Academy’s Undercover Professor-Novel - Chapter 103

ACADEMY’S UNDERCOVER PROFESSOR

[Translator – Alice]

[Proofreader – ilafy]

Chapter 103 – <U.N. Owen> (1)

What’d spoiled the quiet atmosphere was Sheridan jabbing a cat’s fang into Hans.

“Then I’m next! I’m Sheridan Ironfeet. As you can see, I’m a dwarf!”

Her white hair that was tied in pigtails shook up and down as they matched her movement.

Her scarlet eyes resembled rubies and she had delicate brown skin.

She certainly had a cute girl’s appearance, but those people who knew her true colors would never have that kind of thought.

Because beneath her outer cute appearance, there was another monster of a different level.

“My hobby is developing and inventing! I like to touch all kinds of things! Of course, I like machines, but what I like the most are gunpowder and bombs!”

Ludger added the following words.

“If there’s a case where Sheridan is about to touch gunpowder, you should certainly stop her.”

‘If you don’t want to die altogether, of course.’

Since the man who usually didn’t warn them about that kind of thing gave them an additional explanation, then it meant that the dwarf girl was just that dangerous.

Once Sheridan finished her introduction, the next person to step up was Bellaruna, who started after looking around.

“He-hehe. Hello. My name is Bellaruna Pettana. As you can see, I’m an elf. M-my specialty is manufacturing drugs and a combination of alchemy and chemical goods. Ah. And if there’s an injured person, I can also treat them. E-even though I have no doctoral license, I worked as an illegal doctor before this, so…”

She had a deep tangerine hair color that resembled a maple mountain in the autumn.

Since her disheveled hair couldn’t be organized properly, it even covered her eyes.

And to point out the most unique part of her, it was that she had an image that somewhat resembled a reckless and crazy woman, which was especially notable when considering the fact that she was an elf.

In fact, since she was a woman who sniffed drug scents on a daily basis and went around while radiating the smell, it wasn’t exactly wrong to say that she was crazy to some extent.

Bellaruna received alienation even among elves, and she had been treated similar to an outcast.

That was why she’d gone away from the forest and run away to the cities where human beings lived, but due to her grim personality, she couldn’t get along well with the others and lived as an illegal doctor in the back alleys.

But unlike her untrustworthy outer appearance, her skill was real.

In fact, the news that the drugs which she manufactured were way more effective than those created by actual doctors was well-known in the markets.

The mana recovery pills that Ludger often consumed were also made after seeking Bellaruna’s advice.

“L-let’s get along well from now on. Hehe.”

Even though she said that, her stare was heading toward Hans. Hans’s body trembled.

With that, three people’s introductions including Hans’s had finished.

The atmosphere itself had flowed in a direction where they were required to explain about themselves.

Alex was the one who stepped up next.

“Hmm. Well I can’t just shut my mouth in this kind of atmosphere, right? My name is Alex. As you can see, I’m a mere commoner without any surname.”

Alex became overly chatty and slipped off the hat that he’d been wearing on his head.

He fiddled with his golden bangs using his fingertips.

“I don’t have any prominent characteristics or specialties like other people. But still, if I really have to talk about it, I have the confidence that I can melt women’s hearts better than anyone else.”

“And you can lie better too.”

Violeta, who’d met him before, replied abruptly.

Alex snickered at her comment and nodded his head.

“Of course, when I practice my art, I sometimes mix an element called ‘lies’ as well, but even so, it doesn’t matter, right? Because an undiscovered lie can otherwise be called the truth.”

Alex the swindler…

He was a high-spirited handsome man who possessed exotic facial features.

He was proficient in winning the favor of the opposite sex by using seductive language while flirting with women, his acting skills were great and he lied naturally.

“Apart from that, I’m also proficient in miscellaneous skills, but I can’t exactly boast about those skills to the people here.”

That was how Alex finished his introduction.

The next person who stepped up was a gigantic man with long, white hair that resembled a lion’s mane.

Even Ludger and Alex’s heights were beyond 180 cm, so they were not short, yet in front of the man who just stepped up, the gap in height was so big that it made them look small.

In fact, the gigantic man slightly bowed his head, even in that large space.

If he didn’t do so, his head would’ve touched the ceiling.

“I’m Pantos. I’m looking forward to your cooperation.”

