Chapter 7

Merry Christmas everyone and sorry for the late release.

The principal greeted me with a bright smile.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Rudger. Are you alright? I was told that you were involved in a terrorist incident."

"It was nothing special. I got help from the Cold Steel Knights at a dangerous moment."

"That's really nice. I was pretty terrified too. You're a new teacher I've been looking for with a lot of effort, but I was wondering what to do if you got hurt. If that happens, our face won't stand up, right?"

Seeing her openly commenting on the school face, she certainly doesn't seem like an ordinary person.

Everyone who has ascended to a high position is bound to be twisted somewhere, especially if you're a member of a wizard's family.

My master was the same and so it's this woman in front of me. It wasn't too surprising.

"Are you not feeling well?"

Seeing the president staring at me with a soft smile in her eyes, I wondered if she realized something. Come to think of it, has the Chancellor ever met Rudger before?

As anxious thoughts passed by, her voice awakened my thoughts.

This is the first time I've seen you in person, but you're pretty tall."

Fortunately, it seemed that this was the first time that 'Rudger' had actually met the president.

I answered with a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for the compliment, even if it's empty words."

"Nope, it's not empty words. The students' reaction to such a handsome teacher will be positive, right?"

"It's overrated."

"Okay, take this first."

The president handed me a piece of paper.

"It was announced in advance, but it's good to have a thorough contract. The contract period is 2 years and the pay is as written there. Food and drink are provided automatically, so be aware."

I accepted the contract and looked at the contents carefully.

Anyway, the moment the preliminary status came out, I was going to throw it away and leave, so I didn't take it too seriously until I read it.

'Uh, what is it? Wait a minute.'

What was written in the contract was so surprising that it made my eyes widen.

'A month's salary is 30 imperial gold coins?'

One imperial gold coin is equivalent to 1 million denars in the continent's common currency, 'denar'.

In other words, 30 imperial gold coins means 30 million denars, this was a huge sum of nearly 300 million won on Earth in my previous life.

At this point, I had no doubt about the power of Theon academy.

It was the best magic academy in the empire. Even in the district where I lived, the annual salary of a lecturer at Gangnam Academy was not even 10 billion won.

'And there is a bonus for each semester, and another bonus at the end of the year? Is it even possible to increase pay based on performance? If students' evaluations of faculty and staff are good, the salary will increase?'

If the teacher does really well and gets good evaluations then together with the bonuses the annual salary will become over 500 million denars.

The contract period is two years, and in total, more than 1 billion denars. With this money, I could go anywhere and make a living. I could even do a side job if I get a permit.

'Gulp.'

I swallowed saliva without realizing it.

It's amazing that the salary is like this, but the subsidy when conducting classes is huge. Even more subsidies may come out depending on teacher evaluation.

In addition to that, I can find a house separately and eat here, so I don't have to spend money on anything else.

'If I survive for two years, I would get 1 billion denars. In terms of Earth money, that's a whopping 10 billion won at a minimum. If I do well, I can even increase my salary, and I can also extend it after the contract is over.'

This contract was crazy. Is this the best academy in the empire?

The life I've lived so far...

"How is it?"

"......Not bad."

This is awesome.

I took a deep breath and read the contract again. But there was a fundamental problem.

'It is true that Theon is great enough to give me this amount of money, but at the same time, I also have a considerable sense of weight as a teacher.'

Will I be able to bear the seat?

In this place where geniuses were thriving would I be able to work properly as a teacher?

'No way. It would be rather a miracle that my lowliness didn't show up in one day.'

Still, I'm confident in my mouth and bluffing ability, because I grew up in an environment where I could die if I didn't.

I quickly shook my head and analyzed the situation.

'The salary alone is attractive, but it is burdensome. I can't refuse because I've already come this far. Rudger has already become a teacher here and I became Rudger Chelici.'

Can I say no in this situation in the first place?

My appointment as a teacher has already been confirmed, and I can't suddenly say that I won't do it now or else people would get suspicious.

In fact, the answer I had to give was already decided.

'I have no choice but to do it.'

I have now made up my mind on how to use Rudger Chelici identity.

'Just close your eyes and survive here for two years.'

In two years, this life could be over, they would give me a lot of money and I would be free to leave, so isn't this better than the military?

Thinking that way made me feel at ease.

I handed the contract to the president and opened my mouth.

"I checked everything."

"Then I wish you all the best in the future. Mr. Rudger."

"Yes. I will leave it up to you president."

I shook hands with the president who smiled towards me.

I was very happy but I tried my best to maintain my expressionless face.

* * *

After meeting with the president, I followed the guidance of Mr. Wilford, who was waiting outside, and headed to my assigned dormitory.

Should they really call it Theon Academy?

Even the teacher-only building on the site looks expensive.

I couldn't believe that the two-story house I saw in a fairy tale was my home.

"There are still three weeks left until the start of the class, so you can rest until then."

After saying those words, Mr. Wilford led the carriage again and disappeared. He did not forget his modest attitude even when he left. He was truly a model gentleman.

'Shall I go?'

Packing my suitcase, I entered the house. I saw it from the outside, but when I went inside, it felt very different. The furniture was also equipped with all sorts of things, and there was no dust to be seen due to regular maintenance.

I checked the bathroom just in case, and was surprised again. The bathroom was filled with pure white tiles and looked like something aristocrats would use. There is water and even a bathtub where I can take a bubble bath.

