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CHAPTER 18 – OFFER (2)
December 13, 2022 — 2 Comments
As Professor Elena asked, I headed to her lab after all the classes were over. The laboratory was located in a building called ‘History Hall’.
As Professor Beerus mentioned, at Halo Academy, we must take common classes until the second year, after which we must choose our own career path. Perhaps as a result of this, there are buildings for each major, resulting in a high level of professionalism.
‘It’s just like a university.’
It’s high school until the second year, and after that, it’s a university where we have to go around the building to listen to lectures. I wandered around looking for the History Hall through the map that Professor Elena gave me.
Because Halo Academy was the size of a small city, simply walking around took a long time. If I had known this was going to happen, I would have eaten one meal and then left.
‘It doesn’t matter since I got the book.’
Today, in my spare time, I read the Elf history book that Professor Elena gave me.
Like an elf who thinks of himself as a descendant of God, there were many words that are difficult to understand, but there was no difficulty thanks to my regular reading of books. I had no choice but to go through the dictionary and find out the meaning.
Still, there were many achievements. I hadn’t read even 1/10th of it yet, but I had a rough idea of what kind of race the Elves were. If demons were a mutant caused by the devil, elves were more like descendants of ‘angels’.
It was a fact that was never mentioned in history books written from a human point of view, but it seemed possible because elves were a long-lived species, so there were very few lost records. Or maybe they have a habit of putting importance on records.
Anyway, knowing that elves were descended from angels was one of the most important things I learned. How come there are no angels if there are still demons in this world? It immediately dispelled my doubts. The elf’s mana, unlike that of the demons, has white mana.
‘Other races only knew about the devil; they had no idea about angels.’
Because I remembered my previous life, I assumed that if there was a devil, there would also be angels, but this was not the case with other people. They must have believed that the only thing that could oppose the Devil was God.
‘I should go with the story of interacting with elves from the middle of Volume 9 to the end of Volume 10.’ The devil’s executives are also very active.’
I jotted down the progression of Xenon’s life in a notebook on the way to the History Hall. Because the eighth manuscripts were already completed, I can mail them to my parents and call it a day.
“You are here?”
After a while of walking, I arrived at the building depicted on the map. It wasn’t particularly cool because it’s a history hall, but it was a dull yet highly functional structure.
It was probably because the building was only used by professors or teaching assistants, and there was no need for a training room in martial arts.
‘Because Martial Arts requires a training room. There are many more.’
Again, this was a fantasy world with monsters and mana. Even at the Halo Academy, martial arts that develop military power are inevitably a priority. As a result, I’ve heard that there are numerous cases where the literature side has complained about budget issues.
I re-examined the map and the building, double-checked the name ‘History Hall’ written at the entrance, and proceeded. The front door was a well-kept wooden door with a glossy appearance.
“Ohhh…”
As soon as I passed through the front door and entered the hallway, I couldn’t help but be amazed. It exudes an old-fashioned atmosphere and there was even a watermill in the center of the hallway.
What’s more, portraits of great men who made their mark in history were hung on the hallway walls, many of whom I had read about in books but had never seen in paintings before. A brief historical record, along with the great man’s name, was written beneath his portrait.
‘There is a great man in each race.’
Also, great people were classified for each race and written on the wall.
Naturally, most of the portraits were of humans – the race with short lifespans but the largest number. The other races were few and far between, and even there were no demons at all.
I looked around the hallway with a curious expression on my face, then came to my senses and moved to Professor Elena’s office. Professor Elena’s laboratory was room 104.
Knock- Knock- Knock-
“Professor Elena. It’s Isaac. Are you in there?”
Through the sign hanging in the middle of Room 104 and the door, I was able to find Professor Elena’s lab. As I knocked and said my name, I heard a rustling sound through the door.
Seeing the word ‘Room’ written on the sign, it seemed that Professor Elena opened the door herself.
Kiikkkkk-
“…Who are you?”
No. I will correct it.
When the door opened, a zombie greeted me from behind – not a true zombie, but she’s quite frail in comparison.
The dark circles came down as if they were about to jump rope, the black eyes were dead as rotten fish eyes, and the skin was very pale rather than crumbly. With her dull blonde hair tied back in a ponytail and the corners of her eyes drooping, she gave the impression that she could collapse at any moment.
