WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Professor

Translator: Touch

Editor: Grass

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Chapter 61: The Bell Rings Over Snow-Covered Ruins (6)

Elize’s personality made it so that she never stayed depressed for long.

“Mmm~♪”

She also didn’t care for complicated matters. That lack of concern for the world’s intricacies made her well-suited for life in this tumultuous and worrisome era.

Still, knowing that those around her were feeling down, Elize felt it was her duty to cheer them up.

Hmm…

What could she do to lift their spirits and make them feel better?

Bracelets?

In the end, she decided to make bracelets—the kind the older girls of her House used to craft a long time ago.

The method was simple.

House Csikos’s pink hair was strong and had a beautiful sheen. She plucked a few strands of her own hair, treated them, and threaded them in some beads. Finally, she drew the 「○」 circle—the symbol representing the Shadowless Star○—on small wooden pieces that were added to the strings.

If there was misfortune floating around in the air, it would be dispelled by the energy of the 「Shadowless Star○」.

With that wish in mind, Elize handed out the bracelets to the Black Dragon cadets.

First was Kaiser, who had lately been spaced out in the room next to hers.

“...Thanks.”

Next, the gloomy-looking Balmung.

“What is it…?”

“A bracelet,” Elize replied bluntly.

“Ah, I see…”

She looked for Kendrake and Kwan next, but couldn’t find them anywhere.

“Where’d they go?”

In the end, she left their bracelets hanging on their doorknobs.

Next was Princess Rebecca.

When Elize returned to the dormitory after her recent disobedience of the princess’s orders, she believed she would be harshly scolded.

But, to her surprise, the princess let it slide, which was why Elize had made one for her too and came to give it to her.

“What now?” Rebecca asked.

“A bracelet, Your Highness.”

Rebecca didn’t reply. Elize tensed up nervously. She knew full well how much the princess hated defiance, and she still feared angering her.

This had been the case since their first encounter, when Elize had visited Rebecca’s estate. Back then, the princess had killed a man using a fork.

A fork.

She stabbed and tore apart her own attendant’s throat—the man in charge of her wardrobe—for the crime of allowing the princess’s shoulder strap to slip during a banquet.

No scandal had arisen from the incident. Rebecca had swiftly caught the strap and repositioned it, responding to those at the banquet with composure and a smile.

But once she returned home, she decided the attendant had to die.

Such was the princess’s nature. And this same princess had once ordered Elize to kill Professor Dante.

And Elize had refused.

“Did you make this?” Rebecca asked emotionlessly.

“Yes.”

Although she was bracing for a scolding, Elize was once again surprised—the princess accepted the bracelet without a word of complaint. She held it up and stared at it for a moment.

That was all.

Elize bowed and quietly left, hoping the princess might feel a little less depressed.

Now, she had two bracelets left.

The second-to-last person to receive a bracelet was Gray.

Elize closed her eyes and followed Gray’s scent, walking toward the dormitory’s backyard.

Clang!

What welcomed her was a familiar scene—Gray training her Illusion Arts.

Last time, shards of glass had fluttered down like snow around her. This time, it was feathers falling gently through the air.

“Not again…” Gray muttered, slumping down and leaning against a tree.

Elize watched her quietly, hiding behind a wall. What was she doing? What did she mean by “not again”?

“Not again… It’s not working… Why isn’t it working…?”

Gray cast another illusion, conjuring a massive pair of wings that rose into the sky.

It was a shockingly large illusion in Elize’s eyes.

But Gray cut off her mana, and the wings shattered, scattering into feathers.

What was going on with her? Elize still didn’t know what the deal was.

Finally, Gray collapsed, blood dripping from her nose.

Ah, there she goes again.

At some point, Gray’s training had grown excessively intense. In fact, just before the airship incident recently, she’d also collapsed from overwork and been hospitalized.

But regardless, it was time to give her the bracelet.

“Are you okay, Gray?”

“…Why are you here? What do you want?”

“I brought something for you. It’s a bracelet I made…”

“Hey.” Gray’s voice dropped, low and tense.

“Hmm?”

Still kneeling, her forehead pressed to the ground, Gray growled.

“Don’t come here when I’m training.”

“Huh…? Why?”

“When I tell you not to come, just don’t. It seriously throws me off every time you show up out of nowhere.”

Elize fell silent.

“Why aren’t you answering? I told you not to come when I’m training. Can’t you hear me?”

Gray’s voice grew sharper, more agitated.

“Okay… I got it…”

Elize tried to brighten the mood with a smile.

“Oh, by the way! I heard that you’ll be on the cover of next month’s issue of The Assassin Times. Is it true?”

“Can you just… leave for now?”

“Huh? Why? You’ll be their monthly cover model! That’s a huge deal! Not everybody gets to do that—”

“Elize. Please…”

“Lucy said you were the one who stopped the airship from—”

“Agh!!”

Gray suddenly snapped and raised her head, blood dripping from her eyes.

Startled, Elize flinched. But Gray quickly snatched the bracelet from her hand using her 『Silver Thread』 ability.

