The Academy is Doomed

Chapter 33

Amon recalled a conversation a few days earlier.

‘Teacher, what do you think of my plan?’

‘You mean the perfect plan to fill an entire building with your dolls?’

‘Yes.’

Amon smiled, half dejectedly.

‘I think……would be fine.’

It might be okay.

But you can’t just stand in front of a student with sparkling eyes and say, “Stop talking nonsense and get out of here!”

‘Yeah, if you want to try it, go for it. But you have to keep this in mind.’

‘What? What?’

‘You see, our academy’s finances are precarious. I can’t provide you with the materials.’

Although his true intention was, ‘I don’t have money to spend on that,’ Raymond waved his hand as if he was worried about something so trivial.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” he said.

That’s Raymond, the man who became a Sword Master while foraging for wild plants.

He’s well on his way to self-sufficiency.

‘However you’re a student and you shouldn’t neglect your studies in preparation for the job. As long as you promise me that, you can do as much as you want.’

‘Yes, I’ll do my best in class!’

And so began Raymond’s exhibition plan!

Of course, it doesn’t cost Amon any money, and Raymond’s diligence in class means he’s done his part as an educator.

‘Of course, I got in trouble with the principal for renting out an empty building.’

As it turns out, Anar’el is pretty strict when it comes to things other than money.

Anyway, for now, Amon stood in front of the building Raymond had agreed to rent.

‘Not much has changed from the outside.’

But Raymond’s dark circles from his latest class were getting deeper by the day.

Given that, it was clear that he was doing something.

‘Well, let’s go inside.’

Once inside the multipurpose room, which had previously been used as an auditorium and gymnasium, Amon’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Huh, huh……!?”

Raymond. Raymond. Raymond.

Everywhere he looked, there were Raymonds.

“Ugh, ugh……!”

The ceiling, the walls, the floor, nothing but Raymond!

Raymond was staring at himself with his characteristic expressionless face.

‘Those eyes!’

The horrifying sight of dozens, maybe hundreds, of Raymonds watching him from all sides!

Amon clutched at his head, the madness eating away at him.

“Sir.”

“Hmph!”

Suddenly, the Raymond doll standing next to him spoke, and Amon was startled out of his thoughts.

If it wasn’t for Amon’s training in the Arma Mountains, he would’ve screamed at someone!

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh, uh……?”

Amon froze like a startled deer and realized that it was the real Raymond, not the puppet, who had spoken to him.

“Are you Raymond?”

“What’s wrong with you all of a sudden, you’re yelling.”

“Uh, um…….”

Amon wanted to ask how he could look like this and not scream, but he swallowed hard.

When he saw Raymond standing there, his dark circles almost reaching his chin, he realized that he had been through a lot.

‘Hard work is hard work.’

Amon coughed and cleared his throat.

“Well, I see. How’s your work going?”

“Yeah, I’m just about done, we just need to open.”

“Open…….”

Was he really going to open this horrific landscape to the citizens of Amur?

While I was pondering this, Raymond held out a bundle of fabric.

“That’s right, we just need to hang this before the opening.”

“This is a banner?”

“Yep. I need to let people know that my handmade doll exhibit is coming, because no matter how amazing my work is, they can’t come if they don’t know.”

“Uh-huh.”

You made nearly a hundred puppets in a few days, and managed to squeeze in a banner in between?

‘He must be a sword master with his hands.’

The scenery is actually quite bizarre, but the quality of each doll is very good.

It was much better quality than the dolls I had seen in the past when I went to the city to buy my sister a doll for her birthday when she was younger.

‘I quickly gave up when I saw the price of the doll.’

Anyway, Raymond, who was hugging the banner, suddenly jerked and fell to the ground.

“Raymond, what’s wrong with you!”

“Uh, uh……I’ve been up all night making dolls for a few days, and I’m just so tired.”

“What?”

Raymond mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

“Sir.”

“Ugh, huh?”

“Will you go to bed now?”

“What, sleep?”

“As for the rest, please……”

After saying that, Raymond collapsed and fell asleep!

Amon, who was looking down at him, had a hunch.

‘Wait. No way.’

Amon looked down at the banner he’d been handed as he collapsed and muttered to himself.

“Am I supposed to be in charge of the exhibit……?”

* * *

The clock is ticking!

Amon shared the news with his trusted fellow teachers, but their reactions were uniformly puzzled.

‘So? You’re on your own, right?’

Anar’el was pouting tightly, probably because he let Raymond use the empty building on a whim.

Given the angle of her ears, it would take at least two more days for her anger to dissipate!

And the next one, Brestle?

‘You tore up my grocery order, and you want me to help you? I don’t care.’

Amon nearly loses his cool when Brestle, haunted by the ghost of a dead man, dares to bring up the subject, but the clock is ticking, and the parties come to an amicable settlement of “confiscated dinners for three days.”

And as for Marion.

“I’m drunk! You want me to help you? Of course, of course, I’ll help you, giggle giggle!’

‘No, just keep drinking.’

I didn’t expect that from Marion in the first place!

‘And what about Sloth……?’

‘Thanks to Amon, the misunderstanding between her family has been resolved, so maybe Sloth will be willing to help?

I rushed to see her, hoping for the best.

‘I’m in a hurry, I have to go home.’

