Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 427

Saiolous Garteanon, the Dean of Lavatenon University.

He was the very person who established the magic university in a relatively large city. A powerful mage, and a tenacious seeker of knowledge.

Based solely on his officially recorded age, he was similar to Madrich Onion, whom Lenok had faced before.

After reaching the Saint-level [a high rank in magic], he had walked the path of a researcher and had not revealed any specific achievements, but the world believed that he had not been able to overcome the wall of the Supreme level [the highest rank in magic].

However, regardless of his personal achievements, his attempts and contributions to fostering talents who sought to understand magic in this vast city were highly regarded.

His reputation and status among the citizens were considerable.

Some even said that if he retired from his position as dean and entered politics, his seat as a city councilor was as good as confirmed.

Inside the massive Gothic-style corridor leading to the dean’s office.

Lenok nodded as he scanned the information that Davi had gathered from various networks.

‘A flexible and communicative nature rather than stubborn. Impressive insight and adaptability, not typical of a high-ranking mage…’

It was an undeniable fact that high-ranking mages who delved deeply into their own magic tended to be dogmatic and difficult to communicate with.

Saiolous, on the contrary, seemed to have a relatively smooth personality in terms of communication among such mages.

‘His judgment tends to lean towards political arguments, but he is not selfish. He is interested in nurturing future generations, but he also actively uses his position as dean…’

“Davi, this is more detailed than I thought. It’s so specific… it’s almost suspicious.”

Lenok was puzzled by Davi’s report, which was suspiciously detailed about Saiolous’s personality and tendencies. Davi yawned and replied.

[He was once under audit as a city council candidate a few years ago. And among Master’s acquaintances, there’s an entity working in the audit office, right?]

“…You used Meyer’s network access to dig through the audit office’s database?”

[It’s not difficult if you have contact information, identification, call history, and voice recordings. I don’t know why, but other entities besides Master seem to be strangely obsessed with biometric information. So, I waited for the right opportunity and stored it in the toad house.]

“…”

Although Davi explained it as if it were nothing, it goes without saying how difficult it was to break into the security network of the city council’s audit office and retrieve data.

The power of the cyber spirit, who had brought back the audit office’s data as if it were natural, was already growing in a different direction from Lenok’s.

It was inevitable that the caster and the spirit shared a part of their minds to some extent.

Then, could it be that a part of Lenok’s endless talent was also being manifested in a different way through Davi?

‘Come to think of it, it’s been a while since Davi turned into a three-tailed fox…’

Just as important as Lenok’s own growth was guiding the direction of growth of the spirit that accompanied him.

Originally, he had been working on this kind of spirit formula research in parallel with Aris, but it had been left unfinished as she returned to the Magic Tower.

Lenok nodded, thinking he should buy some catnip for Davi.

“Okay. According to the data, the dean isn’t just a good person either. Well, if you analyze it like this, anyone would look good…”

[The only good entities are the ones who look up to me.]

Davi grumbled.

While Lenok was pondering when he should re-educate Davi on how he views humans other than himself, they reached a large door at the end of the corridor.

[If you don’t want to knock, just come in.]

Lenok paused at the gruff voice coming from inside the door, then immediately pulled the doorknob.

A large office befitting the position of a university dean.

The chaotic scene of old books, half-read and carelessly thrown around, was impressive.

A white-haired old man, who had been hunched over a pile of documents while sitting askew between desks, glanced up.

“You’re faster than I thought. Not a personality befitting a scholar.”

“…”

“It’s natural for one’s pace to slow down when pondering something. And a researcher is a profession that always has to be pondering something. In that sense…”

The dean, Saiolous, put down the pen he was holding as if throwing it, leaned back in his chair, and smiled.

“Contrary to the rumors, you might be suited to be a war mage.”

“I am Evan Bailen.”

Instead of responding to his words, Lenok slightly bowed his head. Saiolous laughed heartily.

“Hahaha! I’m just joking. As a mage who handles the same type of formula, it’s not a job I can recommend. I can’t do such a terrible thing to a junior, can I?”

“…Junior, you say?”

The same type of formula.

Lenok realized how Evan was perceived in this university. The moment he raised his gaze.

[Booo-]

A fluffy ball of fur popped out from behind the dean’s chair.

The ball of fur, rolling out from between the scattered books, looked up at Lenok from under his feet.

A cloud-like appearance that combined a baby goat and cotton candy.

It was closer to a beast than a human, but the magic power flowing from within was alien and did not belong anywhere.

Lenok, belatedly realizing the identity of the ball of fur, muttered.

“A spirit, I see.”

“A friend I made in my later years. After reaching the Saint-level, the research I was conducting was about how much a completed mage could accept formulas from other systems.”

[Boo-]

The ball of fur rolled around the office with a small cry.

