Volume 2 Chapter 44 Professor Pauman
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Thank goodness, Larry finally came.”
Henrietta-san turned around, her face reflecting the desperate relief of a shipwrecked survivor spotting a rescue boat. She had been hunched over her desk, clearly strained.
”What’s wrong? And more to the point, why is she here?” I asked, gesturing toward Romy, who was leaning her elbows on a workbench, looking visibly troubled.
”You included this girl’s name as an author on the blueprint for the new Mana¹ charging method, remember?” Henrietta-san replied.
”No, I didn’t actually write those blueprints.”
I paused, realizing the connection. Lieutenant Colonel Helbert had previously asked who was responsible for the series-loading of the Amber. That must have been it. But I had only intended for Henrietta-san and Marie to be brought to the Magic Academy. Seeing Romy there, I grew suspicious of her presence. She caught my gaze and offered a peculiar, knowing smile.
”Hehe. Thanks to you, Larry, I’ve started getting a monthly allowance,” she chirped.
”Seriously?” I asked, stunned.
”Me too,” Henrietta-san added quietly. “Since you put my name on the blueprint, I’ve been getting paid. That’s actually the only reason I was able to come to the Academy.”
She seemed to be holding back a much heavier grievance. Looking around the room, I noted the change. “Come to think of it, this place is barren, isn’t it?”
Back at the Magic School, the room had been a cluttered mess of shelves, junk, and erratic equipment. Here, there was nothing but a few papers and her research project, the Transport Golems². I noticed something else—she wasn’t wearing her signature Gothic Lolita attire.
Had I offended her? As I watched, Henrietta-san’s face crumpled, and large, thick tears began to stream down her cheeks.
”I was discarded, Larry. Professor Pauman said I was unnecessary,” Romy answered for her, her voice flat.
Listening to them, the reality set in: to hold a research lab here, one needed to have graduated, become a recognized Research Student³, and be mentored by a professor, or alternatively, be the lead author of a blueprint—like me. This room was originally intended for me. Henrietta-san had admired Professor Pauman from afar, but she had never been his student, nor had she ever led a blueprint. Since I was still technically a student, they had simply been using Henrietta-san’s name to justify the room, but none of her belongings belonged here. The “admired” Professor Pauman had cleaned house.
The only thing she had managed to save was her work on the Transport Golems, which she’d secured only by insisting I was personally overseeing the project. It was a brutal reality—in the hierarchy of the academic world, Henrietta-san and her group, viewed as my hangers-on or ‘cheats,’ were prime targets for contempt and bullying. It reminded me of my old world, where researchers who earned their credentials through papers were often mocked by those who had risen through traditional doctoral programs.
”So, you haven’t been able to do anything for the entire month I was gone?” I asked.
Henrietta-san, her eyes red and swollen, could only nod through her tears.
”And Marie? Where is she?”
”She went to the nursery with Darina,” Henrietta-san managed to say.
I remembered Darina—a girl from Marie’s home village of Barsheni, who had transferred here because of her high Mana levels. So, Marie was here too.
”Are they attending classes, then?”
”They say that since they don’t have the first-semester credits, being held back is a certainty.”
”Romy, you shouldn’t count on moving up regardless of the credits,” I muttered. “Henrietta-san, about your clothing… did they say something to you?”
”No, it’s just… there is a uniform for Research Students here. When I go out, I have to…”
I had assumed she was being bullied out of her personal style, but it seemed the institutional pressure was more rigid than that.
”Fine. I don’t want to deal with him, but I suppose I have to go pay my respects to Professor Pauman. There are supply orders and other administrative things I need to sort out. It’s incredibly petty of him to freeze you out until I arrived.”
I looked at Henrietta-san again. She was physically stunning, and I had a distinct, perverse desire for her. Keeping her as a mistress wouldn’t be a bad arrangement at all.
(When I get back, I’ll find an excuse to send Romy home for the day. And after that, it’s been a while. Since we can’t do anything in the common room, doing it in the lab… that’s going to be exciting.)
”You’re definitely thinking about something lewd, you little brat,” Romy said.
”Romy, you’re a year younger than me. Don’t call me a brat. And stop reading my face.”
”Ahem. I’m going to go greet the Professor now.”
”Wait, I’ll go with you,” Henrietta-san offered.
”It’s alright,” I said, eyeing her tear-stained face. “I want to get a read on his true intentions, and it’s better if you aren’t there. Besides, you look like a wreck. I’ll bring back something good to eat for a welcome party later.”
