The Academy is Doomed

Chapter 94

Anar’el was gazing at someone beyond her clasped hands.

Occasionally, she showed this side of her—a serious expression if you put it nicely, or an unnecessarily weighty look if you didn’t.

“The inevitable has finally come.”

Hearing Anar’el’s weighty declaration, the person in question, Amon, rested his chin on his hand and stared idly at his nails.

Cutting his nails too short had left them feeling strange!

Seeing his lack of response, Anar’el, thinking he hadn’t heard her, repeated herself.

“The inevitable has finally come.”

“……”

“The inevitable has come, Professor Amon?”

“What?”

“Could it be that you can’t hear what I’m saying?”

“Was that something I had to respond to?”

At Amon’s brusque reaction, Anar’el pouted.

It was no surprise he reacted that way.

‘Die! Dieee! It’s all because of you!’
‘Ack! This—this madman! To hell with it! Never mind the House of Pendorean, let’s just kill you so I can survive!’
‘What! I’ll kill you first!’
‘Graaaah!’
‘Kyaaaaah!’

The fiery clash with Fiora!

After such an ordeal, Amon had strongly demanded Anar’el dismiss Fiora.

But in some respects, Anar’el was more human than any human could be.

‘His Grace, Duke Pendorean, personally entrusted Miss Fiora to me.’
‘So you’re saying you won’t fire her?’
‘It’s not that I won’t. I can’t.’

As a result, an extremely disgruntled Amon went on strike.

Of course, he still diligently attended classes for the students but neglected routine administrative work!

This left Kai, who had to take over Amon’s tasks, struggling.

However, as someone accustomed to dealing with official duties as the crown prince, Kai only said it was hard; in reality, he handled it with ease.

“Anyway, why did you call for me? I’m busy with my strike.”

“……I told you, the inevitable has come.”

“What ‘inevitable’ thing keeps coming?”

Sighing, Amon rubbed his too-short nails.

“The academy’s promotional flyers? Kai mentioned you’d already placed the order.”

“Yes, and once they’re ready, we’ll distribute them. Then the academy’s revival can truly begin.”

“……Headmaster.”

“Go ahead.”

“I’ve thought about it rationally, and…”

Tilting his head slightly, Amon spoke.

“If I were a student, I wouldn’t come to this academy.”

“Eh?”

“Look at the state of the faculty.”

Anar’el immediately refuted him.

“What’s wrong with our faculty? They’re all excellent and respectable individuals.”

She wasn’t wrong but she wasn’t entirely right either.

“They just have flashy titles.”

“……”

“Marion Rumdom! The war hero!”

Amon continued.

“He’s a drunkard.”

“……”

“Sloth Pid! The young lady of the Pid Marquisate! She’s practically a living sleeping bag.”

“And who else? Amon Drake! Who got beaten like a dog in a bare-knuckle fight against a rogue…”

“Enough, enough!”

As Amon’s cynical, self-deprecating tirade continued, Anar’el waved her hands to stop him and pulled out something.

It was a small pouch of coins.

“An advance bonus.”

“My goodness! Do you think money solves everything?”

“I added some gold coins.”

“My goodness! That solves everything.”

No wonder the pouch felt light.

Snatching the coin pouch, Amon scratched his head.

Well, since Anar’el had resorted to pulling out precious funds as a last-ditch effort, this protest had probably gone on long enough.

“So, why exactly did you call for me? Surely not to distribute flyers, since they’re still a week away from being ready.”

“Exactly. It’ll take a week for the flyers to arrive.”

“That’s quite a while. Then again, we rushed the last batch with a hefty tip to bump it up the schedule.”

“Exactly.”

Was she seriously going to assign flyer distribution?

Anar’el continued.

“That means we have about a week to wrap up the remaining agenda.”

“In one week. The remaining agenda.”

Repeating her words like an echo, Amon pondered.

‘One of the pending tasks is the standard test. It’s about time, considering summer vacation just ended.’

The standardized test was a mandatory process outlined by the Imperial Ministry of Education to assess whether first-years had adequately learned and were ready to advance to the second year.

