After the meeting with the president, I followed Mr. Wilford's guidance, who was waiting outside, and headed to the assigned accommodation.
Shall we call it Seorn Academy?
Even the teacher-only building that exists on the site looks expensive.
I couldn't believe that the two-story house I had seen in fairy tales was my home.
"There are still three weeks before the start of the semester, so you can rest well until then."
After that, Mr. Wilford led the way and disappeared with the wagon.
Even when leaving, he did not forget his manners, and he was truly a model of a gentleman.
"Shall we go?"
Grabbing my suitcase, I entered the house.
I felt it when I saw it from the outside, but when I came inside, the feeling was quite different. Pretty much all the furniture was there, and there was not a single speck of dust to be seen.
I checked the bathroom just in case, and this was surprising as well.
The bathroom, filled with pure white tiles, looked like it belonged to aristocrats. Hot water comes out well, and there is even a bathtub where you can take a bubble bath.
It's understandable because it's a world where the magic revolution took place.
Dump.
After checking every nook and cranny of the house, I sat down on the soft sofa.
"From now on, I'm an academy teacher... Is it?"
So many things happened during this day.
I was unintentionally caught up in terrorism, mistaken for someone else, and even happened to come to Seorn Academy to work as a teacher.
It's just a wonder how it ended up like this, but since we've come this far, we can't escape.
If I suddenly disappear now, they will gossip about a person named Ludger, and since my real face is exposed, I will have no place to set foot in the Empire.
It was so unfortunate that the real face was exposed, not even a disguised face.
In the end, I had no choice but to act as Rudger Chelsea.
Right now.
"Whoa. It's hard."
It has been 27 years since I came to this world.
I was reincarnated in this world without any special abilities, only retaining the memories of my previous life.
However, the existence of parents in this life was so distant that, in the end, I had to survive on my own.
At the same time, it has been a strange life, filled with near-death experiences and various incidents.
Even for me, the current situation is just embarrassing.
How did I become an academy teacher?
Moreover, it is the prestigious Seorn Academy in the Empire.
I wish I could explain it simply with the word "how."
"The truth is, it's actually a fake job."
It wasn't even my original intention; it was a disguised job.
But even so, I can't give up now.
It's what you can call a symbolic position.
At this point, it's like stepping off a car and being immediately devoured by a tiger. That's my situation right now.
It's a battle between falling down and being devoured by the tiger, or whether the tiger gets tired first.
"Okay. Just two years. I only need to endure for two years. That's enough."
In any case, I needed a new identity.
Under these circumstances, the status of Rudger was very appealing.
Ludgar Celisch is a man who came to the Empire from a distant land. Here, I won't run into anyone who knows me.
Still, I decided to gather more information about Rudger, just in case.
I took Ludger's suitcase and went upstairs to the bedroom. Upon entering the room, I closed the curtains and carefully inspected the interior. It was to prepare for possible surveillance from outside.
"It doesn't take much."
I wanted to feel better, so I opened the bag.
Rattle.
"Hmm?"
What's this? Is the bag locked?
I carefully examined the leather suitcase. Upon closer inspection, I noticed a tiny magic circle imprinted on the metal lock.
"This... It's a security magic."
It's small, but it's a magic circle with a high level of difficulty, requiring precise mana control, to be engraved in a place like this.
"As expected, it's because I'm a teacher assigned to Seorn Academy."
I stepped back from the suitcase and pondered what to do with it.
It's not that I'm giving up; I'm just trying to find a way to open it.
"It would be convenient to have some reagents, but since my existing luggage was sent in advance, I have no choice but to use another method."
I took a handkerchief and quickly wetted it. Placing the damp cloth nearby, I took a stick and ignited a small fire at its tip.
It was Pyro, which could be called a basic manifestation-type elemental magic.
Although its size is only about the size of a lighter flame, the heat it produces is considerable.
I held the fire on the tip of the stick to the lock of the suitcase.
The intense heat started heating up the brass.
A few minutes later, as the brass heated up and turned red, I held out a wet towel.
Sizzle.
The heated metal rapidly cooled down with the sound of water evaporating. In an instant, the lock twisted, and the magic circle engraved on it also twisted.
Of course, the effect of the magic circle did not disappear.
Because magic isn't that easy.
"But I can create a momentary gap in the solid wall."
Just now.
Without wasting a moment, I sharply channeled my mana and pierced the center of the magic circle.
An essential part of the magic circle known as the "nucleus."
Crackle!
"Done."
After destroying it, the effect of the magic circle vanished.
At the same time, the lock opened with a click.
"Opening something like this is a piece of cake."
It is not uncommon for suitcases to have magic circles or barriers engraved on them.
Most wizards are very conscious of security, so knowledge of security magic is considered basic.
If you can't open it yourself, you can ask acquaintances or a specialized company for help in removing the enchantment.
In this case, attempting to forcefully remove the security magic would trigger a spell that destroys the contents.
It is an extreme ideology unique to magicians, that they would rather destroy their data than let it be revealed.
However, in order to safely dispel the security magic, it is necessary to analyze the magic and understand how it was implemented. Of course, this process takes a significant amount of time, and I couldn't afford to do it because I was in a hurry.
So, this was the method I chose.
A method that is more like a trick, without the need to analyze the magic.
"It's enough to know where the magic circle is engraved and what material it is made of."
Usually, the place where such a magic circle is engraved is made of strong metal, as it is not practical to engrave a magic circle on an entire leather bag.
Leather is very inefficient as a medium for transmitting magical power.
The same goes for cloth or paper. Unless you are an Arch Mage of at least the 6th rank or higher, it is impossible to engrave a magic circle or barrier on cloth or paper, except for parchment made from the skin of a demon tree.
On the other hand, metal has reasonably good conductivity for magical power.
The most common metals used are iron and brass. Better materials include silver, gold, and platinum.
The best ones are jewelry made of gemstones, but the material itself is so expensive that it is not commonly used unless you are a high-ranking aristocrat.
Of course, the most popular and cost-effective options are iron and brass, and I am well acquainted with the techniques for manipulating these materials.
The method involves heating the metal engraved with a magic circle to expand it, and then rapidly cooling it with cold water to cause it to contract again.
During the expansion and contraction process, the magic circle engraved on the metal gets displaced and twisted.
Even if it is dislocated like this, the magic circle will attempt to automatically restore itself to a point where it doesn't cause much trouble.
However, the gap that arises at that moment is very critical.
At that moment, I sharply channel my mana to destroy and nullify the magic circle's key spells.
"I'm glad it worked well."
Well, it's not a widely known method; it's just a trick that applies scientific knowledge appropriately.
Since most wizards are obsessed with history and tradition, they often neglect science.
As a result, there have been many cases where they didn't prepare for this aspect, and that is precisely what we wanted.
"A true madman would have carried a steel case covered in magic circles."
Fortunately, Ludger Celish wasn't quite like that.
I opened the suitcase and checked its contents to see what was inside.
"Hmm, this."