Academy’s Undercover Professor-Novel - Chapter 90

ACADEMY’S UNDERCOVER PROFESSOR

[Translator – Alice]

[Proofreader – ilafy]

Chapter 90 – First Order Esmeralda (2)

Ludger was somewhat concerned by her questioning.

Had Esmeralda just asked him that question without thinking?

No…

It was obviously a remark that was spoken with the intent to question him.

Was it just an illusion? There was the feeling of the temperature rising several degrees around him.

No. It was actually rising.

[Tell me… What suddenly happened that made you choose a subordinate?]

The question was simple, but the hidden meaning behind it was not simple.

The heat fluttered and soon began to take shape.

Flame…

At first it was as big as a fist, and before he knew it, the tentacles made from flame surged and began to eat up his surroundings.

His skin had started aching because of the tingling murderous intent.

Ordinary people would have stuttered in panic or felt the danger of their lives and reflexively fought back.

—Because it was more important to live somehow than to die.

That was a natural response, and that would be their choice.

‘But I shouldn’t do that.’

Ludger suppressed his own body before it could automatically react.

Even in a situation where he didn’t know when she would suddenly grab his throat and twist it…

Even though the rising heat bothered him…

He stared at the flames without a single irregular breath.

“You sound like you know me very well.”

[Hee?]

In that situation, an utterance that provoked the other person in reverse was objectively insane.

If anyone had watched it, they would have stopped him and asked why he did that.

But Ludger did not hesitate.

—Because he didn’t have to do that.

“You asked for my help first and made a conclusion as you please. Do I look ridiculous to you since I’ve been staying still after infiltrating Sören?”

It was Esmeralda who took a step back when he made a blatantly irritated voice.

[What? You’re the one who did something that you don’t usually do.]

“I always do my best in every single of my changed identities. And now Ludger Chelysie is a new professor at Sören. What would it look like if such a professor didn’t have an assistant?”

[…That’s why you put a Third Order underneath you?]

“I just decided that she was better than having a guy who didn’t know anything. No. Never mind. I don’t even know what I’m trying to convince you of.”

Ludger was blatantly annoyed and spoke flatly that there was no need to explain.

If he tried to convince her as to why he’d acted like that in that situation, he could have raised the other person’s suspicions.

He’d judged that the First Orders were all people with great skills, but at the same time, they were some crazy human beings.

John Doe and Victor Dreadful, who he’d only indirectly encountered, and Esmeralda in front of him.

‘If I try to be rational and calm while meeting them, it will backfire on me instead.’

Rather, they were the type to accept it when he was annoyed.

The way to clear up the other person’s doubts was not to explain in detail.

It was best to express his anger openly.

In the end, that action was the correct answer.

The tentacles of flame disappeared as if they’d melted into the air in no time.

[It’s just a joke, a joke. I was just kidding, but aren’t you overreacting?]

“Esmeralda. Even if it’s you, questioning my loyalty is obviously an action that crossed the line.”

[I get it. I’m sorry, okay? Indeed. You didn’t talk well to anyone but Zero Order. So calm down. But I’ll tell you some good news instead.]

“What?”

[Zero Order is going to visit us to check our situation. Really.]

When the name “Zero Order” came out, the murderous intent that had been flowing out of Ludger subsided.

“…I’ll let it slide this time. However, keep this in mind if you do something like this again…”

Ludger glared at the flames, opening his eyes sharply.

No. At ‘Esmeralda’, who was hidden within them.

“Then one of us will definitely have to die.”

[Yes, yes. I got it.]

She responded lightly as if she was not listening to him properly, but if Esmeralda spoke like that, the threat would have worked well enough.

[Yeah. Anyway, I’m done with what I wanted to say, so I’m going to go. It’s annoying to have a setback in my plan, but there’s nothing I can do about it.]

“…”

Ludger did not reply to the monologue and left the place immediately.

Esmeralda stared at Ludger’s back for a while.