”Wow, okay! A welcome party for Larry!” Romy cheered.
I left the room, heading toward the stairs. Halfway down the hall, opposite our lab, I found a sliding door labeled “Simple-type Magic Research Lab,” with a fire safety tag attached to the pillar identifying the person in charge: “Professor Pauman.”
It was a world that had completely plagiarized my past life.
I knocked. A young woman replied, and as I slid the door open, a pungent, fishy odor assaulted my senses. The room was a sprawling laboratory, but the wooden walls made it feel dated. Four workbenches were lined up; at one, someone was performing a dissection. That, undoubtedly, was the source of the stench.
”Who are you?” a woman in a lab coat and mask asked, coming over.
”I’m Larry Fee Getys. From the room across the hall.”
”Oh.” The way she looked at me was clearly dismissive.
”I’d like to see the professor.”
”Do you have an appointment?”
”I just arrived today. I wanted to pay my respects.”
She didn’t reply, just glanced at me and walked into the back of the room. A minute later, she returned and signaled for me to follow. She led me to an inner door that wasn’t visible from the entrance. She knocked, and a deep, resonating voice told us to enter.
”Hurry up,” she urged.
I expected her to open the door, but I ended up pushing it open myself.
”Close it immediately!” the Professor roared from his desk.
I stepped inside, and the woman vanished.
”Hello. I’m Larry Fee Getys.”
The Professor didn’t look up from his writing. Even the Principal of my old school had offered me a seat, but this man wouldn’t even acknowledge my presence.
”And?” he asked after a few minutes of agonizing silence.
”I’m here today to introduce myself and ask about the procedures for purchasing supplies.”
”Hmph. You come to pay your respects, yet you arrive empty-handed?”
”I apologize. I traveled straight from the mountains.”
He glared at me, the expression of a man forced to deal with a pest, and pulled a paper from his drawer.
”This is the purchase request form. The standard list is at the office downstairs. For anything else, attach a detailed sheet and bring it to me. State the purpose. If there are no issues, I’ll sign it, and you can take it to the office.”
Everything required his permission. What a chore.
He finally stood up, gestured for me to sit in the guest chair, and sat opposite me. “I detest the military,” he began, out of the blue.
I was currently a military asset, but I wasn’t about to say that.
”That a violent apparatus should have any say in a seat of learning is absurd. Don’t you agree?”
”If you say so,” I replied, suppressing my true thoughts. A child’s body, but an old man’s internal cynicism.
”It is so. The seat of learning should be…”
He continued to rant, his voice growing more heated as he criticized the creation of weapons. For Henrietta-san’s sake, I endured the lecture, nodding at appropriate intervals.
”Do you understand now?” he finally asked.
”Yes. You dislike the military.”
”Indeed. Very well.”
He seemed satisfied enough to stop there.
”Changing the subject—I’ve seen some of the blueprints you’ve authored. What is a ‘screw’? It’s described as a blade that creates a water current?”
”That’s exactly what it is. It’s part of a propulsion system for ships.”
”Propulsion? You mean for a magic ship?”
Had he not looked at the Motor section? He was supposed to be a leading authority on magic tools.
”Are you aware that I am researching magic ships? I am currently elucidating the propulsion mechanics of a conger eel’s tail.”
”So that’s what’s on the workbench?”
”Exactly. I expect to have a breakthrough by the end of this term.”
So that was the source of the smell.
”Is this the magic ship that was announced at last year’s conference? The one being used on the eastern coast? My associate, Henrietta, mentioned it. She’s one of your most ardent fans.”
”Henrietta? That woman with the large chest?”
”Yes.”
”I see.”
He didn’t seem to care about her, nor did he seem to have the slightest remorse for discarding her research.
”Well, what is it? What kind of magic ship are you dreaming up?”
I recalled it was written in one of my other blueprints. I’m using a motor as an outboard engine to drive a screw for propulsion, but just talking about that plainly leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
”Oh, well, it’s still just a concept, really. I was thinking I might be able to register the screw design on its own.””⁴
”Ho, is that so? And what’s it feel like, then?”
”Actually, the military has decided to take it over. I had hoped to proceed under the guidance of renowned Professors like yourself, but I’ve been strictly forbidden from discussing it.”
(A necessary lie.)
”Ho! The military, you say? They’ve got no business stripping ideas away from someone like you.”
”Right? Since you Professors are so famous, they probably worried I’d be outmaneuvered if I sought your help.”
