NOVEL WEB Chapter 16
Professor Cheon Kyu-jin’s year was as ordinary as ever.
Once, when he was recruited as a professor at a prestigious university, it felt like he had fulfilled all his childhood dreams, but as human nature has it, everything dulled over time.
His passion for academia had not waned, but the students who shared that passion were dwindling, which sometimes left him with a sad feeling.
Cheon Kyu-jin always described himself as a boring person.
Thus, unlike his younger sibling, he never intended to start a family.
Not wanting to go home, his only joy was occasionally ordering late-night snacks for the struggling graduate students in the lab and mingling with them.
If one were to call it a slump in life, then that would be accurate. He had experienced countless ‘slumps,’ but he had no idea how to accept this one.
Next year would be his sabbatical, and he planned to take a step back from his duties and spend some time deeply contemplating the future.
That is, until a suspicious audit student showed up in his last class.
[A student wearing an avatar that fits the minimum age requirement for virtual reality.]
Geniuses often tended to be eccentric.
Most of the time, such tendencies arose from loneliness.
Their desires to socialize were the same as everyone else’s, but the difference in their thinking styles, values, and verbal-mathematical skills became a barrier to communication.
Eventually, they become engrossed in one-way interests.
Be it anime or sports cars, something otaku-like.
Could this student be one of those? But her answers were always unsettling.
Unlike in the United States, Korean students genuinely hesitate to be questioned.
Students become weary in their own right, and professors isolate themselves in theirs.
In an attempt to bridge that gap, the Korea University Natural Sciences Department introduced a virtual reality class, a nearly unprecedented effort.
As noticed, the results hadn’t changed significantly.
However, one day, she, who wasn’t even a current student, infused energy into Professor Cheon Kyu-jin’s life.
Not only did she smoothly understand and apply what she learned, but she also gave him headaches that nobody else had done before.
But lo and behold, this student was different!
“No matter how I think about it, the formulation is too inefficient. Even if activated at maximum speed, it takes 0.3 seconds; there’s no reason this transformation should be at the 5th Circle.”
When she posed that question, he promised he would review it by the next class and spent two sleepless nights proving her assertion.
But on the same day, when she showed him a formula identical to his own, he couldn’t hide his admiration.
‘This student is a real genius.’
Although her operators used in the transformation were a bit peculiar, the fundamental structure was the same.
That’s why he had been waiting for today.
Two hours had passed, but she hadn’t appeared in the auditorium. Just as he began to doubt she would come, he spotted a child who looked exactly like her avatar.
‘Has she been using her younger sibling’s account all along?’
But what could be the reason for her younger sibling’s presence instead of hers?
If the excuse was that she was unwell enough to come here, he felt too bad for calling her, so he held his tongue. But then, something shocking slipped from the child’s mouth.
“Sorry for the late introduction. I’m NoName. I came to check my grades for the transformation theory class.”
“You’re Na-me?”
“Yes, what’s the problem?”
Initially, he thought she was messing with him.
The child, small enough that one might believe she was around five or six just by looking at her height, boldly looked up at him.
She could start using virtual reality at age seven, so even if he were generous, she was probably only six or seven years old.
Na-me awkwardly jotted down the transformation formula on unused paper piled next to the grading sheets, which she regularly favored: “Kaizen Complete Transformation Matrix.”
“The handwriting should be the same. Please verify it.”
Professor Cheon Kyu-jin, as if entranced, flipped through the answer sheets until the name appeared.
[Name: NoName (NO Name)]
“…”
Suddenly, Na-me’s expression turned dark.
Professor Cheon Kyu-jin realized it stemmed from the grades.
[195/200]
“Where is my mistake?”
She was like someone who, after an insurance company’s verdict of a traffic accident at 90:10, argued vehemently that she had none, not even one percent of fault.
“Let’s take a look here.”
“I can’t see it.”
Na-me strained on her tiptoes to see but couldn’t reach it.
Watching her tremble, the professor finally understood his mistake and handed the answer sheet directly to her.
With her little hands, she had to spread out the paper with her arms to see it barely.
The sight was both amusing and fascinating.
“Many students have made mistakes here.”
