Broken Possessors of Infinite Regression Academy

The aftermath of the school trip lingered on, and it took a while for things to settle down.

Most of the students were excited by the novel experience and spent the entire week enjoying themselves to the fullest. Even the students of Bellium Academy, known for their exceptional stamina, couldn’t help but feel exhausted after such an intense period of fun and excitement.

The female students, who had been showcasing their figures during the frequent barbecue sessions, pretending to be uninterested and only picking at a few pieces of food, and the male students, who had been flexing their muscles all day, only to end up with cramps in their stomachs, were particularly worn out.

Of course, despite the minor inconveniences, the trip remained a wonderful memory that outweighed any trivial matters.

“Goodness, at this rate, we won’t be able to get any lessons done. You guys had too much fun, didn’t you?”

The sword-wielding Jaina tapped the tip of her sword against a rock, making a loud tapping sound. She had already done this several times, indicating that the students were still not fully focused.

While the other classes seemed to have calmed down, the dungeon practice class that Jaina was in charge of was particularly chaotic. The wand-wielding Jaina standing next to her clicked her tongue in disapproval.

“If you had that much fun, you should be more motivated to study harder, right?”

Well, it was somewhat understandable. Lately, the number of battles on the front lines had decreased rapidly, and as a result, there had been no need to enter the dungeons, which were strongholds of the demon race.

As students of Bellium Academy, they had access to information from the front lines, and with the noticeable change in the flow of events, it was natural for them to question the relevance of the curriculum.

‘Maybe I should incorporate the Gates as well, as the Chairman suggested,’ Jaina thought. She had already been studying the Gates2 diligently, as a professor at Bellium Academy needed to constantly evolve and stay ahead of the curve.

“……I feel like all my energy has been drained,” a student who had barely managed to clear two dungeons complained.

The sword-wielding Jaina gave him an incredulous look. “If you’re that tired, I’ll suggest to the Chairman that we stop sending students on school trips next year.”

“But Professor, you had a lot of fun too, didn’t you?” a student pointed out, causing both the sword-wielding and wand-wielding Jainas to avert their gazes, feeling a bit guilty. After all, they had been among the professors who strongly advocated for the beach trip.

And who could forget the sight of them strolling on the beach in bikinis?

“Hmm… I guess I have no choice. This calls for a special measure, you guys! From now on, the remaining curriculum will be conducted as group projects, so be prepared for that!”

At the mention of “group projects,” the students let out a collective cry of dismay. Even Mira, who was usually calm and collected, looked a bit flustered at the prospect.

Unlike group projects on Earth, where people issues were often a problem, at Bellium Academy, intentional slacking off was almost non-existent. The students here were of exceptional caliber and status, and any deliberate laziness would quickly spread through rumors, tarnishing the honor of their noble families.

And what about the commoners, you may ask? Well, in the 130-year history of Bellium Academy, not a single commoner had ever enrolled.

“It’s too late to complain now! This will boost your motivation, and that’s a good thing!” Jaina declared, ignoring the students’ protests.

The infamous reputation of group projects stemmed from the sheer amount of work involved. Most professors believed that 1+1 could equal 3 or even more, and in the case of the combination of a swordsman and a magician, the synergy they produced was indeed greater than the sum of their parts.

As a result, the amount of work assigned for group projects was often multiplied several times over. For a group of two, the workload would be quadrupled, for a group of three, it would be eight times more, and for a group of four, it would be a staggering sixteen times more.

“Oh, and by the way, future valedictorian, you’re exempt from this. It’s not fair for you to be in a group with these guys. You have no shame, do you?” Jaina said, addressing Mira, who had been looking a bit uncomfortable at the mention of group projects.

The students, well aware of the insurmountable gap between them and Mira, had already lost interest in him and were focused on their own concerns. After all, Mira had already secured a perfect score on the midterm exam by taking an alternative test, and while he continued to attend classes out of a sense of duty as a student, he always sat quietly in the corner.

As a professor, Jaina highly appreciated Mira’s attitude, but it did make things a bit complicated in terms of teaching and grading.

“Let’s see, in terms of numbers…… Yes, with one person missing, we have an even number of students. So, shall we form groups of five each?” Jaina suggested.

“What?! No way!” the students exclaimed in unison.

With five people in a group, the workload would increase exponentially. A simple calculation showed that for a group of five, the amount of work would be thirty-two times more than usual. And that was without taking into account any additional variables.

Even the ambitious students of Bellium Academy, driven by a strong sense of honor, would find this a daunting task. While they would somehow manage to get through it, the process would likely be far from smooth.

“I’m just kidding. I could see that you guys were dragging your feet, so I wanted to give you a little boost. Did it work? Are you feeling more energized now?” the wand-wielding Jaina asked with a mischievous smile.

The students let out a sigh of relief, but their eyes conveyed that they had a lot to say about Jaina’s methods.

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‘Teachers don’t understand the hearts of students,’ a saying from Earth’s internet suddenly popped into Mira’s mind. Reflecting on Jaina’s recent actions, he thought that the saying could very well apply to this world as well.

The students were currently placing their hands on a magic circle drawn by Jaina, randomly assigning themselves into groups. As Ciel and Leona drew the same number, and a female student joined them, the wand-wielding Jaina approached them.

“You’re getting special treatment, and you’re okay with that, right?” she asked Mira.

