SRS 56

But contrary to Yohan’s worries, the nameless headmaster didn’t dump the cleanup work on the students. He simply snapped his fingers and stopped the time of the entire building.

The time of the building itself.

The flames that had been consuming it froze in place, still glowing but motionless. The collapsing structure, caught mid-fall, stopped with debris suspended in midair. In an instant, the flow of time around the building had halted, and Yohan’s eyes widened.

“…Is that even possible?”

Someone whispered in disbelief, and Yohan silently agreed.

Stopping time was a power belonging only to gods. Yet the headmaster had done it so casually. Even if he had become headmaster of Fantasiademia by losing a game of rock-paper-scissors, it hadn’t been by luck alone.

Freezing the world’s time would be one thing, but isolating and halting time for a specific structure so precisely was an entirely different matter. Watching him perform such a feat so effortlessly sent chills down Yohan’s spine. Without realizing it, he had grabbed Mikael’s arm and only let go once he noticed.

“Hmm.”

The nameless headmaster floated over the ruined building, his shining hair fluttered as he slightly tilted his head to examine the ruins.

“My, my… this is quite the disaster. You’ve managed to destroy it so completely that even the illusion barrier inside broke.”

With a gesture, the headmaster made the two troublesome professors appear in front of everyone, both of them coughing awkwardly. The students, realizing they’d nearly been killed by their own teachers, glared at them and began shouting.

“How could you?! You knew we were in there and still summoned a meteor?!”

“Boo! Hegel Gildestern, resign! Resign!”

“We just want you both to teach us with a little more sense of responsibility!”

The Divine Studies students remained relatively quiet, but the Magic Studies students were furious, it was understandable, since the meteor had been what destroyed the building.

…But aren’t they a bit reckless?

Yohan scratched his cheek as he watched Melek disguise his voice with transformation magic while yelling for the professor’s resignation. Even if Melek changed his tone, would a grand mage really fail to see through that?

Better pray for him, just in case.

Yohan made the holy sign toward Melek, and Mikael laughed beside him.

“You know what’s coming, right? Since you two caused this mess, you’ll be the ones cleaning it up. Starting with disciplinary action. No complaints, I hope?”

The nameless headmaster’s voice was calm but cold. The two professors, who had turned away from each other in disgust, grimaced but nodded reluctantly.

The headmaster sighed.

“… I understand that you two don’t get along, but could you stop destroying classrooms every year? Especially you, Professor Hegel. Last year and this year both, you’ve gone too far summoning a meteor. There’s a limit to what I can overlook.”

Wait, wasn’t overlooking professor brawls already a problem?

Yohan stared in disbelief as the headmaster scolded them with absurd leniency. The two professors glared at each other one last time before bowing their heads.

“Yes.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“You always answer so well. Now, go to the Judgment Chamber. Your punishments will be decided by the arbiters.”

With a lazy wave of his hand, the nameless headmaster made the two professors vanish into thin air.

“Now then…”

He looked down at the group of students still standing in the courtyard.

Tak.

With another snap of his fingers, a large number of other first-years were suddenly summoned into the courtyard.

“What’s going on?”

“I thought they were still running away…”

“Ah! Fire! The building’s on fire!”

“Calm down, Hyum. We’re outside now.”

Judging by their confused chatter, they were the ones who hadn’t managed to escape in time.

Looking satisfied, the headmaster lowered himself to the ground, his luminous hair swaying as he spoke.

“It was noisy, right? I am sorry about that. Those two professors are still young, so sometimes they play pranks better suited for students.”

Young?

That angel professor and Hegel?

The students exchanged shocked glances, but the headmaster ignored them, clicking his tongue as he surveyed the building.

“As I said, the two professors will repair Building 1 themselves. But since they’ll be undergoing disciplinary review first, the repairs will take about a week. It’ll be inconvenient, but please be patient. Our academy’s policy is that whoever causes the trouble should fix it with their own hands.”

Normally, a rule like that would apply to students, not professors. So why was it that here, the professors caused the trouble, and the rule was being applied to them instead?

What a strange school.

“As a temporary measure,” the headmaster said brightly, “the lectures that were supposed to take place in Building 1 will be held here in the courtyard during the repair period. How about a refreshing outdoor class for a change?”

His voice was as cheerful as his suggestion. The students froze, struggling not to groan. They managed to hold their tongues since he was the headmaster, but their expressions said everything, and dozens of irritated stares landed on him.

“Ahaha!”

The headmaster laughed alone and shrugged.

“Well, even if you dislike the idea, you’ll have to do it anyway. Now, the classroom issue is settled. The next problem is that the Divine Studies and Magic Studies professors will both be absent for at least a week due to their discipline. Let’s see… the Magic Studies side should be fine if we ask Professor Hegel’s top disciple to fill in, but as for Divine Studies…”

He went on solving everything by himself, as if this sort of chaos happened often, showing not the slightest sign of panic. Then, after a short pause, his luminous head turned toward Yohan.

“……?”

Feeling that intense, radiant gaze on him, Yohan’s eyes widened. Cold sweat rolled down his back. His body reacted on instinct to the headmaster’s pressure, tensing in exhaustion.

“Hmmmmmm…”

The nameless headmaster made a thoughtful noise that lasted a little too long, and Yohan felt a chill run through his body. The reason for that feeling revealed itself moments later.

“I’ll take over the Divine Studies class myself. And Yohan Herse, you’ll assist me as the class assistant. I’ll inform the other professors.”

“…What?”

“…Excuse me?”

“…Huh?”

“Yo-Yohan?”

Everyone in the first-period Divine Studies course stared in shock. Yohan’s mouth fell open.

Assistant…?

It wasn’t a role he had ever imagined for himself. He’d only been enrolled at Fantasiademia for barely two months.

“…Why me of all people?”

He forced his stiff tongue to move, but the headmaster just tilted his head, his brilliant light stinging Yohan’s eyes.

“Then should I choose another first year student instead?”

“……!”

Whip, whip, whip.

Every friend in the room immediately turned their heads toward Yohan. Their desperate, burning gazes prickled against his skin. The silent message was clear: Don’t you dare say yes. If he refused, he’d probably save them all; if he agreed, they’d make him regret it forever.

Then, something unexpected happened.

“I can help.”

Mikael, who had been quietly watching the situation, suddenly volunteered.

A curious hum escaped the nameless headmaster’s lips. Yohan grabbed Mikael’s collar and looked at him in the eyes.

Are you serious?

He couldn’t openly mention divine power or wings in front of everyone, so he asked with his eyes. As the assistant, Mikael would inevitably need to use divine power, it felt like too much of a strain.

He signaled for Mikael to take it back, but he didn’t budge.

“I heard Mikael has trouble using divine power,” the headmaster said. “Are you sure you can manage?”

“Well, since the one teaching is the headmaster himself, I don’t think I’ll need to use any divine power. I might not be able to use it, but I’ve been taking these lectures for three years. I can at least help keep the class organized. Would that be acceptable?”

He answered without blinking once. The headmaster chuckled softly, amused, while Yohan glared at him.

Judging by how the angel professor treated Mikael, it was obvious he already knew Mikael’s true identity. And if that was the case, the nameless headmaster definitely knew too. Yet he was still toying with him like this.

Cruel, absolutely cruel.

Yohan clicked his tongue inwardly.

The headmaster clapped his hands. “Then we’ll divide it, two days for Yohan, three days for Mikael. That settles it. Now, everyone, head to your next class. The first-period Magic and Divine Studies lectures are canceled today for preparation, so take the free time to rest. See you next time.”

The headmaster waved and left, saying he needed to ‘bring out’ the temporary Magic Studies professor.