Academy’s Undercover Professor-Chapter 244: Rhapsody on a Rainy Day (3)

Ludger returned straight to the hideout.

He lightly shook off the rainwater from his umbrella and headed up to the second floor, where his master awaited.

It had been a while—they’d catch up and talk about the sealing technique.

‘But something feels off...’

Unlike usual, the air in the hideout was heavy and oppressive.

Only upon reaching the office on the second floor did Ludger realize why.

“You’re here.”

Grander was sunk deep into the sofa. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm

She looked as comfortable as if she were in her own room.

But the others present were not like that at all.

“B-Brother...”

Hans called out to Ludger in a trembling voice, while Alex and Phantos remained tense, unable to take their eyes off Grander.

They could instinctively sense it.

Just how dangerous a being Grander was, despite her delicate appearance.

Even now, their skin crawled as if covered in hives.

Ludger let out a sigh at the stifling air that filled the room.

“Master. What are you doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“This joke is going too far.”

As Ludger rebuked her, Grander pouted.

“Well, you see, some arrogant disciple left his great master behind and disappeared somewhere. Waiting alone got boring, so I played a little prank.”

The tense atmosphere filling the room had been nothing more than a joke she orchestrated.

A simple test to gauge the abilities of Ludger’s subordinates before he arrived.

But for those on the receiving end, the atmosphere had been suffocatingly oppressive.

Especially for the likes of Phantos, Alex, and Hans—with his beast-like instincts—the wait before Ludger's arrival had felt unbearably long.

“Master, that’s enough. They’ve all had a hard time.”

“Oh dear, fine, fine. So your subordinates are more important than this master, is that it?”

Grander deliberately said it loudly, then retracted her overwhelming presence.

Alex, finally released from tension, wiped his cold sweat, and Phantos let out a low groan.

“That’s the master the leader mentioned...”

“I couldn’t see the end of her strength.”

Ludger turned to his subordinates and spoke.

“You should all leave. I need to speak with my master in private.”

It was practically an expulsion, but none of them resisted the command.

Once everyone had left, Ludger closed the door and sat on the sofa opposite Grander.

“Impressive, my disciple. Where did you manage to gather such people?”

Grander remarked honestly, recalling Ludger’s subordinates.

“I met them by chance while wandering the world.”

“Hah. That’s some excessive humility.”

‘But it’s true.’

Of course, it was true that Ludger had recognized their talents and asked them to join him.

But he had never gone out of his way to seek them out—not once.

“That brown-skinned man had mastered the sword to an impressive degree for a human. And that massive beastkin was quite the intriguing fellow. He radiated tension yet still burned with fighting spirit even as he faced me.”

“I see.”

It made sense, knowing Phantos.

Even when Ludger first met him, it had °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° been when his master, Grander, was away.

‘If Phantos had encountered Master back then...’

Ludger couldn’t help but think Phantos might not be alive today.

Phantos himself likely knew he couldn’t match up to Grander.

Even so, he would have fought.

That was the kind of life Phantos lived.

“But the most interesting one was the shabby-looking man who kept darting his eyes around.”

“You mean Hans.”

“Yes. Truly a curious one. A man and yet a beast—and yet not a beast. Within him sleeps something so curious, even I found it impressive.”

Grander had seen through Hans at a glance.

His traits.

His constitution.

And beyond that, she had recognized the existence of the cryptid from Jévaudan slumbering inside him.

“Where did you pick up someone like that? Was he inside a box on a rainy day or something?”

“......You make it sound like I picked up a stray puppy off the street.”

“A puppy, huh. Well, if you insist on categories, it’s a similar type. Not a bad breed for a pet.”

Ludger was thankful Hans wasn’t here right now.

If he had heard that, he would have been deeply hurt.

“Hans and I met five years ago, when you were in slumber, in the Kingdom of Durmang.”

Ludger then explained how he met Hans.

His unusual constitution, and the cryptid they had hunted in Jévaudan.

“The Beast of Jévaudan, huh. That cryptid had quite the grand name.”

“It was fairly strong. I had to use real magic to barely bring it down.”

“Well, it must have been a decent guard dog, then.”

Anyone who had actually seen the Beast of Jévaudan would have collapsed hearing Grander’s words.