But Na-me wore an expression more serious than ever.
“Stop spouting nonsense. Why is this wrong?”
Na-me’s face contorted with frustration.
*
Mistakes were intolerable.
It was a kind of obsession.
[This time, I must properly discipline Princess Estasha. How long will we tolerate her mingling with the barbaric northerners, defying the solemn royal decrees?]
In this barbaric world, one mistake could lead to death.
[What to do… It seems your life can’t just end with yours.]
In my hands, so many lives depended, not just mine.
[Sorry, Princess, but I don’t think we can delay the northern conquest any longer.]
I understand. But I can’t understand.
You all must not understand me either.
Every day felt like walking on thin ice.
Would the world without me met a miserable end, or would it find new hope?
I didn’t know. I didn’t want to care anymore.
But the habits etched into my soul over a lengthy 25 years still constituted a significant part of me, and that personality hadn’t vanished.
My heart raced uncontrollably, and I felt a sudden surge of anger.
Did I do something wrong?
Really?
No, I did nothing wrong.
Not even one,
I am not wrong.
I cannot fail.
I must be perfect.
“Hey, calm down…”
“Why did you say my formula was wrong? Do you think I can’t use Lagrange multipliers because of boundary points? No, if that’s what you think, you are absolutely wrong! The optimization conditions I’ve written are sufficient conditions that include boundary points. Still don’t get it? How long am I supposed to keep babbling about this to you?!”
My vision blurred.
What am I doing right now?
My mind felt hazy, the world shook like a wave, and melted like ice cream on a summer day.
The world was far too hot to be cold and blindingly bright enough to cause my eyes to sting.
It felt like the unpleasant sensation of being forced to wake up with a light shining on someone sleeping peacefully at dawn – a feeling I had experienced before.
Mana withdrawal syndrome.
Mana withdrawal syndrome dulled the ability to discern and paralyzed rational thought. In the end, it would accompany extreme discomfort that led to unconsciousness.
Why must this happen now… I just remembered I forgot to take my potion this morning.
I had also rushed out when the alarm went off during the broadcast.
I desperately needed that disgusting mana potion that made no sense.
*
[Mana withdrawal syndrome? Isn’t that overload? Can one become addicted to mana?]
Yep, isn’t it fascinating?
[Is that why you drink demon blood every day?]
Yeah, it’s not like I want to drink it.
[That sounds painful. I learned that demon blood has toxic components.]
Magic isn’t anything. If anything, mana is much more dangerous.
[That’s something I’ve never heard before. The guild uncles said more mana is always better.]
Shall I give an example? The air we breathe actually isn’t just one type. It’s a mix of various kinds of air.
[Really? I didn’t know that.]
Among them, there’s our buddy Oxygen. What we need is just oxygen.
When we breathe, our body automatically selects oxygen. It’s designed that way from the start.
[That’s amazing. So, the other types of air aren’t needed?]
Not quite. If someone just breathed in oxygen, they would die.
Breathing becomes difficult, vision blurs, and ultimately, consciousness fades.
Just like that, one dies in the midst of life.
[So, it’s the same for mana?]
Yep.
Do you know why people can’t use 9th Circle magic?
It’s because we don’t have organs that purify mana in our bodies.
The more high-level magic one casts, the more they destroy themselves.
On the surface, it may appear to gain endless strength, but inside, they’re slowly collapsing.
[That sounds a bit scary. Are you okay though?]
Don’t worry. I can take on the Demon King right now.
[You’re fine, but why do you always boast like this at the end?]
You won’t have dinner tonight.
[Noooooo, why?! Cancel it, cancel it! You’re awesome, sis!]
Anyway, in this world, there isn’t a single thing that isn’t needed.
Just as air isn’t composed solely of oxygen, this empire can’t consist of just the royal family and nobility.
Even amidst heavy rain, plagues, or wars, there are always citizens looking toward tomorrow, which is why the nation exists.
[I hope those upper-ups acknowledge my words. Will the royal family ever understand us?]
We must strive for that.
[What do you mean by that? Can you say those same words directly to the baron right now? I’d be too scared to even make eye contact.]
I could.
[Here we go again with the boasting.]
Shall we place a bet?