Its movements, mainly around Lenok’s feet, seemed as if it were asking him to reveal what he was hiding.

Lenok, facing the wild spirit, chuckled and took Davi out from his arms.

[…?!]

Davi, led by Lenok’s hand, crawled out and jumped in place when he saw the ball of fur rolling around at his feet.

Fwip!!

In an instant, Davi climbed onto Lenok’s head, running along his arms and shoulders, and glared at the ball of fur with his tail erect.

[Booo.]

The ball of fur rolled around as if it were disappointed by the sight.

The dean’s eyes lit up slightly as he watched Davi’s movements.

“It’s clear that it possesses high intelligence. I’ve only heard rumors, but I knew it would be like this.”

“Why is that?”

“Spirits that don’t have high intelligence tend to react in some way when they receive a lot of attention from humans.”

The dean smiled and turned his chair, hugging the ball of fur.

“On the other hand, your spirit has never caused any trouble despite receiving a lot of attention, enough to become the mascot of the Elemental Department. It’s proof that it fully recognizes and considers the situation of its master.”

[…!]

Davi tapped Lenok’s head with his tail as if to say, ‘See?’

He didn’t want to say it in front of others, but it seemed that he liked what the dean was saying.

Lenok stared at Saiolous’s face for a moment, then sighed softly and sat down on the chair opposite him.

The dean chuckled as he watched Lenok.

“When you meet a spirit mage, it’s better to praise the spirit than the mage. If you ever meet a mage of the same system in the future, keep that in mind.”

“I will.”

“It seems like we’ve broken the ice, shall we get to the point?”

The dean, who had slid out of his chair and onto the desk, picked up a thick file and showed it to Lenok opposite him.

“It’s a report on the circumstances of the related incident. Let’s talk while you read it.”

Lenok sat on the sofa opposite the thick desk and flipped through the file.

As soon as he turned the page, photos stained with red greeted Lenok.

The gruesome sight of a workshop hidden in a small room, completely covered in blood.

“The estimated amount of blood is 20 liters. Considering the number of staff dispatched, it’s as if they scraped all the blood from their bodies and plastered it everywhere.”

The dean said, watching Lenok’s expressionless face with interest.

“The owner of the workshop is Hylo Thompson. A military mage from the city council’s research institute, who refused government support even after reaching level 6 and continued his independent research.”

The dean sighed softly and glanced back at Lenok.

“He was conducting dangerous research as much as his skills supported him, and in the process, it seems he used the results of your paper.”

“…”

“A nearby business that was paying royalties for your paper and developing engines recognized this fact and protested to us. We sent a manager to investigate the details, but…”

So that’s how it turned out.

Lenok pondered for a moment and asked.

“Are you still keeping this matter a secret from the outside?”

“We reported it to the police, and the crime scene has been cleaned up. We just haven’t reported the specific circumstances to the city government’s technology management bureau.”

The dean replied.

“The power-to-magic conversion paper you wrote is not just of academic significance, but it also properly penetrates the energy field, which has many potential applications in various fields.”

“I see.”

“Therefore, if we report this fact to the technology management bureau, they will try to thoroughly protect not only your person but also the copyright of your paper.”

“…”

“But judging from your attitude and tendencies so far, it seems like you would find such attention bothersome.”

So, he knew that Lenok had been writing papers behind Aris’s lab and only maintained his achievements as an assistant professor.

He had heard that he was a busy person, but the dean was accurately aware of what was happening in this school.

“You were also the one who took the initial action when the missionary of Guido caused a disturbance, right? I don’t know how much Aris cares for you to hide all those circumstances, but I understand that you don’t want to be in the spotlight that much.”

The dean chuckled as he looked at Lenok.

“I also don’t want to hand over such an excellent talent to the technology management bureau like this.”

Lenok couldn’t help but chuckle at the easygoing attitude that was not typical of an old high-ranking mage.

He had heard that he was of a similar age to Madrich Onion, but his personality and the density of their conversation were completely different from the military mage he had faced.

At that age, he must know roughly where this world is heading, yet he is trying to focus on what he can do as a dean.

That was enough to gauge the distance.

“Let’s make a deal. I’ll take care of this matter.”

“…You will?”

“If I find the culprit who killed the staff and hand them over to the department, there’s no need to report it to the technology management bureau separately.”

Lenok said, slowly drawing up his magic power.

At the same time, the magic power flowing from Davi’s body resonated, slowly boosting the energy.

Slowly, gradually. But not dull at all. Not enough to show Lenok’s true colors.

Whooong…!!

The magic power that Davi and Lenok resonated with swirled in the middle of the office.

[Booo…!]

The ball of fur spirit, which had been rolling on the floor, let out an uneasy cry.