However, she soon lost interest in him, so she immediately collected her power.

The flame vanished as well.

Darkness fell again at the entrance of the Forest of Fantasy Dreams.

***

‘That was a close call.’

Leaving the Forest of Fantasy Dreams, I belatedly wiped away the cold sweat that flowed down my forehead.

My body was still tense because I’d barely escaped the situation with my desperate acting.

‘I’m glad the other person stepped down after I pretended to be strong in my role instead.’

Originally, the people in secret organizations in the underworld were all like that.

If they looked weak or tried to solve something with words, they would look ridiculous.

—Especially if they’d risen to the position of an executive.

In that situation, it was more effective to show my teeth and show that I was not discouraged.

In fact, Esmeralda had stepped back after rolling her tail instead.

‘Even so, it was dangerous. If I showed any strange reaction there, she would have tried to kill me right away.’

At least until I got angry, Esmeralda’s reaction was genuine.

The moment I made a mistake, all her murderous intent would have become real.

If we had fought there, it would have been quite dangerous.

The principal was already looking for suspicious people with fire lit in her eyes, and if we’d fought in the middle of the night at the entrance to the Forest of Fantasy Dreams?

Moreover, considering Esmeralda’s ability, her level was not appropriate to be soothed.

The flame that she handled least seemed able to burn that forest in a flash.

‘Fortunately, I didn’t get caught and made it through safely.’

It was fortunate that I knew in advance what kind of character John Doe was.

His personality was dirty and he didn’t bend down even to the same First Order, but he vowed his loyalty to Zero Order, the head of the Black Dawn Society.

The reason why he could protect his position even after he killed the subordinate Orders of the Black Dawn Society was maybe that he was being favored by the Zero Order.

‘I’m glad I didn’t get caught. And I also got a clue about the First Order called Esmeralda.’

First Order, Esmeralda…

Her gender was female. Her age was still hard to estimate, but she was definitely young.

But as expected, the most important factor was her ability.

The flame that she’d used and the heat that could expand in an instant.

I’d noticed it from the moment I first felt the sense of presence in the Forest of Fantasy Dreams, but Esmeralda was a spirit mage.

And she was a powerful spirit mage who handled the spirit of flame, which was at least an advanced-level spirit.

‘If she can send the spirit on her behalf and have it deliver her voice, then it must be a very capable spirit.’

If so, the deduction of possible suspects would be considerably reduced.

From all the people in Sören, I could suspect people who specialized in the art of Spiritology.

‘The first people to suspect are the Spiritology professors.’

The professors from the first year to the fifth year…

There were a total of five people who were responsible for each Spiritology class.

However, they were all undoubtedly the most skilled people.

And if she was the First Order, there was a high possibility that she’d infiltrated Sören as another professor besides me.

‘But I can’t exclude the students either.’

Rather, if she’d hidden her identity, it was more likely that hiding among students would be much less noticeable for her.

Even if I limited her to the women among students who had learned Spiritology, there would be quite many suspects.

However, if I looked for her while centering on those who handled the Spirit of Fire, the scope could narrow to a handful of people.

‘And since she contacted me when I went to see the exam in the Forest of Fantasy Dreams, she was at least someone who’s free to move around or someone who was on the scene at that time.’

The scope had narrowed further.

In the case of a professor, I could focus on those who did not hold any exams or go to work at that time.

But I couldn’t go visit them one by one and ask them where and what they did that day.

That’d just be no different from saying, ‘I’m a suspicious person.’

‘But it doesn’t mean that there’s no way to find out.’

The first exam period was over.

Although it was said that exams would be held four times a semester, the first exam period, of course, had a deep meaning.

Sören gave small gifts to those who took the exam for the first time, as Sören thought that they had worked hard.

Students were given a total of three days off.

And the same went for the professors. A welcoming party for the new professors, which originally should have been held at the entrance ceremony, would be held after the first exam period.

‘Submit the exam and evaluate the students… Do they think we took the first step as professors only after finishing all those processes?’