I stumbled backward as soon as I saw her. As I took a step back, I could see who had opened the door and greeted me.
‘…Elf?’
It was an elf who opened the door and greeted me – a female elf like Professor Elena.
Although her beauty faded due to her appearance which seemed like a zombie would be a friend, she couldn’t hide her true beauty. Rather, it exudes a strange atmosphere, including the beauty of decadence.
“…Excuse me?”
As I stared blankly at her, the elf tilted her head and called again. And she even slowly blinked her eyes.
So I hurriedly came to my senses and asked her in a very cautious manner.
“That… Is this Professor Elena’s lab?”
“That’s right…”
I checked the sign for the laboratory again in response to the slurred tone and answer. Professor Elena’s laboratory was certain. I presume the elf in front of me was Professor Elena’s assistant.
“Who’s here?”
A familiar voice came from inside the laboratory at precisely the right time. The elf who was supposed to be a teaching assistant looked back and replied in a tired voice.
“Yeah… He’s said he’s Isaac…”
“Ah! Bring him in quickly.”
“Come in…”
“…Excuse me.”
I was a bit reluctant for some reason, but I moved my steps inside. As I moved, I did not forget to make eye contact with the elf who opened the door.
It was a little scary to look at her with the eyes that are commonly referred to as dynamic eyes, but it was tolerable. Eventually, when I entered the laboratory, I could see various books and papers piled high with the musty smell peculiar to old books.
A  cursory glance revealed that most of the books were related to history. It looks like a laboratory for studying history.
“Come here. Please sit down.”
Professor Elena, who was sitting at the desk, smiled as she greeted me. Feeling awkward, I sat down on the reception couch she pointed to.
When I sat down on the sofa, Professor Elena also sat down on the sofa across from me. For information, there was a table placed between the two of us.
“Here are some sweets and tea…”
“Oh, thank you.”
Shortly after sitting on the sofa, the assistant placed the food on the table. As I thanked her, she turned around to return to her desk.
“Where are you going, Cindy? Sit next to me.”
“I want to rest…”
“I know you’re tired of writing your thesis, but it’s important to you too.”
“yes…”
The Elf named Cindy sat down at Professor Elena’s instructions. And so, across from me, two elves who were polar opposites were seated.
“A bit flustered, huh?”
Not a little bit, but a lot. As soon as I open the door and a half-dead corpse welcomes me, anyone would be shocked.
But I couldn’t say the above words directly, so I just laughed awkwardly. Professor Elena also noticed my feelings, so she put her hand on Cindy’s shoulder.
“Recently, she’s been up all night for a thesis. I’m sure she’s not in the right state.”
“If you know, let me sleep…”
“If you just write the thesis.”
“It’s unreasonable…”
Seeing the two of them… reminded me of a professor and a graduate student from my previous life. I’ve never been a graduate student myself, but there were a lot of memes around the internet.
What struck me the most was that graduate students were not treated like most people. The majority of them claimed to be servants to the professor in order to obtain a doctorate. I even seem to have heard that they even did private errands.
Maybe it’s because of that meme, but I have the impression that graduate students make good slaves.
‘Could it be me too?’
Around the time I was slightly worried inside, Professor Elena, who had been scolding Cindy, looked at me and opened her mouth.
“First of all, her name is Cindy. Her full name is Cindy Skywalker. She’s been my teaching assistant for 25 years.”
“What kind of slave a teaching assistant is…”
“Could you shut up? He’s misunderstanding.”
“It’s not a misunderstanding, it’s the truth…”
“Then get out.”
“I’m sorry…”
Rather than a professor-assistant relationship, they were more like good sisters. If Elena really treated Cindy like her slave, she wouldn’t play with her like that.
I looked at the two with a strange look, and then I suddenly remembered something I was curious about and asked a question.
“You’ve been a teaching assistant for 25 years?”
“Yeah. In order to become a professor, you have to work as a teaching assistant for a certain period of time and get a doctorate, right? This is the case with most teaching assistants in literature.”
It’s the first I’ve heard of it. Was there a concept of a degree such as a master’s or doctoral degree? Well, it might be strange not to be in a story with an academy and a professor.
While I was confused, Professor Elena went on to explain.
“It’s the same with us Elves. We must obtain a degree while working as teaching assistants under the supervision of a professor. However, as you know, Elves learn at a much slower rate than humans, so it takes a long time.”
