history that she had forgotten at Lynne’s words.

It was a futile time when she’d attempted to make friends in Sören while holding dreams and hope.

It was her past that made her kick the blanket when she occasionally recalled it when she was about to sleep.

Lynne had seen Elendil’s past from when she was a freshman.

Moreover, it was the birthday party incident that she wanted to forget the most.

“Well, th-th-th-that’s…”

“…I understand you.”

“Uurgh!”

Elendil closed her eyes tightly.

Rather than being upset about that incident being revealed, she felt that it was more painful for Lynne to stare at her with sincere sympathy.

“Rather than that, what did you see in my past? I’m also very curious. Did you also see what happened one year ago?”

Lynne threw her a question to change the topic.

To be frank, she said that, but Lynne wasn’t very curious about her own past because there wasn’t anything special in it.

She thought that Elendil must have seen her one year in the past, at most, like her.

The time when she was locked in a small room all day long and only studied.

“I saw a bit more distant past.”

However, unlike Lynne’s thought, what Elendil saw was completely unexpected.

“Distant past? So you can see something far away in the past through this?”

“I don’t know how far it was, but what I saw was a bit strange.”

“Pardon?”

“What I saw was your childhood. A time when you looked more than 10 years younger compared to now.”

After she said so, Elendil recognized something was strange, and she touched her forehead as she thought on it.

“But it’s somewhat strange. Usually, you look at this kind of memory through the person’s point of view, right? But I saw your childhood through another person’s gaze.”

“Another person? Who on earth was it?”

“Perhaps it was your mother.”

The scenery that Elendil saw wasn’t from Lynne’s point of view, but her mother’s.

The memory of Lynne’s childhood when she hadn’t even reached 10 years old yet in her mother’s embrace could still be felt clearly by Elendil.

“In a hut on a meadow where no one lived… You were living only with your mother there. It looked like you were receiving your mother’s love, Lynne.”

“Senior, what are you talking about?”

Lynne showed a confused reaction as she heard the story.

“I grew up without parents.”

* * *

After I finished the second exam, I went back to the professor’s office right away and started tidying up.

There was nothing that I needed to care about that much since the exam grading had ended on the spot.

‘Now it seems I shall start the festival preparation in earnest.’

Since it was a festival, I recalled my past life.

To be frank, I’d lived a life without connection with festivals. What I remember was a college festival I had attended, but it was only a famous singer who sang there, and since a pub was open, I drank alcohol, and that was all.

Still, since this was Sören, the festival here must be very different.

When I was thinking of it, Sedina passed me a piece of paper, an official document that had just been issued.

“What’s this?”

“It’s the festival’s schedule.”

“Hadn’t I already received one?”

“Well, it seems that since it’s going to be held earlier this time, there are some changed events, so the principal announced a newly added schedule.”

A change in the schedule…

‘There’s nothing particularly strange.’

Since the festival that was originally going to be open at the end of the first semester was pushed forward, I assumed that this much was an obvious thing.

After I read the official document with such a light thought, I squinted my eyes at the content.

“There will be a magic battle between professors in the magic festival’s dueling event?”

Moreover, the one who’d proposed the idea was Hugo Bourtag.