Academy’s Undercover Professor-Chapter 248: Each One’s Choice (1)

Good news spread among the students of Seorn.

The third test would be conducted alongside a field trip.

And why was this good news? Because it meant they wouldn’t need to solve difficult written problems—instead, they’d earn points through practical actions and behavior under the guidance of assigned mentors.

“If you get a good mentor, you’re guaranteed at least a B, right?”

“Most mentors understand our situation. They say they’re pretty lenient.”

Students who had been stressing over how hard the test might be now looked visibly relieved, eagerly awaiting the upcoming field experience.

They looked forward to meeting their mentors and visiting the capital.

But not everyone could enjoy the news in the same carefree way.

One such person was Leo.

‘This is bad.’

As the field trip approached, Leo could only grow more anxious.

Not long ago, he had received orders to report the movement routes of Seorn’s students while they were in the capital.

Leo had pretended not to hear it, but he couldn’t ignore it forever.

Eventually, he made up his mind and sent a reply.

Most of the people here are students. Many are nobles, but there are plenty of commoners too. I can’t let them get hurt.

That was the content of the reply Leo sent. But the Liberation Army was unyielding.

— Their sacrifice pains us as well. But their deaths will be noble sacrifices that bring forth the future our Liberation Army seeks.

Leo nearly screamed “Cut the bullshit!” in response—but held back, barely.

It was only possible thanks to a self-control that far surpassed that of the average student.

‘So you’re saying we should let innocent students die?’

— They are not dying. They are making noble sacrifices.

‘And who gave you the right to decide that for them?’

— To break free from the oppression of nobles and create an equal world. Accept it.

No matter what Leo said, the Liberation Army wouldn’t listen.

Their hatred of the nobility was so deep-rooted that they had no intention of compromising.

— And remember who is taking care of your family right now.

At those words, Leo could only grit his teeth.

With his sick mother and only sibling in their hands, he had no choice but to obey.

Leo clenched his fists in helpless rage.

But the ones he wanted to strike weren’t anywhere near him.

And even if they were, could he even land a blow?

‘Damn it.’

He had no choice but to hand over information for the sake of his family.

But if he did, the students of Seorn would be caught up in a terror attack.

Even if he hated some of them, seeing them die wouldn’t sit right with him.

None of them had done anything deserving of death.

What scared him more was the thought that his new friends at Seorn might die.

And if they ever found out the truth—what kind of eyes would they look at him with?

“...This sucks.”

Leo decided to return to the dorms early and get some rest for the day.

Just then, Aidan, Taishy, and Iona spotted him from afar and tried to approach—but Leo ignored their calls and walked off.

“What’s with him? Why’s he acting like that lately?”

Taishy grumbled at Leo’s back as he walked away.

“Is something wrong with Leo lately?”

“Seems like it.”

Iona answered without hesitation.

“He looks like he’s been troubled about something.”

“Huh? Really?”

Taishy blinked, apparently hearing this for the first time.

Iona nodded silently.

Even the usually oblivious Aidan had noticed something was off with Leo.

“W-What? Was I the only one who didn’t know?”

Taishy looked between Aidan and Iona in disbelief.

With her prideful nature, the fact that she’d been the only one unaware came as a real blow.

‘I was the only one who didn’t know?’

Neither Aidan nor Iona were the type to point fingers, but Taishy couldn’t forgive herself.

If it had come to this, then she had to act.

“Then we just have to figure it out ourselves, right?”

“Figure it out how?”

“Let’s tail Leo.”

Taishy, pulling out a magnifying glass from who-knows-where, pressed it dramatically to one eye.

Aidan blinked in confusion.

“Tail him? You mean Leo?”

“Yeah. If we want to know why he’s acting that way, we need to learn more about him. It’s basic investigative procedure.”

“Investigative...?”

“You don’t know? Casey Selmore, the genius detective, always says that the first step in any incident is investigation. You can’t catch the culprit without it.”

“The culprit?!”

“Ugh, it’s just a figure of speech.”

Taishy waved her hand as Aidan flinched in alarm.

Then Iona opened her mouth, curious about something.

“Who is Casey Selmore?”

“I’ve never heard that name either.”

“What?!”

When even Aidan said he didn’t know, Taishy’s eyes went wide.

“You guys... you don’t know Casey Selmore?!”

“Nope.”

“No idea.”

“Unbelievable...”

Taishy was dizzy from the sheer lack of general knowledge displayed by the two.

She could forgive Iona for being a beastkin raised in an isolated community, but what was Aidan’s excuse?

“Casey Selmore. A genius detective. She even earned a color title from the Mage Tower for her mastery of single-elemental magic!”

“Wow. Really?”

“Of course! And three years ago, she captured the infamous villain James Moriarty in the Delica Kingdom. She’s a national hero!”

“That’s amazing...”

“She even modestly claimed she wasn’t the one who caught him. A true role model for all mages.”

Taishy was an ardent fan of Casey Selmore.

She even took pride in the fact that her own name sounded a bit like Casey’s.

“How can you not know her?! She even visited Seorn during the ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) last festival!”

“Uh, sorry?”

“That won’t do. Aidan, I’ll lend you a book packed with her greatness. Read the whole thing by next week!”

“Suddenly?!”

“Of course, that’s not what matters right now. Anyway—”

Before Taishy could go off on another tangent, Iona intervened.

“Let’s follow Leo.”

“Oh, right. Let’s go, Aidan!”

“Ugh...”

