I Became an Unknown Professor at the Academy

Beep, beep, beep──!!

“Ugh…”

Nayoung, who had been sleeping like the dead with her face buried in her pillow, moaned and reached out with her hands.

Beep, beep…

The smartwatch, which had been ringing loudly on her bedside table, suddenly became quiet as Nayoung grabbed it.

It was a peaceful weekend with no lectures.

It was a weekend with no plans to go out since the allocation of personal practice rooms wasn’t finished yet.

It was a weekend when she could lounge around all day.

“Ugh, haaang…”

But Nayoung got out of bed, stretched her arms above her head, and yawned to shake off her lethargy.

Whoosh.

“Ugh…”

She opened the curtains to brighten the dark room before taking a shower, and as the warm morning sunlight hit her face directly, Nayoung stumbled back as if possessed by an undead.

“I’m not used to it…”

Nayoung looked out the window for a moment, then turned and headed to the bathroom. And as she finished drying her damp hair.

Ding-dong.

The doorbell rang, and Nayoung combed her hair and got up to answer the door.

“Oh~? What’s up, you’re already up?”

Edyn, wearing a loose-fitting hoodie and tight-fitting training pants that revealed the curves of her hips and legs, entered with a smirk.

“Just get dressed.”
“Take your time. There’s plenty of time.”

Edyn naturally came in and started rummaging through the refrigerator, while Nayoung opened her closet and quickly changed into one of her few casual outfits.

“But you tied your hair…”
“Huh? Oh, oh.”

Edyn, who had been sipping from a round glass bottle containing light blue liquid, suddenly tensed and quickly closed the refrigerator door.

“Why, is it weird?”
“No. It suits you.”

Nayoung asked because Edyn usually left her hair loose when she wasn’t in a formal setting, and her pink-haired friend looked good with any hairstyle because of her outstanding appearance.

“And the drink in the refrigerator is a recovery potion, so feel free to drink it if you want.”
“How does it taste?”
“Moderately sweet?”
“Okay~”

Nayoung smiled at her friend’s behavior, which was like an old man despite her Western beauty.

Ding-dong.

The doorbell rang just as they were ready to leave.

“Edyn?”
“Gulping, phew~ Oh, let’s go.”

Edyn, who was running with a half-empty potion bottle in her hoodie pocket, laughed again as Nayoung opened the door.

“Oh, you’re ready early today?”
“Yes. I set an alarm to wake up.”

Maria, wearing a beige long coat that matched her hair color, smiled and stretched out her hands.

“Our Nayoung~ You’ve finally grown up?”
“Bwoo.”

Nayoung couldn’t do anything but flail her arms as Maria playfully pinched her cheeks.

“Hey, stop it and let’s go.”
“Okay.”

Nayoung, freed from Maria’s grip by Edyn, rubbed her warm cheeks and left the dormitory room.

“Good Morning~”
“Yeah, hi, Yeon-ju.”

And she waved goodbye to her energetic younger sister.

Squeak.

“You’re just right, Nayoung.”

Nayoung didn’t resist as Edyn gently pulled her back. Instead, she secretly enjoyed the soft and bouncy cushion-like feeling on the back of her head as she turned her head slightly and opened her mouth.

“Hi, Hana.”
“Yes. Do you want to sleep together today?”
“Huh? Yeah…”

Nayoung nodded quickly in response to Seo-hee’s question as she snuggled up to Baek Hana’s arm.

“I’m fine with it too.”
“Really? Then let’s sleep together today.”

Squeak, squeak.

Nayoung awkwardly smiled as Seo-hee stroked her hair.

“Ugh… Hey, if you’re done, let’s go. I’m hungry.”

Everyone laughed at Edyn’s exaggerated behavior, and Nayoung left the dormitory with her friends.

.

.

.

“How many times will I get hit today?”

Edyn, lying on Baek Hana’s bed, sighed, and Maria, sitting next to her, playfully poked Edyn’s side.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’re perfect.”
“Don’t fix it… Don’t fix it…!!”
“Haha, I’ll use my divine power without reservation today for my precious friend, so just trust me?”
“Waaah!!”

Edyn as usual just took Maria’s one-sided actions.

Squeak, squeak.

Nayoung enjoyed the soft and pleasant feeling on her head and back, and leaned more comfortably against Baek Hana.

After leaving the dormitory and arriving at the mansion, they had a delicious breakfast. Then, after cleaning up, they went to their friend’s room to digest for a while.

After this, they would change into their training clothes and go to the garden for an intense workout, so it was important to relax as much as possible now.

“Haha, she’s so cute.”

-Peeuk.

Nayoung looked at the fairy, who had quickly become friends with the youngest member of the group.

‘When she’s playing with the fairy, she looks like a younger sister.’

Nayoung felt like she could stroke her younger sister’s hair now. But when she thought of her little sister’s driving, she hesitated again.

Click.

A little more time passed, and the closed door opened.

“Everyone, come out.”

Still unaccustomed to her stunning beauty.

Nayoung swallowed as she looked into Claire’s cool eyes, which made her heart race, and got down from Baek Hana’s lap.

“Nayoung.”
“…”

Nayoung, who had been holding the fairy while her friends changed their clothes, was startled and looked a little dazed when she heard her name called in a beautiful voice.

“Nayoung, please go to the study.”
“Ah, yes, yes…”

Click.