“What? Is that the end of your introduction?”

When Alex asked the question, Pantos only shut his mouth tightly without being able to say anything.

Within the subtle atmosphere, it was the man who’d arrived along with Pantos who stood up instead of him.

“Since Mr. Pantos is someone who’s not good with words, please be understanding. He has a severely quiet personality. I will speak in his stead.”

“And who are you?” Hans asked while looking at the man.

He was a man with a strange atmosphere. He was grinning ear to ear with a good-looking smile, but there was something distinctive about him.

—He was vaguely in between a kid and a teenager.

If his age was to be judged by his appearance, it would make one wonder if, save for the dwarf, he was the youngest among the people there.

Just by looking at his appearance, he looked to be a handsome boy who was liked by the noble ladies.

He organized his deep-brown hair well, and he even wore a neat suit.

“Ah, my name is Arpa. Just like you guys, I have no surname.”

“Do you have a unique ability? And how did you come to know big brother?”

“Mr. Ludger, you mean? Hmm. If I have to talk about it, you can see me as someone who’s close with Mr. Ludger’s child.”

“Pardon?!”

It was Violeta who got surprised and asked back.

She stared at Ludger with a gaze that seemed to ask whether those words were true.

No way, did he have a child at that age?

“I don’t know what you’re thinking about, but I didn’t marry anyone, nor do I have a child.”

“B-but he just spoke about your child…”

“Even though he said that he’s close to my child, it’s not a real child. And Arpa’s case is a bit unique.”

“Yes, right. I’m unique.”

Arpa smiled brightly and agreed with Ludger’s words.”

“It hasn’t been long since I was born, so I still don’t know about the ways of the world. The reason why I recognized Leader as my father is because he taught me and showed me many things.”

“It hasn’t been long since you were born, you said…”

He looked like he had lived for at least 17-18 years, but could they say it by their own mouth?

When everyone was staring at Arpa with such a gaze, the unknown boy introduced the gigantic man while being all smiles.

“For now, if we’re going back to introduction, this person is Mr. Pantos. As you can see, he has a very huge physique, and his face looks scary, but he’s actually someone who’s probably more gentle than just about anyone else. Oh, yes. And Mr. Pantos is not a human. Mr. Pantos? Would you take off your hat?”

When Arpa urged him, Pantos took off the hat on his head.

Afterward, the hidden ears beneath were revealed.

“He’s a beastperson?”

Pantos was a beastperson.

He wasn’t the case of someone who possessed a physical type that changed him to a beast like Hans, but he was a species that was born with a beast’s strength.

Beastpeople were a superior species in terms of physique if compared to human beings, but even considering that, Pantos’s body was exceptionally huge.

“Mr. Pantos was born with a robust body that makes him a bit uncommon.”

“Well, now that I look at it, he must be someone who works using his muscles.”

“Your words are right on the mark, Mr. Alex. Because Mr. Pantos has the strength of a lion, he used to do various physical works, but the most representative example among all of them was his whale fishing work.”

“Whale fishing?”

Alex doubted his ears as he thought that maybe something got stuck in them.

Everyone stared at Alex at his exaggerated reaction.

“Hmm. I heard that beastpeople are usually scared of water?”

What Alex said wasn’t exactly a prejudice against beastpeople.

In fact, beastpeople mainly resided in the southern part of the continent in a land that was full of vast plains and deserts.

They naturally possessed a powerful body and strength, but their number was small, and they were especially scared of water.

So beastpeople never lived on the seashore or riverside.

‘But whale fishing, he said? If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean he went out to the sea?’

Everyone stared at Ludger with gazes that seemingly asked whether it was true.

Because no matter what others said, it was the man who’d gathered them who knew the most about Pantos.

“Yeah. Right. Pantos is a beastperson, but he’s unique because he isn’t scared of water.”

“Hoo. Then doesn’t it mean that he’s almost perfect?”

A beastperson who overcame the underlying weakness of his species…

Moreover, Pantos looked like his physique was way bigger and stronger, even when he was compared to common beastpeople.

He had huge forearms, and his muscle lines were even visible beneath the extremely big order-made clothes he wore.

If only he applied his strength properly, it was easy to picture his muscles tearing his clothes apart and bulging out from them.