To call a cryptid that had devoured knights and plunged a city into despair just a “dog”?

Even its remaining bones had been preserved in a museum as part of history.

But those who knew Grander would have been more surprised at the fact that she had complimented it at all.

To anyone else, “guard dog” might seem dismissive—

—but coming from Grander, it was practically high praise.

“So, what are you planning to do, gathering such capable people around you?”

Grander’s eyes curved like a crescent moon as she asked Ludger.

“There must be a reason why you left your master’s side and began wandering the world.”

“...I just realized something I have to do.”

“Something you have to do?”

“Yes. It’s something I had vaguely considered even before meeting you, Master.”

“And is it something you cannot tell me?”

“That is...”

Ludger started to speak but shut his mouth.

He soon shook his head.

“I’m sorry.”

“...How surprising. I never thought you’d keep secrets from me.”

“Are you angry?”

“I’m not angry.”

That’s what she said, but her expression clearly showed she was sulking.

She wouldn’t admit it, but Ludger knew her too well.

“I’m sorry, Master. I’ll tell you one day when the time is right. But for now, please allow me to keep it secret.”

“...Boring brat. If you’re going to be that serious, then fine, I won’t ask. But if you went so far as to send your people away, you must want something from me, right?”

“Yes. I think I need to revise the sealing formation.”

“The sealing formation?”

Ludger then explained the encounter with the bishop of the Lumenis Church.

And how the Church might continue to pursue them if left unchecked.

“I see. So the power was leaking out enough for them to notice.”

“Judging by his words, it seems he also sensed your presence, Master.”

At that, Grander let out a laugh.

Her pure white fangs stood out.

“Tell those bastards to come whenever they want. Do they still think I’m hiding out of fear?”

“If you act directly, things will get out of hand quickly. Please restrain yourself.”

“Hmph. I was never interested in them anyway. So, you’re saying we just need to strengthen the sealing technique?”

“Yes. I already have some ideas on that.”

Ludger took out his prepared research notes and handed them to Grander.

Her eyes widened as she looked them over.

“...You’ve already put quite a lot of thought into this.”

“Yes. The theory is sound, but it’s difficult to implement. That’s why I wanted your guidance.”

“Guidance, huh? Looks like you’ve already done all the work.”

Grander muttered, flipping through the pages with a grumble.

“Well, with this much, it should only take a bit of time. Since it’s just reinforcing what’s already there, it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But you’ll need to be careful. No matter how much you reinforce the seal, if you keep using that power, you’ll eventually hit a limit.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“No. You’re not. When you hit your limit, it’s not going to end with just you.”

Grander’s crimson gaze pierced through Ludger.

“Don’t forget our promise. The day I pulled you out of that abyss. The contract we made when I began teaching you.”

“Yes. I always carry it in my heart.”

“You always say the right things.”

As she pushed aside the documents, something else came to Grander’s mind. She looked at Ludger with a subtle gaze.

“By the way, my disciple.”

“Yes, Master.”

“That anti-magic hand seal you used during our duel today.”

The moment she mentioned it, Ludger felt a strange unease.

He suppressed the emotion and replied calmly,

“...Yes. Go ahead.”

“That magic, no matter how I look at it, it didn’t feel like ordinary magic. It was more like a specialized spell created to deal with someone like me rather than your average opponent. Am I wrong?”

“......”

When Ludger remained silent, Grander grinned slyly and tapped her chin with her index finger.

“Don’t tell me my dear disciple here crafted such a spell just in case his teacher came knocking and caused some trouble. I mean, wasn’t it just too perfectly suited for me?”

“......”

“Hahaha! You didn’t really do that, did you? You, my own disciple, creating a spell just to go up against your own teacher? You’d have to be completely out of your mind to try something like that!”

A cold sweat ran down Ludger’s back.

Grander stared intently at him with a look that said, ‘No way... right, my disciple?’

In the end, Ludger made only one decision.

He abruptly stood up from his seat.

“Oh my. And where do you think you’re going, my disciple?”

“......Something urgent just came to mind.”

“Something urgent? More urgent than catching up with your teacher after all this time? What could possibly be more important than that?”

“I’ll come visit again soon. For now, if you’ll excuse me.”

“Hey. Don’t you walk away from me!”

Ludger ran off in a panic.