The welcoming party, which was held at the beginning of each year, was attended by all professors of Sören, and in addition, the outsiders who’d donated a large amount of money to Sören would also come.

It was some kind of banquet.

It was said that the banquet was to be held in a large city near Sören.

There was only one city near Sören…

‘The banquet will be in Leathevelk.’

I was planning to attend that event and find the First Order.

‘And what Esmeralda said at the end…’

Zero Order, the founder of the Black Dawn Society.

Her words that he would come soon…

It was not a mere lie to soothe me down in that situation.

If the Zero Order really came to visit Sören and meet me in person…

Would I be able to deceive Zero Order in the end?

***

Pheew.

Inside a dark room…

The black shadow let out a small sigh.

It was Esmeralda, who’d ended her brief reunion with John Doe.

“Good job.”

A small spark floated to her side as she said so.

It was small enough for people to believe that it was a candle, but if they knew the power contained in the flame and its real identity, they would never see it as a cute being.

Fwoosh.

The flame fluttered low and eventually disappeared.

Esmeralda rose from her seat and looked out the window.

The place where she currently stood was a small research center where people rarely came.

Beyond the window, she could see the Forest of Fantasy Dreams, one of the three big forests within Sören.

It was such a huge forest that one couldn’t see all the corners of the forest in a glance, and even when it was located within Sören, it hadn’t been completely confirmed yet what was inside the forest.

As she stared carefully at the entrance of the forest, she saw someone walking slowly out of it.

Esmeralda narrowed her eyes.

Even with her gaze that had been strengthened by mana, only that person’s shape could be vaguely recognized.

‘John Doe.’

The man disappeared through the darkness with leisurely steps.

It seemed like he was just walking normally, but she couldn’t even see him properly because he was blending with the surrounding scenery.

Indeed, he deserved to be called a First Order like her.

‘He came here and worked hard as a professor without doing anything, so I wondered what had actually happened.’

There was some anxiousness that he might have betrayed the organization, but she soon shook her head and shook off the idea.

John Doe was the one who had the highest loyalty to the organization.

In front of Zero Order, it was John Doe who’d fallen at his feet faster than anyone else.

Nevertheless, she’d deliberately messed with him because his recent moves had attracted excessive attention.

‘I thought he’d handle things very quietly because he had infiltrated as a professor, but it was completely unexpected.’

Esmeralda didn’t know exactly how John Doe handled things.

She knew he specialized in disguise and infiltration, but everything else was kept secret.

However, considering that he had not failed his mission so far, his skills had been verified.

She’d messed with him to see how good his skills were.

—Because John Doe’s existence was divided even amidst fellow First Orders.

‘That stare… He didn’t look scared at all, even with my flame in front of him.’

John Doe had fired back at her instead, even though she thought that he would have been confused.

In a situation where, if he made the slightest mistake, he might die by the great fire of the Spirit of Flame that she handled…

He didn’t have fear itself.

It wasn’t a bluff.

It was because he had enough power to respond to her attack.

The attitude that he showed in the Forest of Fantasy Dreams, as well as the new form of magic that he presented as Ludger Chelysie…

‘John Doe is a very skilled wizard. Maybe he’s stronger than what I’d vaguely guessed.’

He said he was wary of the principal, but she didn’t know whether he was wary of her because he lacked skills compared to the principal or because he was purely aiming for perfection.

She believed it was the latter.

Indeed, she could see why Zero Order was so fond of this man.

He was extremely loyal, even without factions, and his skills were outstanding.

It was understandable that John Doe played the role of infiltrating as the major key figure.

‘Tsk. I messed with him, but I couldn’t gain anything.’

She had to take care of herself before she cared about John Doe.

‘Come to think of it, did they say there was a banquet this time?’

It annoyed her to think that she should be there.

Esmeralda did not like such formal occasions very much.

‘But I still have to go.’

Someone other than her would play the main role anyway.