Aidan nodded, but couldn’t shake the sinking feeling he had about Taishy’s growing excitement.

* * *

After concluding his deal with Hugo Burteg, Ludger took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

“Professor, are you very tired?”

Sedina asked.

She looked concerned, though the dark circles under her own eyes showed she was just as exhausted.

“No. I’m fine. More than anything, I’ve finally finished the most troublesome task.”

“You mean Mr. Hugo?”

“Yes. The noble-aligned teachers won’t be able to exert their influence in Seorn for a while. Though I’m sure they’ll raise their heads again once some time has passed.”

When that time came, Ludger, as Planning Director, would simply press them back down with the appropriate force.

Now he had the authority to do so.

The thought made Ludger let out a dry chuckle.

‘It’s almost absurd. I had no intention of even coming to this academy, and now I’m sitting in one of its most powerful positions.’

Of course, it was the result of clawing for survival, but even so—it was strangely amusing.

A teacher hiding his identity now occupied a key role in Seorn.

And the Headmaster had handed him the position knowing full well that he was concealing his true identity.

It was the trust Ludger had earned through his actions—but he himself still found it hard to believe.

“For now, the urgent matters are taken care of. You should get some rest too.”

“Yes. By the way, Professor, will you also be going to the capital?”

“You mean for the field trip?”

“Yes.”

“I will. I’m a teacher, after all, so I’ll be going as a supervisor. Though I still need to finish sorting the mentor list before that.”

The mentor application period for the upcoming field trip was still ongoing.

Now that Ludger was Planning Director, he was also responsible for reviewing mentor applications and selecting candidates.

“Most of the mentors were arranged in advance, so there aren’t many new ones applying. But we never know when someone unexpected might appear.”

Especially after Ludger’s recent Arcane Chamber presentation on increasing mana output, mentor applications had exploded in number.

“Then your work isn’t quite done, is it?”

“What are you talking about? My work is done.”

“Huh? But you said you still have to sort the list...”

“That’s not my job.”

Sedina realized something and nodded.

As Planning Director, Ludger didn’t need to handle such tasks personally.

Those were for subordinates.

And those subordinates, naturally, were the staff hired under the Planning Office of Seorn.

Which meant the staff were currently working overnight shifts to sort through massive lists of applicants.

“I just need to sign the approval documents when they’re done.”

“Ah...”

Sedina offered a silent prayer for the Planning Office staff, whose workload had doubled thanks to Ludger.

* * *

After defeating the assassins who attacked her, Casey Selmore turned them over to the city of Rederbelk.

She had considered interrogating them herself, but the assassins never opened their mouths.

‘Well, I wasn’t expecting much anyway.’

Casey let it go cleanly.

She already had a good idea who had sent them.

‘They must’ve been from the Black Dawn Society.’

It was likely they’d tried to eliminate her because she’d been poking around too much.

The fact that Ludger had warned her in advance was proof enough.

‘That man...’

Casey saw the letter Ludger had tossed into the trash and picked it up.

“Be careful,” huh?

The words were simple.

But the moment she read them, a complicated wave of emotions stirred within her.

Why had he warned her? Just to mock her?

No. If that were the case, he wouldn’t have sent a warning at all.

He was definitely a bad person—but not so rotten as to be petty.

The fact that he had sent her this message and warned her personally...

‘He... genuinely worried about me.’

Crunch.

Casey clenched the letter tightly in her fist.

‘You think I’d be happy about something like this?’

She said that, but there was no strength in her eyes.

Of course, the warning itself had been unnecessary.

It happened to be raining, and she had immediately sensed the assassins hiding in her room.

Even without the letter, she could’ve taken care of it herself.

And yet, she couldn’t erase the fact that she’d been helped by Ludger.

The man who should always remain a villain in her eyes—had cared for her.

Casey didn’t know whether she should feel happy or angry.

Three years ago, he had been a criminal who threatened a nation.

He deceived, manipulated, and tried to start a war.

But now he was different.

He thought of students, taught magic, and shared his groundbreaking research with the world.

The paths of James Moriarty and Ludger Cherish were polar opposites.

‘Or... were they?’ ƒгeewёbnovel.com

She remembered reading about Ludger’s past.

During his time in the Delica Kingdom, he had tutored a young boy.

Back then, he had seemed even gentler and kinder than the teacher he was now.

There had been no need for a mask. He hadn’t taught the boy for appearances or praise.

If someone asked her whether that kindness was fake, Casey would answer:

Absolutely not.

“......”

Casey pulled out the paper containing Ludger’s mana from her pocket.

She hadn’t looked at it until now, claiming she was too busy.

But that was just an excuse.

She’d had plenty of chances.

She’d just... hesitated.

Casey closed her eyes.

She was a member of House Selmore and a mage with the title of Azure.

But if someone asked for her profession, she would proudly answer: detective.

Casey was not ashamed of being a detective.

She stood tall with pride.

And a detective—must never turn away from the truth.

With resolute determination, Casey opened her eyes.

Then she lay down on the bed.

To face the truth she had avoided until now.

Hoo...

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes again.

Just then, Betty walked into the room and gasped.

“Casey! Do you know what time it is? Why are you going to sleep now?!”

“Oh, shut up!”

Casey grabbed a pillow and hurled it at Betty’s face.

“If you’re tired, just say so! Why throw a pillow?!”

Betty caught it with one hand and left the room, grumbling.

Casey glared at her retreating back, then flopped down onto the bed again.

This time—for real.

It was time to face the truth.