"Elias? You finally made it to class!"
In the classroom of the Magic Direction Class B, Elias, with a bandaged arm, immediately caught the attention of his classmates upon entering.
His female deskmate eyed his right hand curiously. "I thought your absence was due to illness. Is it an injury? Nothing serious, I hope?"
Elias shook his head with a smile. "It's nothing, just a superficial wound."
Thanks to magical healing potions, his hand had mostly recovered in three days.
Many classmates, especially the girls, expressed their concern for Elias.
He responded with polite smiles, but internally, he remained on guard.
It wasn't paranoia. Luna hadn't shown up for three days, and with her ability to disguise herself, Elias couldn't help suspecting everyone around him.
His overstuffed shoulder bag was always within sight, placed where he could easily reach it.
Though Luna hadn't appeared, Elias had been busy. He spent every waking moment in the alchemy room, producing useful and not-so-useful items, stuffing them all into his backpack.
Still, he felt uneasy. The save point in the game hadn't updated yet, keeping him on edge.
As he pondered, the noisy classroom suddenly quieted down.
"Shh!" a classmate whispered.
"Isabella's coming! Stop talking!"
Elias heard the rhythmic sound of high heels approaching from the corridor, growing louder. He looked around at his classmates, who now pretended to be engrossed in their books, and wondered, was Isabella that intimidating?
Moments later, Isabella, carrying a stack of books, entered the classroom. She was dressed as he last saw her in the office: a shirt with a white scarf and a high-waisted black skirt, exuding a mature and professional charm.
However, the Isabella in class was quite different from the one he knew. She scanned the room with a stern and authoritative look.
When her gaze swept over Elias, it was devoid of any warmth, almost as if she was a different person.
"Before we begin, let's have a random review of the previous lessons," she announced, placing her textbooks heavily on the podium, her eyes sternly scanning for an unlucky target.
"Third row, Fael, explain the process of the magical core structure."
Everyone glanced at Fael with a mix of sympathy and amusement.
"Uh... well... it's like..."
The student was visibly flustered, stammering through his answer.
"It's frustrating when you zone out and skip class every day, especially when I've explained the basics multiple times. How can you not remember?"
Isabella's tone grew sharper. "Go back and write it out twenty times until you memorize it. The rest of you, continue answering."
The classroom was filled with an air of apprehension, especially the students sitting behind Fael, feeling as unlucky as if they had stepped in dog poop.
Elias shivered, not out of fear of Isabella, but...
Suddenly awakened to the age-old student fear: the homeroom professor is the most terrifying creature on Earth.
The random check ended amid the tense atmosphere, and Elias opened his textbook.
This was his first time attending Isabella's class.
Despite her stern demeanor, Isabella was captivating as a lecturer, engaging even someone like Elias who lacked the basics, and sparking his interest in the subject.
The course was a fundamental one in magical industry, the backbone of the empire's prosperity and development.
Since the discovery of magical crystals and their use by Vincent Sky, the first principal of Rose City University and a great scientist of the Royal Academy, a new era of magical industry revolution had begun. These crystals powered new steam engines with low energy loss and near-inexhaustible power, propelling the empire's technological, industrial, and even military and civilian advancements far beyond other nations.
The Saint Rose Royal Magical Science Academy, where Elias studied, was thus ranked among the top three higher education institutions in the country.
So, the game protagonist attending this academy was a true genius, a scholarly elite.
Elias envied that, having no basics himself and fearing being exposed and expelled during exams...
He sneaked a glance at Isabella patrolling around. Maybe, given their life-saving bond, he could ask her to help him avoid failing?
Lost in thoughts of bargaining, Elias didn't notice Isabella's approach.
Engrossed in his workbook, struggling with a problem, he was suddenly guided by a gentle hand, patiently pointing out the solution.
"Hm? Have you forgotten everything from the previous lessons? You should begin solving the problem like this."
"And then, like this..."
Elias had a moment of realization. He was certainly capable of solving equations, but once the "magic guide" type of peculiar parameters were introduced, he found it challenging.
Under Isabella's hands-on guidance, he surprisingly solved several other practice problems independently.
Considering this, apart from "magic," the technology of the era wasn't too advanced, and the problems were not as tough as he had imagined.
"Thank you, professor, now I understand..."
Elias expressed his gratitude with a smile.
However, when he thought Isabella would move on to assist other students...
Isabella didn't let go of his hand and even playfully squeezed his right hand, which held the pen, a bit harder.
"Professor?"
Elias, puzzled, raised his head to look at Isabella.
She was leaning over, her shirt's neckline slightly ajar, revealing the curves of her chest and... a cleavage that nearly made him blush.
Realizing his gaze was too forward, Elias quickly shifted his attention to her deep green eyes.
He thought he detected a faint chuckle.
"How's your wound healing?" she asked with a serious expression that seemed more caring than stern.
"Thank you, Professor, it's almost healed..."
"And, um..." Elias tried to lower his voice subtly.
"Professor, you're too close. It's... not quite appropriate..."
He cautiously glanced around; his classmates were all engrossed in their workbooks, oblivious to their exchange. He sighed in relief, thinking Isabella would immediately step away. But in that moment, he wondered if the magical potions had caused hallucinations.
"I'm not wearing anything underneath."
Elias lifted his head in shock.
Defying her previous indifferent expression, Professor Isabella gave him an ambiguous wink.
She then stood up and walked away from Elias's desk, leaving him staring after her, his mind seemingly short-circuiting.
"Elias,come to my office later," Isabella said without turning back, her tone detached.
His female deskmate, noticing Elias's dazed expression, giggled, "Did you do something wrong? Caught the Professor's eye?"
Elias turned to her emotionlessly, unaware of what had just transpired. "You're in trouble, going to be punished by Ms. Isabella!"
"Maybe..." Elias nodded blankly.
What awaited him could be a punishment, or perhaps a "punishment."
It was only then that his brain started working properly again, as he realized what had just transpired...
Was she a lecherous sexual harasser?
How bizarre...