“In fact, Pantos’s strength and ability are enough to make him be called a hero, even among the beastpeople. But he doesn’t really like it. That’s why he gave up leading his family and relatives and came out to the outer world.”

“Why on earth?”

“Because there was prey…”

It was Pantos himself who answered the question.

There was prey… That was the reason why Pantos had gone out to the ocean.

He’d overcome the beastpeople’s underlying fear of water, grabbed a huge harpoon that matched his physique, and he hunted whales in the face of raging sea storms.

It was only because there was prey in that place.

“Well, is it possible that hunting is your forte?”

“…”

Pantos shut his mouth tightly once more.

He’d given an answer before, but he was silent again.

Hans was getting annoyed with his frustration, but he didn’t let it show because if the cast-iron-like fist was swayed even once, it seemed like it would explode his head.

Ludger continued his explanation instead of Pantos.

“Pantos likes to irresistibly hunt huge things. He considers it as the fate of his life.”

“Then how come you were able to meet Pantos?”

“He attempted to hunt me.”

“Pardon?”

What was that supposed to mean?

Everyone there doubted their ears at Ludger’s words.

The ones who didn’t show much of a reaction were Pantos himself and Arpa, who’d come with him

“Hunt? You? That body?”

“Yeah. That was my first meeting with Pantos. He came to hunt me.”

Sheridan tilted her head as she asked.

“But… Your Honor is not a whale. Was the hunt perhaps a human-hunt?”

“Huge prey is a bit of a metaphoric expression. Pantos didn’t only simply hunt huge whales, but he mainly pushed himself toward something that seemed to be an uncrossable barrier to him.”

Thus, the reason why Pantos held a harpoon to catch a whale was to overcome the underlying fear that his species possessed while standing against the environment, and he’d hunted a huge whale which was multiple times larger and heavier than him to overcome his own limit.

That was Pantos’s own principle and some kind of noble consciousness.

Now that they looked at it, the subjects of Pantos’s hunting game didn’t simply stop at whales.

“A being who has enough worth for him. It was important for him to fight with someone whom he could bump against while risking his everything.”

“That’s why he looked for you? To hunt you because you’re strong?”

“Yeah…”

Ludger nodded his head.

Then didn’t it mean that this gigantic beastperson was a complete nut?

‘No, rather than that, he said that the beastperson tried to hunt him? But he looks completely fine, though…’

Sheridan innocently asked the question, trying to sate her curiosity.

“But you look completely fine, though?”

“That’s obvious. I was the one who won the fight.”

“…Whoaa.”

Ludger’s confident answer…

Everyone stared at Pantos as if asking whether it was true.

Pantos, who was standing quietly, slightly nodded in affirmation of Ludger’s words.

“Yeah. I fought with this person, but this man was too strong. I was the one who cornered him, yet I was the one who lost.”

Pantos still hadn’t forgotten the fight back then.

No. It was only right to say that he couldn’t forget it.

He’d wandered around the continent while dreaming about a fight with a strong being. If he judged that being was a great one by himself, he would go to wherever they were and start a fight with them without hesitation.

That was how he had been achieving countless victories.

And then he’d heard a rumor about a wandering wizard.

They’d said that there was a wizard whom no one could dare to mess with since he was so strong.

The moment he’d heard that, Pantos had recognized that there was a new ‘prey’ to be challenged by him.

Since he was a beastperson, his sixth sense, which was extraordinarily more remarkable than a human being’s, was aroused.

That was how he’d searched for the wizard and started a fight.

In the end, he’d been defeated.

“He was strong.”

Pantos calmly admitted his defeat without any flowery words.

Ludger only shook his head while crossing his arms.

“Hoo. You must be in a lot of trouble as well.”

“When talking about the story back then, I think there’s a bit of misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding?”

“Pantos came to hunt a great wizard, but to be frank, his first target was not me. He met me only accidentally, and somehow, he ended up fighting with me.”

“Pardon? It wasn’t you?”

What was that supposed to mean?

Then that gigantic man had mistakenly recognized a prey and fought with Ludger?

“Th-then who did he originally attempt to fight wiith?” Bellaruna asked while revealing her curiosities.

Everyone’s attention was focused on Ludger.

Ludger sighed as he spoke.

“…My teacher.”