Chapter 20

◈ Chapter 20: Abraham van Helsing (1)

Selina-sensei, who was smiling brightly as usual, nodded in response to my question.

"Yes. The rumor has already spread among the students. A werewolf, something that only exists as an urban legend in the city. Isn't it funny?"

"......"

"You know, even if they are all geniuses, they are still students. It's quite amusing that they are so subtly concerned about such rumors."

Selina-sensei smiled, finding the students' imagination endearing, but I couldn't help feeling a bit uneasy.

The rumor apparently started with the students who went on an outing to the nearby city of Redervic the day before.

On a dark night in Redervic after sunset, the first sighting was of a black shadow moving across the rooftops, seen through the mist that had settled.

I shook my head.

"They are still children, aren't they?"

"Yes, that's true. Still, it was a bit surprising to hear that a werewolf, which they had only seen outside the city, was also spotted in Seolron."

"Inside Seolron as well?"

Perhaps the students who saw it in the city spread the rumor, and the other students in Seolron started seeing things.

"Seolron is quite vast, and with all sorts of magic being used, it's not uncommon for strange phenomena to occur due to magical power. After all, the Seven Great Rumors do exist, don't they?"

"The Seven Great Rumors?"

"Yes. Didn't you know?"

"Selina-sensei seems to know a lot about rumors."

"Me?!"

I had only meant it as a compliment, but Selina-sensei reacted a bit excessively.

Her eyes widened, and her cheeks turned pink. Her hair even seemed to stand on end a little.

When I gave her a puzzled look, she hurriedly tried to explain.

"I, I didn't go out of my way to look for rumors about Seolron's school or anything! I was just thinking about what topics would be good to talk with the students, that's all. Absolutely not anything else!"

"Alright, calm down."

Seeing her flailing arms, I worried she might accidentally knock over a plate and spill food.

"No, really, it's not like that."

However, she seemed to sense some urgency in my attitude and continued to defend herself more desperately.

Just as I thought the meal wouldn't continue, Merida-sensei, unable to bear it any longer, interjected.

"Oh, by the way, Mr. Rudger, I heard that you made quite a splash on your first class. Is that true?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, the groundbreaking magic you showed to reduce the speed of spell casting. What was it called again?"

"Source Code!"

Selina-sensei, forgetting her earlier embarrassment, shouted with her eyes blazing.

Her shout was so loud that the teacher's dining room fell silent for a moment.

Selina-sensei, realizing her mistake, bowed her head deeply. Her earlobes, visible through her pink hair, turned bright red.

I sighed softly and nodded.

"Yes, that's correct."

As I nodded in agreement, gazes from all around flew and fixed on me.

They were the gazes of the teachers dining at other tables.

I was puzzled by this, but Merida-sensei leaned forward and explained.

"Everyone is interested in Mr. Rudger's magic."

"My magic?"

"Oh, don't pretend you don't know. The magic you showed in your first class has already spread as a rumor in Seolron."

"Hmm."

I had a vague idea that this might happen from the first day of class.

From their perspective, the Source Code, which borrows from 21st-century computer programming, would be revolutionary.

I had fully expected that its impact would reach other teachers.

"Have you shortened the spell casting speed so dramatically that you can reveal it here?"

"Yes, it's true. It could even be patented by the Magic Tower and make a fortune."

Selina-sensei also chimed in.

Well, it's not entirely wrong. The Source Code could indeed bring a wave of change to the stagnant magic society.

If I were to provide such magic to the Magic Tower, which has a patent system, I could sit on a pile of money.

Of course, that's the general knowledge known to the public.

"I don't care about that."

I humbly pretended not to, but I know better than anyone that it's best not to apply for a patent.

While those who don't know might think it's a great thing to provide a newly developed magic to the Magic Tower, the reality is quite different.

The Magic Tower does have a patent system.

Magicians who lack money might want to use this system to earn money, but the seemingly noble facade is just that—a facade.

A patent is only recognized if the Magic Tower properly acknowledges it.

The problem is that most patents submitted are often undervalued by the Magic Tower with all sorts of excuses.

'If it were just about making excuses, it would be one thing, but there are those who abuse it.'

While other new teachers might still have a positive view of the Magic Tower, I have already experienced how dirty and despicable it can be, so my perspective is different.

Even if I had developed a magic so groundbreaking that it couldn't be understood, it would still be a problem.

'Or.'

Perhaps he is prepared for it to be stolen.

'No, that can't be it.'

But his confident attitude during the meal just now couldn't be explained otherwise.

'To think such a person is a new teacher like me.'

