I Became the Priest of Blasphemy of the Outer Gods

Chapter 45. Parachute Magic Professor (1)

Academia was akin to a school, in every sense of the word.

It consisted of three grades. Students would advance in grade upon passing exams, and they could graduate by successfully clearing the final graduation exam.

‘… Regardless of ranks. That’s why many graduates wandering outside often end up being just 1st ranked.’

However, the magical knowledge they had to absorb, irrespective of their ranks, was immense.

They had to utilize this knowledge to develop various theories and master complex calculations.

‘And professors have it even worse.’

According to Dowol, it was more difficult than earning a PhD.

‘I barely graduated by the skin of my teeth in my original world. How am I going to be a professor…? No, based on this world’s standards, I’m like a total loser who can’t use any magic at all.’

Out of curiosity, I once asked Eldritch for help, wondering if I could use magic if I learned it directly.

Eldritch, while showing reluctance, offered help. But of course, the attempt failed.

“This seems impossible. I think it’s better to stick to being a mere freshman. How am I going to pose as a professor…?”

“A mere freshman won’t attract his attention. He probably wouldn’t even care.”

“Don’t worry, Lord Ethnos. Isn’t this the perfect opportunity to showcase my magical prowess?”

Eldritch proudly puffed out his chest… or at least, whatever area corresponded to it, and spoke.

“It’s a pleasure to be acknowledged by such a great mage. It seems that I, Eldritch, was born to serve someone as great as you, and I’ve acquired the skills of a magic professor quite easily!”

“Hmm? That’s not it.”

“It’s… not?”

Eldritch looked deflated.

“What do you think they would think of a familiar, Eldritch, suddenly appearing as a magic professor?”

“Hmm… a Jelly Octopus?”

Eldritch looked even more deflated.

“What’s a Jelly Octopus? I grew up in a port city and I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“Uh… It’s nothing.”

“Hmm, anyway, the point is they would sense something unusual and become suspicious. This means they might try to investigate or make contact naturally.”

The opponent was meticulous and cautious but simultaneously, a maniac who would commit murder in the heavily guarded Academia to achieve his goal.

Whether out of curiosity or caution, it was unlikely they would remain passive.

“But posing as a magic professor all of a sudden…”

“Just make sure you don’t get caught. The first-year students are all pretty lousy anyway.”

That may be true for you, an archmage…

My knowledge consisted solely of the lengthy explanations Dowol used to give.

‘Come to think of it, he kept saying it was good for me to know about it back then and was quite annoying about it… Don’t tell me he knew I would end up here at Academia…’

My already muddled mind grew even murkier.

Dowol’s plan…

Given that worrying about it wouldn’t help immediately, I decided to remain vigilant.

“You’ll handle summoning magic, specifically lectures on familiars. Don’t worry; I’ll prepare the lecture materials for you.”

Mages specializing in familiar summoning magic…

They themselves might lack magical abilities, but their familiars were extremely powerful.

To the point where one could say the familiar was the actual entity.

Therefore, I barely had the minimal qualifications needed to deceive the students…

‘Still feels uneasy.’

The unfamiliar role of a professor filled me with various anxieties.

Yet, the reason I couldn’t refuse despite this was not just because the opposite party was an archmage.

“You’ll receive additional rewards and keep your status. Of course, you won’t be summoned often, given your lacking skills as a professor.”

It was the status of a “magic professor.”

This in itself was a tremendous reward.

Reinterpreting Cernun’s words, it meant, ‘Since you won’t be called upon often, your status won’t become a constraint.’

“Honestly, it’s a bit suspicious to receive something like this as a reward for an Outer God priest like myself…”

Though I was doubtful, the benefits were too significant to ignore.

Eldritch also gained an identity as my familiar, enabling him to stroll around in his mini form.

“Alright. I’ll give it a try.”

“Of course. It would be problematic to refuse now. And don’t use the illusion miracle.”

“Pardon?”

“Lately, surveillance has become stricter because of that guy. There’s a good chance they’ll see through or dispel your illusion. Unlike Wave Reach, this place has installed a lot of surveillance enchantment items that can distinguish illusions.”

Instead, Cernun handed me two bottles of magical potions.

“These are potions that respectively change your hair color and create temporary burn marks on your face.”

“Who came up with such potions, and what for?”

Eldritch looked curiously at him.

“Surprisingly, some beggar with magical talent made them. Apparently, he wanted to increase his alms by showing a bit of flair.”

What a waste of considerable talent.

I shook my head in disbelief while checking the dosage instructions and dropped one drop of each potion onto my tongue.

Immediately, my hair turned scraggly gray, and burn marks appeared on half of my face, including one eye.

“Why the sour face?”

“I thought adding a bit more distinction would help. Such differences make it harder to recognize me.”

Both Eldritch and Cernun were taken aback, but I maintained the grim expression unfazed.

“Is there anything to change my voice or physique or scent?”

“Why don’t you just cut off everything below too?”