The door closed, and Nayoung sat down on the floor, forgetting the heat on her face and her legs going weak.

“When will she get used to Professor Claire?”
“Compared to last year, she’s much better, right?”
“…”

Squeak.

“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m just a little startled…”

The pounding of her heart gradually slowed down with Baek Hana’s worried touch.

“Th-that, I’ll go first.”
“The Professor isn’t that strict, so don’t be too nervous.”
“Yes. The Professor is very kind.”
“Yes. He’s very strict but very kind.”
“Yeah, yeah.”

Nayoung wanted to say that it wasn’t like that, that she was nervous for a different reason, but she just nodded and left Baek Hana’s room, walking down the quiet hallway.

“Hwaaah…”

Nayoung took a deep breath in front of the study door.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Professor, it’s Nayoung.”

She tried not to stumble over her words, but unfortunately, she couldn’t.

-Come in.

The deep voice always made her skin tingle.

Nayoung cautiously turned the doorknob and stepped into the study.

“Please sit down.”
“Yes, yes…”

Having to sit face-to-face across the desk was not a good arrangement for her heart.

But she couldn’t stand there forever, so Nayoung reluctantly took a seat in front of the chair.

“It’s just a formality, so don’t be too nervous.”
“Yes…”

Good. This time, she didn’t stumble over her words.

“If you have any questions or anything you want to say, feel free to speak.”
“A, a question…”
“Yes. You have plenty of time, so take your time to answer.”

Clink.

The teacup on the table moved.

Nayoung stared at it for a moment and then snapped out of her daze.

‘A question for the Professor…?’

At that moment, Nayoung’s mind started racing.

Easily, or perhaps this might be her last chance, she thought as she gathered her courage.

“Um, um…”
“Anything is fine, so feel free to speak.”

Gulping.

Nayoung swallowed hard as her tongue and lips went dry, and she continued.

“Can you, can you arrange a lot of rare ingredients for me…?!”

She did it. She went through with it.

Nayoung closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for whatever response might come.

“Make a list and submit it to me. I’ll review it and gradually incorporate it into your practice sessions.”
“…”

But the soft voice that came back made Nayoung cautiously open her eyes and look up.

“Anything else?”
“Huh? Oh, oh, oh, no…”

Nayoung jumped as she accidentally bit her tongue.

It hurt so much that tears came to her eyes, but it also helped her snap out of her daze.

“Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine…”

Her tongue and mouth were still stinging, but she could heal them with the potions she had brought, so Nayoung nodded quickly.

‘What should I do…?’

She could get the ingredients she wanted without spending any money, and even collect them herself!

If she hadn’t bitten her tongue, she might have screamed with joy. In that sense, biting her tongue was actually a good thing.

“Nayoung.”
“Yes…?”

Nayoung’s heart was pounding, and her tongue was still stinging, but she lowered the hand that had been covering her mouth and looked at the person who called her.

“Later, I have a request for you.”
“Huh…?”

A request?

Did she mishear because she bit her tongue and damaged her hearing?

“You heard me correctly, so snap out of it.”
“…”

Her pounding heart suddenly calmed down, and her dizzy head cleared as if by magic. Just hearing the voice had that effect.

“Your answer.”
“Th-the professor… if you give me a request… it would be a great honor… but… there are many people who are much more skilled than me… even just the other professors…”
“Only you can do it.”

Her heart thumped loudly.

“A request that only you, with your fusion ability, can fulfill.”
“…”

Her heart, which had just calmed down, started pounding again.

Fusion.

Depending on her will and understanding of the materials used, the probability varied, but it was her unique ability to always combine any two materials into one, and she had never revealed this ability to anyone.

“Can I hear the details in advance?”

Her heart was still racing.

But strangely, her head was cool.

Yes, just like when she was creating a new recipe.

“It could be a book, or maybe just a page. You just need to melt the contents written there and make a potion.”
“So the drinker will absorb the knowledge written there?”
“Yes.”

Wow.

Melt the contents of an object and drink it?

“I’ll do it… no, please let me do it. I’ll definitely succeed…”

A request that would allow her to fully utilize her ability.

So far, she had been very careful in her experiments to keep her ability a secret.

“There’s just one condition. You must not tell anyone about this.”
“I, I also want to keep my ability a secret…”
“I believe you.”

Nayoung clenched her fists tightly.

The one sentence carried a strong message of trust.

“If you fail─”
“No.”

Nayoung, who had been about to vow to succeed, looked at the person in front of her with her mouth half open.

“It’s okay if you fail. I’ll give you as many chances as you need.”

The person had come closer without Nayoung noticing.

Squeak.

“Don’t lose your composure.”

Just like her friend, who always hugged her, the person gently stroked Nayoung’s head.

“Go ahead and leave.”
“Oh…”

Nayoung felt a little sad as the person’s hand moved away, and she slowly stood up from her seat.

“Then, I’ll go.”

She bowed and left the study quietly.

“If you need anything, ask Yoon Do-sik.”
“Yes…?”

And as she heard the voice from behind, she stopped and turned around.

“I mean it. Ask Yoon Do-sik for whatever you need, whether it’s ingredients or equipment.” “Yes, I will.”

Yoon Do-sik was just a professor she had seen a few times in her major classes, but Nayoung didn’t think much of it.

‘The equipment I saw in England…’

She just hoped Monday morning would come soon.