”I see. Tell me, are you aware? Ever since I gave that lecture at the academic conference, I’ve received congratulatory messages not just from home, but from the Empire of Rus, the Empire of Charle, the Turkic Empire, the Republic of Venotia, and the Ferere Church Territory. I used to be ‘Pauman of Schweilitz,’ but now? I am ‘Pauman of the World.’ Do you grasp the weight of that?”
”I do indeed, ‘Professor Pauman of the World’.”
(So that’s why. My blueprints are tied up in military secrets, which is why I’m not allowed to see them. With a guy like this in charge, classified intel would probably be leaking to half the world within a week.)
”That’s right. From now on, when you register any blueprints, you show them to me first.”
”Because you’re ‘Professor Pauman of the World’, of course.”
”Oh, quite. If you do that, I’ll permit you to add my name as the final author.”
”So, you’re planning to not only gain fame but also money from other people’s blueprints?”
”Well, I have a question for you. Could I include the names of my students?”
”Wait, don’t tell me you’ve already laid a hand on her?”
”That’s not what I meant at all.”
”Oh, come now. When there are this many young girls around, if you don’t make a move, you aren’t really a man—it’s borderline disrespectful to them, isn’t it?”
”Is that so? I suppose you’re right. You’re young, but you truly understand how the world works. Admirable!”
(I need to do something about this professor quickly, before he causes all kinds of trouble. What on earth is the Academy thinking with this problematic professor?)
”That girl I introduced you to earlier? She’s quite skilled with her mouth.”
”That sounds wonderful. I heard that bringing women into the dorm rooms is forbidden here.”
”Exactly. Ever since that new Dorm Head arrived, she’s been incredibly inflexible. In that regard, a girl who can just relieve you orally is much more convenient.”
”Ah, I understand. I do, but you have to make sure to satisfy them properly. Are you sure you’re managing that?”
”That’s exactly the issue. My wife is getting suspicious, you see. So, not exactly as a payoff, but I’d like to add my name to the bottom of your blueprints…”
(This absolute piece of trash. I really have to do something about him.)
”Well, we can discuss that later. I don’t have any blueprints I can just hand over right now.”
”Is that so?”
I told him that I’d already released the blueprints I had ready, and that while I had some ideas, nothing was progressing, so I wouldn’t have anything new for a while. Hearing this, he told me in high spirits to put in my purchase requests for whatever I needed as soon as possible.
”By the way, do you professors go out and about often? Perhaps to the provinces?”
”Of course. I am the ‘World-Renowned Professor Pauman,’ after all. Once summer vacation ends, I’ll be touring the various regions for lectures.”
”Is that so? I hope you’ll be safe.”
I’ll confirm the ordering process and everything else with the Academy Director later, but it’s about time I pricked his conscience.
”Is there something you’re worried about?”
”Yes, actually. I recently replicated some weapons from the Empire of Rus. The military academy teacher I entrusted them to failed spectacularly. He did it right in front of witnesses, and the Turkic Empire found out.”
”Oh? Is that so?”
”And because of that, I’ve been targeted by the Turkic Empire’s intelligence agency.”
”An intelligence agency? That sounds shady. Are you sure that’s true?”
”Yes. One of their leaders is a woman who served as the Dorm Head of the Bizan Magic School for many years. I don’t know how she managed it, but she seems to have been investigating the inner workings of this place for years.”
”You must be joking. That sounds like something out of a storybook.”
”It’s no joke. It happened two months ago, when I was moving from Besanburg to the Royal Capital. I was attacked by a group led by her. I had an escort—a lieutenant from the former Golems Battalion, a second lieutenant, and the carriage coachman—but the coachman was killed almost immediately.”
”You aren’t lying, are you?”
”Feel free to check for yourself. The lieutenant fought bravely and managed to drive off the mercenaries, but we were outnumbered, and his arrow wounds were deep. There was a human-sized Golem in the carriage, so while the second lieutenant called for help, I used it to hold them off.”
”And what happened then?”
”They had an Amazoness with them, but I managed to defeat her using Mana. When I finally faced the former Dorm Head, she told me she’d given up on kidnapping me and that she was going to kill me instead. During the fight, she stabbed a thin sword into my back. I managed to survive by draining her Mana at the last possible second, but it was incredibly close.”
”An Amazoness… in the Turkic Empire? That’s a lie. I’ve heard the Amazoness and the Turkic Empire are enemies.”