“Still, just in case—”

“This much is enough! You’re not even a well-known figure to begin with…”

It seemed there wouldn’t be any further support.

“Then, do you have the list of first-year students I’ll be in charge of?”

“Not yet. We need to compile that now.”

Were we to pick out the suspected ones?

I nodded and made a suggestion.

“Then, please include the first-year students who were recently permitted to go out.”

Cernun nodded and used magic to bring out some documents.

He examined various things and then handed me a list of five names.

“It’s astonishing. None of them are interested in summoning magic or familiars. I’ll forcibly assign them to your class, but don’t expect them to be engaged in class.”

The list I received included detailed sketches and assorted information about each student.

Thanks to that, I could grasp the personalities and various details of these five students.

‘Two boys and three girls. But since Sharl might be cross-dressing, there’s no guarantee the common one is among the two boys.’

Sharl might not be on this list at all.

Nevertheless, if rumors spread among the students, my story would eventually reach Sharl’s ears.

“Alright. We’ll document your altered appearance. What will be your new name?”

“Please register me as Simon Magus.”

“What about Eldritch’s name?”

“Lord Ethnos, can you name me? But I must stress, nothing related to octopuses.”

“Hmm… Let’s go with Tako.”

As expected, Eldritch didn’t catch on.

“Understood. Then I will register Simon Magus and Tako. I’ll just say I discovered a guy who taught himself magic and gave him the special status of a magic professor.”

Is that all there is to it?

I was about to suggest adding more detailed elements, but Eldritch stopped me, saying it was sufficient.

Thus, I was abruptly appointed as a professor at the continent’s top magic educational institution.

“Who would’ve thought I’d become a parachute professor?”

“What is a parachute?”

“Ah… it’s something like that.”

The accommodations provided for Eldritch and me were better than expected. The room was spacious with two beds, and various magical books adorned the shelves. Aside from the pile of sedatives Cernun had provided in one corner at my request, it was a luxurious room befitting an academy mage.

“If I’d known we were going to be treated this well, I would’ve pretended to be a mage and gotten a certification myself.”

“I’d rather be a mage than a priest any day.”

“Someone who has been bestowed the honor of becoming a priest shouldn’t say such things!”

Eldritch and I then had to spend the entire day absorbing the lecture contents Cernun had prepared. Things that seemed understandable at first would suddenly skew or become completely incomprehensible.

‘Maybe it’s not just our lack of understanding; it might be a problem with our stats.’

Thanks to Eldritch’s rigorous teaching, I managed to cram the knowledge into my head, but that didn’t mean I could use magic. While I quickly grasped miracles, magic felt like there was an impenetrable barrier preventing my understanding.

‘Still, I’ve managed to stuff the theory into my head. Coupled with the miscellaneous knowledge I’ve picked up from gaming, I should avoid suspicion, albeit barely, and be seen just as a somewhat incompetent professor.’

Barely prepared, I finally stepped into the classroom.

‘Damn it… stumbling right from the start.’

One of the first-year students I specifically requested to be included was absent.

‘Still, 4 out of the 5 suspects are here, along with 5 others Cernun deemed suspicious. So, a total of 9.’

Although there weren’t many students, teaching even 9 novice mages was nerve-wracking. Despite this, I concealed my anxiety and spoke up.

“Welcome, everyone. From today, I will be teaching a course on summoning magic, specifically familiars. My name is Simon Magus.”

Eldritch, who was perched on my shoulder, floated up and greeted the class with a gesture.

“This here is my familiar, Tako. As you can see, it’s a rather peculiar familiar. If you participate actively in my class, you too can form a contract with such a mysterious entity.”

As soon as I finished my introduction, a student raised his hand.

“Professor, may I ask a question?”

‘Male. Chestnut hair. Hazel eyes.’

He was one of the suspects on my list.

“You must be Caelo Belacre. Yes, go ahead.”

“Excuse me, Professor, but weren’t you not on the faculty list until recently? And you didn’t even graduate from here.”

Caelo emitted a palpable sense of hostility. The other students seemed surprised but recognized that his questions were valid.

“You suddenly became a professor without any process, opened this special class, and handpicked us to participate…”

Caelo’s voice betrayed his barely concealed discontent.

“For the record, I have no interest in summoning magic. While that familiar, Tako, does look strange, it doesn’t appear to be a high-level creature.”

“What exactly are you getting at?”

“I don’t want to waste my time in a class I didn’t want, taught by a professor whose qualifications are questionable.”

I wasn’t particularly taken aback. I had anticipated someone would voice complaints, and Caelo was already on my radar from the information provided.

‘For entities without rank…’

Here, classic and straightforward methods work best.

“Caelo, you aim to specialize in combat magic, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then, there’s no need for idle talk. Please come forward.”

The students began murmuring.

“Let’s dispel any doubts about my qualifications.”

TL’s Corner:
Tako I’m guessing is in short for Takoyaki, which is in no way shape or form related to octopus at all. *wink*