After checking every corner of the house, I sat down on a soft sofa.

'From now on, I will be an academy teacher......'

So many things happened today.

I was unintentionally involved in a terrorist attack, mistaken for someone else, and even came to the Theon Academy to work as a teacher.

It's just a wonder how the heck it came to be like this, but since I've come this far, I can't escape.

If I suddenly disappear my Rudger identity will be under suspicion and I'll have no place in the Empire since my real face was seen.

In the end, I had no choice but to act as Rudger Chelsea.

"Whoa. It's hard."

It has been 27 years since I came to this world.

I was reincarnated in this world with no special abilities and only memories of my previous life. However, the existence of my parents in the present life was so daunting that in the end, I had to survive on my own.

My life was strange and I had to overcome crises of death several times while getting caught up in all kinds of events.

For me, the current situation is just embarrassing. How did I end up as an academy teacher? And even at the best academy in the Empire.

'This is actually a fake job.'

I wasn't even aiming for it, but that doesn't mean I can stop now.

The moment I get out of here, I'll be eaten by a tiger. That was my situation now.

'Okay 2 years. I only have to survive 2 years. That's enough.'

I also needed a new identity so in this situation being Rudger was very attractive. Rudger Chelici is a man who crossed over to the Empire from a distant land. Here he will never run into anyone who knows him.

I decided to find out a little more about the person called Rudger, just in case.

I grabbed the suitcase and climbed into the bedroom on the second floor. When I entered the room, I put the curtains on the window and looked carefully inside the room to check for any unexpected external surveillance.

'Nothing caught.'

I opened the suitcase right away because I thought it was okay now.

'Rattle.'

"Hmm?"

Is it locked?

I carefully checked the suitcase made of leather. Upon closer inspection, a fine magic circle was engraved on the metal lock.

'This......It's security magic.'

Although the scale is not large, it was a magic circle with a high level of difficulty, which requires detailed mana management, to be engraved in this place.

'Is this because he's a teacher assigned to the Theon Academy?'

Stepping away from the suitcase, I pondered how to do this. It wasn't that I gave up, it was to devise a way to open it.

'It would be convenient if there was a reagent, but the existing luggage has been mailed in advance, so I have no choice but to use another method.'

I took a towel and wet it with water in moderation. Having set aside the wet towel, I grabbed a stick and started a small fire at the end.

I used "Pyro," which could be said to be a basic elemental magic. It is only about the size of a lighter flame, but its heat is considerable.

I brought the fire from the end of the stick to the clasp of the suitcase. The scorching heat began to heat the brass. A few minutes later, as the brass heats up and turns red, I grab the wet towel.

The heated metal cooled rapidly with the sound of water evaporating. Instantly, the lock was twisted, and the magic circle engraved on it was also twisted.

Of course, doing this doesn't make the magic circle's effect disappear. Because magic isn't that easy.

'But I can make a momentary gap in a strong wall.'

Without missing the moment, I shot my magic sharply and pierced the center of the magic circle, an important part that can be called 'core' in the magic circle.

'Paching!'

'Done.'

When it was destroyed, the effect of the magic circle disappeared. At the same time, the lock opened with a click sound.

'Opening this was a piece of cake.'

It is not uncommon to have a magic circle or barrier engraved on a suitcase like this. Most wizards are very sensitive to security, so security magic is close to basic knowledge.

If you can't open it yourself, you can even ask an acquaintance or a professional engraving company.

If someone tries to forcibly remove the security magic, discarding of the contents is activated. It was a demonstration of the extreme ideology unique to wizards that they would rather destroy their data than have it revealed.

However, in order to safely disarm the security magic, it is necessary to analyze the magic to see how it is implemented. Naturally, the process took a very long time, and I couldn't afford to do that.

So this method was chosen. A method close to trickery that does not require analysis of magic.

'It is enough to know where the magic circle was engraved and its material.'

Usually, strong metal is the mainstay for engraving such a magic circle because it can't be engraved all over the leather bag.

Leather is a very poor medium for transmitting magic power, the same goes for fabric and paper. With the exception of parchment made by peeling the bark of hemp, it was impossible to engrave a magic circle or barrier on cloth or paper unless it was an Arch Mage of at least 6th rank.

Conversely, it is metal that has a fairly good conductivity of magic. The most popular are iron and brass. Better materials are silver, gold, and platinum.

The best thing is a gem made by crafting a raw stone, but since the material itself is so expensive, it is not used unless you are a high-ranking nobleman.

Of course, cheap iron or brass is the most popular, and I was fully familiar with the properties of both materials.

Heating and expanding the metal engraved with the magic circle, then cooling it with cold water quickly to shrink it again. The magic circle engraved on the metal will be misaligned and twisted in the process of expansion and contraction of the metal.

Even if there is a deviation like this, the magic circle will try to recover automatically in a line so it's not a big problem. However, the gap that is created is very fatal. At that moment I used my magic power and destroyed the magic circle core.

'I'm glad it went well.'

Well, it's not a commonly known method, it's just a trick made by appropriately applying scientific knowledge.

Most of the wizards are people who are hung up on history and tradition, so they often overlook science. As a result, there were many cases where they did not prepare for, and that was what this company was hoping for.

'If he was a real madman, he would have carried an iron case covered with magic circles.'

Fortunately, Rudger Chelici wasn't that far off.

I opened the suitcase and checked the contents of what was inside.

'Hmm, this...'