The dean’s wrinkled face, which had initially looked at Lenok with a slightly bewildered expression, gradually began to be filled with surprise.

“No, wait a minute… You, could you be a military…!!”

Before the surprise could subside, Lenok said again.

“In return, please connect me to the Central Council’s network.”

“…What did you say?”

Lenok smiled before answering.

He had already roughly known what position Saiolous held by peeking into the audit office’s database through Davi.

“You’re not a councilor yet, but you’re serving as a technical advisor to the Central Council.”

“…”

“Just arrange a suitable position for me in that advisory board. A position like an executive secretary or a clerk would be appropriate.”

Aris had temporarily left the university, and Lenok’s achievements were becoming more and more extraordinary.

However, even at this point, Lenok had no intention of abandoning the identity of Evan, which he had painstakingly created.

The identity of Evan Bailen, which had been flimsy at first, had become firmly established through Aris’s guarantee and the steady progress he had made over the years.

Then, shouldn’t he find a way to utilize this identity in a different way?

As he learned more secrets, Lenok’s approach had to change as well.

Lenok was thinking of directly infiltrating the innermost part of the city council using Evan Bailen’s identity and abilities.

Lenok’s remarks were so bold that they felt somewhat rude.

However, if the fact that Lenok had been hiding his achievements until now and the fact that he had shaken the entire academic world with just one paper were combined, the story would be different.

The dean, rather than getting angry, began to carefully consider the terms of the deal.

Why Lenok was suddenly revealing his achievements at this point and trying to impress the dean.

And what would be mutually beneficial through this deal.

“…You’re a more ambitious friend than I thought. Have you been hiding your achievements until now for this…? Your patience is very impressive. I admit it.”

“…”

“But the price doesn’t match. You know that too, right?”

The dean’s eyes had already turned into those of a cold-blooded dealmaker.

“The reason I called you in for this matter was to prevent us from getting into trouble. That alone is not enough for me to trust you and push you into the advisory board… not by a long shot.”

Lenok’s remarks just now meant that he wanted to ride on the dean’s connections and gain access to a key position within the city council.

As such, it was a very suspicious remark, and if Lenok were to do something foolish, the dean would be responsible for it.

It was an absurdly unbalanced situation to give up that position in exchange for just taking care of this matter.

However, Lenok smiled even at the roundabout refusal.

The fact that he was commenting on this topic meant that the dean was willing to accept the deal if the terms were right.

From the dean’s perspective, who was already half-appointed as a councilor, he did not have much attachment to the technical advisory position in the Central Council.

Lenok took out a piece of paper from his pocket and placed it in front of the dean.

Thud.

“What is this?”

“It’s a plan that briefly summarizes the theme and content of the second paper I will write.”

“…!!!!”

The dean’s eyes widened as he picked it up and began to examine it.

Lenok watched him and slowly added.

“The Balkan Magic Engineering Expo, which will be held in about two months. I’ll present this paper there on behalf of Lavatenon University as a condition. How about it?”

A large-scale event and festival where all researchers and certified mages active in the Balkans gather.

It was a place where vast capital and manpower were concentrated, with not only research institutes directly under the city council but also key figures from the Magic Tower and mages from the Order Alliance.

There, the author of the power-to-magic conversion paper would present his second paper, and Lavatenon University would take all the glory.

For the dean, it was a golden opportunity to elevate the university’s name, prove that he had produced excellent talent, and strengthen his position.

However, the dean’s hands, which were holding the paper research plan, were trembling faintly.

“This is absurd… Realistically, there’s no way it’s possible to prove this topic and write it as a theory…”

“If it were impossible, I wouldn’t have even shown it to you like this.”

Lenok slowly rose from his seat with a blank expression.

[Boo…]

The ball of fur rolled to Lenok’s feet, making a sound as if it were disappointed.

When he bent down and stroked the ball of fur for a moment, the spirit let out a pleasant cry.

[Booo.]

[……]

Shashashak!!

Davi, who had climbed onto his shoulder, shook his tail wildly in front of Lenok’s eyes with a sulky look.

Lenok chuckled, brushed away his tail, and greeted the frozen dean before turning his back.

“Let’s talk again after I finish this matter. Since I brought it up first, it would be faster to show it to you directly.”

“…I’ll provide the necessary manpower from this side. Just let me know the time and place before you leave.”

“Understood.”

Lenok, who had opened the door to the dean’s office, immediately reached into his pocket and took out his phone.

“It’s been a while. Are you interested in working together?”

He could get decent information by borrowing Davi’s power as before, but for crime scenes and other incident records, offline rumors were also important clues.

There was no need to go far when he had an expert in this field.

Lenok, who was busy talking on the phone, walked out of the school’s main building.

Davi, who had been secretly watching from inside his coat, secretly moved his mouth.

[Boo, boo…?]