“How long does it typically take on average?”
“A few years is at least 30 years, which, when converted to a human lifespan, is about 3-4 years.  Furthermore, in order to obtain a doctorate, that is, to become a professor, we must first pass a rigorous screening process within ‘Yggdrasil.’ We have to submit my doctoral thesis, and the requirements are very stringent.”
Yggdrasil was the capital of Alfheim, the land of Elves. As you can see, it has the same name as in Norse mythology.
By the way, even within Yggdrasil, it seems that the standards are very strict, considering that you have to go through an examination before you can become a professor.
“I’m envious… that humans only take 5 years at the longest…”
“You’re slow to learn, even by Elf standards, so five years is no option. Anyway, I called you for one reason.”
“What is it?”
I was slightly nervous and waited to see what kind of request Professor Elena would make. If it is an unreasonable request, of course, I would decline it. It’s hard to even write a manuscript right now, and I can’t devote time to other things.
In the meantime, Professor Elena opened her mouth, placing her hand on Cindy’s shoulder as she munched on snacks.
“Teach her how to write.”
“Huh?”
“Huhhh…?”
I, of course, and even Cindy, who was still, looked at Professor Elena, perplexed. With a hand over her shoulder, Professor Elena lightly pinched Cindy’s cheek.
“She’s good at everything, but she can’t write very well. It took her at least five years to write a master’s thesis. Even that didn’t seem like anything to me.”
“It hurts…”
Even as Cindy murmured, Professor Elena did not let go of her hand pinching her cheek.
“I could’ve taught her how to write, but I’m busy as I am.”
“Can’t you just call another student?”
“I was going to do that, but you were the one who caught my eye just in time. In fact, she just started writing her thesis in earnest.”
So what have you been doing for 20 years? Although Elves are slow to learn by human standards, looking at it this way, it seems a bit harsh.
Of course, learning is slow, and that doesn’t mean that she has low memory. As an Elf who lives longer than the demons, she will remember everything that happened several decades ago.
Simply put, memory is good, but the application is poor. Of course, it will change from the moment she fully understands the concept.
As I slowly pondered her words, I began to ask questions one by one.
“Are there any other assistants? It seems a little strange that there is only one assistant in the first place?”
“Everyone has graduated and now I’m a professor. She’s my first Elf assistant. And most of the professors in the History Hall are my students. Asking them to do so seems to take up my busy time, so I put up with it.”
“Is there a student who has better writing skills than me, who has just entered the school?”
“In my opinion, you are the best. Do you not know how many students I have seen while working as a professor for 100 years ?”
Professor Elena gently answered my questions one by one. Most of them were reasonable and understandable reasons, so I had nothing to say. In particular, I was shocked to hear that my writing ability was the best among the students she had seen in 100 years.
After a while, when I stopped asking her any more questions, she lifted up her slipped glasses and opened her mouth in a slightly disappointed tone.
“You don’t have to if you don’t like it. I don’t have the power to force you. So how about this?”
She hesitated for a moment, then spread her arms wide. It was an exaggerated action as if to look at this and as I was confused, Professor Elena spoke in a proud voice with her arms outstretched.
“Most of the books and papers here are things I collected or wrote while working as a professor. Not only the history written from the perspective of humans and elves, but also dwarves, beastmen, and even demons.”
“Em, Ddemons? How about demons…?”
“There was a demon that I met by chance. I chose as many as I could from that person. Unfortunately, he has now returned to his hometown.”
After that, she leaned out her upper body and suggested again with a soft voice. I could see the light of greed over the round glasses.
“If you help Cindy, I can lend you all of the books here. You can come in and out of the lab as you please.”
“……”
“What do you want to do? By the way, it doesn’t matter if you help her when you have time. We have a very long concept of time than you humans think. It doesn’t matter even if it’s once a month.”
What’s the point of saying more? The answer was fixed.
“I look forward to working with you in the future.”
But I had no idea until this time.
Elves meant it when they said that their learning speed was extremely slow by human standards.
“Thank you very much…”
How slow-brain is this Elf named Cindy by my standards?
“Then, shall we go eat together to celebrate? Have you had dinner by any chance?”
“No. I haven’t eaten yet.”
I had no idea.