This time, convinced that if he got caught, he really might die.

* * *

The following morning, in Seorn’s faculty meeting room.

Teachers who normally had no reason to gather were all assembled for once.

It was because the Headmaster had summoned them for the first time since the werewolf incident.

Seated around the table, the instructors wore curious expressions, wondering why they had been called in.

“Selina. Good morning.”

“Oh. Professor Merilda, good morning.”

“Did you have a nice evening?”

When Merilda winked playfully, Selina blushed and hesitated to answer.

Merilda nudged her arm with a smirk.

“What’s with that reaction? Something happened, didn’t it?”

“W-What about you, Professor Merilda? You left in a rush yesterday. Did you head straight home?”

Feeling awkward, Selina shifted the topic.

Merilda responded as though she'd been waiting for the question.

“Oh, honestly. I wasn’t going to say anything, but...”

“Huh? Did something actually happen?”

Selina had just been trying to change the subject, but it turned out something had actually occurred.

“You see, Selina, I think... I think I met the person of my destiny.”

“Person... of destiny?”

Selina looked puzzled, and Merilda began recounting the story of what had happened the day before.

How she’d met a strikingly exotic man named Alex on Royal Street.

“In the end, he gave me the wrong directions, but he confessed honestly afterward. He said I was so beautiful he just wanted to stay by my side. Kyaa~ Isn’t that just adorable?”

“Uh...”

Usually, Selina would have celebrated and played along, but not this time.

No matter how she looked at it, there wasn’t a single redeeming quality about this man that she could fall for—at least based on the story.

Could it really have been that cringey, butter-smooth line that got her?

‘No way, seriously?’

Professor Merilda was known as a seasoned veteran when it came to romance. There’s no way she fell for something so shallow.

Selina decided to trust her. Merilda must have had some kind of plan.

At that moment, the door to the meeting room opened and Headmaster Elisa entered.

“Has everyone been well? It’s been a while since we’ve all gathered like this—ever since the werewolf incident.”

Elisa began with a light greeting and scanned the room, observing the inquisitive stares of the teachers.

Most looked puzzled, but some were clearly hostile—particularly Hugo and his faction.

Elisa quickly got to the point.

“I’m sure many of you are wondering why I suddenly called everyone here.”

“Has something else gone wrong?”

Chris Bennimore asked.

The word “incident” caused several teachers to look uneasy.

There had been a lot going on within and around Seorn lately.

Elisa reassured them not to worry—this wasn’t another crisis.

“I’ll be direct. I’m sure you’re all aware that there’s still a vacant position at Seorn.”

The room instantly fell silent.

Anyone with a shred of sense could tell this wasn’t going to be a typical announcement.

“One of those positions is critical to Seorn, yet it remains unfilled.”

“The Planning Department...”

Someone muttered, and Hugo’s brow furrowed deeply.

“If we leave that post vacant any longer, it’ll start hindering Seorn’s operations. So, since an opportunity has presented itself, I’d like to recommend a suitable candidate.”

Murmurs spread throughout the room.

The noble-aligned instructors, led by Hugo, reacted most strongly. They looked as if they couldn’t believe what they were hearing.

“Who exactly are you recommending? As far as I know, there isn’t anyone fit for the role.”

Hugo’s tone was sharp and accusatory.

His eyes were filled with suspicion—as if trying to gauge what kind of scheme the Headmaster was up to this time.

Elisa simply smiled back at him with composed elegance.

“Why wouldn’t there be? We’ve recently had someone join who fits the bill.”

“What? What are you—”

“Please come in.”

At her words, the doors to the meeting room opened, and someone walked in.

The room fell utterly silent.

Step. Step.

The sound of polished shoes echoed loudly across the floor.

All eyes naturally turned toward the newcomer.

A stunningly handsome man, dressed far more sharply than usual.

Anyone with a trained eye would recognize the outfit as one from [House of Verdi].

His gait was straighter and more precise than a soldier’s, every step disciplined.

Each movement caused his tied-back black hair to sway slightly behind him.

Finally, the man stood beside Elisa Willow and turned to face the room.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all.”

Hugo’s eyes flew wide open.

His pupils nearly split as disbelief overtook his expression.

“I’m Ludger Cherish, candidate for the new Director of Planning.”