‘The timing is a bit odd, but the first year is deliberately relaxed to help students adjust to the academy, so it should be fine.’

All the students were first-years, so the test would likely involve clearing the ‘Mage Guild’s Welcome Dungeon’ cooperatively.

‘Conveniently, the maximum team size is five. Though we’ve already cleared that dungeon before, it’s required by the Ministry, and we’ll need evidence, so no choice there.’

Considering the current skill level of the students, they could probably clear the dungeon solo without breaking a sweat.

‘Then the next item is the field trip… which is basically a picnic.’

It was the recurring event held every quarter.

Last time, they went to Amon’s Drake territory.

‘We spent most of it repairing potato fields, but whatever. Lastly, the festival.’

The festival was the highlight of the academy.

But with five teachers and five students, could they really host a proper festival?

Not a chance.

‘So, we’ll probably skip the festival and focus on the other two agendas.’

Amon decided to prioritize the most urgent task between the two.

“Then let’s address the most pressing matter first.”

“Exactly!”

“The test…”

“Of course, we should start with the field trip!”

“……”

Laughing gleefully, Anar’el waved her hands dismissively.

“Come on, the test isn’t urgent, is it?”

“……”

“I hear the students can each clear the Mage Guild’s Welcome Dungeon on their own anyway, so there’s no need to rush.”

She wasn’t wrong, but it was still infuriating.

“That’s not something a headmaster should say.”

“Oh, being headmaster isn’t such a big deal.”

Well, given how she wagged her ears like a tail when flaunting the Pendorean family name, that statement made sense.

“Fair enough. So, where are you planning to go for the field trip?”

Anar’el’s eyes sparkled.

“To Professor Amon’s territory…”

Seeing Amon clench his fist, Anar’el quickly corrected herself.

“…which we visited last time! So we’ll need to consider somewhere else!”

“Thank you for your wise judgment.”

“Ahaha…Yes. So, where would be good, I wonder? Hehe.”

Watching Anar’el perk up her ears with excitement, Amon threw out a suggestion without much thought.

“Then how about the headmaster’s hometown?”

“Eh? My kingdom?”

“It’s a kingdom? Anyway, the place with the World Tree and all those snails crawling around.”

“……”

Anar’el’s face turned serious and Amon didn’t miss her reaction.

‘Oh ho? What’s this?’

She visibly disliked the idea of going to her hometown.

Yet she was so eager to visit his territory?

Oh? Now he was annoyed.

Jumping to his feet, Amon passionately declared.

“Let’s go! To the headmaster’s hometown!”

“Th-that is…”

“I’ve always wanted to take the time to explore it! The Grand World Tree! The home of the wise forest elves! It’ll be inspiring for both students and teachers!”

Anar’el drooped her ears and muttered.

“Ah, Professor Amon already visited last time, didn’t you? Going again would be boring…”

“I only saw the snails last time.”

“……”

Watching Anar’el rack her brain for excuses, Amon turned away.

“Alright, then.”

“Eh? Eh?”

“I’ll just ask the others for their opinions.”

“W-wait a moment…!”

Anar’el tried to stop him, but Amon slipped away like a slippery fish and stormed out of the headmaster’s office.

Amon’s face lit up with a sly grin.

‘So this is how Brestle felt!’

It was the dark pleasure of forcing someone to do something they hated!

Other people were unanimously in favor.

‘Oh, the Elf Kingdom? I heard they have a drink made from gathered dew. I’ve always wanted to try it. Slurp.’

‘Elf Kingdom? There must be tons of trees, right? I’d love to take a nap there.’

‘Crown Prince, ahem! For the future of the Empire, I must visit at least once.’

‘Ugh, go away. Don’t talk to me.’

Everyone responded according to their personalities.

Anyway, since everyone’s reaction was positive, Amon headed to the headmaster’s office to deliver the news.

‘But the headmaster seems to really dislike this idea.’

In that case, Amon had no intention of forcing the field trip to the Elf Kingdom, even though everyone was on board.

So, he decided to leave the decision up to the headmaster, since everyone was already in agreement.