Isn’t there a saying that you are betrayed by your expectations?

Amon was rather surprised by Sloth’s betrayal.

‘Haha, yeah. Have a safe trip.’

‘Okay.’

With Sloth gone, there was only one person left to help.

‘Of course, Reinbelt would help.’

It was his grandson’s exhibition.

Even so, if he doesn’t help, it would mean his conscience isn’t just slightly tarnished—it’s downright overgrown.

As he thought about it, he and Reinbelt hung a banner at the main gate to announce the event, and he replied with a wry smile.

‘Even if it’s an exhibition at the Amonis Academy, will there be enough people to need help?’

‘Ah.’

That’s what I heard.

If ten people come all day, that’s a lot, don’t you think?

‘I suppose it’s more a matter of how to cheer up Raymond.’

‘Well, I guess that’s true.’

I was overwhelmed with logic.

A few moments later, Amon was seated at a makeshift table in the hastily constructed pavilion. He was waiting for customers who might or might not show up.

‘Well, by the way.’

Amon looked around.

‘Sitting alone, with hundreds of Raymonds staring at you…If one of them makes a sudden move, I’m afraid they’ll run away……..’

It’s definitely a well-made doll, but I guess it has that uncanny valley vibe to it?

Amon shook his head to clear his thoughts.

‘Well, from the looks of it, we’ll never get any guests. Let’s figure out how to appease Raymond.’

* * *

City of Amur!

The fall of the Amonis Academy tarnished its shine a bit, but as a city where many nobles’ children stayed, the development of commerce and entertainment was a natural progression.

Of course, as I said, it declined a bit with the fall of the Academy, but as the saying goes, riches come and go.

Amur was still a large commercial city, hence the occasional social gathering of visiting nobles!

Today’s visitors to Amur are art-loving nobles, thirsty deers in search of art.

They came to Amur and found a stream in the middle of nowhere.

“Ho, ho, the Amonis Academy is having an exhibition.”

“Though faltering at the moment, the Amonis Academy is a prestigious institution, and its reputation cannot be ignored.”

“Hmph, then we should definitely go!”

Dozens of art-loving nobles marched toward the Amonis Academy with their squires and servants.

“Huh? What’s that procession?”

“The Amonis Academy is holding an exhibition.”

“Hao, if there’s a procession like that, it must be quite an exhibition.”

“Shall we go?”

The Second Army marched toward the Amonis Academy.

* * *

Amon’s heart skipped a beat at the sudden influx of people.

“Get in line, please!”

“Hahaha! Follow me quickly!”

“Yes, master!”

“Line up! Please line up!”

Despite the bullying, the art-loving aristocrats pushed their way into the exhibition hall.

Well, as long as they got in, it wasn’t too much of a problem.

The size of the Amonis Academy meant that every single building was substantial.

The problem lay elsewhere.

“Aaahhhhh! Those eyes!”

“Don’t look at me like that!”

Everyone who went in was running out, their faces white with terror.

Who wouldn’t be like that if hundreds of identical faces were staring back at them with doll-like vacant eyes and alien features?

So there was a jumble of people trying to get in and people trying to get out, and it was a hell on earth.

Moreover, the commotion made those who hadn’t yet entered even more curious.

“Isn’t everyone going crazy when they walk in?”

“What is it?”

It was a vicious cycle.

“Please, please, get in line…….”

“Hahaha, this is why people don’t understand art, even the most sublime works have hidden meanings!”

The nobleman laughed heartily, and immediately jumped out with his arms wide open.

“Ugh! This is hell!”

Amon gave up on controlling the crowd as the uproar continued.

‘Let’s just stay put.’

Amon nodded.

‘It’s strange that some crazies have come so suddenly, but once these people leave, word will spread and no more will come, so let’s just hold it together for today.’

Amon smirked.

He relaxed, and his tight chest felt like it was about to burst open.

* * *

A contemplative patron burst through the door of a tavern in Amur.

“Uh, come on, come on…….”

“Get me a drink, get me a drink, come on!”

The customer rolled over and sat down, and the bartender quickly served him a drink.

The boss, who had been waiting for the customer to gulp down his drink, cautiously opened his mouth.

“Customer, your complexion doesn’t look good. Is something wrong?”

“Kuluk! Yes, it is. I saw something so horrible that I’d rather forget it with a drink.”

“Huh? What the heck?”

The guest sipped his drink and told his tale, while the boss listened with a twinkle in his eye.

And there’s a saying.

If you want to hear the rumors of the world, go to a tavern.

In other words, all kinds of rumors gather in a bar, and all kinds of rumors spread in a bar.

“Ho, so there is such a thing.”

The boss’s eyes twinkled.

* * *

The next morning Reinbelt rubbed his eyes.

‘What was that?’

Reinbelt’s job, ‘managing the front gate’, was a dull affair.

Not surprising, given how few visitors came to the Academy.

‘But what’s this…….?’

Hundreds, maybe thousands, of people camped outside the main gate!

Then someone spotted Reinbelt outside and exclaimed.

“Oh! There’s a person!”

“When will the exhibition hall open?”

“Hurry up and open the doors!”

Reinbelt’s face turned to panic as he looked at the screaming crowd.

These were all people who had come to see the exhibition.