”That was the case, but I understand their presence has been confirmed in the Bizan territorial capital, the Haritz territorial capital, and the Royal Capital. Haven’t you heard the talk about the cotton fabric shop?”
Professor Pauman went silent.
”No, please, don’t mind me. I’m sure you have a proper escort. But just know that being involved with my inventions increases the level of danger significantly.”
”And… weren’t you afraid?”
He looked at me as if he were staring at a ghost.
”I honestly thought I was going to die. I watched hardened soldiers get killed.”
”Why are you able to talk about it so nonchalantly?”
”When I was a child, I lost my grandfather, my parents, and my four siblings to an epidemic, so I lived right on the edge of death for a while. Besides, I was conscripted into the militia for the Battle of Vod Fortress and was almost wiped out at Garao Village. If the King hadn’t led the campaign personally, I definitely would have died. After that, I was captured by the enemy and turned into a slave soldier…”
”That’s enough.”
”My apologies.”
If I threaten him this much, he shouldn’t be bringing me unreasonable demands too often.
”No… it’s fine. Tell me, how many blueprints are you the lead author on?”
”Wait, have you not seen them all, Professor?”
Since I’d just heard he hadn’t seen the outboard motor blueprints, this wasn’t just sarcasm—it was an incitement.
”Yes. Just wait a moment.”
I took my bankbook out of my inner pocket.
”When I have someone act as a proxy for a blueprint, it costs 110,000 yen per item. I was shocked when I first found out.”
As I said that, I flipped the page.
”Surely, Professor, you must be in the three-digit range?”
”Well… not quite that far.”
He was hedging.
”Let’s see. Looking at the records, it’s just under twenty items. Even counting those for which I haven’t received a request yet, it doesn’t look like it will reach thirty. But, you know, I was shocked—due to a defect in a blueprint, I was forced to pay 15 million yen in damages. That was a rough one.”
”I only know of three. Does that mean most of them are classified?”
”Well, I suppose so. It would take too long to tell you everything. Shall I perform a Mind-read? If we do that, you’ll need to properly request military protection later, or you’ll end up in as much danger as I am. Besides, for the ‘World-Renowned Professor Pauman’ to be connected to professors from other countries…”
I reached my hand out toward Professor Pauman, but he seemed to understand my intent and glared back at me.
”That’s enough. Forget what I said earlier.”
I pretended not to know where the earlier conversation had come from.
”Then, I suppose I don’t need to go through you for procurement of goods either, right?”
”Fine, do as you like.”
”I’m relieved to hear that. Just knowing the materials for secret weapons is dangerous enough. If you’d been Mind-reading me, I wouldn’t have lived to see tomorrow. Seriously.”
Of course, that was impossible, but the Professor seemed to have taken it seriously. This much wouldn’t reform such a pathetic professor, but it should have served as a decent threat.
”Well then, let’s agree to leave each other alone, shall we?”
As I said that and stood up to leave the room, he called out, “Wait a second.”
”What is it?”
”I am the lead author on twenty-five blueprints, and the final author on fifty-two.”
Does he take pride in such things? Comparing them is pointless—I’m using knowledge from my previous life, so the playing field is entirely different. If that’s your standard of value, then yes, you’re on top, “World-Renowned Professor Pauman.” Though, it seems I’ll be passing you before long.
That was a tense exchange. It sounds like you’re handling the power dynamics with this professor quite expertly. Are you planning to leverage this leverage further, or is the goal just to keep him at arm’s length for now?
—
Summary:
Larry arrives at the Magic Academy to find his research lab occupied by Henrietta-san, Romy, and Marie, who are facing professional abandonment by Professor Pauman. Larry attempts to secure supplies for his research, enduring a lecture from the anti-military professor. Larry now faces the challenge of managing his team’s future while navigating the professor’s hostile environment.
The protagonist attempts to manage a manipulative Professor Pauman, who seeks to exploit the protagonist’s inventions for personal fame and profit. The protagonist deflects Pauman’s demands by citing military secrecy and leveraging a threat regarding intelligence agency targeting. The Professor remains unaware of the protagonist’s true level of risk and contempt for his academic exploitation.
—
Trivia:
- Henrietta-san and the others have no academic status to hold a lab here.
- Larry acts as a mentor/benefactor to Marie, Henrietta-san, and Romy.
- Professor Pauman is the fire safety supervisor of the lab section.