Amon wasn’t a damn Dark Elf!

“Headmaster.”

“…Yes.”

“Everyone is in favor.”

“…”

“However, if you really don’t want to, I guess there’s nothing we can do.”

He said, taking a step back.

After some time, Anar’el sighed deeply while mumbling to herself.

“It’s not that I don’t want to go. It’s just… there are personal reasons.”

She went to the snail race just fine, though.

“The snail race wasn’t an official visit.”

“…Did you read my mind?”

“Your expression said it all. Anyway, in order for the Academy’s staff to stay in the Elf Kingdom, we need formal permission. Since I’m from there, getting the permission itself is simple, but it means my personal situation comes into play.”

“Personal situation…”

After a moment of thought, Amon took a step back.

“You’re not a criminal Elf, are you?”

“I’m not! What do you think Elves are?”

269 years old, rounding to 300, so maybe I’ve done something questionable by now, but still.

Anyway, Anar’el scratched her head.

“Phew, I was planning to visit soon anyway, so let’s just say I moved the visit up a bit. I was originally going to visit in about 10 years.”

“The Elves’ sense of time…”

“Anyway, please tell everyone to get ready.”

“Ready? What for?”

Anar’el asked as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“We’re going on a field trip, of course.”

“…Why is it that only when it’s about something like this, you don’t follow Elf time?”

Amon stood in awe, gazing at the World Tree.

It was the second time he’d seen it, but its grandeur felt like it was carved into his heart.

‘And this time, no snails around, so it’s actually nice to look at…wait?’

Looking closely, a few snails were attached to the trunk of the World Tree.

“Teacher, teacher.”

“Yeah, Chloe. What’s wrong?”

“There’s something strange attached to the World Tree.”

“It’s snails.”

“Pardon?”

“Snails.”

“Why are there snails…?”

I’m curious about that too.

“Oh my, they’re all training hard.”

“…Do they usually train like this, attached to the tree?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s kind of ruining the aesthetic.”

“Huh? How are snails ruining the aesthetics?”

The Elves’ sense of beauty.

Anyway, everyone was impressed by the Elf Kingdom, their eyes wide with admiration.

Of course, everyone was sticking to their own purposes.

“That, that’s the Elf wine made from dew. Glug, glug.”

“Sniff…the phytoncides are amazing. Ah, I feel sleepy.”

“I wonder if the Empire should establish a proper alliance with the Elf Kingdom?”

Just then, Fiora, who locked eyes with Amon, growled at him.

“What are you staring at? Not going to lower your eyes?”

Amon lowered his gaze.

The teachers were a complete mess!

Likewise, the students were silently observing the surroundings, not speaking.

‘Why are there snails on the World Tree?’

‘They say magic staffs made from the branches of the World Tree are extremely powerful…’

‘Why is a wooden sword made from Elf wood so sharp?’

Ami thought.

‘Are there any gold coins around?’

Rustianel also thought.

‘Are there any gold coins around?’

Feeling the chaotic atmosphere, Anar’el clapped her hands.

“If we go a little further, we’ll be at my house, so let’s unpack first. We can look around later.”

“Okay.”

The teachers and students followed her, moving quickly behind.

The tree roots twisted and turned, and they felt like they might get lost if they weren’t careful.

After walking for some time…

Whoosh-!

Suddenly, someone charged ahead and knocked Anar’el, who was leading the group, over.

At the shock of the sight, everyone moved to react, but before they could…

Whap-!

Anar’el, who had been harshly hit on the back, fell to the ground.

Out of nowhere, an Elf woman appeared and slapped Anar’el’s back hard, yelling at her.

“Hey, you brat!”

“Ah! Aaah!”

“How dare you crawl into our house like this!”

“Aaah! Mom! It hurts!”

Mom? The Elf woman who was smacking Anar’el like that…is she Anar’el’s mother? The realization stunned everyone.

And when Anar’el’s mother shouted, everyone froze even more.

“You ran away from home saying you didn’t want to get married, and now you have the nerve to crawl back in here!”

“Aaaahhh!”

Anar’el curled up like a pill bug, screaming.