“Thanks, I’ll take the bracelet. Happy now? Now leave me alone and get lost! Please!”

Elize had no choice but to turn away reluctantly.

She glanced back briefly before returning to her room.

She didn’t feel great. But once again, her mood recovered quickly.

The last remaining bracelet was for Professor Dante. She had even added some special bone patterns to it.

Why bone patterns? The answer was simple.

Because she liked them. Thus, the professor must like them too, right?

Bones~♬

She wanted to give it to him right away, but that didn’t seem possible. He’d been busy these days.

Still, they’d meet again soon enough during the final exams anyway.

* * *

“Professor!”

It was an ordinary afternoon when Adele came rushing into the office to find me.

“The Dean wants to see you!”

“What?”

“Exactly what I said! I got a call from the faculty office saying that he wants to meet you…”

It was an unexpected situation. Why would Shaman Kreutz suddenly call for me?

In the end, I obediently headed to the Dean’s office in the faculty building.

To my surprise, I was greeted by a gathering of some of the academy’s big shots.

There were no fewer than five chief professors in the room.

Among them was even Chief Professor Galois. I hadn’t expected to meet him anytime soon.

At the seat of honor sat Ezekiel, the Dean of the Mage Department.

Wait, so it wasn’t Shaman Kreutz, the Dean of the Assassin Department, who had summoned me?

“Please have a seat, Professor Dante,” Ezekiel offered.

The average age of the people in the room was around eighty. They were all strong combatants, veterans who had spent their long lives honing their skills.

As Ezekiel ordered the assistant professors to bring in refreshments, I could feel all their gazes on me, each one filled with curiosity.

I scanned the 【textbox】 and got a sense of what was going on.

How did my exam sheet end up in Ezekiel’s hands…?

I already knew that my name was well-known among the chief faculty. How could it not be, given all the incidents I’d been involved in?

But this was the first time I’d ever been summoned before all of them like this.

Did I raise some suspicions because of the exam?

Upon checking the textbox further, that didn’t seem to be the case. Their thoughts were mostly gentle and benign.

【 He’s really only thirty? 】

【 I heard his Illusion Arts skills were good, but not this good. 】

【 Where on earth did the chairman find such a treasure? 】

And so on.

Once the tea was served, someone finally spoke up.

“Professor Dante,”

It was Ezekiel.

Though he was nearly ninety, he looked barely in his forties, thanks to the immense mana preserving his youth. He spoke with a calm, refined authority.

“Apologies for the sudden summons. I know you’re a busy man.”

“It’s alright,” I replied.

“Allow me to get straight to the point. Would you be willing to keep your name hidden?”

He skipped the preamble entirely and jumped straight to the conclusion of the discussion, leaving me confused.

“…May I ask for the reason?”

“Of course. Earlier today, Chief Galois and I reviewed your final exam paper.”

As I glanced at Professor Galois, he gave me a cheeky wink. Ezekiel resumed his explanation.

“Did you create the question and design it on your own?”

“Do you mean the tree question?” I asked to clarify.

“Yes, the tree… So it was intentional.”

“Of course. One wouldn’t be able to build something so intricate by sheer luck. We cannot call this a mere final exam,” Ezekiel muttered to himself.

Flap.

He placed a copy of the exam paper before me.

“It is too dangerous to publish this under your real name.”

I stayed silent. 

“During the recent rebellion orchestrated by Kreutz, our enemies had two key priorities. Do you know what they were?”

I do.

First, to bring over as many professors as possible to their country.

Second, to completely wipe out all study and research on Illusion Arts in Hiaka.

“What I’m about to tell you is classified information,” Ezekiel continued. “Kreutz has been investing heavily in Illusion Arts Studies over the past fifteen years. They’ve staked their military’s future on it.”

My eyes narrowed.

There was no such setting in the original game. Kreutz was supposed to focus on divine arts—but that had clearly changed.

Clearly, this was one of the story and setting changes brought by Hell Mode.

“Roughly how much have they invested?” I asked.

“Estimates say around 4.5% of their national budget,” Ezekiel replied.

“Over fifteen years, that would be…”

“About 500 billion hika.”

Five hundred billion hika. That was an astronomical amount—enough to shake an entire kingdom.

(For reference, “hika” is the standard continental currency. The similarity of its name to “Hiaka” is purely coincidental.)

“In the past, Hiaka was among the top three nations in Illusion Arts.”

“Before the Habanero incident, you mean,” I added.

“Exactly. Our downfall began when House Habanero was decimated during the Second Great Assassination War. And now, with Chief Professor Gloomy’s betrayal, our downfall is complete. We’ve lost our competitive edge in Illusion Arts.”

“…”

“At this point, aside from the Empire, no other nation can keep up with Kreutz’s pace in their Illusion Arts Studies…” Ezekiel paused, then smiled subtly.

“…Or at least, that would have been the case if our dearest Professor Dante hadn’t joined the faculty.”

Ezekiel’s insight was formidable. Even though he wasn’t an Illusion Arts expert, he’d assessed my skills with uncanny precision from a single exam paper.