The more I thought about it, the more I felt inferior.

Merida sighed and looked around.

Selina, her colleague and close friend, was staring blankly at the seat Rudger had just vacated.

She seems to be quite taken with him.

Merida shook her head, then smiled mischievously and poked Selina's neck with her finger.

"Kyaa!"

"Selina, what are you thinking so deeply about? Are you sad because Mr. Rudger left first?"

"Merida-sensei? What are you talking about?!"

Selina is indeed fun to tease.

Merida thought this and continued to tease Selina for a while.

Of course, she had to soothe the pouting Selina at some point.

* * *

The day after the theory class, on Saturday.

From noon, when the sun was shining brightly, I was in Redervic, a nearby city of Seolron.

Officially, it was a simple walk to explore the nearby city, but in reality, I had a prior engagement.

The appointment was in the evening, and there was still plenty of time left.

I came out earlier to get a feel for what Redervic was like.

'This city is quite impressive.'

Redervic, a city where magical engineering has developed, is a massive city with the 500km-long Remzier River flowing through its center.

The countless railways on the ground and the flowing river are the veins that give life to the city, and the people living there are full of vitality.

As a hub of commerce, magic, and engineering, Redervic has earned the reputation of being the most developed city connected to Seolron Academy.

I walked through the central area of Redervic, 'Centroford.'

Unlike other areas, this place was where well-dressed gentlemen and ladies quietly enjoyed their leisure time.

Centroford, a symbol of Redervic's revival, is a residential area for the wealthy, with beautiful avenues and steam cars and golem carriages driving on every road.

I sat on the terrace of a quiet café and drank coffee.

The subtle aroma of the coffee beans mixed with the coffee I was drinking, creating a unique atmosphere even on a weekend.

'Impressive.'

It's a beautiful place, and I wouldn't mind living here once in a while.

It's natural to have such thoughts.

'The housing prices must be quite high, though.'

After paying for my coffee, I headed to the next area.

'Grand Chapel,' the bustling commercial district of Redervic, where the massive Gothic Revival white cathedral stands.

It's no wonder it's called a bustling area; it was filled with all sorts of things I had never seen before.

Machines emitting white steam from their brass exteriors and the mechanics who maintained them.

Children playing with small mechanical toys.

People busking on the streets with accordions, cellos, and violins, and citizens dancing to their music.

"......"

As I wandered through the city, the sun began to set, and the sky was painted with a fiery sunset.

Ding. Ding. Ding.

The giant clock towers scattered throughout the city rang, signaling that it was 6 o'clock.

It was early spring, still with traces of winter, so the sun set early, and the air quickly turned cold.

I buttoned up my black coat and headed to the meeting place.

So far, I had only seen the beautiful side of Redervic, but the place I was heading to was the opposite.

The shadows cast under the intense light.

A place known as the ugly face of the city.

I pulled my wide-brimmed hat down deeper and walked through the mist rising from the surface of the Remzier River.

As the crimson clouds of fire drifted to the west and the deep blue sky covered the entire city of Redervic,

I stood at the entrance of an alley in the factory district, where thick fog was rising.

There was no one around.

Even the street beggars had given up and retreated to the deeper parts of the alley, and the children who worked to earn their daily wages had gone home, coughing roughly.

I was the only one here.

The crimson light from the street lamps mixed with the fog, creating a hazy glow.

In that hollow silence, I leaned against the soot-stained brick wall and waited for the person I was supposed to meet.

'He said he would come early, but he's late.'

Just as I thought this, a sound came from the alley where I was leaning.

Grrr.

A sound that could never be produced by a human throat.

I straightened up and stared into the alley.

A pair of red eyes appeared in the space where the gray fog and black darkness were half-mixed.

'This is quite something.'

I recalled what Selina-sensei had said in the restaurant the day before.

The rumor about students seeing a werewolf.

She had brushed it off as just a rumor, but I wondered what she would think now.

At that moment,

The creature moved in the darkness.

It dashed towards me in an instant.

I didn't miss the sight and

immediately raised my fist and struck the creature's head.

Boom!

"Ow!"

A rough scream echoed briefly through the fog.

I looked down at the creature crouching in front of me, not hiding my disdain.

"I was wondering why you were late. Were you planning to play a trick like this?"

"Damn it. It's been a while, so I thought it would be fun to surprise you a bit."

The creature, who was rubbing his sore head, was an acquaintance and subordinate I was supposed to meet.

"It's been a while. Hans."

"It's been a while, sir."

He was the one who had started the rumor about werewolves among the students.