“Of course,” Mira replied.

By now, everyone knew about Mira, and the professors were no exception. It was Jaina who had delivered the alternative midterm exam to Mira, after all.

Jaina smiled in satisfaction. “Excellent. Your task will be to assist me. Do you remember the artificial dungeon your club created during last summer’s festival?”

“Yes, I do,” Mira replied.

“Your job will be similar. You’ll be decorating the Gate according to the location and scale I specify. As the Chairman suggested, we may start incorporating the Gate into our curriculum instead of dungeons, and since I’m the only professor who can teach that, you’ll be working with me,” Jaina explained.

While Rosalia still occasionally gave lectures, her appearances were rare, only happening once or twice a month, so her lectures lacked practical applicability. Mira nodded in understanding.

“How many should I make?” Mira asked.

“Make as many as the number of groups.”

“Huh?”

“I’m just kidding, don’t be so scared.” The wand-wielding Jaina put her elbow on Mira’s shoulder, looking a bit awkward as she had to stand on her tiptoes due to their height difference.

“Make a minimum of six and a maximum of twelve. Once you’ve made them, I’ll copy and set them up for the students. You don’t need to worry about the quality being as high as the summer festival; just make it challenging enough for them to struggle a bit. I’ll lend you the materials I use for creating dungeons, so come by later to pick them up.”

“Okay.”

“Oh, and since I don’t want to accidentally dampen their motivation by making it too difficult, I’ll set a mana limit and check it out first. Is that alright with you?”

“It’s fine.”

“Great, thanks. I’ll be counting on you then.” The wand-wielding Jaina patted Mira’s back a few times before leaving. Fortunately, the sword-wielding Jaina had finished sorting the students into groups.

‘Six to twelve, huh.’ That was a significant amount, and without practical experience, one would have to rack their brains to come up with non-overlapping concepts. But Mira didn’t need to worry about that, as he already had an idea in mind.

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Jaina stared at the Gate locations marked on the Bellium Forest map in astonishment. There were a total of twelve Gates, and Mira had actually created the maximum number within a week. It was an impressive feat, even for a dungeon class professor. Jaina couldn’t help but shower Mira with praise.

“You did an amazing job. You must have worked really hard. Wasn’t it exhausting?”

“Not at all. I actually found it quite enjoyable, thinking about how you would be scrambling around inside.”

“Haha, you’re quite the joker.” Jaina patted Mira’s back, ignoring her retort about it not being a joke.

Even with their mana restricted to student levels, professors were still professors. Their experience and insight, honed through years of practical training, couldn’t be overlooked. And that insight was crucial for this particular lecture.

“Shall we take a look at what you’ve created?” Jaina asked, putting on a mana measuring device.

The device had become increasingly indispensable for lectures, as it was far more useful than simply estimating mana levels by eye. Jaina wondered how someone had come up with the idea for such a handy tool.

“You’re not going to tell me the internal structure, are you?”

“It wouldn’t be fun if I did, and it would go against the spirit of group projects.”

“That’s the right attitude. I’ll give you an extra point for that.”

“Don’t bother with the extra points, just get on with it and go inside already.” Despite Mira’s rudeness, which was uncharacteristic of a student towards a professor, Jaina didn’t seem to mind at all. Instead, she laughed and patted Mira’s back a few times before entering the Gate.

While Jaina had been teaching the dungeon practice class for a long time, the world was constantly changing. This was her way of keeping up with the times and improving her own skills.

‘Left is blocked, right is a cliff. A narrow path, huh.’

The underground cave featured a cliff that only allowed one person to pass at a time, and skeletons appeared along the way. The skeletons seemed to be designed to push people off the cliff rather than being a direct threat.

Jaina carefully made her way along the narrow path, aware that any misstep could result in a fall.

‘Even if the fall isn’t fatal……’

The presence of water at the bottom and the relatively low height didn’t change the fact that falling was still part of the designer’s intention. Jaina decided to play along with the intended challenge. She carefully fought the skeletons while staying within the set mana limit.

“Oh, that one’s a bit bigger.”

After some time, a 3-meter-tall skeleton archer appeared in the distance, shooting arrows at her.

‘Yes, it was too easy up until now.’

While it would have been a breeze for a solo player, a group of three would find it more challenging. This was a suitable level of difficulty, and Jaina was curious to see how the students would fare against such an opponent. She cast a defense spell to block the arrows and used a detection spell to survey the area.

She noticed that the skeleton archer was positioned near a section of the floor with a different color, and there didn’t seem to be any other enemies nearby.

‘Nicely done.’

The differently colored floor was likely a trap, cleverly hidden so that one would only notice it upon close inspection.

Maintaining her defense spell to block the arrows, Jaina cautiously approached the end of the narrow path and jumped over the differently colored floor. She was about to engage the large skeleton archer whenㅡ

“Huh?”

She was suddenly pushed hard on the shoulder, causing her floating body to fall off the cliff. She looked up, confused, and saw another 3-meter-tall skeleton kneeling on one knee with its arms raised high in an exaggerated manner. It had been hidden from view when she was on the narrow path.

ㅡYou died.

The words appeared in red in the sky.

“What theㅡ”

Before Jaina could finish her sentence, she fell into the water below with a splash. (Major Dark Soul flashback here LOL)