“Do you know how I feel right now, Professor Dante?” he asked.

“You seem pleased.”

“I’m delighted.”

The Dean smiled. It was the cathartic smile of someone mocking Kreutz—someone who knew the tower they’d spent fifteen years building could be toppled by a single individual. By me.

It was also a smile that, strangely enough, felt almost affectionate.

And I could understand why.

“To be honest, Professor, your skill in Illusion Arts might very well rival my magic.”

“You flatter me.”

“It’s no flattery. You know just how advanced your abilities are at your age, don’t you?”

Despite being barely in my thirties, I was already on the level of other Challenger-rated combatants. Even I knew how absurd that was.

Taking the Star Shard system into account, my potential was probably valued around 2.9.

“And it’s not hard to guess how Kreutz would react if they found out about you.”

That much was obvious.

The Kingdom of Kreutz had staked everything on Illusion Arts—going as far as poaching Chief Gloomy and sabotaging our own research.

And yet, here I was.

If my existence is revealed, I’ll become their #1 priority target for assassination.

“That’s why your exam is a problem,” Ezekiel said. “Your intentions are good, but it could reveal your proficiency in Illusion Arts to the outside world.”

“Indeed. I hadn’t considered that,” I admitted.

“That is understandable. After all, Kreutz’s obsession with Illusion Arts is classified information you weren’t aware of.”

“Then… should I discard the exam?” I suggested.

Galois suddenly shot to his feet.

“Are you insane?! Why would you throw that away?!”

“Calm down, Galois,” Ezekiel said.

“But Dean—!” Galois began to protest, then looked back at me with gleaming eyes. “Professor Dante! Let’s grab a meal sometime, alright? Just the two of us.”

“Chief Galois, please calm down,” Ezekiel repeated gently.

“Where did you get the idea for this exam? You didn’t copy it from somewhere, did you? I had heard rumors about you, but I was totally floored this time! Who’s your teacher? Where on earth did you learn Illusion Arts—?!”

Galois had worked himself into a frenzy, his sheer academic excitement overwhelming him.

The Dean had to work hard to calm him down.

“It’s an honor, Chief Galois,” I said with a nod of respect.

“The honor’s mine, my friend! Haha! Anyway, call me soon. Alright? Hm? Don’t forget to call me! Yeah? Call me!”

He mimed a phone gesture, then plopped back into his seat.

We finally returned to the main topic.

“So that’s why you wish to hide my name,” I said to Ezekiel.

“We cannot have you become a target for assassination. I’ll create a new identity for you—with a fake name, schedule, backstory—everything. I’ll take care of it all. But if there are any profits made under that identity, they’ll go directly to you.”

“What’s the split for the profits?”

“Everything will go to you.”

I was distrustful of people by nature, so I glanced at the textbox to read his thoughts.

To my genuine surprise, he was being sincere.

“…I’d be grateful for your consideration if you’re willing to go that far,” I replied, still a bit doubtful. “Though I must say, it seems you’re being a bit too generous.”

“If you’re about to say it’s too advantageous for you and unfair for me and the others—well, has humanity ever once been fair throughout its history?”

Ezekiel chuckled, exuding the effortless authority of royalty.

Well, at the end of the day, I’d rather be on the receiving end of an unfair advantage than the losing one.

And for the first time ever, I felt a strange sense of belonging to Hiaka.

Even though I had done nothing to deserve it, there were people in this nation working hard to protect me.

I realized we were in the same boat.

Furthermore, if 「Main Story 2: Betting Table」 was about to begin, I would’ve had to find a way to hide my identity regardless. 

Right now, I was an ambiguous and oddly placed figure when it came to raw combat ability.

In the right situation, I could overpower even the chief professors. In the wrong one, I could die to the Idiot Trio.

If Kreutz sent a proper assassin squad, I’d be finished. So for both my survival and future activities, creating a false identity was something I had already considered.

But Ezekiel was offering to take care of it all—and even provide perfect protection, free of charge.

I had no reason to refuse.

“I will be in your care,” I said, accepting the offer.

We continued talking for a while afterward.

Apparently, the faculty was very curious about my past, even though I had no real past to share. I was, after all, someone from another world.

All I could do was offer a wry smile when the chief professors grumbled that it was unfair for me to be so secretive. But what could I say? There was nothing I could reveal.

“Ah, right. Should we decide on your new name right now?” Ezekiel asked. “The name of the newly-appointed genius Chief Professor of Illusion Assassination Studies at Hiaka Academy.”

I paused to think for a moment. 

Then, a particular name surfaced in my mind. I wasn’t sure why it came to me first, but I said it anyway. 

“Cain.”

That would be my alias from now on.

The meeting wrapped up shortly afterward. But just before we all parted ways, it seemed there was one final piece of business.

Before we all parted ways, Ezekiel used 『Telekinesis』 to hand me a golden badge—the badge of a senior professor.

“We’ll be counting on you, Senior Professor Dante.”

I couldn’t believe my ears.

“…Pardon?”

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