Episode 979

Mad Clone, who never let his expression change for anything, seemed genuinely startled by the students’ reaction this time.

What began as applause in the classroom quickly flared into a frenzy.

“Let’s build a statue of the headmaster’s clone!”

“Remember this day! Today Saint Gonadaltes cleansed us of the evil Verdus…”

Bang!

“Enough noise.”

“Ah, yes.”

Like cold water thrown on them, the students immediately came to their senses.

Their hearts might have blazed with passion at seeing Professor Verdus hung upside down, but their minds snapped instantly to clarity.

That was how Einrogard students were.

“Let me down! Gonadaltes!”

“Who said you could call royalty by name?”

“What? No—You said it was fine!”

Mad Clone didn’t torture Professor Verdus.

There were mages like this even in the ancient days, and torture hadn’t worked back then either.

Such mages required a different kind of lesson.

Crack!

Mad Clone smashed the artifact Verdus had been working on.

Verdus’s eyes shook in shock; he looked like a beaver who’d just seen his dam collapse.

“Wha… wha… what are you doing!!!”

“You still haven’t learned basic manners.”

With indifference, Mad Clone pulled out Verdus’s next artifact.

Crunch!

When the staff was split in two, Verdus let out a strangled cry.

It had taken the collaboration of 23 mages and six years to finish that staff!

Even the students with the most resentment towards Verdus wavered, seeing the beaver beast-person sob in despair. But Mad Clone did not relent.

Lee Han felt, yet again, that he was truly in the presence of a grand mage from a savage age.

For all of Professor Verdus’s lunacy at Einrogard, he couldn’t outclass a grand mage who had survived a cruel era.

“I-I was wrong! I was wrong!”

After two more artifacts were smashed, Professor Verdus finally learned his manners.

Only then did Mad Clone nod slowly.

“Never forget your decorum. Those who teach must also pay heed to their own dignity.”

Professor Verdus only wept in reply. At that, Mad Clone immediately pulled out the next artifact.

“I won’t forget! I won’t!”

“There are no second chances, magician. Remember that. And… what was that lesson just now?”

“In ancient times, lessons were taught this way, weren’t they?”

Professor Verdus glanced up, blinking nervously as he gauged Mad Clone’s expression.

Lee Han, too, wondered.

‘Was that right?’

He vaguely recalled hearing that in ancient times, students learned by stealing a glimpse of the teacher’s insight rather than being spoon-fed.

Sometimes, they’d even try to kill each other…

Crack!

“Nooooooooo!”

Mad Clone immediately smashed the next artifact. Professor Verdus wailed in grief.

“Dare to insult royalty? What ancient mage ever taught this way?”

“Uh, wasn’t it like that?”

Lee Han blurted out, and Mad Clone whirled to face him.

He looked utterly incredulous that his own disciple could spout such nonsense.

“Even if disciples learn by theft and not reliance, there’s a limit—what master neglects all else, selfishly focusing on their own work?”

‘…That’s true!’

The students unconsciously nodded.

Looking back, their lack of knowledge about ancient times made them too quick to accept “That was how it was done in the old days.”

It’s not like ancient people weren’t people. They wouldn’t have taught in such a bizarre way.

They might have taught harshly, but they didn’t call ignoring their disciples “teaching.”

“That’s not a disciple—that’s a servant or a slave. Magician, did you use royalty’s disciple as a servant?”

“No, not at all…I treated him very well…!”

Verdus shook his head desperately.

But Mad Clone didn’t buy it. He looked at the students and asked,

“How did this magician treat royalty’s disciple?”

“He worked our classmate harder than anyone.”

Sigunting answered at once.

Even if it was their own school’s professor, Enchantment Magic School students spoke the truth.

Snap!

“When did I ever!!”

With another artifact shattered, Verdus protested tearfully.

But Sigunting didn’t bat an eye.

Unlike students from other schools, the Enchantment Magic School students were ready for Professor Verdus’s tears.

“Swear, right here and now. Magician.”

“S-swear what?”

Mad Clone did not bother answering; he simply plucked another artifact.

As another was smashed, Verdus began shouting anything that came to mind.

“I-I won’t take investment gold and run away anymore! No? I’ll answer clients’ messages and not work as I please! Is that not it either? I… I won’t ignore students’ projects?”

Crack, crack, crack!

“Professor, hang in there! You’re doing great!”

“I don’t know! Help me!”

He pleaded desperately for help to the one reliable, kind student he knew.

But Lee Han couldn’t help; while Mad Clone’s cold gaze was watching, how could he even try?

“Just a little more in that direction!”

“No… I won’t call students idiots even if they’re utter fools?”

“No, you must say that. Magician.”

Mad Clone pointed out.

If someone’s an utter fool, you must tell them. Verdus was at a loss.

“Try to remember something you’ve never done before, Professor!”

“Uh, uh… break? Answer letters? Write tests?”

Crack!

“……”

“I’ll look after students like I do my projects! Is that it?!”

At last the smashing stopped. Verdus howled with grief.