- The protagonist’s previous military service at Vod Fortress and Garao Village. The specific involvement of a former Dorm Head in foreign espionage
—
Character Insight:
Henrietta-san experiences profound professional invalidation and loss of status; Romy maintains a cynical, opportunist outlook; Larry balances his internal ego and desire with his tactical responsibilities as a leader.
Pauman shifts from academic arrogance to predatory opportunism, while the protagonist weaponizes his trauma and the ‘Mind-reading’ threat to maintain boundaries.
—
Glossary:
Notes:
• Larry – Larry Fee Getys is a tall, athletic, light-haired Bizan Magic School student, researcher, and tech-minded, telepathic reincarnated former soldier. A pragmatic, detached Arsenal Bureau corporal, he masks explosive strength behind plain clothes, wielding a Treasure Sword and magic tech. He balances academic/military duties with managing his wives and a newly purchased captive Amazoness slave.
• Henrietta – Disheveled Gothic-Lolita Bizan Dorm Head and lab supervisor who collaborates with Larry, teasing and reading his mind. Under her admired yet poorly managing Professor Pauman, she researches Golem labs, rivals Line, and owns Pamela. Despite military pressure on her magic ship research, she strictly enforces Church discipline. Pragmatic yet slightly perverted, she hides a raw, submissive side.
• Romy – A flamboyant, blunt 16-year-old Magic School freshman and “troubled child” from the ‘von’ Odonkor family. Heavily made up yet cute in her strapless mermaid dress, she is a casual researcher and Henrietta’s messy lab assistant who struggles with low Mana and technical concepts. She funds herself via blueprints, dislikes the professor, and has complex, teasing relationships with Larry and the protagonist.
• Helbert – A short, older Royal Army Lieutenant Colonel with a physically imposing build, firm hands, and a boisterous, mocking, yet manipulative strategic mind. The former Vod Fortress manager now directs a Schuberitz Intelligence Bureau lab, where he once inquired about series-loading Amber for Mana charging. Well-loved by his subordinates, he currently watches over the recovering protagonist.
• Marie – Novakova, a bold, headstrong 15-year-old noblewoman from the protagonist’s village, is a skilled Bizan Magic School student, researcher, and mana tech assistant. Comically resembling Nico with a floral hairpiece, Isabella’s niece and the Barsheni elder’s granddaughter is currently pregnant, expecting the protagonist to act as a father figure while raising a child with her boyfriend Larry.
• Mar – A battle‑hardened veteran, clad in worn armor, uses door panels as shields and captures enemy crossbows; Larry’s comrade who teases him about his sister‑in‑law’s pampering, known as Martin to his companion Edmond.
• Pauman – An Academy professor and magic ship researcher who forces subordinates and students into a rigid mold. Known for a harsh, dismissive attitude toward those straying from traditional academic paths, they also harbor a deep dislike for the military.
• Darina – Thirteen-year-old Barsheni village native and Marie’s devoted maid at the Magic Academy, where she transferred due to strong Complex-type mana. A childhood acquaintance of the protagonist, this city-polished girl is seen by Larry as a potential medical mage. She gathers spider silk and coordinates with Principal Professors to deliver crucial orders regarding the upcoming Royal Capital relocation.
• Getys – Larry Fee Getys is a Strock Village youth from the Viscounty of Bizan. Belonging to a noble family of rugged warriors—including Hardy, Denis, and Teressa, who married into the house—he was raised by aunts Alisa and Monica. Court officials used his academy-recognized lineage and family name to clear him of guilt. He holds forest lands and village leadership, inheriting a rugged warrior appearance.
• Fee – Larry Fee Getys, of the court-recognized Fee lineage, heads the Getys household governing Strock Village alongside Hans and Iffens. Embodying traditional authority, his family—including Teressa, served by the maid Nico—manages regional finances. Connected to Adolf and local underworld power structures, the Getys family name, indicating Larry’s lineage, is also part of the protagonist’s full name.
• Principal – The mother of Line and the administrative head of the institution. She exercises authoritative control over research assignments and seeks to trade Larry for Ilse Klein due to interpersonal conflicts in her laboratories. The mother of Sabrina and Rhein who intervenes during Rhein’s violent corridor assault to break up the confrontation.
• Ho – Ho, a comrade of the protagonist. A member of the military unit that defended Garao Village and was slaughtered alongside Marx-san.
• Bizan – The Bizan family name, held by the Viscount. He is the lord of the territory and owner of the castle built within the Danube River.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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