For these morons, his precious works were being destroyed!

“Stop crying and get back to teaching. If you repeat yourself, I will not forgive it.”

“But Gonadaltes… sir.”

Verdus caught himself, hastily adding the ‘sir.’

“What is it?”

“How should… I teach?”

Mad Clone stared with eyes full of contempt, and Verdus wept for mercy for his remaining artifacts.

• * *

Fortunately, Mad Clone did not smash the rest of the artifacts.

Instead, he left Professor Verdus hanging and personally took over the lecture.

Lee Han was impressed.

‘Amazing.’

Mad Clone hated teaching students he hadn’t recognized as his disciples.

Lee Han recalled how brutal the trials had been before he’d been accepted.

Yet now, Mad Clone was at least temporarily teaching students unrelated to him.

He must have judged it better to take over than to try flogging Verdus into a decent teacher.

To think even Mad Clone would be driven to give up.

‘Professor, you may have lost, but in truth you’ve won.’

Lee Han offered silent respect.

Of course, this meant nothing to the upside-down Verdus.

“Leave my artifacts alone! Leave them alone!”

As students rushed to claim the shattered artifact pieces, Verdus cried in despair.

Only he knew how many threats and murder attempts from sponsors and investors he’d endured to gather those materials.

“Silence. Unless you want me to break everything else.”

“……”

Verdus shut his mouth, sulking.

The suspended students, meanwhile, beamed as they divided up the wreckage. It would be invaluable for staff-making.

“Senior, why do you keep glancing at Professor Verdus?”

Lee Han asked, noticing senior Barglios was eyeing the hanging professor.

Was there a problem with the seal that had Verdus suspended?

“Ah, sorry. It just feels so good every time I look over.”

“…I see.”

• * *

“I get it.”

“…Get what?”

Direte, with a rice ball in one hand and a pen in the other, nearly burying his face in his desk, lifted his head at his friend’s voice.

He hated that his friend had insisted on coming to the workshop to fret, “Why does the junior only listen to you and not me?”—but she was still his friend.

“Direte, your hair’s dark, right? The Wardanaz family junior’s hair is dark too.”

“…You’re not just saying ‘dark’ because you can’t remember it’s black, right?”

“But mine is silver. Maybe that’s why he doesn’t listen—because of the difference in hair color.”

“Amazing discovery. Be sure to present it to the Imperial Academy.”

Direte replied dully.

He really wanted to pass on this ‘hair color compatibility’ theory to the divination majors. They’d be thrilled.

“…Are you being sarcastic?”

“Of course I am!”

Direte cried out, dumbfounded. Yukveltire’s eyes widened in shock.

“Why? Of all people, why would Direte…”

“…Fine. I’ll just tell you.”

When his friend looked at him with such innocent eyes, Direte’s heart softened.

Yukveltire nodded, as if that would suffice.

“Direte, sometimes you’re rude and waste a lot of time, but you do have the solid redeeming quality of being able to reflect on yourself.”

“……”

Direte put away the pen he’d just broken and took out a new one.

And spoke.

“You know, there’s that -Staff Materials and Magic Amplification- lecture today? Go help the professor and teach the juniors.”

“Why?”

“…Can’t you just do as I ask for once?”

“I’ve always done your favors, Direte.”

Direte had to grab another new pen.

With inhuman patience, the star pupil of Einrogard’s Dark Magic School opened her mouth.

“Listen. Yukveltire. Juniors have respect for seniors that teach them magic.”

“I’ve already taught them before.”

“…That was just covering for the absent professor, so it doesn’t count. And you need to help way more often than you think.”

“Did you do that too?”

“Of course!”

“Why would you do that? If you hadn’t, everyone would’ve been more comfortable.”

Yukveltire criticized her friend’s actions.

Because Direte liked to do good, the other seniors had to teach more than average to win juniors’ favor.

“…If you’re bitter, then do the same. Go curry favor.”

“Hmm.”

Yukveltire paused to think, then shook his head.

“No, I will not.”

Snap!

Direte tossed the pen away for good. She couldn’t afford to break any more.

“Why?”

“Professor Verdus is teaching today. And considering I cover for his absences, I can’t waste this rare opportunity with him present.”

If Verdus vacated the lecture, Yukveltire would have to take over.

She wasn’t about to waste a rare chance for Verdus to teach.

Of course, to Direte it was nonsense.

‘And yet here you are, wasting my time…’

“You learn a lot through teaching juniors.”

“No. On reflection, there’s nothing new to learn by helping with -Staff Materials and Magic Amplification-.”

“Leave. Now.”

Direte tried to evict her friend before resorting to violence.

Just then, a junior burst into the workshop.

“Senior!!! Do you know what happened today!? You’ll be amazed when you hear!”

“Ogoldos, sorry, but missing bones in storage aren’t that rare—”

“The headmaster’s clone beat up Professor Verdus and taught the class himself!”

“!?!”

Direte was truly shocked.

But no matter how surprised she was, it was nothing compared to Yukveltire. Yukveltire said, shocked,

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“……”